The Wealthy Tycoon's Game of Life-Chapter 1301 - 501: “Story” Part 2

"In some aspects, I agree with your viewpoint."

Zhou Wang smiled slightly, "This is indeed not the result of a research mishap, but where I differ from you is... the results are real, and the person who posted about it isn’t crazy. Even though the post was soon deleted by the poster, in the comments section with others, he still revealed the company’s name and location."

"Yes, there are countless such posts online every day; after all, spreading rumors is simply a matter of opening one’s mouth. But if you look into that company more closely, you can discover more clues."

As Guo Nansheng stayed silent, Zhou Wang continued calmly, "A few days before the post date, that company just had a factory relocation. The unexplained point here is, they had already relocated half a year ago, so why do it again in such a short time?"

"Unless they were trying to cover something up..."

"I got the phone numbers of a few executives and gave them a call one by one. Here’s where it gets interesting: they either denied everything flatly, or they hung up immediately upon hearing my purpose. In short, they’re trying to hide something by being too defensive."

"But why?"

Zhou Wang looked puzzled, "A major technological breakthrough in the chip field like this should be a cause for celebration. Once made public, not only would the Guo Group’s status in the electronics sector be elevated, but also the authorities would vigorously support its development... Why would Uncle Guo choose to keep it hidden?"

"I think he should have told you the reason personally, back when we were in our sophomore year. Remember the day he and my mom flew to Ming City to see me? After dinner, Brother Dog, you disappeared for half an hour; you went to meet my parents alone, right?"

Guo Nansheng finally spoke. At this moment, his gaze at Zhou Wang became incredibly complex. He never imagined that before he even had the chance to confront Zhou Wang in person, Zhou Wang had already found him first, indirectly revealing an answer to him.

A matter that had long puzzled Guo Nansheng seemed to also be resolved at this moment.

His parents had always been incredibly busy, rarely even attending his school events, let alone both coming to Ming City just to see him... Only today did Guo Nansheng slowly realize that his father hadn’t really come for him.

Zhou Wang was somewhat absent-minded.

In his own memory, he had met Guo Sanli only that one time when Guo Sanli and his wife flew to Ming City to treat the whole dorm to a meal.

Like Guo Nansheng, Zhou Wang only realized today that back then, Guo Sanli must have had a conversation with him.

The funny thing is, in Zhou Wang’s own memory, there’s no recollection of this conversation... Which means that in the timeline manipulated by the system, it was "another Zhou Wang" who had the conversation on his behalf.

Perhaps the word "negotiation" is more accurate.

The course of events should have been that "he" contacted Guo Sanli through some channel, without hiding his identity. Surprised, Guo Sanli decided to meet him in person to handle the matter.

Zhou Wang realized this fact from Wang Ruixi’s account. The details such as posting online, calling executives were just excuses Zhou Wang fabricated. In the past timeline, how the all-capable "another Zhou Wang" learned about the far-off research results of a company in Magic City wasn’t important...

After all, that was the "self" split from a system item with unparalleled IQ, capable of fooling time and space, worthy of being called omniscient and omnipotent.

Because Wang Ruixi had mentioned on the phone that "he" initially tried to establish a direct cooperative relationship with Guo Sanli, but was rejected by Guo Sanli.

This was the fundamental reason why "he" later had to adopt an alternative indirect approach.

As for why Guo Sanli would refuse or hide the research outcome, although there’s no matching memory, some records in Cloud Trust’s internal files subtly informed Zhou Wang of the reason.

Whatever Guo Sanli said to "him" back then doesn’t matter anymore, because the real reason, Guo Sanli would never tell "Zhou Wang," and even if he did, "Zhou Wang" might not care.

The cold version of himself would hardly sympathize with someone else’s supposed hardships.

"Originally, Uncle Guo wasn’t supposed to have rights to the company’s succession, right? Your uncle was more competent, but Uncle Guo ultimately took over the company, thanks to the support of your foreign shareholders..."

"You also have a brother who went abroad at an early age, born to Uncle Guo and another woman; I don’t know if you’ve met him, but you should be aware."

Zhou Wang sighed, "I didn’t expect Uncle Guo to have such a vulnerability. Although I understand the constraints on him in some matters, I can’t agree with his choices..."

"Is it just disagreement?"

Finally receiving Zhou Wang’s answer, the last shred of fantasy in Guo Nansheng’s heart shattered as he stared angrily at Zhou Wang.

"Why... With my father’s character, if he traveled personally to Ming City to meet you, he must have promised countless benefits, possibly even paving every possible road for you. As long as you agreed, waiting for you would be a glorious future after graduation. Why wasn’t this enough for you?"

Guo Nansheng said bitterly, "Brother Dog, I always thought we were friends... I remember you saying you had no ambitions, just wanting to clear your debts and live a carefree life. So was that all a lie too?"

"Indeed, if not wearing a mask all the time, how could you share a dormitory for four years without Li Cheng or me noticing the grand plans you were executing in the shadows? Honestly, if Gao Xuelan hadn’t put the evidence in front of me, I wouldn’t have believed that Zhou Wang had such a side!"

Hearing Guo Nansheng’s words, Zhou Wang was filled with guilt.

Back then, he hadn’t deceived Guo Nansheng at all. His greatest ambition was genuinely to clear his debts and be a happy slacker, caring little about cars or houses...

But once a person climbs from the deep valley to the peak once they’ve seen the vast sights of the world, how could they possibly maintain their previous mindset?

Honestly speaking, even if the system disappeared now, even if Zhou Wang woke up to find everything was just a dream, he could never return to his old mindset.

His desires have long expanded.

But these things couldn’t be explained to Guo Nansheng, and Zhou Wang could only sigh and say:

"Old Guo, I consider you a friend too."

"A friend?"

Guo Nansheng, in a rage, laughed out loud, tears faintly visible, "Then I truly do not deserve to be your friend because standing before you now is just a stray dog, with a ruined family... Or is this how you treat friends?"

Catching a glimpse of Guo Nansheng tightening his hold on the lighter, Zhou Wang spoke after a brief silence:

"What if I said some things were beyond my intention, or that events have spiralled out of my control, would you believe me?"

"Brother Dog, you managed to destroy my Guo Family within merely two years using only your status as a university student. And now you tell me it’s because things went out of control? Do you believe that yourself?"

Guo Nansheng sneered coldly. Seeing Zhou Wang’s gaze fixated on the metal lighter in his hand, realization dawned on him.

"So, you already noticed something was off earlier... Even though I don’t understand why you returned the remote to me, do you think, even if what you said is true, I still have a way back?"

Zhou Wang was about to say something when, with a "ding," the system’s notification sounded.

...