Liu Rui was the oldest by two years and usually spoke with authority. In their trio, Su Cen seemed like a junior figure. So Liu Rui thought that Su Cen’s suggestion was merely self-deprecating; after...Chapter 144: Welcoming

The sun set behind the hills of Silicon Valley, but Su Can's flight was ascending into the sky.

As he left America and its mountains and valleys far below, after achieving a phase victory, Su Can chose to distance himself from the clamor and return home alone.

Zach felt a sour sensation in his nostrils as he watched Su Can's silhouette at the airport. He tried to turn away so that his friends wouldn't see the unusual expression on his face and said, "He acts like a lone traveler, just like Bruce Wayne. During the day, he moves between parties and entrepreneurs, but at night, he becomes a solitary warrior in black cloak, wanting to change the world."

Despite the efforts of Su Can's Facebook team and the Washington Post Group to keep this news under wraps before all formalities were completed, it was clear that with numerous venture capitalists, companies, and intelligence media focusing on Silicon Valley, there was no way to hide the final outcome of Facebook's funding. It could only be delayed.

As Su Can’s plane flew back home, news about the Washington Post Group investing $10 million to acquire a 45% stake in Facebook spread from Silicon Valley and quickly advanced as he left American soil behind.

The core team members of Facebook who remained in America would welcome a new era.

The Wall Street Journal reported that this move indicated that the value of Facebook had reached $300 million, proving that social networking fever across America was gradually reaching its peak.

Donald himself issued a statement on The Washington Post saying, "This investment is very constructive. It's not just a victory for both our companies but also for our users and advertising customers."

The moment Donald, the head of the Washington Post Group, made this major announcement, The L.A. Times, The New York Daily News, and influential Internet finance newspapers and magazines published it on the front pages of their papers to be distributed the next day, quickly pushing out editions across fifty states including Florida, Missouri, Minnesota, and Washington.

Behind these spreading news stories, Su Can, who was crossing the Pacific Ocean, temporarily calmed down his excited American friends before returning home calmly.

Before leaving, he suggested to Zach, who had thoughts of dropping out of college, that after entering Harvard University in the future, he should take some courses related to life and learn as much as possible. They couldn't rely on passion and drive forever; this was also one of the main reasons Su Can returned home to continue his university career.

The reason Zach wanted to drop out was simple: he found what he truly wanted to do, meaning that he no longer needed a Harvard diploma. At present, diplomas were just credentials during hiring processes because it was impossible to find specific talent at any time. For instance, when Zuckerberg's friend Dustin and other programming experts like Catherine heard about him coming to Harvard.

The Washington Post Group's funding would help the company transition out of its "apartment company" status and truly resemble a legitimate corporation, complete with its own legal department, technology department, business operations division, etc. They need certain talents that can only be sourced through mass-produced academies, and a prestigious university degree is the sole proof of qualification for such talent.

Once this team forms and scales up systematically, they will require a management model and an effective leadership approach to establish their operational methods; there's still much they don't understand, so continuous learning and improvement are necessary.

After this trial run in the U.S., Su Cen could keenly feel his own shortcomings. Despite attending Nanjing University, one of a certain caliber, and relying on his efforts and insight from two lifetimes, he still found himself ahead of peers in many areas.

However, there were numerous things he was yet to grasp, such as how the business representatives of The Washington Post use an Analytic Hierarchy Process model to evaluate a project system's indicators and establish its value. How do private equity models avoid American regulations and limit shareholdings How does a company coordinate development during paradigm shifts or institutional transitions, and why is this critical for venture capital

He still had much to learn about business operations. These were things that both Su Cen and Zack needed to study.

The idea of founding a company and everything becoming smooth sailing was unrealistic.

After brief victories, they all needed growth. Zack needed technical and limited management skills to handle the growing attention their U.S.-based entity received. Technology is Su Cen's weak point, but Zack can manage alone. He has an innate passion for technology that doesn’t need prompting; he would naturally improve Facebook’s practical features.

Su Cen returns home to continue his studies, where it’s often said that studying economics is like talking strategy without practical application. Even experts and professors lack confidence once they venture into entrepreneurship, combining theory with practice. It's no wonder many feel empty upon graduating after seven years of university and graduate school.

While strengthening himself through business and constant learning, Su Cen naturally has a significant advantage over ordinary people and gains deeper insights into this life path.

Aboard the plane, besides reflecting on issues during his U.S. trip for self-improvement and growth, Su Cen occasionally ponders Song Zhen’s words about wanting to "rebel once more." What did she mean by that

Upon finally returning to Chengdu's airport terminal after the flight, Su Cen unexpectedly sees someone holding a sign with his name at the exit.

His parents knew he was coming home, but Su Cen had told his father not to come pick him up. Since Zeng He and Su Licheng now saw Su Cen as a mature person beyond his years, rather than a child who needed接送，所以應該不是自己父親安排的人。他的那個司機和破車蘇燦都瞭如指掌，那麼這個戴著眼鏡一身淺色西裝看上去斯文有禮會在公交車上偷窺女士前襟的傢夥又是誰？

"Mr. Su, this way." Upon seeing Su Can standing in front of him, the other person didn't need confirmation and led the way directly.

"Who asked you to pick me up" Su Can asked.

The man seemed deaf, continuing to walk forward. After Su Can repeated his question, the guy remained silent. Su Can looked down at the letters on the sign he was holding. Suddenly enlightened, he realized that Shu Airport wasn't very large; it only took a few steps before they were outside.

There was a black executive car parked there with a girl standing beside it. She had her hair in a ponytail and wore tight jeans that highlighted her slender legs. Standing alone, she exuded an intimidating beauty.

It was Tang Wu.

Su Can understood immediately why the letters on the sign were so familiar to him.

The man finally spoke up, "So it's Tang Wu I'll take you back now. Director Mu asked me to bring you home first, but I didn't think you would come here to pick up a friend. If I don’t ensure your safety and get you back home, how will I explain if your mother calls later"

The man placed Su Can's luggage in the trunk and then walked straight to the driver’s seat.

Leaving Tang Wu and Su Can standing face-to-face.

"What is your crime" Tang Wu raised her head, her clear eyes staring directly at Su Can.

The original plan for a few days’ journey was delayed nearly twenty days due to the turn of events involving Jian Hua and The Washington Post. During this time, he disappeared from everyone's circles. Even Xue Yi Yang and Liu Rui who had come to Shu City called Tang Wu but couldn't find Su Can. From her cold eyes, one could see how she felt.

Although Su Can didn’t know how Tang Wu got such precise intelligence about his flight time, he quickly said apologetically, "I'm sorry for not telling you earlier about my trip to America. I thought it would only take a few days, and I was on impulse when Mark Zuckerberg moved to California. Additionally, I brought back good news. Do you remember the website that I co-founded with him during our year as exchange students"

"Hmm" Tang Wu nodded; she naturally knew about this matter. Back then, Su Can and Mark Zuckerberg had held a hearing to persuade the school administration to open up their database for student access, which made them famous in Exeter High School. After the school's directory was set up, it quickly gained popularity and soon spread to nearby high schools.

In Tang Wu’s view, this was Su Can's glorious performance of his talents without any restraint during his high school years abroad, but she didn't delve deeper into Su Can and Zuckerberg's website in America. In New Hampshire, one could register a company with just $100, and many students at Exeter High School, as well as nearby colleges, were starting their own businesses.

Even though Tang Wu had excellent all-around qualities, computer technology wasn’t her strong suit. After returning to China, she didn't pay much attention to events in America, but now that Su Can asked, it made her ponder.

"When I was at NUS, in the school reading room, I read an article in a magazine introducing an American social networking website. The article mentioned something popular on university campuses. Is this why you went over there"

Su Cen was somewhat surprised. Although information wasn't as developed in China as it was in America, who cared about what was happening in the American society when he was at university Many things were only heard of after they had become popular. Even during the years of information explosion, American societal news hadn't been closely connected to the relatively closed network environment in China; instead, there were connections in terms of politics and military affairs. The Americans would frequently conduct military exercises with China as a hypothetical enemy in order to maintain their strategic interests in Asia, parading around aircraft carriers.

But Tang Wu having read about it in a magazine back in 2001 still managed to lift Su Cen's spirits. He said, "Yes, this winter vacation, it received funding. This time going over there was mainly to discuss the funding issue. Ultimately, we reached an agreement with The Washington Post Group and obtained $16 million."

Sitting in a government car that Tang Wu's mother’s subordinate, the deputy director of Legal Affairs Management Office, had arranged for her when she left the banquet temporarily, they sped along the highway into town. Outside the window were dazzling lights, but everything looked different to Su Cen.

Tang Wu was also processing the number "sixteen million dollars" that Su Cen mentioned. In 2002, this amount of money had an unimaginable impact in China.

Perhaps she had heard about it a little before, and knew that Su Cen was using Facebook to contact Zuckerberg in America. But Tang Wu never expected that the website would be so valuable in America.

They hadn't seen each other for over ten days, yet they felt as though it had been much longer. Tang Wu looked at Su Cen, listening to the news he brought and was surprised by the number. She also noticed the fine stubble on his face that had grown during these days.

Su Cen's life in America had been busy with attending banquets and disrupting his precise biological clock, causing him to grow a beard. Not having shaved for so long made Su Cen deeply feel how quickly time was passing, giving him an impression of romanticism.

Tang Wu subconsciously thought that this value didn't represent anything, but rather what efforts had Su Cen gone through in America to make it This made Tang Wu's heart soften a bit; she felt slightly pained and regretted being cold towards him when they met earlier.

Just as she was thinking about this, she noticed her hand getting warm. Su Cen held her hand, then moved it up gently placing it on her thigh, transferring warmth to her leg. Tang Wu glanced over with a reproachful look and said, "Your hands."

Su Cen dodged the question indirectly by asking, "How did you know I was back today"

“I called your house; your mom answered,” Tang Wu's face turned slightly red as she continued, “I said I was Tang Wu.”

I've been slacking off these past couple of days and can't come up with any excuses. I just want to rest a bit and think about how to improve my updates. It's only right for me to be criticized for falling behind so much recently. I'm trying to redeem myself from this reputation, adjusting my strategy accordingly.

Let's move forward again.ness couldn’t hide.The large construction site had continued to operate smoothly during these three months. Su Cen could sense from his father’s voice over the transatlantic call that his work remaine...