Chapter 49: 048 Stirring and Stillness

The doubts about GuiAi Network appeared suddenly online, but the content didn’t exceed Yu Xing’s prior planning.

The company, its business, employees—either questions about whether the company could sustain final redemptions, or whether the dating contract business was compliant, or about the use of college interns; beyond that, no sharp issues would arise.

Of course, this nearly covered all the key points of GuiAi Network.

Yu Xing received a notice from Zhong Zhiling and hurried back to the office, quickly scanning the situation, discovering this wave of public opinion attack mainly came from Tieba, while the campus network, which had played a major role these past few days, was merely auxiliary.

If this was organized, these two platforms would likely launch the fastest attacks; portal sites like Sohu and Sina would generally be slower.

As for where this offensive originated…

NetEase? Its new business had been forced to stall, and it had just fired a director, leaving its reputation slightly tarnished—perhaps it was still resentful inside.

Century Love, Zhenai Network, Baihe Network? Because of NetEase’s move, they might now notice the dating contract niche market and casually take a shot at GuiAi Network.

Or perhaps…

Yu Xing’s mind conjured the fired director, Yi Jiadong—he had strong motive too; he’d lost his job and his reputation had been badly damaged, surely filled with bitter rage.

But no matter the source, this actually saved him the trouble of acting himself.

Yu Xing had already discussed this with the second and third in command; doubts could be answered, and whether the attention was black or red, this traffic would inevitably increase online store orders.

Since the public opinion outbreak, online order revenue had already shown potential—this was precisely the situation GuiAi Network wanted to see.

Moreover, online orders had advantages offline ones couldn’t match: no revenue sharing.

Offline orders routed through employees to the company’s account yielded only 99%, while all online orders went entirely to the company—that meant one online order equaled three offline ones; if this lasted even a short while, it would greatly ease GuiAi Network’s operational pressure.

Yu Xing sat before his computer, smoking, browsing web pages while contemplating the situation.

Overall, NetEase’s response had been swift and positive; if NetEase ignored the negative noise and kept “NetEase Dating” running, this marketing storm could grow even larger.

Yu Xing had even considered: if “NetEase Dating” entered campuses, he could send people to throw eggs or directly confront them in person, film it, and post it online—this would extend the traffic surge.

Too bad…

Things hadn’t unfolded exactly as imagined.

But still, it was a small bite of meat.

Yu Xing smoked one cigarette after another; his thoughts had moved beyond the black posts and NetEase, toward the company’s next steps.

From what he’d seen, the three traditional matchmaking brands showed no movement; though he couldn’t rule out being unaware of their internal actions, their silence wasn’t good news—it made assessing the situation difficult.

Yu Xing crushed his cigarette butt into the half-full mineral water bottle and rose to leave the office.

He still needed to find a way to make those three most likely buyers move.

Stillness is worse than action.

…

The next day, Yu Xing ignored the black posts, letting them ferment further.

Third-in-command Zhong Zhiling had already set out for Shanghai; second-in-command Lu Haiying had returned to Jin Ling first.

By late July, offline orders plummeted sharply, dealing a heavy blow to GuiAi Network; the five major cities had previously contributed over 550 orders per week, now reduced to around 240.

In Jin Ling alone, the team size had been around 110 before July 15; by July 30, only 63 employees remained—a staggering 42% reduction.

Yu Xing had anticipated rapid turnover among the college intern teams, but knowing this attrition rate still left him…

No wonder you’re you!

Some took their monthly salary and went traveling; some said the weather was too hot; some lost their novelty; some found communicating with clients too hard; some…

In short, various reasons—work difficulty included—collectively caused the sharp staff reduction.

Yet none of the five cities had continued hiring new staff; this scale of reduction actually aided GuiAi Network’s current operations, since special business like this couldn’t easily gain offline traffic replenishment.

According to the development plan, August would involve continuing to pursue customer “fission” while attempting to expand into the broader social demographic.

Only then did “GuiAi Network” truly become a complete product.

The business’s essence was customers’ extremely low marriage probability; the company brand had been forged by NetEase’s turmoil; the staff team had been streamlined; the customer base now included both students and the broader society—only through this gradual refinement could GuiAi Network have a chance to sell.

But pricing would also need consideration next.

At 1 p.m., the weather was scorching hot; third-in-command Zhong Zhiling arrived at the GuiAi Network office.

“Tsk tsk, Brother Xing, your office is bigger than mine.” Zhong Zhiling, reunited with his senior brother, was still cheerful.

Yu Xing was surprised: “This place is already pretty small.”

Zhong Zhiling chuckled: “Saving money—offices don’t matter to us.”

Yu Xing nodded and asked: “How’s it been in Lin’an?”

Zhong Zhiling’s face showed an indescribable complexity; after a moment, he replied: “Up at dawn, to bed at dusk—this past month has been more exhausting than any previous one.”

He sat down and sincerely said: “On my way here, sitting in the car, I thought: Senior Brother, you really pulled this company together and expanded it—it’s truly not easy!”

Previously in Jin Ling, Zhong Zhiling had followed his senior brother around, doing whatever he was told; this month in Lin’an, everything had to be initiated by himself; despite having Jin Ling experience, he still found it exceptionally difficult.

Only through rising early and retiring late had he managed to scrape through to month’s end.

Yu Xing nodded with a smile: “It’s indeed not easy, but we’ve built it step by step—yesterday’s online store sales were 131 orders, up five from the day before.”

Zhong Zhiling immediately stood up, excited: “Brother Xing, that’s exactly why I came—I want to talk about this. Thirteen-one orders a day, one-twenty-five the day before—that’s over seventy thousand in revenue, no sharing! If this momentum holds, we could…”

…make up the deficit!

Then, with GuiAi Network’s current operations, every extra yuan is pure profit.

“Traffic comes fast and leaves fast,” Yu Xing said coolly. “In the Three Kingdoms, there’s a saying about Yuan Shao: ‘He seeks great deeds but hoards his life; he sees small gains and forgets his life.’ How can you be sure this traffic surge will fill our deficit?”

“Have you ever run an online store?”

“Do you have any experience with online operations?”

Yu Xing asked three questions in a row; Zhong Zhiling couldn’t answer.

“Of course, the most important point,” Yu Xing admitted frankly. “Maybe you can push hard and settle your 430,000—but I definitely can’t handle mine.”

Zhong Zhiling sat back silently: “Alright, alright, Senior Brother—you’ve completely convinced me.”

“This online revenue doesn’t require sharing,” Yu Xing clarified, “but it must be spent on traffic acquisition and operational costs. Once offline orders can’t cover staff salaries, this still becomes money that can plug the gap. If we don’t flee, this money won’t leave much surplus.”

Offline orders are already declining sharply; August will be even harder.

Zhong Zhiling frowned: “So, Brother Xing, that’s why I said yesterday—we should sell Song Yufeng.”

Yu Xing replied ambiguously: “It depends on the situation. Don’t think selling him solves everything—if he goes off the rails and exposes our bribes or our operations, it won’t look good.”

He added: “Besides, if we push him too hard, one day he might stab you in the back—that’s when real business competition shows its teeth.”

Zhong Zhiling thought it over—he’d indeed seen small gains and forgotten his life.

Mainly because seeing a chance to resolve the problem made him restless.

“We still need to convert some staff to full-time in August—company costs will rise further.” Yu Xing considered next month, shaking his head slightly. “We’ve only just polished the product; whether we can sell it remains uncertain.”

He was about to discuss next month’s situation further when an unknown number appeared on his phone.

Yu Xing answered and recognized it as Director Zhu Shiming, the one the previous Vice Director Cao had mentioned to handle follow-ups.

“I’m Yu Xing. I have only one demand: since your project openly innovated our product, I now demand an equally open apology.”

“If you say NetEase is responsible, then take responsibility—I don’t even ask for financial compensation.”

Yu Xing spoke briefly and ended the call.

“Brother Xing, did NetEase agree?” Zhong Zhiling asked, excited.

Yu Xing shook his head: “Not immediately, but it shouldn’t be a problem—this director seems to be NetEase’s new head of ‘NetEase Dating.’ The blame’s the former’s anyway; they just need to show up.”

He paused, then said: “Even if they agree, we’ll delay the timing—use NetEase’s apology to counter the online black posts.”

Yu Xing thought a moment, feeling the current online platforms were inconvenient; both Tieba and campus networks had weak reach.

If only TikTok existed, this small public opinion wave could have drawn double the traffic.

The weather remained hot; Yu Xing acted as temporary online store customer service while chatting casually with Zhong Zhiling about different markets.

When they prepared to leave, the phone rang—it was Song Yufeng, the stubborn one.

“Director Yu!”

Song Yufeng’s voice was loud enough for Zhong Zhiling nearby to hear.

“Speak, Brother Feng,” Yu Xing greeted. “Did NetEase hire you back?”

“NetEase has finalized my resignation,” Song Yufeng replied, voice mournful. “My girlfriend broke up with me!”

Yu Xing replied indifferently: “Oh, you’re really unlucky.”

Lost his job, lost his girlfriend.

He asked: “Do we still need to honor the equity we gave your ex-girlfriend?”

“Wait…” Song Yufeng was still adjusting to Yu Xing’s style, unaccustomed to the term “ex-girlfriend.” “You…”

“Brother Feng, this isn’t a love advice hotline,” Yu Xing said. “Besides, I’m the one who serves couples. Even if you tell me, I can’t get her back. Love is your own business—I’ve got work to do.”

Song Yufeng truly had no one to confide in; sensing Yu Xing would hang up, he rushed: “You once said when I was at my wit’s end, I should call you…”

Yu Xing laughed: “I was joking.”

Song Yufeng sighed over the phone: “Forget it—I’m coming to see you.”

Yu Xing was about to refuse when he heard the next line and fell silent.

“Can’t I help you sell your product?” Song Yufeng felt empty—no job, no girlfriend—just wanted something to do, to distract himself.

Yu Xing ended the call and told Zhong Zhiling: “See? We were going to use his ex-girlfriend’s equity to pressure him, but in two days, she’s gone—now if we sell him, who knows what might happen.”

Zhong Zhiling agreed wholeheartedly; that weakling was probably on the verge of collapse.

He thought so—until he met Song Yufeng in person and saw he was indeed listless, yet spent the whole afternoon without complaint, filling out forms, registering, carrying water, packing bags.

Yu Xing was astonished: “Brother Feng, you’re not seriously thinking of joining our company, are you?”

Song Yufeng just shook his head—he was just completely empty right now.

Yu Xing looked at him and conceived a wicked idea: “Brother Feng, in a couple days we’ll go to NetEase for their public apology—I’ll bring a vanload of students to witness it. You should come too.”

Song Yufeng replied briefly: “No.”

Yu Xing felt this guy still had potential to be tapped, and asked again: “I saw online that there’s an internet conference in Jin Ling this September—the first one held outside Jingcheng. Can you help me get in? I can meet your former boss face to face.”

Song Yufeng sighed helplessly: “I don’t have those connections, Yu Zong. I’m just a low-level guy, and I’ve quit anyway.”

Yu Xing set down the survey form: “So what can you actually do? And what do you want to do?”

Song Yufeng sighed despondently: “I don’t even know what I can do anymore. My resume to Sina got rejected instantly—what am I supposed to do?”

So it wasn’t just his job and girlfriend—he’d also been turned down for the new position.

Yu Xing chuckled: “You’re so arrogant, so proud—you must’ve had someone casually whisper a word against you. Try bribing your peers with car and horse fees—see if that helps.”

“I’m that proud—I wouldn’t pay under the table. Who’d dare take my money?” Song Yufeng knew the situation well. “Aren’t they afraid I’ll stand up and publicly denounce them?”

Yu Xing glanced at him, reached for a bottle of mineral water, then suddenly paused as the words “unwritten rules” echoed in his mind. His gaze returned to the ex-big-company employee, and he mused: “Right—you’re that proud. I’ve got a better idea: why not create a community where people can vent about workplace unwritten rules?”

Song Yufeng replied listlessly: “Who’d even vent about that? You don’t want a job anymore?”

Yu Xing smiled: “What if it’s anonymous?”

He remembered using “Maimai.”

If the money from Guoai.com isn’t enough, besides planting grapes, maybe I should prepare more paths.

Song Yufeng thought for a moment, then shook his head: “That’d get you sued nonstop.”

He couldn’t help adding: “Yu Zong, I’ve noticed your business tactics always seem… shadowy. Like assassins.”

Can a hard bone be scared off by lawsuits?

“This is nothing,” Yu Xing said with a smile. “But we’ll talk about that later. It’s just a sudden thought. Feng Ge, right now, it’s better to stay still than move.”

His tone and gaze softened considerably as he continued: “Feng Ge, think again—really, can’t you find anyone for the internet conference in Jin Ling this September?”

Song Yufeng fell silent for a moment: “No one I can reach—but if all else fails, we can sneak outside and grab camera time.”

Yu Xing clapped him on the shoulder and praised: “I knew you weren’t useless!”