Like Silicon Valley, the M4 corridor is home to many IT giants, but it also has many small companies struggling to make ends meet. Some have become rich overnight, while others have fallen from grace in an instant. The unemployment and resignation rates here are extremely high, with an average of over 500 people resigning every day to join other companies.
Chen Xu dared not act rashly because he knew his own limitations. Although with Xiao Min's help he was able to create a very stealthy computer virus to open the other party's backdoor, he also knew that with his skill level, it would be difficult to infiltrate the other party's network without being detected.
Oh dear, this is a difficult situation!
Taking over an internet cafe would be a piece of cake for Chen Xu now, but facing these powerful IT professionals, Chen Xu inevitably felt a bit intimidated.
The technology isn't up to par yet!
Of course, Chen Xu wouldn't back down before even starting the experiment; he couldn't do something like that… The main reason was that Chen Xu had already taken action; he chose an IP address to attack. Then, frustratingly, he was caught red-handed. If it weren't for Xiao Min's strong defenses, he would have been exposed long ago.
Well, later Chen Xu checked what place he had found, and he almost fainted when he saw it... He had attacked the Estun Science Park!
Therefore, Chen Xu dares not make any rash moves now. Although he is not afraid of being caught by the other party, the problem is that he can't handle others either!
You have to pick the softest persimmons to squeeze, but the problem is Chen Xu doesn't know which ones in this persimmon grove are soft... He doesn't want the ones that are too soft. And the slightly firmer ones... he can't squeeze them either.
Waaah, we know absolutely nothing about the enemy!
Chen Xu squatted in the corner, drawing circles, thinking to himself that he had really embarrassed himself, but thankfully no one knew… That night, chicken hunting was to be done in different areas. Chen Xu, Zhong Ziyu, and Wu Yuan exchanged strange glances; they all agreed that it was best to keep a low profile when it came to chicken hunting. The three of them together were too arrogant, so it was better for everyone to stick to their own methods…
So, Chen Xu was very relieved, and Zhong Ziyu and Wu Yuan were also relieved—ahhh! No one else saw what happened!
As for Gao Xiaojie, well, she's currently squatting in a corner drawing circles, looking pitifully at Zhan Jing.
Unlike Chen Xu, Gao Xiaojie is not yet skilled enough to catch chickens, and Wu Yuan and Zhong Ziyu's target is not foreign broiler chickens, but low-end customers in China.
As for Chen Xu, Zhan Jing's original words were: "As SMMH's top disciple, I don't think this task is too difficult for you. Go and do your best."
So Chen Xu had to find a solution on his own.
You need to investigate!
Chen Xu is now searching online, trying to find information about the companies in the M4 corridor. He needs to at least figure out what these companies do and their capabilities.
This is what is meant by "know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated."
These IT companies usually have their own websites, making it easy for Chen Xu to search. He asked Xiao Min to search online for information about all the companies in the M Corridor and then rank them by their strength... because there are IT websites online that can provide reviews and other information about these companies. While it's impossible to know all the information about the thousands of companies in the entire M4 Corridor through this information, it will allow him to find some useful information.
For example, the UK's software industry has grown at an annual rate of 17% to 24% over the past decade, making it the fastest-growing sector in Europe. Furthermore, the UK government has introduced new policies to promote the development of the software industry, and so on…
However, what caught Chen Xu's attention was the following news item: "The once-glorious Liam Corporation is facing a crisis of confidence, with a large number of key personnel resigning. Liam Corporation President John Niara claimed to the media: 'We will fight to the end.' According to reporters' investigations, this resignation incident was actually a poaching operation by Liam Corporation's formidable rival, Mirador Corporation. Previously, Liam Corporation had suffered a complete defeat in a competition with Mirador Corporation for a project. This not only caused Liam Corporation to lose a lucrative opportunity but also severely undermined employees' confidence in the company's public relations capabilities." Below is an introduction to Liam Corporation.
Liam International, founded in the 1980s during the IT boom, saw its founder, Mel Niara, lead the company to become one of the top 30 IT companies in the UK by the mid-1990s thanks to his exceptional vision. However, after the turn of the century, with the retirement of Mel Niara, his son John Niara's several poor decisions plunged the company into difficulties. Today, Liam International's position in the M Corridor is particularly awkward. While its total assets rank in the upper-middle range, its annual profits are less than those of several smaller companies downstream. It's no wonder that Liam International's employees lack confidence in their boss and have left the company after being poached.
Chen Xu took a look and felt that this company had potential. He searched for Liam Company online and found that it really did have some potential.
First of all, the company has fairly strong hardware facilities.
Because a large part of their business is server rental, along with setting up hardware firewalls, their equipment is top-notch… but you have to understand, in the M4 corridor, there are countless cybersecurity companies like this, with IBM backing them up. Other smaller companies aren't doing so well.
Moreover, John Niara wasn't exactly a good leader. He was short-tempered, easily provoked, and often refused to admit his mistakes. If Liam Corporation were a publicly traded company, he would have been impeached and removed from office long ago. But this company belonged to the Niara family, so the only way for the employees to express their dissatisfaction with him was... to leave.
This includes many senior, long-time employees.
Chen Xu had Xiao Min search for all online reports about John Niara. The media online generally referred to him as a "tyrant," a "clown," and a "scrooge." This was because John Niara was extremely greedy. He paid new employees very low wages and provided poor benefits to long-term employees, so it was no surprise that Liam Corporation had fallen to its current state.
But Chen Xu set his sights on Liam's hardware equipment.
If we can acquire all of this company's hardware, then we will have a fairly good hardware support system.
Of course, Chen Xu knew his own limitations. He wanted to hack into this security company... even if it was a really bad one. But that was beyond his capabilities.
But he didn't want to give up this opportunity because Zhan Jing had told him that many hacker organizations nowadays have powerful backers. For example, the Red Hacker Alliance—Beijing is controlled by the military. Back during the Sino-US hacker war, did he really think only the Red Hacker Alliance was involved? Did the military hawks remain completely silent behind the scenes?
Of course, there wasn't anything major happening; otherwise, it wouldn't have been a simple hacker battle, but rather a war between two nations. However, they did provide considerable support behind the scenes, particularly in terms of hardware…
Many hacker groups are backed by powerful entities, such as military-industrial complexes, intelligence agencies, or financial groups in various countries. Even Microsoft has a group of dedicated high-level hackers.
Do hackers like this need botnets?
Of course they need it. But these "chickens" are all provided to them by others!
They are far superior to ordinary hackers in both quality and quantity!
How do we fight this?
So that's what Zhan Jing meant. She hoped Chen Xu could find high-quality broiler chickens to prepare for any eventuality.
How can one possibly eat such a large cake in front of them?
The best method would actually be intrusion, but it's clear Chen Xu lacks the capability. However, a hacker, a true hacker... isn't limited to using only computer techniques.
Moreover, even if Chen Xu successfully infiltrates this company, if the company goes bankrupt, then Chen Xu will gain nothing in the future, or even have wasted his efforts.
Oh dear, it's really embarrassing that a prestigious company like SMMH can't even get its hands on botnets!
However, thinking about SMMH, Chen Xu suddenly had an idea...
Chapter 226 Chen Xu Fishing for Chickens (Part 1)
John Niara is indeed a complete idiot… This isn’t just media coverage; it’s John’s secretary, Amy, his former secretary. She worked for John for three years, and her father and John’s father, Mel, were old comrades-in-arms, founding members of the Liam Corporation. But after Mel’s father died of a heart attack in 2001, the company went downhill after John took over, and now even the original core members have finally given up on John’s actions and chosen to leave.
Amy was among the last of the long-serving employees and their families to leave. When she left, the most senior employee was only someone who had been there since 2005, with just two years of experience. This was completely unimaginable for a company that had been established for over twenty years.
As the president's secretary, Amy naturally knew that although Liam Corporation appeared glamorous and received many job applications every day, in reality, Liam Corporation was currently surviving on these newcomers.
New people kept coming in, and old employees kept leaving. In a highly competitive place like M4, filled with job seekers from all over the world, Liam Computer, despite its decline, still had no trouble finding staff. The problem was, however, that Liam's bad reputation had spread far and wide. The applicants were all people who, because other larger companies had too high entry requirements, were using Liam as a stepping stone to achieve some success and then jump to higher positions. If this continued, the company would have no hope.
Amy said John was an absolute idiot, and objectively speaking, that was really true. As John's personal secretary, Amy certainly had the right to say that.
John Niara is definitely not a good guy.
He has a volatile temper, doesn't listen to advice, and while he can't be said to lack business acumen, even if he does, he's at most like an ordinary person. John Niara is surrounded by a group of sycophants who spend their days joking around, calling him brother, and taking him out… London's nightlife is vibrant, and Niara frequents it all day, neglecting much of the company's business. He was also recently exposed by the media for smoking marijuana.
It would be a miracle if a company like that could even be run well.
According to expert predictions, barring a miracle, Liam International will officially enter a period of decline in six months at most, and within a year and a half, the company will be on the verge of bankruptcy or be acquired by another company.
Honestly, after seeing the report about John Niara, Chen Xu really didn't want to get involved... There was absolutely no reason to help someone like him. He and Yi Shuihan were completely different types of people. Frankly, Chen Xu hated spendthrifts like him the most, so he wouldn't use MH's identity to help such a guy. Besides, Chen Xu had already concluded that MH was Chinese. If he wanted to help others online, it would only be within the scope of Chinese people or people of Chinese descent... To put it bluntly, what business is it of his if this British guy dies?!
However, Chen Xu was truly impressed by the company's equipment.
After much thought, Chen Xu came up with a solution...
Meanwhile, it was noon in London, just the time when people were taking their lunch break... but John had only just gotten up at that time.
It's obvious this guy didn't go to work today. Looking at the two blond, blue-eyed Persian cats lying next to him, it's easy to understand why he didn't go.
John rubbed his hangover-prone head. He grinned widely, then his hands roamed restlessly over the two Persian cats beside him. He'd drunk way too much last night. He should have passed out as soon as he got home, but this wouldn't do. Even if he'd done it, it was when he wasn't fully conscious, so it didn't count.
The two women quickly woke up under his large hands kneading them, followed by a chorus of soft moans.
Just then, the phone on the table rang. John initially ignored it, continuing to bury his head in the ample breasts of one of the blonde beauties. But the phone kept ringing, which became increasingly annoying. John finally got out of bed, angrily snatched the phone, and wanted to see which clueless person was calling him at this hour!
"Hello?!"
"Are you John Niara?" A deep voice came from the other end of the phone, with a perfect London accent, but with a hint of arrogance in his tone.
John was about to start cursing when the voice said something that completely stunned him: "I'm giving you a chance now, a chance to make your company shine again. Do you want it?"
John paused, his tone softening slightly: "Who are you?"
"You don't need to worry about that." The voice sounded impatient. "I'm just asking if you want it or not. You should know the current state of Liam Corporation. If you say you don't, then we don't need to talk anymore. That just proves you're a complete idiot!"
Hearing this, John felt a surge of anger, thinking, "Who do you think you are, lecturing me?" However, he was indeed aware of the company's situation; after all, only an idiot could ignore it. At that moment, the two naked women on the bed, seeing him on the phone for so long, couldn't help but call out, "Darling, what are you saying? Come over here quickly!"
"Don't say a word!" John wouldn't vent his anger on the other party without knowing who they were, because he had a feeling this call wasn't a prank. This was an opportunity, because he had tried so hard, but every decision he considered brilliant had ultimately resulted in losses. He had given up and might as well just live a life of extravagance.
"There are other women around?" The voice on the phone chuckled contemptuously. "Become my servant, and I can let you enjoy countless women, any kind of woman."
"A servant?!" John was truly furious. Who was this person?! How dare they speak so arrogantly?!
But before he could utter a curse, the voice said, "Do you know MH?"
These words were like a bucket of cold water poured over his head. John couldn't help but tremble as he said, "You mean... you are MH, the one who easily solved the Firestorm virus?" As the president of an IT company, if John didn't know MH, he would truly be an idiot!
But the voice on the other end scoffed, "No, I am his enemy. Humph, I am the creator of the Beacon Virus."
John was truly astonished!
The Beacon virus, discovered worldwide last September, is hailed as the most terrifying and powerful virus of the 21st century! Its stealth and transmissibility are unparalleled! Although the virus was cracked by MH just three days after its appearance, thus elevating MH to the status of "god of the internet"... So what about the person who developed this virus?
He is a demon, Satan! If MH is the archangel Michael, then the one who developed the Beacon Virus is the fallen angel Lucifer!
Such a person or organization possesses power that absolutely surpasses that of the entire world!
This was Chen Xu's plan. In reality, he simply used Xiao Min as a cell phone to call John. Xiao Min's protective abilities made it impossible for anyone to find out who was calling, and her voice-changing function effectively concealed Chen Xu's identity.
Chen Xu chose to use the identity of the creator of the Beacon Virus, namely Organization X, instead of MH, because he couldn't be bothered with such people. If it weren't for the server equipment he possessed, why would he have any dealings with them?!
So, why not just create a fake identity, use it and then discard it? If anything goes wrong, let them go to the X organization; it's none of our business!
Anyway, even if the X organization finds out about this, they can't do anything to me, hehehehehe.
While Chen Xu was secretly pleased on his end of the phone, John was also trembling with excitement on the other end.
Are the developers of the Beacon virus going to help me?
Well, if he wasn't lying, then his luck has truly turned around!
However, he still cautiously asked, "How can you prove that you are the developer of the Beacon virus?"
How about I give you a shock?
electricity?
John was startled, then suddenly felt a sharp pain in his ears and hands, a tingling electric current running through his body, causing him to let out a scream. His hand trembled, and the phone fell to the ground.
John now understood what the other person meant!
He can actually discharge electricity through a cell phone?! How did he do that?! If the other party didn't just discharge the phone briefly, but controlled it to explode, or used an even larger current, wouldn't he have died on the spot?!
As John shakily picked up his phone, Chen Xu's laughter came from the other end: "Well, do you believe me now?" Actually, Chen Xu's trick was that Xiao Min used a special signal to prevent the phone battery from discharging naturally. The current was very small, and it was completely impossible to kill someone with this method, but it could fool people.
This was just a small scam, but John was now completely convinced that the other party was definitely the mastermind behind the Firestorm virus... because the technology was simply too terrifying. However, he didn't know that the other party was indeed someone just like, or even more terrifying than, the X organization that developed the Firestorm virus.
"So... what do you need me to do?" John's attitude had completely changed. He rudely kicked the two beauties out of bed, closed the door, and cautiously spoke into the phone. He wasn't an idiot; he knew that the other party wasn't calling him out of sheer boredom—they must have some need!
"Go online now, I have something to give you."