Chapter 26: Internet Frenzy

  Ai Zi Qing woke up the next day to find himself lying on a bed in a small inn. After checking his body and finding nothing out of the ordinary, he let out a sigh of relief. He silently cursed himself for being stupid, getting drunk outside, and now this body's alcohol tolerance was less than one-tenth of what it used to be. Standing in front of the mirror, he thought with some amusement: Could it be that he had no charm at all? The man who got him drunk and sent him back to the inn alone must have really done a number on him!

  Put aside these messy thoughts, get up and pack things up, return to the hotel, Zi Qing just stepped in, Ma Yu Xi knocked on the door and came in, looked at Zi Qing for a moment, wanted to speak but stopped herself, thinking that as a subordinate she shouldn't interfere too much.

  Zi Qing naturally knew what he was thinking, and said in a warm voice, "Uncle Ma, don't worry, I met a friend last night, had a bit too much to drink, and stayed over nearby, forgot to let you know."

  Ma Yuxi finally put her mind at ease "These two days have already handled the matter, and all the stone materials have been transported back. When do you think we should go back?"

  "Today then, right Uncle Ma, help me find a teacher, I want to learn some simple close combat skills for self-defense." Zi Qing said after thinking for a moment.

  "It's okay, I'll let you know when it's suitable." Ma Yu nodded calmly, in his eyes, Ai Ziying was undoubtedly a target for some people with her beauty and ability. If her identity were to be exposed later on, the danger would be self-evident, so it would be better if she had some self-defense skills.

  After returning to Yang City, Zi Qing not only studied and practiced some simple self-defense skills but also had a new hobby - surfing the internet. In 1997, computers were not yet widespread, which made Zi Qing discover new business opportunities.

  Zi Qing knew she wasn't much different from people of this era, but she had something precious that made up for it - her prophetic vision and memory!

  In 1997, Yang City didn't have internet cafes, only a few computer rooms near schools that weren't connected to the internet, and they all played online games. Zi Qing had Ma Yu Xi buy computers for the company and connect them to the network. She also personally programmed a simple office software for the company, as she had learned some programming skills and could memorize some simple codes, such as ICQ, the earliest instant messaging tool that swept across America, which had very simple source code.

  She can design simple tools herself and organize a team to study operations. Moreover, Ziqing also understands some operational methods of later generations. Except for the large initial investment and inability to make money, once there is popularity, adding membership functions and the like will be extremely profitable!

  So Zi Qing started to think about instant messaging software again. Taking advantage of ICQ's founders, Mirabilis, Yossi Vardi and Arik Vardi not having gathered yet, he could take the lead.

  After that, Zi Qing spent day and night in the office of Yushizhuan General Company, writing and improving source code. Finally, after a week, she designed the most primitive chat tool using C language, which is very simple even for those who have learned it later. She further improved and designed its appearance to be very novel. Then, she let Ma Yuxi recruit capable college students from various universities, Zi Qing attaches great importance to their passion and innovation ability!

  And so, the "Chinese Chat" tool that would sweep the globe in the future was born on such a hot summer day, and its team's veterans were a group of newly graduated college students.

  Author's note: If you encounter any discrepancies with real-time events, please do not delve deeper into it. Just treat it as a parallel space and time to the real world. Due to the needs of the work, some true content has been altered in terms of timing and year.

  Tickets, fresh flowers, diamonds, and collections! Come on, pour them all over me, cheer me up!