Epiphanies of Rebirth Chapter 87 (Part 3)
Translated by Pure
Chapter 87.3 Extra [Sixteen years later II]
Mother Zhou beamed with approval at Xiao Chi's continuous display of diligence. "Half of the dishes on today’s table were prepared by Xiao Xiao. Look at his exemplary behavior, his nimble and swift hands and feet! The rest of you could stand to learn a thing or two from him instead of idly indulging all day long!"
The four 'idle' sons in the living room had grown accustomed to such reprimands over the course of more than a decade. Lin Jingzhe, far from feeling chastised, wore a proud grin. He whipped out his phone, capturing a snapshot of the sumptuous spread, and promptly shared it on the Immortal Blog, complete with a heart and two kissing emoticons.
Countless comments immediately followed below——
—Mr. Lin-crazed fangirl: {Ahhh so jelly! I don’t know who saved the entire universe in their previous life to be able to be graced with the honor of cook for the male god~~~}
—All handsome men are my husbands: {It's gotta be one of his good-looking family members!! 😭}
—Petting a cat: {This is proof he is the **real** Mr. Perfect, the man knows how to balance his work and private life well. The fans next door who think that being five centimeters taller is so great, kek what fking a joke.}
—All handsome men are my husbands: {Forgive me for being uncultured, but which next door neighbor are we talking about?}
—Petting a cat: {Duh, who else? The 'Forbes top dog, taller, richer, and more handsome businessman' next door~}
—Mr. Xiao is the number one most desirable bachelor: {It’s said that Lin Fans are super sour, and I’ve finally witnessed it for myself today. Just focus on ur ‘male god’ and stop changing the topic, okay? He’s only just updated his post, yet you guys gotta make sour jabs at our Mr. Xiao? Tho it’s a fact that he’s 192 and one ups Lin in Forbes magazine, what r u gonna do about it huh? 🤪🤪}
Lin Jingzhe: "………………"
Why are you people fighting again?
The skirmishes between the two fan bases used to be lighthearted, more like playful banter. No one really got hurt. He couldn't fathom why there had been so much tension lately, resulting in full-blown disputes over disagreements.
Xiao Chi picked up a Salt-and-Pepper Lamb Spine from the plate, placed it into Lin Jingzhe’s bowl, and asked, "What are you looking at?"
The Salt-and-Pepper Lamb Spine was a symphony of flavors, its every inch kissed by seasoning, with even the marrow pulsating with the fiery essence of onions, pepper, and salt. As Lin Jingzhe took a bite, his taste buds danced with delight. The juicy goodness swathed in the lamb's crispy shell enveloped his senses. He promptly set aside his phone, fully surrendering to the culinary experience. "Nothing important."
Yet, ignoring the squabble didn't make it vanish.
After leaving the Gao Family's residence, Lin Jingzhe's phone chimed with a call from the company's marketing department. "Mr. Lin, our New Beginnings x Best Partner Official Communication Room got flooded! Haha!"
The Communication Room, a product of Best Partner IT, was an offspring of Best Partner MSG. It operated like a compact forum, drawing major companies, celebrities, and individuals with shared interests for exchange. Lin Jingzhe held separate accounts for both New Beginnings and himself, the forum usually a tranquil space with a sprinkle of fangirl comments or company staff exchanges.
Flooded? Lin Jingzhe was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
"It's an IRC flood! Suddenly, a bunch of irrelevant posts flooded the homepage, pushing all our regular discussions off. We've already contacted Best Partner IT and urgently asked them to come back and work overtime to remove these spam posts. It didn't cause major disruptions, but I thought it was best to inform you, as tomorrow's news might mention it. If possible, you might want to touch base with Mr. Xiao from Flux Realty to prevent any misunderstandings."
What does this matter have to do with Xiao Chi?
Xiao Chi's puzzled expression mirrored Lin Jingzhe's own confusion after he hung up the phone. They parked the car on the side of the road and opened the Communication Room.
As expected, it was a chaotic scene. Clicking open a spam post, they found multiple photos of Lin Jingzhe and Xiao Chi at the same event a few years ago.
In one of the group photos, the two of them stood side by side in the middle, facing the camera. They appeared perfectly normal, their expressions and attire unremarkable. Lin Jingzhe scrutinized the pictures for a long moment but couldn't discern anything amiss.
Scrolling down, he finally grasped the situation—
—XXX: 192192192192 is 192, yalls can keep rotting kekekekekek
Lin Jingzhe: "..."
In that photo, Xiao Chi was indeed a little taller than him.
Xiao Chi: "..."
What kind of lunacy was this?
Under Lin Jingzhe's penetrating gaze in the lamplight, Xiao Chi's head started to throb. He couldn't help but think to himself: the longer you live, the more absurd things you encounter. He promptly interjected, "I genuinely have no clue!"
"I never said you did." Lin Jingzhe reclined leisurely in the passenger seat, arms folded, a smile dancing on his lips.
"..." Xiao Chi momentarily disregarded driving home, swiftly pulling out his mobile phone to call the company. He urgently requested the deployment of the PR team and to reach out to Best Partner IT to promptly clear up this chaotic situation.
However, the strange thing was that such swift action didn't quell the storm of criticism; in fact, it seemed to be just the tip of the iceberg. Ten minutes later, the head of Immortal Immortal Science & Technology contacted him, saying, "Mr. Xiao, our web portal has been breached."
Xiao Chi's mind was still filled with Lin Jingzhe's half-smiling face; he felt so anxious that beads of sweat formed on his forehead. Absent-mindedly, he asked, "Have you identified the source?"
After receiving the response, he fell into a momentary silence.
Lin Jingzhe was taken aback upon hearing that Immortal had fallen victim to a cyber attack. He could no longer maintain his facade and inquired urgently, "What happened? Is Immortal facing a serious issue? Who's behind this? Have they managed to trace their IP address?"
"Yes," Xiao Chi responded after a pause, and slowly uttered the name of the studio.
The moment Lin Jingzhe heard the name, he sensed something amiss. This studio had an ongoing collaboration with Best Partner IT, handling smaller projects that weren't deemed particularly critical. The situation was far from ordinary. Why would they target Immortal without provocation, especially considering the past collaborations between Immortal and Best Partner IT?
Meanwhile, Immortal Blog was inundated with notification sounds. Lin Jingzhe entered the platform and found a barrage of comments related to fans' disputes. It was disheartening. He promptly disabled the notifications to find some semblance of peace amid the chaos.
The night air hung heavy with a prolonged silence, broken only by the arrival of another urgent call.
It was Liang Pi.
Although overseas, Liang Pi's voice resonated clearly through the powerful processor of Lin Jingzhe's Hero mobile phone. "Mr. Lin, I need to report something crucial. Our latest smartphone communication software, which we just recently launched, appeared in Immortal's newly upgraded system this afternoon. Before we could even release our own version. We had to urgently halt the modification activities in the background. I have a reasonable suspicion that Immortal may have placed a corporate spy within Best Partner."
Smartphones had taken the world by storm a few years back, prompting technology companies worldwide to swiftly pivot their business focus from PCs to mobile devices. The most coveted sector was mobile communications. After collaborating on computer-side communication equipment, both Immortal and Best Partner saw the potential in this field. Consequently, they developed their respective software a few years ago and nearly simultaneously launched them on the market. After over a year, both companies had built their own customer bases, effectively reverting to competitors within the industry.
Liang Pi's revelation left Lin Jingzhe astounded. While he and Xiao Chi had invested in two separate internet companies, they seldom delved into each other's private business decisions unless absolutely necessary. Lin Jingzhe was absolutely certain that he had never disclosed this new venture to Xiao Chi. However, at the same time, the intensity of this collision couldn't be easily brushed off as mere coincidence.
Liang Pi was evidently furious. As the company expanded, the circle of core employees grew, making encounters with corporate espionage inevitable. It was just that the relationship between Best Partner IT and Immortal Technology had been cordial, largely due to their initial collaboration on computer communication software. Despite later competition in the mobile sector, neither party had resorted to overly aggressive tactics against the other. It was emotionally hard for him to accept that the one who had betrayed him turned out to be a former like-minded comrade. As he discussed Immortal Science & Technology, his tone grew somber, as if he had steeled himself for a no-holds-barred business showdown.
"Don't jump to conclusions too quickly." This chain of events was too coincidental. Going from hackers to commercial espionage felt like a deadly game of cat and mouse. Alongside the fan conflict that erupted on the forum today, Lin Jingzhe sensed that something was amiss. He decided to share the news about Immortal Technology's hacked portal with Liang Pi.
Liang Pi's initial anger was instantly replaced with puzzlement. "Lil'Babe Studio? How does that make any sense? They have no prior dealings with Immortal. Why would they suddenly target them...?"
As he said this, Liang Pi's voice trailed off.
Lin Jingzhe didn't say a word. After a brief silence on both ends, they both came to the same realization, "This doesn't add up."
"As soon as Immortal integrated our latest software, their web portal got hacked." Liang Pi meticulously outlined the sequence of events. "Looking at it this way, it seems like we retaliated intentionally after falling prey to commercial espionage."
"My Communication Room was flooded as well," Lin Jingzhe chimed in. "It's widely known that Xiao Chi has significant influence in Immortal, and I have invested in Best Partner."
Liang Pi took a deep breath, finally regaining his composure. "I understand. I'll reach out to Mr. Wang at Immortal again."
Having contacted Immortal immediately upon learning about the software theft, Liang Pi had encountered a muddled conversation. In the business world, things were rarely stated outright. Liang Pi had spoken in a roundabout way, but it appeared the other party either feigned ignorance or genuinely didn't comprehend. At that moment, Liang Pi was seething, convinced he was playing dumb.
Yet now, it appeared there was a chance that Mr. Wang was indeed in the dark about the situation.
A very suspicious candidate emerged in Lin Jingzhe's mind. "This whole conflict is just too mysterious. One wrong move, and Immortal and our relationship could end up completely severed. Please, remind Mr. Wang to keep a close eye on Wenchong Technology."
"Wenchong Technology?!" Liang Pi suddenly perked up, "Yes, I've heard they're also about to launch mobile communication software, and they're planning a hefty investment to promote it—"
"Investing 200 million US dollars." Lin Jingzhe interjected.
It was a staggering sum, even in the world of the internet industry where money flowed freely. Nearly all of Wenchong Technology's funds came from external investments, and this move was bound to wipe out Chen Wenchong's coffers. It was clear they were determined to leverage their financial might to establish a market monopoly.
Liang Pi swiftly hung up to rectify the situation with Immortal Science & Technology. Lin Jingzhe, on the other hand, furrowed his brows, contemplating various matters. When he looked up, he found Xiao Chi engrossed in his phone, his fingers dancing across the screen.
Given his bond with Xiao Chi, this minor dispute hardly registered on the scale of their relationship. Lin Jingzhe eased and inquired, "What are you up to?"
— Mr. Xiao is the number one most desirable bachelor: {True love? If it’s true love, then fight! To hell with Communication Room! Uninstall Best Partner MSG and show Lin fans who’s boss!}
— Baby Curls: {Mofo gtfo!}
— Can’t outdo the tallest, handsomest and richest: {192192192, let’s focus on 192 n show those dwarf fans who’s boss!}
— Baby Curls: {How the fk is 187 short? 187 can kick you mommy to the sky, Mofo gtfo!}
Lin Jingzhe: "…………"
Xiao Chi, clutching his last shreds of sanity, logged into his side account and unleashed a verbal barrage on his fans. Satisfied, he started to hum a tune as he revved up the car engine.
"..." Lin Jingzhe pulled out his phone, dove into Immortal Blog, and waded through the sea of comments on Xiao Chi's page——
— Mr. Xiao is the number one most desirable bachelor: {To call another ‘mofo’, Lin fans rly got no decency!}
— Can’t outdo the tallest, handsomest and richest: {That Baby Curls person must be a dumbass. Talking about kicking others sky high when they might need a boost themselves. What kind of ridiculous name is that, seriously? Ugh, they're running on empty in the brain department. Lin fans really have no decency at all!}
—
Salt-and-Pepper Lamb Spine - there's no exact video for this dish, but this is something similar https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yif_61VKEYA
above uses lamb spine, while this video is the salt and pepper