MTLNOVEL Chapter 297: An Encounter Between Men
Declining the exclusive interview, Qi Hao and An Feng simply walked the red carpet and went inside.
During a disaster, it wouldn't be appropriate to be too ostentatious.
They entered relatively late and, after exchanging pleasantries with others, seating arrangements began.
Bazaar naturally didn't reject Qi Hao's requests.
He and An Feng sat at one of the main tables, with a female entrepreneur, unrelated to Qi Hao, on An Feng's other side.
On the other side of Qi Hao was...
Lei Jun!
The fish took the bait, and quite quickly at that, appearing at Bazaar Charity Night by "chance."
Qi Hao wanted to invest in Xiaomi, but he certainly wouldn't actively seek out and knock on Lei Jun's office with money in hand.
Investment is like courting; you can't be too proactive.
Being too forward can put you at a disadvantage during negotiations, and it could fuel the target's ambitions, making them feel particularly valuable and deserving of someone better.
Then they might just kick you aside.
So, Qi Hao orchestrated a little act.
Someone leaked the news at an event with Lei Jun's friends, saying that Donghao Venture Capital was currently well-funded and planning to invest in a batch of startups.
Within the industry, Donghao Venture Capital is considered a legendary VC investment firm.
It's not about its size.
Most VC investment firms belong to private equity funds, pooling together money from many people which is then managed by a professional team.
But Donghao Venture Capital is different; it exclusively belongs to Qi Hao alone.
This seemingly unlikely to succeed venture capital company became a shareholder in companies such as Penguin, Maotai, Sina, Apple, and BYD within just ten years, with total assets reaching several billion.
Its vision is so precise that many in the industry call Qi Hao "Little Buffett."
Upon hearing that Donghao Venture Capital had investment plans, many became interested.
Lei Jun got the news from a friend and perked up. He has extensive connections in the Internet industry, with even Penguin, Ali, and NetEase having sought his help to introduce investments.
Therefore, his financing goals no longer focused on those resources.
He was more concerned with the risks of the funds and the decision-making power in company operations.
Qi Hao's funds are all his own, and the companies he invests in are healthy and stable, naturally leaving no risk issues.
As for the second reason, one must not be careless.
Zhang Chaoyang and Wang Zhidong are living examples; the former almost was kicked out, and the latter was directly ousted.
The business world is full of treachery and hidden complexities; it's not uncommon for company founders to be pushed out.
If a founder wants to avoid being kicked out in the future, he must make thorough preparations from the day the company is founded, such as firmly grasping the company's control, implementing dual equity structures, managing financing pace, striving for personal voting rights, etc.
Lei Jun considered this issue at the inception of his company.
Therefore, he split the company's shares into A and B stocks.
The aim was not to be constrained.
He decided only to seek venture capital companies with a good reputation in the industry, which wouldn't try to pluck the fruit of success after the company has developed well.
Donghao completely fits his criteria.
For years, people rarely heard of Donghao Venture Capital. If it weren't for this company gaining more attention recently, many might not even know it existed.
If it hasn't been heard of, interference with investment targets' operations naturally doesn't exist.
The companies it invested in might even feel aggrieved.
Damn it, after all these years, not a word about the company's survival has been asked.
We've worked tirelessly to add to your wealth, and not a single word of encouragement from you.
Moreover, Donghao Venture Capital has formed an investment ecosystem across multiple fields like the Internet, liquor, mobile phones, and automobiles, making it an even more perfect target for Lei Jun.
He didn't delay either; it's better to act first since hesitating would only mean losing out when others move quickly. Lei Jun worried that Qi Hao's funds would be taken by others if he waited too long.
It's not that he doesn't have his own money.
Lei Jun has been traversing the business world for over a decade, experiencing both failures and successes; a seasoned figure in the Internet sector.
He is known as the president and CEO of Kingsoft Corporation.
From 1999 to its listing in 2007, under his leadership, Kingsoft prepared for its IPO five times, going through Xiangjiang Growth Enterprise Market, domestic main board, Nasdaq, and Xiangjiang main board, making a round in capital markets globally.
Not until October 9, 2007, after eight years of preparations for listing, did Kingsoft finally list on the Xiangjiang Stock Exchange.
The issue price was 3.6 Hong Kong Dollars, the opening price was 3.9 Hong Kong Dollars, closing at 5 Hong Kong Dollars, a rise of 38.88%.
Calculated at the closing price, Kingsoft's market value exceeded 5.3 billion Hong Kong Dollars.
Creating one of China's largest groups of wealthy programmers.
Kingsoft Chairman Qiu Bojun held 20.7% shares, with a wealth exceeding 1 billion Hong Kong Dollars. President and CEO Lei Jun held 14.9%, with wealth close to 800 million Hong Kong Dollars.
However, in recent years, Kingsoft's stock prices have been constantly weak.
In the first quarter of this year, Kingsoft's total revenue was 245.7 million Yuan, a sharp decline of 18% from the previous quarter, with net profit falling by 11% year-over-year to 89.7 million Yuan.
Nearly a 20% drop, and the stock price naturally reflects that.
The day after the financial report release, Kingsoft's stock fell sharply by 11.9%, marking a recent low.
The price per share is even less than 2 Yuan now.
Of course, even so, Lei Jun still has considerable wealth.
It's just that most of his money is tied up in investments.
Kingsoft Corporation is facing great difficulties, and although he has invested in many companies, his feelings for Kingsoft run the deepest. He can't just abandon Kingsoft shares and kick them when they're down.
If we just look at cash flow, he really can't come up with much.
Moreover, business always carries risks; no one can guarantee that their business will be successful. Even wealthy people won't put all their eggs in one basket.
For example, he founded Joyo.com, making it one of the largest e-commerce websites in China. But eventually he had to sell it to Amazon due to a lack of funds to support its development. For half a year, the sight of certain things made Lei Jun reluctant to shop online.
This time, he decided to directly join forces with wealthy people.
He had little interaction with Qi Hao.
Introduce someone deliberately and it just feels too contrived.
Seems like bootlicking.
So, he did some digging and found out about Qi Hao's schedule at the Bazaar Charity Night.
So, let's have a chance encounter between men!
As a president of a listed company and a key figure in the internet world, Lei Jun's participation in the Bazaar Charity Night was highly valued by Bazaar Company.
Lei Jun expressed his desire to communicate with Qi Hao, and his seat and his wife's were arranged next to Qi Hao's.
Qi Hao appeared completely unaware.
He just smiled politely at Lei Jun and his wife, and after the introductions, did not engage further.
According to his script, he seemed unaware of Lei Jun's intentions at this event, nor did he have any plans to invest in Lei Jun's company.
Moreover, they weren't familiar with each other.
"I watched your new movie; it's really excellent. First Love is indeed the most beautiful thing in one's lifetime."
Although Lei Jun is originally a programmer, his communication skills are not a problem at all.
"Oh, thank you!"
Qi Hao actually wanted to remind him that the latest movie is "Lost on Journey," President Lei, your homework is lacking.
However, when both have feelings, naturally there is no need to expose it.
So Lei Jun started talking about his first love.
"She is a blend of rationality and emotion, like a ray of light illuminating my world that was full of mere program codes…"
Not many dare to speak of their first love in front of their wife. President Lei is so bold mainly because his wife is his first love.
His first love was his college classmate, the top scorer from Hanyang No.1 Middle School in Caidian District, Jiangcheng.
Both are academic achievers.
"You're from Jiangcheng too? I was born in Jiangcheng…"
An Feng didn't know the inside story of today's occurrence; she was simply surprised to meet a fellow countryman at such an occasion.
"Yes, we're indeed fellow countrymen."
With the aura of being fellow countrymen, the few individuals quickly felt less unfamiliar with each other.
Unfortunately, there were too many people present, and the event quickly began; Lei Jun and Qi Hao agreed to have a late-night snack together when the event ended.
This charity Bazaar night wasn't as lively as the previous one; after all, no one dares to fake donation receipts anymore with cases being exposed.
Even those who genuinely donate money have lost enthusiasm.
Clearly, donating money for charity, yet facing doubt from various societal sectors, being criticized without gain, it's better not to donate.
Nonetheless, there were still quite a few people raising their signs.
Li Xue'xue bought a Hermes folding chair for 99.99 million, Fan Xuexue and Liu Yunlong went on stage to present an award, creating a rather strange atmosphere as everyone eagerly watched the scene of the two Xue'xues together.
The two "Xue'xues" held hands, hugged warmly, and occasionally had intimate conversations, their exchanges quite lively.
However, on stage, both displayed poise as they held hands for the audience to see, then went their separate ways down the stage, never communicating further.
Li Xue'xue raised the sign on behalf of entrepreneur Feng Lun, so hers doesn't count; the winner this evening was Zhang Lan.
Her son Wang Xiaofei also appeared, but everyone preferred to call him "Zhang Yuqi's wealthy second-generation boyfriend."
Compared to Qi Hao and An Feng, Wang Xiaofei and Zhang Yuqi's relationship was much more high-profile. They met through Wang Chonglei at the "Mrs. Hua Night" event, and their relationship was soon publicly exposed, unhesitating in sharing passionate kisses; this time, they appeared together at the Bazaar Charity Night.
Eager for the whole world to know they're together.
Wang Xiaofei won a Chow Tai Fook 80th Anniversary Edition set for 500,000 yuan.
Qi Hao raised a sign once, and seeing Wang Xiaofei so enthusiastic, he let him have it.
Lei Jun wanted to help raise a sign but was stopped by Qi Hao, as competing with the so-called Four Young Masters of Beijing in terms of wealth, winning or losing would still be a nod to the opponent.
In the eyes of self-made individuals like Qi Hao and Lei Jun, people like Wang Xiaofei, a second-generation rich, don't really stand out.
Qi Hao is self-made; both his parents were elementary school teachers, and aside from a house passed down by the older generation, his family had nothing else.
Lei Jun was similar.
His father was also a teacher, a common citizen of a small city, without power or influence, unable to provide much help in terms of funds or connections.
Where Lei Jun differed from Qi Hao was that Qi Hao didn't enjoy studying and couldn't get into it, while Lei Jun was an academic prodigy, scoring high to enter Jiangcheng University, and finished his college education by his sophomore year. By junior year, he was seeking side jobs, helping others develop software, and earned over a million.
Wang Xiaofei… just seems as though he's not quite right in the head.
When the charity dinner ended, Qi Hao did not stay to engage with the social scene there to watch a group of women showing off.
He and An Feng stuffed some money into the donation box and went with Lei Jun and his wife for a late-night snack.