Chapter 189: A 100 Billion Investment Return, A Scheme Two Years Ahead of Time

The lunch ended, and Chen Yansen still hadn't managed to straighten out Zhang Yiming's thinking.

At this point, Zhang Yiming was increasingly convinced that combining a mobile browser with a search engine algorithm was absolutely a goldmine.

Chen Yansen laughed wryly, and in the end couldn't be bothered to keep persuading him.

After a short rest, they moved into the economic and trade cooperation procedures; some offline factories took the initiative to approach Wang Shubin of Shangtongda and signed agency operation contracts.

Song Yuncheng also signed several merchant onboarding contracts—after all, the factory bosses who could attend this exchange meeting were naturally no small fry in scale.

Riding on Pinbei's outstanding Double Twelve results, Song Yuncheng landed them effortlessly—half of them came to her on their own.

Gao Weilin was also surrounded by plenty of entrepreneurs seeking financing; after one full round, he had a thick stack of business plans in hand.

Chen Yansen raised his hand to check the time, found the air in the conference hall too stifling, and pulled Wang Zihao outside for some fresh air.

Before long, Cheng Weixing of Fancheng Technology came over and synced up with Chen Yansen on the time and location of the evening gathering.

Seeing how sharp and smooth he was, and figuring he had nothing better to do anyway, Chen Yansen chatted with him a bit more.

"I'm a civil engineering graduate from Zhejiang University. In my sophomore year I founded *Science & Innovation* magazine, and in my junior year I established Fancheng Technology. *Magic Academy* earned me tens of millions, but the games launched in the past two years haven't made much of a splash."

Cheng Weixing introduced himself; though there was some self-deprecation, the impression he left on Chen Yansen and Wang Zihao was largely positive and upbeat.

If you didn't compare him to Chen Yansen, Cheng Weixing's resume was practically the textbook template for a novel's male lead.

He hadn't even graduated from college yet, and he was already worth tens of millions.

To be frank, Lei Yijun at the same age definitely didn't have that much money in his pocket.

Chen Yansen nodded slightly, thinking: the voice in China's gaming industry will gradually concentrate in the hands of the top giants.

With the three mountains of Penguin, NetEase, and Perfect World pressing down, newcomers find it very hard to break through.

If Cheng Weixing could see the situation clearly and pivot in time, there might still be a chance to rise again.

Chen Yansen stayed silent, making his own private assessment.

"So, leveraging Fancheng Technology's resources, I plan to develop an O2O ride-hailing app based on LBS technology. Simply put, it uses GPS positioning to obtain the geographic locations of passengers and taxis, so passengers can hail a cab anytime, anywhere, and drivers can reduce their empty cruising rate and boost earning efficiency."

Cheng Weixing said with a smile.

A ride-hailing app?

Chen Yansen paused briefly, then asked curiously, "What's the product called, President Cheng?"

"I haven't decided on a name yet, but I heard President Chen invested in a food-delivery platform called Kuaipao. I think these two business models are very similar—why not call it Kuaidi! The fastest taxi!"

Cheng Weixing answered casually.

Kuaidi?

The founder of a ride-hailing network?

Chen Yansen knew that the ride-hailing giant of more than a decade later would be a merger of Didi, Kuaidi, and Uber China, backed by the intertwined interests of over a dozen domestic and overseas investment firms.

But who was Cheng Weixing?

Chen Yansen really had no impression; he only knew that Didi's founder was Cheng Wei, and his successor was Liu Qing.

At the same time, he understood what Cheng Weixing meant by saying all this—nothing more than wanting to pull in investment, or to ride on Senlian Capital's reputation in the industry.

Was this Kuaidi ride-hailing the same Kuaidi ride-hailing he was thinking of?

Chen Yansen was a little puzzled, but he had a good impression of Cheng Weixing and didn't overthink it, smiling as he asked, "Sounds good. Does this project need funding?"

In reality, Cheng Weixing wasn't short on money; the funds in his hands could at least take Kuaidi ride-hailing to a user base of over five million.

But he understood in his heart that an entirely new track required massive capital to cultivate the market—much like the food-delivery industry.

What worried him was that follow-up funding might not keep up, that the capital chain would snap.

Cheng Weixing had schemed for exactly this sentence from Chen Yansen. Unhurried, he said, "Thank you for your support, President Chen. If needed, I can provide a more detailed business plan."

Does this thing even need a business plan?

Just burn cash to grab market share!

Chen Yansen muttered to himself, while on the surface he nodded slightly and added, "Talk to President Gao at Senlian Capital about this."

"Thank you, President Chen." Having received a positive response, Cheng Weixing thanked him again.

Latching onto Senlian Capital, Kuaidi ride-hailing could quickly make a name for itself in the investment circle.

Take Kuaipao for example—before Chen Yansen invested, even investment advisors wouldn't give Kang Guodong and Pei Yi the time of day.

Now Penguin, DST, and Jin Sha Ventures have all expressed investment intent toward Kuaipao.

In just two short months—could the food-delivery industry really have undergone earth-shaking changes?

Cheng Weixing knew it hadn't; it was simply because Chen Yansen had taken a stake in Kuaipao, and Penguin, DST, and Jin Sha Ventures were merely bullish on Chen Yansen's decision and following his lead.

A lot of the time, investment banks operate like dating—if no one else wants it, I don't want it either; if everyone's fighting over something, I want a piece too.

Chen Yansen smiled, then learned that Cheng Weixing had even registered the trademark, which confirmed in his mind that this Kuaidi was the very ride-hailing app that would later ignite a subsidy war with Didi.

As for Cheng Weixing, most likely after his equity was diluted, he was kicked out by capital.

Even Didi's Cheng Wei couldn't hold onto the CEO position; Cheng Weixing might look shrewd and had five or six years of entrepreneurial experience, but in the face of the Liu family and big capital, he was clearly out of his depth.

Chen Yansen told Wang Zihao to go into the conference hall and call Gao Weilin out.

Two minutes later, Gao Weilin strode over, and after hearing Cheng Weixing's introduction, stepped forward to shake his hand and make friendly overtures.

Since it was an investment case personally greenlit by the boss, he had no need to overthink it—just handle the follow-up, and buy as much equity as possible for as little money as possible.

The smile never left Cheng Weixing's face; he hadn't expected things to go so smoothly.

Gaining Chen Yansen's recognition was also an encouragement, reinforcing his belief that Kuaidi ride-hailing was a project with good potential.

He had originally planned to use Fancheng Technology's team to first develop the Android version of Kuaidi ride-hailing and take it from there, but now that Senlian Capital's funding was within reach, he immediately resolved to assemble Kuaidi's own technical team as soon as possible and devote more energy to the new product.

"President Chen, please excuse me for a moment. Let's chat more tonight—let me play the proper host."

Cheng Weixing apologized with a smile and left cheerfully.

"Sen-ge, these people are seriously impressive—they can even come up with products like this. I think it has real prospects. Take the students at Xu Yuan for example: to get into the city they usually only have the bus or unlicensed cabs, which charge a flat rate—take it or leave it. Once Kuaidi launches, let's see if those bastards dare act so cocky."

Wang Zihao gazed at Cheng Weixing's retreating back and couldn't help sighing in admiration.

"Impressive? Impressive my ass! Old Gao, what do you think?"

Chen Yansen curled his lip and said dismissively.

"President Wang, actually this kind of O2O ride-hailing software already existed two years ago in the Lighthouse Country—the product is called Uber; South America also has a similar product called Easy Taxi, and it's very popular in Brazil."

Gao Weilin explained with a smile.

There are no real geniuses in this world—they just stand higher, see more, and profit off information asymmetry.

Ma Liyun's Taobao imitated eBay;

Ma Wenteng's Penguin imitated ICQ;

Youku Tudou imitated YouTube;

Didi imitated Uber;

Group buying imitated Groupon;

Xiaohongshu imitated Instagram.

Even Chen Yansen's Fox Tao imitated Ebates.

The entertainment circle has its localization masters, and the internet and business circles have their own porters.

"So that's how it is." Wang Zihao felt suddenly enlightened, thinking only that he had seen too little of the world.

"Learn English well, browse foreign sites less for videos when you have spare time, and study more new foreign products."

Chen Yansen said with a teasing smile.

"Brother Sen, don't slander me—I don't even know who Sora Aoi, Maria Ozawa, and Yoshizawa Akiho are."

Wang Zihao grinned and deliberately said so.

"Zihao, your viewing volume is too low. Those three teachers stopped being popular long ago—Yua Aihara and Mizukawa Jun are the real premium picks."

Gao Weilin threw an arm around Wang Zihao and started chatting as if no one else were around.

Chen Yansen smiled and shook his head, then lifted his foot toward the banquet hall. It was getting late; time to call Song Yuncheng to wrap things up.

After dinner ended, he still had to rush back to Xucheng—tomorrow was Sister Chengzi Tech's new product launch, and he couldn't afford to be absent.

Ten minutes later.

Chen Yansen and the others, along with Zhang Yiming, headed together to the small tavern Cheng Weixing had reserved.

Zhang Yiming had come to Hangcheng by plane. Although he had a runabout car worth a little over two hundred thousand, he'd left it in Yanjing.

Along the way, the two got chatting again about startup projects, and Zhang Yiming remained unable to let go of his mobile browser idea.

"I suggest you first survey the market and competitive landscape before deciding. Since you don't want to join Pinbei, how about the idea of jointly funding a new company? You can be CEO, and Senlian can provide funding and connections."

Seeing this, Chen Yansen looked at Zhang Yiming seriously.

"Many thanks for the advice, President Chen—I have no objections to the cooperation."

Zhang Yiming hurriedly agreed.

By age, he was older than Chen Yansen; by achievement, he was nowhere near Chen Yansen.

With Chen Yansen's wealth and standing, he could sit as an equal with the likes of Ma Wenteng, Li Yanhong, and Ding Lei.

If he still refused, he'd be a bit ungrateful.

Besides, he still felt a touch of admiration and respect for Chen Yansen, so being valued and mentored by him naturally filled him with pride.

By the time they arrived at the small tavern, the restaurant had only their table—Cheng Weixing had paid to book the whole place, specially hosting Chen Yansen and the others.

"President Chen!" The moment Chen Yansen appeared, the people inside quickly stood up and came forward to greet him.

Jumei Youpin's Cheng Ou, Youzu Interactive's Lin Qi, and Shangtongda's Wang Shubin.

In the business circle, everyone respects strength.

Although Chen Yansen was the youngest, no one dared look down on him.

Chen Yansen swept his gaze over the three and greeted them with a smile: "President Cheng, President Lin, President Wang, please sit!"

Cheng Weixing, behind him, turned to fetch the menu.

This was a small private kitchen—didn't look big, but the decor was exceptionally refined; even the chairs under everyone's bottoms were made of Dalbergia cochinchinensis wood.

The moment they sat down, Cheng Weixing walked over carrying two bottles of yellow wine and a menu.

Chen Yansen took the menu, casually ordered a few dishes, then passed it to Lin Qi.

To put it bluntly, none of them were close, and there were more opportunities for cooperation than competition in their respective fields. Chen Yansen had no need to show off—he came across as very easygoing.

Cheng Ou and Lin Qi exchanged a glance. They had assumed Chen Yansen would be young and brash, possibly hard to communicate with.

But his easygoing manner made the two of them understand one thing: anyone who amasses this kind of wealth by twenty can't possibly be simple in either EQ or IQ.

After the cups went back and forth and three rounds of wine, Cheng Ou asked with a smile: "President Chen, I wonder if Jumei might have a chance to set up shop on Pinbei?"

Cheng Ou was very envious of Pinbei's traffic. Knowing full well that Pinbei would poach its partners' brand resources, he still couldn't help himself and proactively asked.

"Of course no problem, but let me be blunt first—Pinbei doesn't resist low-priced goods, but its tolerance for counterfeits is zero, and the platform's penalty clauses are very harsh."

Chen Yansen set down his wine glass and reminded Cheng Ou.

"Rest assured, President Chen—once counterfeits are discovered, I'll compensate ten times over."

Cheng Ou replied with a smile.

Clearly, at this point he felt his control over suppliers was extremely strong and was confident there'd be no problems.

"Yuncheng, leave a business card for President Cheng—you'll handle the liaison."

Chen Yansen instructed Song Yuncheng.

"Sure, President Cheng, here's my card—just have your company's marketing department get in touch with me."

Song Yuncheng pulled a business card from her bag and handed it to Cheng Ou.

Cheng Ou took it politely. He had heard Song Yuncheng's name—the No. 1 employee of Fox Tao and Pinbei, with KA brand and platform merchant resources all in her hands.

Thinking of this, Cheng Ou picked up his glass, intending to toast Song Yuncheng.

"Sorry, President Cheng. I still have to drive the boss when I get back, so I'll use tea in place of wine. Here's to a pleasant partnership, and to Jumemei's ever-rising sales."

Song Yuncheng explained graciously, taking the opportunity to lift her tea cup.

"Alright. I'll be counting on President Song's favor in the future."

Cheng Ou didn't mind either, draining his drink in one go.

Seeing this, Lin Qi of Youzu Network had his assistant hand a business card to Song Yuncheng.

Although his company's products focused mainly on online games, the development trend of mobile games could not be underestimated.

Lin Qi naturally had ideas about developing mobile games too. For game companies like his, the most lacking resource was mobile phone manufacturers like those of Chengzi Technology.

A single game could often earn considerable revenue just by being pre-installed on phones and getting strong promotion on app stores.

This was also the main reason Xiaomi, Penguin, and Chengzi Technology could take over 50% in commissions from joint game operations.

The second half of the meal ended with the exchange of business cards and discussions of cooperation.

Gao Weilin stayed behind, preparing to visit Cheng Weixing's company the next day to get a preliminary understanding of Kuaidi Dache's R&D progress and prepare an assessment for the next investment.

Chen Yansen took Wang Zihao and Song Yuncheng into the car and headed toward Xucheng.

On the way back, Chen Yansen felt this trip hadn't been wasted.

Meeting Zhang Yiming and Cheng Weixing, and having preliminarily agreed on cooperation intentions—once these two investments were completed, they would create returns of at least a hundred billion for him in the future.

However, the ride-hailing industry was a bit deep waters. If he wanted to obtain controlling stakes, he would have to face not only Mama Ali and Penguin, but also take on the Liu family head-on.

"Before the 4G license comes through, mobile apps won't be mainstream after all. There's still two years of preparation time, so it should be fine."

Chen Yansen mulled over it quietly.

(End of chapter)