Chapter 226

The dim yellow streetlights illuminated the alleyways, where KuaiPao's Shanghai headquarters was hidden.

Under the night sky, the Yi Garden office building remained brightly lit.

"Go get the heads of all departments—the boss is arriving soon!"

Pei Yi put down his phone and instructed Kou Zhen.

Why did the boss suddenly show up?

Kou Zhen blinked in surprise, then quickly reacted, nodding and calling the managers of Operations, Marketing, and Delivery to join Pei Yi as they went downstairs to wait by the entrance.

Not long after, a black-and-white Ghost suddenly turned into the alleyway and came to a stop before Pei Yi and the others.

A soft electronic unlocking sound echoed as the car door slowly opened.

"Boss." Pei Yi and Kou Zhen greeted him immediately.

The remaining mid-level managers slightly leaned forward, smiling as they offered their greetings.

"You've worked hard. Once you drive EleMe out of Shanghai, I'll grant equity rewards to all KuaiPao employees—keep it up!"

Chen Yansen stepped out of the car and patted Pei Yi on the shoulder, encouraging him.

"Thank you, Boss. EleMe now only holds market share in Jing'an and Yangpu districts—Xuhui and Hongkou are ours."

Pei Yi grinned. KuaiPao's market expansion had gone smoother than he'd expected, and his wariness toward EleMe and Zhang Xuhao had faded.

"Don't underestimate them! If A Li has invested in EleMe, she won't let it lose easily."

Chen Yansen saw through his thoughts and warned him again.

"I understand, Boss." Pei Yi's smile vanished, his expression turning serious.

"Let's go inside."

Chen Yansen stepped forward.

Seeing this, Kou Zhen hurried ahead, swiped his access card on the machine by the door, and the frosted glass door slid open.

Yi Garden covers 2, 00 square meters, composed of three standalone villas—A, B, and C. Upon entering, you see a clear pond with dozens of colorful koi swimming, surrounded by lush greenery and blooming flowers.

"This place is great—far better than the Luzhou headquarters."

Chen Yansen glanced around casually and praised it with a smile.

"Boss, on the left is Building A—600 square meters per floor, six floors total, with a rooftop terrace included; Building B is single-story, 400 square meters, currently used as reception, interview room, and conference hall; the two-story building ahead is Building C, our staff canteen."

Pei Yi walked beside him, explaining as they went.

"Hired a chef?" Chen Yansen asked.

"Building C is too small, and Yi Garden is near a residential area—we couldn't get a fire safety permit. So we had the Business Development team pick several good catering vendors to deliver meals three times a day."

Pei Yi explained.

Chen Yansen nodded slightly, his gaze shifting to the parking lot—twenty spaces total, only three cars parked, with an open area beside it designed as a basketball court.

"Boss, have you had dinner yet?" Pei Yi asked tentatively.

It was already 6: 0 PM—he assumed Chen Yansen was passing through Shanghai on a business trip, possibly just off the highway, and likely hadn't eaten.

"What time does the canteen open?" Chen Yansen asked casually.

"Six." Pei Yi gave a forced laugh, then volunteered: "There's a Hunan restaurant nearby—good food."

"No need. Order takeout."

Chen Yansen pointed to the empty space in the parking lot, speaking lightly.

Ordering a few random meals would support their own platform while testing KuaiPao's delivery speed in Shanghai.

Outside?

Pei Yi paused, then immediately understood the boss's intent. He didn't dare object, and quickly called the security guard at the back entrance to bring out several sets of tables and chairs from Building C.

The early spring night was cool, a gentle breeze blowing.

Chen Yansen sat down and handed his phone to Song Yuncheng: "Pick what you like—order several meals."

"Can we order hot pot? I saw a Haidilao nearby," Song Yuncheng asked softly.

"Sure," Chen Yansen replied, then added to Pei Yi and Kou Zhen: "Sit down and chat—don't be so formal."

"Yes, Boss." Pei Yi thought for a moment and sat diagonally across from Chen Yansen, with one seat between him and Song Yuncheng.

Seeing this, Kou Zhen could only sit beside Song Yuncheng.

Neither dared sit beside the boss—but sitting too close to Song Yuncheng made them both uneasy.

They were both sharp—they could tell the relationship between the Big Deal's Client Director and the boss was unusual.

Otherwise, why was Song Yuncheng always by the boss's side?

If she were merely the Chairman's Assistant at Senlian Capital, that might make sense—but she was the Business Director of Pinbei!

Chen Yansen lifted his eyes slightly, seeing right through their thoughts, but he didn't care.

As long as he was strong enough, even if Pei Yi and Kou Zhen knew the truth, they wouldn't dare whisper a word behind his back.

"I ordered hot pot, Hunan dishes, braised snacks, milk tea, and beer—each from five different shops. Should be enough for twenty people."

Ten minutes later, Song Yuncheng handed the phone back.

"YunSu's headquarters is on Yishan Road—not far from here. Call Liao Wei."

Chen Yansen took the phone and spoke to Pei Yi.

For some time now, YunSu couriers had been helping KuaiPao ease delivery pressure; since they shared the same boss, Pei Yi and Liao Wei had grown familiar.

"I'll call Liao Zong," Pei Yi replied, standing up, finding Liao Wei's number, and dialing.

"Wei Ge, come to Longcao Road—I'm treating you to hot pot tonight," Pei Yi grinned.

"Maybe next time—the boss is in Shanghai today, might visit the office. I can't leave…"

Liao Wei shook his head and refused.

"The boss is here," Pei Yi interrupted.

"Oh, right—I'm on my way," Liao Wei said, then hung up before Pei Yi could respond.

Pei Yi put away his phone and returned to his seat.

"Let's briefly review the latest progress in the Shanghai market," Chen Yansen asked during the wait.

"KuaiPao's operations cover Xuhui and CN districts—1, 00 full-time riders, about 100, 00 daily orders. During peak hours, we can temporarily mobilize 100 to 300 YunSu couriers. Delivery delay rate is below 0. %…" Pei Yi reported each point.

"The delay rate is a bit high—what's causing it?" Chen Yansen asked.

0. % seems low, but scaled to 100, 00 orders, that's 200 delayed deliveries.

In other words, 200 KuaiPao users are dissatisfied with delivery speed every day.

"Navigation planning is inaccurate, and too many new riders don't know the routes or neighborhood layouts," Pei Yi sighed helplessly.

KuaiPao's expansion in Shanghai had been too rapid—he'd initially only brought 100 experienced delivery riders from Luzhou, yet within twenty days, the number had ballooned to over 1, 00.

If not for the 200 former EleMe riders among them who knew the local terrain, KuaiPao's delay rate would be even higher.

"Wait a bit longer—I've negotiated with AutoNavi. We'll complete the acquisition by March. I'll set up a group to sync AutoNavi's latest map data directly. Also, new riders unfamiliar with routes must have their order limits restricted—don't chase volume at the cost of core service."

Chen Yansen warned sternly.

AutoNavi Maps?

Acquisition?

Pei Yi swallowed hard, surprise flashing in his eyes.

AutoNavi had gone public on NASDAQ back in 2010, with a market cap of four to five billion.

From Chen Yansen's words, Senlian had fully acquired AutoNavi—it would now be a subsidiary of Senlian Capital.

Kou Zhen, sitting beside him, was equally stunned—this was a billion-dollar company, not a few million or even hundred million.

"Boss, we've already limited order quantities, but many new riders never delivered food before—they don't know the commercial or residential areas," Pei Yi admitted honestly.

"Think differently—recruit from the logistics networks of SF, ZTO, YTO, and STO. In delivery capability, couriers are no worse than food riders."

Chen Yansen smiled and reminded him.

"Boss, all departing ZTO and SF couriers have been absorbed by YunSu."

At that moment, Liao Wei arrived with Zhai An, walking quickly, smugly speaking, two muscular bodyguards trailing behind.

YunSu was in the same situation as KuaiPao—rapid growth, same shortage of staff.

But since courier and food delivery rhythms differed, he'd managed to spare some to support KuaiPao.

"Sit!"

Chen Yansen glanced at Liao Wei, noting he'd gained more weight, and teased: "Lose some weight—you're the face of YunSu's brand."

"I'll get a gym membership and hire a trainer right away."

Liao Wei chuckled awkwardly, pulled over a chair, and sat to Chen Yansen's left.

"I called you two here not just for dinner—I know that in both food delivery and courier models, the last 100 meters remains inefficient."

Chen Yansen said.

"Boss, our customer service gets bizarre complaints daily—couriers won't deliver to the door, don't answer calls, so they leave packages at the guardhouse," Liao Wei couldn't help but interject.

"KuaiPao has the same issue—users don't answer calls, then complain if we leave packages at the door," Pei Yi agreed.

"So I've devised a solution—install courier lockers in residential areas, or food lockers in commercial buildings. After users place orders, a random pickup code is generated. Once the courier places the item inside, users can retrieve it anytime using the code."

So I came up with a plan: set up parcel lockers in residential communities or meal pickup lockers in commercial office buildings; after a user places an order, a random pickup code is generated, and once the courier or meal is placed inside the locker, the user can retrieve it anytime using the code.

Courier lockers!

Food lockers!

Pei Yi and Liao Wei exchanged glances instinctively, their eyes lighting up—they immediately saw the brilliance of the idea.

It ensured package security while boosting delivery efficiency.

It ensured the safety of the goods and improved delivery efficiency.

Liao Wei slapped his thigh and said, "Boss, this plan is great!"

"But how do we implement it technically?" Pei Yi scratched his head, his mind a mess.

"Technically, it's not hard. To achieve smart storage and pickup functions, just connect in real time to the backend server—have the server send open-cabinet commands to the parcel lockers or food delivery lockers."

Chen Yansen smiled lightly.

"Boss, I get it—it works the same way as the storage lockers at supermarket entrances," Liao Wei suddenly lit up and grinned.

"The concept is similar, but the technology used is different."

Chen Yansen nodded.

With the product design for parcel lockers and food delivery lockers settled, the next step was to find pilot residential communities and commercial office buildings; if this model gained approval from 2012 users, it could be scaled up widely.

If not, wait another two years.

As the three chatted, Song Yuncheng's food delivery finally arrived—three orders.

Chen Yansen glanced at his watch; it had taken only twenty minutes, well within the time limit.

Pei Yi wiped away a bead of sweat in relief—thankfully, the nearby riders had come through and hadn't let him down.

In fact, the KuaiPao riders who took the orders, seeing the delivery address was their own company, figured it must be a colleague's order and gave it higher priority.

"Let's eat first—have any of you eaten yet?"

Chen Yansen stood up and asked the KuaiPao food delivery riders.

"Boss, it's dinner rush right now—we usually don't eat until after eight."

Li Zhou lifted his helmet visor and replied with a smile.

"Then sit down and eat with us. You're Li Zhou, right? Aren't you based in Lucheng?"

Chen Yansen waved him over.

"Shanghai pays more—I want to earn more," Li Zhou said awkwardly, answering Chen Yansen's question first, then waving him off: "Boss, we still have deliveries to make—next time."

"I'd like to chat with you about work," Chen Yansen added.

Li Zhou looked at the big boss, stopped refusing, pulled over a chair, and leaned in.

To be honest, he was touched—he'd only met the big boss once, yet the man remembered his name.

The remaining riders exchanged glances, then logged off their systems and sat down too.

As Chen Yansen, Pei Yi, Kou Zhen, and the riders ate, Zhang Xuhao, at Ele. e's headquarters at No. 335 Guoding Road, glared at the man across from him.

"Don't forget, I'm Ele. e's major shareholder," Zhang Xuhao said sharply.

"Boss Zhang, don't misunderstand—I came to Shanghai only to help Ele. e optimize its ground promotion business processes; other colleagues from the tech department can help improve order allocation efficiency."

Wei Ran shrugged and explained with a smile.

Though his words sounded reasonable, inside he mocked Zhang Xuhao: Pathetic and overconfident—if the group hadn't invested fifty million in you, do you think I'd bother coming?

KuaiPao had been in Shanghai less than a month and already seized half of Ele. e's market—this made Ma Liyun, who personally approved the investment, lose face.

So he pulled a team from Hangcheng to support Ele. e.

Who could've guessed Zhang Xuhao would think Wei Ran was here to seize power?

Hearing this, Zhang Xuhao's expression softened slightly: "I don't think there's anything wrong with our ground promotion workflow, but I appreciate Ma Zong's concern for Ele. e—the tech staff can stay."

His meaning was clear: I'll take your tech, but you, Wei Ran, can leave.

"Idiot!" Wei Ran, one of Ali's earliest business operations staff, couldn't miss the subtext—he cursed inwardly.

(End of Chapter)