Chapter Summaries

Su Can encountered Chen Lingshan at a Shanghai business event, where Nanjing University's FEEC group and Tsinghua's TEG sized each other up. After they caught up, Chen Lingshan asked Wang Tie for a favor, leaving their reunion unresolved.

• Su Can met Chen Guang and other members of Nanjing University's FEEC group before entering the event venue.
• Chen Guang and Zhang Yaqi discussed TEG's influence and led the FEEC group inside as the two university groups eyed each other warily.
• Chen Lingshan recognized Su Can, and they exchanged news about their years apart and how they had ended up at the event.
• Wang Tie approached Su Can, learned that he belonged to Nanjing University's FEEC club, and spoke with him briefly.
• After Su Can left to rejoin Zhang Yaqi, Chen Lingshan told Wang Tie she wanted him to do her a small favor.

Su Can attended the Shangshi Summit with the FEEC group as they worried about competing with TEG for investors. At the exhibition hall, he reunited with Ye Huishang, who explained that she trusted him and asked how he had dealt with Tao Zi.

• Chen Guang proposed arranging a digital television study tour for FEEC members, while Ning Ling worried that TEG would attract Shanghai investors.
• Zhang Yaqi hoped Su Can could help FEEC compete with TEG, though he doubted Facebook's success in the United States would matter to Chinese investors.
• Ye Huishang found Su Can at the summit and took his arm, drawing the attention of her wealthy friends.
• Ye Huishang told Su Can that she could not quite read him but felt safe trusting him, and she recalled that he had rejected her offer to mediate with Tao Zi.
• Ye Huishang asked Su Can how Tao Chuhong's older brother had made Tao Zi learn from him.

At the Shangshi Summit, Su Can recognized Zhao Hao and several other entrepreneurs whose companies he knew would later succeed, and offered to consider investing in their ventures. He left them energized and gathered around him while Ye Huishang and Liu Zhensheng watched with curiosity.

• Ye Huishang introduced Su Can to Liu Zhensheng, who warmly greeted him after learning he was a Facebook founder.
• Su Can recognized the dismissed musician Zhao Hao as the founder of Shangmai Records and offered to invest five million.
• Zhao Hao introduced Su Can to four fellow Tsinghua alumni seeking funding, including Sun Zhiyi and Yang Qidong.
• Su Can heard the entrepreneurs describe their companies and judged their future potential using his memories of what lay ahead.
• Su Can told the group he would consider all their projects and review their operating plans, drawing excited reactions from them.
• Ye Huishang and Liu Zhensheng watched Su Can’s gathering from across the summit.

Su Can secured tentative investment commitments from Tsinghua entrepreneurs before joining the Shangshi Summit reception with Nanjing University's FEEC members. At the gathering, rivalries between Tsinghua and Nanjing University surfaced, and Su Can learned that Thousand Friends founder Du Ke might suspect his connection to Facebook.

• Su Can assured Zhao Hao, Sun Zhiyi, and Yang Qidong that someone would contact them about investing the next morning, then went into the forum with Zhang Yaqi and the FEEC group.
• At the summit, Ye Huishang declined to invite Su Can to Ma Jingkun's later gathering after Han Lu teased her about his attention.
• Su Can joined FEEC at the reception and noticed Tsinghua TEG and Nanjing University alumni arguing over startup investment while trying to avoid a public feud.
• Zhang Yaqi pointed out Thousand Friends founder Du Ke and Safe founders Ke Mengfei and Bing Jianfeng, and explained that Du Ke had previously berated FEEC.
• Su Can learned that FEEC had kept his identity as Facebook's cofounder secret, but saw Du Ke studying the Nanjing University group as if he suspected the truth.

At a gathering of university entrepreneurs, Wang Tie and the Tsinghua group belittled Nanjing University and Su Can while Du Ke challenged Zhang Yaqi. Zhang answered by revealing that Facebook had passed one million users in the United States, leaving the Tsinghua side facing a direct rebuttal.

• Wang Tie questioned Nanjing University's Japan ties and mocked the decision to admit freshman Su Can to FEEC, while Zhang Yaqi defended the university's alumni network.
• Wang Tie lectured Su Can about entrepreneurship and funding, and Chen Lingshan showed concern for Su Can while tending to Wang Tie.
• The Tsinghua group proposed sharing its entrepreneurial methods, but Zhang Yaqi insisted that FEEC had its own experience to offer.
• Du Ke mocked Nanjing University's lack of successful businesses and excluded Zhang Yaqi from Thousand Friends' celebration.
• Zhang Yaqi reminded Du Ke of his past insult toward Nanjing University and announced that Facebook had passed one million users in the United States.

At the alumni gathering, Zhang Yaqi revealed that Su Can was a cofounder of Facebook, stunning the Tsinghua entrepreneurs and provoking Du Ke, whose Thousand Friends was struggling against Facebook. Su Can stayed at the gathering as Zhao Hao announced that Facebook would invest in three Tsinghua companies, leaving the group to absorb the reversal in status.

• Zhang Yaqi hinted that Facebook’s homepage credited both Mark and Su, then identified Su Can as the cofounder.
• Du Ke realized that the rival behind Facebook was present, tried to leave, and was stopped by Bing Jianfeng.
• Su Can challenged Du Ke to leave, and Du Ke stormed out after vowing that Thousand Friends would surpass Facebook.
• Ke Mengfei greeted Su Can warmly, while Chen Lingshan and Wang Tie reacted to Su Can’s newfound presence and the gathering’s changed mood.
• Zhao Hao arrived with Sun Zhiyi and Yang Qidong and announced that Facebook would invest in their companies.
• A TEG senior member claimed Du Ke had left early after drinking too much, while the Tsinghua group raised their glasses awkwardly.

At the Shangshi Summit banquet, Su Can’s investment in Tsinghua students’ ventures leaves the Nanjing University group triumphant and TEG members frustrated. As the evening ends beneath fireworks, Chen Lingshan reunites with Su Can, learns he and Tang Wu are together, and confesses she would have told him she liked him if she could live her life over.

• Su Can’s words prompt Du Ke to leave the banquet, and the Nanjing University group celebrates its comeback while Tsinghua’s TEG members complain about his investments.
• Liao Dong accuses Zhang Yaqi of exploiting TEG’s situation and worries that Su Can’s investments could drag Zhao Hao, Yang Qidong, and the others down.
• Chen Lingshan and Wang Tie watch Su Can from the lobby, where Wang Tie admits he acted too harshly toward him at her request.
• Su Can and Chen Lingshan walk together during the fireworks, reminisce about the past, and agree she will visit Nanjing University another time.
• Chen Lingshan asks whether people can live their lives over and says she would have told Su Can she liked him, while Su Can confirms that things are very good between him and Tang Wu.

After Chen Lingshan confessed her feelings and left, Su Can continued building connections with Tsinghua entrepreneurs while returning to his routine at Nanjing University. A week later, Zhao Hao told him that SAIF Investment had persuaded Sun Zhiyi and Yang Qidong to accept its funding instead, leaving Su Can facing a sudden setback.

• Chen Lingshan told Su Can that her feelings had nothing to do with romantic love, then left Shanghai without staying overnight.
• Su Can noticed Ye Huishang meeting Liu Zhensheng and others, and felt uneasy when Ye avoided acknowledging him.
• Su Can returned to his ordinary routine at Nanjing University while discussing investment plans with Zhao Hao and other Tsinghua entrepreneurs.
• Su Can waited several days for the entrepreneurs to develop business proposals and began to suspect something had gone wrong.
• Zhao Hao told Su Can that SAIF Investment had approached the group again and that Sun Zhiyi and Yang Qidong had agreed to accept its investment.

Lin Guangdong told Su Can that Liu Zhensheng’s SAIF Investments had taken over three companies Su Can was negotiating with, prompting Su Can to suspect Ye Huishang had helped arrange the move. Su Can confronted Ye Huishang by phone, and the chapter ended with her asking what he meant by calling her an actress.

• Lin Guangdong told Su Can that SAIF had invested in three companies Su Can had been pursuing, despite its poor record with similar investments.
• Su Can realized Liu Zhensheng’s moves seemed aimed at blocking him and recalled Ye Huishang introducing him to Liu at the summit.
• Su Can called Wang Weiwei and asked for Ye Huishang’s number, and Wang Weiwei sensed that something was wrong.
• Su Can called Ye Huishang at a rally practice track in Shanghai, and she answered with teasing remarks.
• Su Can told Ye Huishang she was a very good actress, and her playful expression froze as she asked what he meant.

Su Can confronted Ye Huishang over his suspicion that she had helped Liu Zhensheng take an investment deal, but her explanation left him unsure whether he had misjudged her. Zhao Hao then explained how the other entrepreneurs had switched to Liu Zhensheng’s offer, while he stayed with Su Can, who planned to invest in Shangmai Company.

• Su Can accused Ye Huishang of betraying him by helping Liu Zhensheng take the investment opportunity at the Shangshi Summit.
• Ye Huishang admitted meeting Liu Zhensheng and the Tsinghua people, then said she had tried to keep Su Can away from a dangerous situation; a friend took her phone and ended the call.
• Zhao Hao told Su Can that Liu Zhensheng had approached Sun Zhiyi and Yang Qidong with backing from a Commerce Bureau official, and that they had chosen SAIF Investment despite their misgivings.
• Su Can accepted Zhao Hao’s account and decided to invest five million in Shangmai Company for a thirty-percent stake, leaving Zhao Hao in control of the company.

Su Can learned from Zhao Hao that Tsinghua’s entrepreneurs had misread his clash with Du Ke and credited Safe’s founders with restraining him, while their rivalry with him continued to grow. Amid rumors about his dispute with Ye Huishang and his friends’ support, Su Can spent a lighter moment teasing Lin Luoran and his dormmates before settling into a temporary breather at university.

• Su Can and Zhao Hao discussed the Shangshi Summit, and Zhao Hao explained that Tsinghua’s circle believed Safe’s Ke Mengfei and Bing Jianfeng had stopped Su Can from ruining Du Ke.
• Su Can realized that the Tsinghua entrepreneurs had been privately building a reputation for him as a ruthless adversary, and he felt urgency to advance his plans.
• Su Can learned that his phone call to Ye Huishang had stirred rumors and conflict among their social circles, while Lin Luoran, Wang Weiwei, and Lin Zouwen firmly supported him.
• Lin Luoran joked with Su Can about the young men who fawned over Ye Huishang, and Su Can’s dormmates joined their phone conversation and invited her to visit again.
• After Liu Zhensheng’s disruption and Yang Qidong, Sun Zhiyi, and others defected, Su Can rested at university and quietly waited for his opportunity.

Su Can learned that Liu Zhensheng had disrupted his business plans as part of Zhan Hua’s faction, prompting him to investigate their past alliance and consider how to respond. He chose to preserve his resources and keep developing, confident that their efforts to obstruct him would not derail his plans.

• Ye Huishang called Su Can to deny that she was allied with Liu Zhensheng and warned him that Liu had powerful connections.
• Lin Guangdong told Su Can that Liu Zhensheng and Zhan Hua had joined forces during the takeover of Sibico, with Liu first acting as a white knight before turning on the company’s leadership.
• Su Can concluded that Liu Zhensheng was acting for Zhan Hua, who was trying to force him into new ventures that could be targeted.
• Lin Guangdong proposed striking back, but Su Can rejected the idea as too costly and said their priority was building their capital and continuing to develop.

Lin Luoran began calling Su Can each morning to study foreign languages with him, then visited Nanjing University for the weekend. She arrived and quickly drew the attention of Su Can’s dormmates, while she and Tang Wu greeted each other warmly.

• Lin Luoran arranged to call Su Can at five thirty each morning so they could memorize foreign-language texts together.
• Su Can’s dormmates celebrated when Lin Luoran said she would visit Nanjing University for the weekend.
• Su Can, Tang Wu, and several eager dormmates went to the campus gate to meet Lin Luoran on Saturday afternoon.
• Lin Luoran and Tang Wu walked arm in arm while Huang Ying and Joe Adam chatted with Lin Luoran and tried to impress her.
• Su Can watched Lin Luoran smiling and wondered how long she would keep pretending to be so gentle.

Sun Zhiyi, Yang Qidong, and their companion sought investment from Liu Zhensheng, who offered punishing terms as part of a plan connected to Su Can. Later, Su Can spent the day at Nanjing University with Tang Wu, Lin Luoran, and his friends, and the chapter ended with Tang Wu agreeing to stay with Su Can in Lin Luoran’s hotel room.

• Sun Zhiyi, Yang Qidong, and their companion waited for hours at SAIF Investment before Liu Zhensheng met them and laid out harsh investment conditions.
• Liu Zhensheng told Zhan Hua that he would deal with the three visitors while pursuing their investment, and he discussed making Su Can pay for taking a share of his business in the United States.
• Lin Luoran teased Su Can about checking out girls on campus, and Tang Wu reacted with amusement as the group walked around Nanjing University.
• Su Can, Tang Wu, Lin Luoran, and their friends ate grilled fish and drank together before Huang Ying and Qiao Yan got Lin Luoran’s phone number and left.
• Su Can and his friends played cards with Tang Wu and Lin Luoran at Lin Luoran’s hotel, where the girls defeated them.
• Lin Luoran asked Su Can and Tang Wu to stay because she was afraid to be alone, and Tang Wu agreed.

Su Can discussed his growing business plans and Facebook’s expansion with Lin Luoran and Tang Wu, while Lin Luoran offered support from her family. As Lin Luoran’s help and closeness with Su Can unsettled Tang Wu, Tang Wu withdrew to shower, leaving Su Can sensing her hurt.

• Zhang Xiaoqiao, Li Han, and Xiao Xu left Lin Luoran’s hotel room after misunderstanding her invitation to Su Can and Tang Wu.
• Lin Luoran told Su Can that Li Luo admired him and that her Beijing friends were impressed by his success.
• Su Can explained Facebook’s growth and his plan to launch a Chinese social network, and Lin Luoran offered to arrange a meeting with Gong Shouren through her father.
• Lin Luoran went to shower, and Tang Wu acknowledged how much Lin Luoran had helped Su Can.
• Su Can offered to repay Lin Luoran with money or shares, but Tang Wu lowered her head with visible inner conflict before saying she would shower.

Su Can secured Zack’s approval for Facebook Chinese’s equity structure and recruited Qiao Shuxin to help lead the venture in China. After meeting Qiao Shuxin at Pudong Airport, Su Can took him to Nanjing University’s Crowne Plaza Hotel to begin planning the new company.

• Su Can and Tang Wu ate breakfast with Lin Luoran, who left after urging him to make Facebook Chinese succeed.
• Su Can read Qiao Shuxin’s email and discussed recruiting him and launching Facebook Chinese with Zack.
• Su Can proposed a Facebook Chinese ownership structure with forty percent held by Facebook and sixty percent by a domestic company, and Zack agreed.
• Lin Guangdong drove Su Can to Pudong Airport, where Su Can met Qiao Shuxin returning from California.
• Su Can introduced Qiao Shuxin to Lin Guangdong and arranged for him to stay at Nanjing University’s Crowne Plaza Hotel while they planned Facebook Chinese.

Su Can secured funding for Shangmai and helped Qiao Shuxin choose an office for Facebook Chinese in Shanghai, setting plans in motion for the new company. After a busy day, Su Can and Tang Wu shared a tender good-night call.

• Zhao Hao outlined Shangmai’s plans to buy music copyrights and develop mobile ringback tones, and Lin Guangdong arranged for its initial funding to be delivered.
• Su Can reassured Lin Guangdong that Qiao Shuxin could build Facebook Chinese by telling him a story about Facebook’s hacker recruitment.
• Su Can and Qiao Shuxin chose an 800-square-meter office in the Meiluo Building, and Su Can signed a one-year lease.
• Su Can asked Lin Guangdong to help arrange renovations and recruit employees, while Qiao Shuxin thanked him for his help.
• Su Can told Tang Wu by text that the office had been selected, and they ended the day by wishing each other good night over the phone.

As graduation approached, Tang Wu’s dormmates discussed the seniors leaving university and learned that Facebook Chinese was recruiting in Nanjing. Su Can and Qiao Shuxin prepared to hire their first staff, but the fair began with few applicants, leaving its prospects uncertain.

• Tong Tong, Ruan Si'ou, and Cheng Congcong talked about the end of freshman year and the seniors’ plans after graduation.
• Cheng Congcong and Tong Tong noticed that Facebook Chinese was listed at a graduate recruitment fair and wondered whether Su Can had created it.
• Su Can arranged recruitment advertisements and flyers for Facebook Chinese, seeking fifty staff members, including thirty through campus recruitment.
• Qiao Shuxin arrived early at the hotel to oversee the fair, while Su Can joined her as a final judge.
• Su Can and Qiao Shuxin saw that few applicants had arrived before the interviews began and worried the fair might fail.

Su Can watched Facebook Chinese’s recruitment fair draw a huge crowd while fielding pressure from officials trying to place their relatives in the fledgling company. When Liu Zhensheng arrived with a powerful-looking man, Su Can realized the interference was connected to his conflict with Zhan Hua and that Facebook Chinese was being targeted.

• Su Can worried that Facebook Chinese’s limited hiring and substantial investment made the recruitment fair crucial, while several officials called to demand special treatment for their recommended candidates.
• Students and job seekers streamed into the Holiday Inn, and Qiao Shuxin called Su Can to report the unexpectedly large turnout.
• A young man arrived in a BMW, boasting that Director Gong was his uncle and that a note from him would secure a job.
• Su Can grew angry at the attempts to bypass interviews and wondered why so many people were interfering with Facebook Chinese.
• Liu Zhensheng arrived with a tall middle-aged man, ignored Su Can, and confirmed Su Can’s suspicion that the pressure was part of a larger effort tied to Zhan Hua and his business interests.

Su Can’s recruitment event descended into a police dispute after two groups of applicants fought over the queue, while Liu Zhensheng and Yan Lufeng watched from the tea lounge and considered how to pressure Facebook Chinese. Tang Wu’s grandparents and their connections intervened, the police took the other applicants away, and Liu and Yan were left stunned when Su Can joined the elders upstairs.

• Yan Lufeng and Liu Zhensheng discussed Facebook Chinese and Liu’s plan to use official pressure against the company.
• Su Can refused to give special treatment to applicants with letters of introduction, then went to investigate a fight between Wang Biao’s group and applicants from Shanghai University.
• Li Xuan called the police, and Jia Guangyi arrived and prepared to take the people involved and company representatives to the station.
• Tang Wu arrived with her grandparents, and Lü Changshu identified himself and helped shift the police response against Wang Biao’s group.
• Elder Mu welcomed Su Can upstairs and said she would not let anyone bully him, while Secretary-General Fan’s arrival made Yan Lufeng visibly uneasy.
• Liu Zhensheng learned that Elder Mu was Mu Qin, a former deputy governor and executive vice principal of the Central Party School.