Rebirth 04: Starting from Taking an Unconventional Approach

Chapter 172 Literature and History Building

At 6 p.m., Xu Cheng called to tell him that the company had basically agreed to the proposed revisions to the Strategic Cooperation Memorandum, except for the requirement to add a clause that both parties should initiate a substantive business cooperation test within the validity period of the memorandum.

Han Fei reported this matter to Fang Jing, and the two agreed to Tencent's conditions and sign a memorandum. This essentially secured at least two and a half to three months of absolute security for Qingniao at minimal cost. As for the collaborative testing, both believed that Tencent, having already signed the memorandum, was unlikely to press too hard. Even if Tencent did urge them, Han Fei could easily come up with countless reasons to postpone the testing until the memorandum's expiration date.

The two considered this for two reasons. First, they both knew that a break with Tencent in three months was almost inevitable, and a direct confrontation with Tencent was unavoidable. Second, the cooperative test would be entirely detrimental to Qingniao. However, if they could drag it out until the end, the cooperative test itself would no longer be the focus.

Therefore, in essence, agreeing to Tencent's conditions for conducting tests was still a delaying tactic, a pretext to buy time. In the end, Han Fei could simply conduct a series of symbolic, harmless, and unsubstantiated cooperative tests, not to fulfill his promises, but to comply with legally binding cooperation terms. At that point, it would almost be tantamount to declaring a complete break with Tencent.

In short, this is essentially a do-or-die situation for Qingniao. The validity period of the memorandum is the last window of opportunity for Qingniao to delay Tencent's entry. What Qingniao needs to do is to fully prepare for a direct confrontation with Tencent within this two-month window.

"Regarding support from headquarters," Fang Jing concluded, "the billing center is all set up. Bills for last month and this month will be generated on September 15th, after which bi-weekly settlements will begin. The first technical review will also be finalized soon, likely in Guangzhou or Hangzhou. Besides Qingniao, we'll invite two other companies to participate. Have your technical lead prepare in advance; keep it concise, focusing on the asynchronous queue concept so he can be targeted effectively."

"Understood, Mr. Fang. I've asked him to compile the emergency plan for the asynchronous queue into a brief technical review, focusing on how we identified the problem within ten minutes, how we switched the queue, and the disaster recovery strategies for external dependencies that we learned from this incident. The time should be kept under fifteen minutes."

"Yes, the final step is to push the information to the provinces. The headquarters document has already been sent out, and so far, only Jiangsu, Shandong, and Fujian provinces have been notified. The person in charge there may contact you soon, so make the most of it."

Before hanging up the phone, Fang Jing asked a few questions about offline channels and the postal service. After finishing the call, Han Fei stood up and stepped into the corridor, wondering why Fang Jing was concerned about such a completely unrelated matter to her job.

The editorial office door was open, the lights were on, and everyone was there. This meant that everyone had voluntarily stayed to work overtime without Han Fei's request. Han Fei stood at the door and called Cheng Xu out.

"How is it?" Han Fei asked.

"It's been delivered," Cheng Xu said. "Sun Jianguo is a very honest man. He said he would divide the magazines into three places: keep a small portion in his post office duty room and pick it up wherever he passes by; keep a few at the repair shop where he often rests, saying that it's a busy place where he can flip through them while waiting for someone to get their car repaired; and he said he would try taking the remaining large portion to newsstands in larger towns this week when he's making his postal route."

"Did he feel any pressure?"

"No, but he said something quite interesting: 'Whether something is good or bad is for the readers to decide. I'm just a gofer, don't give me any titles.' Cousin, I think this guy isn't just being polite; he genuinely doesn't want to be put on airs. He's willing to help, but if you want him to be 'Station Chief Sun,' he definitely won't be happy."

Han Fei smiled slightly: "This kind of person doesn't easily trust others, but once they do, they're very reliable. We can't rush this matter; with the township as a front, slow and steady wins the race."

"Well, the situation in the township has stabilized. I heard from Lao Sun that Qian Youde and a few of his men are still cooperating with the investigation. The police went to several newsstands in Songjiang and Qingpu a couple of days ago to ask questions, mainly to verify the time and quantity of the violent distribution, and who was behind it. Most of the stall owners are quite cooperative, but of course, there are one or two who are too scared to say much, for fear of retaliation. The law enforcement is still digging deeper, but it's already spread throughout the town that everyone is saying that that unofficial magazine is finished."

"How's it going with Boss Zhou?"

"He's making a fortune quietly," Cheng Xu said, a grin spreading across his face. "He set up a huge shelf in the business hall, filled to the brim with Qingniao magazines. He even replaced the magazines that were thrown away from the newsstand. I chatted with him for a while, and he said that once the case is completely settled, he'll put up a big sign at the entrance of the business hall that says 'Qingniao Township Liaison Station.' He also said that now people in several nearby towns know he's working for Qingniao, and they're actually willing to come to his shop for a chat, asking when the next issue of the magazine will be published."

"This Boss Zhou," Han Fei chuckled, "is alright. You can give him a heads-up next time. After the case is completely closed, Qingniao will officially award him a plaque. The liaison station is recognized by us, so don't make it seem like he's just setting it up for fun. At that time, his station will be our model in the townships. Other townships that want to set up stations will have to come up with his first."

"Cousin, are you trying to give Boss Zhou an official position?" Cheng Xu laughed. "If you ask me, he'll be so arrogant he'll be strutting around like crazy."

He deserves it.

At 9:35 PM, Wen Shuyan walked across the campus. She had spent the entire morning attending various departmental meetings and research activities for the new semester, and in the afternoon, she participated in the final rehearsal for the welcome concert, confirming the performance schedule, venue, and equipment. Just minutes earlier, she had picked up her three new textbooks from the academic affairs office: *General Course in Basic Music Theory*, *An Outline of Chinese and Foreign Music History*, and *Advanced Exercises in Sight-Singing and Ear Training*. She headed to the off-campus parking lot, intending to go home. However, the dean of the School of Arts called, asking her to come to his office, so she had to return the way she came.

Wen Shuyan started walking. She liked to walk from one end of the campus to the other, observing the teaching buildings, tree-lined paths, music rooms, bulletin boards, auditorium, lawns, and canteens on both sides, watching how they displayed their own silence and liveliness, withered yellow and lush greenery, desolation and clamor as the light shifted and the semesters changed. But at this moment, she really had no mood to appreciate the exquisite details.

After walking for nearly ten minutes through the newly revitalized campus, she arrived at the old Arts and Humanities Building, located in the northwest corner of the campus. Built in 1929, this building is one of the few well-preserved buildings from the Republican era on campus. The building is shaped like the Chinese character "工" (gong), with its red brick exterior covered in countless layers of gray cement. Four Ionic pilasters stand at the entrance, and the school motto, "慎思笃行" (Shen Si Du Xing), is inscribed above the lintel. It is said that the building was originally used as a library, but after the reorganization of departments in 1952, it was converted into a teaching building for the Arts and Humanities departments. This is why, even though the building is now occupied by the College of Arts, people still habitually refer to it as the "Old Arts and Humanities Building."

There was no elevator in the building. Wen Shuyan entered the dark stairwell, climbed the stairs, and could only hear her own footsteps echoing against the walls. She glanced at the light coming from upstairs and then climbed two steps at a time. The light was coming from the half-open door of the first office on the right on the fourth floor. That office had originally been the librarian's collection room, so it had an extra small suite of about eight square meters compared to a regular office. Now it served as the office of the dean of the art college.

She arrived at the dean's office and knocked on the door.

A woman's voice came out, and Wen Shuyan pushed open the door and entered.

The dean of the art academy was a middle-aged woman with smiling eyes, wearing a trench coat. She looked up from her desk and gestured for Wen Shuyan to sit down, her demeanor elegant, exuding a blend of self-respect, superiority, and professional friendliness. Even after she asked Wen Shuyan if she wanted some water, Wen Shuyan was still unsure whether the dean's purpose in calling her over was what she had in mind.

"Shuyan, I called you here today because there's something I need to tell you," the dean said with a smile and a gentle tone.

Wen Shuyan stared at the dean for a long while, feeling uneasy.

"The school has a school-enterprise cooperation project with NetEase Group," the dean said. "It's called the Original Music Support Program, and it's personally overseen by Vice Principal Zhang; it's a high-level project. A launch meeting for this project will be held this Friday afternoon in the school's small auditorium."

Wen Shuyan did not respond. She turned her head slightly and looked at the wrought iron spiral staircase in the suite. It was preserved from back then and led directly to a small terrace on the fourth-floor roof. Standing on the terrace, one could overlook the entire campus and gaze at the city skyline in the direction of the Suzhou River.

"Take a look," the dean said, pushing a sheet of printed paper over from the table.

Wen Shuyan looked down. It was an event plan, titled "NetBillion Shanghai Normal University Original Music Support Program Launch Meeting Agenda," dated September 3rd at 9 PM.

"Vice President Zhang discussed it with our department and felt that you have a solid professional foundation, a good image, and have performed excellently in previous public events. Therefore, he has asked you to participate in the preparation and on-site execution of the launch meeting as a representative of young teachers."

You might need to go on stage at the launch ceremony or have a brief exchange with representatives from the company. It's nothing difficult; it's mainly about representing our college.

"Dean, this launch meeting..."

'

"The person from NetEase is the head of their Shanghai branch, surnamed Chen. Vice Principal Zhang attaches great importance to this project, saying it's a prelude to deeper cooperation later. You're so young, participating in more of these kinds of activities will benefit your future development."

"But..." Wen Shuyan didn't finish her sentence. She knew that "but" was meaningless. It was just an instinctive resistance, a resistance she used to support herself, a refusal to believe that such a thing could really happen. Her heart was pounding violently in her chest, almost painfully so, as if it were about to burst. She was sweating profusely, her body refusing to obey her commands. At that moment, she gradually understood what panic attacks felt like, as described by others in the past.

"Shuyan?"

"I...can I not go? The welcome concert is the day after tomorrow, I'm worried..."

'

The dean's smile faded, replaced by a dangerous expression. "Shuyan, don't be too nervous. The welcome concert is in the evening, it won't be a problem. The college will handle the details with you. You just need to set aside time on Friday afternoon, dress appropriately, and cooperate at the venue. This was personally requested by Vice Principal Zhang, so you'd better make our college proud."

"Did Vice Principal Zhang call the roll?" Wen Shuyan heard herself ask.

"Yes, Principal Zhang is very enthusiastic about this project. He specifically instructed that a young teacher with a good image and strong professional skills be selected from the School of Arts to participate. After much deliberation, we unanimously agreed that you are the most suitable candidate in our school. You see, isn't this a perfectly reasonable and beneficial outcome?" The dean had already given up on smiling.

There was an unsavory atmosphere about this, one that Wen Shuyan could detect from afar. She didn't understand why, nor whether it was a coincidence or deliberate manipulation. She couldn't refuse, nor did she have a reason to refuse. No, she couldn't articulate a reason. There was no evidence. There was no third party involved. She was merely an intern teacher. The college had recommended her for a key university-level project; to others, this was seen as recognition, cultivation, trust, and an opportunity.

"It's settled then," the dean said. "Someone will handle the specific arrangements for you. Go back and prepare. If there's nothing else..."

"Dean," Wen Shuyan said, taking a deep breath, "thank you for trusting me. I'd like to understand the specific procedures for the kickoff meeting, such as what I need to do at each stage, and whether I need to prepare a speech or materials in advance?"

"The launch meeting will officially begin at 2:30 PM and end around 4:30 PM. You'll need to be there the whole time. The launch ceremony will be around 3 PM, and you'll be on stage for about ten minutes, so please prepare your speech beforehand. Also, remember to arrive early and be backstage before 2 PM so you can find someone when the time comes."

"Are only business representatives attending? I'm worried I might say something wrong and affect the college's cooperation."

The dean shook his head. "Besides General Manager Chen, Wangyi should also have their public relations manager. Additionally, leaders from the Municipal Education Commission's Arts Department will be coming, and Vice Principal Zhang will be in charge throughout. Don't worry, you're not dealing with the company alone."

"There's one more question," Wen Shuyan said, having prepared herself mentally.

The dean raised an eyebrow, perhaps sensing something from Wen Shuyan's tone.

"Can I invite a friend to sit in on this launch meeting?" Wen Shuyan heard herself follow her instincts and ask this question directly. She was sure that she asked this question to seek the necessary sense of security, rather than because she was overly sensitive and suspicious.

"Friends?" The dean's tone was quite surprised, as if Wen Shuyan was referring to "boyfriend" rather than "friends".

"Yes, I'll just sit in the audience and not participate in the proceedings."

Wen Shuyan looked down at her desk.

She heard the dean exhale. "There are plenty of seats in the small auditorium, it's not some confidential meeting. Your friend can come if he wants, as long as he doesn't disrupt the proceedings."

""

"Thank you, Dean," Wen Shuyan said, getting up to leave.