Chapter 57: Pony is a Good Guy to Hang Out With

Liu Jing's smile did not last long because he suddenly realized he was broke as well.

He only had a little over one hundred thousand yuan left in his savings passbook. Since his debut, this was his poorest moment.

Where was the money he had earned over the years? He had spent three million US dollars in exchange for a little over four percent of Marvel's shares.

Right now, the storm surrounding Marvel was not yet over, but his stake was secure.

Aside from that, he owned three courtyard houses in Yanjing, an old Western-style house in Shanghai, a detached villa in Jiangcheng, a car worth several hundred thousand, and many antique collections at home.

If he hadn't worked in the Hong Kong entertainment circle, he would never have accumulated such a fortune. Back then, filming in the mainland—even as the protagonist—meant a high payout was only tens of thousands per production.

A hundred thousand yuan was considered very wealthy, and in many places, households with ten thousand yuan were quite scarce.

Yet for Liu Jing, it was far from enough; his monthly internet fees alone amounted to several thousand.

He surely couldn't ask Zhang Min to borrow money again, could he? It seemed it hadn't even been a month since he last paid her back.

Liu Jing slumped dejectedly, patting Sister Li's thigh while sighing continuously. A mountain of gold was about to slip away.

Qiu Bojun didn't take Liu Jing's words seriously at all, teasing, "I'm not in need of New Year's money."

Liu Jing didn't feel like talking, nor did he have any interest in continuing the conversation; he was racking his brain over how to make money.

Without money, there was no sense of security, nor any right to speak.

Sister Li smiled. "What God of Wealth or no God of Wealth? I'm just an ordinary netizen. I came to this gathering with the attitude of learning. All of you are elites in the internet industry, and listening to you talk about so much has made me feel like my life has been elevated."

"Don't be like that, the God of Wealth is the God of Wealth. Old Lei, bring a seat, let the God of Wealth take the seat of honor." How could Qiu Bojun let it go with just a single remark? Even if there was only a sliver of hope for securing investment, he wouldn't give up.

"Oh dear, you internet companies, how could you be short of money? You are the Gods of Wealth," Sister Li hastily protested.

Although she was a shareholder of Tongchan Investment, she did not participate in its operations and genuinely knew little about the current status of many industries, with the entertainment sector being the only one she understood best.

"The year before last, our company still had over two hundred people, but now only twenty-something are left, with each person doing the work of three. If not for a recent recovery of funds, we wouldn't even be able to pay salaries soon. I had to sell my family's house just to hold on until now. The developers are working overtime around the clock to develop WPS. If this product fails, we'll all be left drinking the northwest wind," Qiu Bojun said with a bitter smile.

"It's that serious?" Sister Li was surprised. This was even more miserable than Zhang Min's shops; was the financial crisis really this powerful?

She didn't quite understand what she was hearing, but just listening to it—without even needing to grasp the operational details—made it clear that one shouldn't invest in such a company, no matter how much money they had.

"Developing the Pangu components dealt us a devastating blow," Qiu Bojun said, full of bitterness, looking as though he didn't want to bring it up again.

"The year before last, Microsoft offered him an annual salary of 750,000 US dollars. What a pity..." Old Rong shook his head.

"Old Lei, you guys are still stubbornly bashing your heads against WPS?" Someone expressed confusion.

"We have to do what Microsoft refuses to do. Only by fighting a guerrilla war will we find a way out," Lei Jun sighed.

"In our line of work, how many don't lack money? Our country is not like foreign nations; the internet has only just emerged. I wonder if any of you have looked into how many internet users there are among our China's 1.2 billion people?" Ding Lei said with self-deprecating humor. He could be considered relatively fortunate, having earned some money through the internet before resigning to plunge into it wholeheartedly.

Once he actually started doing it, he found difficulties at every turn.

"Around 100,000 at the end of last year, and now there are about 500,000," Old Rong had done some research.

"That's a fierce growth rate. In less than a year, it's multiplied fivefold. I feel like it won't take many years before we reach tens of millions of internet users," Qiu Bojun said, feeling energized.

"Difficult! Difficult! Difficult! A single computer costs around ten thousand yuan, and after surfing the internet just a little bit, a month's salary is gone. Let alone ordinary families, even moderately well-off households can't afford it," Old Rong laughed bitterly.

"Indeed! What do you even have them go online for? To chat idly? To ramble on BBS just like us?" A netizen laughed at himself.

"A few years ago, Windows office software was a problem for us, but now it's not a problem at all. The problems we face now, a few years from now, won't be problems either. Times are developing. Could you have imagined in your childhood that we would be sitting in front of computers chatting idly with people thousands of miles away?" Lei Jun asked.

"If you ask me, treat it just as a hobby where everyone idles away their time chatting when free—that beats anything else. Having that kind of money to build a website, you might as well..." At this point, the person seemed to realize it wasn't appropriate and shut his mouth.

"There's a Pony in Shenzhen. He bought four phones and eight computers and built Ponysoft at home. This site is a four-line one. I calculated it for him; it must have cost forty to fifty thousand. If you want good product suggestions, he'll invite you over and cover your travel expenses, food, and lodging entirely. Pony is a great guy to know; he's truly willing to spend money on investments," Old Rong recalled with emotion.

"I visited it the day before yesterday, and he was still telling jokes on there. Things like: a little heifer riding a motorcycle, totally badass; a little heifer doing a handstand, badass to the heavens; a little heifer getting drunk in a wine vat, the most badass of all. To attract attention, he really..." Ding Lei shook his head with a mixture of admiration, unable to entirely agree, yet deeply appreciative.

"Is he really that fierce? What website is it?" Liu Jing's spirits roused, and he finally snapped back to attention.

"Children should stay away from the internet, focus on their studies, and soon become the pillars of the nation," Lei Jun laughed.

"Sister Li, I think their company is worth investing in," Liu Jing ignored Station Master Lei and turned to Sister Li, speaking very earnestly.

When Liu Jing was serious, Sister Li immediately became serious.

Having spent five or six years together, Sister Li increasingly believed in Liu Jing's miraculous intuition. When this child spoke of something with such gravity, it was definitely no ordinary matter.

Originally, from Sister Li's perspective, a company like this was absolutely not worth investing in.

Operating at a loss, staff resignations, unable to pay wages, selling houses to keep afloat, hanging by a thread, on the verge of bankruptcy at any moment, an uncertain future...

This wasn't investing; this was wasting money.

"Qiu Bojun, Station Master Lei, please explain your company's business to me in detail." Sister Li wrapped an arm around Liu Jing's shoulder and patted it gently, signaling him to remain calm and impatient.

That wasn't the way to negotiate business or partnerships.

Liu Jing fell silent, feeling a bit anxious, but he truly didn't want to miss a mountain of gold.

The system's explanation was still not entirely clear to him, though he understood that the first mountain of gold referred to Kingsoft Corporation.

What did the second mountain of gold refer to? He had several guesses.

Regardless of what those guesses were, it indicated that this company had a very promising future.

Leaving the battlefield to Sister Li, Liu Jing secretly worried himself with a headache over money.

"Our company mainly focuses on software and game development. Our existing products include WPS, the Kingsoft Type-I Chinese Character Card, and Kingsoft PowerWord 1.0, and so on. The Xishanshan Studio has developed games like *Zhongguancun Apocalypse* and the recently released *Swordsman Love*. We also have two key projects currently under research and development, which have already entered the final stages. One is Kingsoft PowerWord II, a talking three-way dictionary that integrates human voice recording with Chinese-English, English-Chinese, and Chinese dictionaries into a multifunctional translation software. The other is the new version of WPS, running on the Windows 95 platform. This product..."

When it came to professional knowledge, Lei Jun's demeanor abruptly transformed—becoming confident and flamboyant.

The others remained silent; this was Kingsoft's home turf. They all understood the predicament Kingsoft was facing. Finding an investor wasn't easy, and they didn't want to interrupt, let alone disrupt it.

Everyone present held a passionate devotion to the internet industry and clearly recognized that this industry had an immeasurable future.

Standing before them was a sheet of transparent glass; the future was bright, but there was simply no way out.

的热血 Passion could not shatter the glass, and sincerity could not melt the solid ice.

If they kept persisting, there would eventually be a day when they embraced the light, but how many would fall behind along the way?

Chatting from noon until the sun set, the group had a simple meal and talked until the starry river rose.

Sister Li drove the car, and silence lingered in the vehicle for a long time. "Woody, do you really think this company is worth investing in?"

"Mmm! I have a hunch, this is a mountain of gold," Liu Jing nodded.

"They're valued at fifty million and raising ten million financing, which would give us a stake of a little over ten percent. What do you think?" Sister Li's expression was radiant, her eyes sparkling.

"The valuation is reasonable, but we have no money," Liu Jing sighed.

"If you think it's reasonable, we'll invest. As for the money issue, your Sister Li will handle it." Sister Li slapped the steering wheel, looking like a phoenix ready to spread its wings and fly.

Thud...

Just as the phoenix spread its wings, it crashed straight into the curb.