Chapter 284: A Loss of 1.2 Billion? The Crazy Ultimate Showdown! Didi

"Cheng Wei is a waste! Didi's market share has declined instead of growing, we've lost 200 million, yet got zero output!"

On the sixth floor of Baidu Tower, Li Yanhong glanced at Cheng Wei's weekly business and financial report, and immediately flew into a rage.

Over the past two weeks, Baidu's business development had been plagued by setbacks: Zhou Hongyi led 360 Search to disrupt the scene, snatching nearly ten percentage points of market share from Baidu's search business, causing Baidu's stock price to plummet.

The ride-hailing sector was equally troubled: Didi's operational reach in the northern market now matched Kuai Di's, but it still lacked three cities—Lucheng, Jin Ling, and Hangcheng—and its daily orders lagged by 1. to 1. million.

Li Yanhong regretted it.

He should have accepted the proposals from Junlian Capital and Jinri Capital earlier and removed Cheng Wei from his position as Didi's CEO.

"Huagong Iron Army? He doesn't even deserve the name!"

Li Yanhong cursed angrily.

Ali's CEO Lu Zhaoxi, Lashou. om's CEO Shan Jiawei, Dazhong Dianping's COO Lü Guangyu—all of them came from the Huagong Iron Army; which one wasn't more capable than Cheng Wei?

Thinking of this, Li Yanhong leaned back, pulled out his phone, and dialed Xu Xin: "Xu Zong, I believe Cheng Wei is no longer fit to serve as Didi's CEO."

"Does Li Zong have a suitable candidate in mind?" Xu Xin didn't press further—Cheng Wei's performance had been obvious to all investors.

Knowing Li Yanhong as she did, she understood it was remarkable he'd held out this long.

Jinri Capital held a 12. % stake, making it Didi's third-largest shareholder, but as a pure investment fund, it naturally lacked Baidu's talent reserves.

Xu Xin's implication was clear: Jinri Capital supported a change in leadership but wouldn't interfere in day-to-day operations.

"Wang Jin and Xiang Hailong—one handles technology and strategy, the other commercialization and traffic."

Li Yanhong laid out his plan without hesitation.

Wang Jin excelled in technology-driven businesses; he had led the development of Baidu's mobile operating system and could provide Didi with LBS and order dispatch algorithms—perfect for CTO.

Xiang Hailong was a veteran Baidu employee, skilled in traffic monetization and business operations, calm and steady—ideal for CEO.

"Fine, I have no objections," Xu Xin replied.

Although she knew Junlian Capital seemed to want to install their own young lady, she didn't warn Li Yanhong.

After hanging up, Li Yanhong called Zhu Nanli, head of Junlian Capital.

"Li Zong, Junlian Capital can vote in favor of removing Cheng Wei as CEO, but I'd like to recommend Ms. Liu Yiqing, Executive Director at Goldman Sachs Asia, as the new CEO."

After hearing Li Yanhong's intent, Zhu Nanli agreed without hesitation—but seized the chance to make a demand.

Liu Yiqing?

The eldest daughter of the Liu family?

Li Yanhong's expression darkened; Baidu held 36% of Didi's equity, the undisputed largest shareholder.

Junlian Capital held only 10%, but behind them stood the Lenovo Liu family—if this was Liu Chengzhi's wish, Li Yanhong had to tread carefully.

"Is this Mr. Liu's idea?" Li Yanhong probed.

Zhu Nanli frowned, instantly grasping Li Yanhong's implication: if Liu Chengzhi had ordered it, he might consider—or even compromise.

Otherwise, forget it.

"Do you have a candidate too?" Zhu Nanli countered.

Li Yanhong sneered—wasn't that obvious?

Junlian Capital, Hainan Asia, Hillhouse Capital, and Jinri Capital's combined stakes still didn't match Baidu's.

Why should Liu Yiqing take charge?

Maybe she's capable, but who's more comfortable and trustworthy than your own people?

"Yes," Li Yanhong replied succinctly.

From Zhu Nanli's tone, he'd gotten his answer: since it wasn't Liu Chengzhi's idea, he owed him no special courtesy.

This was a deal worth billions—no room for carelessness.

Zhu Nanli looked troubled, paused a long moment, then replied: "Li Zong, Ms. Liu Yiqing has spent over a decade at Goldman Sachs—she's more than qualified for CEO."

"I can offer her the CFO position," Li Yanhong didn't close the door entirely, giving a little face.

Ah, pity—the young lady wanted the CEO role!

Seeing no room for negotiation, Zhu Nanli exchanged a few polite words and quickly hung up.

Li Yanhong wasn't concerned: Cheng Wei and Wang Gang's combined holdings were only 38. 8%; Baidu and Jinri Capital together held 48. %—enough to convene a shareholder meeting and oust Cheng Wei.

To prevent surprises, he immediately contacted Zhang Lei of Hillhouse Capital and Wang Qiong of Overseas Asia.

Zhang Lei agreed readily, but Wang Qiong's stance was ambiguous—neither opposing nor supporting.

Li Yanhong didn't mind; with Hillhouse's support, their combined stake exceeded 50%.

Thus, Overseas Asia's vote no longer mattered.

The next morning, Li Yanhong, Jinri Capital's Vice President Li Guangping, and Hillhouse's Zhang Lei went to Didi's headquarters.

Although Junlian Capital's Zhu Nanli and Overseas Asia's Wang Qiong didn't attend, they sent representatives.

Early that morning, Cheng Wei sat in his office, dazed; since receiving the news last night, he'd been in a daze.

He was still too green in front of these capital giants!

Twelve hours ago, he didn't even know what AB share structures, unanimous action agreements, or voting delegation agreements were.

Now he understood—but it was too late.

"Cheng Zong, why don't we launch another ride-hailing platform and start fresh?"

Didi's CTO Zhang Bo, watching Cheng Wei's exhausted expression, spoke bitterly.

"No chance left. Every venture capital firm willing to invest in ride-hailing is already aligned with either Kuai Di or Didi. This business burns too much cash—few investors dare to put money in."

Cheng Wei gave a bitter smile and shook his head.

From May to August, Didi had burned through 430 million yuan, losing over a hundred million per month—this industry's entry barrier was too high.

Zhang Bo froze, then sighed, staring blankly out the window; a few cicadas perched on the loquat tree below, chirping incessantly—sad, almost mournful.

Cheng Wei stood, pushed open the door, leaned against the glass wall, and stared blankly at the office area.

He'd spent half a year building this company—now it was about to be handed over to others; of course it hurt.

At that moment, Li Yanhong walked in with his team, and they met face to face, locking eyes.

From Li Yanhong's perspective, what he did was justified: Baidu had invested over 200 million into Didi; if Cheng Wei couldn't deliver, he had to step down.

But in Cheng Wei's eyes, Didi was his project; Li Yanhong and the others were merely investors—yet they were ousting the founder. It was deeply unfair.

Yet such behavior was common in the investment world; Cheng Wei wasn't the first entrepreneur ousted by capital, nor would he be the last.

"Li Zong!" Cheng Wei forced a smile.

"I'm doing this for the project's stability and long-term growth—I hope you understand," Li Yanhong said casually. I understand your mother!

Cheng Wei snorted, unable to hold back the curse in his mind.

But he knew: Li Yanhong and the others were determined to replace him; no matter how hard he fought, the outcome wouldn't change.

"Li Zong, this is Zhang Bo, Didi's CTO—he's technically solid and familiar with LBS and search algorithms…"

Cheng Wei fought to preserve his last dignity, pointing to Zhang Bo, hoping to save his position.

"I know. Zhang Bo was originally a search engineer at Baidu. Clearly, Cheng Zong trusts you."

Li Yanhong smiled at Zhang Bo.

Though Zhang Bo was a former Baidu employee—somewhat a "traitor"—his recognition by Cheng Wei after leaving Baidu was also a testament to Baidu's talent cultivation.

Zhang Bo smiled awkwardly, unsure what to say.

"For Didi's CTO, I have another candidate. If you don't mind, you can stay as Technical Director—same compensation."

Li Yanhong patted Zhang Bo's shoulder, smiling as he asked his opinion.

After all, Zhang Bo was half a "one of us"—no need to replace everyone.

Zhang Bo opened his mouth to speak, but Li Yanhong cut him off.

He knew Cheng Wei was still standing there—Zhang Bo's reply would likely be insincere.

"Li Zong, please come inside!" Cheng Wei took a deep breath, forced a smile, and led Li Yanhong, Li Guangping, Zhang Lei, and the others into the office.

What followed was an unusually "pleasant" discussion.

Cheng Wei stepped down as Didi's CEO and became a strategic advisor.

Li Yanhong had hoped to buy out Cheng Wei's shares, but Cheng Wei wasn't foolish: Didi had launched less than four months ago, yet its valuation had soared from 10 million to 4 billion.

If he sold now out of spite, he'd truly be a fool.

On August 15, Baidu's management team officially took over Didi's operations.

Founder Cheng Wei stepped back; former CTO Zhang Bo was demoted to Technical Director, continuing to serve Li Yanhong.

As Cheng Wei left Digital Valley, he still recalled Zhang Bo's words: "Cheng Zong, I'll stand by you through thick and thin!"

When interests are at stake, what friendship remains?

In an instant, Cheng Wei matured significantly in business operations—but the cost was losing control of Didi.

That afternoon at two, the details of Kuai Di's Series B funding quietly topped trending searches.

"Kuai Di 3. billion USD," "Series B funding: 500 million USD," and "Recharge 399, get 520" appeared side by side at positions six, seventeen, and thirty-six.

"Recharge 399, get 520" was Kuai Di's promotional campaign launched at midnight on August 15: users paying 399 yuan received 520 yuan in ride credits plus five 12-yuan no-minimum coupons.

The more you recharged, the more you got—with no limit on participation and full refundability.

The top ten rechargers each hour received a 64GB Orange C2 smartphone.

Within hours of launch, over 100, 00 users joined.

Recharging 399 yuan yielded 580 yuan in value—a 6. 8% discount, saving 181 yuan.

Though Kuai Di offered new-user discounts and veteran subsidies, for users with high-frequency travel needs, those perks were negligible.

Within 24 hours, 461, 00 users participated in the recharge campaign, generating 440 million yuan in revenue in a single day, with an average participation rate of 2. per user.

Chen Weixing's move boosted user retention and locked in long-term consumption.

Second, it rapidly recaptures capital, eases cash flow pressure, and reduces reliance on venture funding.

Third, it cuts customer acquisition costs by using the tactic of gifting ride credits to friends and family to boost social viral effects.

As expected, on the next day, Didi Dache saw a 30% drop in order volume from existing users in Yancheng, Tangcheng, Jinmen, Anci, and Changshan—all these users had recharged on Kuai Dache.

Although user loyalty was extremely low, recharging campaigns were an effective way to deeply bind users.

Why do supermarkets, barbershops, KTVs, and restaurants love prepaid cards?

No other reason—it's damn effective and delivers outstanding results!

Wang Jin and Xiang Hailong, who had just taken over Didi Dache's operations, instinctively followed Kuai Dache's marketing strategy.

But to Li Yanhong, this approach was too passive; Didi Dache should take the offensive, not be led by the nose by Kuai Dache.

So on August 16, Didi Dache changed its response: first, it launched Baidu Maps Travel Edition, integrating ride-hailing with map navigation.

Then it adjusted its subsidy policy: it canceled the new-user promotions and treated new and existing users equally, offering two daily discounts of 10 yuan each.

Most passengers' daily commuting needs amounted to only two or three rides.

As soon as Didi Dache launched its campaign, participation in Kuai Dache's recharge promotion immediately plummeted to zero.

"Idiot!" Cheng Weixing cursed, but he could only adjust his tactics.

He didn't cancel the new-user promotion; instead, he gave users two 10-yuan red packets daily—after completing a Kuai Dache ride, the amount would be activated into Orange Pay balance.

Consider it a way to inflate revenue figures!

For a time, the competition between Kuai Dache and Didi Dache entered a knife-fight phase, burning over 40 million yuan daily.

That's 1. billion yuan per month!

Li Yanhong gritted his teeth and fought the subsidy war while actively seeking funding opportunities.

Netizens in Yancheng, Beihe, and Jinmen posted screenshots of their free rides daily on Weibo, BBS forums, and Moments, sparking envy among users in southern regions.

Online, everyone speculated: how long could the subsidy war between Kuai Dache and Didi Dache last?

Meanwhile,

The direct search battle between 360 and Baidu grew fiercer—360 brazenly scraped Baidu's web data and blocked all Baidu products.

Baidu, in turn, added 360's search products to its "antivirus software list," preventing users from properly redirecting when searching "360 Search Official Website" on Baidu.

It was purely a mutually destructive strategy.

As for user experience?

What the hell was that?

Lingxi Search, watching the entire battle from the sidelines, steadily increased its market share.

On the morning of August 17, the Beijing Business Association and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology jointly issued a public warning against 360 and Baidu, and summoned Zhou Hongyi and Li Yanhong.

(End of Chapter)