SAG -Chapter 185 The Internet Industry Changed by Zhang Ran

At the dinner table, the two little ones sat tightly beside Zhang Ran.

From time to time, they would glance at him, as though afraid that he might suddenly disappear again.

The family ate, chatted, and enjoyed each other’s company.

“Siyan, how are things at your company? Is President Huo alright?” Liu Lu asked with concern.

While helping to inquire about the situation earlier, she had already learned part of the story.

“It’s all been settled,” Zhang Siyan replied.

“That’s good. By the way, why exactly did President Huo collapse? Before I got off work today, I saw several doctors from our hospital being taken away by the police. I think they were the same doctors who treated her that day.”

Zhang Siyan glanced at her father.

After thinking for a moment, Zhang Ran said, “There’s nothing that can’t be discussed. The matter has already happened.”

Both Liu Lu and Zhang Sicheng immediately became curious.

As Zhang Siyan recounted everything, the two of them were left stunned.

Who would have thought that such a seemingly simple incident hid such complicated relationships behind it?

“Sigh… this is what wealthy families are like. Good thing our family is only comfortably well-off,” Zhang Sicheng said emotionally.

He didn’t feel particularly connected to it all.

To him, Huo Zhiyuan was simply his sister’s boss.

Liu Lu shared the same sentiment.

Because of Zhang Ran, their family had indeed become somewhat wealthy, but that was all.

They couldn’t possibly compare with a giant family like Huo Zhiyuan’s.

Hearing their remarks, Zhang Siyan looked at them with a strange expression.

At this point, she no longer believed that their family was merely an ordinary household made rich through demolition compensation.

Who had ever seen a simple nouveau riche father capable of making someone like Huo Zhiyuan obey his every word?

Especially those final instructions Zhang Ran had given earlier.

She hadn’t understood a single sentence of them.

But she knew there was definitely something much bigger involved.

And the sums of money at stake were likely enormous.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Zhang Sicheng asked uncomfortably, touching his cheek.

He felt as though his sister’s gaze carried some hidden meaning.

Zhang Siyan coughed lightly.

“Nothing. I was just thinking you’ve been looking especially radiant lately.”

At that moment, Zhang Ran cheerfully joined in.

“In the end, Huo Zhiyuan’s situation was simply caused by greed and disputes over distribution.”

“That will never happen in our family.”

“The two of you siblings will receive exactly the same things. I won’t favor either of you.”

His words served as a preventive measure.

After witnessing Huo Zhiyuan’s ordeal, he couldn’t help worrying that something similar might happen within his own family.

Zhang Siyan opened her mouth as if to say something, but Zhang Ran stopped her.

“Sicheng, tell us. What good news have you encountered recently? Share it with us.”

It was as if Zhang Sicheng had been waiting precisely for that question.

Immediately, his eyes lit up.

“You probably don’t know this, but yesterday the gaming division of Weiteng Group contacted me. They want to acquire our company.”

“Do you know how much they offered?”

Before Zhang Ran could respond, Zhang Siyan asked curiously, “How much?”

Zhang Sicheng deliberately put on airs for a moment before proudly announcing,

“Three hundred million yuan! And that’s only their initial offer!”

“Oh.”

Zhang Siyan merely nodded calmly.

There was little reaction.

Zhang Ran showed even less.

Although he wanted to pretend to be pleasantly surprised, his acting skills clearly weren’t up to the task.

Seeing their expressions, Zhang Sicheng’s triumphant smile immediately collapsed.

“Aren’t you two going to praise me at all? That’s three hundred million! It only took us this long to go from thirty million to three hundred million, and you’re not excited?”

“Excited. Very good. You’ve done well,” Zhang Ran “praised” him.

Zhang Siyan added perfunctorily,

“Yep. I always knew my brother was the best.”

Liu Lu, sitting nearby, struggled to suppress her laughter.

Looking aggrieved, Zhang Sicheng turned to her.

“Honey, you’re the only one who’s good to me.”

Indeed, only Liu Lu had shown genuine shock, joy, and heartfelt praise.

Zhang Ran watched the scene with a smile.

This was exactly the kind of family atmosphere he wanted.

“Don’t you want to ask whether I actually sold the company or not?” Zhang Sicheng finally couldn’t help asking.

Zhang Ran waved it off.

“It’s your company. If you want to sell it, then sell it.”

He truly didn’t mind.

Even if Zhang Sicheng chose to cash out, Zhang Ran wouldn’t object.

At most, he would simply adjust the way he planned to guide and cultivate his son, respecting his decision to the greatest extent possible.

“You don’t happen to know about Weiteng Group, do you?” Zhang Sicheng suddenly asked.

He felt that his father probably didn’t understand the internet industry very well, which explained his indifferent reaction.

He wanted to educate his father a little first and then reevaluate everything.

At heart, he was like a child showing off an accomplishment to his father, hoping to receive praise and recognition.

Hearing this, Zhang Ran merely said, “Then tell me about it.”

He had already seen through his son’s intentions and was willing to give him the opportunity.

So Zhang Sicheng began enthusiastically explaining internet companies and the industry’s development.

The more Zhang Ran listened, the more his head began to ache.

In reality, he knew all of this.

Over the past period, he had been studying and discussing these matters extensively.

Yet the deeper his understanding grew, the greater his headache became.

Damn it. If I’d known, I should’ve just let things develop naturally, he grumbled inwardly.

The current state of China’s internet industry could perhaps not be entirely attributed to Zhang Ran—

But it wasn’t far from the truth.

Back in the 1990s, China’s internet sector was still in its infancy.

It hadn’t truly taken off yet.

That was when Zhang Ran began laying the groundwork.

He brought talented and visionary internet professionals into China.

He also provided them with startup capital, allowing them to realize their ideas and concepts during the crucial early stages.

This prevented promising people and projects from dying due to a lack of funding.

He had little choice.

After all, this was a parallel world—not the world of his previous life.

If he had been reborn into his original timeline, he could simply have found the internet titans he already knew and invested directly in them.

But in this world, that approach was impossible.

He had no way of knowing who truly possessed exceptional talent and who would ultimately rise to prominence.

So he adopted a broad-net strategy.

He gathered as many capable people as possible and brought them into China early, guiding the development of the internet age.

At the time, his thinking had been simple:

He would remain behind the scenes, controlling the overall direction.

Whoever showed genuine promise would receive additional investment.

Those who proved incapable would gradually be left behind.

What he hadn’t anticipated, however, was the incident involving the Goddess of Fate.

Because of that event, Zhang Ran lost the ability to continue managing things from the shadows.

At the same time, enormous numbers of internet talents entered the field ahead of schedule.

China’s internet industry consequently entered the global spotlight much earlier than it otherwise would have.

Even so, after all these years, although China’s internet sector had developed at astonishing speed, no single company had yet emerged as the definitive victor.

Still, there was one major advantage.

The current internet landscape in China was flourishing with diversity.

Rather than a monopoly dominated by a single giant, it was a world where a hundred flowers bloomed together.