Liu Yutong was left speechless for a moment, not knowing how to answer, because she felt that no matter what she said, she would be held accountable.
She glanced down at her dinner plate and suddenly had a stroke of genius. Pointing at the plate, she asked, "Leader, do you eat fish?"
The leader waved his hand. "No."
Before he could react, Liu Yutong picked up her chopsticks and snatched the small yellow croaker from his plate, dropping it onto her own.
"Thank you, Leader."
The leader: "..."
What kind of move was that? Are young people nowadays all playing games like this?
No way, he had to get back at her.
He paused, then pointed at the braised pork. "Do you eat braised pork?"
"I'll eat half!"
Without any hesitation, Liu Yutong picked out the fattiest pieces of braised pork from her plate and placed them onto his.
The leader: "..."
He stared at the newly added pieces of pork—which were ninety percent fat and ten percent lean—and fell into deep thought.
Where exactly did things go wrong?
Wait, no, this girl was changing the subject.
"Student Liu, what do you think about the current gaming industry, and that... what do you call it, e-sports? How are its development prospects?"
Liu Yutong's chopsticks paused. She was genuinely a bit surprised, not expecting him to ask this. Weren't they supposed to be discussing why Li Xiaohui had become an internet-addicted teenage girl?
Speaking of Li Xiaohui, she hadn't even seen her yet. The girl was probably hiding from the leader on purpose.
"Leader, if you are asking about its commercial value and development potential, then I believe e-sports will become an emerging industry worth hundreds of billions in the near future."
Throwing out such a massive number suddenly did take him slightly by surprise. For people of his generation, it was truly hard to imagine that a simple video game competition could generate such immense value.
"Hundreds of billions? Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration? What is your basis for this?"
"First of all, the core audience for e-sports is young people aged 15 to 35. This demographic is not only massive in number but also possesses strong spending power. Secondly, the e-sports industry chain is very long. From game development, tournament operations, live broadcasting, and club management, all the way to merchandise and educational training, every single link can create tremendous economic value."
"Take our neighbor, South Korea, for example. They have already built e-sports into a national-level cultural industry, which has not only driven economic growth but also enhanced the country's soft power. And our Dragon Kingdom has the largest number of gamers in the world; the potential of this market is immeasurable."
The leader nodded thoughtfully and asked a question that many people were currently concerned about: "But there is a lot of negative public opinion regarding video games right now. How do you view this issue?"
"That is exactly the bottleneck we need to break through. We need to promote the professionalization and standardization of e-sports. For instance, establishing a comprehensive player training system, setting industry standards, and hosting high-level professional tournaments. When e-sports can demonstrate the same level of professionalism and competitiveness as traditional sports events, public perception will naturally shift."
"Of course, gaming companies must also shoulder their social responsibilities, such as implementing effective anti-addiction systems and setting reasonable limits on playtime..."
Liu Yutong explained a great deal, and the leader listened intently. He knew his daughter's stubborn temperament; once she set her mind on something, not even nine oxen could pull her back.
Besides, he had never forced his daughter to enter the civil service system anyway. He just didn't want her to truly become an idle, internet-addicted girl.
"It seems you have thought this through very thoroughly. To be honest, when I first heard that Xiaohui was running off all day to play games and participate in some e-sports competitions, her mother and I were very worried. But hearing you put it this way, I actually think it might not be a bad idea for her to work in this industry."
"However, as a father, I still hope you all can maintain a proper balance."
Liu Yutong replied, "We will. Please don't worry, Leader."
"Actually, Xiaohui mentions you and Auntie to me quite often. She says you have always supported her choices and are very open-minded parents, for which she is always grateful."
"Is that so?" The leader chuckled. "It's rare for that girl to ever acknowledge anything good we do."
This conversation seemed to lift a heavy weight off his chest.
Following that, he changed the subject and brought up the Wanlonghui Group.
"Your Wanlonghui Group has been developing quite rapidly. Over the past six months, you've stimulated a lot of employment in Pearl City and even brought in quite a few enterprises to invest and build factories."
How could Liu Yutong not hear the underlying implication in his words? "Leader, we have invited over a dozen companies along the industry chain to settle in the development zone. Once all investments are fully realized, it is estimated that the direct and indirect jobs created will exceed twenty thousand. Furthermore, we will continue to work hard to help our hometown attract more business and investment."
"Not bad at all. You're doing a great job."
The leader's tone shifted. "However, Pearl City is a third-tier city after all, so its room for development is limited. The provincial capital is currently building a digital economy industrial park with massive policy support. I wonder if you have ever considered relocating Wanhui Youxuan to the provincial capital?"
There it is.
Being personally headhunted by the big boss made Liu Yutong feel somewhat honored.
"About that... to be completely honest, the officials in Pearl City have been incredibly supportive of us, and we have already promised that Wanhui Youxuan will continue to invest locally."
She raised her voice slightly when she said this. Uncle Gao, who was sitting not far away, couldn't help but reveal a gratified smile upon hearing it.
This girl was good! Reliable!
Thank goodness he had the foresight to give Liu Yutong a heads-up beforehand; otherwise, Wanhui Youxuan really might have been poached.
Even though they all belonged to the same province, local officials still didn't want high-quality enterprises to flow outwards. His previous proposal to Liu Yutong about setting up a software technology park was precisely to keep Wanhui Youxuan. As long as Wanhui Youxuan could grow to the scale of a major internet tech giant, it would be able to propel the entire park to take off.
The top leader didn't show any disappointment upon hearing this. "A company's development indeed requires comprehensive consideration of various factors. It's wonderful that you have the desire to give back to your hometown."
Just as he was about to end the conversation, Liu Yutong suddenly spoke up in a low voice, "Leader, Wanhui Youxuan is off the table, but I wonder if you have any interest in microchips?"
"Microchips?"
The leader froze for a moment. "Are you sure you're talking about microchips?"
Liu Yutong nodded. "Yes, I'm planning to prepare and build a wafer fab domestically. If the provincial capital is interested, I could consider investing and building the plant here."
Hearing this, the leader frowned and fell into thought.
In 2008, the Dragon Kingdom's semiconductor industry was still in its infancy. For this girl to suddenly propose investing in a wafer fab was too massive of a leap, wasn't it?
He had some understanding of the Wanlonghui Group, and there was no way they had anything to do with microchips. They had absolutely none of the necessary resources, so how could they possibly pull it off?
Suddenly, the leader recalled a domestic scandal from a few years prior—the Hanxin incident.
Could this girl be trying to defraud government subsidies too?
As soon as this thought arose, the leader's expression turned stern, and he looked at Liu Yutong with a piercing gaze. "Student Liu, the semiconductor industry is not child's play. I advise you to be a bit more cautious."
He was already being very tactful with his words. If it weren't for the fact that his daughter was still hanging around with her, he probably would have harshly criticized her right to her face.
There was no helping it; the Hanxin incident back then had scammed people far too ruthlessly.
As the saying goes, once bitten by a snake, one fears a well rope for ten years. Not to mention, whether it was Liu Yutong herself or her company, they had neither the technology nor the talent. It was simply impossible for them to develop microchips.
To suddenly say she wanted to make chips now, wasn't this just kidding around like she was talking to a three-year-old?
Who did she think she was, Zhang Rujin?
However, the words Liu Yutong secretly whispered to him next made the high-ranking official lose his voice on the spot.
Are you telling the truth?!
This sudden outburst startled everyone around them, causing them to look over. What on earth did Liu Yutong say to make the big boss so agitated?
Liu Yutong said earnestly, Li Xiaohui is my best friend. I wouldn't joke about something like this with my best friend's father.
Mentioning Li Xiaohui out of the blue was her way of telling him that she chose to be completely honest precisely because of this relationship. After all, the fact that she held a controlling stake in the foreign Mapper company was strictly confidential. She wouldn't easily tell outsiders, for fear that leaking it would alert certain foreign entities.
How did the saying go? Sneak into the village quietly, and hold your fire.
Therefore, only a few core members of the Wanlong Society knew about this matter at present.
However, when the time actually came for her to invest and build a factory, she would definitely need the backing of the leadership, and it had to be the top provincial leaders. For something like this, the support of local municipal leaders would be far from enough.
Therefore, she could only choose the provincial capital.
In fact, opening the factory in some major coastal cities would be the absolute best choice. The main reason she brought it up with this leader was that he was Li Xiaohui's father.
Of course, she had another option, which was to invest and build the factory in BS Province, where Zhu Silin's father was. It was just that the location was too far from the Wanlong Society headquarters, and she hoped to be able to drop by and inspect this business at any time.
The leader pondered for a moment before finally making a decision.
Come to my office next week for a formal presentation. If the feasibility study passes, this project will be listed as the province's number one initiative.
Liu Yutong broke into a smile. Thank you, sir!
