Thursday, November 19th.
Thursday was about the same.
Lin Feng continued his research on the game engine development plan.
The game had 700 sales that day, reaching a cumulative total of just over 3,000.
On Su Yue's side, the MV had finally surpassed the original audio - now with over forty million views and still climbing quickly. The hype for her second stream was also growing. It seemed it would be another peak for her.
Mengqi was having talks with the Starwave staff to ensure everything was ready on their end and wouldn't break on the day of the stream.
…
Friday, November 20th.
The production for the physical albums entered its final phases.
Lin Feng paid 200,000 yuan for the production of ten thousand copies, and they began preparing for the stream the next day.
On the game's side, they gained about 500 sales. It seemed the numbers were dropping. He really hoped his plan would work out, otherwise, the game would truly die at this rate.
Well, now he could only hope.
As for the MV, it was doing as well as always with almost fifty million views. By itself, it had surpassed the combined views for the entire mini album.
…
Saturday, November 21st.
Lin Feng, Li Jun, and Zhang Wei sat at the study desk, each focused on their own laptops.
The room was quiet save for the rhythmic clacking of keys.
At that moment, the door swung open.
Chen Ming burst in, slightly out of breath.
He made a beeline for Zhang Wei.
"Brother Zhang!"
Zhang Wei looked up, startled.
"You never told me you were so good at studying!"
The others turned to look.
Zhang Wei blinked.
"What do you mean? Did something happen?"
"Didn't you see?" Chen Ming's eyes were wide. "The midterm results just came out! They're up on the portal, and the top 100 for the year group are posted on the board at the building entrance!"
Li Jun and Zhang Wei exchanged surprised glances.
Lin Feng wasn't surprised. He had expected this - he'd been in talks with the chairman about it.
He navigated to the student portal.
Chen Ming suddenly seemed to remember something and jumped to Lin Feng's side.
"Ah, I saw your name too! And Li Jun's!"
He clutched his head dramatically.
"You guys are all in the top 5 of the whole freshman year, and I'm nowhere to be seen. Am I the only failure in this room?"
Lin Feng opened the results page.
He was in first place in his class, followed closely by Sun Xiao.
He searched for Su Yue's name in the rankings.
Number 5 in class.
Not bad. The chairman shouldn't find any trouble with grades like that.
He then looked at the global rankings.
His eyes paused.
I'm actually... second place?
He sighed internally.
Well, I tried my best.
Number one in the entire freshman year was actually Zhang Wei.
He deserves it with how much he studies.
As a scholarship student, Zhang Wei worked extremely hard on his grades - he relied on them to stay in school after all.
It's just...
This is a little problematic.
He looked at the rest of the rankings.
Number 3 after him was his class monitor. Number 4 was Yu Shen. Number 5 was Li Jun.
Quite good.
It seemed like only people he knew were hoarding the top 5 spots.
Well, it's understandable. I only know geniuses.
He thought smugly to himself.
He scrolled past more names and found two more people he recognized in the top ten.
Scratch that - three more.
Su Yue was at number 10. The other two were from his class.
Five of the top 10 spots are actually taken by people from my class.
He sighed.
That being said...
His eyes drifted back to the top position where Zhang Wei's name sat, followed by his own.
I need to handle this.
He flipped his laptop shut and grabbed his phone.
Without a word, he stood and walked toward the door, already dialing.
The others watched him go.
He put the phone to his ear as he stepped into the hallway.
"Hello?"
A pause.
"Yeah. Well, things happened. I also wasn't expecting this."
He leaned against the wall.
"Well, it doesn't matter. Let's just ignore the section about grades and focus on the entrepreneurship side."
Another pause.
"Yeah, I know, but it's just not all that good, to be honest. It's all about impressions, you know? People remember the first and the last. The second? Not as much."
He listened.
"Mmh. Mmh. Okay. I'll be there. Thanks."
He ended the call.
Then he let out a long breath.
I need to get ready.
It's time for me and Fenghua to go public.
…
A few moments later.
The university's main administrative building had been transformed for the occasion.
A long banner hung above the entrance.
"Fenghua Holdings Partners with Zhejiang Business University"
"Supporting Tomorrow's Leaders Today"
A red carpet led from the main doors to a small stage that had been set up in the courtyard. Rows of chairs faced the platform, filled with faculty members, student representatives, and university staff.
Off to the side, a local news crew adjusted their equipment. A reporter checked her notes while her cameraman framed the shot.
Lin Feng stood backstage, adjusting his suit jacket.
This is a bit much.
But he understood the necessity. The chairman had thrown considerable resources into making this event look legitimate. The more official it appeared, the more believable the narrative became.
…
The ceremony began promptly at two o'clock.
The vice-chairman took the stage first, welcoming the attendees and speaking briefly about the importance of corporate partnerships in higher education.
Then Chairman Wu Zhennan stepped up to the microphone.
"Thank you all for being here today," he said, his voice warm and measured. "It is my great pleasure to announce a new partnership between Zhejiang Business University and Fenghua Holdings."
He gestured toward the side of the stage.
"Many of you may remember Lin Feng from the Outstanding Citizen Award ceremony last month. A first-year student who demonstrated exceptional courage and moral integrity."
A few nods from the audience.
"What you may not know," the chairman continued, "is what happened after that ceremony."
He paused for effect.
"I was so impressed by this young man's character that I made a personal decision. I invested 250,000 yuan of my own money into his future."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
The reporters leaned in.
"That investment," the chairman said, "became the seed for what is now Fenghua Holdings - a company that has grown to include a delivery service, an investment fund, and an entertainment agency."
He smiled broadly.
"And today, that same young man has returned to give back to the institution that believed in him."
He extended his hand toward the stage entrance.
"Please welcome the founder and chairman of Fenghua Holdings - Lin Feng."