Chapter 37

Yu Xing’s progress here went smoothly; he replicated Jin Ling’s model in Shen Cheng, took charge of the overall situation, and actively guided the interns’ advancement.

In his true opinion, the interns were far too green.

Fortunately, since everyone was dealing with the same group, an unexpected synergy emerged.

Besides, the university interns weren’t without advantages—they had student IDs.

Although the Songjiang University Town had no walls, setting up stalls and conducting business still drew questions, and at such moments, the student ID combined with a social survey proved highly useful.

Business project or social survey?

Definitely a social survey.

Selling products or data tracking?

Definitely data tracking.

Influencing orders or building models?

Definitely building models.

Explaining the work from these different angles inspired respect, especially when paired with fellow students—its effect was even better, helping Guo Ai Net operate with considerably less hassle.

After noticing this effect, Yu Xing immediately shared it with Zhong Zhiling, who had arrived in Lin’an, urging him to tap further into the potential of university students.

Subsequently, the three leaders of Guo Ai Net held a conference call to discuss current progress and future planning; the selectors for expanding into Jingcheng and Yangcheng had already been confirmed and would proceed within the week.

Once the main business matters were mostly settled, Yu Xing announced the addition of a new shareholder, honestly addressing the person’s background and potential equity changes.

“This 1.5% equity won’t appear on our company’s records, because she’s Song Yufeng’s girlfriend—we need to avoid this connection. I’ll sign a private contract with her.”

“If NetEase really launches something similar to us, Song Yufeng will still be useful—he was the original interviewee. If he speaks out, we can more easily steer public opinion.”

As for how he might speak out…

Hidden equity is one bargaining chip.

Yu Xing first explained this point, then added: “Compared to the results we hope to achieve, the cost of this 1.5% is low—if we sell the company for five million, 1.5% is seventy-five thousand; if we sell for one million, it’s only fifteen thousand.”

Equity sounds impressive, but when broken down into concrete numbers, it seems rather meager.

Whether fifteen thousand or seventy-five thousand, this sum could significantly increase the chance of Song Yufeng betraying his employer in the future—extremely worthwhile.

Upon hearing this, Zhong Zhiling asked curiously: “Then why would Yin Baoyi agree to join?”

“Song Yufeng got drunk and encouraged me in front of Yin Baoyi, telling her to aim for an IPO—painting her such a big picture…” Yu Xing chuckled at the memory, “equity suddenly became very attractive.”

Lu Haiying asked: “Exactly what did Song Yufeng say after getting drunk?”

Yu Xing brushed it off: “I recorded it casually—I’ll play it for you later, and yes, I’ll play it for him too if necessary.”

Both Zhong Zhiling and Lu Haiying simultaneously thought the same thing: if possible, never drink with Senior Brother again.

After a few seconds of heavy silence, Zhong Zhiling asked his final question: “Senior Brother, do you really think NetEase will enter our tiny market?”

The romantic contract market is too small, and NetEase is a company worth tens of billions—this entire strategy rests on an assumption.

“If NetEase doesn’t come, we keep doing our own thing; the 1.5% cost is just a gamble—if we win, we profit big.” Yu Xing first outlined the alternative, then added, “Don’t treat NetEase as some flawless monolith.”

“NetEase’s core business is games and advertising.”

“Dating services are just a minor sideline within this giant.”

“If it were Ding Lei, he’d have zero interest in such a small division—but down the chain, what about the dating team itself? Their mindset will determine the future direction affecting us.”

“NetEase’s dating division has three independent teams, yet none stand out—they’ve utterly failed to shake the market.”

“Under these circumstances, a fresh, self-consistent project—a new growth point or entry point—lands right in front of them. If you were in that team, what would you think?”

Yu Xing delivered a top-down analysis.

The previously murky situation suddenly became much clearer; both Zhong Zhiling and Lu Haiying were stunned.

“Senior Brother, this motive seems to have surfaced!” Zhong Zhiling’s voice rose noticeably.

Yu Xing grunted: “So after repeated thought, I believe the opportunity is real. Big companies are used to bullying others—we’re now playing calculated moves against their carelessness, trying to snatch a chance.”

He reassured his two partners: “Ultimately, we haven’t done anything wrong. We’re just a hardworking grassroots startup—we’re the good guys. Good guys with guns protect themselves better.”

In that instant, Lu Haiying was confused: who the hell are good guys with guns?

But then she reconsidered—if we had no gun, we’d be utterly helpless. So if we had a gun, were we still good guys?

“That’s my side,” Yu Xing instructed. “Keep communication open anytime. Right now, focus on expanding operations and fully exploiting customer mitosis.”

“Mitosis” was an internal term, avoiding the word “direct sales.”

The three leaders’ conference call ended.

After hanging up, Zhong Zhiling reflected on the meeting, thinking of the drunk Song Yufeng and his girlfriend recruited into the company, and couldn’t help muttering: “Senior Brother is practically a girlfriend killer!”

Who even has a girlfriend?

He thought this and felt Song Yufeng was his own mirror image—except Song Yufeng looked even worse off. What good could come from betrayal?

Zhong Zhiling lingered on this thought for a long while, then pulled out his phone and called Senior Brother again, wanting to discuss his work in Lin’an.

“You two really are a pair—just as Xiao Ying hung up, you called.” Yu Xing said upon answering.

Zhong Zhiling’s heart tightened—was the No. 2 so eager? Was he leaving no room for the No. 3?

He feigned casualness: “What did Xiao Ying want?”

“Just talked about Jin Ling’s work—she’s doing well,” Yu Xing chuckled. “Mainly shared her reflections and insights from the job.”

“Senior Brother, I also wanted to talk about Lin’an—the timeline is tightening. I plan to set up team-vs-team performance competitions and further refine commission tiers to better motivate everyone.” Zhong Zhiling laid out his thinking.

This idea stemmed from his experience of managing people through people—now he was applying team-vs-team management!

Yu Xing remained silent for a long while.

Zhong Zhiling asked suspiciously: “Hey, Senior Brother, you still there?”

“Yeah, I’m listening. I’m thinking—you’re doing team-vs-team in Lin’an, while Xiao Ying just told me about managing with sincerity.” Yu Xing said. “Now I’m genuinely curious to see how both sides perform.”

Fire ignited in Zhong Zhiling’s chest—good, good, let’s see who’s the true heir!