This person really knows how to be reborn!

Chapter 66 Wang Ba Dan

Zeng Cheng had long planned to create a clone of Renren.com and achieve a new and continuous success, and he posted a recruitment notice on the campus forum two days ago.

I've received many replies in the past two days.

After careful selection, Zeng Cheng kept three resumes out of hundreds.

He arranged to meet the three of them at 2:30 p.m. today on the second floor of the school library.

After telling Yu Baiwei that he would visit her after he finished his work, Zeng Cheng went straight to the school library.

When I arrived at the destination, I checked the time; it was just past two o'clock.

Zeng Cheng found a place to sit down and closed his eyes to review the resumes of the three people opposite him.

The first one is named Luo Di. He is a senior this year and his GPA ranks in the top ten of his major.

The second one is Wang Qi, who is already a first-year graduate student. His undergraduate grades were only average, but he has a wealth of experience.

The third one is Yang Xiuer, a junior this year. Her resume is the most impressive, having ranked first in GPA for four consecutive semesters.

Another twenty minutes or so passed, and the three of them arrived one after another.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Zeng Cheng quickly adopted the air of a powerful client, turning first to Luo Di, "I've already clearly stated the specific requirements in the job posting, Senior Luo. If I were to assign this project to you, what's the fastest you could complete it?"

Roddy pondered for a moment: "This junior, building a website from scratch—even if it's just a knock-off of Renren.com's framework—would definitely take at least ten days to half a month."

Zeng Cheng raised an eyebrow: "Senior Brother Luo, be more precise. Ten days is ten days, half a month is half a month."

Roddy gritted his teeth: "Ten days!"

"Very good," Zeng Cheng smiled, then looked at Wang Qi, "Senior Brother Wang, what about you over here?"

Wang Qi frowned first, then steeled himself: "I only need ten days on my end!"

"Okay, then let's talk about compensation."

Zeng Cheng deliberately ignored Yang Xiuer, whom he admired most, and looked at Luo Di again, asking him what his price range was.

Before Luo Di arrived, he had prepared to quote Zeng Cheng 30,000.

He can't handle such a big project by himself; he'll need at least ten people of similar skill level.

On average, each person could only earn 3,000 yuan after working for ten days, which was not considered an exorbitant amount even in 2009.

However, after glancing at his two competitors, Roddy proactively cut the price by five thousand.

"Twenty-five thousand."

Zeng Cheng looked at Wang Qi.

Wang Qi said sincerely, "Junior, 25,000 is indeed the lowest price. No one would be willing to come if it were any lower."

At this point, Luo Di and Wang Qi must have realized that Zeng Cheng wanted to create a vicious cycle of competition between the two of them, but he was powerless to change the situation.

The main problem is that they didn't know each other beforehand, and they were clearly competitors. Once a chain of suspicion was established, the problem became unsolvable.

The two exchanged a glance, both thinking to themselves—this junior is something else, no wonder he dares to spend millions to start a website at such a young age!

Yang Xiuer felt a strong sense of grievance.

Zeng Cheng called her for an interview, but didn't ask her a single question, treating her like she was invisible the whole time!

Although she is only a junior this year, she claims that she is no worse than these two senior students, and her GPA is the highest in her major every semester!

With that thought in mind, Yang Xiuer glared at Zeng Cheng: "Junior Zeng, why didn't you ask me?"

Zeng Cheng then looked at Yang Xiuer and repeated the same thing he had just said.

Yang Xiuer quickly chimed in, "Junior, I only need ten days for my side, and I'll only charge 25,000!"

"That's a tough one—all three are quite outstanding, who should I choose?"

Zeng Cheng shrugged, a half-smile on his face.

The three of them understood—Zeng Cheng wanted them to compete for the positions and demonstrate their core competencies!

Roddy spoke first, patting his chest and assuring Zeng Cheng that as long as he was given this project, he would do his best, if not pour his heart and soul into it, then he would certainly devote himself entirely to it…

Zeng Cheng smiled gently at Luo Di and said, "Senior Brother Luo, I believe in you," but in his heart, he immediately dismissed him.

Are you even going so far as to offer empty promises to your brother Cheng?

How many dishes are there for lunch? I'm telling a ghost story to an old fox spirit!

Wang Qi spoke second, and his words weren't as vague as Luo Di's. He explained to Zeng Cheng how he would build a team and overcome technical difficulties if he were to take over the project, in order to meet Zeng Cheng's requirements within the ten-day deadline...

Zeng Cheng nodded and gave the person a passing grade.

He's a down-to-earth tech guy.

Unfortunately, my abilities are limited.

If there were no other options, Zeng Cheng would give the project to Wang Qi.

Such people may not be able to produce excellent products, but they can definitely reach the passing grade.

After pondering for a moment, Zeng Cheng looked at Yang Xiuer—it was clear from his previous deliberate suppression that she was actually the person he truly desired.

After a moment of contemplation, Yang Xiuer presented her core competencies.

She not only knows how to build websites, but also hacking techniques. She is the protégé of a bigwig in the Red Hacker Alliance. Zeng Cheng entrusted the project to her, so the website security can be guaranteed to a certain extent.

"Wow, Senior Xiuer even knows hacking! My apologies for not recognizing you sooner—"

Zeng Cheng said this, but his expression remained noncommittal.

Yang Xiuer bit her lip and then said, "Junior, I saw in your job posting that you need to use pictures of beautiful women in pop-up ads when driving traffic to the website—"

"Senior Xiuer, your description is not accurate," Zeng Cheng interrupted her, adding a lot of qualifiers in one breath, "I need pictures of sexy, charming, alluring, and provocative beauties."

Yang Xiuer's cheek twitched: "Junior, are you planning to skirt the law? Aren't you afraid the website will be shut down?"

Zeng Cheng shook his head: "If Robin Li isn't afraid, why should I be?"

In 2009, major portals were still in a stage of rapid, unregulated development, and internet regulation was far less stringent than it would be in later years.

Take Baidu for example, a simple search will yield plenty of explicit images.

It's fine to hit a straight shot, but what's the big deal if it's just a glancing shot?

Besides, starting a business is never without risk; it's always been a case of "the bold get rich, and the timid starve."

At this point in the conversation, Zeng Cheng was already frowning slightly.

Thinking that if Yang Xiuer had a strong sense of moral purity, then the project would have to be handed over to Wang Qi.

Unexpectedly, Yang Xiuer proudly said, "Junior, then you should definitely hand this project over to me. I'm a moderator on several torrent forums, and I have the necessary permissions. I can easily scrape dozens of gigabytes of images for you!"

"Holy crap—"

The implementation of the real-name system once shocked many.

Yang Xiuer has a petite figure and wears a pair of black-rimmed glasses with high myopia. She looks like a gender-swapped version of Conan Edogawa. No matter how you look at it, she is a cute girl. Who would have thought that she is a seasoned driver?

Then there's nothing more to say.

Zeng Cheng smiled and extended his hand to Yang Xiuer: "It's a pleasure working with you!"

The interview lasted no more than ten minutes from start to finish.

Zeng Cheng handed the project over to Yang Xiuer, but also left Luo Di and Wang Qi's contact information.

If Zhongzhong.com performs well after its launch—which is a high-probability event for Zeng Cheng, who has been given a rebirth—it will be necessary to assemble a technical team.

Both of them can be brought under our command at that time.

After finishing his business, Zeng Cheng smoothly switched from his "career-oriented mindset" to his "friendship-oriented mindset," picked up Yu Baiwei from the girls' dormitory of the School of Economics, and asked her where she planned to go.

Yu Baiwei said cheerfully, "Zeng Cheng, just like the other day, we'll stroll around the school and step on ants!"

Zeng Cheng shook his head: "Let's give the ants a break today."

If you step on ants every day, the ants will have something to say.

What grudge do you hold against me? Am I also part of your plan?

"Hmm, so what are we doing this afternoon and evening?"

Pay attention—Yu Baiwei wasn't asking about the afternoon, but rather the afternoon and evening.

In other words, Zeng Cheng can forget about sending her back to her dormitory after dinner, which shows that our beautiful Yu is quite resourceful when it comes to being clever.

"Shall I take you off-campus for some fun... maybe a few video games?"

"hold head high!"

Yu Baiwei's initiative was at its peak, and honey began to quietly form in her crescent-shaped eyes again.

The two played video games in the afternoon, had dinner, and then strolled around the school for nearly two hours—the ants of Shuda University ultimately could not escape their destined calamity.

Throughout the process, Zeng Cheng was very happy, and Yu Baiwei was very pleased.

Thus, the ubiquitous law of conservation begins to take effect.

Wang Zicong, He Shuhuan, and Chen Yuliang were thoroughly humiliated by a certain Lao Liu today, and they were all feeling emo when they got back to the dorm.

He Shuhuan, the top student, was the quickest to adjust.

Beauty can be found in books!

After engaging in self-pity, he channeled his sadness into strength and began to study "Advanced Mathematics" ahead of time.

Chen Yuliang is alright.

After all, he still has Qu Xiaoxiao.

As soon as he got back to his dorm, Chen Yuliang took out his phone, ready to send a text message to Qu Xiaoxiao to ask her what she was doing.

Zeng Cheng's playing style—"I never flirt with girls, the girls always flirt with me"—is too high-end.

Chen Yuliang has always been self-aware and knew that he couldn't learn it.

So he learned Wang Zicong's style of play—constantly showering the girl with attention and concern.

Of the three, it is Wang Zicong who is truly unable to move on.

He complained to He Shuhuan and Chen Yuliang, "That damn Zeng Laoliu, what makes him so special? He's neither as handsome nor as rich as me, so why are those two beauties fighting over him?"

He Shuhuan was engrossed in studying advanced mathematics when Wang Zicong interrupted him. He looked up and gave him a big eye roll.

"Fifth brother, you really don't know your place. It's debatable who's richer between you and sixth brother... but sixth brother is definitely more handsome than you!"

Wang Zicong retorted angrily, "You damn fool, when did you go blind?"

He Shuhuan shrugged and ignored Wang Zicong.

Wang Zicong was even angrier and slapped Chen Yuliang, who was editing a text message, saying, "Third brother, you give your opinion!"

As he spoke, he pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket.

Chen Yuliang was already a heavy smoker. He chuckled, lit a cigarette, took a satisfying puff, and then started showering some rich young master with compliments.

"You are so handsome, how could Zeng Laoliu possibly compare to you!"

Normally, even if it's just empty flattery, Wang Zicong would be smug, but at this moment, he felt only bitterness.

"Third brother, you're such a fucking fake," Wang Zicong rolled his eyes at Chen Yuliang, then said dejectedly, "Okay, I admit, Zeng Laoliu is indeed a little bit more handsome than me, but do I have any advantages over him?"

"Of course there are, for example—" For the sake of Ruan Huazi, Chen Yuliang tried hard to find a point where Wang Zicong might be better than Zeng Cheng, but unfortunately he couldn't find one. "Well, how about we don't compete with Lao Liu?"

Wang Zicong: "..."

Is this guy trying to comfort him, or is he just rubbing salt into his wounds?

At that moment, Chen Yuliang's phone rang; a QQ message had arrived.

He opened it and saw that it was Qu Xiaoxiao's avatar flashing, and his face immediately lit up with anger.

Wang Zicong was displeased: "Third brother, what the hell is that face of yours? I'm still feeling emo, and you're all beaming. Can't you have any empathy?"

Chen Yuliang decided to put on a little act: "Didn't Qu Xiaoxiao message me? Fifth brother, don't let your current bluster fool you. You're always talking about Teacher Zhong and the beautiful Xia, but I might actually be the first one in our dorm to find a boyfriend!"

Wang Zicong was even more annoyed: "Holy crap, is Qu Xiaoxiao really that blind? Is she really that proactive towards you?"

Chen Yuliang continued to feign innocence: "See for yourself, didn't Qu Xiaoxiao send me the QQ message first!"

After saying that, she pushed the phone to Wang Zicong.

Wang Zicong took the message, opened QQ on his phone, and found that it really was a message from Qu Xiaoxiao.

I couldn't help but feel a sense of unevenness again.

[Damn it, I'm a rich guy, it's one thing if I can't even compare to Zeng Laoliu, but am I really worse than a idiot like Chen Yuliang?]

After reading the message, Wang Zicong's eyes widened in surprise.

He tried hard to suppress his laughter: "Third brother, you're right. Zeng Laoliu is all talk and no action. Compared to you, he's nothing. Qu Xiaoxiao is so proactive with you. I'm fucking envious of you!"

After saying that, he handed the phone back to Chen Yuliang.

Chen Yuliang's expression grew increasingly smug, but after taking the phone and reading the message, he was struck dumb.

Qu Xiaoxiao's information is as follows.

【Chen Yuliang, you bastard, let's delete each other's QQ accounts!】