The hotel was a high-end star-rated establishment offering a comprehensive variety of breakfast items via a self-serve buffet.
Carrying his prepared breakfast, Jiang Muzhou located AI Le and the others, then sat down with them to eat.
Jiang Muzhou introduced them, “This is President Shang of Zhongshi Group, our game’s investor.”
The group of them greeted, “Hello, President Shang.”
Shang Shixu greeted them back, “Hello.”
The meal proceeded in deep silence. Perhaps due to Shang Shixu’s presence, the dining table remained quiet and quite restrained.
Even Zhu Zhu, usually a lively person, could only steal constant glances at Shang Shixu while wondering whatever was on her mind.
Jiang Muzhou took a bite of a fried dough stick soaked in sweet soy milk and felt thoroughly satisfied, having not eaten like this in a long time.
Shang Shixu handed him a napkin. Jiang Muzhou accepted it and offered a word of thanks.
Once they finished eating and entered the exhibition hall, Chen Jinghuai and Xia Xinsheng were already waiting nearby. Upon catching sight of his boss, Chen Jinghuai hurried over and muttered a few words in a low voice.
Shang Shixu turned back to look at Jiang Muzhou. “I have some matters to attend to on my end, but I’ll come look for you in a little while.”
Watching Shang Shixu’s retreating figure, AI Le exclaimed, “The big boss has such an intense aura.”
Zhu Zhu chimed in, “Seriously, I didn’t even dare to breathe heavily.”
The other two nodded in agreement.
Jiang Muzhou looked at the few of them with amusement. “No wonder you guys usually act so casual with me; turns out it’s because I lack authority.”
Upon hearing this, AI Le immediately fawned, “It’s precisely because you are so approachable, Boss, that you enable us to work in such a harmonious and positive atmosphere. Everyone respects and supports each other, joins hands to face challenges, and under your leadership…”
Before AI Le could finish, Jiang Muzhou used his folder to block the rambling flow of words. “AI Le, I’ve discovered that you’re quite suited for writing reports.”
With that, he turned and headed straight toward their booth.
The rest of the group trailing behind him found it hilarious. “AI Le, your flattery was way too insincere—you ended up kicking the horse’s leg instead.”
AI Le shot them a disdainful look. “Didn’t all of you agree with what I just said? How come the moment Boss raised a doubt, not a single one of you made a peep?”
Zhu Zhu smiled and teased, “That’s because we have you as our chief editor, AI Le.”
A fair number of high-ranking officials came to the exhibition hall today, along with numerous television camera crews and interviewers.
Shang Shixu had just arrived in Suzhou when the senior officials here somehow caught wind of it and reached out, hoping to meet with him.
Superficially, it was about discussing cooperation, such as having him invest in building a factory in Suzhou, but in reality, they simply valued the connections behind him.
Naturally, only a few familiar senior leaders knew his true identity. Other people, including many folks in Beijing, had no idea about his specific background and merely heard that his connections were quite substantial.
“How is Secretary Shang doing? The last time I saw him was five years ago. Make sure to bring him my warmest regards when you head back,” a middle-aged man said to Shang Shixu with customary politeness.
Shang Shixu smiled. “I appreciate Mayor Li keeping him in mind; I will definitely pass the message along.”
“Do you have a project participating in the exhibition today?” Mayor Li was intentionally making conversation, having already checked all the participating enterprises without spotting any company associated with Shang Shixu.
Normally, officials at the mayoral level would never show up at exhibitions like this. Facing the exceedingly polite Mayor Li, Shang Shixu replied, “No, I’m just tagging along to look around with a friend and survey the market.”
“Surveying the market is good; emerging industries like this are best suited for you young people.” As Mayor Li spoke, he glanced toward several teenage boys and girls dressed in eccentric outfits entering through the entrance.
Throughout their conversation, anyone passing by would cast a couple of glances their way, primarily because they were surrounded by numerous staff members in formal attire and television reporters lugging cameras.
No matter how one looked at it, they stood out prominently.
Before long, leaders from the organizing committee came over to invite them to the main stage, as the project presentations were about to begin.
Shang Shixu had no desire to go up, but he couldn’t resist Mayor Li’s enthusiasm.
In the end, he simply picked a corner to sit in, while Chen Jinghuai went off to notify the television crew that Shang Shixu must not be caught on camera during filming.
The reporters and cameramen from the television station looked at the person seated on the side. Having witnessed Mayor Li’s attitude toward Shang Shixu earlier, and being accustomed to dealing with higher-ups at the station, they knew this was an individual of special status, so they promptly agreed and indicated they understood.
Only ten companies were permitted to take the stage for project presentations, with fifteen minutes allotted to each. After two tech companies showcased their products, Shang Shixu spotted Jiang Muzhou waiting in the wings by the side of the stage.
He was still wearing his simple casual shirt and trousers, his hair neatly styled, making him look exceptionally spirited.
The large screen on the stage played their game footage. The overall game scenes were grand, rich in cultural atmosphere, and featured highly detailed character models. Projected onto a screen of that size, the characters’ flowing strands of hair were clearly visible down to every single root, while the meticulously curated soundtrack amplified the thrilling combat scenes and the gorgeous, dazzling effects of various magic skills.
Shang Shixu had already watched this video long ago. From the very first glance, he had considered the game’s visual effects stunning, and seeing them projected onto such a massive screen made the impact even greater.
The video lasted three minutes, and at the very end, two bold, rugged characters stamped across the screen: “Conferring Gods” (Fengshen).
The stage lights switched on, and amid the applause of the audience, Jiang Muzhou stepped onto the stage.
He first offered a greeting, told a couple of moderately funny jokes related to Fengshen, and then proceeded to explain the game’s design and gameplay mechanics.
Shang Shixu leaned back against his seat and raised his eyes, watching the person enveloped in the spotlight deliver his presentation with a steady expression and focused gaze.
By the time he finished everything, it was right around the fifteen-minute mark, and applause erupted from beneath the stage.
Jiang Muzhou expressed his gratitude and stepped down, where he was met by AI Le and Zhu Zhu waiting at the foot of the stage.
He patted his chest and let out a breath of relief.
He rarely gave stage presentations, and he had indeed felt somewhat nervous earlier—so nervous that he hadn’t even looked at the audience’s reaction.
Zhu Zhu hurried forward and said, “Boss, your presentation was absolutely fantastic.”
AI Le chimed in as well, “Once our game video finished playing, everyone said it looked great, and someone already asked me for my business card just now.”
“That’s right, everyone said the results were impressive and really eye-catching.”
On the way back to their booth, Zhu Zhu chattered away excitedly. After a moment, she suddenly remembered something, stopped, and looked at Jiang Muzhou. “There were quite a few pretty girls asking for your personal contact info just now, Boss.”
Jiang Muzhou raised an eyebrow, waiting for the rest.
Meanwhile, AI Le adopted a righteous expression, thumped his chest, and declared, “Don’t worry, Boss, I turned down everyone who asked for your personal details.”
Jiang Muzhou paused. “…”
“Your boss here is still single.”
Actually, it wasn’t like he couldn’t get to know a few more members of the opposite sex…
Of course, he kept those thoughts to himself, feeling that uttering them aloud would completely collapse his carefully maintained image as a respectable boss.
AI Le let out an “ah” sound and cast a perplexed look at Zhu Zhu.
Once Jiang Muzhou had walked a little further ahead, AI Le asked in a low voice, “Did our research point us in the wrong direction last time?”
Zhu Zhu was equally baffled. “He went so far as to make a birthday confession game for the other person, wasn’t that pursuing him?”
At the time, Jiang Muzhou had poured his heart into that game, handling everything personally with immense effort.
The few of them had discussed it in private and reached a unanimous conclusion:
The boss was in love.
Yet now the boss was issuing denials. Could that birthday game from before really have been nothing more than a gift for a friend?
“Sigh, and here I thought…” Zhu Zhu muttered under her breath, “Turns out he’s just a dense straight guy who has no clue what he even did.”
AI Le didn’t catch it clearly. “Thought what?”
Zhu Zhu shook her head. “Nothing.”
The venue was somewhat crowded and stuffy. Jiang Muzhou touched his warm earlobes, then turned around to spot the two of them whispering behind him.
“Let’s move, time to get to work. Xiao Lu and the other guy can’t handle the booth all by themselves.”
AI Le and Zhu Zhu looked up and chorused, “Coming!”
Then they pointed at each other, signaling to keep their mouths securely zipped and avoid exposing their behind-the-scenes gossip in front of the boss.