Liu Ningyan looked at Xu Xiangbei, a glimr in her beautiful eyes, seeking his opinion.
The source code is the soul and life of the entire program. Handing it over to Thunderbird Company is equivalent to giving everything away. Xu Xiangbei recalled Jenny’s reminder just now, feeling a bit uneasy.
But with everything in black and white, everything had already fallen into place; perhaps there was no need to worry, maybe he was just overthinking.
Xu Xiangbei nodded at Liu Ningyan, signaling that she could agree to Lei Zhensheng’s request.
Liu Ningyan handed over a prepared USB stick to Lei Zhensheng: "This is the source code of our program. I hope you won’t tamper with our code, as we have clearly stated in the contract."
Lei Ziming took the USB stick and said sincerely, "Don’t worry about that, I know the limits."
He was also a programming expert, quickly checking the content on the USB stick, confirming it was indeed the source code of the Ancient Moon Red Dust ga.
He smiled and announced, "To celebrate the successful signing, tonight I will treat everyone to dinner. There’s a steakhouse next to the company, all imported Australian steaks. Eat to your heart’s content."
Lei Ziming invited everyone for dinner, and Lei Zhensheng, citing health reasons, did not join. Xu Xiangbei and four others went to the steakhouse together.
Lei Ziming specifically ordered two bottles of 1982 Lafite. His body was frail and his alcohol tolerance was poor. He quickly got drunk and was escorted back to the company by bodyguards.
The three girls continued the afternoon’s unfinished discussion in the conference room, talking about how to apply makeup, which costics suited their skin best, and which clothes best highlighted their figures.
Liu Ningyan and Chen Xin listened with admiration as Xiao Lin explained beauty and fashion knowledge. They had always lived at school and usually dressed plainly, unaware of so many details and tips.
Feeling bored, Xu Xiangbei went to the bathroom, feeling like a solitary swordsman, walking alone in the hallway. Yet he saw a familiar figure, Jenny, leaning against the wall, smiling at him.
Xu Xiangbei laughed, dragging Jenny to a secluded corner: "I get it, have you fallen for and been following ? Alright, I’ll accept it. However you want to tornt , bring it on. There’s a budget hotel nearby; dare to go with now?"
Jenny chuckled: "Don’t talk nonsense. I’m here to help you, but if you keep talking gibberish, I’ll pretend I know nothing."
Xu Xiangbei still smiled cheekily: "Help with what? To fulfill my physiological needs?"
Jenny playfully hit Xu Xiangbei’s chest: "I’m helping you not get screwed over by those beauties. If you cry after midnight tonight, it’ll be too late."
Xu Xiangbei asked puzzledly: "What do you an by this? Who wants to screw us over? Explain clearly; I’m no good at riddles. Is it the Lei family’s uncle and nephew?"
"Not the uncle and nephew, it’s that uncle, Lei Zhensheng. I already warned you in the conference room this afternoon, but unfortunately, you still signed the contract. Lei Zhensheng is betraying the Lei family, joining Hengyu Group, and his offering is your ga program."
Xu Xiangbei frowned deeply: "Are you kidding ? Don’t fearmonger."
Jenny looked disdainfully, handed over a USB stick with her slender, white fingers: "Really like a dog that bites Lv Dongbin, not recognizing a good person’s heart. If I’m fearmongering, listen to this, and you’ll know."
He copied the files from the USB stick to his phone. Inside, there was an audio file, from which he quickly discerned it was a recording of a conversation between Lei Zhensheng and soone else.
Lei Zhensheng lowered his voice: "Tonight at twelve, I’ll deliver the program to you at Crown Nightclub. Transfer five million directly to my account."
"Five million is not a small amount. Is this Ancient Moon Red Dust ga really worth it?"
"This is more than just a ga. This is the sword you can use to defeat Thunderbird Company and beco the king of the gaming world. My falling out with my brother, and you taking away the copyright of Ancient Moon Red Dust, would be a fatal blow to Thunderbird Company. Hengyu will be able to ascend the throne of the ga world."
The person on the other end was apparently convinced by Lei Zhensheng: "Alright, I’ll talk to President Zhao. Hope for a fruitful collaboration."
"Okay, tonight at twelve, Crown Nightclub. See you there."
Xu Xiangbei was a bit dumbfounded, staring at Jenny, hoping she’d suddenly jump up and laugh, saying she scared him and that it was a synthesized audio file, a prank. But after watching for a long ti, Jenny remained quietly observing him.
Xu Xiangbei said in frustration: "This is troubleso. How did you get his phone recording? Just who are you? Are you a corporate spy or so beauty bandit?"
Jenny pressed her slender, white finger against Xu Xiangbei’s lips, smiling charmingly, "Shh, keep it down. I took a big risk giving you this recording. I could have just acted like I knew nothing. You saved twice, so I’m helping you once. Goodbye, I must be returning. Enjoy your Australian steaks."
Watching Jenny’s figure disappearing at the end of the hallway, Xu Xiangbei couldn’t help but smile bitterly. Even the tastiest steak was unappealing now, not bursting into tears was already fortunate.
Xu Xiangbei played the recording for Liu Ningyan and Chen Xin. All three of them showed disbelief, leaving the half-full bottle of Lafite untouched. The four people jogged toward the nearby budget hotel where Liu Ningyan and Chen Xin had booked rooms.
The two quickly opened their laptops, searching the internet for clues to verify the recording’s authenticity.
Xiao Lin looked gloomy. If this ga was pirated by another company, it ant she couldn’t endorse it. The endorsent fee that Thunderbird Company offered was quite generous. She had been spending a lot lately and really needed this money, not wanting the ga endorsent to fall through.
"Hurry and think of a way. It’s almost 10 PM now, two hours until midnight. We must stop Lei Zhensheng from handing the program over to others."
Xu Xiangbei asked puzzledly: "How do you know the recording is real?"
"I trust my instincts."
Though won’s instincts are often accurate, so degree of credibility from evidence is needed. Even though Xu Xiangbei disliked Lei Zhensheng, Xiao Lin disliked him too, it was hard to easily believe he would betray his family, his brother, and the entire Thunderbird Group.
Always intently searching for clues, Liu Ningyan said seriously, "I found so news about Lei Zhensheng. Just learned from the securities trading that Lei Zhensheng has sold all his Thunderbird Company stocks. Seems he was already ready to betray Lei Zhenrong."
Xu Xiangbei puzzledly asked, "The Thunderbird Company is an industry leader, and he’s the general manager, earning millions annually. Why would he think of betraying the Lei family? Is it just for five million? That’s hardly worth it."
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