Age of Legends

Chapter 255 Don’t think too much

To be honest, Zhang Chen felt quite unfulfilled. Despite his efforts, Pony Ma's QQ was still just a basic chat software and hadn't received much investment to become a major player. It was currently relying on advertising revenue and Wang Bowen's investment to sustain its growth.

Zhao Tao's Shengfeng is still wits and courages fighting with the post office for its messy affairs, but with Zhang Chen's guidance, it now "pays tribute" to the post office and turns a blind eye to them sending letters.

Jiang Rong's "Emotional Mediation Room" is also a stable source of advertising revenue, and Zhang Chen can get 100,000 to 200,000 yuan every month.

He also owns shops that he sold from Zhuang Yanyue's father's Zhongshan company. The overall value of these shops is rising, but the total value does not exceed ten million.

Zhang Zhonghua, without saying a word, used a single patent as a starting point and it was valued at 1.2 million yuan.

Of course, patent valuation is only an assessment of value, similar to the so-called valuation in the internet industry. The assessment aims to find a valuation under ideal profit conditions, but the actual value is realized through means such as corporate dividends, equity transfers, and IPOs. Therefore, it does not represent the true cash value.

However, when you invest in and value internet companies, they all exaggerate their potential and, in the eyes of the media, that's almost indistinguishable from their net worth.

From this perspective, I, the reborn one, am actually being suppressed by my father!

Even Zhang Zhonghua's mother, Huang Huifen, is a bit depressed now. She's quite a peculiar mother; Zhang Zhonghua's patent is valued at 1.2 million yuan, but that's not particularly exciting for her. Instead, she feels inferior to Zhang Zhonghua. Now, even at home, if Zhang Zhonghua asks her to pour him a glass of water, she obediently pours it. Then, realizing what she's doing, she says in a fierce but weak voice, "Are you treating me like a servant? You actually dared to ask me to pour you water!"

At that time, Zhang Zhonghua was actually still sending emails in front of his computer, so he could only say, "I just said it on a whim, I'm busy here!"

Huang Huifen grumbled, "Busy, busy, busy! All I do is order me around! People will really think you have over a hundred million in your pocket! You're the boss, but what do you see? I can't even see any money!"

Despite saying this, if anything happened to Zhang Zhonghua, she would have no choice but to step in.

But outside, when many old acquaintances in the Nam Kwong Group's residential compound see Huang Huifen and enthusiastically inquire about Zhang Zhonghua, saying things like, "Your old Zhang is really amazing!" "I knew back then that Engineer Zhang was capable and would make a name for himself sooner or later!" "You're so lucky!" Huang Huifen would just say, "Not at all!" but her expression was still very proud.

After the news spread, Aunt Liu Shuzhen often talked to Huang Huifen on the phone. It wasn't that she didn't want to go to Zhang Chen's house, but there was always no one there. Once, when she went to the construction site to chat with Huang Huifen, she found that Huang Huifen was really busy and didn't have time to talk to her at all, so she didn't want to make a fool of herself and left on her own.

Li Degui, who is usually arrogant, also called Zhang Zhonghua, but he still couldn't shake off his attitude as a union secretary, saying some encouraging words. Zhang Zhonghua agreed, and the other party even invited him to his house for dinner and to celebrate with Wuliangye liquor.

This is quite unexpected; for Li Degui and Liu Shuzhen's family to spend so much money, they must be determined to repair their relationship.

But actually, none of this was necessary; Huang Huifen had seen things clearly. Of course, it was impossible to completely sever ties, but her mother would definitely be careful about what she said and wouldn't listen to Liu Shuzhen in everything anymore.

……

A few days after Christmas, Zhang Chen and Jiang Rong had hot pot together in the afternoon. The restaurant was their usual spot in the old neighborhood, a converted balcony with a flower trellis outside. Zhang Chen noticed that Jiang Rong looked somewhat haggard, quite different from the image he had of her—a woman who had entered the workforce and was thriving, now known as the "Queen of Mediation Programs"—a far cry from the sophisticated "queen" she was expected to be.

She was dressed in casual home clothes, with a woolen cardigan over a short vest that revealed her curves and slender waist. She wore wide-leg jeans and carried a canvas bag with a few oil spots on it, obviously from long-term use for commuting.

She looked like she lived in a nearby apartment building and had been invited down for hot pot by her best friend with just a phone call. Her hair was still a bit frizzy.

"Have you been busy lately?" Zhang Chen asked.

"Did you know that Teacher Wang suddenly decided to open a courtyard house and turn it into a coffee shop?" Jiang Rong's appearance wasn't exactly unkempt; she was more like an art student buried in her work, busy with her art every day and neglecting her appearance. But she also possessed a natural beauty and a lazy charm.

Zhang Chen's words immediately opened her up, and she began to complain.

"Teacher Wang was something else. Once he had the idea, he bought the courtyard and gave me instructions on how to decorate it, how many people to hire, and how to create a youth café to provide a platform for artists and creatives to exchange artistic and cultural ideas! But all he did was plan and then leave. I was stunned. Then I was running back and forth between the two places, keeping an eye on the program while I kept getting calls saying the building materials had arrived and I needed to pick them up. I rushed over to sign for them. Not long after, another call came saying the coffee machine had arrived and I needed to pick it up! Then the tables and chairs arrived, and I had to run back and forth again..."

Jiang Rong was gesturing wildly as she spoke, and as she moved, her woolen jacket slipped down, revealing her smooth shoulders, which were covered only by a tank top, and thin transparent straps.

It's no wonder Zhang Chen's eyes followed her. Jiang Rong's classically beautiful face, coupled with a touch of languor, and her complaints about the hardships of the workplace, gave off a sudden sense of everyday life, a feeling similar to the comfort of home. And at this moment, her coat slipped down, revealing the sexy allure of her smooth, old shoulders, which was still very eye-catching.

Seeing Zhang Chen's gaze, she immediately realized her lapse in composure and felt extremely embarrassed, but she remained calm. In her next move, she subtly raised her hand and pulled back the left side of her coat collar to cover her shoulder, as if the abruptness between them had never happened.

That's why we talk about social distancing; without it, there will inevitably be these slightly awkward moments.

She was secretly annoyed. The high school senior in front of her was the godson of a big boss, a pillar of the company, a top student, and a genius with almost superhuman intelligence. All the program planning was done by him, and he was also quite handsome. Why did she feel like she was the one flirting with the boy in front of her?

To be honest, sometimes when she invited Zhang Chen out for hot pot, she was afraid people would say she was trying to seduce a younger man. After all, some people did stare at them, the couple standing in front of the neighborhood hot pot restaurant, with some speculative glances. She wasn't stupid. She really wanted to tell those people looking at her that he wasn't just an ordinary high school student! This boy in front of you has stirred up quite a storm in Rongcheng! The show you're watching right now is about him!

But these are precisely the things that are difficult to explain.

Of course, they couldn't be honest with Zhang Chen about these thoughts, and they didn't shy away from sitting in the outermost street-facing spot. The reason was simply because there was nothing between them, and there was no need to hide anything, as that would only cause misunderstandings among others.

Yes. It's nothing, don't overthink it, don't overthink it! — Jiang Rong

Jiang Rong thought to herself.

(End of this chapter)