Chapter 1150: Kindred Spirit

In comparison, Zhao Fusheng and Tan Kaixuan were actually the same kind of people. They cared more about how much money they could make from the United States than about what losses the Americans might suffer from this crisis.

The concept of universal values, as far as Zhao Fusheng and Tan Kaixuan were concerned, simply did not exist.

Americans' lives were for Americans to worry about. Why should Chinese people bother with that?

"What's the plan for tonight?"

After finishing the serious business, Tan Kaixuan asked Zhao Fusheng with a grin.

Zhao Fusheng frowned. "What are you up to?"

"Of course, I'm taking you to experience American nightlife," Tan Kaixuan said, completely lacking the demeanor of a Wall Street big shot, more like the way they were a few years ago when they were still in college.

Zhao Fusheng rolled his eyes, too lazy to pay him any attention, and shook his head. "No."

"Hey, hey, hey, don't be like that. It's just a party, come join the fun," Tan Kaixuan quickly said.

Zhao Fusheng shook his head. "I need to contact Zuckerberg to be your lobbyist."

He paused and said irritably, "Also, if you're not afraid of Fan Baobao coming after you, go ahead and take me."

Hearing Zhao Fusheng's last remark, Tan Kaixuan blinked, gave an awkward smile, and wisely chose to shut up.

He had dealt with Fan Baobao before and naturally knew that although she seemed easy to get along with, she was actually a violent woman. If she found out he had taken Zhao Fusheng out for a night on the town, the two of them probably wouldn't be able to meet again.

Jokes aside, Tan Kaixuan knew where to draw the line.

…

…

Zhao Fusheng wasn't lying. After Tan Kaixuan left, he did call Mark Zuckerberg.

Zuckerberg was quite surprised by Zhao Fusheng's call. They arranged a time, and the next morning, Zhao Fusheng left New York for Silicon Valley.

Although it wasn't his first time in Silicon Valley, Zhao Fusheng still felt a sense of novelty about everything there.

Especially when he saw Zuckerberg and Sean Parker coming together to greet him, Zhao Fusheng smiled and said, "Should I feel honored that future billionaires have come specifically to welcome me?"

"Zhao, you're wrong. I'm already a billionaire," Sean Parker said with a laugh, extending his arms to Zhao Fusheng.

Hugging the enthusiastic Sean Parker, Zhao Fusheng smiled. "Okay, I apologize. Sean, you are indeed already a billionaire."

Then he looked at Mark Zuckerberg. "So, Mark, you're not one yet, are you?"

Zuckerberg shrugged. "Zhao, I think whatever you're about to say will hurt me, so you'd better not say it."

"Hahahaha!"

The three laughed together, without any hint of awkwardness.

"Welcome to Silicon Valley!"

Zuckerberg said to Zhao Fusheng, "I hope one day you'll become a legendary investor in the eyes of others."

His implication was clear: if Facebook became a legendary internet company, then Zhao Fusheng would naturally become a legendary investor.

Zhao Fusheng chuckled. "To be honest, I hope so too."

He had no quarrel with money. The better Facebook developed, the higher the return on his investment. Of course, Zhao Fusheng hoped for that.

The three walked into Facebook's office in Silicon Valley. After a quick look, it wasn't much different from what was shown in the movie *The Social Network*. Sean Parker proudly said to Zhao Fusheng, "So, how do you like our office environment? Isn't it especially comfortable?"

Zhao Fusheng nodded. "Very nice. To be honest, if I weren't busy with business, I might want to vacation here."

That was his true feeling. American internet companies had relatively relaxed office environments, with a bit of a homey feel. Often, they would convert a villa into company offices.

When busy, everyone worked; when idle, they could play basketball or swim in the indoor pool.

Unlike domestic internet companies, which were often all suited up in office buildings, making everything very formal.

That was probably a cultural difference between the two countries.

"Well, you're a busy man. We all know that," Sean Parker said with a shrug after hearing Zhao Fusheng's words.

In front of others, he might be able to talk boldly and without restraint, but in front of Zhao Fusheng, he didn't have that confidence.

Not because Zhao Fusheng was currently Facebook's largest investor, but because he had looked into Zhao Fusheng's background and found that this guy was an even more brilliant genius than himself.

After all, Sean Parker asked himself if he were in Zhao Fusheng's shoes, he couldn't have dabbled in multiple industries and achieved remarkable results in each.

No one is perfect; everyone has strengths and weaknesses. But this Eastern man seemed to have no weaknesses. Honestly, that gave Sean Parker a sense of defeat.

As a genius, it would be a lie to say he had no pride deep down. Although Sean Parker was attracted to Facebook and willing to join Mark Zuckerberg's team, that didn't mean he was completely convinced by Zhao Fusheng, an investor from the East.

But after a thorough investigation, Sean Parker had to admit that he was no match for Zhao Fusheng.

Though admitting this was difficult, he couldn't deny it.

"Sean, have you quit that damn marijuana as I told you?" Zhao Fusheng asked Sean Parker casually.

When he had agreed to let Sean Parker join Facebook, his condition was that Sean Parker, as CEO, must quit all bad habits.

Because although he didn't remember clearly, Zhao Fusheng knew that in his previous life, Sean Parker was forced to resign as Facebook's CEO because drugs were found at a party he organized.

To avoid affecting Facebook's reputation, Sean Parker had to resign as CEO. Later, some commented that this was probably the first setback Facebook encountered in its development.

Therefore, Zhao Fusheng would never allow such a thing to happen.

"Don't worry, Zhao," Sean Parker said. Although he was unhappy with Zhao Fusheng interfering in his private life, Zhao Fusheng had explained that as Facebook's CEO, if a scandal broke out over marijuana, it would greatly impact the website's development. So Sean Parker chose to accept the advice.

"Yes, I've been supervising him," Mark Zuckerberg also nodded.

For Zuckerberg, whether Sean Parker liked the Beatles or marijuana made little difference. He was never one to care about his partner's private life, but Facebook was Zuckerberg's lifeline. Anything that affected Facebook's development was unacceptable. So after Zhao Fusheng explained the reason for asking Sean Parker to quit marijuana, Zuckerberg decisively sided with Zhao Fusheng and even specifically urged Sean Parker to cut down on attending those messy parties.

Sean Parker felt he must have encountered some kind of Eastern 'curse.'

…

…

After chatting for a while, Sean Parker had things to do and left. Zhao Fusheng and Mark Zuckerberg walked side by side on the road outside Facebook's headquarters.

"Zhao, you told me earlier that you had something to discuss with me. What is it?" Zuckerberg asked Zhao Fusheng.

On the phone earlier, Zhao Fusheng had told him he wanted to talk about something.

Zuckerberg seemed like a geek, but Zhao Fusheng knew he was very smart. In his previous life, Facebook had been trying to curry favor with China, and Zuckerberg himself had repeatedly claimed to be a fan of China. The goal was actually to open the Chinese market.

After all, with over a billion people and an exciting number of internet users, it was natural for Zuckerberg to occasionally act cute and win over Chinese netizens.

Given that he could do such things, who would dare call him a tech geek?

Moreover, in the original history, Eduardo Saverin, Facebook's first actual investor, was driven away by Zuckerberg.

Don't say that Eduardo was greedy for wanting a 30% stake for investing just over ten thousand dollars. After all, he was the only one willing to fund Zuckerberg in the beginning.

If, as depicted in the movie, Zuckerberg was innocent and Eduardo was idle, then why, in real life, was Eduardo's name kept on the list of Facebook's founders?

In the end, interests can change many people, turning once honest and pure youths into thick-skinned, black-hearted bastards.

Zhao Fusheng knew he was also such a person, but it had taken him a lifetime to undergo that change.

And the Zuckerberg in front of him was still on that path.

"Mark, I want to ask you, what are your plans for the next round of financing?" Zhao Fusheng looked at Zuckerberg and asked directly.

Zuckerberg was startled, a bit confused, but still nodded. "I have indeed been considering that. As you know, in recent months, we've been growing very fast and consuming a lot of funds. Some people in the company are thinking about making money through advertising, but Zhao, I don't think we should start monetizing through ads just yet."

Clearly, he had been holding onto these thoughts for a long time.

Zhao Fusheng smiled slightly, not waiting for Mark Zuckerberg to finish, and said directly, "Mark, I support whatever decision you make."

Zuckerberg's eyes lit up, and he looked at Zhao Fusheng with delight. "I knew you would support me!"

At that moment, he felt he had found a kindred spirit.