Chapter 291: Two Peaches Kill Three Warriors: The Terrible Power of an Open Conspiracy

Chen Dejun and Yu Weijiao?

Chen Yansen turned to look at the rest area, where he saw the two running over quickly, their faces wearing ingratiating smiles, their eyes full of caution and defensiveness.

"President Chen, sorry for this unannounced visit; I hope you can forgive us. I am Chen Dejun of Shentong Express."

"President Chen, I am Yu Weijiao of Yuantong Express."

One after the other, their bodies leaning slightly forward, they took the initiative to introduce themselves.

Chen Yansen saw that the two held no ill will, smiled faintly, and shook hands with Chen Dejun and Yu Weijiao while exchanging greetings: "President Chen, President Yu, I have long heard your names!"

Your names?

Shentong is almost dead because of you!

Chen Dejun cursed angrily in his heart, but he had not forgotten the purpose of this trip, so he went straight to the point: "President Chen, I want to sell Shentong Express to your company."

"President Chen, I am the same." Although Yu Weijiao had secured an extra round of financing compared to Chen Dejun, only 200 million actually arrived; this sum was not enough for Yuantong to survive.

"Actually, the two of you need not work so hard, traveling all the way from Shanghai; you could have just contacted Liao Wei directly."

Chen Yansen said with a smile.

After all, the acquisitions of Yunda and Zhongtong Express were led single-handedly by Liao Wei; Gao Weilin merely seconded a team of financial analysts and legal advisors to assist.

The facts proved that Liao Wei's MBA studies were not bad; at least regarding the acquisition prices, Chen Yansen was very satisfied.

Liao Wei?

Just a mad dog; how much authority could he possibly have!

After exchanging a glance, Chen Dejun and Yu Weijiao answered in unison: "We wish to talk with President Chen face-to-face."

Talk with me?

I would only cut the price even harder!

Chen Yansen chuckled inwardly, beckoned Tian Tian to come over, asked her to brew a pot of tea, and then summoned Gao Weilin.

"President Chen, President Yu, please sit and chat slowly." Chen Yansen chose a spacious and bright reception room on the first floor and led the two inside.

As soon as they sat down, Chen Yansen said with an air of indifference: "I am not very interested in acquiring Shentong and Yuantong, because after Yunsu acquired Yunda and Zhongtong Express, whether it be transfer warehouses, sorting centers, or terminal outlets, everything is currently approaching saturation."

"Of course, both of you are industry veterans; since you have come, I must express some sincerity. I can acquire Shentong, or I can acquire Yuantong."

Chen Dejun was stunned; he was not stupid and naturally understood what scheme Chen Yansen was hatching; it was nothing more than an attempt to drive down the price.

Yu Weijiao secretly glanced at Chen Dejun, and regret instantly rose in his heart; he wished he had come to find Chen Yansen secretly, behind Chen Dejun's back.

Chen Dejun said nothing, having caught every micro-expression on Yu Weijiao's face; he could not help but sneer, cursing the other party as an idiot in his mind.

Two peaches kill three warriors; such a simple stratagem, yet Old Yu cannot see through it; where has his usual shrewdness gone?

"Boss, here is your tea; President Gao will be here shortly." At this moment, Tian Tian pushed the door open, walked in, put down the tea service, and said.

Chen Yansen nodded, looking at Chen Dejun and Yu Weijiao with burning eyes.

This was an open conspiracy; a single, light remark of 'choose one of two' had already broken the two men's offensive and defensive alliance.

He had seen through the little schemes of Chen Dejun and Yu Weijiao long ago; they merely wanted to bundle Shentong and Yuantong together for sale to artificially inflate their value.

Seeing the two fall silent, Chen Yansen was not in a hurry; he lifted the teapot, filled both their cups, and then took a sip for himself.

"Knock, knock, knock—!" A knocking sound came from outside the door.

"Come in!" Chen Yansen knew it was Old Gao and replied softly.

"Boss!" Gao Weilin, wearing a smile, greeted his own boss first, then turned around and looked at Chen Dejun and Yu Weijiao.

Although he did not know the two men, before entering the room, he had learned the general situation from the receptionist.

"This is Chen Dejun, the boss of Shentong Express; this is Yu Weijiao, the boss of Yuantong Express. President Chen, President Yu, let me introduce you; this is Gao Weilin, the CFO of Senlian Capital."

Chen Yansen sat in his seat and spoke in a leisurely manner.

"President Chen, President Yu, a pleasure to meet you!" Gao Weilin smiled formulaically, then sat down on Chen Yansen's left side.

If it were a year ago, when Gao Weilin saw Chen Dejun and Yu Weijiao, he would never have been so calm and indifferent.

But now, under the pressure of Yunsu Express, Shentong and Yuantong had long lost their former glory; the daily parcel volume had plummeted from a peak of 3 million parcels to 600,000, even falling short of the business volume of Best Express.

The 'Three Tongs and One Da' are long dead in all but name!

With a valuation of less than 1 billion, an acquisition deal of this caliber would be handed over to subordinates by President Gao; he would usually not personally intervene, at most controlling the pace and overall direction of the acquisition.

Therefore, Gao Weilin did not take Chen Dejun and Yu Weijiao seriously.

"President Chen, if you only buy one, the other one can only wait to die." Chen Dejun held his tongue for a long time, unable to think of a way to break the deadlock; in helplessness, he replied dryly, his tone bordering on pleading.

This is the unsolvable nature of an open conspiracy; it is based on publicly transparent rule design, exploiting the inevitability of the situation and human nature; even if the opponent sees through it, they cannot break it and are forced to follow the preset path.

"What is President Chen's psychological price?"

Chen Yansen asked in a leisurely manner.

He held no personal grudge against Chen Dejun; it was purely a commercial dispute; if the other party's offer was reasonable, there was no need for him to drive the person to death.

"1.4 billion." Chen Dejun fell silent for over ten seconds, then carefully stated a number.

Once upon a time, he had been a big-shot figure who could summon wind and rain in the express delivery industry; yet now, sitting before Chen Yansen, he vaguely felt a strange panic.

"President Yu, what about you?" Chen Yansen gave no indication of agreement or disagreement and asked Yu Weijiao again.

Yu Weijiao subconsciously raised his head and happened to collide with Chen Yansen's gaze.

The other man's eyes were deep and bright, faintly revealing a terrifying intimidation; although he knew Chen Yansen was merely a twenty-year-old sophomore, he still could not help but feel his breath shorten; in his panic, he blurted out the low price hidden deep in his heart: "840 million."

Damn!

What the hell is Old Yu doing!

Chen Dejun turned his head and glared fiercely at Yu Weijiao.

The two had agreed in Shanghai beforehand: Shentong's offer would be 1.4 billion, Yuantong's offer would be 1.05 billion, giving Chen Yansen a bargaining space of at most 100 million.

"President Gao, what do you think?" Chen Yansen looked at Old Gao and asked.

"Boss, when we acquired Yunda Express, their daily business volume was 600,000 parcels, equivalent to Yuantong, and the price was 760 million."

Gao Weilin instantly grasped the boss's meaning and immediately chimed in to join Chen Yansen in driving down the price.

The implication was that Yu Weijiao's quote of 840 million yuan was too high.

"President Chen, President Gao, Yuantong and Yunda differ in strength; they possess 9,000 service outlets nationwide, over 80 transit centers, and as many as 4,000 transport trucks..." Yu Weijiao hurriedly argued.

"President Yu, Yunda and Zhongtong also have many service outlets, but most are franchise-based, holding extremely low value for Yunsu; it would waste massive manpower and material resources to streamline the structure, cutting at least seventy percent."

Chen Yansen shook his head, his face full of disgust.

Yu Weijiao's tone faltered, his mouth slightly open, a fire choking in his chest; having struggled in the business world for years, this was the first time someone had criticized him as utterly worthless.

"President Chen, what price do you want?" Chen Dejun asked coldly.

Everyone was smart; laying everything out openly might yield better results.

"I am buying only one; whoever quotes lower, I buy."

Chen Yansen leaned back, pretending not to understand the meaning in Chen Dejun's words, then repeated his earlier statement. A faint smile on his face made Chen Dejun furious, yet helpless.

He had considered getting up and leaving to find Mama Ali again, but he knew clearly that Ma Liyun would absolutely not offer a high price either.

Otherwise, the other party would not have deliberately delayed the investment funds, sitting and waiting for Shentong and Yuantong to decline day by day.

If the tiger in the eastern mountain eats people, does the tiger in the western mountain not eat?

"Shentong's warehouses, outlets, business volume, employees, and number of transport trucks are all twenty percent higher than Zhongtong Express; is a price of 1.2 billion yuan excessive?"

Chen Dejun cut the price by 200 million in one breath, setting the quote at 1.2 billion.

Two months ago, when Senlian Capital acquired Yuantong Express, the bundled price was 980 million; given Shentong's market share and number of transport trunk lines, a price of 1.2 billion was very reasonable.

But he had missed a key piece of information: Chen Yansen could wait, while he could not.

"1.1 billion; I will quote only once." Chen Yansen symbolically countered once.

"President Chen, I only want 800 million." Yu Weijiao spoke up urgently, fearing Chen Yansen would truly pull off a "choose one of two" maneuver; at that point, the one who failed to secure the acquisition opportunity would have no path but death.

Mama Ali might act, might not, and when she would act was also a question; Yu Weijiao dared not pin his hopes on Ma Liyun.

Seeing Yu Weijiao was quite sensible, Chen Yansen smiled faintly, still saying nothing, merely looking at Chen Dejun.

"1.1 billion it is." Chen Dejun stared straight at Chen Yansen and sighed.

With Yu Weijiao as this pig teammate, there was no way to drive up the price.

"President Gao, I leave it to you." Chen Yansen slowly stood up and instructed Gao Weilin.

Having spoken, he pushed the door open and walked out.

"President Gao, what does President Chen mean?" Yu Weijiao had not yet reacted.

"Of course, buy both." Chen Dejun said irritably.

"Let us first sign a letter of intent; after finance and legal audits confirm no errors, we will launch the acquisition process and formally sign the equity transfer agreement. Gentlemen, any problems?"

Gao Weilin announced with extreme dominance.

"I have no objection." Chen Dejun acted as if he had given up.

"No problem; we will proceed as President Gao says." Yu Weijiao nodded and readily agreed.

On the other side.

Chen Yansen left the conference room, took the elevator to the office; he had not driven the price to the bottom because he feared pushing both men into a corner, causing them to turn completely to Mama Ali.

He opened the computer, logged into the data backend, and checked the daily data of Pinba, Sister Chengzi Technology, Jinri Technology, Weiyuanzu, Kuai Pao, and Kuaide Taxi one by one.

Ten minutes later, Chen Yansen closed the webpage and opened the news website.

"Qiandu, Jin Shan, 360, Penguin, Sogou, Weiyuanzu, and other companies gathered in Yanjing to jointly draft the 'Self-Discipline Convention for Search Engine Services,' maintaining standardized industry competition."

Ma Wenteng coming to Xucheng was indeed on the way; his true purpose was to travel to Yanjing for a meeting.

During the 3B War, Penguin, Jin Shan, 360, and Qiandu played things too far, treating users like grandchildren.

When the authorities got angry, they all gritted their teeth and reconciled.

Although Sogou and Weiyuanzu did not participate in the war, they were also summoned.

"Qiandu's market cap evaporated by 12 billion; Fang Zhouzi blasts 360!"

Seeing this, Chen Yansen could not help but chuckle; Li Yanhong had quite the train of thought, paying thugs to scold ruffians—indeed a good method.

"Taobao Browser launches, promoting a slogan of safe shopping."

"Weibo's mobile client accounts for 56%; mobile internet growth is significant."

"Meituan adjusts group-buying strategy, preparing for food delivery business."

"Li Chen's heart-shaped stone exposed; reportedly given to multiple people as the same model."

"Overtime culture prevails in internet companies; is the 996 work system right or wrong?"

August 2012; besides the 3B War, Olympic-related reports frequently topped the hot searches.

For this reason, Jinri Toutiao specially opened an Olympic column.

News of Sun Yang breaking the world record in the 1500-meter freestyle, Lin Dan defending the men's singles badminton championship, and Chen Yibing's gold medal being rigged all received over ten million clicks; among these, the news of Liu Xiang withdrawing from the Olympics sparked the most discussion.

Although the incident had passed a week ago, the comment section remained a barrage of curses.

Chen Yansen frowned slightly and let out a long sigh.

That afternoon, after signing the letter of intent for equity transfer, Chen Dejun and Yu Weijiao left Zhuxianzhuang Technology Park together.

"Are you really going to sell the company to Senlian Capital?" Yu Weijiao asked.

You damn fickle bastard!

Chen Dejun didn't even have the mood to scold; he glanced at Yu Weijiao and said nothing.

A letter of intent expresses the intention to conclude an agreement, not a formal agreement; it lacks details such as the subject matter of the sale, delivery time, delivery method, and breach clauses, so its legal binding force is weak, and in principle, it can be breached at will.

Chen Dejun prepared to take Chen Yansen's quote and go negotiate with Ma Liyun.

As for this idiot Yu Weijiao, what does it matter to him!

Seeing him stay silent, Yu Weijiao's eyes rolled, and he already had a few guesses in his mind.

The two of them thought along similar lines—both wanted to ditch the other, take Chen Yansen's quote, and go talk to Ma Liyun.

If Mama Ali's price was even higher, wouldn't that mean another two or three hundred million in profit?

On the way back, the two split up at the Jin Ling service area—one said he was heading to Yongcheng, the other claimed he was off to Huzhou.

As it turned out, three hours later, their cars pulled into the Ali Baba headquarters one right after the other.

Meanwhile.

After being "laid off," Cheng Wei spent his days wandering the streets of Yanjing, on the lookout for a brand-new business opportunity.

Although he still held equity in Didi Taxi, once he lost controlling stake, he couldn't even get a hand in the day-to-day operations.

The moment Wang Jin and Xiang Hailong arrived, they sidelined him completely—not even an honorary title left; going to the company was just being a mascot.

At the Wang Fujing subway entrance, Cheng Wei leaned against the wall, watching the streams of passersby and the endless flow of vehicles.

Ride-hailing was a dead end!

Cheng Wei refused to go back to being someone's employee, always itching to come up with a new line of business. Hurrying office workers kept passing by him, and lined up at the subway entrance was a row of bicycles of various brands—basically the essential commute tool for the white-collar workers nearby.

Bicycles!

A flash of inspiration struck—Cheng Wei's eyes lit up, and he vaguely caught a whiff of a business opportunity.

(End of chapter)