Lin Feng lowered his head.
He pulled out a sheet of stationery.
He expertly picked up the fountain pen he always carried and sketched out a general framework for helping Lin Xiaoman achieve her dream.
After all, this wasn’t something that could be solved simply by throwing money at it.
Besides, Douhu already had some connection to this alliance.
If Douhu were to actually foot the bill,
it would not only be a disservice to himself but also to all of Douhu and its employees.
Everyone was working for money, for their careers and dreams—not just to slave away for the Lin Family.
So, if they were really going to spend twenty million, Lin Feng felt they would absolutely need to call a shareholders’ meeting to discuss it thoroughly.
A short while later, the HR director arrived in Lin Feng’s office, holding the printed list of personnel.
"Not bad at all. Your team is very efficient."
"I might have been a bit harsh earlier, so I hope you can understand. But for now, why don’t you tell me your thoughts."
"If this Streamer Alliance were to split from our company, what kind of impact would that have on us?"
After reviewing the document, Lin Feng was truly impressed.
He felt incredibly fortunate to have been able to recruit such a fantastic group of employees.
In terms of both attitude and ability, they were the absolute best in the industry.
"Well... to be honest."
"Boss, I actually figured you would ask me this question while I was putting the files together."
"If we were to spin off the Streamer Alliance, we could still remain a major shareholder."
"And from an HR perspective, we could treat the Streamer Alliance as a secondary subsidiary, using it to cultivate a talent pipeline for our own future needs."
"Ultimately, if the alliance does exceptionally well, we can collect dividends. We can also use our talent pipeline to maintain firm control over its direction and expand our influence."
"And if it doesn’t do well, we just sell our shares and cash out!"
"Either way you look at it, my view is that we should let the Streamer Alliance become independent."
This perspective certainly gave Lin Feng another reason to convince himself.
It was true that while the idea wasn’t fully fleshed out,
it highlighted a key issue: concentrating too many employees and streamers under the Douhu umbrella would lead to major trouble down the road.
Not only would it create a redundant department, but the entire company would also need to establish more service departments to support it.
Departments like HR, administration, and finance, for example...
But as it stood, the alliance didn’t have much commercial value, nor could it generate significant profits.
Therefore, keeping the alliance would require an excessive investment of energy and capital just for maintenance and operations.
It was better to let it go independent and fend for itself. Besides, Lin Feng had never intended for the alliance to become some huge success; he just wanted Lin Xiaoman to have a chance to hone her skills.
"Alright, that was an excellent analysis!"
"You’ve also helped me resolve some of my internal conflicts."
"Things have been pretty tiring lately. I just approved annual leave for the finance director. After he gets back, you can take your turn for a rotating vacation. You can start planning your trip now."
This was just how Lin Feng was—he would apologize for his own actions, and he was always thinking about his subordinates.
Although he was just a young man barely in his twenties, Lin Feng understood a principle: the more initiative and advantage you have, the more you should be the one to take the first step.
Therefore, Lin Feng had never been an overly strict boss, nor was he the type to ruthlessly exploit his subordinates just because he was in charge.
On the contrary, he was always quick to offer apologies and benefits. This was the image Lin Feng had always maintained, and it was the persona he wanted to cultivate.
The HR director was overjoyed when he heard this.
After all, even though they were executives with very high salaries,
for people at their level, paid vacation was the most tempting thing of all.
Besides, everyone had been going crazy with work recently.
They were basically working overtime every single day. And this was despite Lin Feng’s consistent discouragement of a crunch culture.
But in order to get everything done and get the company back on track as quickly as possible,
all the directors had tacitly agreed to work past 10 p.m. every day.
The reason Douhu had managed to grow again in such a short time was inseparable from the efforts of these directors, who treated the company’s business as their own.
"Alright, I’ll also call the finance department in a bit and have them allocate some funds for you."
"I’m giving all of you the afternoon off. Just leave one person on duty. You can take the rest out for a team-building activity."
"And remember, don’t do any of those so-called team-building games. Just take everyone out to eat, drink, and have a good time."
This instruction from Lin Feng truly made the HR director see this young CEO, who was barely in his twenties, in a new and impressive light!
After the employees had all gone home, Lin Feng was still unwilling to apologize to Lin Xiaoman.
He knew his actions had been inappropriate, and that he had failed in his duty as an older brother to protect his sister’s ambition to do something great.
In fact, if it had been any of his other subordinates,
even the HR director from just now, Lin Feng would have offered a sincere apology without hesitation.
Perhaps this was just how it was: the closer you were to someone, the harder it was to say those two little words, "I’m sorry."
The matter weighed heavily on Lin Feng’s mind, and he couldn’t let it go.
Agitated, he decided to numb himself with intense work.
An unfamiliar house, an unfamiliar shadow, took in the weary man and his thoughts.
It was a rare sight: Lin Feng walking through the vast city late at night. The streets, once so familiar he couldn’t get lost, now seemed utterly strange. Yet, they were also filled with all sorts of fascinating sights.
There’s a saying that’s so true: only when night falls and the hours creep toward dawn does the city reveal its truest self.
As Lin Feng walked through the back alleys and forgotten corners of the city, he saw an old couple bustling about their small street stall, working hard to make a living.
He saw a taxi driver, finally getting a chance to sit down and eat something after a long, busy day.
He saw an elderly scavenger with a hunched back, a large sack slung over his shoulder, leading his little grandson by the hand as he relentlessly sifted through a filthy, stinking dumpster...
They worked so hard. The years had carved deep ravines into their faces.
A scattered weariness could be seen in their eyes, yet they lived with such effort, such courage.
Aspiration is a floor scattered with cold, shattered gems; life is the dampness left behind by a great storm; a corner in the dead of night, a shadow of the city.
For the first time in years, Lin Feng once again felt this rich, vibrant energy of life.
Ever since acquiring the System, Lin Feng had become someone living high up in an ivory tower, leading a glamorous and refined life day after day. It wasn’t that he was vain or intentionally pursued such a bourgeois lifestyle.
Rather, his circumstances had unconsciously shaped his current way of living.
But in that environment, Lin Feng had never felt a strong sense of belonging.
He knew he didn’t belong there—or rather, that he didn’t *only* belong there.
But now, standing in this bustling, earthy corner of the city late at night, the warm, human atmosphere suddenly swept away all the pressure and agitation in his heart.
’That’s right. These people, worn down by life and forced to scrape by at the so-called bottom of society, still refuse to bow to the world. They can even create their own happiness.’
’So what do my so-called troubles even amount to?’
Thinking of this, Lin Feng suddenly saw many things clearly. His steps toward home became lighter and more resolute.

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