Chapter 75: Reunion with an Old Friend! Exclusive Contract with Shangcheng! (31k)

On the way back, Song Yuncheng kept her head down and said nothing.

Before tonight, she could hardly imagine that a meal with such small portions could sell for ten thousand yuan.

The cost of this meal was two years of her tuition, two years of her living expenses, and also two months of her salary.

"What are you thinking?"

Chen Yansen turned to look at her, saw her silent expression, and asked softly.

"I'm thinking that a meal cost me two months' salary, yet we still haven't signed the contract. It feels like such a waste."

Song Yuncheng lifted her head, her eyelids red; it was clear she truly felt the pain.

"But it's all eaten up, isn't it?" Chen Yansen smiled slightly, stopped walking, and leaned against the riverside railing.

The night of Yanjing shimmered with neon lights; the endless stream of cars looked like a river of stars and colored ribbons stretching across the city's center.

The autumn wind in the north carried a chill, making one feel dry-mouthed and parched.

"So, was it because Zhang Hanwen's demanded commission was too high, or because he wanted me to be his dance partner that you got angry?"

Hearing him say this, Song Yuncheng smiled lightly; her long eyelashes trembled slightly, and her eyes, like two warm cat's-eye gems, held a look of curiosity.

"Think for yourself." Chen Yansen licked his lips, walked to the roadside, and hailed a taxi; the wind outside was dry and cold, and he had long since grown tired of it.

Song Yuncheng got into the car, put the previous question out of her mind, and asked again, "But we didn't contact Shangcheng in advance; can we enter their company tomorrow?"

"People from the Penguin Investment Department helped me schedule the meeting. When selecting investors, money is just a basic condition; the connections and resources behind the investors are what truly matter." Chen Yansen glanced at her and said indifferently.

Song Yuncheng nodded, as if understanding, and the two gazed at the street scene outside the window, falling into silence.

The next morning.

The sky was overcast; fine rain, dense as cotton threads, fell with a drip-drip sound.

An orange-yellow Jetta taxi stopped steadily at the entrance of the Yinfeng Building; the driver pointed at the building ahead and said, "Hey, see that? Right there, the Shangcheng office building!"

Chen Yansen glanced quickly, gaining a clearer understanding of Shangcheng in 2010; compared to Mama Ali, Shangcheng was under immense pressure at this time. The 21 million USD in financing secured last year had been exhausted in less than two years.

The cost of building its own logistics was high, and coupled with the price war against Taobao, if it failed to secure more financing, Shangcheng might collapse in the very first year of the golden decade of e-commerce.

As soon as he got out of the car, a young man in his mid-twenties, not very tall but with a capable look in his eyes, warmly came forward to greet him.

"Mr. Chen, I am Xiao Bing from the Shangcheng Marketing Department. Welcome to Yanjing." Xiao Bing extended his hand and greeted him with a smile.

Chen Yansen shook hands with him, and the three walked into the building together. Upon entering Shangcheng's office area, they saw a huge crowd; the workstations were densely packed, and even the aisles were very narrow.

"We rented four floors in the Yinfeng Building, with about 400 workstations per floor. The company's business is developing rapidly, but the office space hasn't kept up with the speed of hiring, so it's a bit crowded." Xiao Bing explained proactively.

No money is no money; why make so many excuses!

Chen Yansen found it amusing inwardly, but on his lips he said, "Domestic e-commerce will ultimately see only Shangcheng and Taobao as the winners." This remark made the other man chuckle, thinking Chen Yansen was just joking.

As an internal employee, Xiao Bing naturally knew Shangcheng's current situation well. Although management had been seeking financing opportunities, Shangcheng's asset-heavy model still made venture capitalists, accustomed to making quick money, hesitate.

Rumors about seeking financing had circulated for over half a year, but in the end, not a single hair was seen.

Bypassing the chaotic office area, Xiao Bing led him into an office. To call it an office was generous; it was merely two or three square meters, barely fitting a desk and two chairs.

"Mr. Chen, I am Ye Qiuping from the Shangcheng Marketing Department, mainly responsible for coordinating third-party external cooperation channels. Nice to meet you; I have long heard of your reputation."

Ye Qiuping wore a high-collared white sweater; the tight-fitting design outlined her curvaceous figure as she greeted him with a beaming smile.

How could she be here!

The moment Chen Yansen saw Ye Qiuping, his pupils contracted slightly. Suppressing the shock in his heart, he thought inwardly, "Damn it, this woman indeed never told a single truth; even her resume is fake!"

"Has Mr. Chen met me before?" Ye Qiuping, keenly noticing Chen Yansen's unusual expression, asked with a smile.

Not just met; we were completely open with each other and even slept in the same bed.

Chen Yansen mentally retorted, quickly returned to normal, sat down, and said casually, "For a beautiful lady like Director Ye, it's normal for me to be dazed; please forgive my rudeness."

Hearing this, Ye Qiuping covered her mouth with a light laugh, waved her hand at Xiao Bing, and signaled him to leave.

Chen Yansen stared at Ye Qiuping, thinking inwardly: According to what Ye Qiuping said in her previous life, she should now be the Operations Director at Shangpin. com.

In the previous life, the two worked together at the same e-commerce company; back then, Chen Yansen was merely a grassroots business development staff, while Ye Qiuping was already the General Manager of the Brand Department.

One was twenty-one, the other twenty-nine; both were in the prime age for getting things done.

After they got together, under Ye Qiuping's guidance, Chen Yansen learned how to make money, expand channels, and accumulate resources.

To put it plainly, Ye Qiuping was his mentor in the workplace.

Three years later, Ye Qiuping married a wealthy Hong Kong businessman and subsequently emigrated to Australia.

He started his own business in 2017, founded Feiyu Technology, began with second-hand luxury goods live streaming, rode the wave of live-streaming e-commerce to soar, listed on the main board eight years later, and instantly became a diamond bachelor worth over a billion.

He had thought he would never cross paths with Ye Qiuping again in this life, but he hadn't expected that, less than half a year after his rebirth, he would run into her again.

Rereading an old book cannot produce a new ending.

Chen Yansen took a deep breath, suppressed the complex emotions in his heart, and began discussing the mechanics of the Shangcheng cashback scheme with her.

"Mr. Chen, the base commission range we give to other shopping guide websites has always been 1% to 2.5%. If Mama Ali wants to increase the ratio, you must give me a good reason so I can apply upward." Ye Qiuping shook her head and said noncommittally.

"Mama Ali has one million daily active users and successful brand group-buying cases. Our average order value is over 130 yuan. The shopping guide websites you mentioned sell only 9.9 yuan low-priced goods; what value can they bring to Shangcheng?"

Chen Yansen leaned back, speaking in a calm tone.

He knew Ye Qiuping's tactics clearly; if she were not interested in the cooperation, she would absolutely not waste time meeting him.

Therefore, he was certain she would agree.

"Mr. Chen, just these points are not enough. You must know that even 1% requires the big boss's approval." Ye Qiuping wanted Chen Yansen to throw out more chips.

"Currently, Mama Ali's Shangcheng cashback module is on the homepage, but the platform's jump link is on a secondary page. If Shangcheng agrees to sign an exclusive cooperation agreement, I can place the Shangcheng entrance on the homepage and add a dynamic floating window to drive strong traffic to Shangcheng."

Chen Yansen slowly presented the plan he had prepared in advance.

"We can give you an exclusive contract, but you must guarantee that the daily traffic jumping to Shangcheng will not be less than 300,000." Ye Qiuping frowned slightly, pondered for a while, and said with a look of difficulty.

Chen Yansen decisively refused: "Director Ye, tilting resources toward Shangcheng is already my greatest sincerity. If I give you 300,000 traffic, can you guarantee bringing me 1 million in revenue daily?"

Ye Qiuping smiled awkwardly, realizing she could not bluff Chen Yansen, and readily agreed.

"Additionally, Director Ye should be familiar with our zero-yuan bargaining module. I hope Shangcheng can provide a batch of self-operated products, priced under 10 yuan, as bargaining prizes, displayed only to new Shangcheng customers, thereby increasing the proportion of new customer jumps." Chen Yansen continued, "But the previous new customer CPA reward is not enough; I want 40 yuan per person."

"Thirty yuan, calculated on the first-order closing price." Ye Qiuping replied calmly.

"Acceptable." Chen Yansen smiled. In truth, he had originally expected only twenty-five yuan.

Based on his understanding of Jingdong, the other party's new-user acquisition cost at this point shouldn't exceed forty yuan, so the price he offered wasn't excessive.

Afterwards, the two of them discussed the commission ratios for each category one by one, and it wasn't until past twelve noon that the commission for every category was finally settled.

"President Chen, let's sign the contract this afternoon. I'll treat you to lunch — please try some of Yanjing's signature dishes." Ye Qiuping set down the documents and issued the invitation with a smile.

"Forgive the bold question, but where are you from, President Ye?" Chen Yansen asked suddenly.

"My hometown is Qindao — the sea views are beautiful, and the seafood is even more beautiful." Ye Qiuping answered casually.

Chen Yansen snorted coldly to himself. In your previous life, you claimed to be from Shencheng.

Facing the endlessly lying Ye Qiuping, he instantly snuffed out the very last flicker of hope.

"President Ye, a simple working lunch will do. After signing the contract, I still need to catch an afternoon flight."

Chen Yansen didn't want much more contact with her, so he suggested keeping the meal simple.

"In that case, there's a cha chaan teng downstairs with pretty good food — plenty of Jingdong colleagues treat it like their cafeteria."

Ye Qiuping had wanted to press the point further, but seeing Chen Yansen's utterly serious expression — clearly not mere politeness — she smiled and proposed a compromise.

Chen Yansen gave an acknowledgment and followed her down to the first floor of the building. After walking a few dozen meters ahead, he spotted a Hong Kong-style cha chaan teng.

Through the glass window, he could indeed see a dozen-odd employees wearing Jingdong badges eating inside.

The three of them sat down, ordered, and then continued chatting about work.

"President Chen, you're only eighteen this year? A true boy genius — and I'm not making it up, the media all write it that way. What's your view on the future of Jingdong and Taobao?" Ye Qiuping took a sip of lemon tea, led with a compliment, then steered to a topic.

"Both will succeed, and both will fail." Chen Yansen took a small sip of tea and said lightly.

"Why do you say that?" Ye Qiuping grew interested, fixed her eyes on Chen Yansen, and asked.

"I was talking nonsense — and you actually believed it?" Chen Yansen didn't feel like explaining and brushed it off casually.

Once he'd saved up enough capital and resources, he'd launch another e-commerce platform and beat Jingdong and Taobao until they were howling — at that point they'd naturally fail.

A middle-aged man at the next table had thought he might overhear some brilliant insight and had pricked up his ears, only to hear Chen Yansen come out with "I was talking nonsense" — he nearly choked with fury.

He turned his head, intending to ask which Jingdong department the other man belonged to, only to find that Chen Yansen wasn't wearing a badge around his neck at all.

"Director Ye, who is this?"

Even Ye Qiuping could tell Chen Yansen was brushing her off, and this e-commerce tycoon who had risen from Zhongguancun naturally saw through it too, so she spoke up and asked.

(End of chapter)