Wu Bin said, “Mr. Pei doesn’t want the Tenda Spirit to become rigid and dogmatic. This is what Mr. Pei has been emphasizing from the beginning.”
“Cui Geng and I compiled the Tenda Spirit manual to better interpret Mr. Pei’s thinking, not to make it some kind of standard answer. We didn’t want its existence to limit everyone’s thoughts.”
“But now, this rigid, dogmatic trend has still emerged. Many departments, for the sake of high pass rates on the Tenda Spirit test, use hints and indoctrination to replace the free-thinking Tenda Spirit with a standardized version. This effectively wastes Mr. Pei’s careful preparation of the Tenda Spirit Compatibility Test!”
“So when Mr. Pei says Tenda does not need for spiritual construction, he’s saying that Tenda shouldn’t be like other companies, with any direct, force-feeding style of spiritual indoctrination. He’s emphasizing a process rather than a result.”
“Mr. Pei wants all new employees to freely comprehend the Tenda Spirit in the company atmosphere, establishing diverse thinking, rather than using one interpretation method to lock everyone’s understanding.”
“Why did Mr. Pei want departments not to interfere with each other and only focus on their department?”
“On one hand, it’s still to encourage diverse thinking, prevent the Tenda Spirit from becoming dogmatic and turning into a single explanation.”
“On the other hand, it also encourages each department to interpret its own Tenda Spirit according to the department’s situation and characteristics!”
“Different departments have different work focuses—game departments, film departments, technology departments, physical industries… Each department needs to use the Tenda Spirit to guide their work, but each department also needs its version of the Tenda Spirit.”
“So, Mr. Pei probably hopes that each department can understand the Tenda Spirit according to their circumstances and actual needs.”
“As for why he said department heads don’t need to understand, don’t need to comprehend, and only need to execute?”
“I think it’s because during the execution process, everyone will eventually grasp this point. Mr. Pei is personally demonstrating to everyone that the Tenda Spirit isn’t about indoctrination but about personal enlightenment.”
“Only things understood this way are deep enough and convincing enough!”
Hao Yun had a sudden realization: “I see.”
“Mr. Pei sensed that the advocated Tenda Spirit was becoming somewhat rigid and utilitarian, so he decided to rectify his thinking. It’s not that he doesn’t want spiritual construction, but he wants spiritual construction to be carried out in a healthier, more subtle way!”
“Then… what specifically should we do?”
Wu Bin replied without hesitation: “Of course, we must resolutely implement Mr. Pei’s requirements!”
“Specifically, I think there are several points.”
“First, the Tenda Spirit manual and specific Tenda Spirit interpretations should no longer be distributed. Especially for those who have difficulty passing the Tenda Spirit test, we should no longer give them hints, but let them be eliminated. If someone can’t grasp the Tenda Spirit in this work environment, it shows they lack insight and have rigid thinking, so they should indeed be eliminated.”
“The Tenda Spirit manual should not be given to anyone who doesn’t have a deep understanding of the Tenda Spirit, as this might stop them from exploring and thinking about it.”
“Only those who have a particularly deep and completely self-consistent understanding of the Tenda Spirit should receive the Tenda Spirit manual. This way, without affecting their original understanding, they can see new perspectives and new thinking.”
“This will certainly lower the pass rate of the Tenda Spirit Compatibility Test, but that should also be what Mr. Pei wants to see.”
“Second, departments shouldn’t have too much exchange regarding the Tenda Spirit, but should deeply explore the Tenda Spirit that meets their departmental needs based on their actual situation. Each department head should develop their own departmental Tenda Spirit based on the original, and avoid interfering with each other as much as possible.”
“Finally, on the issue of developing Tenda Spirit culture, we must be extremely cautious. We should use guidance rather than indoctrination, creating a subtle atmosphere that allows the Tenda Spirit to go beyond the surface and settle deeply into the details of work and each person’s heart, rather than just talking about it.”
Hao Yun nodded with genuine admiration.
As expected of the person with the deepest understanding of the Tenda Spirit, this analysis was reasoned and convincing.
“Good, I’ll share this with the other department heads right away so we can strictly implement Mr. Pei’s requirements!”
Hao Yun suddenly remembered something and added, “By the way, Wu Bin, I took the liberty of giving up that seven-day paid vacation, I hope you don’t mind.”
Wu Bin quickly replied, “Giving it up was the right choice!”
“The other department heads all have high ideological awareness. They know the Tenda Spirit can only be understood intuitively but not expressed in words. Once spoken, it becomes distorted and limits others’ thinking.”
“The seven-day paid vacation was probably bait thrown out by Mr. Pei, waiting for fish to take the hook!”
“To be honest, I’m not sure Mr. Pei would be happy with my current behavior. Although I’ve always emphasized that my interpretation may not be correct and I’m trying to cooperate with Mr. Pei, objectively, it has had some negative impact.”
“So I’m not doing this to seek credit, but purely so the Tenda Spirit can be better promoted. Giving me this credit would be putting me on the hot seat!”
“In the future, when encountering issues about the Tenda Spirit, never mention my name. That is the best interpretation of the Tenda Spirit!”
Wu Bin’s face shone with a glow of selfless dedication.
Hao Yun nodded, quite moved: “Mm, I understand!”
—
November 22nd, Tuesday.
A high-end office building in the capital.
Wu Zhicheng tidied up his appearance at the entrance before walking in.
Today, he had deliberately worn his relatively expensive outfit and washed his hair before leaving home, afraid of appearing too rustic and lowering the prestige of the entire office building.
However, upon arrival, he realized that even with his washed hair, he was still far from matching the atmosphere of this office building.
Two weeks ago, Qiu Hong had visited Wu Zhicheng’s residence and decided to include Wu Zhicheng as an investment target in the Last Resort Plan.
Additionally, after seeing Wu Zhicheng’s unbearable working environment, Qiu Hong had offered to provide him with office space and some necessary assistance.
After nearly two weeks of preparation, yesterday, Qiu Hong called Wu Zhicheng, saying the incubation base was ready. He sent the address and asked him to come check out the incubation base tomorrow.
Wu Zhicheng had looked at the address, which was only four subway stops from where he lived, quite convenient, so he came.
Wu Zhicheng wasn’t sure about this incubation base.
Having a proper office location was certainly good, but it also meant commuting to work every day, which was far less comfortable than staying at home.
Although his home was messy, it was cozy. After all, no matter how luxurious someone else’s place is, it can’t compare to your own home.
Wu Zhicheng was an independent game developer, a kind of freelancer. Going to an office meant spending a certain amount of time commuting every day. Setting aside the fatigue and crowding, the time spent accumulates to a significant amount over days and months.
So, without a particularly compelling reason, Wu Zhicheng would prefer to make games at home.
The first floor was a magnificent lobby where access was required by swiping a work card. After Wu Zhicheng approached the building staff and explained his purpose, they had him register his information before entering.
“Remember to have your company issue you a work card,” the young lady from the staff kindly reminded him.
Wu Zhicheng took the elevator to the 23rd floor and was shocked as soon as he stepped out.
This office space was so spacious!
Directly opposite the elevator was a leisure area with many single-seat sofas, coffee tables, a large TV, gaming consoles, and a bar counter.
The young lady at the bar counter was also responsible for reception. Upon seeing Wu Zhicheng, she smiled and greeted him: “Hello, are you Wu Zhicheng?”
Since the incubation space was officially opening today, and all those admitted were independent game designers who participated in the Last Resort Plan and temporarily lacked office space, the number of people wasn’t large.
After looking through everyone’s profiles, the receptionist quickly recognized Wu Zhicheng.
Wu Zhicheng approached somewhat embarrassed: “Yes, I’m Wu Zhicheng. Who should I be looking for now?”
The receptionist understood what he wanted to ask and smiled: “Please wait a moment, someone from the administrative department will guide you soon. Please find a place to sit and have a cup of coffee in the meantime.”
Seeing Wu Zhicheng’s face reveal a hesitant expression, she quickly added, “It’s free. If you don’t want coffee, we also have tea or other beverages.”
Wu Zhicheng hastily said, “Oh, then I’ll have a milk tea, please.”
The receptionist nodded: “Certainly, please wait a moment.”
Wu Zhicheng found a single-seat sofa and sat down, momentarily feeling as if he had entered a high-end coffee shop, a bit unaccustomed to it.
He looked up and surveyed the entire office space. There were two such rest areas, with another one at the far end.
It seemed that the rest area by the entrance also served the function of receiving guests, while the one inside was more private.
These two rest areas shared one bar counter, with ample coffee and beverage supplies.
Apart from these spaces, the rest was all work area, with spacious desks sparsely arranged, making Wu Zhicheng instinctively feel this was a great waste of office space.
There were no meeting rooms, perhaps because they weren’t needed.
Since most people in the incubation space were independent game developers, situations requiring most people to meet together were extremely rare. For small meetings of two or three people, they could simply chat over coffee in the rest area. Setting aside a separate meeting room didn’t make much sense.
The entire office space gave a very free and open feeling, completely incomparable to the cramped and oppressive work environments of other companies.
Wu Zhicheng looked around, finding it somewhat unbelievable.
This was far better than the best situation he had imagined!