Chapter 1155 Dong Chenxi's Doubt

It is said that when life freezes in a certain frame, that frame is like a famous painting. Ordinary people see the fleeting moments and vulgar life, while those in the same trade see resonance.

People are always in pursuit of eternity, but in reality, life is often very short; an instant may be eternity.

For Tong Zhenbang, he didn't understand what eternity meant. He only knew that he couldn't miss the big tree that was Zhao Fusheng.

After all, this was the best way for him and the Mr. Li behind him to clean up their act.

And Zhao Fusheng, understanding this, was so emboldened.

Therefore, if there is an opportunity to negotiate terms with others, one must seize the initiative and clearly articulate everything one wants. Because in the vast majority of cases, others are willing to negotiate with you because they need something from you, not because they pity you.

Simply put, at this moment, the other party won't be so aggressive. Once you miss this opportunity, by the time they come to their senses, many changes will occur in the whole matter. It's very likely that the other party will no longer give you a chance, or even refuse to talk to you. In that case, the one who suffers is obvious.

In the business world, the phrase 'step by step' is actually a joke, because any businessman who has the means to achieve his goals will not miss any opportunity to develop and strengthen himself.

To put it bluntly, as long as there is money to be made, businessmen will quickly carve up those profits with lightning speed, and there will never be any brotherly harmony or the like.

The business world has always been a place where the weak are prey to the strong. Zhao Fusheng understood this, and so did Tong Zhenbang.

Or rather, the tacit cooperation between the two stemmed from this understanding.

“Are you so sure that guy Tong will take the bait?” Sitting in the car, Dong Chenxi asked Zhao Fusheng with interest.

To be honest, she was somewhat skeptical about Zhao Fusheng's plan. She didn't think Tong Zhenbang and the people behind him would be that foolish. Handing over several billion in funds obediently to Zhao Fusheng—that wasn't a few billion tadpoles, it was several billion US dollars.

“He will, because of NetEase's stock price.” Zhao Fusheng smiled slightly and said to Dong Chenxi.

When negotiating with Tong Zhenbang earlier, they had already agreed: he was only responsible for providing the money and could not interfere with Zhao Fusheng's investment plans. This was something both sides had to accept.

Because of this, Tong Zhenbang was completely in the dark about Zhao Fusheng's investment plans.

But precisely because of this, once Zhao Fusheng made any major move, Tong Zhenbang's side would be more concerned than anyone else.

NetEase's stock price had been rising recently, looking like a blue-chip stock. Zhao Fusheng's announcement of increasing his holdings was undoubtedly a huge temptation for Tong Zhenbang.

Moreover, Zhao Fusheng knew very well that NetEase's stock price would continue to rise.

After all, if he remembered correctly, before the subprime mortgage crisis officially broke out in 2007, NetEase's stock price seemed to have barely broken through the $100 mark.

That's right, one hundred US dollars.

To be honest, not to mention Tong Zhenbang, if Zhao Fusheng himself were in that position, he would ask himself: under such circumstances, he too would be unable to control himself.

Of course, he couldn't explain this reason to Dong Chenxi, but with NetEase's stock price right there, Dong Chenxi certainly wouldn't have any other thoughts.

“By the way, I personally am not optimistic about that company you invested in in the United States.” Dong Chenxi hesitated for a moment and said to Zhao Fusheng, “Their idea is pretty good, but podcasting technology isn't mature yet, and with competition from those big companies, I think it will soon fall into trouble.”

Zhao Fusheng raised an eyebrow, looking at Dong Chenxi with some surprise. He hadn't expected her to have such insight.

“What, am I wrong?” Dong Chenxi asked Zhao Fusheng curiously.

“I don't know either.” Zhao Fusheng shook his head, looking at Dong Chenxi with a half-smile. “I just have faith in Evan Williams as a person, so I invested that million dollars. As for whether this company can develop, to be honest, I don't really understand podcasting technology.”

Dong Chenxi was stunned, unable to speak for a long time.

This was what it meant to be rich and willful—Zhao Fusheng was probably that kind of person.

Just because he liked a talent, he spent a million dollars investing in his company, and in US dollars no less. Dong Chenxi really wanted to grab Zhao Fusheng by the head and ask him if it had been squeezed by a door frame.

But since he was the boss, the boss was paramount above all else.

So Dong Chenxi only gave Zhao Fusheng a resentful look but didn't continue the topic. In her heart, though, that million dollars was definitely money down the drain.

Zhao Fusheng laughed inwardly but kept a straight face, instructing Dong Chenxi, “Tell the people in the US not to interfere with their operations. We are only responsible for providing the money; the rest is up to them to decide.”

Dong Chenxi resignedly nodded: “Got it, don't worry.”

Seeing her expression, Zhao Fusheng didn't expose her thoughts. He couldn't very well tell Dong Chenxi that it was precisely because the podcasting company was struggling that Biz Stone and Jack Dorsey had cooked up that magical software called Twitter, and launched it on Evan Williams' birthday.

Five years later, that company, worth only a few million dollars, would become a publicly traded company with a market value of over ten billion dollars.

Fate, sometimes, is just that magical.

But this magic, apart from Zhao Fusheng, no one knew about.

“Are there any other issues with Blog Network?” Seeing Dong Chenxi in low spirits, Zhao Fusheng wisely didn't continue the previous topic and deliberately shifted the conversation to Blog Network.

Sure enough, upon hearing Zhao Fusheng's question, Dong Chenxi pondered for a moment and briefed him on the recent developments regarding the acquisition of Blog Network. Finally, she said, “We've basically reached an agreement; it should be finalized today.”

She paused, looking at Zhao Fusheng suspiciously: “Are you planning to show up today?”

“No, no, no. I'm just tagging along for a look.” Zhao Fusheng shook his head like a rattle-drum, quickly denying it. “You know I'm not very good at negotiating. And with you handling things, I'm at ease.”

Are you kidding? He hadn't come today to go negotiate with Dong Chenxi; he only wanted to tell her to officially announce the increase in NetEase stock holdings, to set a trap for Tong Zhenbang.

Negotiate?

Hmph, Zhao Fusheng indicated that he was very busy.