Chapter 1411: Good Times Don't Last?

Blog.com was ultimately sold successfully.

Although Wu Sijie didn't fully understand Zhao Fusheng's intentions, he still conveyed Zhao Fusheng's meaning to Zheng Yao.

As for himself, he plunged into the documents.

Soon, Wu Sijie understood.

"Chairman, do you think blogs won't last long?"

Sitting in the car, Wu Sijie cautiously asked Zhao Fusheng.

The two had just attended the signing ceremony for the sale of Blog.com and were on their way back. Taking advantage of Zhao Fusheng's good mood, Wu Sijie voiced the doubt in his mind.

Zhao Fusheng smiled upon hearing this: "What, you've figured it out?"

Wu Sijie had looked tired for days, clearly burning the midnight oil studying those documents after work.

"I've looked into recent materials on Blog.com," Wu Sijie said to Zhao Fusheng. "The data shows that although blog usage is high, most users are so-called white-collar elites, meaning it's actually quite difficult to popularize."

"How so?"

Zhao Fusheng was taken aback; he had only asked casually, but unexpectedly Wu Sijie had an answer.

Wu Sijie thought for a moment and continued: "I think, with the development of the internet, the quality of netizens will diverge. To borrow a popular term, there are more and more keyboard warriors. Their quality means they won't use refined language to express their thoughts online, nor will they share their lives with the public."

Listening to Wu Sijie, Zhao Fusheng paused, then laughed.

He had to admit that this analysis was quite accurate.

In fact, in the original timeline, blogs didn't remain as popular as people expected for long. Within a year or two, they were replaced by various video-sharing sites, and then, with the advent of the smartphone era, blogs truly became something for a niche audience.

People preferred sharing their feelings on Weibo, or more privately, pouring out their hearts on their WeChat Moments.

As for blogs?

Heh, what's that?

In the impression of many new-generation netizens, that's something old-timers use.

Of course, many people don't think so now. After all, 2005 is called the first year of blogs. In the original timeline, with Shanda's lightning acquisition of Sina like a thunderbolt from a clear sky, China's internet entered the spring era. Although Chen the tycoon's ambition to take over Sina ultimately failed, it showed the world the wealth of internet upstarts and kicked off the annual drama of China's internet. Subsequently, Baidu listed on NASDAQ, with its stock price surging 300% on the first trading day, creating seven billionaires including Li Yanhong, two hundred millionaires, and even more centimillionaires overnight.

But these capital maneuvers affecting the internet landscape couldn't overshadow the brilliance of blogs. On August 28, Blog.com announced $10 million in funding from Softbank Asia and other venture capital firms. In September, Sina launched its 'Blog Channel,' inviting celebrities to join, bringing nearly 50% traffic growth. On August 26, Sina again high-profiled launched the 'First China Blog Contest,' and Sohu's 'First Global Chinese Blog Grand Prix' also made its debut.

Multinational corporations were also eyeing the market. International giants like Yahoo, Microsoft, and Google began offering Chinese-language blog services for Chinese users. Microsoft's 'MSN Spaces' had 3 million users, growing at 30% per month.

Two years ago, 'Mu Zimei' brought blogs to public attention with her sex diary, but at that time blogs were still an exclusive game for elites. However, this year, a female star calling herself 'Old Xu' saw her personal blog's click rate exceed 10 million in just three months, which greatly promoted the popularization of blogs. Suddenly, a nationwide craze for blogging swept across the internet.

With the boom of blogs, concepts like Witkey, Digg, and Wiki emerged, and the internet seemed to enter an era of 'keys' that year.

Now, due to Zhao Fusheng's intervention, Blog.com didn't get that $10 million in funding, but blog activities on portal sites like Sina and Sohu were in full swing. The female star named Old Xu had her blog views quietly surpass 10 million.

Of course, at the same time, on par with her was Sister Feihong's blog.

However, Old Xu posted her own sentimental musings, while Sister Feihong posted either her experiences while filming or the people and things she encountered at charity foundations.

But regardless, in many people's eyes, blogs would become a necessity influencing many lives in the future.

Much like the gradual popularization of QQ.

Except for Zhao Fusheng.

Because only he knew that in the years to come, what truly surrounded us were not blogs and QQ, but Weibo and WeChat, and short video sharing platforms like Douyin and Kuaishou.

"It's not that I don't understand, the world changes fast." Zhao Fusheng suddenly hummed a song, startling Wu Sijie, who didn't understand why his boss was in such a good mood that he started singing.

Though reluctant to admit it, Wu Sijie had to say that sometimes he really couldn't keep up with his boss's thoughts. Often, Zhao Fusheng would casually say something, and Wu Sijie wouldn't understand what it meant until after the event happened, realizing that his boss had already seen through everything.

This left Wu Sijie conflicted. On one hand, he admired his boss's foresight; on the other, as the chairman's assistant, he couldn't keep up with his boss's thinking, let alone fathom his thoughts—this was not a good thing.

You see, a sense of security is not only needed between lovers but also by employees.

If an employee of a company can never find the sense of being needed in that company, it is undoubtedly quite cruel for that employee, meaning he is not the one needed and could lose his job at any time.

"Don't overthink it." Zhao Fusheng glanced at Wu Sijie's expression and knew what his assistant was thinking. He smiled and said, "I'm just in a good mood."

In a good mood?

Wu Sijie was startled, then heard Zhao Fusheng continue: "Your analysis is correct. Although blogs are thriving now and seem prosperous in the short term, you need to know that no flower blooms for a hundred days, and no one is good for a thousand days. Internet technology develops too fast; it's only a matter of time before blogs are eliminated."

"What?"

Wu Sijie was dumbfounded. He never expected that his boss, who had always been keen on investing in the internet industry and was known as the earliest to engage with virtual communities in China, would make such a judgment.

But if you really think so, why did you spend money to buy Blog.com in the first place?

To be honest, Wu Sijie felt he couldn't understand this wave of Zhao Fusheng's erratic operations.

If his boss weren't sitting clearly in the car behind him, he might even think the boss had gone mad.

How could a normal person do this?

Zhao Fusheng chuckled: "I'm not denying the popularity of blogs. After all, both investors and the market currently recognize blogs. I'm just saying that this thing won't stay hot for long; it will definitely be replaced by something new."

Wu Sijie remained silent, increasingly confused.

Zhao Fusheng smiled and didn't explain further. Some things, facts speak louder than words; no matter how eloquently one speaks, everything is pale before the facts.

"Make arrangements," Zhao Fusheng instructed Wu Sijie. "Do as I say. If the other party is willing to buy all shares of Blog.com, we'll sell to them."

He paused and smiled: "As for the blogs of celebrities from the film and television company, I think the advertising company can talk to Sina."

Wu Sijie nodded, jotting down Zhao Fusheng's words one by one. These were the boss's instructions, which definitely needed to be conveyed to CEO Zheng Yao.

Squinting out the window, a smile curled at the corner of Zhao Fusheng's mouth. This year was the era of various 'keys'; next year should be the spring of video sites.