Chapter 526: Investor Night 5

The Social Plaza was brightly lit, the entire space as dazzling as day.

The air was permeated with the faint scent of champagne and the smell of exquisite snacks, and guests gathered in groups of three or five.

Low conversations and laughter were constant.

"After check-in ends, guests usually come to the welcome reception area. This is the warm-up session for business socializing, mainly for ice-breaking, information screening, and resource pre-matching." Sun Jiayue stood beside Liu Jing, her tone professional and composed. "Brother Liu, please this way."

She wore a sharp-cut professional suit, her makeup exquisite, and her every gesture exuded the capable temperament of a workplace elite.

Liu Jing stood with one hand in his pocket, his demeanor natural. "The scale of this event is indeed not small; it seems the investment circle in Shanghai is indeed quite active."

Xu Pengyuan knew that the other party had a "high-profile" personality, so he smiled and took over the conversation: "Indeed, Brother Liu. As a representative of industrial transformation investment like yourself, you will definitely attract a lot of attention here. Jiayue and I have some connections, so we will introduce you to some people later."

Sun Jiayue nodded and added: "And many individual LPs have arrived tonight, and even representatives of some family offices have come, who also have common topics with Brother Liu."

Liu Jing raised an eyebrow, quite enjoying it.

Although he could tell the other party was flattering him, he just ate that up and felt it was quite interesting.

"How is your preparation work going? Do you have any special goals?"

Sun Jiayue gently tucked a strand of hair at her temple and smiled. "I have already listed a list, mainly some LPs who might be interested in our fund. Of course, the final result depends on the communication effect on-site, which requires Brother Liu's help."

"Heh, let's go. Since I took your invitation from someone else's hands, I naturally have to keep my word."

Sun Jiayue pursed her lips. "Thank you, Brother Liu."

In her mind, she couldn't help but think of Tang Song, as well as the Lamborghini he drove and the VIP invitation.

She subconsciously looked around, but didn't find his figure.

As the crowd gradually became dense, Sun Jiayue said something and led the two to a small circle.

Her gaze looked toward two of them.

One was a representative of the Tianhong Family Office, and the other was an LP of Qihang Capital; both were on her list.

The three of them stood on the periphery for a while before smoothly blending in.

What comforted Sun Jiayue was that although Liu Jing was a bit pretentious, he was quite reliable in doing things.

And he was a real rich person, a rich second generation, and his way of speaking and doing things had a temperament of his own, making it easy to help her open up the situation. In just over ten minutes, after contacting 3 or 4 circles, he had obtained 5 business cards.

"How is it?" Xu Pengyuan leaned close to her, a hint of a proud smile on his lips. "Is the person I found for you reliable? He is definitely more suitable than that high school classmate of yours."

Sun Jiayue pursed her lips and nodded. "Thank you, Pengyuan."

The guilt in her heart toward Tang Song was much less.

After all, it was already October, and the fourth quarter was the critical period for sprinting performance.

In order to complete the task and not be eliminated, she had to go all out.

Everything could only be result-oriented.

Just then, Liu Jing, holding a glass of champagne, walked over. "Jiayue, Pengyuan, there are executives from Sequoia and IDG over there. Shall we go over and get to know them?"

Sun Jiayue and Xu Pengyuan looked at each other, their expressions unnatural. "Brother Liu, it's not appropriate for us to go up rashly. It's best to find a middleman to introduce us. Why don't we wait and see during the evening session?"

"Oh? Is that so—" Liu Jing raised an eyebrow, his face looking a bit bad. "Then what kind of middleman is needed?"

He heard the subtext of the other party, which was that he wasn't qualified enough.

Sun Jiayue pursed her lips. "Brother Liu, don't misunderstand, I didn't mean that. It's just that these people are truly top-tier figures in the investment circle, and they might be more accustomed to establishing connections through formal introductions."

Xu Pengyuan hurriedly went up and clinked glasses with him, smiling to smooth things over: "Brother Liu, you also know that everyone is very particular about propriety on such occasions."

Liu Jing was clearly a bit unhappy and didn't chat with them anymore, walking into a small circle on his own.

Xu Pengyuan opened his mouth, standing awkwardly on the spot.

Seeing this scene, Sun Jiayue sighed helplessly in her heart.

Such a rich second-generation sugar daddy is really hard to serve.

The key is, if she really had the qualifications to socialize with these big shots, why would she worry about the fundraising quota?

Wouldn't it be better to just jump ship to these top capital conglomerates?

This was her dream!

She was currently just a fundraising specialist at Hengyue Investment, and Hengyue was a small-to-medium private equity fund with very low brand influence in the industry.

Her status when facing these top VIPs at the event was highly "unequal."

Only by utilizing public sessions (keynote speeches, roundtable discussions) or using indirect relationships could she possibly have communication with the other party.

After a while.

The notification sound of the host came from the lobby broadcast: "Respected guests, welcome to the 'Investor Night: Smart Leading the Future' evening party. The main venue is about to open. Please follow the staff's guidance to enter in an orderly manner."

Sun Jiayue stood by, waited for a moment, and leaned forward. "Brother Liu, let's go in and familiarize ourselves with the venue first. The atmosphere of the evening party will be more relaxed later, and I'll take you to meet more friends then."

Liu Jing nodded faintly upon hearing this, put down the champagne glass in his hand, and followed Sun Jiayue and Xu Pengyuan toward the main venue.

As the distance closed, a familiar figure came into view.

Zhang Nuo was holding a camera, walking hurriedly from the crowd.

"Nuonuo!" Sun Jiayue waved with a smile.

Seeing the three, Zhang Nuo accelerated her pace, trotting over. "Jiayue, you're here!"

Sun Jiayue pointed to the camera in her hand and asked curiously: "Why are you still holding a camera? Didn't we agree that you would be an assistant today?"

Zhang Nuo shrugged helplessly. "Yeah, I came to be an assistant for the leader, but someone had a temporary task and arranged it directly."

Then, she explained the general situation.

Their company (Kaifeng Wealth) was a large financial service institution involved in investment consulting and investment banking, and many clients were large enterprises and well-known institutions.

This time, they came to participate in Investor Night, naturally as VIP guests.

According to the process, these heavyweight guests needed to wait for ordinary attendees to be seated before entering in batches, with an interval of two minutes between each batch.

She came with the leader this time, and one of her tasks was to take photos of the scene and act as atmosphere staff. When their clients walked by, she would cheer along and shout a few honorifics.

Speaking of this, she added with a smile: "By the way, Tang Song is taking the VIP channel, right? Maybe I'll be able to run into him later. I'll see what the identity of the girl who brought him is, and I'll send you a message."

Sun Jiayue was stunned. "Indeed."

Listening to their conversation, Liu Jing revealed a hint of unhappiness in his eyes.

He had come here harboring the intention of wanting to stand out, expecting to open up a situation for himself in the Shanghai investment circle at this high-end gathering.

Xu Pengyuan had previously talked about it in glowing terms, saying he would help him "make a name for himself" and "pave the way for the future."

However, reality was somewhat different from his expectations, and also different from what Xu Pengyuan had described before.

Those guests entering through the VIP channel were clearly the true core circle of this event.

They didn't need to line up, didn't need cumbersome security procedures, and had media coverage and interviews, enjoying treatment different from others.

And the one he came in with, Sun Jiayue and Xu Pengyuan, could probably only be counted as "peripheral."

Thinking of this, looking at the three who were still talking, Liu Jing said casually: "You guys chat, I'm going in first."

After saying that, he walked inside.

Sun Jiayue's face changed, and she didn't even care about saying goodbye to Zhang Nuo, following him quickly.

Clearly, this young master was angry.

Her fundraising quota, as well as today's "tool person plan," were all placed on Liu Jing. If she angered the other party, it would really be over.

Watching Sun Jiayue's disappearing figure, Zhang Nuo felt a bit worried in her heart, but now she didn't have time to care about these things, walking quickly toward the "VIP Exclusive Channel."

This was located on the right side of the lobby, specially built as a "Starlight Channel," through which one could go straight to the reserved area in the front row of the venue.

On both sides of the channel, many financial reporters and media were already standing.

The conversations and laughter all around rose one after another, bustling and lively.

Zhang Nuo scanned the area and quickly came to a woman in her 30s, whispering: "Leader, the camera is here!"

Wei Yilan took the camera, her expression serious: "Hard work, Nuonuo. Today's occasion is very important. I heard that due to some special reasons, the people Jingwu Capital sent this time are unusually heavyweight."

Zhang Nuo asked in surprise in a low voice: "How big? Could it be global executives?"

"I don't know either." Wei Yilan shook her head. "But judging by the organizer's attitude, at least they are at the global partner level."

"Ah!" Zhang Nuo's heart jumped, and she instantly became spirited. "So amazing—"

Although the scale of "Investor Night" was very high, it was only a financial gathering in the Yangtze River Delta region. There were some international capitals, but they were all executives in the country or the Asia-Pacific region.

A global partner of Jingwu Capital was absolutely the most dazzling person tonight.

Time approached 6:00 PM.

The originally soothing background music in the lobby suddenly became impassioned.

At the same time, the spotlights on both sides of the VIP entrance channel lit up suddenly.

"Alright, everyone, get ready quickly!" Wei Yilan clapped her hands and began to adjust the camera parameters.

Zhang Nuo stood in the crowd, her eyes shining, waiting for Tang Song's arrival while looking forward to seeing that big shot from Jingwu Capital's headquarters.

Soon, the figures of the first batch of guests appeared at the end of the channel.

A dozen or so tech companies participating in the opening presentation, including Gongying Technology, Kongming Touch, PWL, etc., among which were also their company's clients.

The flashes on both sides of the red carpet lit up.

Reporters scrambled to ask questions and conduct interviews.

Inside the spacious and luxurious main venue.

The lights gradually dimmed, and the originally lively conversation also subsided.

On the large stage directly opposite, the curved LED screen lit up with a dark blue background light, with the conference LOGO appearing in the center, solemn and eye-catching.

The digital light array at the top lit up slowly, focusing on the center of the stage.

Round dining tables were distributed in a fan shape, with exquisite nameplates marked with the guests' names, as well as high-end tableware and crystal-clear wine glasses placed on the tables.

"Respected guests, ladies and gentlemen, good evening! Welcome to the 'Investor Night: Smart Leading the Future' event site—"

The host's clear and infectious voice echoed in the venue, instantly attracting everyone's attention.

Xu Pengyuan introduced to Liu Jing beside him: "Brother Liu, next is the entry of important guests, followed by the formal agenda, including roundtable forums and project presentations. If you are interested, you can also participate."

His tone was respectful and carried a hint of eagerness.

However, Liu Jing just responded faintly, his gaze sweeping across the surroundings.

Their position was at the side and back of the entire venue, basically at the very edge.

This made Liu Jing, who had always thought highly of himself, feel very uncomfortable.

Several company LOGOs and guest information appeared on the big screen one by one, triggering a burst of whispers at the scene.

Immediately after, the spotlight hit the VIP entrance area suddenly. Accompanied by warm applause, the first batch of VIP guests stepped into the venue and appeared on the big screen.

Sun Jiayue hurriedly introduced from the side: "The first one is Kongming Touch, a local enterprise in Shanghai. This is Gongying Technology, a tech enterprise focusing on the smart home field, which just completed Series B financing in February this year, with a post-investment valuation of 350 million yuan. This time they came, I heard it's to be led by Mingjian Capital to conduct Series C financing. It belongs to the 'New Generation Information Technology' field strongly supported by the New Third Board. According to our company's internal news, it will likely enter the listing process later—"

Time passed bit by bit, and the atmosphere at the scene gradually rose.

Batch after batch of VIP guests, accompanied by reception staff and organizer leaders, walked into the main venue one after another.

These guests included industry leaders in various fields, as well as Asia-Pacific heads of international VC institutions, and executives from well-known private equity funds like Wenbo Investment and Mingjian Capital.

Liu Jing was infected by the atmosphere at the scene, and his mood improved, starting to actively inquire about the institutions and people he was interested in.

As the status of the guests continued to rise, the discussion at the scene became more and more heated, and the atmosphere was pushed to a climax.

Unicorn enterprise actual controllers, industry giant group chairmen, executives from top investment institutions—the appearance of every name triggered a ripple in the air, causing discussion and admiration at the scene.

"That is the VP of Sequoia Greater China responsible for the consumer tech field, who has led several heavyweight projects recently, among which—"

"That is the new director of IDG, just transferred back from Silicon Valley—"

Sun Jiayue and Xu Pengyuan sat beside Liu Jing, introducing the situation they knew seriously, and their emotions also appeared exceptionally excited.

As financial practitioners, they naturally looked up to these industry big shots in their hearts.

However, what made Sun Jiayue a bit surprised was that she still hadn't seen Tang Song's figure, nor had she seen the beautiful girl who was with him.

In fact, she was actually quite concerned about this high school classmate.

Not only because of Liu Qingning, but in fact, some of the traits Tang Song displayed also made her very appreciative.

Therefore, she became increasingly curious about what the background of the girl who was with him was.

But the guests had already entered one after another, yet their figures were still nowhere to be seen.

Could it be that they entered directly through the ordinary channel?

Just then.

"Buzz, buzz, buzz—" The phone on the table vibrated wildly.

【Zhang Nuo】

Sun Jiayue was stunned, quickly picked up the phone and answered, "Hello, Nuo—"

Before she could finish her sentence, a shrill scream came from the receiver, as well as Zhang Nuo's incoherent voice: "Jingwu Capital, Tang—Tang Song! Rongliu Capital..."

Her tone was urgent and panicked, as if she had encountered something unbelievable.

Having known Zhang Nuo for over seven years, this was the first time Sun Jiayue had heard her so out of character.

"Nuonuo, slow down, what exactly happened? What's wrong with Tang Song?" Sun Jiayue tried to appease the other party. "Ahhh! I—I don't know what to say! Incredible! You definitely won't believe it! He's going to—going to enter! Look up quickly!"

Hearing her words, Sun Jiayue frowned and looked up at the big screen in front.

Xu Pengyuan and Liu Jing beside her also vaguely heard the shrill shouting from the receiver and looked up as well.

Immediately after, light halos flowed on the 20-meter-wide curved LED screen, and two eye-catching LOGOs appeared in the center.

On the left was the famous SSC (Jingwu Capital).

On the right was a concise LOGO with the infinity symbol (∞) as the core design, marked below as Confluent Capital (Rongliu Capital).

Below them, several names appeared respectively.

After a brief silence, the scene instantly boiled over, and even in the VIP area in the front row, some people stood up excitedly, their gazes cast toward the entrance.

For them, everything was because of that eye-catching name "Annie Carter," and the position remark behind her, "Strategic Committee Chairman."

Everyone who had studied Jingwu Capital a little bit understood what this identity meant and what kind of power and status this name represented.

"Strategic Committee Chairman—Carter—" Xu Pengyuan's throat rolled, and he exclaimed: "How could Jingwu Capital send so many heavyweight figures to the scene?"

When the event organizing committee was promoting it before, they said that Bai Xingwen, Senior Vice President of Jingwu Capital Greater China, would be present.

In fact, that was already giving a lot of face.

As a result, besides Bai Xingwen, there were two partners, as well as the Global Strategic Committee Chairman of the top-level structure.

Such a lineup was completely sufficient to attend world-class summits or forums.

"Jiayue, what's wrong?" Xu Pengyuan quickly noticed the abnormality of Sun Jiayue beside him. "Are you alright?"

Sun Jiayue didn't answer, but stared fixedly at the direction of the big screen, her body trembling slightly.

Others were attracted by Annie Carter's identity and fell into crazy discussion, but she noticed an incomparably familiar name.

Sun Jiayue bit her tongue hard, and the clear pain reminded her that this was indeed not a dream.

Tang Song?!!!

Chairman and CEO of Rongliu Capital?

If it weren't for Zhang Nuo's phone call just now, she would definitely have thought it was just the same name.

But recalling her best friend's words, an unbelievable thought swirled in her mind.

This "Tang Song" was the Tang Song she knew.

But how could this be possible?

VIP area, in the second row of seats.

Ren Mingyuan stood up abruptly, looking at an inconspicuous name on the screen, his pupils trembling: "Rongliu Capital?! Shen Yu Yan? Special Assistant?"

His heart sank suddenly.

When he met Shen Yu Yan by chance before, they didn't take the information on her nameplate too seriously.

But now, this company actually appeared at the same time as Jingwu Capital and entered side-by-side, which was enough to prove that its background was extraordinary.

Although he had never heard of this institution, its existence was by no means accidental.

And Shen Yu Yan's status was clearly not that of an ordinary special guest, but a core member who truly entered with the representative team.

This was the critical moment for Gongying Technology's financing and listing; they had been preparing for more than half a year and absolutely could not allow any accidents to happen.

Ren Mingyuan looked at Wang Yu Bo not far ahead.

The latter was sitting in the Mingjian Capital representative team, also looking at the name of Rongliu Capital, his expression gloomy and uncertain.

Regardless of much, Ren Mingyuan walked quickly to Wang Yu Bo's side and whispered: "Mr. Wang, Shen Yu Yan she—"

Wang Yu Bo sneered, his voice low and gloomy: "Rongliu Capital's Special Assistant? Heh, she refused my assistant invitation. No wonder she dared to turn against me; it turns out she climbed up a high branch!"

"It should be like this, otherwise with her personality, she would never be so impulsive." Ren Mingyuan echoed. "Then what should we do now?"

"What? Are you afraid she will destroy our plan?" Wang Yu Bo raised an eyebrow and asked back.

"Just worried."

"Don't worry, no matter what she says, she's just an assistant, and one who was temporarily invited to attend the event. Besides, our Mingjian Capital isn't someone anyone can handle!"

"Understood! Indeed, if she really had this kind of trump card, she would have used it long ago and wouldn't have made it like this."

Ren Mingyuan breathed a sigh of relief.

Just then, the spotlight flowed slowly, accurately falling at the end of the VIP channel.

The gaze of the entire room gathered accordingly.

On the big screen, the picture flowed, and the lens captured the scene at the entrance of the channel.

Wang Yu Bo stood up, looking coldly toward the channel entrance.

Because he was close, he could vaguely see the scene in the channel.

The first to appear was a long, tall, and straight silhouette, somewhat familiar.

Leather shoes stepped into the light beam.

The light poured down like flowing water, outlining his figure clearly and vividly.

His pitch-black hair was plated with a layer of faint luster, and a few strands of broken hair on his forehead hung down casually.

He walked out of the channel with a calm and casual pace, his black-and-white eyes clear and sharp.

From head to toe, he exuded a cold and noble aura.

Wang Yu Bo's breathing stalled, his eyelids twitching rapidly.

This man—was the man who had appeared beside Shen Yu Yan in the venue earlier.

The other party's sentence "I don't care who you are" made him remember it vividly, and he had been thinking about investigating the other party's identity clearly and then waiting for an opportunity to take revenge.

He hadn't expected to see him again in such a way.

Ren Mingyuan, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, had his expression become dull and solemn.

Following closely behind, a tall and sexy figure appeared beside him.

Wearing a suit skirt of the same color as him, blonde hair and blue eyes, a devilish figure, like a cover character walking out of a fashion magazine, the sapphire earrings at her ears refracted a cold light under the illumination, setting off her skin like snow.

A pair of deep blue eyes were full of confidence and majesty, and the lifting of her red lips revealed a powerful aura that was hard to describe. Her every step carried elegance and composure, as if she were born to belong to such a stage.

Behind this pair of man and woman, seven or eight people walked out one after another.

Wearing custom suits or professional suits, the men were capable and sharp, the women dignified and elegant, their expressions focused and solemn.

Everyone had an extraordinary aura, their gazes firm.

The group of ten, under the guidance of the organizer, walked toward the front row of the VIP area, like a moving landscape.

Attracting everyone's gaze.

Warm applause rang out in the venue.

Side and back of the main venue.

Xu Pengyuan sat dully in his chair, his eyes wide as copper bells.

Liu Jing naturally also noticed that the man was the one who drove the Lamborghini earlier, which was Sun Jiayue's classmate.

The corners of his mouth moved, and he looked at Sun Jiayue. "What's going on? Isn't that guy your classmate?"

Sun Jiayue had stood up at some point, her gaze following that figure in a daze.

She had worked in a Shanghai financial company for 3 years and had participated in many large and small event meetings.

Naturally, she recognized some of the people.

For example, Qi Botao and Bai Xingwen of Jingwu Capital.

And at this moment, these people, including that noble Ms. Carter, were all willing to be his foil.

In the spotlight.

He always maintained an indifferent demeanor, as if the noise of the outside world had nothing to do with him.

Like a bright moon hanging high, illuminating the stars and rivers.

At a position one step behind him, Sun Jiayue saw that familiar figure, which was the woman they had guessed earlier who brought Tang Song to participate in the event.

"How could this be—" Sun Jiayue muttered to herself, still unable to believe it.

The shock of Rongliu Capital Chairman was something difficult for her to understand.

Her eyes surfaced with Tang Song from high school, as well as the Tang Song she had been in contact with these past few days.

It seemed to be the same person, but he could never fully overlap with the boy in front of her.

This feeling was like a dream, an absurd yet real dream.

Immediately after, the words he had said to her that night when she invited Tang Song to play the "tech upstart" LP and accompany her to participate in "Investor Night" echoed in her ears.

【"You want me to be an LP?"】

【"How about this, send me the introduction of your company's fund products later. If there are no major problems, I will seriously consider it."】

So—so—he was serious back then.

A deep sense of regret surged into her heart like a tide.

Just a few days ago, she had canceled her invitation to Tang Song because of Liu Jing's appearance.

If she hadn't gone back on her word, but had brought Tang Song to participate, would she also be one of the people behind him now?

A stabbing pain suddenly struck her heart, making Sun Jiayue subconsciously hold her breath, but she couldn't alleviate the surging emotions in her heart. ===== CHAPTER 527 =====

So it was true... so it was true... he had been serious at the time.

A deep sense of regret surged into her heart like a tide.

Just a few days ago, she had canceled her invitation to Tang Song because of Liu Jing's appearance.

If she hadn't gone back on her word and had instead brought Tang Song along, would she be one of the people behind him right now?

A sharp, stabbing pain suddenly struck her heart, causing Sun Jiayue to hold her breath instinctively, yet she could not soothe the surging emotions within.