Reborn in 2000, starting from the university website

Not long after Jiang Shuo finished complaining about his money-devouring beast, Zhang Jian and Liu Zhi rushed into Bai Yuhang's office.

"President Bai, the hardware has reached its limit, it can't hold up anymore!" Zhang Jian was holding a few pages of paper in his hand, his forehead covered in sweat.

"What happened? Did the sky fall?" Bai Yuhang asked.

"It's more urgent than if the sky were falling." Liu Zhi slammed the report on the table. "The data centers in Beijing and Shenzhen are already operating at full capacity. The number of new users has surged in the past few days, and we've noticed that latency data in several southern provinces is starting to spike. To cope with the upcoming traffic, we must immediately add twenty top-of-the-line load balancers to the Shanghai Telecom BGP data center to provide matrix service. Otherwise, at least half of these ten million users will be stuck on the login screen."

Jiang Shuo, listening nearby, trembled: "Twenty top-of-the-line models? Third brother, do you think you're buying cabbages? How much would that cost?!"

"Shut up, Lao Ba! If you crash a user's account, can you afford to compensate them?" Zhang Jian glared at him.

Bai Yuhang took the report, glanced at the configuration list and budget, and without even stammering, directly removed the pen cap and signed at the end.

"Get it done. Top priority." Bai Yuhang handed the report to Liu Zhi. "Remember, what we at Qihang want is the ultimate experience; money is not an issue."

Liu Zhi received the report, still somewhat excited.

Back in Shenzhen, even buying just two servers required the five founders to borrow money to make it happen. This was twenty top-of-the-line servers with a budget of 400,000 yuan, and the boss didn't even blink.

"President Bai is very generous." Liu Zhi nodded in approval and pulled Zhang Jian out.

Just as the two left, Su Muqing came in carrying several folders. She was wearing a light gray business suit today, which made her look exceptionally neat.

"President Bai's signature is quite elegant." Su Muqing placed the May financial statement in front of him. "However, our Steward Jiang's earlier distress was not without reason."

Bai Yuhang opened the report.

"The salaries for all employees in May, plus the high bonuses and triple overtime pay you promised, have all been prepared and are ready to be distributed." Su Muqing pointed to the figures on the table. "Currently, the Beijing headquarters has 4.3 million yuan left in its accounts. This also includes the server purchase fee you just signed."

Bai Yuhang nodded: "What about the Northeast?"

"Liu Jing and Wang Jun are really ruthless." Su Muqing smiled slightly. "These two have formed alliances and connections in the three northeastern provinces. They've managed to amass over 800,000 yuan in cash in their branch company's corporate account by collecting internet cafe franchise fees. Liu Jing even called me yesterday to brag about buying a Santana in Shenyang to show off."

"Let him buy it." Bai Yuhang closed the report.

Su Muqing looked at him: "We have a user base now, but the rate at which we're burning through cash is also very real. If we don't consider monetization as soon as possible, this pool of several million won't last long."

"I know." Bai Yuhang stood up, picked up his suit jacket draped over the back of the chair, and said, "I need to go see our God of Wealth now, and while I'm at it, cast the net for monetization."

In the afternoon, in the lobby on the first floor of the China Entrepreneurship Network Fund Company.

Bai Yuhang only brought financial statements and data summaries, and went to the meeting alone.

In the lobby's lounge area, several investors in suits sat, sipping coffee and conversing quietly. Someone with sharp eyes recognized Bai Yuhang as he walked through the revolving door.

"Isn't that... Bai Yuhang from Qihang Technology?"

Two months ago, Bai Yuhang asked Su Muqing to take the project materials and look for investors all over Beijing. Some of the agencies that these people worked for looked down on Su Muqing because he was a college student, while others thought their prices were too high and didn't even let him in the door.

Now, this 18-year-old is recognized as the "Godfather of the Internet" across the entire network, holding a social behemoth with tens of millions of users in his hands. Moreover, the business managed by his company has formed a monopoly, creating a dimensional reduction attack. The market has long recognized that there is no possibility of replicating Qihang Technology.

Several investment managers' faces turned pale and then red, their eyes filled with undisguised regret. Some instinctively stood up, wanting to strike up a conversation, but found themselves too ashamed to do so.

Bai Yuhang didn't even glance at them, walking straight towards the VIP elevator. Under the complex gazes of the crowd, the elevator doors closed.

The top floor, Zhang Lei's private office.

On the coffee table, a purple clay teapot steamed. Zhang Lei personally poured Bai Yuhang a cup of clear Wuyi rock tea.

"Try it. It's a piece of old Wuyi rock tea that someone gave me. I wouldn't normally take it out." Zhang Lei's attitude had completely changed. He was no longer looking at a promising junior, but treating a business tycoon as an equal.

"Mr. Zhang, you've gone to so much trouble." Bai Yuhang picked up his teacup and took a sip.

Looking at him, Zhang Lei couldn't help but exclaim, "Yu Hang, your recent actions have truly opened my eyes. I originally thought that Pony's old subordinates in Shenzhen, being so arrogant, would definitely clash with your grassroots team from Harbin once they arrived in Beijing. I never expected that you would not only integrate them perfectly, but also arrange the division of labor among the business departments with such foresight."

He lit a cigar and exhaled a puff of smoke: "Qihang's current technological barriers and user stickiness have already made portal websites like Sina and NetEase, which want to emulate it, hesitate. They don't even know where to start copying it now."

Bai Yuhang put down his teacup and pushed a thin briefing in front of Zhang Lei.

"Mr. Zhang, when we signed that million-dollar investment agreement, we set a three-year, ten million-user target agreement."

Zhang Lei paused, his hand holding the cigar, and his gaze fell on the briefing.

"The launch was completed two years and eleven months ahead of schedule," Bai Yuhang said calmly.

Zhang Lei picked up the report and stared at the number "10,000,000" printed on it. Although he had been following Qihang's progress closely these past few days and had some idea of ​​what was going on, he was still shocked by the terrifying growth rate when he saw this solid report card in front of him.

A three-year bet, settled in a month. This is an unprecedented miracle in the entire domestic internet investment circle.

Zhang Lei stared at the numbers on the briefing for a full half minute before looking up.

"Ten million..." Zhang Lei tapped his finger on the paper twice. "Yu Hang, you didn't just cross the finish line, you drove a road roller and flattened the finish line."

Bai Yuhang picked up his teacup and blew on the floating leaves: "Half of the terms of the performance-based agreement have been met ahead of schedule. We still need to work hard to achieve the remaining ten million in annual net profit. The road ahead will depend on the resources provided by President Zhang."

Zhang Lei shook his head and stubbed out the half-smoked cigar in the ashtray: "Do you think I need to help you? Do you know how many calls I've been making to my office landline these past two days? A bunch of senior figures from IDG and Sequoia have been subtly trying to find out about you."

Bai Yuhang didn't respond, he just quietly drank his tea.

"Back then, Su Muqing ran all over Beijing with your business plan, but these people were too shrewd. They looked down on you because you were college students starting a business, and they thought your prices were too high. At most, they'd just send a lowly investment manager to give you a perfunctory reply." Zhang Lei couldn't help but laugh as he said this. "Now look at you, seeing that you've swallowed QQ and built up tens of millions of users, they're all kicking themselves. Yesterday, a partner from an organization was complaining to me, saying that if he had known Qihang was this powerful, he would have at least clung to your coattails and put his money into your company's account."

Bai Yuhang put down his teacup and tapped his finger lightly on his knee: "President Zhang, even if those big bosses had personally come and sat across from me back then, I might not have accepted this money."

Zhang Lei raised an eyebrow: "What? Is this free US dollars too hot to handle?"

Bai Yuhang leaned back on the sofa, his tone calm: "Capital seeks profit, that's only natural. But Qihang Future is expanding rapidly. If investors don't understand the social ecosystem and only focus on immediate monetization reports, then taking their money is like taking poison. When I look for partners, I need someone like you, someone who dares to go crazy with me and can withstand the pressure."

Zhang Lei was stunned for a moment, then burst into a hearty laugh.

"Good lad, you're praising me and giving me pointers in a roundabout way," Zhang Lei said, pointing at Bai Yuhang. "But you're right, investing is ultimately about investing in people. You could say that the best deal I've ever made in my life was betting on you. Don't worry, I'll keep those who want to steal the profits away from you. Our top priority now is to turn this ten million yuan investment into an impregnable fortress."