Chapter 71 – Liu Pingping Was Stunned: The Nation’s Top Programmer Worshipped Li Mo? (Part 2)
Qiu Bojun was well aware that Li Mo’s reputation as the “Stock God” wasn’t built on luck.
He had earned that title during the market’s most chaotic days.
Its value was nothing short of astounding.
“And this is?”
Li Mo shifted his attention to the man beside Qiu.
Then it clicked.
This was someone important for a future investment—
The boss of Xiaomi Phones, a renowned angel investor: Lei Xiaojun.
Going by the timeline of his investment strategy,
at this point, Lei Xiaojun was still working at Kingsoft.
He hadn’t resigned yet.
“I remember now. You must be the genius programmer who cracked WPS—Lei Xiaojun, right?”
“Your has been doing quite well lately.”
“The B2C market looks very promising.”
Li Mo spoke with deliberate intent.
B2C was the business model that later defined Jingxi ()—
its very foundation.
At a time when Jingxi was still focused on physical storefronts,
Lei Xiaojun had already ventured into this territory.
Still, Jingxi’s fate didn’t lie with him.
Some things couldn’t be forced.
“You know me?”
Lei Xiaojun’s voice trembled slightly, his expression difficult to control.
He had heard of Li Mo—
a man hailed as a stock market legend and a real estate prodigy.
A man who’d made billions in mere months.
He was like a living myth.
“Of course I do.”
“Mr. Lei’s name is well-known. You’re currently Mr. Qiu’s top general.”
“Let’s definitely have a few drinks later.”
Li Mo intended to establish a connection with Lei Xiaojun early on.
Lei, in turn, felt deeply honored.
Though he was an executive at Kingsoft,
his position and shares were nowhere near Qiu Bojun’s.
He was also far behind someone like Mr. Ma.
But Li Mo—already a famous prodigy in the industry—was being this friendly to him?
How could he not feel overwhelmed?
“Absolutely, Mr. Mo. I’ll drink whatever you give me. Let’s drink to our hearts’ content!”
Seeing that Li Mo was trying to win Lei Xiaojun over,
Ma Tengyun quickly chimed in.
“Brother Lei, back when I was looking for investment for Qiqu (Penguin), you turned me down, remember?”
“Didn’t expect we’d meet again so soon. Tonight, we’re drinking until we drop!”
Lei Xiaojun sighed with a wry smile.
“I just couldn’t see a clear path to profitability in instant messaging back then.”
“I was only a minor shareholder, earning 20,000 a month while supporting my whole family.”
“I didn’t have the capital, that’s all.”
Sigh.
“If I had even a tenth of Mr. Mo’s wealth, I would’ve backed your idea too.”
Ma Tengyun knew Lei wasn’t lying.
But now that the topic had shifted to wealth,
he couldn’t resist bragging a little about salaries.
“Well, that’s true.”
“Mr. Mo is really generous.”
“He offered me a million-yuan annual salary.”
“The rest of the Five Tiger Generals each get over 400,000 a year too.”
Lei Xiaojun: “…”
He was starting to feel conflicted.
Ma Tengyun’s team was just getting started.
Did they really deserve that kind of pay?
This Mr. Mo… was truly throwing money around.
If he ever got a chance to choose again,
Lei thought, he’d want a boss like that.
Mr. Mo really was a good lord to follow.
“Your company has that much money? Is that for real?”
Ma Tengyun clapped him on the shoulder.
“Would I lie?”
“I may not be a big shot, but I wouldn’t just spout nonsense.”
“If I say it’s real, it’s real.”
“If you don’t believe me, I’ll show you the tax forms later.”
Hearing that, Lei Xiaojun finally believed him completely.
“Mr. Mo…”
“My company, Kingsoft, can’t seem to find a new profit model these days.”
“Jinshan Antivirus is still popular, but Ruixing keeps eating into our market share.”
“They’re also cheaper.”
“Our profits are steadily declining.”
“If this continues, I’m afraid Kingsoft won’t last much longer.”
Qiu Bojun, despite being the top programmer in the country,
admitted he wasn’t great at corporate strategy.
But Li Mo—this man was a living legend.
Penguin’s meteoric rise, the investment in Mr. Ma’s company,
and two market-shaking investment deals—
it all proved that Li Mo was no ordinary man.
Li Mo knew well that Kingsoft’s golden days were over.
Finding a new direction would be difficult.
In fact, he already had plans to acquire Kingsoft in the future.
But for now, the company still had some fight left.
“Mr. Qiu,” he said,
“have you considered getting into online gaming?”
“Gaming is booming in China these days.”
“I heard Mr. Lei once proposed a game called Swordsman Love…”
“But it was never released?”
Qiu Bojun paused in surprise.
“Online gaming?”
“Mr. Mo, do you really think that could be our new turning point?”
Li Mo nodded.
He knew the future of gaming would belong to Penguin,
but Swordsman Love could still serve as Kingsoft’s temporary lifeline.
“I do.”
“Games like Legend and Conquest are dominating internet cafes right now.”
“If a new online game enters the market…”
“It could easily carve out its own share.”
Lei Xiaojun looked at Li Mo.
His voice had gone hoarse from excitement.
“Mr. Mo… you know about Swordsman Love?”
That was a single-player game he had poured his heart and soul into.
But the project was shut down midway—
the board felt Kingsoft wasn’t cut out for online gaming.
He never expected Li Mo to know about it.
“Of course I do. I think Mr. Lei is a genius.”
“And anything a genius creates is bound to attract attention.”
Lei Xiaojun’s admiration for Li Mo grew tenfold.
He made up his mind to drink hard with him later.
“But… Swordsman Love is a single-player game,”
he said, hesitating.
“Just modify it into an online version. Problem solved.”
That response left Lei feeling a little flustered.
Li Mo’s recognition and encouragement made him feel… lightheaded.
A man who created miracles in the capital world actually sees value in me?
Does that mean… I really am exceptional?
By now, he had completely turned into Li Mo’s fanboy.
“Sorry, Mr. Mo. I think I’m getting a little dizzy…”
Watching Li Mo converse so easily with Kingsoft’s Qiu Bojun and Lei Xiaojun,
Liu Pingping still hadn’t recovered from the shock.
This “West Zihu Gathering of Minds” had drawn in Kingsoft’s CEO.
With Kingsoft, Alibaba, and Penguin all present,
this was practically an internet summit!
But then…
An elderly man with snow-white hair appeared ahead of them—
and for a moment, Liu Pingping wondered…
Am I even still living in the real world?