Daily Intelligence: Forced to Save the Beautiful President at the Beginning

70: Chapter 70 The Agreement of ”Neither Too Close Nor Too Distant”In the conference room of Liwen Group, the champagne tower refracted the light of the crystal chandeliers. Zhang Fan and Su Qing signed the cooperation agreement. The moment the pen tips touched the paper, applause erupted in the room.

The 3 million in joint development funding was not only a shot in the arm for the ”stardust leap” project, but also a milestone for Singularity Technology as it moved from a ”small studio” to a ”formal company.”

”Mr. Zhang, I wish us a smooth cooperation.” Su Qing raised her champagne glass, her eyes full of optimism. ”With core members like Sister Zhou and Ruyan, I believe ’stardust leap’ will definitely be a hit this year.”

Zhou Yurou stood beside Zhang Fan, raising her glass with a smile, but deep in her eyes hid a subtle complexity. Watching the company get on track these days, and watching Liu Ruyan shine in technology, the concerns in her heart surged like the tide.

After the signing ceremony, Zhou Yurou took the initiative to ask Zhang Fan to go for a walk by the river. The evening breeze brushed across the river, bringing a chill with the water vapor. She clenched the corner of her clothes, hesitating for a long time before speaking: ”Zhang Fan, let’s... keep our distance from now on.”

Zhang Fan was taken aback and stopped his footsteps: ”What’s wrong? Is it because of what Yang Linlin said?”

”No.” Zhou Yurou shook her head, her gaze landing on the lighthouse in the distance. ”It’s my own problem. I’m ten years older than you, divorced, and have a child. You deserve someone better. Ruyan is young, sensible, and so talented. You two... are more suitable.”

”Sister Zhou, what are you talking about?” Zhang Fan’s voice raised slightly. ”I have never cared about your past. In my heart, you are mature, capable, and my most trusted partner, and also... a very important person. As for Ruyan, I only treat her as a younger sister and a team member.”

”But others won’t think so.” Zhou Yurou’s voice was a bit hoarse. ”Yang Linlin said I was your mistress, and colleagues in the company might be gossiping behind our backs. I don’t want to affect your reputation because of me, and I don’t want Ruyan to misunderstand.”

She paused, her tone resolute. ”If you don’t agree to keep your distance, I will have to resign and develop in another city.”

Zhang Fan looked at her firm eyes, his heart feeling blocked by something.

He knew Zhou Yurou’s personality; once she made a decision, she wouldn’t change it easily.

He sighed and finally compromised: ”Okay, I promise you. We will remain tacit partners at work, but in private, we will keep our distance.”

From that day on, their interactions became exceptionally ”proper.” When holding meetings, they would sit with an empty seat between them. When discussing plans together, they would specifically call for Liu Ruyan or Gu Jingshen. After working overtime, Zhang Fan would never again take the initiative to offer to drive Zhou Yurou home.

Everyone on the team noticed the anomaly. Wang Chengsi asked Gu Jingshen privately: ”Don’t you think there’s something wrong between Mr. Zhang and Sister Zhou?”

Gu Jingshen was also confused, so he simply dragged Zhang Fan to a bar to drink.

In the dim bar, Gu Jingshen pushed a glass of whiskey to Zhang Fan: ”Tell me, what exactly happened between you and Sister Zhou? Did you fight? Or did you do something to let her down?”

Zhang Fan downed a drink, but couldn’t suppress the stuffiness in his heart: ”She thinks we aren’t suitable, says I should choose Ruyan, and says we must keep our distance, or else she’ll resign.”

”Not suitable?” Gu Jingshen slapped the table and laughed. ”Is she stupid? Who in the whole company can’t see your feelings for her? So what if she’s older? So what if she’s divorced? You don’t care about these things!”

”I’ve explained it to her, but she won’t listen.” Zhang Fan rubbed his temples, his tone full of frustration. ”Old Gu, you’ve seen many women. Tell me, how can I make her believe that what I care about is her as a person, not her past?”

Gu Jingshen wilted instantly. The relationships he’d had in his life could fill two mahjong tables, but they were all fleeting romances that only talked about the wind and moon without touching the heart. How would he know anything about ”reconciling” or ”sincerity”?

He scratched his head and could only vaguely say: ”How about... you confess to her again? Find a romantic place, send some flowers, say some sweet words. Don’t women all fall for that?”

Zhang Fan didn’t speak, just drank one glass after another.

He knew that Zhou Yurou was not a woman who fell for ”romantic routines.” She wanted a sense of security, the confidence of being ”firmly chosen,” but right now, he didn’t seem to have found a way to give her that confidence.

That night, he returned home drunk and tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep.

He habitually waited for the system’s daily intelligence, hoping for prompts like ”how to maintain a relationship” or ”how to let Sister Zhou let go of her worries”—after all, the system had always been able to provide useful intelligence at critical moments.

But until the early hours, the red prompt that popped up in his mind made him instantly sober: [Emergency Intelligence: Fu Chengyu, out of hatred for the previous video of them opening a room, and egged on by Liu Mengqi, plans to retaliate against Singularity Technology. He has contacted three internet troll companies and will spread the rumor that ”Singularity Technology plagiarized Digital Power’s game engine” tomorrow morning, accompanied by forged code comparison charts.]

Zhang Fan sat up abruptly, his drunkenness gone.

Although the Fu Family did not dabble in the technology industry, they had extensive connections in Jiangcheng. If the trolls really hyped up the rumors, it would not only affect the cooperation of ”stardust leap” but also ruin the reputation of Singularity Technology.

Early the next morning, Zhang Fan called an emergency meeting.

He didn’t mention the system intelligence, just frowned and said: ”I couldn’t sleep last night and browsed several game forums, and found a lot of smears against our company, even mentioning ’plagiarism.’ We just signed a contract with Liwen, so there must be peers who are jealous and want to engage in public opinion attacks. Today, everyone divide the work and think about how to respond—reporting to the police, finding a lawyer, organizing evidence, all suggestions are welcome.”

Liu Ruyan was the first to stand up, her eyes firm: ”I will organize our core code logs right now! From the start of the project until now, every modification record and test report for every version of the engine is saved. There is also the official proof provided by Director Li of Digital Power, which can prove that our engine is self-developed and completely different from their technical route.”

Zhou Yurou also immediately followed up: ”I will contact the Jiangcheng Technology News and several top self-media in the game industry to issue a clarification statement in advance. We will release our research and development process and code comparison videos to seize the initiative in public opinion and leave no room for the trolls to spread rumors.”

Gu Jingshen patted his chest: ”Leave the trolls to me! I’ll have my mom contact friends at the Cyberspace Administration, and find a few big shots in the circle to ban their troll accounts first, so they can’t send out messages. If they still dare to make trouble, I’ll find a lawyer to sue them for defamation!”

The three had a clear division of labor and acted quickly.

At nine in the morning, when the troll companies had just posted ”plagiarism” rumors on forums and social platforms, Singularity Technology’s clarification statement had already been issued simultaneously—accompanied by detailed screenshots of code logs, official proof from Digital Power, and even the engine optimization thesis published by Liu Ruyan during her university days. Every piece of evidence was clear and irrefutable.

The trolls hired by Fu Chengyu didn’t understand game technology at all, and the forged code comparison charts were full of loopholes, seen through by netizens at a glance: ”Is this comparison chart too fake? Singularity’s code logic is more advanced than Digital Power’s, how could it be plagiarism?” ”I’m a programmer, I can see that Singularity’s engine has its own core algorithms. Can the trolls be more professional?”

Worse, through his connections, Gu Jingshen not only banned the troll accounts but also found the registration information of the troll company and reported it directly to the police. When the police arrived to seal it, the employees of the troll company were still busy posting, and the chat records on their computers clearly showed that it was instigated by Fu Chengyu.

When Fu Chengyu received the call from the police, he was shopping with Liu Mengqi.

Hearing words like ”trolls,” ”plagiarism,” and ”sealing,” Liu Mengqi’s face turned pale instantly: ”Chengyu, will something happen? Will the police arrest us?”

”What are you panicking about?” Fu Chengyu frowned and hung up the phone, feeling irritable—he originally just wanted to help Liu Mengqi vent her anger, not expecting it to blow up so big and even attract the police. He glanced at Liu Mengqi, a flash of disgust in his eyes: ”It’s all your fault for insisting that I retaliate against Liu Ruyan. Now it’s fine, we’re in trouble.”

Liu Mengqi’s tears fell instantly: ”I didn’t mean to... I was just angry that she ruined my engagement and ruined the Liu Family...”

”Alright, stop crying.” Fu Chengyu impatiently pushed her away. ”I’ll send you back to the hotel first. I need to find my dad to think of a way.” He knew clearly that if this matter wasn’t handled well, it wouldn’t just affect his reputation; it might also implicate the Fu Family’s business in Jiangcheng.

On the other side, at the Police Station, Qin Xue was organizing the case materials of the troll company. Gu Jingshen suddenly pushed the door open, carrying two cups of milk tea: ”Officer Qin, thank you for your hard work! I bought you pearl milk tea, three-quarters sugar, less ice, just like you said last time.”

Qin Xue looked up at him, the corners of her mouth twitching: ”How did you know I was here?”

”I asked Director Li.” Gu Jingshen handed over the milk tea. ”I heard you sealed the troll company and made a merit. Do you want to have dinner together tonight to celebrate? I know a Sichuan restaurant, the taste is very authentic.”

Qin Xue took the milk tea, her fingertips touching the warm cup wall: ”No, I have to work overtime tonight to organize the case files.”

”Then I’ll wait for you!” Gu Jingshen smiled like a fool. ”I’ll wait for you at the entrance of the Police Station, no matter how late you work overtime.”

Qin Xue didn’t speak, but her earlobes quietly turned red.