Back to 2008: I Helped My Dad Become the Richest Man

Chapter 78 Cleaning House: Those Who Want to Lie Down, Please Turn Right and Leave.

After Luo Fugui's farce, starting from the first day of the Lunar New Year, the Luo family's doorstep was almost worn down by visitors.

People carrying various gifts to pay New Year's visits include distant relatives who are not closely related to the family, villagers, and even some minor officials from the town.

These people all came with the same purpose: some wanted to get their children into the Luo family's factory, others wanted to borrow money from the Luo family to start a small business, and still others were more direct, just coming to plead poverty.

Luo Xinde and Li Minxia initially greeted him with smiles out of politeness.

But later they found that they simply couldn't handle it.

The house is like a vegetable market, with people coming and going all day long.

On the day of her third year of junior high, Luo Xiyuan finally couldn't take it anymore.

She had Luo Xinde post a notice at the main gate of the courtyard.

The notice was written by her own hand with a brush, the handwriting was neat and beautiful, but the content was anything but polite.

Roche Group Spring Festival Recruitment Announcement:

I. Job openings: Pigsty cleaners (10 positions), feed handlers (5 positions), organic fertilizer packers (5 positions).

II. Job Requirements: Age 18-50, good health, hardworking.

III. Salary and Benefits: Monthly salary of 3000-5000 yuan, meals and accommodation provided, and social insurance and housing fund contributions.

IV. Application Method: Please bring your ID card and come to the farm office for a unified interview on the morning of the eighth day of the Lunar New Year.

Note: Anyone found to have used connections or back channels will be permanently banned from employment. The Roche Group only welcomes genuine workers.

The moment this notice was posted, the entire Luo Family Village was in an uproar.

"What do you mean? Is Luo Xinde disowning his relatives?"

"A standardized interview? We're doing him a favor by hiring him to work for us!"

"Exactly! So what if he has a few bucks? What's he so arrogant about!"

Various rumors and gossip spread like wildfire.

But the effect is immediate.

The next day, the number of people coming to "pay New Year's visits" suddenly decreased by more than half.

Those who still wanted to try their luck saw the notice at the door and reluctantly took their gifts back.

The Luo family is finally at peace.

Looking at the deserted courtyard, Li Minxia felt a pang of sadness.

"Xiyuan, isn't this a bit too heartless? We'll be seeing each other all the time in the village."

"Mom, if you don't do this, our house will become the village's relief center." Luo Xiyuan was in front of the computer processing an email from her Shanghai company, and said without looking up, "We help in emergencies, not in long-term poverty. What we can provide are job opportunities, not unearned benefits."

"But----"

"No buts," Luo Xiyuan interrupted her. "Mom, remember, we're a company now. A company has its rules. If anyone can just get in and coast along because of connections, then our family won't be far from falling apart."

Li Minxia fell silent after hearing her daughter's words.

She knew her daughter was right.

However, she is not yet able to transform from the mindset of an ordinary rural woman to that of an entrepreneur.

On the eighth day of the lunar new year, the day of the job interviews, a long queue really did form outside the farm's office.

Most of the job applicants were young people from the village and nearby villages.

Luo Xinde and Zhao Hu sat behind the table, acting as interviewers.

Luo Xiyuan sat in the office inside, looking out the window.

The interview was very simple, just two questions.

The first question: "Why did you want to work on our farm?"

Those who answer "because your salaries are high" will be eliminated immediately.

Those who answered "because it's close to home" are pending.

Those who answer "I've inquired, and although the work here is tiring, it's a legitimate job, and wages are paid on time. I'd like to learn something" will proceed to the next round.

The second question is more direct.

Luo Xinde would point to a 100-jin bag of soybean meal in the corner.

"Carry it on your back and walk it around the yard."

Those who can't carry the load, or who walk with a grimacing expression, are eliminated immediately.

Only those who grit their teeth, blush, and steadily complete the entire process step by step will be hired.

After a day, only twelve people were recruited for twenty positions.

That evening, Luo Xinde showed the list of accepted employees to Luo Xiyuan.

"Honey, look, so many people, but only so few. Isn't it a bit too strict?"

"Not strict." Luo Xiyuan took the list and glanced at it. "Dad, we're recruiting people who can work with us. It's okay if there are fewer people, but those who stay must be the elite."

She handed the list back.

"These twelve people will undergo a week-long pre-job training starting tomorrow. The training will cover company culture, safety regulations, and operating procedures for each position. There will be an exam at the end of the training, and those who fail will be let go."

Luo Xinde listened, completely stunned.

"There's...another exam?"

"Yes." Luo Xiyuan nodded. "Dad, you should participate too. You're the factory manager. If you can't even explain the operating procedures, how will you manage them in the future?"

"

Luo Xinde's face immediately fell.

Let him manage the People's Bank of China, let him take exams—wouldn't that kill him?

But seeing his daughter's uncompromising expression, he swallowed his words in the end.

"Okay—I'll take the test."

This "house-cleaning" that had been the subject of much discussion among the villagers came to a close in a forceful manner.

The Luo family demonstrated their attitude to everyone through their actions.

Want to share the cake? Sure.

But the prerequisite is that you have to be capable of wielding the cake-cutting knife yourself.

Just as Luojia Village was making headlines because of this recruitment, something happened.

An urgent email from Shanghai arrived in Luo Xiyuan's inbox.

The sender was Xu Yang.

The email contained only a screenshot and a sentence.

The screenshot shows the homepage of another major Chinese internet company, Baidu.

A huge banner with the name "GG" is prominently displayed on the homepage.

The game's graphics card depicts a cartoon-style farmland with the words "Thousand Degrees Space, Happy Farm, Open Beta Today!" written on it.

That sentence was written by Xu Yang.

"Mr. Luo, the wolf is coming!"

"The wolf is coming?"

Luo Xiyuan looked at the three words on the screen and gently tapped the mouse.

She clicked on the screenshot.

The art style of Happy Manor is seven or eight parts similar to their Happy Farm.

But it is clearly more refined and more luxurious.

It even includes some elements that Happy Farm doesn't have yet, such as a weather system and a pet system.

This is not a simple case of plagiarism, but a premeditated and comprehensive suppression.

Luo Xiyuan's expression was calm.

She closed the screenshot and opened the Qzone page.

Register, log in, and enter the game.

All in one go.

She played for about half an hour.

Half an hour later, she quit the game, leaned back in her chair, and closed her eyes.

Luo Wen, who was standing next to him, remained silent.

He looked at his sister's profile and felt the air grow heavy.

"Sister?" he called out tentatively.

"Hmm." Luo Xiyuan opened her eyes, her gaze not showing panic, but rather a hint of interest.

"That's interesting," she said.

"What do you mean?" Luo Wen asked, puzzled.

"Previously, although Tencent's QQ Farm had a large user base, the product was poorly made. They were relying on traffic to compete with us, which was reckless."

Luo Xiyuan tapped her fingers lightly on the table.

"But Baidu is different. They not only have traffic, they also have technology and product managers. They studied all our strengths and amplified all our weaknesses. They came to fight us with their brains."

"Then—what do we do?" Luo Wen's heart jumped.

He knew that Baidu was a giant on par with Tencent.

Now, both giants have their eyes on this lucrative opportunity.

How can we fight this war?

"In war, what we fear most is not the strength of the enemy, but not knowing where they will attack from." Luo Xiyuan stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the gray sky outside.

"Now that they've made their move, we'll just have to respond."

She turned around, picked up her phone, and dialed Xu Yang's number.

"Xu Yang, immediately convene all heads of core departments for a video conference in half an hour."

Her voice was as calm as ice.

Half an hour later, in the Luo family's study.

Luo Xiyuan and Luo Wen sat in front of the computer.

The screen was divided into several small windows.

Xu Yang, Ye Yu, technical supervisor Zhao Peng, and the head of the marketing department all appeared on the screen.

Everyone's expression was solemn.

"I understand the situation," Luo Xiyuan said, breaking the silence. "Tell me your thoughts."

Xu Yang was the first to speak.

"Mr. Luo, I—I think the situation is very serious. Baidu came prepared this time. Their product is very complete, and they're burning through cash even more than we are. On the first day of launch, they launched a 'recharge 100 and get 100 free' promotion. Many of our big spenders have gone to their site today."

The head of the marketing department chimed in.

"Yes, Mr. Luo. They also spent a lot of money to hire one of the hottest celebrities at the time as their spokesperson. Our daily active users have declined by 5% today. Although it's not much, it's the first decline since the launch."

The atmosphere in the meeting room became even more tense.

All eyes were on Luo Xiyuan.

They were all waiting for the company's "backbone" to make a decision.

Luo Xiyuan nodded after listening.

"Are you finished? Okay, now listen to me."

"First, starting tomorrow, we'll also be running a promotion. They give you 100 yuan free for every 100 yuan they top up, so we'll give you 120 yuan free for every 100 yuan they top up. Plus, we'll be giving away limited-edition, rare items. We'll tell our users that we not only give away more than they do, but we also have better taste."

"Secondly, Ye Yu, how long until your Happy Ranch game is released?"

On the other end of the screen, Ye Yu's face showed a hint of hesitation.

"Mr. Luo, at the current pace, it will take at least a week."

"It's too late." Luo Xiyuan shook her head. "I'll give you three days. After three days, I want to see Happy Ranch officially launched."

"Three days?!" Ye Yu exclaimed in disbelief. "President Luo, this is impossible! We still have several bugs to fix, and the numerical balance isn't complete yet—"

"Then don't sleep. If you can't resolve this within three days, your product department is to be disbanded on the spot."

Ye Yu's lips moved, but she ultimately swallowed her words.

She gritted her teeth and nodded: "Yes, Mr. Luo."

Luo Xiyuan's gaze then turned to Zhao Peng, the technical director.

"Zhao Peng, the launch of Happy Ranch means our server load will instantly double. Can you handle it?"

Zhao Peng's forehead was covered in sweat.

"President Luo, we—we will do our best."

"I don't want your best effort, I want your guarantee," Luo Xiyuan said. "I don't care what method you use, whether you rent servers or buy them, within three days, I need our servers to be able to support ten million people online simultaneously. Money is not an issue. If there are any problems, I'll hold you responsible."

"Yes!" Zhao Peng stood at attention.

Finally, Luo Xiyuan's gaze fell on Xu Yang.

"Xu Yang, you're in charge of overall coordination. Also, do something else."

"What is it?"

"Go and bring back that planner named Chen Junming who was poached by Tencent."

"What?!"

This decision stunned everyone on the other side of the screen.

"President Luo, this—this won't do!" Xu Yang exclaimed anxiously, "He's a traitor! If we bring him back, wouldn't that be slapping our own brothers in the face? How will we lead the team after this?"

"Who said I was going to invite him back to be my brother?"

Luo Xiyuan said, "Go tell him that I, Luo Xiyuan, am willing to pay three times the price for something he has."

"What is it?"

"Penguin's product planning and development schedule for QQ Farm and QQ Ranch for the next six months."

The meeting room was deathly silent.

Everyone looked at Luo Xiyuan as if she were a monster.

They finally understood what the little girl was trying to do.

She's trying to undermine the enemy's cause by planting a pawn deep within their heart.

"Will he—will he agree?" Xu Yang's voice trembled.

"He will," Luo Xiyuan said confidently, "because someone like him only cares about the price."

She looked at the utterly shocked faces on the screen and spoke slowly.

"Gentlemen, the war has begun."

"From this moment forward, all leave is cancelled. Everyone is placed on Level 1 alert."

"Qiandu wants to wage a blitzkrieg against us? Then we'll play along."

"I'd like to see who falls down first."