"Brother Wu, aren't you being a bit harsh?" Wu Hao's smile was stiff.
After their discussion that afternoon, he had returned to the company and submitted his resignation, determined to follow Li Zhonglou.
However, he knew his own abilities were insufficient to support the overall picture.
That's why he had asked Ren Ping, whom he had long admired, to invite Wu Zhijie to be the technical director.
Who would have thought Wu Zhijie would be so dismissive right from the start?
But considering he was asking for a favor, he had to suppress his emotions.
"I'm just being blunt, don't be upset," Wu Zhijie said with a cold sneer. "I have money, and I certainly don't lack technology."
"Do I need to waste my time and energy with you country bumpkins?"
He was very unhappy at the moment.
As an IT elite, he had been with over a hundred women.
But they were all sluts. Ren Ping, who was generous and outgoing, was someone he had never had a chance with.
When he heard she invited him, he felt his opportunity had arrived.
But from dinner until now, despite his zealous efforts, Ren Ping had calmly rejected him, which made him lose face.
Fueled by alcohol, he decided to vent his anger on Li Zhonglou to show his superiority.
After speaking, he ignored Li Zhonglou and went back to playing dice.
Now, even Zhang Yuan and Qi Bei appeared extremely uncomfortable.
"He's had too much to drink, just ignore him," Ren Ping awkwardly tried to smooth things over.
After all, she had invited him, and the awkward atmosphere made her feel very uneasy.
Wu Hao's face was ashen, and a surge of anger rose within him. Just as he was about to lash out, Li Zhonglou gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "Come, Haozi, I'll drink with you."
Li Zhonglou was also very displeased with Wu Zhijie's attitude.
This kind of person wasn't arrogant, but rather looked down on others with contempt.
In a team, he was like a rotten apple, capable of spoiling things despite his skills.
But he was Ren Ping's friend.
If Wu Hao got angry over this matter, his impression in Ren Ping's heart would likely be ruined.
It would be a loss that outweighed the gain.
Wu Hao also considered this, and had to swallow his anger.
He raised his glass to Li Zhonglou with a look of guilt. "Sorry, Louzi, he might be a bit drunk."
Li Zhonglou didn't want to discuss the matter further and changed the subject. "Ren Ping is good, generous and suitable for you."
Mentioning Ren Ping brought a hint of excitement to Wu Hao's face, but he quickly hesitated. "She is indeed good, but she might not think highly of me."
"Be confident, you're going to be a CEO," Li Zhonglou reassured him.
The one million yuan Lyu Yunxu had given tonight was exactly what they needed as startup capital, and he would entrust it to Wu Hao's discretion.
As long as he worked diligently, his future was boundless.
"You're making me feel a bit floaty. Come, Zhang Yuan, Qi Bei, let's drink." Wu Hao downed his drink, occasionally stealing glances at Ren Ping, who was trying to persuade Wu Zhijie.
Li Zhonglou couldn't help but shake his head. This guy was usually carefree, but when it came to women, he was timid and overly polite, not like his former self.
Women needed to be pursued actively, not by feigning politeness and acting like a gentleman.
In this regard, Wu Hao was far inferior to this Wu Zhijie.
Li Zhonglou had a keen eye and could clearly see the possessiveness glinting in Wu Zhijie's eyes when he looked at Ren Ping.
He couldn't help but mourn for Wu Hao in his heart.
Next, Qi Bei and Zhang Yuan began to share their thoughts with Li Zhonglou.
It was clear that this small team had already communicated before he arrived.
Li Zhonglou understood nothing about the technical aspects, only that they would need approximately eight hundred thousand yuan in initial funding.
And it needed to be in their account within a month.
"The money is no problem, it can be transferred anytime," Li Zhonglou reassured them.
*Slap!*
As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Zhijie slammed the dice cup onto the ground, scattering the dice everywhere.
"If you're not interested in me, why did you ask me out? Are you playing with me?" Wu Zhijie, his face full of displeasure, his arrogant and sharp voice cutting through the music.
Ren Ping's face flushed, and she stepped back, her expression a mixture of shock and disgust.
"What's wrong?" Wu Hao asked with concern.
"None of your business! Get lost."
Before Ren Ping could speak, Wu Zhijie snarled, his expression distorted. "I already told you, name your price, but you're still playing the saintly virgin. What do you think you are?"
"I, Wu Zhijie, have never failed to get the woman I want."
"Don't think you can get ahead of yourself just because I'm giving you some face."
"Bitch!"
Li Zhonglou's eyes narrowed.
He understood now. While they were discussing business, Wu Zhijie had been harassing Ren Ping and asking her to sleep with him.
This was the goddess Wu Hao had secretly admired for a long time.
Even under the influence of alcohol, behaving like this in such a setting was immoral.
How could Wu Hao not understand? The anger he had been suppressing in his heart instantly erupted.
His face darkened, and he stood up, shouting, "Wu Zhijie, I asked Ren Ping to invite you here to discuss business. Don't you have any class!"
"Just because you have a little money and came back from abroad, you think you're so great?"
"Is this the only quality you have?"
Wu Zhijie sneered dismissively, glaring at Wu Hao. "What are you, a nobody? Who are you to speak?"
"Is it your turn to talk?"
"Why don't you pee and look at yourself, trash!"
"People like you, if it weren't for Ren Ping, wouldn't even qualify to sit with me."
Before Wu Hao could retort, Ren Ping spoke indignantly, "Wu Zhijie, you've gone too far."
"Since you think we're not worthy of being with you, then please leave!"
Ren Ping's attitude completely enraged Wu Zhijie.
In his mind, there was no woman money couldn't conquer. Ren Ping's reluctant behavior was merely an attempt to raise her price.
He had seen many such women.
He downed a glass of wine and laughed even more arrogantly. "Stop pretending. You just want more, don't you?"
"Everyone has a price. I have plenty of money. If you think one night isn't enough, I'll keep you for a year."
"No woman has ever dared to be so defiant in front of me, Wu Zhijie!"
Wu Hao was about to get angry.
Li Zhonglou had already stood up. "It seems you were spoiled by your parents since childhood."
"You're arrogant and overbearing on the surface, but deep down you reek of inferiority."
"Being rejected by a girl and losing your temper on the spot shows your character."
"Before I lose my temper, get out!"
Li Zhonglou had a bad impression of Wu Zhijie from the moment he entered. He was frivolous, arrogant, and clueless.
Now, he was pushing his luck even further, acting like a hooligan on the spot.
He treated women as commodities.
He didn't even understand the most basic respect.
Li Zhonglou didn't care about such a person, no matter how capable he was.
"Kid, you want me to get out?" Wu Zhijie's face instantly turned terrifyingly grim. "I think you want to die!"
He had been suppressed by his parents since childhood.
After going abroad, he experienced a dark period of being suppressed.
When he returned to Qin Zhou, his parents rose from grassroots positions to official posts, and his suppressed darkness naturally erupted, making him arrogant and conceited.
He frequented nightclubs daily, even labeling women with fixed stereotypes.
He felt that Ren Ping inviting him to dinner and drinks was a sexual suggestion.
When he was rejected, his unwillingness and disappointment erupted uncontrollably.
Now, being exposed by Li Zhonglou with a single sentence.
It was as if he had been stripped naked in public, losing all face.
His face was filled with ferocity, and he yelled, "You're the first person to be so arrogant in front of me since I returned to the country!"
"I'll give you two losers a chance."
"Call me Daddy and apologize to me!"
"Otherwise, you won't get anywhere in the internet industry."
After speaking, he pointed at Ren Ping and threatened, "And you, either you sleep with me tonight, or you can forget about working in Qin Zhou's internet circle."
Upon hearing this, Ren Ping's face turned pale.
She knew Wu Zhijie's background. His father was an official in the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and his mother was the head of the Cybersecurity Department.
She herself had assembled a hacker team.
If she truly offended him, she would indeed have no place in this circle in the future.
"You..." Wu Hao felt a tightness in his chest.
If it weren't for Li Zhonglou's live streaming platform, given his temper, he would have beaten Wu Zhijie so badly that his parents wouldn't recognize him, even if he had to switch industries.
The local official is no match for the current one. Wu Zhijie indeed had the ability to nip their careers in the bud from the very beginning.
For Li Zhonglou, he had to bow his head. "Brother Wu, no, Dad... I'm sorry..."
"Zhonglou doesn't understand you. I apologize on his behalf..."
"But Ren Ping, she... she... she's my girlfriend. Please, be magnanimous and let her go."
"I, Wu Hao, will remember your great kindness forever!"
Li Zhonglou's heart tightened as he saw Wu Hao's change in attitude.
In an instant, he understood why.
This kid was willingly calling someone "Dad" for his sake.
Even Ren Ping's eyes widened, filled with shock and gratitude.
Wu Hao calling himself her boyfriend at this moment was clearly protecting her, wanting her to bear Wu Zhijie's wrath.
This fool...
Even Zhang Yuan and Qi Yuan, who had been silent, were stunned.
*Crash!*
At that moment, the empty wine glass in Wu Zhijie's hand smashed hard onto Wu Hao's head.
Glass shards exploded, and Wu Hao bled profusely, his mind going blank.
"You damn loser, you think I'm a fool?"
Wu Zhijie snarled, his expression ferocious. "Don't say she's not your girlfriend. What if I sleep with her?"
"Even if I kill you, I can afford it!"
"You want to mess with me? Believe it or not, I'll make you leave here horizontally today."
"Wu Hao..." Ren Ping screamed as she embraced the dizzy and collapsing Wu Hao, frantically using her own clothes to press against his wound, tears instantly streaming down her face.
Almost simultaneously, Wu Zhijie reached out and grabbed Ren Ping by her hair. "Come with me."
Ren Ping's delicate face contorted in pain.
*Bang!*
Just then, an unopened bottle of beer smashed hard onto Wu Zhijie's head.
The exploding shards, driven by the immense air pressure, were as sharp as blades, instantly cutting deep bloody gashes across Wu Zhijie's face.
Fortunately, Ren Ping was facing away from Wu Zhijie and was not affected.
Taking advantage of Wu Zhijie's screams, Li Zhonglou stepped forward and delivered a fierce kick, sending him flying back two meters, where he landed on his back.
Before he could struggle to get up, Li Zhonglou quickly followed.
He stomped down with all his might on Wu Zhijie's groin.
Guts and blood splattered across his pants, accompanied by Wu Zhijie's heart-wrenching screams.
"I gave you a chance."
Li Zhonglou's eyes blazed with coldness. Looking at Wu Zhijie curled up and screaming bloody murder, he said coldly, "Since you didn't cherish it."
"I'll pay for your sex change!"
His killing intent was overwhelming, his demeanor invincible!
Not long ago, Li Zhonglou thought he would no longer resort to violence to solve problems.
People like Wu Zhijie couldn't provoke even a shred of anger in him.
But seeing Wu Hao humiliated and injured, the passion that hadn't burned for years erupted uncontrollably.
At this moment, the consequences, the trouble, were all outside his consideration.
His only thought was to cripple this bastard Wu Zhijie and vent Wu Hao's anger.
The entire venue was stunned.
Zhang Yuan and Qi Bei were petrified, their faces ashen.
Even Wu Hao, upon regaining his senses, stared with wide eyes, disbelieving.