John, who had been feigning death all along, also spoke up, "Ms. Zhu, you may not be very familiar with our side."
"Let me put it this way. There's nothing the UST wants to do that they can't accomplish."
"They can decide who lives and who dies. No one is an exception, not even Ms. Zhu."
Zhu Ning held her wine glass and smiled noncommittally.
Holly said beside her, "Actually, Ms. Zhu doesn't need to worry. Your current predicament is nothing for our Lowell & Rockefeller families."
Zhu Ning put down her wine glass and listened attentively. "Do the two families have a good strategy?"
Holly replied, "Of course. The problems you're facing now basically boil down to two things: online public opinion and offline lawsuits."
"In this information - age, as people in the information technology field, we should understand the impact of online public opinion better than others. Indeed, online issues can be either significant or trivial. But the most difficult part for you, Ms. Zhu, is that you have no foundation in the internet world outside of China."
Holly continued, "This is quite fatal because our online public - opinion environment is fundamentally different from yours."
"Information cocoon."
Holly readily admitted, "Yes, we do have a serious information cocoon, but it's also our proudest resource firewall in modern society."
"We decide what they can see, and what we don't want them to see, they'll never see." A cruel smile appeared in Holly's eyes. "And the core data for all these calculations comes from us."
Zhu Ning looked at her. After a moment, she let out a meaningful laugh. "You're really ruthless."
Holly shrugged indifferently. "Maybe, but you Chinese have a saying, 'A man will risk his life for wealth, just as a bird will for food'."
"People are born into different classes. Some are born noble, while others are born slaves. All we're doing is helping them stay better in their own world. What's wrong with that?"
"We've created a lot of things worth celebrating for them on the internet. They're busy and happy every day."
"It's just the 'milk - and - entertainment' strategy."
"But they're really happy, aren't they?" Holly said with a smile. "And it was these people who shot at you. You don't need to feel sorry for them, do you?"
Zhu Ning smiled. "It's your business. Why should I feel sorry?"
Holly was quite satisfied with her understanding. "Ms. Zhu, dealing with online public opinion is just a piece of cake for us. It's not even a problem. Now, let's talk about the UST." She smiled and looked at John on the other side. John straightened his coat, placed his hands on the table, and entered the negotiation mode.
"Ms. Zhu, you may not fully understand our Rockefeller family. Let me introduce it to you in detail."
He took out his phone, glanced at the waiter, who immediately got up and presented the phone to Zhu Ning. Zhu Ning took a look. It was a group photo with the faces of many great figures.
John leaned back in his chair and subconsciously wanted to light a cigarette. Holly gave him a reminder, and he stopped. Holding the cigarette, he said, "People always think the Illuminati, an organization that has been extinct for 240 years, still exists today, but they know little about the increasingly prosperous Wolf - Head Society. In fact, the Wolf - Head Society is the most desirable circle for the top - level dignitaries in the United States today."
John said, "The people you see in the photo are some of its members."
Zhu Ning looked at the photo in front of her and saw those great figures again.
"And I'm a member of the Wolf - Head Society, and I have close connections with these big shots."
"My family is the same."
Holding the cigarette, he said, "So the problems you're facing now are actually nothing for us."
"It's just a matter of a single word."
Zhu Ning nodded. "The Rockefeller family is really powerful."
John said, "I know that as a representative of Yaoyang, I had many conflicts with your Jude Wang. But that's how the market works. Even if it weren't us, there would be others. Besides, we Yaoyang didn't get any benefits from you, did we?"
Holly said, "Ms. Zhu, you're like a piece of cake now. Everyone wants a slice from you. It's not safe for you to hold the patent alone. If you don't find a backer, you'll soon be devoured. But if you hand over the patent to us, things will be different."
"With the great influence of our Lowell and Rockefeller families, no one will dare to snatch the patent from us!"
Zhu Ning tapped her fingers on the table, as if weighing the pros and cons.
"And we don't want to snatch your patent. We just want to help you take care of it."
"You'll still be the owner. You'll just have us as your backer."
Zhu Ning raised her eyelids and looked at her. "Is there really such a good thing? How much protection fee do I have to pay?"
"For Ms. Zhu, it's just a drop in the bucket." Holly continued, "50% of LC's annual revenue in the future."
Zhu Ning found it ridiculous. "Why don't I just give you LC directly?"
Holly said, "Anyone can run LC, but not everyone is Ms. Zhu. What we want is LC with Ms. Zhu."
"Information companies are a dime a dozen. I can set up hundreds of them in a minute. But what I want is the chance to work with Ms. Zhu."
Holly raised her glass towards Zhu Ning, with an inviting smile on her face.
John said beside her, "Ms. Zhu, past conflicts don't matter. Join us. In the future, the L and R families will be your backers. In the United States, you can do whatever you want."
Both of them stood up to invite her. Zhu Ning looked at them for a moment, then picked up her glass and stood up. She was about to clink glasses with them. Their smiles widened. "Then let's wish us..."
Before Holly could finish her sentence, she saw Zhu Ning withdraw her glass. "Ms. Zhu?"
"I've thought about it."
Zhu Ning held the glass and smiled. "I think a woman should be her own backer. It's safer that way."
"What do you two think?"
John's face instantly darkened. Holly forced a friendly smile. "Women should be self - reliant, but Ms. Zhu, this is for our friendship. We can form an alliance and our friendship will last forever."
Zhu Ning said with a smile, "For friendship to last, there has to be friendship in the first place. You sent someone to set fire to my headquarters. What kind of friendship is this?"
Holly smiled. "I don't understand what you're talking about, Ms. Zhu."
"Frank."
Holly's smile became even more forced.
Zhu Ning put down her glass. "I don't mind someone showing off their strength in front of me, but I hate it when someone creates trouble to achieve their own goals."
"It's so uneducated." Zhu Ning looked at Holly. "Don't you think so, Ms. Holly?"
The veins on Holly's neck bulged. "I don't know what you mean, Ms. Zhu. But we do have a Mr. Frank from LC. Did he do something wrong to upset you? I can hand him over to you for disposal as a token of our friendship."
Zhu Ning shook her head. "Who does Frank think he is?"
"I want you."
Zhu Ning stared at Holly and said with a smile, "I want you to kneel down and kiss the instep of my foot."
"Say that from now on, you'll obediently kneel beside me and be my dog."
"Then we can start our friendship. How about it?"