Chapter 399: Yan Ershao Is Born, the Qin-Dong Alliance Strengthens

After the press conference ended, Yan Li invited Wang Wei’s ex-wife for an evening meeting to discuss the lawsuit.

She clearly anticipated this—not only did she come herself, but she brought along a close friend and a lawyer.

“Ms. Yang, Attorney Zhang…”

Yan Li shook hands with each of them, then got straight to the point: “I represent Tudou.com and Wang Wei—we’d like to discuss what terms would lead you to drop the lawsuit against Wang Wei.”

Wang Wei’s ex-wife, Yang Lei, said nothing; her friend spoke first: “Where’s Wang Wei? Why isn’t he here himself?”

“I believe face-to-face meetings between parties hinder negotiations. Let’s agree on a mutually acceptable condition and settle it directly.”

Yan Li had good reason to keep Wang Wei away.

He had already checked: Wang Wei’s ex-wife held deep resentment toward him, constantly dredging up old grievances and dragging emotional disputes into what should’ve been a purely financial negotiation, turning everything into a mess.

By keeping Wang Wei away, the emotional angle would diminish, and his disadvantage would lessen.

Another reason: Wang Wei had a terrible temper—he’d lost his cool during previous talks, leading to a furious argument and a bitter breakup.

Now that his company has been stripped from him, he’s even more sensitive. With his ex-wife demanding money and an enemy ally present, he might just flip the table if provoked.

“Can you make decisions for Wang Wei?”

The friend asked again. Yan Li smiled: “Within reasonable limits, I can persuade Manager Wang.”

“What do you mean by ‘reasonable limits’?”

“If both sides agree and reach consensus, that’s reasonable.”

Yang Lei finally spoke: “I never expected Wang Wei would be ousted by Director Yan. From that perspective, shouldn’t you thank me?”

Yan Li shook his head: “Senior management changes are internal matters of Tudou.com. I have no personal connection or relationship with Ms. Yang. As for the company, I understand your actions—but I don’t endorse them.”

“Don’t endorse them?”

Yang Lei sneered: “When we got married, I used my media connections to help Tudou.com promote itself and raise funds, boosting the company’s growth. Then he had an affair, divorced me, and gave me only 100,000 yuan.”

“We were legally married. He made billions from the IPO—yet I got only 100,000. Is that fair?!”

Yan Li fell silent. That’s what made this so disgusting: he was clearly in the wrong, and they’d seized his weak point—he couldn’t avoid being reactive.

It was all Wang Wei’s fault.

Yan Li had already decided: after today’s cleanup for this bastard, if Wang Wei wants to cash out and leave, fine—if he’s willing to cut his losses. But if he tries to play games, he’ll get a brutal lesson.

“Ms. Yang, I deeply sympathize with your situation. And now, I hope this outcome brings you some peace.”

“But let’s keep things separate: Manager Wang does not represent Tudou.com—especially not now. Your personal grievances with him shouldn’t involve innocent parties.”

“I hope we look forward, let go of the unpleasant past, and I’ll do my best to help you secure what you’re owed, so you can start a new life.”

Yan Li deliberately lowered his stance—first courtesy, then force—building rapport, even making her feel he was on her side.

When dealing with women, Yan Li had his methods.

Yang Lei had been divorced for over half a year, biding her time, striking at the critical moment with such force—clearly, she had guts, skill, and deep hatred for Wang Wei.

You couldn’t confront such a woman head-on—it would only provoke resistance.

She’d already gone all-in against Tudou.com; if pushed further, she’d go all-in against Yan Li too. Either way, she had nothing left to lose—so she’d just fight.

In this situation, applying direct pressure would backfire.

Start soft, separate Wang Wei from Tudou.com, ease her hostility, then lure her with benefits—make her see she gains something.

Someone with nothing and full of rage fears nothing. But someone who’s gotten revenge and received great rewards? They develop concerns, vulnerabilities.

Only then, if she still won’t yield, can you apply measured pressure and threats—far more effective than starting with force.

Soft first, then hard; gentle but firm; pacing mixed with urgency; weight balanced appropriately.

Sometimes, negotiation is like romance: you need attitude, but also strength, angle, and depth—only then will the outcome shine.

Under Yan Li’s deliberate overtures, combined with his personal charisma and the credit for removing Wang Wei, Yang Lei gradually softened her confrontational stance.

But as the conversation turned to the core issue of financial interests, the slightly eased atmosphere tightened again.

“Ms. Yang, I don’t know who advised you, but 12 percent of shares is excessive—Manager Wang would never agree.”

Wang Wei held roughly 30 percent of shares. Yang Lei was demanding one-third—Wang Wei would have to be insane to accept that.

Don’t think: “He still keeps two-thirds, and once listed, he’ll be rich—he should accept.”

That’s not how accounting works!

Tudou.com’s current valuation isn’t as inflated as during its bubble phase, but it still hovers between one and two billion RMB.

Twelve percent equals one to two billion yuan. They married and divorced quickly—no deep emotional bond, no children. Handing over billions? Who would agree?

Yang Lei contributed to Wang Wei’s career, but her contribution wasn’t the key factor in Tudou.com’s rise.

Giving her 100,000 yuan was cruel—but giving billions is a monstrous demand.

And if you give her one-third of shares, Wang Wei’s position in Tudou.com plummets. He’d never have agreed to that while trying to maintain control.

Even though Wang Wei has been ousted, there’s a difference between major and minor shareholders. And if he plans to cash out, the number of shares directly affects his negotiating power and how much money he can extract.

Wang Wei already lost Tudou.com—his shares are his only leverage for a comeback. Giving up even a little hurts; giving up one-third would be fatal.

Moreover, Yan Li didn’t want Yang Lei to hold shares at all.

This woman played too recklessly. If she became a Tudou.com shareholder, who knew what chaos she’d stir up next?

Wang Wei, no matter how flawed, understood the rules—he wouldn’t smash the pot. They could negotiate slowly. But someone like her? Too unpredictable, too dangerous.

Yan Li looked at Yang Lei, who still looked defiant, and spoke as if he cared for her: “Ms. Yang, put yourself in his shoes—would you pay that much if you were in his position?”

“And let me say something you may not want to hear: even if we gave you shares, could you hold onto them?”

“Ms. Yang, ask Attorney Zhang—under legal and reasonable conditions, how many ways do Tudou.com’s other shareholders have to slowly strip you of your shares?”

“You have no roots in Tudou.com. You lack the resources Tudou.com needs. You have no backing, no capital to resist other shareholders or investors. Holding so many shares in this situation is like a child walking through a crowded market with gold.”

“You’re a sensible woman. The capital market is far deeper than you realize—you can’t outplay those old foxes. I sincerely advise you to seek cash instead. It’s safer than holding stock.”

“….”

Yan Li wasn’t bluffing—he genuinely meant it.

Without sufficient capital, a minority shareholder is nothing before a major one. They can manipulate you any way they want—not just wipe you out, but even make you owe them money.

Eat only what your bowl can hold!

Yang Lei’s smartest move was to take a lump sum and leave. Trying to share in Tudou.com’s pie risks losing everything—person and pot alike.

Beside her, Attorney Zhang couldn’t help chiming in—he agreed with Yan Li. From the start, he’d advised Yang Lei to demand cash, and he thought her requested sum was impossible.

But Yang Lei wasn’t satisfied. Her friend kept pushing her, so she decided to start with an outrageous demand to test the waters.

Now that Yan Li had clarified key points, he hoped to persuade her to change her mind. If she still refused, believing she could take on Yan Li and Tudou.com’s board alone, Zhang was ready to drop the case and let her find better counsel.

Yang Lei’s friend opened her mouth to speak, but Yang Lei hesitated and asked: “How much cash can I get?”

Yan Li thought for a moment: “Fifty million should be feasible.”

“Dollars?”

“RMB.”

Yan Li despised some of Wang Wei’s actions—he thought giving her 100,000 yuan was heartless—but he had to admit, Yang Lei and her friends’ expectations were wildly unrealistic.

It was 2010. A millionaire was impressive. Demanding hundreds of millions? That was treating money like paper.

More importantly, Wang Wei simply didn’t have that kind of cash.

His net worth was substantial—but it was all tied up in Tudou.com shares. The company wasn’t listed; he couldn’t liquidate. His actual cash on hand was extremely limited.

Even fifty million RMB would require Wang Wei to borrow or pay part now and the rest after listing.

But Tudou.com’s listing prospects remained murky, with Youku as a fierce rival—whether the company would profit or lose was uncertain.

Wang Wei couldn’t afford to offer a compensation he couldn’t bear.

What if the stock price collapsed? He’d be stuck with a massive debt for nothing.

Even if Tudou.com succeeded, Wang Wei’s shares might be valuable—but he couldn’t cash out much in a short time.

For listed companies, major shareholders face restrictions on cashing out. Dumping too many shares at once triggers panic selling and sharp price swings.

So most major shareholders cash out slowly, bit by bit, or transfer shares—shareholder changes that have limited market impact.

Whether through gradual selling or share transfers, both require time and luck—they can’t be done quickly.

Wang Wei worked hard to extract cash, but he couldn’t enjoy it himself, nor could he use it for new ventures—he’d have to pay his ex-wife first. He’d never accept that.

So Yang Lei could seize the chance to squeeze Wang Wei hard—but demanding immediate bloodletting made agreement impossible.

“Fifty million is too little. It’s less than one-tenth, even one-hundredth of his net worth. No sincerity at all.”

Yang Lei couldn’t accept this price. She ignored Wang Wei’s difficulties and realities—she was convinced he’d made billions, so she deserved at least hundreds of millions.

Yan Li was frustrated: one side was bound by reality, stingy, unwilling to risk paying a huge sum; the other side was fantasizing, spending future money, making monstrous demands—and yet held the winning card.

Now he understood why this dispute had dragged on for half a year—the gap was simply too wide.

Yan Li had no choice but to patiently explain to Yang Lei why Wang Wei simply couldn’t pay that much.

He spoke well, clearly laying out pros and cons. Yang Lei began to listen—but personal stakes meant she wouldn’t yield easily.

At this point, Yan Li realized this wouldn’t be resolved in a day or two.

But that was within his expectations.

No matter how useless Wang Wei was, his people and Tudou.com’s shareholders had capable minds—they’d dragged this out for so long. Even with his advantages, Yan Li couldn’t crush it in two moves.

A prolonged war was out of the question—but a couple of weeks? He had time.

Yan Li planned to start slow, run through the full routine, then assess the results.

He set himself a goal: one month.

If he couldn’t settle Yang Lei in a month, he’d drag Youku into the fray to buy Tudou.com more time.

The company was desperate to list. Yang Lei held the initiative. But if time favored Tudou.com, her bargaining power would shrink drastically.

…

After parting with Yang Lei and the others, Yan Li got in the car, about to head home, when he noticed Yang Lei’s friend standing alone on the street, waiting for something—his mind stirred.

To be honest, he had an average impression of this best friend.

She was clueless, impolite, and seemed even more eager and greedy than Yang Lei, but it was clear that Yang Lei trusted her deeply—almost as if she were her strategist.

As everyone knows, strong fortresses are often broken from within.

Whether it was turning her or sowing discord, Yan Li was a master at both: turning her would give him an inside ally to undermine Yang Lei’s psychological defenses; sowing discord would deprive Yang Lei of her backroom instigator, leaving her to fight alone—which would also help negotiations.

He signaled the driver to pull over; when they drew near, Yan Li rolled down his window, slightly surprised.

“Miss Zhang, why are you alone?”

“Oh, Manager Yan.”

With Yang Lei holding the trump card and a professional lawyer beside her, she had confidence and wasn’t afraid of Yan Li; now, alone, her fear was visibly plain.

“Yang Lei and Lawyer Zhang went to the law firm for some business. I had a private appointment and it wasn’t on the way, so we split up.”

“I see.”

Yan Li glanced at the sky—it was overcast, and by four in the afternoon, everything was already gray and dim.

“I take it you’re waiting for a ride. It looks like rain. Why not get in my car? Where are you headed? I can drop you off.”

“No need, really.”

The best friend wasn’t stupid—she felt it was a bad idea to ride with Yan Li, and she felt some pressure. Yan Li smiled.

“Don’t worry—I mean no harm. We know each other; it’s just a small favor.”

“Even if today hadn’t happened, if I’d run into a beautiful woman like you, I’d still happily strike up a conversation.”

Yang Lei was trained as a host; her best friend was a director and producer. She wasn’t particularly beautiful, but she wasn’t unattractive either—dress her up and you could barely call her a little beauty.

Yan Li’s aura needed no explanation—his compliments carried real weight.

The best friend felt a quiet pride and delight; after Yan Li’s repeated invitations, she finally got in the car.

Yan Li knew exactly what she was worried about—he avoided any topics that might raise her guard, sticking to casual small talk.

To be honest, Yan Li hadn’t flirted with or tricked unfamiliar women in years; his skills had dulled since his prime, but dealing with the best friend was effortless.

More importantly, Yan Li’s status was no longer the same.

Flirting and coquetry—could the effect of Sister Feng and Liu Tianxian possibly be the same? The former exhausting all her tricks was worth less than the latter’s sigh.

Yan Li could crush her with raw stats alone, let alone his actual skill—even if not as sharp as before, he was still a top-tier player crushing most others, stacked with buffs, running rampant.

If Yan Li weren’t trying to avoid sacrificing himself and preferred to lay groundwork and pay his way, he had an 80% chance of taking her home with him today.

Honestly, unless you’ve reached a certain level, you simply don’t understand how forward women can be.

Yan Li had even considered, if all else failed, using the beauty trap on Yang Lei—he had confidence in himself; he couldn’t promise to win her outright, but he was certain it would work.