"Old Liu went to the bathroom and met a handsome young guy. The young man took out a pack of 'Dior' and tried to show off in front of him. Old Liu, being the competitive type, forced the poor guy to squat in the corner. 'Let's see where you can run now…' Jingle bells, jingle bells…"
Well, that obviously wasn't the original song—but who cared?
December had arrived, and the entire United States had transformed into a sea of red and green. Christmas, the biggest holiday in the Western world, was just around the corner.
Among the world's major countries, only Russia and a few others celebrated Orthodox Christmas. Most celebrated it on December 25th.
Since American traditions largely stemmed from England and France, Christmas naturally fell at this time of year.
Jiang Hai had already lived in the United States for three years, and he deeply understood how important Christmas was to people here.
To him, it felt almost like the Lunar New Year from his childhood back in China—though in recent years, the festive atmosphere of the Spring Festival had gradually faded.
People didn't look forward to it as much anymore.
First, living standards had improved. In the past, new clothes and good food were things you could only enjoy during the New Year. Jiang Hai's family hadn't been poor, but they weren't wealthy either. Still, unlike his parents' generation, he hadn't grown up only eating meat or wearing new clothes once a year.
Even so, the New Year had always been lively and fun, which gave everyone something to anticipate.
Second, life had become too busy. Work schedules were tight, and the pace of life was fast. Unlike before, people no longer had the leisure to slowly wait for the holidays.
Aside from the New Year, there wasn't much else to look forward to.
That was simply reality.
Americans, however, seemed different. They didn't celebrate Christmas with the same pent-up anticipation, probably because they were already used to a relatively relaxed lifestyle.
Work hours were fixed, and vacation days were plentiful.
In fact, vacation time in the U.S. was far longer than in China. Many people saved their annual leave for December, taking it all at once for Christmas and New Year.
Some even stayed off work for over a month, not returning until the following year.
As a result, people started preparing early, and the Christmas spirit spread across the country well ahead of time.
Jiang Hai had celebrated Christmas several times before, but this was his first time spending it in California.
He was used to the image of Santa Claus bundled up in thick red coats. So seeing "Santa girls" in crop tops and short skirts strolling down the streets caught him a little off guard.
Still, the local kids and young people seemed completely accustomed to it.
"Boss, did you hear what I said?"
Seeing Jiang Hai staring out the window in a daze, Moses Adams, who was sitting beside him, spoke helplessly.
Jiang Hai blinked and gave an embarrassed smile.
Clearly, he hadn't heard a word.
"Sigh… Boss, you're really giving me a headache."
Moses flipped through his notebook, but then he chuckled. That was just Jiang Hai's personality.
"Relax. It's only share certification. What's the big deal? I'll just tell them I'm one of the shareholders. I don't have any grand ambitions—I just want my annual dividends."
Shrugging casually, Jiang Hai patted Moses on the shoulder.
Moses could only shrug back.
He knew very well how he had reached his current position. His wealth and success were closely tied to Jiang Hai.
So in a sense, he was loyal.
Of course, it was American-style loyalty—especially lawyer-style loyalty. If someone paid him to harm Jiang Hai, he probably wouldn't do it. But if circumstances ever forced a conflict of interests, he might not hesitate.
It wasn't about morality.
It was just reality.
Not everyone was as carefree and unambitious as Jiang Hai.
"That's fine," Moses said seriously, "but you still need to be careful. Don't expose any weaknesses, or they'll exploit them."
"Weaknesses?" Jiang Hai frowned. He hadn't paid attention earlier.
"People like Larry Page and Sergey Brin didn't get where they are by luck. There's an old Chinese saying: in a duel between masters, it's not about who attacks harder—it's about who has fewer flaws. Watch out for traps. One mistake could cost you a fortune."
Seeing Moses' rare seriousness, Jiang Hai nodded.
"I got it. I'll be careful."
He understood that the business world was a battlefield. There was no room for sentimentality or morality.
He used to watch melodramatic TV dramas back home. They seemed exaggerated, but in truth, many plots were inspired by real life.
After all, reality was often more dramatic than fiction.
Especially in high-tech and internet industries, everything changed rapidly.
Many traditional wealthy families avoided investing heavily in these fields.
Because no one knew when a company might suddenly collapse.
It happened all the time.
He remembered Renren—the Chinese imitation of Facebook. It had once been wildly popular, almost replacing Tencent. Then, within a year, it practically vanished.
That sudden. That decisive.
The same was true for the electronics and information industries. Today you could be at the top; tomorrow you could be gone.
But despite the risks, the economic rewards were enormous.
When it came to American tech giants, three names were universally recognized: Microsoft, Apple, and Google.
There used to be IBM, Cisco, HP, and others—but many had faded away.
That was reality.
Among the big three, the founders of Microsoft and Apple had both been pushed out at one point.
Only Google's founders had managed to return and still maintain real influence.
Bill Gates had long since stepped back from management. Steve Jobs had once been completely ousted before making a dramatic comeback.
As for Google, even though Eric Schmidt held the chairman title, Larry Page and Sergey Brin still wielded enormous power.
It wasn't just business skill.
It was political wisdom.
Google had started with search engines, then expanded into everything—YouTube, Maps, Android, hardware, even drone delivery concepts.
Some ideas sounded impressive; others felt laughable.
But last year, they'd shocked the world again with Pokémon GO.
While everyone else chased VR, they bet on AR—and won.
Playing games outdoors while exercising was surprisingly fun.
Their innovation pushed them past both Microsoft and Apple.
To be honest, Jiang Hai was genuinely curious to meet the people behind it.
He liked high-tech things.
He wondered what surprises Google might have.
Soon, the car arrived at Google's headquarters in Mountain View, Santa Clara County.
Jiang Hai stepped out.
Azalina and Aller-Sala, who had been driving, followed and stood quietly on either side of him.
At the same time, inside the lobby, a middle-aged woman—likely an assistant—walked toward them with a professional smile and extended her hand.
(To be continued.)