yournovel Chapter 299 Trip to Shenzhen
Chapter 299 Trip to Shenzhen
Shenzhen was already quite hot in early April, with the air filled with the humidity and warmth typical of the South.
The car sent by Tencent was already waiting outside the terminal. It was a black Mercedes-Benz van, and the driver was wearing a white shirt, black trousers, and a tie, holding a sign that read "General Manager Fu".
"Hello, Mr. Fu. Mr. Ma asked me to pick you up."
"Thanks for your hard work."
The car drove out of the airport and merged into the traffic flow on the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Expressway.
Guo Zhenni sat in the passenger seat, while Fu Yibai sat in the back seat, watching the scenery flash by outside the window.
Shenzhen and Beijing are two completely different cities.
Beijing is profound and solemn, and every brick in the city is imbued with history.
Shenzhen is light and youthful, with every office building gleaming with the light of its glass curtain walls, like a future city rising from the sea.
The car came to a stop downstairs at Tencent's headquarters.
Tencent's Ma is already waiting downstairs.
He was wearing a light blue shirt and dark gray trousers, without a tie, and his hair was neatly combed. He looked much younger than his actual age.
"Mr. Fu, welcome, welcome!"
He came forward, extended his hand, and shook it firmly.
"Mr. Ma, it's been a long time."
Fu Yibai shook hands with him.
The two met in 2004 when Star Overseas Investment invested in Tencent, and it has been almost five years since then.
In the past five years, Tencent's market value has increased from several billion Hong Kong dollars to nearly 200 billion Hong Kong dollars, and the 14.4% stake held by Star Overseas has increased in value more than tenfold.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, the two went inside.
When the receptionist saw Tencent's CEO personally accompanying the guests in, she immediately stood up with a standard professional smile on her face.
"Hello, Mr. Ma."
Tencent's Ma nodded and led Fu Yibai toward the elevator.
Arrive at the floor where the WeChat project department is located.
The seventy or eighty workstations were all occupied.
Some people were coding, some were debugging the interface on the screen, and some were gathered around the whiteboard discussing something. The whiteboard was covered with flowcharts and interface sketches.
The air was filled with the mixed smells of coffee and electronic devices.
When Tencent's Ma walked in, everyone stood up.
"Mr. Ma."
"Hello, Mr. Ma."
Tencent's Ma waved his hand.
"Thank you for your hard work, everyone."
This is Mr. Fu, the CEO of Chenxi Group, who is also a shareholder of Tencent.
Mr. Fu flew in from Beijing today specifically to check on the progress of WeChat.
All eyes fell on Fu Yibai at the same time.
Fu Yibai nodded slightly.
"Thank you all for your hard work."
WeChat will change the way Chinese people communicate in the future.
Every line of code you write now will be used by hundreds of millions of people every day in the future.
There was a moment of silence in the office area, followed by a hushed murmur.
Hundreds of millions of people use it every day.
This goal is both an incentive and a pressure for a group of engineers who have been working in seclusion for more than half a year.
"Mr. Fu, this way please."
Tencent's Ma led Fu Yibai through the office area to the innermost conference room.
Upon entering the conference room, the WeChat project manager walked in carrying two Nebula X1 phones.
The beta version of WeChat has been installed on both phones.
Fu Yibai took a phone and used it for more than ten minutes.
This beta version was quite similar to the later versions of WeChat, supporting text messages, image sending, voice calls, and video calls.
Fu Yibai tried sending a voice message, and a few seconds later, the other party's phone rang with a clear playback sound.
He swiped through the simple interface, his fingertips touching those icons that seem plain now but will be ubiquitous in the future: Contacts, Discover, Me.
I then tested a video call. 30 pixels is clear enough for the current situation, the picture is smooth, and there is almost no delay.
Fu Yibai put down his phone and nodded approvingly.
"That's good, it's already very close to the product form I envisioned."
When will it be officially launched?
"Barring any unforeseen circumstances, we expect to launch the service in mid-April."
……
After leaving the conference room, Tencent's Ma led Fu Yibai on a tour of several other Tencent project teams—QQ Music, QQ Games, and Tencent.com.
At each location, the project leader personally came out to greet them, with a respectful and sincere attitude.
At 8 PM, Tencent's Ma Ke spoke up.
"Mr. Fu, it's getting late. Let me treat you to dinner."
The seafood in Shenzhen is good. There's a restaurant I frequent right by the sea.
"When in Rome, do as the host does."
It was already 10 p.m. when they left the restaurant, and the two had a very pleasant conversation.
Back at the hotel, Guo Zhenni went to the bathroom to run the water, while he took out his phone and sent a message to Liu Siyuan.
"The WeChat beta version is a great experience."
Video calls are smooth with low latency.
The Nebula X1's app store is ready; it will be featured immediately after WeChat's official launch.
"Mr. Fu, the water is ready."
"Um."
Fu Yibai got up, took off his clothes, and walked towards the bathroom.
"Where to go? Let's shower together."
He pushed Guo Zhenni, who was trying to come out, back down.