Chapter 48

Chapter 49

The biggest event in early June was, of course, Zhou Shichang's resignation. There had not been a whisper beforehand, and once something like that happened, the gossip could follow people right into bed. The whole industry buzzed with rumors, ranging from Zhou Shichang trying to seduce the general manager's wife to the general manager actually being gay and Zhou Shichang deciding to quit because he could no longer bear the burden. Of course, those were the stories passed around by word of mouth. The papers offered so-called rational analyses. Most still had to show the health supplement company some respect, since it was a major advertiser, so abuse of Zhou Shichang was scattered everywhere. Looking around, it was just like that poem in school textbooks-beneath the vast sky, across the boundless plains, the wind bent the grass to reveal the scoundrels. Zhou Shichang was the scoundrel getting thoroughly cursed out.

After resigning, Zhou Shichang refused all interviews and stayed in his completely secluded home for almost a week. He had it easy, eating and sleeping without a care, while I was frantic. Uni-President and Ting Hsin had already begun fighting us for Shichang's share, and both companies went further, planning to buy out every advertising slot during CCTV's children's programs over summer vacation. I mentally fucked those people ten thousand times. Damn it, did having money make them so great? I just did not feel like playing a money-burning game with them. What could one little beverage do to me?

Another reason was that exams were coming. Although I had decided to attend a private school, and my current teachers barely dared look at me, as though I belonged to the mob, I still had to go through the motions. Every day I made a show of doing exercises, looked at pretty girls, listened to music, and secretly called Zhang Xiaotong between classes for a little joking around. The days passed quickly enough.

On June 23, we sat our graduation exams, and Cai Qing paid Zhou Shichang a visit.

Before I entered the exam room, Cai Qing called me and said she was "ready to deploy."

When I finished the first subject, Cai Qing called and said, "Mr. Zhou and I are already in the car to North Gate."

I was so delighted I nearly fell headfirst into the little bushes outside the exam room. "Great, great! Where are you planning to go now?"

Cai Qing laughed like a little fox. "Mr. Zhou wants to meet you."

My mouth opened wide enough to fit a whole egg. "You're kidding, sis. You sold me out?"

Cai Qing laughed. "Mr. Zhou has always suspected someone behind Sun Group has been secretly advising us. He wants to know who it is."

I climbed out of the bushes. "Fine, fine, I'll meet him, but it'll have to wait until my exams are over."

"That's all right," Cai Qing said. "We've only just set off. We're on the expressway now, and it'll take over four hours to reach you."

I checked the time. It was just lunchtime.

"Let's get this straight first: I'm not buying lunch."

"I'll buy," Cai Qing said. "Go take your exams. See you in four hours."

After hanging up, I bounced a few times on the empty playing field and jogged into the exam room. Several teachers who had come out to use the toilet gave me strange looks. How could they possibly understand my excitement and delight?

After finishing the final subject, natural science, I took off, hailed a car, and headed straight for the Intercontinental Hotel, where Zhou Shichang was staying.

I was stopped at the entrance. A tall, handsome male attendant pointed to the sign beside him-"Hotel serving foreign guests. No admittance to improperly dressed persons." I had almost forgotten: I was wearing that hideous school uniform today, along with black rubber shoes. With my head drenched in sweat from running, I looked exactly like some dumb kid who spent his days kicking balls around and running wild.

Damn it. Nothing else for it. I opened my battered schoolbag, took out my phone, and called Cai Qing. "Come down and get me."

"What happened?"

"This hotel's more high-and-mighty than our company. They won't let improperly dressed people in, and I'm looking a bit rough today."

Cai Qing giggled twice. "Coming right down. Wait a moment."

I faintly heard her tell someone beside her, "Excuse me. I need to go downstairs and meet someone."

The Intercontinental Hotel was tall enough, and its elevators few enough, that I stood baking in the sun for almost four minutes before Cai Qing emerged. "Pretty annoyed with the wait?"

I took the tissue she offered and wiped my forehead. "It's fine. Zhou Shichang's upstairs?"

"Yes. Liu Mingyao's here too."

"Oh? Hasn't President Liu been busy with one engagement after another lately?"

Cai Qing gave a slightly bashful smile. I understood. Liu Mingyao had probably worried about her coming alone and neglected business for personal reasons by coming along. He would undoubtedly dress it up as seeking my instructions on something, spout a load of nonsense, shamelessly endure a dressing-down from me, then happily accompany Cai Qing back to Shenyang.

Cai Qing handed a business card to the attendant who had stopped me. "A guest of Sun Group. If you have any questions, call our public relations department." She took my hand and walked straight inside, deliberately rolling her eyes at the handsome attendant. That eye roll made me feel immensely better. Her public relations background certainly showed.

I took the elevator to the thirteenth floor with Cai Qing. Apparently Zhou Shichang did not believe in bad luck and liked that unlucky number. I asked Cai Qing to wait, washed my face in the public restroom, then borrowed the lovely Miss Cai's handkerchief and wiped my face haphazardly. Cai Qing went to knock on room 1313.

I stared absently at the room number. Chinese people really were something, daring to use a number like that in a hotel serving foreigners. Apparently they meant to openly drive the foreigners away. Still, as far as I knew, hotels of that sort that genuinely hoped to make money from foreigners, such as the Hong Kong Hilton, had all closed. Only those wholeheartedly devoted to making money from Chinese people were still thriving.

After knocking, Cai Qing said, "Mr. Zhou, our visitor shares your surname. I hope you won't be too surprised."

The door opened, and Liu Mingyao's head appeared. Seeing my bedraggled, water-drenched look, he smiled. "Finished your exams?"

I nodded and ambled inside, dragging my battered schoolbag.

Zhou Shichang looked much the same as in the photographs I had seen many years later. Apparently all those years of cultivating his mind and character really had done him good. He sat on a chair in the middle of the room, wearing a well-fitted tailored suit and gold-rimmed glasses. His small eyes narrowed as he watched me enter behind Liu Mingyao and Cai Qing.

Zhou Shichang had been sitting, but when he saw me come in looking like a dirty egg freshly fished out of water, he stood up.

"President Liu, President Cai, I respected your sincerity, which was why I took the plunge and came over to your side. I never imagined you also enjoyed kicking a man when he was down and making a fool of him!"

Liu Mingyao was about to explain, but I gestured for silence, and Cai Qing reached out to stop him.

I opened my battered schoolbag, took out the assessment of China's health supplement market that Lu Wei had rushed to prepare under my direction, and offered it to him. "Mr. Zhou Shichang, correct? My name is Zhou Xingwen. You may not have heard of me, but I'm sure you've heard the saying: don't judge a book by its cover."

Zhou Shichang had been about to say something else, but my words stopped him. He looked at the thick stack of papers in my hand and sat back down.

Liu Mingyao sat to my left, while Cai Qing went to the room's bathroom to fetch me a towel.

As I began drying my head, Zhou Shichang began rapidly leafing through the written material. By the time I finished drying, he had finished reading.

"What do you think, Mr. Zhou?" I asked with a smile. "I don't know much about the health supplement market, so I hope you can offer me some pointers."

Zhou Shichang carefully placed the report on the tea table beside him and said to Cai Qing, sounding unable to quite accept it, "Earlier... I thought you were talking to a university student on the phone..."

I smiled. "There's no need to draw conclusions so soon, Mr. Zhou. Perhaps I didn't write this at all. Let's just chat. At the very least, you should establish whether someone else taught me what I'm saying."

My words left Zhou Shichang at a loss, but he reacted quickly. After only a moment's hesitation, he extended his hand. "I've shown how little of the world I've seen. You must all be laughing at me."

I shook his hand and sat in the chair beside him. "Sorry. I'd just finished my exams, and I was so excited to hear you'd arrived that I ran here and got covered in dust and sweat. I've ended up looking rather disrespectful."

Zhou Shichang shook his head with a wry smile. "Not at all. I was too young and hotheaded."

At times like this, Liu Mingyao and Cai Qing generally stopped talking. They sat on the other side, and Cai Qing came over to pour me tea and refill Zhou Shichang's cup.

I smiled at Cai Qing. "You must have been rather surprised when Sister Cai came to see you, Mr. Zhou?"

Zhou Shichang nodded. "Very surprised. How did Miss Cai know about my circumstances?"

I smiled, my expression completely at odds with my trashy school uniform. "Intelligence is the foundation of every decision. You should understand that sort of thing even better than we do, Mr. Zhou."

Zhou Shichang shook his head with a smile. "Look at me, getting muddled... Let me ask a different question, then. When did you first begin taking an interest in me?"

He did not ask how I had obtained the information. Clearly he knew that would be inappropriate, so he approached it another way.

"Who in Chinese marketing hasn't heard of you?" I said. "You've had quite enough people bothering you lately, haven't you?"

Zhou Shichang smiled bitterly. "Ah, I'm only a hired hand."

"Four years of campaigning, and you created the greatest sales miracle in China's health supplement industry. How many 'hired hands' like that are there in the world?" I said. "People have eyes. They're all waiting for a word from you."

Zhou Shichang sighed. "Isn't it the same wherever you go? People, the business world, human nature-it always comes down to those things. To be honest, if Miss Cai hadn't aroused my curiosity, and I weren't personally very curious about Sun Group, you might never have met me."

After saying that, Zhou Shichang thought for a moment and added, seemingly by way of explanation, "I'm not being conceited. It's just that life's ups and downs make it easier to take certain things less seriously. I think you can all understand."

Liu Mingyao and Cai Qing both nodded. Their years of experience had given them their share of world-weary insights, and Zhou Shichang's words could only strike a chord.

I spread my hands. "Of course. But you must also know the old saying about not giving up eating for fear of choking. Failing to win a girl doesn't mean you'll never marry, and having your heart broken once doesn't mean you'll want nothing for the rest of your life. There must still be things you want, right?"

"Easier said than done." Zhou Shichang took a sip of tea and sighed again. "As you know, reasoning with someone who's lost their love usually does little good."

He winked at me. "Other than comforting them, is there another way?"

I burst out laughing. "That's simple. Find someone else."

Zhou Shichang laughed too. "That does seem the best solution. So you found me a pretty one?"

He addressed those words to Cai Qing, his face full of relaxed amusement.

Liu Mingyao looked a little uncomfortable, but since I said nothing, he could hardly say anything himself.

I looked at Cai Qing and smiled. "What do you think, Mr. Zhou?"

Zhou Shichang's expression gradually grew serious as he looked at me. "I'd like to know more. May I?"

I shrugged casually. "Such as?"

Zhou Shichang smiled, apparently giving up. "Never mind. What would asking accomplish? If you can get people as capable as Mr. Liu and Miss Cai to work for you, I'd like to discover what makes you so compelling myself."

I thought for a moment. "How about this? You could spend three months as a consultant at our company first. If it suits you, we can work together long-term. I'm confident we won't disappoint you when it comes to integrity. You can first assess whether our company deserves your trust. If it does, I hope we can realize some dreams together."

"Oh?" Zhou Shichang grew interested. "Dreams? I'd very much like to ask: what is your dream?"

"If I said revitalizing national industry, would you believe me?"

Zhou Shichang shook his head and said mildly, "No."

I cackled. "Neither would we. But if I had to name a dream, I think it's simple: being able to do lots of things. The pleasures a person can experience in a lifetime are too limited-material comforts, the opposite sex, the entertainment they enjoy. People before us have repeated those pleasures for thousands of years. Only work and creation offer infinite possibilities and a way to avoid repetition. What do you think?"

Zhou Shichang evidently had no idea who Wang Xiaobo was. Hearing this, he nodded thoughtfully. "There's some truth in that. I've never considered these questions before."

I smiled. "You're someone with an undistracted mind, Mr. Zhou. When you work, you think only of work. That makes you far better than people like us who show off our ideas."

Zhou Shichang said self-deprecatingly, "Not at all. I was simply young and always wanted to get ahead. Later, I thought that since I'd started, I might as well keep going. Who knew that even doing your utmost could leave you with nothing more to give..."

Seeing him sigh, I knew the moment was right and raised my voice to ask, "Do you know about the two Taiwanese food companies entering the mainland market, Mr. Zhou?"

Zhou Shichang nodded. "I do. But I find it strange that Taiwan's Wei Chuan isn't joining the fight."

"Wei Chuan can barely look after itself at present," I said. "You've probably heard some rumors. Ting Hsin's business has improved in recent years, and it plans to acquire shares in Wei Chuan."

Zhou Shichang chuckled. "No wonder Taiwanese businessmen always casually mention 'whoever wins the mainland wins the world' when discussing business with me lately. I thought Taiwanese independence had flared up again."

"In business, there are no permanent enemies or friends," I said. "This time, Uni-President and Ting Hsin seem to have come hand in hand. That's why I hope you can take charge and show everyone watching China's tea beverage market that China never lacks talent. We may not have matched foreigners at burning, killing, and looting all those years ago, but in fair competition, Chinese people can be the best!"

Still somewhat doubtful, Zhou Shichang looked at Liu Mingyao and Cai Qing. Seeing them both nod, he finally accepted my authority and offered me his hand again. "All right. I'll make a fresh start. I look forward to your support from now on."

I turned and shouted at Liu Mingyao, "What are you waiting for, brother? Book a good private room and open the champagne!"

Liu Mingyao and Cai Qing scrambled out of the room.

Zhou Shichang never brought up money from beginning to end, and I could hardly be stingy about it. The contract specified an annual salary of 1.5 million, one and a half times his previous salary-the unwritten rule for changing jobs. Of course, that did not include his share of sales. His title at Sun Group remained sales manager, no different from before. His first objective was simple: crush the two Taiwanese tea beverages, hitting as hard and destroying as thoroughly as possible.

Now that I had spoken frankly with Zhou Shichang, I felt awkward about always remaining behind the scenes. A week later, Liu Mingyao brought several producers from Japan to meet me.

These producers were all typical young men, and one was none other than the famous Mikami. The others were not necessarily famous, but the yellow-haired young man kept looking familiar. After asking, I learned he was the famous music game producer Mizuguchi Tetsu. His Space Channel FIVE, Samba de Amigo, and other games would become widely loved a few years later. Who would have thought he now looked like nothing more than a frustrated young punk?

Liu Mingyao introduced me as Zhou Xingwen, producer of the famous game With You. Several had seen my photograph in an interview in Japanese Journal and loudly declared how long they had admired me. The Japanese certainly had a knack for outward courtesy and putting on a show, which fit the Chinese idiom about beasts in fine clothes perfectly. I greeted the producers noncommittally, then read the game proposals Liu Mingyao handed me. Translated versions, of course.

Much as I had expected, each had proposed an idea he had long wanted to realize. Mikami naturally proposed a horror action-adventure game, while Mizuguchi Tetsu proposed a music game. However, SCE had already begun developing Para Para Dancing Rabbit in 1995, so the concept of music games had formed long ago.

Most of the others proposed 3D games, with their own approaches to fighting, shooting, and RPGs.

Considering SCE's current shortage of games, I thought all these proposals should be approved. Technical work could be outsourced through overseas contacts. After 1997, Square outsourced many projects in America, with very good results. It was not that Americans could not make things suited to Asian tastes; they simply did not like doing it and had no need to. In terms of those technologies, Japan still had to take a back seat.

Liu Mingyao had not brought an interpreter to this meeting at all. He had crammed Japanese before going to Japan and made some progress. With slicked-back hair and a little goatee, he would have looked every inch a fake foreigner. My Japanese was better than his, and conversation was clearly no problem. This was what they called keeping things secret wherever possible.

I offered Mikami a suggestion. "Mr. Mikami, could you consider adding more action elements to your adventure game?"

Mikami looked puzzled. "More? My proposal already has plenty."

"That's not what I mean," I explained. "The action elements in your current proposal are largely passive: fleeing, dodging, and forced counterattacks. You could consider some opportunities for taking the initiative in suitable scenes, though not too many. Once players develop a taste for attacking proactively, your next game will practically suggest itself."

Mikami nodded thoughtfully, evidently imagining what those proactive attacks might look like.

I then said to Mizuguchi Tetsu, "Mr. Mizuguchi, your music game idea is excellent, but I think you could actually make people interact more with the entertainment equipment."

Mizuguchi Tetsu looked confused. "Interact?"

I nodded. "Rather than merely having players press buttons, require them to perform certain movements in time with the music. Like this..."

I drew a fairly large square on the floor and laid out four sheets of paper to represent the PS controller's directional buttons. Standing on them, I struck a pose. "Does that make it a little clearer, Mr. Mizuguchi?"

Mizuguchi's eyes lit up. "I understand, I understand! Zhou-san, you're a genius! I understand!"

This is a stolen idea too, and you even contributed to it. How embarrassing, how embarrassing.

Originally, none of them had thought much of me; they had only come out of respect for the company. After hearing my round of comments, they all began expressing undisguised admiration. It reminded me of a Japanese fellow who, after seeing Li Zhi-da's work in Hong Kong, said that Hong Kong comic artists were the earth, while Li Zhi-da was the sky! The Japanese loved exaggeration, and they loved worshipping the strong.

After some inconsequential conversation, Mizuguchi Tetsu asked me with some puzzlement, "Zhou-san, these ideas are all excellent, and there are hardly any technical obstacles. Why don't you implement them yourself?"

I smiled. "Games are only a medium, as are novels, music, films, and stage plays. Games convey joy and engagement; they're a participatory form of reading. Compared with those, I prefer writing or film, so making just one game is enough. A person has only so much to express. You can't monopolize every medium yourself, can you?"

That speech brought waves of applause from those Japanese turncoats. I found the noisy scene rather irritating. I had Liu Mingyao find a business manager to drink those boys, who could only handle sake, under the table, then left with my hands clasped behind my back.

Another week later, Third Brother returned.

Before returning, Third Brother had someone bring me his first message: "Someone is investigating you. Be careful."

I smiled. I had known that long ago; the investigation might have begun ages earlier. We had simply gone through several layers of detours, and no one could get results without deliberately investigating. More importantly, Liu Mingyao's father was an excellent shield. With him around, investigating me now would surely be somewhat difficult?

Liu Mingyao's old man had been promoted twice in the past three years and was now a vice governor. I had known that for ages. He knew I knew, so he did not mention it, but I also knew he knew I knew, so neither did I. We each knew the other knew, so neither of us said anything...

Occasionally using his father's connections was also a key reason Sun Electronics had enjoyed such smooth sailing over the past two years. I did not know what Liu Mingyao was thinking. Someone from a family so well-off that he hardly needed money was actually willing to run around working for me. Apart from curiosity, there must have been other reasons.

Liu Mingyao was actually very determined to prove himself. He rarely mentioned his family to outsiders, and I could more or less understand that feeling of wanting to build something and show them. He had now made a name for himself, and in terms of standing, he was qualified to sit down frequently for heart-to-hearts with a vice governor. National industry, software miracles-all those slogans had brought his father considerable prestige, so it was only reasonable that the old man was willing to help. After all, even ordinary entrepreneurs who contributed to the government would receive help when they asked for it.

Over the past few years, Liu Mingyao had spread plenty of money around at my direction, making donations and establishing schools. That had probably made his old man genuinely happy, and he could speak up for us and fend off most minor troubles.

With Liu Mingyao as a piece on the board, I felt a little more secure, though of course there was no guarantee he would not turn on me as so many others did. He was a man of genuine feeling, and over these years our cooperation had developed considerable mutual understanding. Deep down, I still trusted him very much.

Many years ago, someone had said my problem was trusting people too easily.

Occasionally I wondered: was that not a strength too?

Third Brother arrived home quietly two days after his message reached me. I was wandering around town with Zhang Xiaotong at the time. After receiving the call, we saw Third Brother on a street bathed in gentle sunlight.

Third Brother's skin had grown a little fairer. Wearing one of those shirts seen everywhere on the streets at the time, he greeted us.

I walked over and extended my hand. Third Brother extended his too, and we clasped hands tightly.

The summer vacation morning was bright with sunshine. As our hands separated, Guo Zhen, who had hurried over after receiving the call, was getting out of a car.

Looking at Third Brother's face, thinner again, I knew how difficult the trip had been. I waved a hand. "Come on. We'll talk as we walk."

Third Brother called Guo Zhen over and patted his head. "Pretty dull on your own, huh?"

Guo Zhen smiled. "A little. We've been waiting for you to come back and lead us into some real action."

Third Brother gave us a rough account of his results.

It was not that he had never returned to China over the past few months; his activities had simply been confined to Heilongjiang and Jilin, moving goods across the border. He had also made one trip through Weihai in Shandong. But getting through smoothly there was extremely difficult. Most of the smuggling was done by the military, and he abandoned the route after a brief attempt. The coast guard was no pushover. They fired directly on small boats without the slightest hesitation.

The gangs in Russia were in disarray, but their objectives were fairly consistent: making money. Third Brother's friend had connections with several of the more powerful gangs. Their terms were simple enough: other goods could be bartered, but weapons had to be bought with cash.

After shopping around, Third Brother chose the biggest gang and began selling the goods he had brought under their protection. The goods he received in exchange were then resold back in China for cash. Together with the cash we had provided earlier, that had allowed him to bring back plenty of good stuff.

As for firearms, Guo Zhen was a fanatic and half an expert. His explanations left me bewildered, but I listened and took notes, learning quite a bit along the way. Although I had not seen the goods, I at least learned that our current stockpile could arm a small corps.

Cold sweat kept breaking out as I listened... If we got caught with this, even a hundred death sentences would not cover it. I had to think of something fast.

Third Brother concluded that the trip's original objective had been achieved. But judging by the current situation, border smuggling was far too extensive. If we really wanted to make an effort in that area, our present strength was nowhere near sufficient. We had been far too optimistic before, truly frogs at the bottom of a well.

I sighed. This world really was full of towering waves and fierce storms.