Chapter 522: Investment Night (1)

Inside the black Bentley.

Wang Yu-bo put down his phone, his expression cold and stern.

"Chairman Wang," Ren Ming-yuan noticed his change in demeanor and asked in a low voice, "Did she refuse again?"

Wang Yu-bo sneered, "She hung up on me directly and blocked my WeChat. It seems she is determined to go down this path to the end."

Ren Ming-yuan frowned, his tone tinged with confusion, "That shouldn't be. I already explained the logic clearly enough; she should understand what the correct choice is."

As Shen Yu-yan's senior, a successful entrepreneur who started from scratch and now leads a company that has completed Series C financing, he understands her personality and capabilities very well.

She is a very intelligent woman—high emotional intelligence, sharp intellect, good at reading the room, and knows how to leverage her advantages to achieve her goals.

Moreover, she is unwilling to be ordinary, yearning to stand in a higher position, and pursuing professional success and the maximization of her personal value.

She has a strong desire to climb upward and is ambitious.

Such a woman usually wouldn't make an impulsive decision.

Even if she initially resisted Wang Yu-bo's "recruitment" out of pride and ego, after a day of calm reflection, she should have recognized the reality and lowered her head to apologize, using the opportunity of attending the event to stabilize the situation.

Yet the reality was—she actually refused.

Wang Yu-bo lit a cigarette and exhaled a puff of smoke slowly, "Originally, I wanted to give her a chance, but now it seems, heh. Since she doesn't know how to cherish the opportunity, I will let her understand her own insignificance in the most cruel way."

Ren Ming-yuan hesitated for a moment and suggested cautiously, "Chairman Wang, the cost of doing this is too high. Should I try to communicate with Yu-yan again? After all, our previous cooperation was quite smooth; she might just be acting on impulse."

Wang Yu-bo glanced at him sideways, his voice cold, "What? Do you feel sorry for your junior?"

"That's not what I meant," Ren Ming-yuan quickly explained, "I just feel that Youjie Housekeeping is only a small company and isn't worth us spending so many resources. We can completely find other alternatives, why must we—"

Wang Yu-bo interrupted him, saying with an unquestionable tone, "Do as I say!"

"Okay—alright, Chairman Wang, I understand." Ren Ming-yuan nodded helplessly, then changed the subject and began reporting on Gongying Technology's subsequent financing and listing plans.

In reality, Gongying Technology itself is not a large enterprise in the true sense.

Although its Series C valuation reached about 460 million, its cash flow is not abundant.

In order to promote company development and pave the way for a New Third Board listing, they established a Strategic Investment Department to acquire traffic entry points and value-added services through external investments in small enterprises with potential for business cooperation, thereby expanding their market layout.

To this end, they simultaneously contacted four small housekeeping companies similar to Youjie Housekeeping.

They hoped to gradually turn these companies into subsidiaries of Gongying Technology through the establishment of vague and targeted investment clauses. Compared to this, the terms for Youjie Housekeeping were already considered the most lenient.

After all, Shen Yu-yan is Ren Ming-yuan's alumna and a key case introduced by the Entrepreneurship Incubator.

For example, the valuation adjustment mechanism (valuation adjustment mechanism) where the investment is paid in two installments would basically not cause problems under normal business development, and the second installment of investment funds would eventually be obtained.

As for the repurchase clause, it is almost impossible to trigger.

According to the agreement, it would only be triggered if the company has major financial problems, core team members resign, performance declines significantly, or there are illegal or non-compliant acts.

Therefore, Shen Yu-yan and the others signed it willingly at the time.

After all, in their view, these conditions were almost impossible to achieve simultaneously.

It was also much more reasonable than the performance targets and listing plans stipulated by other investment institutions.

Even for Gongying Technology, it was not to make them repurchase equity; the profit from that is far less than the listing gains.

They truly wanted Youjie Housekeeping to develop as a tool for Gongying Technology to attract traffic, rather than racking their brains to obtain a failed housekeeping company.

Initially, Wang Yu-bo's plan was to kick Shen Yu-yan out of the core management team through capital operations, have Gongying Technology control the company's operations, and then attract her to rejoin with a high salary or position.

This way, they could control the situation while avoiding direct conflict.

However, Shen Yu-yan not only refused his proposal but also openly expressed disgust and resistance.

This completely infuriated Wang Yu-bo.

To him, this was an insult that had to be retaliated against.

As the majority shareholder of Youjie Housekeeping, holding 44.4% of the shares, Gongying Technology possesses a certain degree of control, veto power over major decisions, and more importantly, a "jointly managed account."

Through these means, they can directly influence Youjie Housekeeping's business and cause them financial problems.

As for illegal or non-compliant acts, they are actually easy to find.

As a housekeeping company, personnel turnover is extremely high, and coupled with Shen Yu-yan's strict cost control, there are actually many things that can be dug into, such as social security payments for employees and resignation disputes.

Once a professional legal team intervenes, these are not problems.

As for the resignation of core team members?

Ren Ming-yuan is even less worried. For example, his junior Wang Ning, who also graduated from the School of Computer Science, had chatted with him privately many times.

Wang Ning yearned for a tech enterprise like Gongying Technology that was about to go public and had previously had major disagreements with Hou Hou Shaoyuan and Zhang Zhang Tianqi.

As long as he extended an olive branch and gave certain promises, the other party would definitely agree.

It's just that this would require a huge amount of time and cost, and might even involve long-term litigation and wrangling, likely not yielding results until next year, which is definitely a losing business.

But since Wang Yu-bo is angry, as the majority shareholder of Gongying Technology and a senior executive at Mingjian Capital, the lead investor for Series C, his words represent the will of the company.

The neon lights on both sides of the Huangpu River lit up one after another.

Ren Ming-yuan stared at the river in the distance through the car window, his eyes flashing with complex and deep light.

Class advancement has always been cruel, especially under the crushing weight of capital, where the struggles of grassroots entrepreneurs often appear insignificant, or even futile.

Had he not also fought his way through?

To gain a firm foothold, he chose to compromise with capital, even going so far as to part ways with the "good friends" and partners who had fought alongside him, kicking them out of the company, only then barely climbing to his current position.

And Shen Yu-yan—she had the opportunity to achieve her goals in a much easier way, yet she chose this path full of thorns.

Outside the Coast Sky Garden residential complex.

Sun Sun Jiayue and Zhang Nuo walked out of the complex side by side and stood quietly on the side of the road to the right of the main gate to wait.

After a long while.

"Are they almost here?" Zhang Nuo's tone carried a hint of anxiety; she looked down at her watch from time to time and looked up at the intersection in the distance.

Sun Sun Jiayue raised her hand to tuck a strand of hair blown messy by the wind behind her ear and comforted her, "They'll be here soon, just wait a bit longer."

Zhang Nuo sighed and complained in a low voice, "These rich people are all the same. Even though we agreed on a meeting time, they still left us here blowing in the wind. I already told my leader that I'd be at the registration desk at 4:40."

Unlike Sun Sun Jiayue, she works at a large financial service institution (Kaifeng Wealth) as an investment analyst.

This time, she attended the event as an assistant to her leader, with the main task of assisting with client connection work.

She naturally hoped to arrive earlier to avoid delaying the schedule.

In fact, the news of the "Investment Night" event was also passed to Sun Sun Jiayue through Zhang Nuo in the first place.

Subsequently, Sun Sun Jiayue successfully obtained an invitation through company channels.

"Don't worry, we definitely won't be late," Sun Sun Jiayue comforted her in a low voice.

Zhang Nuo curled her lips and said with a hint of regret, "It's such a pity. I was thinking of interacting more with Tang Song at the banquet, sigh—"

Sun Sun Jiayue's expression stiffened slightly, and then she forced a reluctant smile, "There's no other way, the situation changed suddenly. And I thought about it later; letting him impersonate a 'tech upstart' is indeed a bit risky. He doesn't know much about the circle, and I'm afraid it would be awkward."

Zhang Nuo rolled her eyes and muttered, "What's so awkward about it! Haven't you noticed? People like Tang Song have an aura of their own no matter where they are."

Speaking of this, a hint of girlish shyness appeared on her face, "To be honest, I think he is particularly charming—not only handsome but also mature in his speech, completely unlike the ordinary programmer you described."

Sun Sun Jiayue patted her shoulder gently and joked, "Alright, Nuo Nuo, stop letting your imagination run wild. Tang Song and Liu Liu Qingning have a very good relationship; they will walk together sooner or later."

Initially, before meeting him, Sun Sun Jiayue felt that Tang Song was not worthy of Liu Liu Qingning; but after interacting with him, she gradually changed her view.

The two are actually quite a good match, and Tang Song is far more outstanding than she imagined.

Top-tier looks are a scarce resource in themselves, coupled with his current temperament and speech, his future can be described as bright.

"Oh, what nonsense are you talking about!" Zhang Nuo pushed her in feigned anger, "I'm just appreciating him! Hmph, if Tang Song really pursued you, would you not be moved?"

"I'm not as shallow as you," Sun Sun Jiayue said, though in her mind, Tang Song's figure standing by the river appeared—upright, calm, as if he naturally belonged under the spotlight.

If a boy like that pursued her, it would be very difficult for her to resist.

The phone ringing broke the brief silence.

Sun Sun Jiayue took out her phone, glanced at it, and answered quickly, "Hello, Xu Pengyuan."

"Okay, Nuo Nuo and I are by the main gate."

Just after hanging up the phone, a black Mercedes-Maybach came into view.

The car body shimmered with a low-key and luxurious luster in the sunset, and the smooth lines outlined a solemn nobility.

The car stopped steadily in front of them.

The driver's side window rolled down slowly, revealing Xu Xu Pengyuan's smiling face.

"I'm guest-starring as the driver today. Sun Jiayue, you sit in the passenger seat, Nuo Nuo and Brother Liu sit in the back."

Immediately after, the rear window also rolled down, revealing Liu Jing's calm and composed appearance.

"Good evening, Brother Liu. This is my friend, Zhang Nuo," Sun Sun Jiayue introduced politely.

"Brother Liu," Zhang Nuo nodded obediently.

Liu Jing nodded slightly at the two, "Get in."

The two responded and sat in carefully.

The car interior was spacious, the leather seats felt soft to the touch, and the air was filled with a faint woody fragrance, making one feel very comfortable.

The car started slowly and drove away from the roadside.

Xu Xu Pengyuan joked with a smile, "This car is Brother Liu's ride; it's my first time driving it too, so I'm being extra careful, plus the traffic jam, sorry to keep you waiting, my fault."

Sun Sun Jiayue waved her hand quickly, "It doesn't matter, anyway, the time is still early, and we'd just be waiting there."

Zhang Nuo nodded, but her eyes couldn't help but secretly size up the "big shot" Liu Jing beside her.

It is said that he is a representative of an industrial family from Ningbo transitioning into the investment field and is currently actively looking for high-quality investment opportunities.

As a financial practitioner, one always has a natural yearning and curiosity for people who possess wealth.

This kind of emotion has nothing to do with selfishness, but is driven by professional sensitivity.

Sensing the slightly restrained atmosphere in the car, Xu Xu Pengyuan spoke at the right time, "Everyone doesn't need to be so restrained. Although Brother Liu is a real big shot, he is actually very 'approachable'."

He deliberately emphasized the word "approachable" and paused slightly.

Several people smiled knowingly, and the originally tense atmosphere immediately relaxed a lot.

Sun Sun Jiayue and Zhang Nuo quickly caught onto this joke and took the initiative to chat, with topics ranging from the weather in Shanghai to recent hot investment projects, all revolving around Liu Jing.

Liu Jing always had a faint smile on his face, seemingly quite satisfied with this kind of interaction.

Twilight deepened.

The Maybach drove slowly northward along Pudong South Road, gradually approaching the entrance of the Shanghai International Convention Center underground parking lot.

Liu Jing rolled down the car window at will, letting the evening breeze brush past his face.

Just as they were about to arrive.

A low and powerful engine sound tore through the air, instantly attracting everyone's attention.

Sun Sun Jiayue and Zhang Nuo subconsciously turned their heads to look out the window; the iconic taillights drew a dazzling trajectory in the night.

This Lamborghini did not speed away but stopped steadily in the parking lot entrance area of the Convention Center, just happening to be lined up in front of the Maybach.

Zhang Nuo couldn't help but sigh in a low voice, "It seems this car owner is also here to attend the event."

Liu Jing smiled slightly, "This is an Aventador SVJ; it should be a modification imitating the 63 limited edition. I also wanted to buy one before."

Xu Xu Pengyuan shook his head and said with a hint of sarcasm, "Heh, driving this kind of car to the Convention Center is a bit too high-profile. Like Brother Liu, sitting in a Maybach is more appropriate."

He works in a family office and has come into contact with many second-generation heirs, among whom there is no lack of such flamboyant and high-profile figures.

Sun Sun Jiayue's gaze swept over the luxury cars around, a firm light flashing in her eyes.

She said softly, "But this also shows that the specifications of tonight's event are not low. Brother Liu coming to attend will definitely have gains."

For her, this event is of extraordinary significance.

If she can successfully secure two or three LPs (Limited Partners), she will be able to successfully complete her fundraising task for this year.

The car drove into the underground parking lot.

Finally, the Lamborghini stopped in a parking space, reversing into the space smoothly.

Xu Xu Pengyuan parked the Maybach in an empty space not far away.

Zhang Nuo's gaze was still fixed on the Lamborghini diagonally opposite.

But the next second, her expression froze, and she blurted out, "Tang Song?"

"Hmm?" Sun Sun Jiayue was stunned, "What's wrong, Nuo Nuo?"

Zhang Nuo patted her and pointed in a direction.

Sun Sun Jiayue looked in the direction of her gaze, and her pupils contracted.

Beside the sharp and aggressive Lamborghini, a familiar figure was standing quietly, looking down at his watch.

He was wearing a well-tailored dark formal suit with a white shirt underneath, looking handsome, upright, confident, and free-spirited.

And beside him, there was also a sexy and beautiful woman, wearing a professional suit and carrying a Chanel bag.

Every gesture of hers revealed elegance, and she was smiling and talking to him.

This combination of a handsome man and a beautiful woman seemed to carry its own aura, radiating a dazzling brilliance in the dim underground parking lot.

Sun Sun Jiayue looked in the direction of her gaze, her pupils contracting sharply.

Beside the sharp-edged Lamborghini, a familiar figure was standing.

He had changed into a well-tailored dark suit, with a white shirt inside, looking handsome, tall, confident, and free.

And beside him, there was also a sexy and beautiful woman, wearing a professional suit and carrying a Chanel bag.

Every move exuded elegance, and she was smiling and talking with him.

This combination of a handsome man and a beautiful woman seemed to carry its own halo, exuding a dazzling brilliance in the dim underground parking lot.