Reborn in 2000, starting from the university website

The atmosphere in dormitory 206 is very strange right now.

In the past, Jiang Shuo's account books were guarded more closely than his own life. He would spend all day checking accounts with Jiao Liwei, and he would nag about who spent even a penny more than necessary.

Right now, this kid is holding a rag and is bending over to wipe Bai Yuhang's bed ladder on the upper bunk, chuckling to himself as he does so.

"Eighth Brother, if you keep polishing the ladder, you'll make it look like it has a patina." Zhang Jian, with half a sausage in his mouth, was daydreaming. "Sixth Brother, when this million dollars comes in, can I apply to get a new IBM laptop? We're using the internet cafe's machines to run code like an old ox pulling a broken cart. I'm afraid the case will explode one day."

"Buy! We have to buy!" Jiang Shuo didn't even turn his head, his tone as arrogant as a nouveau riche. "Don't even mention IBM, whatever you want to buy, as long as Lao Liu nods, I won't even blink. We were poor before, but from now on we'll have US dollars!"

Bai Yuhang was both amused and exasperated. He put the basin he had just washed on the shelf and said, "Alright, you're already dreaming before the money is even in your pocket. Without a contract, it's just an empty check."

As soon as he finished speaking, the pager at his waist vibrated as if he had been electrocuted.

He glanced down and saw Zhang Lei's code. Without a word, he grabbed his coat and headed out, telling his roommates, "I'm going out for a bit, don't go too far."

Department Head's Office.

Bai Yuhang was getting more and more familiar with Director Wang. Seeing that the door to the department head's office was ajar, Bai Yuhang didn't treat himself as an outsider. He knocked twice and then pushed the door open and went in.

Inside the house, Old Wang was holding an enamel mug with the words "Serve the People" printed on it, blowing on the jasmine tea stems floating on the water.

As Bai Yuhang pushed the door open and came in, he was about to make a joke about Sina Tech News when he saw the student lock the door behind him.

"What do you mean? Why are you closing the door in broad daylight?" Old Wang put down his teacup, pushed up his reading glasses, and was a little confused.

Bai Yuhang didn't waste any words. He went straight to the Panasonic fax machine in the corner of his desk and skillfully checked the printed paper.

"Director, may I use this space to receive an urgent document? I also need to use the small conference room for a while."

"Use it, the department's stuff is for you guys." Director Wang was cheerful and straightforward, but he couldn't help feeling sorry for the money. "But let's make it clear, sending and receiving faxes is fine, but don't make long-distance calls. The department's budget was just approved by the college this month, it's not enough for you to squander."

Director Wang pointed to the fax machine in front of Bai Yuhang: "This thing is precious, the paper was just replaced, use it. I have to go to a meeting, remember to close the door behind you when you leave."

"Thank you, Director." He used the fax machine to call Zhang Lei's mobile phone and gave him the fax machine number.

No sooner had Director Wang left than the fax machine emitted a sharp handshake signal sound, followed by the buzzing sound of gears meshing.

Bai Yuhang bowed slightly, watching the still-warm printed sheets of paper slowly emerge, covered with densely packed Chinese and English terms and the final investment amount, prominently displaying "1,000,000 USD." Only then did he truly feel relieved.

He picked up the landline on the table and skillfully dialed a Beijing number that he knew by heart.

"Received it?" Su Muqing's voice, even across thousands of miles, was still capable as she worked.

"It's still fresh in our minds." Bai Yuhang flipped through the pages, preparing to read the agreement terms word by word to Su Muqing for confirmation. "You go through the draft we've prepared together. Pay special attention to the anti-dilution clause and the board seats. Zhang Lei may seem kind, but he might be ruthless when he gets serious."

The sound of papers turning over came from the other end of the phone until Bai Yuhang finished reading all the terms.

Su Muqing replied, "On page three, clause four, regarding the priority liquidation right, which is the standard double return, there's no doubling. On page seven, you have two out of three board seats, so you haven't lost control." Su Muqing spoke quickly, "I have to say, this is probably the most entrepreneur-friendly angel round clause I've ever seen. Zhang Lei is really investing in you as if you're the future richest man; he hasn't dug any traps for you."

"That's because he's playing the long game." Bai Yuhang smiled. "Okay, since there's no problem, I'll sign it."

After hanging up the phone, Bai Yuhang put the fax into a file folder and paged Jiao Liwei.

Half an hour later, in the small conference room next to Department Director Wang's office, the doors and windows were tightly closed.

The eight students in dormitory 206 sat around a round table, the atmosphere even more somber than during final exams. Bai Yuhang slammed a thick stack of contracts in both Chinese and English onto the table.

"Stop guessing, let's have a proper talk."

Bai Yuhang didn't bother with any fancy opening remarks; he simply drew a pie chart on the whiteboard.

"According to the agreement, China Entrepreneurship Network will invest one million US dollars and take 20% of the shares. That means our company is now worth five million US dollars."

Below, there was a chorus of sounds of people swallowing hard.

"The remaining 80%," Bai Yuhang cut a large slice from the pie chart. "Following Zhang Lei's suggestion, I'll take 72%. This isn't just equity; it's control of the company. From now on, whoever comes in, we'll have the final say."

Everyone nodded, and no one objected. This whole mess was originally set up by Lao Liu; he was responsible for the core technology, the business model, and even how to negotiate with investors. It was only natural that he would take the lion's share.

"What about the rest?" Zhang Jian couldn't help but ask.

Bai Yuhang drew two lines on the remaining piece of cake: "Su Muqing is in Beijing. She ran herself ragged for us, contacting investors, promoting our project, and explaining our data to every investor. She made a great contribution to increasing the project's valuation and also fended off many hungry wolves. She gets 1%. The remaining 7% is the option pool for our dorm brothers, to be split equally."

"How much?" Jiang Shuo pushed up his glasses, his brows furrowing. "Only 7%? Sixth Brother, that's far too little..."

Bai Yuhang didn't say anything, but just looked at him with a half-smile.

Yang Bo, who was standing next to him, reacted the fastest. He did a quick mental calculation, his expression changed instantly, and he kicked Jiang Shuo's chair leg: "Eighth Brother, are you fucking stupid? Hurry up and do the math!"

Jiang Shuo was taken aback, then took out his small calculator and quickly pressed a few keys.

$500 million... multiplied by 8%... divided by 8 people... then multiplied by the exchange rate of 8.28...

A string of numbers appeared on the calculator screen.

Jiang Shuo's hand trembled violently, and the calculator fell to the table with a "thud".

"Four...four hundred thousand?" Jiang Shuo's voice cracked, like a rooster being choked. "Four hundred and thirty thousand per person? RMB?"

The conference room fell into a deathly silence.

These days, a two-bedroom apartment in Harbin costs only 30,000 to 40,000 yuan. Parents work hard for a month, earning only a few hundred yuan a month. In the blink of an eye, each of them is worth more than their parents could earn in several lifetimes?

"Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands..." Zhang Jian picked up the calculator and pressed the keys again, his eyes wide with disbelief. "Holy crap! Sixth Brother, this isn't an option, it's a gold mine! If my dad knew I had over 400,000, he'd definitely give me a separate page in the family tree!"

"This is just the current valuation." Bai Yuhang tapped the table to calm these naive guys down. "When we reach a million or ten million users, this 1% could be four million or forty million. Of course, that's assuming we do this job well."

"Let's do it! We absolutely have to!" Liu Jing's face flushed with excitement. "Anyone who doesn't is a coward! If anyone ever dares to say we're not doing our proper work again, I'll kick them to death! I'm going to learn the skills properly too!"

At this point, Jiang Shuo no longer cared about the small percentage of shares. Holding the photocopied contract like a son, he looked at Bai Yuhang with teary eyes, saying, "Sixth Brother, from now on you're my brother. If you say go east, I'll never go west. Even if you ask me to rob a bank... no, to deposit money, I'll run faster than a rabbit!"

"Alright, stop embarrassing yourself." Jiao Liwei's hands were trembling, but he still adopted the air of a leader. "Since Lao Liu has led us to wealth, we have to risk our lives and do our best. From today onwards, if anyone lets us down, don't blame me for not showing brotherly mercy!"

Bai Yuhang looked at his brothers, whose eyes were practically glowing with envy, and a smile crept onto his lips.

Money is the best adhesive and the strongest stimulant.

With these howling wolf cubs, the battles ahead will be much easier.