Chapter 50

On the last day of July, the work at Gui'ai Net's Shencheng headquarters was finished.

Speaking of which, Gui'ai Net didn't have a clear headquarters, but since Yu Xing was in Shencheng, Jin Ling, which currently had a larger team and revenue scale, became the first branch.

At eight o'clock in the evening, Yu Xing settled the wages for a resigned team leader and found a food stall to treat the third-in-command and the heartbroken Song Yufeng.

Zhong Zhiling originally advocated selling this reporter, but seeing that he was silent and completely different from the cheerful and talkative person he saw last time, he also felt a bit sorry for this spineless coward.

"Come, Brother Feng, thank you for your help." Zhong Zhiling poured beer. "Days will get better."

Song Yufeng just took a sip of wine and said lifelessly: "Your days will get better. I have no work, no girlfriend, no future, no savings—I have nothing."

Zhong Zhiling finished the beer, his pity even greater: "Brother Feng, didn't you save any money either?"

"Yes, I only have 120,000 in my card," Song Yufeng shook his head. "It's not enough for anything."

Zhong Zhiling, who was in debt for entrepreneurship, suddenly took back all his pity and evaluated: "Who told you to take our travel fees? Who told you not to refuse Ying Jiadong's inquiry?"

Song Yufeng couldn't answer. Sometimes he felt he hadn't made any mistakes, and sometimes he felt he had indeed made mistakes.

"Alright, Zhiling." Yu Xing frowned, and after taking a big gulp of ice beer, he said to Song Yufeng: "Seriously, the idea I mentioned in the evening, I think it can really be done. Since it's not easy for you to find a matching job because you are clean and innocent, why not take this innocence and do a career."

Song Yufeng asked amusingly: "Me? I go do a clean and innocent career? What do I use to do it?"

Yu Xing said the information he just heard: "Use the 120,000 in your card."

Song Yufeng sighed: "President Yu, do you really want me to die? That's my last money. Taking this to start a business is like throwing stones into the water; you might not even hear a sound."

"Hey, Brother Feng, I'm serious. Anyway, you have a tiny bit of fame, and people think your bones are very hard. You start such a website. If it's sued as you said, every time it's sued, you build it again. Every time you build it, your bones get harder by one point, and the website's fame will be greater." Yu Xing pondered.

Song Yufeng sneered: "And then? How to make money? Prepare to extort big companies?"

Yu Xing shook his head: "No, no, no, that would be falling into the lower class. If you can attract a large number of employees from big and medium-sized factories to settle in, as long as you can make the scale, advertising fees, membership fees, or opening recruitment business, money will naturally come, and the career will be done. What is this called? This is called hard bones standing and making money."

Song Yufeng now had a headache when he heard the three words "hard bones". In the evening, he also received a call from his parents, asking about recent issues. He didn't know who passed the news to the old people.

He gulped down two mouthfuls of wine, pressed the glass on the table, looked at the foam inside, and swore: "Whoever wants to be a hard bone, go be one! I'll be my spineless coward from now on! Do you understand what 'harmonizing with the light and dust' means! President Yu, you talk so well, if you love to do it, go do it! Don't mess with me anymore!"

Yu Xing shrugged. He was really kind.

He shook his head and raised his glass: "Alright, I was just chatting, don't take it to heart."

Song Yufeng was upset, but still controlled his drinking, unwilling to make the same mistake again.

It's just that the more he sipped, the more depressed he became, and the less he wanted to talk, especially when listening to the two college students' enthusiastic discussion about entrepreneurship, he was even more sorrowful.

Returning home that night, Song Yufeng lay on the bed alone, and suddenly sorrow welled up from his heart.

The girlfriend was already gone.

Didn't they agree to stay in this city? Why did she return to her hometown so resolutely?

There was no sound of TV, no melody of music, no one talking, only the vague city noise coming from outside the window.

Song Yufeng thought of everything he had lost and suddenly wailed loudly.

It's gone! It's really gone!

Just as he was crying, the phone at the head of the bed suddenly rang.

Song Yufeng immediately reached out to grab it, thinking it was his girlfriend Yin Baoyi who had changed her mind, but he didn't expect the phone displayed was Kong Huilin, the Tencent reporter who had interviewed him before.

Kong Huilin hadn't been a reporter as long as he had. Last time she said it seemed to be only half a year.

Song Yufeng answered the phone and greeted her.

"Brother Feng, your voice seems a bit wrong?" Kong Huilin felt a bit strange.

Song Yufeng covered up: "Some nasal congestion, the pressure has been relatively high recently, you know, well, I came out of NetEase, this matter made many people dissatisfied."

Kong Huilin immediately said: "Yes, this must be very stressful, so, I really admire you, admire Brother Feng's hard bones."

Song Yufeng "coughed," as if even his tears were automatically retracted into his eyes.

He said modestly: "I just did some insignificant little things. Many people can do it, as long as you reach a certain situation that touches you."

"Brother Feng, I've been in Shencheng recently, well, tomorrow night, do you have time tomorrow night?" Kong Huilin's voice was a bit light, a bit shy. "I want to treat you to a meal."

Song Yufeng's spirit lifted, and he said slowly: "Tomorrow... okay, I'll treat you tomorrow, consider it fulfilling the duties of a host."

Kong Huilin smiled: "Does it delay your affairs? Do you need to settle your work now? Will you still be a reporter?"

In Song Yufeng's mind appeared Xiao Kong's beautiful face and fair skin, and a sentence blurted out: "Oh, maybe not anymore. I'm considering entrepreneurship, considering being able to spread more light to more places."

Kong Huilin was surprised and also carried some admiration: "Really? Brother Feng, I believe in you, you will definitely succeed. I feel that if a person like you cannot succeed, then it must be the sorrow of our society."

Song Yufeng pulled out a tissue, wiped the tears on his face, and suddenly wasn't so sad anymore. The spineless coward who originally vowed to harmonize with the light and dust also hardened himself, and laughed loudly: "Haha, Huilin, can I call you that? The market is very objective. It won't give you success or failure because of the level of character, but I do have some concrete entrepreneurial ideas."

He thought of the words he heard at the dinner table tonight, and associated it with a movie he had seen, and asked with a smile: "Huilin, have you seen 'The Shawshank Redemption'?"

Kong Huilin replied: "Of course I have seen it. Some birds cannot be caged. Every feather of theirs shines with the brilliance of freedom. Brother Feng, I feel you are such a bird whose feathers shine with the brilliance of freedom and cannot be caged."

"You really praise me too much." Song Yufeng said modestly, and said again: "However, I'm not bragging either. My bones have been very hard since I was a child. What I want to say is that sentence, 'Salvation lies within'."

He said in a deep voice: "My path to success in entrepreneurship lies within the hard bones."

The city lights gradually went out, and the night gradually became silent, but this phone call lasted for a long, long time.

On the first day of August, Yu Xing just arrived at the office and was bowing his head to drink porridge when a shadow blocked his line of sight.

He looked up and saw it was exactly the Song Spineless who was sentimental yesterday.

"Don't bother me with emotional matters, brother. I'm very busy all day today, I have to go to the mall to set up a stall." Yu Xing bowed his head to drink porridge again, and said, "That recording of yours has already been destroyed, don't worry."

Song Yufeng sat down and smiled: "Oh my, President Yu, look at what you said. I'm not worried about the recording. The recording wasn't you forcing me to speak. It was purely my own mistake. I thought about it yesterday, these lessons are also what I deserve."

Yu Xing raised his eyebrows. Finished and went out? Became a saint?

"I tossed and turned last night, thinking about my future. I feel that what you said yesterday wasn't just casual talk," Song Yufeng said seriously. "Do you think there is really a future if I go to start an anonymous workplace community as you said?"

Yu Xing waved his hand and didn't answer immediately. He first quickly eliminated the porridge and buns, then threw the rest into the trash can, and said decisively: "Definitely no future."

Song Yufeng was stunned: "Ah?"

"Do you have entrepreneurial experience? Do you know what pits you will step on?" Yu Xing asked.

Song Yufeng was a bit unconvinced: "You don't have much experience either. Weren't you a college student before doing this? And, you studied medicine!"

Yu Xing nodded: "Indeed, then let's put it this way: can you withstand the pressure? The pressure in your own heart and the pressure from outside companies, including any lawsuits you can think of."

If it were talking about other things, it could still be debated.

He knows himself best.

Song Yufeng cannot withstand pressure. He is still the kind of personality that needs people to push and press him to move forward.

"Then why did you tell me about the community yesterday, about the anonymous..." Song Yufeng questioned.

"Yes, this is indeed possible. The route is possible, but this process must also have various setbacks," Yu Xing said leisurely. "Brother Feng, it's like this: you look up at those big companies—Sina, NetEase, Sohu, Tencent, Baidu, Alibaba... They have now spread to many industries. Now if you want to make a name, you can only do vertical and niche things."

"Just like what I'm doing now, it's also vertical and niche. It's very difficult for us to compete with big companies for resources and money."

"So, I think my suggestion is also no problem."

"If you want to do it, wait until I go bankrupt here, and we'll see if we can get it done then. Don't be in a hurry, definitely don't be in a hurry."

Yu Xing is not in a hurry. The product in his hand hasn't been sold yet.

Song Yufeng was really a bit anxious: "Then what should I do now?"

"Look, anxious again," Yu Xing wondered. "Yesterday you vowed to be a spineless coward, today you changed your mind and want to stand and make money. With this hesitant and swaying will of yours, at the very least, at the current stage, it is not suitable for entrepreneurship. Think about it, what kind of quality should an entrepreneur have?"

Song Yufeng really thought about it, and easily thought of the college student in front of him: enduring like a wolf, sneaking like a tiger, cunning like a fox, decisive like an eagle, changing face like a dog...

The excitement of coming over early in the morning was dispelled, and hesitation occupied his heart again.

Song Yufeng said depressedly: "Wait until you go bankrupt, that will take hundreds of years?"

Yu Xing couldn't help but smile: "Alright, you can be considered to have said a sentence that makes people happy. Once Gui'ai Net is on the right track, we have a chance to cooperate, if you have considered everything clearly."

Song Yufeng frowned, but felt that these words were very sincere.

Haste makes waste.

Yu Xing looked at this person's expression and still felt strange: "You had an epiphany overnight? Didn't you want to be a spineless coward? Didn't you want to harmonize with the light and dust?"

Song Yufeng waved his hand: "That was just angry talk. President Yu, you might not be clear about my character. I am not afraid of power in my bones."

Yu Xing couldn't understand this change, but regardless of whether this person is afraid of power or not, after a slight consideration, he said: "NetEase's director communicated with me again last night. We plan to meet at NetEase company on Saturday, which can be considered as formally ending the matter. Will you go with me?"

Song Yufeng had already refused once yesterday.

He still wanted to refuse now, but as soon as he looked up and met Yu Xing's unclear eyes, he suddenly understood the meaning of this sentence.

Wanting to stand and make money, wanting to be a hard bone, wanting to study entrepreneurial strategy, then there must be some expression.

Song Yufeng flashed with realization. Mostly, this is the certificate of allegiance.

He spat out a word: "Go."

Yu Xing was a bit surprised, and tentatively asked again: "Can you help me think of a better way for the internet conference?"

Song Yufeng thought left and right, and agreed: "Okay, I have a teacher who is a deputy editor-in-chief in a newspaper office. I'll find him."

Yu Xing continued to ask: "Well, Brother Feng, I plan to let Shiji Jiayuan, Zhen'ai Net, and Baihe Net hear my voice. I am prepared to lure them with profit. Can you find the media to give me an exclusive interview? Just after I accept NetEase's apology, just after I respond to the black posts on the internet, I plan to announce that Gui'ai Net's revenue target this year is to sprint to 10 million. It's best to package me as a new star."

Song Yufeng listened to this request, scratching his head and rubbing his face: "This, this, this is afraid that it will have to stuff money again. I can try."

Yu Xing threw out new words: "Brother Feng, that website of yours can actually start building the site now. Take out the 120,000 in your card first."

Song Yufeng stood up and warned: "President Yu, don't go too far! I have a bottom line! My 120,000 will not move at all!"

Yu Xing shrugged: "Just a joke."

He said sincerely: "Then thank you, Brother Feng. Well, but what I just said about building the site is also true. I even thought of the name for you. You can call it 'Those Things'. If it is sued and blocked, build a new one. You can call it 'Just Those Things', 'Still Those Things', 'Just These Things', etc. Every time it is blocked, you can become more powerful."

Song Yufeng opened his mouth involuntarily: "Ah? You are even mentally prepared for being sued and blocked?"

"I just think, if we really do it, with no resources and no connections, how can we not be blocked a few times? But this is not too bad a thing," Yu Xing smiled. "Brother Feng, if you have nowhere to go during this time, then come to Gui'ai Net. It just so happens to help us do some media work."

Song Yufeng didn't agree immediately, just took a breath: "I'll consider it again."

Yu Xing snapped his fingers: "No problem."

Although he didn't know why the spineless coward had to become hard, this was a good thing for Gui'ai Net.

Yu Xing didn't wait for the movement of the wedding and dating brands, so he had to create some movement himself. Announcing the revenue target was undoubtedly easy to startle the snake, but what he wanted was for the snake to drill out of the grass.

Similarly, the internet conference held in Jin Ling next month was also an occasion prone to exposure.

The past few days have already proven with facts that traffic is indeed money.

In the scorching sun, the daily work on the first day of August unfolded in sweat.

Yu Xing was indeed very busy this day. On one hand, he was listening to the social stall situation in various places, and on the other hand, he was dealing with the mall security and urban management who came to drive people away from time to time. The latter was not so easy to deal with even if he offered the name of "college student social survey".

Doing activities on campus as a college student and doing activities in society are two completely different levels of difficulty.

Similarly, the difficulty of customer conversion is not at the same level.

Overall, the conversion rate of campus customers is roughly 10%. Out of 100 couples, 10 orders can be obtained, while the conversion rate of social customers after a day is less than 2%.

Social customers ask similar questions to campus customers, and the content Yu Xing and others answer naturally won't deviate, but the attitude of the former after hearing the answer is mostly noncommittal, and the interest in paying money is even lower.

Yu Xing got two orders, and it was only after various guarantees and moving out the 10 million registered capital of the Xiangjiang company that he barely took them down.

At night, Yu Xing heard similar feelings from the team leader.

"This is too difficult. Their eyes look like they are looking at a thief!"

"Brother Xing, this social customer is very difficult to do!"

"If we rely on such offline orders, we will starve to death!"

Although today is just an example of the first day, if the follow-up is all like this, 10%/2%=5, which means that the order volume of Gui'ai Net from campus to society will plummet to a level that cannot bear the existing employees and operating costs.

Yu Xing already had a count in his heart, but he couldn't deflate the employees, so he just smiled and comforted: "Our brand hasn't been hit yet, it will get better slowly."

By the time he returned to the office, Zhong Zhiling, who also took people out to set up stalls today, was sitting inside solemnly. The first sentence he saw his senior disciple was: "It really still needs to be sold. This trend of development is very bad."

Yu Xing was not too depressed, and sighed: "So, the difficulty of August is expected. This is nothing more than verification again."

Zhong Zhiling shook his head: "Brother Xing, you are really sober."

"It's not sober either," Yu Xing said. "It's just that we shouldn't think about things so optimistically. There is always a layer left in the heart."

He threw a cigarette to the third-in-command and smiled: "Think about something happy. In a few days, we will accept NetEase's apology. At that time, the online store's traffic can run again. If Song Yufeng is smooth, he can also get an exclusive interview. Using revenue to attract the attention of wedding and dating brands, this matter will be seven or eight out of ten. At most, sell it at a cabbage price."

Zhong Zhiling lit the cigarette and took a puff. The depressed mood of a day today was slightly excited.

Gui'ai Net's socialization progress did not improve with time, or it was just a little bit better.

From Tuesday to Friday, for four days, according to the summary of the performance of the five cities, the conversion rate of social customer groups is about 3%. Some employees are higher, some are lower, and they can't be higher, and the lowest can be 0.

By Saturday, at nine o'clock in the morning, the new director Zhuo Shiming had been waiting at the company entrance in advance, preparing to apologize to the competitor openly and honestly according to the requirements.

He didn't want to do this, but after communicating with Yu Xing several times without getting any concessions, he finally made a decision: apologize early and relax early.

At 8:55, two vans arrived downstairs at NetEase Shencheng branch.

The van door was pulled open horizontally, a young man in a white T-shirt jumped down first, and then a group of young people poured out of the two cars, laughing and laughing as if they were here to play.

"Hello, I am Yu Xing. You must be Director Zhuo."

The young man scanned left and right, aimed at the target, stepped forward to shake hands, and introduced himself.

Zhuo Shiming shook hands with an ugly expression and whispered: "President Yu, what are you doing? Why are they all holding up their phones? Let's go up and talk."

"Hi, it's just an apology, not going up," Yu Xing said loudly. "Not afraid of being filmed, otherwise why call it open and honest? Come on, I'm ready."

Zhuo Shiming felt the natural pressure of filming and said dissatisfiedly: "President Yu, there is no need to make such a formation, right? We should pay attention to gentleness, kindness, respect, and yielding."

"Director Zhuo said that people should be gentle, kind, respectful, and yielding." Yu Xing let go of his hand, turned to face the various mobile phones and the grinning college student employees, and also gave the reporter's lens in the distance, raising his voice, "But I have to say, morality is first to restrain oneself. Restrain yourself first before talking."

"Secondly..."

He turned around, faced Director Zhuo Shiming again, and smiled: "Secondly, you just manage yourself well, don't come to manage me!"

Yu Xing paused and kept his volume: "Finally, can we start apologizing?"

Zhuo Shiming looked at the aggressiveness of the young man in front of him and understood the style of college students a little bit.

He was stunned for several seconds, nodded repeatedly, and said sternly: "I represent NetEase in expressing apologies to Gui'ai Net for the behavior of the 'NetEase Dating' department. President Yu, sorry."

Apologize early and end early. What can happen after apologizing?

Yu Xing took the initiative to extend his right hand and shook it hard.

Zhuo Shiming wanted to pull his hand back after shaking it, but it was held tightly.

"Offended." Yu Xing's sentence was very polite, but the voice was also low, and then he smiled and raised his voice, "I accept NetEase's apology. I hope Gui'ai Net can take big steps forward after this storm and sprint to the target of 10 million annual revenue!"

The surrounding mobile phones recorded this scene one after another, and the reporter not far away also took a picture of the handshake and declaration under the NetEase logo.

The employees who came out of NetEase all drooped their faces, Director Zhuo Shiming's expression was stiff, while the college students on Gui'ai Net's side were extremely relaxed and diverse, and Yu Xing himself had a brilliant smile.

The two sides, which were clearly divided in the picture, formed a sharp contrast.

Zhuo Shiming originally felt that this was a college student's unforgiving and unreasonable disposal method, but hearing the sentence "offended," his brain suddenly felt like it was splashed with a basin of cold water. Is this a normal college student?

If this is a normal college student, I will immediately go and eat two Fujianese people!

"You can let go." Zhuo Shiming reminded in a deep voice.

Yu Xing let go of his hand, ignored the joy and anger of the NetEase director, turned to face his employees, raised his right hand high, held up an index finger, and announced the goal again in a high voice with a firm expression:

"Ten million!!"

This is the revenue target claimed by Gui'ai Net, and it is also the bait thrown by Yu Xing to the three traditional wedding and dating brands downstairs at NetEase.