“Sorry, sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Qu Yuan said awkwardly after getting in touch with her friends.
Her friends replied, “We’re not mad, just really curious—is Jiang Rong’s new game really that fun?”
So fun that her friends forgot to reply to her messages and even their own plans.
“Of course! You don’t know how satisfying it is to run a shop that’s entirely your own—an unparalleled feeling I’ve never experienced in other games.”
“Not to mention the pet employees, who brighten my mood every day. Their cuteness almost melts my heart.” Qu Yuan smiled fondly while talking about her little pets.
Inspired by Qu Yuan, her friends all downloaded Home of Adorable Pets.
Although Ying Jia wasn’t a longtime fan like Qu Yuan, she also enthusiastically promoted the game she adored.
She posted her love for the game on social platforms, catching the attention of her gaming circle friends.
“Jiajia, you’re playing Home of Adorable Pets? How do you like it? Lots of people have been talking about it lately,” her friends asked.
Ying Jia was taken aback, realizing many players who liked and recommended the game were numerous.
One person’s recommendation might not mean much, but combined with many others, they formed a huge force.
“Well, it feels very comforting. The game’s name is Home of Adorable Pets, and on the surface, it’s a home for many pet employees—but in reality, it’s also a home for the players.”
“That home belongs entirely to me—and with adorable pets to accompany me, it’s so warm and cozy.”
“If you say so, we have to try it ourselves now,” her friends grew interested.
Many players like Qu Yuan and Ying Jia became unofficial promoters of Home of Adorable Pets.
Their collective voices helped Jiang Rong’s game enter the top 100 rankings in the Carnival Annual Tournament.
According to Carnival’s tournament rules, Jiang Rong’s game ranking rising improved its recommended placement.
Better placement attracted more new players, forming a positive feedback loop.
From then on, Home of Adorable Pets secured its place in the Carnival Annual Tournament’s spotlight.
“Great! Home of Adorable Pets is in the top 100—that’s impressive!”
Seeing the game data, Bai Yang, Liang Man, and other fans couldn’t contain their excitement.
They were also players of the game; for instance, Bai Yang, as a game streamer, even broadcasted Home of Adorable Pets to bring many players to Jiang Rong’s game.
“Tch, only top 100? I thought your recommended game data would be better. So mediocre.”
Just as Home of Adorable Pets fans were rejoicing, someone started tossing cold remarks.
Not everyone who got a recommendation would become a game fan.
But most wouldn’t mock the game even if they weren’t interested.
“Wow, it seems you think Home of Adorable Pets’ data shouldn’t be this low,” Qu Yuan quickly retorted.
“I didn’t say that. Am I the only one who thinks this game’s just average?” the other continued belittling the game.
Soon, many voices chimed in agreeing that Home of Adorable Pets was mediocre or not fun.
Frustrated, Qu Yuan and other players snapped back, “If you don’t like it, leave! No need to try so hard to get attention.”
“What? People aren’t allowed to complain about a bad game? We’re just trying to protect other players from being deceived.”
“Exactly! We mean well—don’t be ungrateful and twist good intentions.”
The other side was quite brazen and thick-skinned.
The heated debate caused hesitant potential players to pause.
“Is this game worth playing or not?”
Some said it was fun; others said no—who should they trust?
At that moment, Liu Zhenzhen stepped forward.
“Hello, I’m one of the new players who came after being recommended. I definitely don’t regret joining.”
“But the premise is that I really love cute pets. This game suits me perfectly.”
“As for those who don’t like cute pets, they’re likely not the target audience. Everyone should judge based on their preferences.”
Other new players supported her.
“It’s normal for a game to have fans and detractors; people should choose based on their taste, not be swayed by opinions.”
This eased the concerns of hesitant onlookers.
“I love cute pets and have wanted them since childhood. Can’t have them in real life, so having them in the game is great.”
“Looks like I’m the target audience for Home of Adorable Pets. Wish I had found this recommendation sooner.”
“I’m not sure about my preferences yet but want to give it a try.”
Home of Adorable Pets’ downloads surged.
“Boss, not only did we fail to suppress Home of Adorable Pets, but its data improved. What now?”
Accounts disparaging Home of Adorable Pets looked to their boss—the leader of a paid online army.
Their actions weren’t random; they’d been assigned.
“Stop the operation. Don’t push traffic to it anymore,” the leader ordered angrily.
He had stumbled upon Jiang Rong’s game promotion on the Star Network and recalled losing a paid account last time due to Jiang Rong’s influence.
No matter how he looked at it, Jiang Rong’s game was a thorn in his side.
He had hoped to cause trouble for her game and vent his frustration, but ironically, he ended up driving traffic to it.
The leader hurried to call off his troops, fearing they were turning into a tailwind for Jiang Rong’s game, making things worse.
With the paid army retreating, public opinion was reclaimed by Home of Adorable Pets’ players.
No one wanted trouble; players quickly shifted focus to game strategies, all eager to run their shops better.
“Ta-da! Here’s my shop after the second expansion,” Qu Yuan posted on the forum.
The expanded shop area was larger, and under Qu Yuan’s careful decoration, divided into many areas:
Pet cleaning zones, play zones, dining areas… customer reception, relaxation, and scenic spots.
She even replaced her usual counter with a soft, cozy sofa, placing a tea table topped with fresh flowers in front.
Qu Yuan lay on the sofa, surrounded by a group of fluffy adorable pets, looking utterly relaxed and content.
“So beautiful! I want my shop to be like this one day.”
“I’ll share my shop layout, too.”
Some players admired and aspired, while others shared their own distinct designs.
Each shop showcased unique styles and arrangements.
Some players turned about two-thirds of their shops into neatly organized customer reception areas, with a clear division between their space and the pet employees’ territory.
Others integrated the pet employees’ supplies seamlessly into the customer area, creating a unified, harmonious look.
The only common trait among all these shops was their large size.
Big shops were generally operated by players who had been around since the early days of the game.
This made new players with smaller shops feel very envious—they all aspired to reach the level of these veteran players.
Among the many accounts in “Home of Adorable Pets,” there was one belonging to Jiang Rong.
That’s right—Jiang Rong, as a game designer, wasn’t simply sitting behind the scenes; she also entered the game herself.
She hadn’t configured the best shop setup in the backend, like some casual players might, but instead gradually upgraded her shop step by step, just like everyone else.
Now, Jiang Rong’s shop had gone through two expansion phases.
She sat on a sofa, with a small black cat—transformed from Jiang Yu—lying on her back, while her brain-link (lightbrain) connected her to the game development backend outside.
“It’s time to launch an event,” Jiang Rong said.
Game events could further stimulate players’ interest and boost game data.
Soon, the players received the event announcement for “Home of Adorable Pets.”
Qu Yuan opened the event notice and read aloud: “During the event period, players will receive pet fragments randomly when serving guests. These pet fragments can be exchanged for pet employees.”
The announcement specified different quantities of fragments for different pet employees.
Most of the current pet employees in shops had fragment counts ranging from a hundred to five hundred.
More expensive pet employees could have their fragments exchanged for over a thousand or even several thousand.
“This means, during the event, we can get new pet employees without spending money!” The players excitedly exclaimed after reading the details.
It’s well known that as the game progresses, the price of pet employees skyrockets. An event that provides free ways to acquire them greatly speeds up the process for players seeking new staff.
“Pet fragments can be earned by serving guests or bought with money. Fantastic! ‘Home of Adorable Pets’ finally has a paid route,” another player cheered.
The event balanced the needs of free-to-play players and paying players.
Free players could accumulate pet fragments over time and eventually exchange for the most expensive pet employees.
Paying players could use less time, and the number of pet employees they could exchange for was greatly increased.
Once the announcement went live, it greatly boosted the players’ enthusiasm.
Everyone not only participated actively but also promoted the event to friends, anxious not to let them miss out.
Liu Zhenzhen, excited beyond her means, accidentally shared the “Home of Adorable Pets” event announcement from her work account.
She quickly realized and retracted the message, praying silently that no one had seen it.
But fate was cruel: her boss contacted her.
“Zhenzhen, let me see that game event you just retracted,” her boss said.
“President, I swear I wasn’t slacking off at work,” Liu Zhenzhen panicked and quickly explained.
The boss replied: “…As the assistant to the Home Furniture Guild president, don’t you have any thoughts when you see that game?”
“President, what do you mean?” Liu Zhenzhen’s eyes lit up as she guessed.
“Organize the game data for me,” the boss said.
Liu Zhenzhen felt mixed. It was her first time openly playing a game during working hours.
This was great—she could secretly accumulate more pet fragments and exchange for more pet employees.
She considered herself a novice player and knew she was far behind the experienced players, so she hoped to catch up quickly during this event.
Of course, she wouldn’t slack off on her work.
Soon, amidst everyone’s expectations, the first official event of “Home of Adorable Pets” began.