Chapter 35: If Tengda Can Do It, So Can I

July 17th marked the fortieth day since Huang He arrived in this world. Accompanied by his sister-in-law, Leng Zhimeng, he boarded a plane bound for the heart of the nation—the Imperial Capital. Although he was quite intrigued by the city as it was in 2001 and wished to explore it thoroughly, this was an era where every moment counted. Huang He had no time to waste on leisure. Thanks to Leng Zhimeng's connections, they settled into a hotel and went directly to the Capital Institute of Technology to meet the author of Coral QQ, Chen Shoufu.

It was difficult to imagine that the creator of Coral QQ, Chen Shoufu, worked at the Capital Institute of Technology—not as a student, but as a teacher in the Computer Center. At this point, he had only just graduated, but thanks to his outstanding academic performance, he managed to secure a position at the school as a teaching assistant.

Without Coral QQ, Chen Shoufu would have pursued a dual degree, spent four years advancing from assistant to lecturer, then associate professor, then full professor, eventually becoming a respected figure... Well, even though the reputation of university professors would be tarnished in the future.

But Coral QQ changed everything for him. Sued by Tengda, imprisoned for three years, unable to return to academia after his release, forced to start a group-buying website. Had he succeeded, his future might have been bright, but he failed, and ultimately disappeared without a trace; no one knows what became of him.

Chen Shoufu's fate was lamentable, though his abilities were undeniably impressive. The technology behind Coral QQ was formidable, achieving features even Tengda itself couldn't implement.

Normally, this wouldn't have mattered, but Tengda began to focus on controlling its users' information, determined to eliminate any potential threats to its data. Coral QQ, as a third-party add-on, naturally became a prime target. In fact, all unofficial QQ clients were targeted, and Chen Shoufu was made an example.

But that's enough on that subject. For now, Chen Shoufu was merely a newly qualified assistant, looking at the man and woman before him with a mixture of anxiety and unease.

They had already communicated on the forum; Chen Shoufu knew the other party wanted him to develop something related to QQ, and was a wealthy investor. This left him conflicted. Working on Coral QQ in his spare time was fine—it didn't affect his job. But if he truly partnered with these investors, his hard-won position at the university would certainly be lost. That fear of losing his iron rice bowl was what made Chen Shoufu so hesitant and unable to decide.

"What do you want me to do?" After some polite exchanges, Chen Shoufu got straight to the point.

"We want to create a software just like QQ," Huang He replied with a smile.

"Just like QQ? What do you mean? Like my Coral QQ?" Chen Shoufu hesitated for a moment before continuing, "Actually, from a legal standpoint, Coral QQ already infringes on QQ's rights. Right now, my little side project is manageable, but if you invest and it involves commercial interests, I'd risk prison. I can't do that."

"Ha, I didn't expect you to be so clear on these matters, Mr. Chen!" Huang He chuckled. Since Chen Shoufu already understood the legal risks of Coral QQ, why did he keep expanding it in the future? Clearly, Chen Shoufu was a man who, deep down, coveted profit. As long as you offered enough, he'd do anything.

Understanding this, Huang He became very direct. "I know about the legal risks of Coral QQ, and I am a law-abiding citizen; I won't do anything illegal."

"Since you could make Coral QQ, you must be very familiar with instant messaging software. My real purpose is to have you lead a team to develop a brand new instant messaging product for our company. I see great potential in this software—Tengda monopolizing the market is just too comfortable for them," Huang He said with a smile.

"Oh, that's doable!" Chen Shoufu nodded, his face also breaking into a smile. "I know a lot of talented classmates, and I have some capable students as well. I have full confidence I can assemble a team and deliver a finished product in half a year..."

"Half a year is too long," Huang He interrupted.

"Three months, then, but it would require overtime."

"Still too long," Huang He shook his head. Every day lost only consolidated Tengda's dominance. Three months was simply too long for him to wait.

"How much time do you want to give me?" Chen Shoufu asked, somewhat helpless.

"One month," Huang He raised a single finger. "From assembling the team to producing a complete program package, setting up servers, building a website, and officially launching the product—I give you only one month!"

"That's impossible, Mr. Huang, you're overestimating me. I can't do that in a month—not as a teacher," Chen Shoufu protested.

"And what if you weren't a teacher?" Huang He asked calmly.

"What do you mean?" Chen Shoufu's mouth fell open.

"How much is your monthly salary here at the school?" Huang He countered.

"One thousand... no, a little over a thousand... including some benefits..."

"Two thousand. Let's say your salary is two thousand," Huang He waved dismissively. "But if you join me, leave your job, and assemble a team, I guarantee that on launch day, your monthly income will be ten times what it is now!"

"Ten times!" Chen Shoufu felt as if he'd been struck in the chest, struggling to breathe. Ten times meant twenty thousand—at twenty thousand per month, even the university president only made five thousand officially. He would be making four times as much. In less than three years, he could buy a house in the capital and live a life everyone envied.

"I accept!" Chen Shoufu made his decision quickly. Huang He smiled; it was just as he expected.

"Excellent. Gather your team—I'll give you thirty spots. On launch day, each member's salary will be two thousand a month," Huang He continued. "I will also establish a subsidiary for you and invest five million as the company's starting capital. You, Chen Shoufu, will be the Technical Director and Deputy General Manager, in charge of all research and development."

"Good!" Chen Shoufu felt a rush of blood to his head. A thirty-person team was more than enough; he was confident he could meet Huang He's requirements in one month.

"Boss!" Chen Shoufu shifted quickly. "Besides the tech team, I’ll need an art and design team. We programmers can write code, but we can’t handle UI or visual design. We need professionals to create a distinctive interface, different from QQ, so that..."

"There’s no need for that!" Huang He smiled, shaking his head, and patted Chen Shoufu’s shoulder. "No need to make things complicated. All users seem to like QQ’s art style. Let’s not risk going another direction. Just follow QQ’s style and UI—design it however QQ does, make it look similar enough."

"But pay attention to some details—colors, for example. If QQ is white, we’ll use blue. If QQ is blue, we’ll use white. Black becomes gray, red becomes orange. Just swap the colors as you see fit."

"And change the font too. QQ uses Song or Hei, I don’t remember. Let’s switch to Xingkai. Don’t use Microsoft Yahei or Fangzheng fonts, or they’ll pester us for royalties later."

"Mr. Huang!" Chen Shoufu interrupted, flustered. "Boss, isn’t this just copying QQ?"

"Hey, how can you say that? We’re not copying!" Huang He replied righteously. "We’re referencing—do you understand? The law doesn’t punish referencing. Maybe we should recruit some law students and set up a legal department to research how to reference without copying!"

"Don’t worry, I won’t let our company face any legal risks. We’re law-abiding citizens."

"Boss, even if it’s not legally risky, how will others view us? Are we going to wear the label of 'copycat' forever?" Chen Shoufu asked helplessly.

"That doesn’t matter!" Huang He laughed heartily. "That label doesn’t harm us at all. QQ itself referenced QICQ; I’m just referencing QQ. What’s the problem? What bad intentions could I have? I learned all this from Tengda!"

"If Tengda can do it, so can we!"

"And I’ve already decided on the name: we’ll call it OO."