“Kai, I’m really sorry about this, I find it hard to say…”
“Ah? Brother Chen, just tell me, I’m listening!”
Chen Sun subconsciously rubbed his hands, thinking about how to phrase it more naturally. Kai, still naive, thought Chen Sun was worried about the ten thousand yuan he had covered for him. Seeing Chen Sun’s hesitation, he immediately said seriously: “Brother Chen, don’t worry. Even if the new server launch fails and we don’t get the bonuses, I promise to pay back that ten thousand yuan by the end of the month!”
In fact, when they divided the money from the naive old man, Kai had only kept a thousand for himself. The others, feeling somewhat guilty, added another two thousand, so he ended up with three thousand in total. The rest was squandered by the others on gambling. When it came time to repay the old man, those who had taken the money feigned ignorance, pretending to help Kai gather the money to repay the debt. Being too proud to admit the truth, Kai was grateful when Chen Sun stepped in to help.
Chen Sun hadn’t anticipated Kai bringing up the money issue and was momentarily stunned, his heart aching. He thought about finding someone else to take the fall. But the other guys were too cunning; they would either make excuses or demand authorization. Only Kai was straightforward enough to be easily swayed by him.
“Brother Chen, are you worried about the new server?” Kai, seeing Chen Sun’s continued concern despite his assurance, realized that Chen Sun’s worry wasn’t about the money he owed. Feeling he had been small-minded, Kai’s admiration for Chen Sun grew, and he felt a genuine urge to do anything for his respected boss, even go through fire and water. However, he couldn’t bring himself to say such sentimental words out loud.
Yet, he had made up his mind, thinking to himself that no matter what Chen Ge would ask him to do next, even if it involved murder or arson, he would agree to it without hesitation, just to deal with the troublesome fool who had been driving them up the wall. Chen Ge, just say the word, I’m all in for you! Sun Chen gave a wry smile. Time was pressing, and he couldn’t afford to ponder too much. His strategy of “removing the firewood from under the pot” was just a concept, and whether it could effectively eliminate the hacker known as Merciless Ghost Hand was still uncertain. Sacrificing a pawn to save the chariot, it was the only option. Wang Kai was young; even if he stumbled, he could easily get back up, and perhaps later, there would be a chance to find him a good path. “Kai, what do you think about the tactics of this Merciless Ghost Hand?” Wang Kai was taken aback. The technical prowess of Merciless Ghost Hand was undeniably top-notch, something everyone in the tech department had witnessed during their numerous confrontations. What was there to discuss? However, since the boss asked, could it be that he had some ace up his sleeve? He responded seriously, “Chen Ge, just tell me what you need me to do!” Wang Kai was straightforward; he sensed something was up, but due to his pride and sense of brotherhood, even knowing he might be used, he pretended not to notice.
Sun Chen gave a forced laugh, glanced at his subordinates in the distance, and instinctively pulled Wang Kai further into the corner, ensuring their conversation wouldn’t be overheard, then said, “Merciless Ghost Hand must be dealt with, no matter what extreme measures we have to take! This new server has a special port for virtual technology, originally set up to cater to those willing to pay a hefty price, but this virtual technology is essentially an unfinished product with significant flaws!” Upon hearing this, Wang Kai’s face turned pale. Although virtual technology was Maru Beauty’s top secret, as part of the core development team, they had some insights into these secrets. The phrase “significant flaws” was clear to insiders like them. The extremely unstable game virtual terminals could potentially be life-threatening at any moment. Flawed virtual terminals were nothing short of mass production lines for idiots, imbeciles, and vegetative states. The most secretive internal information was that during the development of virtual terminals, an unimaginable number of volunteer players had already paid the price. Adding such ports to the new server was tantamount to a premeditated plan to harm and defraud players. “Don’t spread this!” Sun Chen quickly added, “It’s not as dire as you think. The company hasn’t released virtual terminals to the market yet, so for now, it’s just a potential issue!” Wang Kai let out a sigh of relief. Sun Chen’s words were indeed true, which eased his tension considerably. However, he soon understood the underlying message in Sun Chen’s words: Since the new server isn’t connected to the external network, how did Merciless Ghost Hand manage to break in? Could it be… Sun Chen’s exaggerated tone scared Wang Kai’s face white, the fact about the virtual terminal ports being the company’s highest secret; he didn’t want to mess this up and get chased down by the higher-ups. “It’s just a guess!” Sun Chen continued, “You understand, there’s no need to spell it out. I should be the one to go, but you know, everyone’s watching my every move. If I go, this secret won’t stay hidden. But don’t worry, I’ve been authorized by the higher-ups, and since this Merciless Ghost Hand is so bold, let’s take this opportunity to teach him a lesson, maybe he won’t dare to target Maru Beauty again.”
Wang Kai gave a strange smile, which made Sun Chen feel uneasy and embarrassed, unable to continue. Could this kid turn against me? When Wang Kai smiled, Sun Chen realized that Wang Kai wasn’t just a naive youngster; he was truly loyal to his friends, and that was all. He also knew that after this smile, he might not see the young man who called him Chen Ge with such affection again. Sun Chen knew his move wasn’t pretty. But now, there was no time to find someone else. Oh well, a grown man can take risks, even if it means losing his job, what’s the big deal? With a sigh, he said, “Forget it, Kai, I’m sorry, I was too selfish. I overlooked it; the authorization from above is just verbal, clearly not following procedure, and it’s obvious they have reservations. It’s not right to put you at risk for this! Alright, you deal with the others, I’ll handle this!” With that, Sun Chen straightened up and started walking out. At that moment, he felt an odd sense of relief, free from any psychological burden, yet deep inside, there was a tinge of sadness. “Xiu Xiu, I’m sorry for letting you and our daughter suffer in the future.”
Before he could take a step, a large hand reached from behind and gripped his shoulder: “Chen Ge, let me go instead! You have Xiu Xiu and Ah Yue at home.” It was Wang Kai, who pushed Sun Chen back into his seat and strode towards the control center. It was just modifying some game data after all; if Merciless Ghost Hand had any sense, he’d know to back off, if not… Humph! Let this despicable hacker die!
