[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-rising-in-1979":3,"chapter-rising-in-1979-rising-in-1979-chapter-496":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Rising in 1979",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2261204,4412,"Chapter 496: My Cousin Became My Sister-in-Law—What a Mess","rising-in-1979-chapter-496",496,"\u003Cp>Wei Ming’s money in Hong Kong was all in US dollars; after the second phase of the Sino-British negotiations began, the cash flows of Langning, Haoli Lai, and Minglong were also converted into US dollars, eliminating the impact of the Hong Kong dollar’s sharp depreciation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The departure of Jardine Matheson was just the beginning—Britain, seeking advantage in the negotiations, would surely let Hong Kong descend into chaos for a while, and Wei Hong, holding nearly a hundred million Hong Kong dollars, was perfectly positioned to take advantage of the turmoil and hone her skills.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But soon another matter caught her attention: that day, her aunt Wei Lingling arrived at her grandfather’s house with a box, waiting until she, her grandfather, and Xi Zi were all present before opening it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Lingling: “Correct—it’s Nintendo’s new home console, the Family Computer, abbreviated as FC.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Due to its red-and-white color scheme, many called it the “Red and White Machine,” compact and beautifully designed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nintendo produced over 400,000 units of the Red and White Machine in its first batch; Wei Lingling secured ten outright, along with several accompanying game cartridges, keeping one at home, sending one each to Wei Hong and her father, and planning to dismantle the rest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In Wei Lingling’s mind, handhelds were merely temporary substitutes for home consoles when away from home, so her true focus remained the home console market.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Hong quickly connected it to the TV, then exclaimed: “Why is everything in Japanese?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Old Ghost said: “No problem—I’ll handle the translation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Working underground in the Japanese-occupied zone required at least some knowledge of Japanese.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xi Zi loved beautiful young ladies most, followed by game consoles, and he joined his sister and grandfather in playing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They casually inserted the Donkey Kong cartridge; though it was a port from the handheld, the handheld’s screen was so tiny—now playing on the TV felt entirely different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wow, so smooth!” Wei Hong was a gaming expert; she instantly knew this crushed the Atari 2600—even the Atari 5200 fell short.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both the Nintendo FC and the Atari 2600 were 8-bit consoles, and Atari had recently launched a 16-bit console, the Atari 5200, but market acceptance remained low.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The FC launched with seven titles; Mario Bros., which Wei Ming cared most about, wasn’t among them—likely reserved for later releases.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All these games were developed in-house by Nintendo and couldn’t be played on any other platform.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides the classic Donkey Kong (Donkey Kong), there was Popeye, licensed from the US; these two were the flagship titles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The others included Donkey Kong Jr. Learns Math, an educational game; Wei Hong tried it: “Xi Zi, this one’s perfect for you—you should play it more.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xi Zi looked miserable: “If I have to study while playing games, what’s the point of playing?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Ni picked up a cartridge: “Can you play mahjong on this console?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These launch titles also included mahjong, five-in-a-row, and baseball—targeted games designed to appeal to every demographic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They tried the mahjong game; Lin Ni loved it, because the single-player mode meant she could play even when no one else was home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back in Taiwan at the Wei Mansion, she often played mahjong with her sister and the two Wei ladies, honing her skills—she always lost with perfect artistry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whenever she returned to Taiwan, all three would say they missed her terribly and could never find a better mahjong partner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Lingling communicated with testers while taking notes, confirming the Nintendo FC’s performance utterly crushed the Atari 2600—and it achieved this while slashing the unit price so dramatically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, their games were exceptionally fun; Atari’s best-selling titles, Space Invaders and Pac-Man, were both made by Japanese companies, while their own E.T. was nothing but roadside trash compared to them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Spielberg probably regretted selling the rights for over twenty million dollars—this garbage game severely damaged the reputation of the original, critically acclaimed film.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With Xi Zi’s intelligence, his favorite among these games was Five-in-a-Row: simple, classic, just connect five in a line—it was fun, but he insisted on playing only with Ni Nai, never with Sister Hong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Old Ghost, Xi Zi, Wei Hong, and Lin Ni were all fighting over control of the console, turning the room into chaos; Wei Lingling regretted not bringing a second console.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While they were playing, Zhou Ma arrived, seeing the whole family gathered around the TV: “Has Amin and Aiming not come back yet?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone shook their heads; Lin Ni was about to say not to worry, but then checked the time—it was already ten p.m., and they hadn’t eaten yet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Aifen, do you have any leftover food?” Lin Ni asked sheepishly. “I’m hungry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xi Zi: “Me too!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Ma shook her head and went straight to the kitchen to prepare something simple; Wei Lingling followed to help.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for Wei Ming and Amin, they were recording “Zhi Zhu Zhi Zhu” today; after finishing, Wei Ming and Amin took Zhang Guorong out for dinner, with Mei Yanfang also present, and Wei Ming handed her the song he’d promised to write.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The song was called “Like Flowing Water,” yes—the theme song of the film starring Xue Jie; the original was composed by Kitaro and lyricized by Cheng Guojiang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Gazing at the sea, vast and still, \u002F\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Filled with weariness, no tears, no words. \u002F\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gazing at the sky, endless and blue, \u002F\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only feeling my heart in chaos. \u002F\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My heart is like a small wooden boat…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The song perfectly matched the heroine’s inner state in the film.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming gave the song to Mei Yanfang, but insisted it must be the theme for her film “Paper Butterfly”; though the film was shot on the mainland and would surely upset the Free Association, Mei Yanfang didn’t hesitate—she agreed immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the original timeline, she sang this song too—it was one of her signature works.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming felt proud: helping Amin while also helping Xue Jie—killing two birds with one stone. Oh yeah!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned and saw Zhang Guorong watching him expectantly; Wei Ming said: “Don’t worry—you’ll get one too.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amin’s album needed Zhang Guorong to duet on two songs; though he was eager to help for free, even appearing in “Little Ghosts,” Wei Ming still promised to write him a song.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Wei Ming’s promise, Zhang Guorong smiled: “Could I make a few extra requests?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Go ahead.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A Mandarin song.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Tan Yonglin had already released two Mandarin albums to conquer Taiwan, Huaxing was restless and planned to produce Zhang Guorong’s first Mandarin album, co-produced by Li Xiaotian and Taiwan’s Chyi Yu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Chyi Yu was highly talented, she still lagged slightly behind Wei Ming; if Wei Ming lent a hand, Zhang Guorong would feel far more confident about the album.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mandarin songs? Great—I find writing them much easier than Cantonese ones.” Wei Ming agreed readily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After dinner, it was late; Wei Ming and Amin took a drive before dropping her off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unexpectedly, when they arrived home, Zhou Ma wasn’t there—so Amin invited Wei Ming to sit in her room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Maybe not.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Come on, I’ll show you the photos I shot for ‘Yes!’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The magazine hired Hong Kong’s most professional photographer, capturing Amin’s pure, vibrant side; one photo showed her in a basketball uniform dribbling—Wei Ming was instantly reminded of Chi Muyu, those legs—long, straight, pale—he couldn’t help but reach out again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he touched her, they tumbled onto the bed and kissed; Amin pulled his hand, guiding him upward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as they were getting carried away, Zhou Ma’s voice came from outside: “Amin, you’re back?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She remembered turning off the lights when she left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mom, uh, just got back.” Zhou Huiyan adjusted her clothes as she answered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming pressed down: “Auntie, you’re back? That’s a relief—I’ll be going now.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A son-in-law always fears his father-in-law; Amin never had a father, so Zhou Ma was both mother-in-law and father-in-law, radiating authority at all times.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming had already reached the door when Zhou Ma added: “Your aunt just went downstairs—she probably wants to talk to you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, alright, I’ll go down and find her.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He went downstairs—Wei Lingling had already driven off; Wei Ming decided to visit Langning Company tomorrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when he returned to his home in Tung Lo Wan, Gong Ying was shyly entertaining Wei Lingling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming checked the time: “It’s past eleven—can’t this wait until tomorrow?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Lingling laughed: “Sorry, I must’ve interrupted you. I just came to tell you I’ve got the FC, and the Tetris game is done—want to come over and try it tomorrow?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, really? Sure. Why didn’t you just call? You didn’t have to come all the way—I’ll see you off.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Lingling thought: If I hadn’t seen you hiding a beauty here, I’d have stayed up all night talking—this Nintendo has shaken me to my core.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day, Wei Ming arrived at Langning; since their own handheld wasn’t ready yet, he tried it on the computer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His earlier game design was extremely detailed—exactly what he wanted, identical; but since it was called “Chinese Tetris,” the art added some Chinese elements—the top featured a giant dragon spitting blocks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good job—very well done. I’m satisfied,” Wei Ming said. With his experience, he lasted ten full minutes before dying; during his play, Wei Lingling seemed to sense the game’s appeal—it required strategy and risk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The engineer responsible for development said: “I’m also satisfied. While making it, I realized how highly playable this game is—I’m certain it’ll stun the gaming world!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Indeed, for a long time, this remained the best-selling game globally, especially on handhelds, where it became a sensation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Lingling said: “Want to try the FC again?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sure.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming checked the cartridges—no Mario Bros. yet—so he chose Donkey Kong 2; the original Donkey Kong was a direct port from the handheld, but this “2” was designed specifically for the home console.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming played calmly; having experienced many AAA titles, he suspected only Super Mario Bros. would truly surprise him.\u003C\u002Fp>",1662,"2026-06-19T16:30:59.356Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","b8c259590de1daaa764412bce0d2a2258ca6556d1dc62b2fac997f6182e43f49","rising-in-1979-chapter-497","rising-in-1979-chapter-495",509,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Frising-in-1979-cover.jpg"]