Chapter 500: Fenghuang Chat

March 18, 2005, Shenzhen.

The day marking the fourth anniversary of the Fenghuang Phone launch.

On the top floor of Building 6 at the Nanshan R&D Center, over two hundred people were packed into a temporarily converted hall, the air so thick it could be twisted into water.

Outside the window was the early‑spring outline of Fenghuang Mountain, but no one cared to look. Everyone's gaze was fixed on the huge projection screen directly ahead in the hall.

On the screen, a line of text lay quietly:

"Fenghuang Chat – Internal Test Version v0.9"

Next to it was a star—the exact same star from the Fenghuang Phone boot animation, except this one had a few tiny light dots around it, swirling together.

Chen Mo stood beside the projector, his palms slick with sweat.

Behind him were 137 programmers, designers, and test engineers—over the past 730 days they slept at the company, ate at the company, turned their youth into code and their dreams into logic.

Now, this "egg" was finally about to hatch.

"Chief Chen," Xiao Wang leaned in beside him, his voice tight, "the server stress test passed; 100,000 users online simultaneously, no problem."

"What about the database?"

"It holds up. Message logs are kept for six months, images for one month."

Chen Mo nodded and took a deep breath.

He pulled out the third‑generation Fenghuang Phone, pressed the power button, and the screen lit up. On the home screen appeared a new icon—the same star, but now with two words beneath it: Fenghuang Chat.

He tapped it.

On the login screen, you could use a phone number or a Fenghuang account.

He entered his test account, password, and hit Enter.

Zero point three seconds.

The main interface popped up. At the top were his name and avatar; below were four tabs: Chat, Contacts, Moments, More.

He opened Moments.

It was empty, save for a system prompt: "Welcome to Fenghuang Chat. Here, share your life."

He froze for a moment, then smiled.

730 days, from zero lines of code to 470,000 lines, from a small team of a dozen people to a department of 137. From the saying "building a company is like planting a tree," to today's little tree finally sprouting its first leaf.

He lifted his head and looked at the 137 pairs of eyes below him.

"Everyone," he began, his voice a little trembling, "we've made it."

7 p. m., the 38th floor of Wanxiang Dasha.

Li Yaozong sat in his office, holding the phone with Fenghuang Chat installed. He had been scrolling through Moments for half an hour—of course there was little to see; the test accounts numbered only a dozen or so, and all the posts were test content.

But he couldn't stop.

Because a thought occupied him.

How far could this thing really go?

A knock sounded at the door.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Chen Mo entered, followed by Zhao Ming.

"Chief Li," Chen Mo plopped onto the sofa, looking as if his spirit had been drained, "today's internal test passed the stress test, all functions ran smoothly."

Li Yaozong nodded.

"Hard work."

Chen Mo shook his head.

"Chief Li, I'd like to ask you a question."

"Go ahead."

"What exactly do we want this thing to become?"

Li Yaozong looked at him.

"What do you think?"

Chen Mo was silent for a moment.

"I've been in this field for eight years, four of them at Tencent. I know exactly what QQ is—just a chat tool. But our Fenghuang Chat, if it remains merely a chat tool, it's meaningless."

He paused.

"I want it to run on phones. Not just chatting on a computer, but chatting anytime, anywhere on a phone. Not just typing, but sending photos, voice messages, and finding nearby people."

He looked at Li Yaozong.

"Chief Li, can we create something that only exists on a phone?"

Li Yaozong did not answer immediately.

He stood up and walked to the window.

Outside, Shenzhen's night was deep. In the distance, the lights of the Nanshan R&D Center glittered like a field of stars. Among those stars were Chen Feng's chip team, Zhao Ming's software team, and Chen Mo's chat team.

137 people, 730 days, 470,000 lines of code.

They had built something that could run.

But being able to run and being alive are two different things.

"Chen Mo," he turned, "do you know how many users QQ has?"

Chen Mo nodded.

"400 million."

"400 million," Li Yaozong repeated, "how many do we have now?"

"In internal testing, three hundred users."

"300 versus 400 million." Li Yaozong looked at him, "How do we fight this battle?"

Chen Mo thought for a moment.

"Don't fight."

Li Yaozong raised an eyebrow.

"Don't fight?"

"Right, don't fight." Chen Mo stood up, walked to the window, standing side by side with Li Yaozong, "QQ is something on computers. We make something for mobile phones. There are 400 million computer users; mobile phones will outnumber computers."

He paused.

"Mr. Li, I bet that five years from now, the number of people chatting on mobile phones will be twice that of those using computers."

Li Yaozong looked at him.

This 34-year-old young man already had white hair, but the light in his eyes was brighter than that of many people he had seen.

"Continue."

"What can a mobile phone do? It can take photos, locate, and be carried everywhere. Can a computer do those things?"

Chen Mo spoke faster and faster.

"I want to add a feature to Fenghuang Chat called 'Nearby People.' When turned on, you can see people nearby who are also using Fenghuang Chat. You can add friends, chat, and make acquaintances."

"Can a computer do this? No, because it can't locate."

He thought again.

"I also want to add a feature called 'Friend Circle.' Not like QQ Space, but one you scroll through on a phone. Take a photo, post it, and friends can comment and like. If you want to see it, you see it; if not, you swipe past."

"Can a computer do this? Yes. But who would do this on a computer?"

He looked at Li Yaozong.

"Mr. Li, we don't make things for computers. We make things that only exist on mobile phones and can't be done well on computers."

Li Yaozong was silent for a long time.

Then he smiled.

"Chen Mo, do you know what my father once told me?"

Chen Mo shook his head.

"He said, making a product isn't about beating anyone; it's about making users feel it's worthwhile."

He looked at Chen Mo.

"Do the things you just mentioned make users feel it's worthwhile?"

Chen Mo nodded.

"Worthwhile."

"Then do it."

In April 2005, Fenghuang Chat began a limited public beta.

The first batch of users were ten thousand loyal fans of the Fenghuang Phone. They were selected on the forum and received a text message: "Congratulations, you have obtained beta access to Fenghuang Chat. Download…"

On the first day, 9,300 people downloaded it.

On the second day, 12,000 people.

On the third day, 18,000 people.

The server almost crashed.

Chen Mo, leading his team, worked overtime for 72 consecutive hours and expanded the server capacity threefold.

On the tenth day, Fenghuang Chat's user count surpassed 50,000.

On the twentieth day, it surpassed 100,000.

On the thirtieth day, it surpassed 200,000.

Li Yaozong looked at the growth curve and was silent for a long time.

Then he asked Chen Mo.

"Do you know why the growth is so fast?"

Chen Mo thought for a moment.

"Because of mobile phones."

"Right." Li Yaozong nodded, "Because of mobile phones."

He pointed at that curve.

"On computers, users use QQ because their friends use it. On mobile phones, users use Fenghuang Chat because this feature exists on phones. No download, no registration; it's there as soon as you turn on the device."

He paused.

"That's our advantage."

In May 2005, Fenghuang Chat released its first major update.

New feature: group chat.

Chen Mo gave this feature a name, calling it "Group."

You can create a group, add people, and chat within the group. The group owner can kick members and set administrators. Up to 100 people can be added.

On the first day online, the number of groups exceeded 1,000.

On the tenth day online, it exceeded 10,000.

Some people organized class reunions in groups, some discussed work, some talked about stocks, some …

... pursued relationships.

Chen Mo was stunned when he saw that data.

"Who is looking for a partner in the groups?"

Xiao Wang scratched his head.

"Users create their own groups, and while chatting… they end up hitting it off."

Chen Mo was silent for three seconds.

Then he said, "Add a feature."

"What feature?"

"Red envelope," Chen Mo said, "let users send red envelopes in groups."

In July 2005, Fenghuang Chat version 1.2 went live.

New feature: red envelope.

It can be sent to an individual or to a group. The amount is set by the user, from one cent to two hundred yuan. For group red envelopes, whoever grabs it gets it.

On the first day online, red envelope sends totaled eight thousand.

On the tenth day, fifty thousand.

On the thirtieth day, 370,000.

Someone sent a red envelope in a group to celebrate a birthday, someone else sent one to thank for help, someone else sent one…

A proposal.

Chen Mo looked at the numbers, not knowing whether to cry or laugh.

"Send a red envelope to propose?"

Xiao Wang nodded.

"Users came up with it themselves. Send a big red envelope in a group, then @everyone, saying 'This is my fiancée, no one else should grab it.'"

Chen Mo was silent for a long time.

Then he said, "Add a feature."

"What feature?"

"Allow users to customize the red envelope cover," Chen Mo said, "red for weddings, cake for birthdays, whatever they want."

In September 2005, Fenghuang Chat version 1.3 went live.

New feature: Friend Circle.

It's not the long‑form QQ Space journal; it's a swipeable, post‑by‑post, picture‑and‑text "Moment" on the phone.

Users can take a photo, write a sentence, and post it. Friends can see it, like it, comment on it. If they don't want to see it, they can swipe past.

On the first day, Friend Circle posts reached forty thousand.

On the tenth day, 270,000.

On the thirtieth day, 1,230,000.

Someone posted pictures of kids, someone posted food, someone posted travel, someone posted…

A partner.

Chen Mo looked at the numbers and finally smiled.

"This," he said, "is what we really need to make."

In October 2005, Wanxiang Group Quarterly Strategy Meeting.

The conference room was packed. Chen Feng, Zhao Ming, He Xiao, Lin Jiawen, Zhou Yuanhang… and Chen Mo.

Li Yaozong sat at the head seat, with three reports before him.

One report showed Fenghuang Phone sales for the third quarter: 9.7 million units.

Another showed Fenghuang Chat's user count, surpassing ten million.

The third showed Fenghuang Garden downloads, exceeding 500 million times.

"Everyone," he began, "this quarter we performed well."

No one spoke, but everyone wore a smile.

"But it's not enough."

He looked at Chen Mo.

"Fenghuang Chat, what's the next step?"

Chen Mo stood up and walked to the whiteboard.

He drew a circle and wrote "Chat" inside.

He drew another circle and wrote "Friend Circle" inside.

He drew a third circle and wrote "Group Chat" inside.

The last circle contained "Red Envelope".

"These four," he said, "are what we already have."

He drew another circle and wrote "Friendship" inside.

"This," he said, "is the next step."

He looked at the people present.

"Fenghuang Chat now has ten million users. These people are spread across the country, across all ages, with various interests and hobbies."

He paused.

"I want to create a feature called 'Same-city Friend Matching.' Users can set their interests, and the system will recommend nearby people who share them."

"Those who want to play ball can find teammates. Those who want to sing can find singing partners. Those who…"

He smiled.

"Those looking for a partner can also find a partner."

A burst of laughter rang through the conference room.

Li Yaozong also laughed.

"Do," he said.

In December 2005, Phoenix Chat version 1.4 launched.

New feature: local city matchmaking.

Users can set their own tags: basketball, movies, music, reading, travel… The system will, based on these, recommend nearby people with the same tags.

On the first day online, successful matches numbered 3,700 pairs.

On the tenth day, 32,000 pairs.

On the thirtieth day, 170,000 pairs.

Some people found basketball partners on it, some found singing partners, some found…

Partners.

Chen Mo looked at that data and finally laughed outright.

"This," he said, "is what a phone can actually do."

December 31, 2005, New Year's Eve.

On the rooftop of Wanxiang Dasha, Li Yaozong stood there, holding that Phoenix third‑generation phone in his hand.

On the screen was Phoenix Chat's Moments.

He scrolled through those posts, one by one.

Some posted their New Year's Eve dinner, some posted fireworks, some posted family portraits, some posted…

A photo of him and her together.

The caption was only one sentence:

"We've known each other on Phoenix Chat for a year."

Li Yaozong looked at the photo and smiled.

Then he scrolled down and saw another one.

It was a screenshot of Phoenix Chat's group chat interface. The group was named "Phoenix Employee Group" and had over three hundred members.

The group admin posted a message:

"Everyone, this year Phoenix Chat's users have surpassed twenty million. Next year, our goal is one hundred million. Let's all work hard!"

Below followed a string of replies:

"Keep it up!"

"Keep it up!"

"Keep it up!"

Li Yaozong looked at those "Keep it up"s and suddenly felt his eyes get a bit warm.

Twenty million users.

Seven hundred and thirty days, twenty million users.

From a three‑hundred‑person internal test to twenty million users.

From a small team of a dozen people to a large department of three hundred.

From zero lines of code to three million lines of code.

He lifted his head and looked at the distant night sky.

Shenzhen's night sky showed no stars. But he knew the stars were right there.

Just like Phoenix Chat's tiny icon, sitting inside twenty million phones.

Behind him, the New Year's bells were ringing.

The year 2006 arrived.