Chapter 221 Go Grand Prix
The Grand Prix is not just a title sponsorship by the Lin Group. Many things can be accomplished through the competition, including the efficient promotion of various related products under the Lin Group.
For example, when choosing the venue for this competition, since it is at a national level, it is not necessary to choose Beijing. A central city can be chosen, which will also make it convenient for chess players from all over the country to gather together.
This location can be selected from some of Lin’s Real Estate’s existing self-owned properties.
For example, Hangzhou, Yicheng, and even Suzhou Industrial Park. Although the hotels there are still under construction, they are famous tourist cities like Hangzhou.
Go tournaments typically last three to five days, with some of them also boosting local tourism. After all, for tournaments targeting children and teenagers, parents are bound to accompany their children, and sometimes entire families come, allowing the children to compete while the family enjoys a trip.
Therefore, some emerging tourist cities may sponsor a lot of content for free in order to promote their own reputation.
The organizers can provide some conveniences to the contestants, such as unified payment for food and accommodation, and the hosting companies and hotels can also make a profit.
After opening his mind, Lu Xueli's original concern about the cost of organizing the competition was no longer a problem. What he had to worry about next was how to invite important players and fight for more high-level places with the relevant authorities.
The real estate company's marketing department could help plan the event, but Lin Ruoyan asked them to also invite the planning department from the film and television company.
The Go Grand Prix must have media coverage; it can't be held behind closed doors. The traditional model is outdated. This time, they want to broadcast the entire event live online. If possible, plans must be made in advance for local satellite TV stations to broadcast the entire event live.
At the opening and closing ceremonies, in addition to Go celebrities and leaders of local relevant departments, there can also be some cultural performances to fully reflect the cultural and artistic charm of the competition location.
Once these general directions were determined, Lin Ruoyan became a hands-off boss again.
She didn't know Go herself, but since she'd invested in Lu Xueli's Go academy, she felt compelled to learn a thing or two about it privately. She'd also visit the Yu family elders during the holidays, and they'd occasionally discuss Go. Yu Youyu, in particular, was so obsessed with Go that he'd always play online with Lin Mengxi, even when he wasn't in Beijing.
Lin Mengxi, currently an amateur 5th dan, usually played Go online for fun, making it difficult to find suitable opponents. It wasn't until Hao Heshan expanded his Go website to South Korea and other island countries, allowing him to compete against top players overseas, that he finally found some highly skilled Go friends.
People can simply play chess online without meeting real people, and there's no need to fill out real information, making it very convenient for geeks with social anxiety. The system matches players, and after the game, the computer judges according to the rules, ensuring fairness and peace of mind. Players can also replay the game for review.
Yu Youyu also fell in love with this method of finding opponents. Sometimes when they found a better opponent, the old man and the young boy would keep each other informed, add friends on the Go website to arrange a game, or go to watch the game.
Unconsciously, Yu Youyu felt that Lin Mengxi's Go skills had improved again. Coincidentally, Lu Xueli was organizing the National Go Grand Prix this summer, so Yu Youyu asked Lin Ruoyan to sign Lin Mengxi up, hoping that he could even reach 6th dan.
The competition was finally confirmed to be held in Yicheng, and the venue was chosen to be the Lin’s hotel that had already opened in Yicheng.
Built to four-star standards, the hotel, as an urban complex, offers ample exhibition space and a variety of industrial heritage tours. Children participating in competitions can also experience a century of industrial history, a truly educational experience.
Lin Mengxi had never been to Yicheng. Lin Ruoyan asked for his opinion and mentioned the Go competition. Lin Mengxi immediately decided to participate in the competition and take a trip to the surrounding area.
It was rare for her son to take the initiative to travel, so Lin Ruoyan fully supported him. However, she didn't know that Lin Mengxi wanted to go to the south not just for the Go competition or to see the scenery, but for other purposes.
Lin Mengxi said he made several friends online, one of whom lived in another big city near Yicheng. He said he wanted to meet, and that person agreed.
Lin Ruoyan already knew the labels and grouping principles that Lin Mengxi used on various social media platforms, so she carefully asked, "Son, what category does your friend belong to? What major does he have that helps you answer questions?"
Lin Mengxi blushed: "Mom, that's just an ordinary friend, not someone to answer questions or solve doubts."
"You have ordinary friends? I don't see this group in your various social apps." Lin Ruoyan deliberately squeezed.
Lin Mengxi is still young, so Lin Ruoyan is not worried about the boy's premature love problem for the time being, but she has to be cautious in making friends. What kind of friend can make Lin Mengxi want to meet in person?
Lin Mengxi said, "It's a friend I met playing chess with before. She's a scientific researcher who works at a research institute in that city. I really want to see what she's researching. She said that if I really go to see her, she'll find a way to take me to see the real thing."
"What is she researching?" Lin Ruoyan didn't expect that there was a female scientist in Lin Mengxi's fish pond.
"She's researching that kind of supercomputer. Our domestic ones are still a bit behind those abroad, and the project she's involved in aims to surpass them. I just want to see with my own eyes what a supercomputer actually looks like. I've seen photos of foreign ones; a foreign friend sent them to me. I haven't seen any in China, but I've heard they're different."
Lin Ruoyan speculated, "You're not using that foreign supercomputer photo to trick this young lady into meeting you in exchange for seeing the real thing in China, are you?"
"Oh, that's it." Lin Mengxi admitted.
Lin Ruoyan was thinking, "How could China's cutting-edge scientific research, unlike overseas management models, allow unidentified netizens to view it?" Her son even brought photos of the most advanced computers abroad. Wouldn't this be suspected of deliberate "phishing" to obtain government secrets?
Maybe the domestic security department has already locked Lin Mengxi's account and IP address, waiting for him to go and meet the young lady, and then "catch him in one fell swoop."
Lin Ruoyan explained this to her son, but he didn't expect the child to have a pouty face. He seemed to realize that this was a very high possibility, and sighed like a little adult: "Women's hearts are like needles in the sea. I was wondering why she agreed so readily."
"Does she know what you look like, or your real name?"
"She didn't know that every time I chatted with her online, I used a fake IP address and spoofed all the routes around the world. She sent me a photo taken in front of her workplace. I had already found the location of the institute on a map. To convince her, I said I was an adult, but I didn't tell her whether I was a man or a woman, or my real name."
Lin Ruoyan thought, if the other person is really a female scientist, she will probably be able to tell the bragging words of a little boy, right?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
