The spacious, bright hall was filled with a dense mass of people, every seat in the three-hundred-capacity conference room occupied.
Tap tap~
Tap tap~
The crisp sound of leather boots striking the floor rang out as Li De's figure appeared before all the members of the Sword and Shield Club.
Today, Li De was wearing a black Armani suit adorned with dark patterns. The top-tier attire made his already striking physique look even more handsome and extraordinary.
Especially that innate noble bearing he couldn't conceal, it elevated the impression he gave to an entirely new level.
A true, superlative heartthrob.
Immediately, the room erupted into a flurry of hushed conversations.
Especially the young women, at this moment, their eyes seemed to widen noticeably. It wasn't just men who liked beautiful women; women also paid special attention to outstanding, young, wealthy men.
The longing for beautiful things was human nature, regardless of gender.
Evidently, Li De's appearance, so handsome that it was impossible to look away, stirred something in those young women.
"Our boss is this ridiculously good-looking guy??? No way, I don't believe it. I already have a boyfriend, why did this domineering CEO only show up now?"
"He's too handsome. Ahhhh, how can anyone be this handsome???"
"So young and he's already bought such a huge company… and the key point is, he's actually this good-looking. This is exactly my type."
"..."
Not a few of the self-styled pretty boys below instantly suffered a blow to their egos when they saw Li De. Compared to him, it felt like they shouldn't even bother stepping out of the house.
Li De naturally had no idea that, in just a few steps, so many thoughts were spinning through the crowd below. He walked up to the platform and took his seat.
At once, the office gradually quieted down.
"My-" Li De nearly blurted out the habitual slogan he used in Dawn City.
He cleared his throat lightly and spoke in a calm, steady tone.
"My employees, my name is Li De. I am very glad to meet all of you."
A round of polite applause followed.
"I'm sure everyone already knows that the Sword and Shield Club has now been fully acquired by me.
The decade of effort President Chen poured into this will not be in vain.
In our hands, the Sword and Shield Club will become a true blade that cuts through thorns and a shield that no force can break."
Li De's gaze burned as he looked out over the employees below, and he announced what everyone cared about most.
"As long as you remain here at the club, in recognition of your contributions to the Sword and Shield, I hereby declare that everyone's salary will be increased by 30%."
Clap clap clap~
This was the statement that truly hit home, and everyone responded with the warmest applause, sincerely welcoming their new boss.
"In addition to that, I have a few new decisions to announce."
Li De waited for the cheers to subside before officially moving into today's agenda.
Now, this company belonged to him, and he would naturally stamp it with his imprint.
"The Sword and Shield Club was once glorious, but I will lead you all into a new era of glory.
Starting tomorrow, the Sword and Shield Club will officially be renamed, Crimson Moon."
Below, everyone's expressions were tinged with mixed emotions. Though they had known this day would come, they hadn't expected it to come so quickly.
Zhao Yue's face was also a little complicated, but when she saw Li De's expression, unyielding and beyond question, she didn't say more.
A new nation must have a new name and banner. The Sword and Shield Club had belonged to Chen Feng. Now, it belonged to a new king.
Crimson Moon.
It didn't sound bad, Zhao Yue could only silently comfort herself.
Li De didn't give the room any time to react and continued in a composed voice.
"At present, we have professional teams established in eight games, and in two of them, we have consistently achieved excellent results.
This is the fruit of everyone's hard work.
But as things stand, the virtual gaming market is uneven, and many titles are already falling behind the times.
I have excellent professional players, but no suitable games to match them.
At this moment, I have received inside information, Glory is an exceptionally promising game. I have personally tested it myself.
This game deserves Crimson Moon's full commitment."
At this point, a long-haired young man with a rather defiant expression raised his hand and directly interrupted Li De.
"Apologies, President Li, but why does a game that hasn't even entered open beta deserve our full commitment?
Do you mean to tell us you plan to shut down the other professional teams just to focus on a game that isn't even publicly available yet?"
Li De's brows furrowed. In an occasion like this, someone dared to openly contradict the boss?
This young man, he had guts. Clearly, he'd never been taught a lesson by the real world, had he?
"Yes, that's correct. Within the next two weeks, I will shut down all games except the two that are currently profitable."
Whoosh~
A single stone sent up a thousand ripples. The conference room erupted into chaos.
This decision was no different from directly announcing that more than half the people here were about to lose their jobs.
Those two games could never accommodate so many professional players.
And a game that hadn't even launched, how could anyone be sure it had potential?
This announcement instantly dealt a fatal blow to the goodwill Li De had just established.
"President Li, I object!!"
"President Li, this is unfair. You've only been here for a day. You have no idea how much effort we've put into these games!!"
"No way. If you shut them down, I'm resigning immediately!!"
"President Li, please reconsider…"
"..."
The conference room was as noisy as a vegetable market.
Everyone was frantically protesting, because this concerned most of their livelihoods.
If these games were shut down, what were they supposed to do? Start playing a game that wasn't even in open beta yet??
Li De watched it all with an indifferent expression, not the slightest ripple in his heart.
It was as if the commotion in the conference room had nothing to do with him.
After the crowd had been clamoring for several minutes, Li De finally spoke in a slow, steady voice.
"Have you finished?"