pjbooks Chapter 501 Another person has mentioned resigning.
Chapter 501 Another person has mentioned resigning.
The night after the wedding photos were taken, Lu Ran looked at the preview pictures that Liu Chengzhi sent her several times.
The photo hasn't been retouched yet, and the colors haven't been adjusted much, but it already looks great.
In the photo of Shen Yuege standing by the sea, her skirt was blown up by the wind and clung to her legs, and her hair was messy, but she smiled naturally, unlike the reserved smile she usually wore in photos. It was the kind of smile that only comes out when she is truly happy.
Lu Ran stared at the photo for almost a minute, then turned off his phone screen and placed it face down on the bedside table.
The following week is the retouching period. Liu Chengzhi said that the retouching will take about seven or eight days. He will then send all the finished films over in a package so that he can take his time to choose.
Lu Ran replied, "No rush, take your time fixing it"—this was the truth.
Shen Yuege has been in good shape lately, eating well and sleeping soundly, and her pregnancy is progressing steadily every day, so he's not in a hurry to push her to finish filming.
But he was not idle either.
The wedding must be held, but the company's work cannot be stopped.
Tencent's actions continued, and although they hadn't yet unleashed any new big moves, Lu Ran knew that the quiet was only temporary.
He's laid out so many pieces in the industry; it's time for his opponents to make their move.
At Monday's morning meeting, Lu Ran called together the heads of several core departments.
There were more than a dozen people in the conference room. Zhou Mingzhe sat to his right, Chen Mo sat opposite him, Lao Wang and Zhao Yiming each occupied a seat by the window, and even Wang Huabing had rushed back from Shanghai—Lu Ran had specifically asked him to come back so that he could tell everyone something.
After Lu Ran sat down, he didn't bring any PPT or give any presentation. He just sat in the chair, scanned the room from left to right, and then started to speak.
"Let me start by saying something. Everyone knows that Tencent has been poaching our talent through headhunters lately. We've taken countermeasures against several of their previous attempts, and they've worked fairly well. But what I want to say today is about the next step—don't rush into a direct confrontation with Tencent."
The meeting room fell silent for a moment.
Zhou Mingzhe stopped holding the teacup at his lips, Lao Wang looked up from the table, and Zhao Yiming twirled the pen in his hand before it stopped between his fingers.
Lu Ran continued, "We can't win a head-on battle with Tencent. They have hundreds of billions in cash reserves; how big are we? The fact that we've stabilized the situation thanks to our AI engine and alliance network is already a very good result. The next battles shouldn't be rushed; we need to fight them slowly. It's not about winning overnight, but about seeing who can't hold on first, who can make the first mistake."
He paused, his gaze falling on Zhou Mingzhe's face: "Brother Zhou, I'm not saying this to relax you, but to stop keeping things so tense. Continue hiring the people you need to hire, continue building the channels you need to build, but don't make any more hasty decisions just to respond to Tencent."
Zhou Mingzhe nodded, put the teacup back on the table, and didn't reply.
Chen Mo chimed in, "What if they keep poaching our people? What should we do then?"
Lu Ran tapped his fingers lightly twice on the table: "If they're poaching people from core positions, like Zhao Yiming or Lao Wang, then try to keep them. But if they're leaving peripheral positions, or those who weren't exactly reliable to begin with—let them go."
He sat up straighter: "Our current benefits are already very high. We have a snack area, a movie theater, an arcade, a break room, Children's Day holiday, and we've even had a salary increase. All these things combined, in the entire Chinese gaming industry, only TUTU can offer this level of service. If an employee still wants to leave under these conditions, they won't be truly dedicated to their work. They might be tempted by a 20% raise from Tencent today, but they'll be tempted by a 30% raise tomorrow. That kind of person is better off leaving sooner rather than later."
"It's better to leave sooner rather than later. Even if we leave late, it will still be a potential problem."
"Furthermore," Lu Ran added, "if someone really tries to blackmail the company by saying they want to go to Tencent—then let them go. No need to try and retain them."
As he finished speaking, Lu Ran's gaze swept across the conference room door.
The door was ajar, and someone was passing by in the corridor. The footsteps were very light, but audible.
The meeting lasted about twenty minutes, during which the specific work plan for the next few weeks was outlined.
The iteration of new versions of the AI engine, the launch of new game projects, and the assignment of new campus recruits to project teams—each of these is implemented down to specific people and specific timeframes.
Lu Ran spoke quickly, but everyone present understood him perfectly.
After the meeting, Zhou Mingzhe and Chen Mo stayed in the conference room for a few more minutes, and the three of them chatted briefly about Zhang Weiming's matter.
Zhang Weiming has settled in at the Guangzhou branch. Wang Huabing said he got up to speed very quickly. His background in vehicle networking gives him a natural advantage in AI applications in logistics and travel scenarios, and he has already started leading projects.
"He also has a former colleague who's worked at Tencent's Intelligent Mobility division for almost eight years, and he's also hesitant lately," Chen Mo said. "I've already had a headhunter contact him, but he's still observing and hasn't made up his mind."
"No rush," Lu Ran said. "Take it slow. If he wants to come, he can; if he doesn't, we won't force him."
The three chatted for a few more minutes, then went their separate ways.
Lu Ran walked back to his office and saw someone standing in the doorway when he opened it.
He vaguely remembered that person, but not deeply.
He was a slightly overweight man in his early forties, wearing a gray-blue short-sleeved shirt with his name tag hanging around his neck that read "Project Team Leader" and "Technical Department" next to it.
Lu Ran rummaged through his memories.
This person seems to be one of the early members of TUTU. He and several other key technical personnel transferred from Chengdu to the Shanghai headquarters.
Later, as the company's business expanded, he worked his way up from the lowest level of development to team leader.
Not exactly core, but not entirely peripheral either.
"Mr. Lu." The man stood at the door, clutching a brown paper envelope in his hand. His expression seemed more tense than usual.
Lu Ran glanced at him: "Come in and talk."
The man followed him in, stood in front of the desk, and hesitated for a moment before speaking: "Mr. Lu, I'd like to discuss salary with you."
Lu Ran pulled out a chair and sat down, looking up at him: "Go on."
The man placed the envelope on the table but did not open it.
He rubbed his hand against the edge of the envelope, as if buying himself some time to breathe: "I've been working at the company for almost a year now, from Chengdu to Shanghai, from starting as a developer to leading a project team, and I've done quite a bit. Recently, a headhunter from Tencent contacted me, offering a 20% higher salary than I'm currently earning."
He paused here, observing Lu Ran's expression.
Lu Ran leaned back in his chair, his expression unchanged, and listened quietly.
The person continued, "I don't plan to go to Tencent. I've been with TUTU for so long, and I have an attachment to the company. But a 20% difference is indeed significant. I have a mortgage to pay, and two children are in school, so expenses are high. Therefore, I'd like to ask if the company could consider giving me a reasonable raise? It doesn't have to be according to Tencent's standard, but at least reduce the difference to within 10%, so I can feel more at ease staying with the company."
After he finished speaking, he stood there, not looking directly at Lu Ran, but his gaze fell on the envelope on the table.
Lu Ran did not speak.
As he looked at the person in front of him, something was actually going through his mind.
He did remember this person. When he first transferred from the Chengdu branch, this person volunteered. At that time, the company was in dire need of manpower, and he moved to Shanghai without hesitation.
Conditions were worse back then; the office was in a rented old building, the workstations were cramped, and the air conditioning wasn't cool enough in the summer, but he never complained.
But that's not the problem.
The problem lies in his way of expressing it—"Tencent poached me, but I didn't go, but you have to give me a raise."
This statement itself is a choice.
He didn't come to talk about contributions or future development; he came to talk about "what price others offered me."
He used Tencent as a bargaining chip and a tool to lower the price.
Lu Ran quickly reviewed this person's work performance in his mind.
It's not bad, but it's certainly not good enough to be indispensable.
Projects are delivered on time and the code runs, but there has never been any proactive optimization of the process, nor any innovative design solutions.
ordinary.
He's neither outstanding nor bad; he's just a normal frontline employee.
The problem is that when an ordinary frontline employee was poached by Tencent, he chose to negotiate with TUTU. This action itself revealed his thinking – he wanted to have his cake and eat it too.
Lu Ran did not speak.
The person remained standing there, his gaze shifting back and forth between the envelope and Lu Ran's face.
Lu Ran pulled his chair forward, sat up straight, and began to speak.
His tone was calm, without any emotional fluctuation: "You said Tencent offered you a 20% higher salary than you're currently receiving, right?"
"right."
"Then why don't you go?"
The person paused for a moment, as if they hadn't expected Lu Ran to ask that question.
His lips moved slightly, and then he said, "Like I said, I've been with TUTU for so long, I've grown attached to the company. Besides, I'm used to the people and the environment here, and I don't want to change."
Lu Ran nodded, his expression remaining calm: "I have feelings for you, and I don't want to change. So you came to me today to talk about a raise, hoping I'd quantify my feelings into money?"
When those words were spoken, the air in the office was silent for a second or two.
That person clearly hadn't expected Lu Ran to be so direct.
His expression changed from the confidence that he was there to discuss reasonable demands to an awkwardness that made him unsure of where to put his words.
His fingers unconsciously rubbed against the envelope, and something seemed to be stuck in his throat; he moved it but couldn't say anything.
Lu Ran found his embarrassed look rather amusing.
"Using Tencent's offer as a bargaining chip is fine. The labor market is a two-way street; it's normal for you to feel your value is underestimated and come to me to talk," Lu Ran said. "But there was something wrong with your rhetoric just now—you said you have an emotional attachment to the company and don't want to leave, then immediately added, 'But a 20% difference is indeed significant.' You put your feelings first and price second, are you trying to make me think you only considered price based on your feelings?"
"Or do you think that if you ask for a raise at this crucial juncture, I'll be more likely to give in because I'm worried you'll go to Tencent?"
That person fell completely silent.
Lu Ran leaned back in her chair, looking at him with a neutral gaze.
A small section of Zhou Mingzhe's sleeve was visible through the crack of the half-open door next to him—he hadn't gone far; he must have heard the commotion inside while passing by and stopped to listen for a while.
The corridor was very quiet; even footsteps had stopped.
Lu Ran withdrew his gaze from the crack in the door and focused it back on the person in front of him.
He looked at him for two more seconds, then said something, his tone slightly softer than before, but every word was spoken clearly:
"I won't approve your request. Go to Tencent."
The person was stunned.
He stood there, as if nailed to the spot.
His eyes widened slightly, and his lips moved as if he wanted to say something to make amends, but not a single word came out.
Lu Ran continued, "Since you're already weighing whether TUTU or Tencent is offering more money, it means your foundation here isn't solid to begin with. Now I'm giving you a more direct choice—since Tencent has given you a higher offer, going there is the best outcome for you. And for us too. You don't need to hesitate here."
"That..."
"You can contact HR about the resignation process. They won't hold you up on the paperwork; just make sure the handover is done properly."
The person stood there, their lips pressed tightly together.
The brown paper envelope in his hand was crumpled from his grip.
He had prepared a whole set of lines, intending to express his loyalty first and then discuss the price. He even planned to lower his expectations if Lu Ran hesitated, saying that he was willing to accept a 10% increase.
His calculations were very clear—he knew that TUTU was currently at war with Tencent and that the company was very sensitive about talent loss, which is why he chose this time to talk.
He thought Lu Ran would hesitate.
He thought at least a compromise would be offered.
Even if it's not 20%, 10% or 8% would be fine—he had seen companies raise salaries to retain employees who left, and he felt the same logic should apply to himself.
But to his surprise, he didn't even get the chance to be "retained".
He looked at Lu Ran.
Lu Ran sat behind his desk, his expression calm, showing neither anger nor regret.
That calmness was what bothered him the most—because whether you have value or not, the other party doesn't need to hesitate at all.
Whether you stay or leave won't make much difference.
The office was silent for about ten seconds.
Finally, the person straightened the crumpled envelope in his hand, said in a low voice, "Then I'll go back and prepare for the handover," and turned and walked out of the office.
Having come to this point, he had no way to stay in TUTU any longer.
The door closed behind him with a very soft thud.
He turned to look at TUTU's office and suddenly felt a surge of regret.
Why did you lose your mind and try to force a raise by threatening to quit?
Hey...
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