Zhou Hongwei moved fast.
By 5 PM that same day, he arrived at the café Chen Mo had mentioned. As soon as he got the call, Chen Mo grabbed his laptop and the relevant files and headed over.
His rented apartment was close—he arrived in just five minutes.
Inside, the café was quiet, with only a few scattered patrons. Chen Mo scanned the room, spotting Zhou Hongwei seated in a corner with two others. He approached with a calm smile.
"Hello, Mr. Zhou," Chen Mo greeted, extending his hand.
Zhou Hongwei was momentarily taken aback. The voice matched the one from the call—but the speaker was shockingly young.
"Mr. Chen," Zhou returned the handshake politely.
After a quick exchange, they settled into their seats.
"Mr. Chen, I'd like to see the program in action for myself," Zhou said, getting straight to the point.
"No problem," Chen Mo replied. "But I don't have a computer infected with the virus on hand."
"We've come prepared."
Zhou gestured to his assistant, who pulled two laptops from a bag and placed them on the table. Both were locked up—screens frozen behind the infamous "iron gate" of the Eternal Heart ransomware.
Chen Mo didn't waste time. He plugged in his USB drive, tapped a few keys, and launched the recovery software.
Within two minutes, the first computer's screen flickered, then returned to the familiar Windows desktop.
Zhou Hongwei's eyes lit up.
It worked.
The computer had been pre-infected by his team—no way it was a trick. He watched closely as Chen Mo repeated the process on the second machine.
When that one restored just as smoothly, Zhou leaned back in his chair, visibly impressed.
The Eternal Heart, a global scourge, had just been cracked by this soft-spoken, surprisingly young man.
"You're very young, Mr. Chen. Are you still a student at Binhai University?" Zhou asked, unable to hide his curiosity.
"Does that really matter?" Chen Mo replied with a smile.
Zhou chuckled. "Not really. Was this program developed entirely by you?"
Chen Mo nodded.
"Impressive. Ever thought about joining our company?" Zhou offered.
"No plans for that at the moment," Chen Mo said casually. "Let's focus on why we're here."
Zhou studied him more closely. This young man was composed, confident—sharper than most adults he dealt with.
"Alright then," Zhou said. "You're looking to sell the software. What's your asking price?"
"Not much. Just 80 million."
Hiss...
The entire table sucked in a sharp breath. Even the assistant couldn't hide his shock.
"Isn't that... a bit high?" Zhou asked, still smiling.
"If it's too high, feel free to walk away," Chen Mo said coolly, slipping the USB back into his bag. "I can always contact Tencent or Baidu. I'm sure they'd be interested."
"Mr. Chen, wait." Zhou raised a hand quickly. "Your price really is steep. And I doubt your other options would pay that much."
"You won't know unless you try," Chen Mo replied, deadpan. "This virus has already caused billions in damage globally."
"How about this—ten million, and the tech rights go to us. We can sign a contract immediately."
Chen Mo shrugged. "You'd be getting fame and fortune if you're the first to release an Eternal Heart solution. I'm already lowballing."
"Thirty million," Zhou offered. "That's our bottom line. There are only a million infected computers worldwide. We won't profit much."
"Your reputation is priceless, isn't it? If you're not interested, I'll take my leave. This could easily boost Penguin or Baidu's valuation."
Zhou was taken aback. Chen Mo might be young, but he was sharp—and clearly understood his leverage.
"To be honest, even if we bought it, we wouldn't profit 80 million from it."
"Seventy million. Non-negotiable." Chen Mo said flatly.
Zhou hesitated. "Sixty. We'll release it for free, so it's not a direct revenue stream."
"Then release it for a fee. That's your business, not mine." Chen Mo stood, reaching for his bag. "If this deal doesn't work, I'll explore other buyers."
"Wait! Seventy million. Final offer. Deal."
Chen Mo smiled and sat back down. "Great."
He pulled out a USB and two contracts from his laptop case, sliding them across the table.
Zhou's team was stunned—he'd come fully prepared. He'd clearly expected to win this negotiation.
Zhou passed the contract to his legal counsel for a quick review. Once confirmed, he looked up and chuckled. "Didn't expect to meet someone like you. Young and bold."
"Just lucky," Chen Mo replied modestly. "I kind of stumbled into it."
Zhou couldn't help but laugh. "You stumbled into defeating a global ransomware attack?"
"If everything's good, let's sign."
They both signed the deal, and Zhou transferred the funds on the spot.
Chen Mo's phone vibrated. Transaction complete.
He checked the amount. Even after taxes, he'd net over 56 million yuan.
Not bad for his first serious payday.
"Pleasure doing business," Chen Mo said, shaking Zhou's hand. "I've deleted my copy of the program. Yours is the only version—be sure to back it up."
"You sure you won't stay for dinner?"
"Next time," Chen Mo said with a grin, gathering his things. "You know how to find me."
With that, he left the café, books under his arm and a spring in his step.
Back at the café, Zhou turned to his assistant. "Send the software to the tech department. Tell them to bind it with our antivirus engine. Get ready for a global update."
He stared at the door Chen Mo had exited through, his mind racing.
At 7 PM, a post from Qihu Security went live on Weibo:
"We've successfully developed a solution to eliminate the 'Eternal Heart' virus. It is currently undergoing final integration. We will release it ASAP—free of charge, as always."
The internet exploded.
Netizens flooded Qihu's Weibo with praise and memes.
"They did it! Meanwhile, our old antivirus just keeps reminding me I have 28 FPS in LoL."
"Changing antivirus software right now. Big respect."
"Seven Tigers for the win!"
Major media outlets pounced on the news. Headlines went live within minutes.
TV stations interrupted live programming with urgent reports. Foreign social media platforms picked up the news and broadcast it internationally.
The entire online world was abuzz.
The Eternal Heart incident had been the biggest digital lockdown in history—over a million infected machines, crippling banks, hospitals, universities, and more.
For seven long days, no solution existed. The only option was reinstalling the OS—losing all files in the process.
Qihu's announcement was a miracle.
Countless people, moments away from paying the ransom, now pinned their hopes on the upcoming software release.
And all of it had started in a tiny café near Binhai University, with a young man and a flash drive.