novellhall Chapter 13 The Past of the Two
Chapter 13 The Past of the Two
Liang Rubo sat beside him, holding chopsticks in his hand, but didn't move them much.
His gaze remained fixed on Prince An's face.
He was stunned when Wang Zian took off his mask.
He initially thought that wearing a mask meant someone was not good-looking, as he had met many top tech experts whose appearances were mostly "technical".
So when he saw Wang Zi'an wearing a mask, he automatically categorized him into that type.
When the mask was removed, it revealed a face that was almost too handsome.
He had delicate features, but also a heroic air about him.
More importantly, he's young, significantly younger than Zhang Yiming; how did these two even get together?
Liang Rubo's gaze lingered on Wang Zi'an's face for longer than the normal duration of social interaction.
Prince An sensed it.
He looked up, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Mr. Liang, what's wrong?"
"It's nothing!" Liang Rubo snapped out of her daze, smiled, picked up the soup bowl, took a sip, and covered up her embarrassment.
"I never expected Mr. Wang to be so handsome and so young!"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Yiming put down his chopsticks.
He had been waiting for this moment for a while.
"Being handsome is nothing, this guy is only 18!"
When Zhang Yiming said this, there was a peculiar sense of satisfaction in his tone, as if he were showing off a treasured item that he had kept for a long time.
"And they're very rich, richer than us!"
Liang Rubo's gaze darted back and forth between Zhang Yiming and Wang Zian.
He had known Zhang Yiming for almost ten years and knew that the man was always reliable and never exaggerated.
When he says "richer than us," he really means he's richer than them.
"Unbelievable, isn't it!" Zhang Yiming smiled as he looked at Liang Rubo's expression, his fingers tapping lightly on the edge of the table, the rhythm as quick as a beat. "There are geniuses in this world."
"You'll find out later!" He deliberately kept everyone in suspense.
Liang Rubo's curiosity was piqued.
He glanced at Zhang Yiming, his smile utterly irritating.
She glanced at Wang Zian, who was intently eating a piece of eggplant and clearly had no intention of answering his question.
Looking at his old friend's face, which was practically screaming "Tell me already," Zhang Yiming smiled even more broadly.
He picked up a piece of braised pork and put it in his mouth, chewing it very slowly.
···
After the meal, Zhang Yiming and Liang Rubo escorted Wang Zian to the company building.
It was completely dark.
The glass curtain wall of the office building reflects the headlights of cars on the opposite street, with red taillights and white headlights intertwining to form a flowing river of light.
The evening breeze was a bit colder than during the day, seeping out from between the buildings and rustling the branches of the sycamore trees along the roadside.
Wang Zian opened the driver's side door and threw his backpack onto the passenger side.
He got in, adjusted the rearview mirror, then rolled down the window and waved to the two people standing at the door.
Wang Zian drove away from ByteDance in the car arranged by Zhang Yiming.
Liang Rubo stood on the steps at the entrance of the office building, looking in the direction the car had disappeared.
The wind was blowing his hair all over the place, and when he reached out to press it down, he couldn't.
As he lowered his hand, he turned around and grabbed Zhang Yiming's arm.
"What's going on with this person?"
Zhang Yiming put away his previous playful expression.
The night breeze made his glasses fog up slightly. He took them off, wiped them with the hem of his shirt, and put them back on.
The eyes behind the glasses looked particularly focused under the streetlights.
He patted his old friend's arm; "Let's go! We'll talk as we walk!"
He turned and walked into the building.
Liang Rubo followed, and the sound of their leather shoes echoing crisply on the marble floor of the lobby.
"Do you remember when we encountered an algorithmic problem a few years ago when we were preparing to start another business?"
"Of course I remember," Liang Rubo nodded, "It troubled us for a long time; we asked many people, but they couldn't solve it!"
As he spoke, he suddenly realized: "He's the amazing guy you've been talking about!"
Zhang Yiming nodded.
The two people walked through the lobby and entered the elevator.
The elevator lights were a cold white, making both of their faces appear somewhat bluish.
Zhang Yiming pressed the button for the third floor, and the elevator doors slowly closed.
"He's not just technically skilled." As the elevator began to ascend, a slight feeling of weightlessness spread from the soles of his feet. "He's also rich."
He turned his head slightly and looked at his reflection in the elevator door.
"We were short of money at the time, so he donated a large sum; his only request was that I keep it a secret!"
The elevator stopped on the third floor with a ding.
The door slowly opened, and the motion-activated lights in the corridor lit up one by one, like dominoes.
"Sorry, I haven't told you before!"
"Tch!" Liang Rubo glared at his old friend, annoyed. "I've thought for so many years that your skills had improved rapidly, but it turns out it wasn't you at all!"
Zhang Yiming pushed up his glasses, smiled, and stepped out of the elevator first.
"It's all the same, I found these people!"
The two men walked into Zhang Yiming's office.
Zhang Yiming sat down on the sofa and patted the seat next to him.
Liang Rubo sat down, turned to the side, draped one arm over the back of the sofa, and looked at Zhang Yiming.
"You trust him that much?"
"Of course." As he said these two words, he sprang up from the back of the sofa, sat up straight, and faced Liang Rubo.
"Our recommendation algorithm largely relies on his help. Do you think I'm stupid? Giving so many shares to someone who only has money, and even signing a patent agreement."
Liang Rubo thought about it and agreed.
Zhang Yiming may seem easygoing, but he's actually as shrewd as an old fox.
"Old Liang, there is a kind of genius in this world, the kind that all the other geniuses call him a genius!" Zhang Yiming suddenly became serious.
"Do you know what he was doing when I met him?"
Liang Rubo didn't reply. He knew this question didn't need an answer.
"Just started junior high!"
"What?!!"
Liang Rubo was stunned; at the same time, she realized that she had met a true genius.
Seeing his reaction, Zhang Yiming smiled knowingly.
"At that time, he said he had only been teaching himself computers for less than a year; before that, he had only studied mathematics!"
Liang Rubo leaned forward slightly, resting his hands on his knees.
His eyes were wide open, and his pupils contracted slightly under the light.
Which school is he attending now?
This question seems like a person's instinctive reaction.
Such an amazing person must be at the best university, studying under the most outstanding professors, and doing cutting-edge research.
Zhang Yiming did not answer immediately.
He leaned back, and the sofa creaked slightly.
His gaze passed over Liang Rubo's shoulder and landed on the dense cluster of lights outside the window.
You can't see the stars at night in Yanjing because there are too many lights on the ground.
The lights from office buildings, streetlights, car headlights, and the light shining from the windows of thousands of homes converge to form a Milky Way on the ground.
Zhang Yiming suddenly smiled in a very amused way!
He took off his glasses and slowly wiped the lenses with the hem of his shirt, wiping them over and over again.
"What's wrong?" Liang Rubo asked, somewhat puzzled. "Is this a difficult question to answer?"