When I am reborn, I just want to be a top student

"Jingle Bell!"

Wang Donglai's phone rang.

Upon answering the phone, the caller ID showed "Little Ma." After a moment's thought, Wang Donglai picked up the call.

"Mr. Ma," Wang Donglai greeted him.

"Mr. Wang, do you have some time? Could you spare some time for us to sit down and have a chat?"

Little Ma's voice was gentle, like that of an old friend, as he extended an invitation to Wang Donglai.

Wang Donglai politely declined, saying, "Mr. Ma, you wouldn't come unless you had a reason, so I won't trouble you. We can have a preliminary discussion over the phone. What do you think, Mr. Ma?"

Little Ma paused for a moment, seemingly surprised that Wang Donglai would refuse to meet and talk.

However, he quickly realized what was going on and said, "Since Mr. Wang is so straightforward, then I'll get straight to the point."

"We're all doing business in China, and we'll run into each other all the time. We can work together to expand the market, and we welcome newcomers to join us. But since we're all on the same side, can we perhaps discuss some business competition tactics?"

Little Ma didn't explicitly say what it was about, but Wang Donglai knew perfectly well what it was.

It's nothing more than Xinghuo Express and Pinhaofan.

Tencent is a true internet giant in China, having invested in countless companies, and naturally, the express delivery industry wouldn't miss out.

As for Huang Tuan, he is the largest shareholder.

Now that he's spoken, the meaning behind his words is quite clear to Wang Dong.

That is, they want to discuss with Wang Donglai and ask him to stop his current competitive actions.

Wang Donglai chuckled softly and said, "Mr. Ma, you might as well speak frankly. Is it Xinghuo Express's price reduction, or Pinhaofan's? Or perhaps both?"

"Mr. Ma, why are you calling me at this time? How much market share are you planning to capture? What are your thoughts?"

Since they hadn't met, Brother Ma couldn't see Wang Donglai's changing expressions and could only analyze them through his tone of voice.

However, after analyzing for a long time, no clues could be gleaned from Wang Donglai's tone.

"Let's be frank. The domestic express delivery market is huge, and your company has the Pinduoduo e-commerce platform with ample order volume. Even without a price war, you can stand firm and occupy a considerable market share, so there is absolutely no need to start a price war."

"Everyone's in it for the money. Chen Jun from Shentong has already told me that if Mr. Wang is willing to stop the price war, everything is negotiable. What does Mr. Wang think?"

"The same applies to the food delivery sector. Huangtuan just went public and invested over 20 billion yuan in this market over the past ten years. The sunk costs are too high."

"It's fine for your company to enter this industry. It's also understandable to use price wars to open up the market in the early stages."

"But it's a bit unwise for your company to offer such good benefits to delivery riders."

"Tencent has a significant stake in Huangtuan and can say a few words at the board meetings. If Mr. Wang agrees, we can join forces with Ele.me to raise platform service fees and revenue sharing, and make money together."

"The food delivery economy is ultimately built on massive spending, so profitability is a critical requirement, especially at this time."

"Many things may not be done perfectly yet, but it is undeniable that the food delivery industry provides a lot of employment. With a little diligence, one can earn five or six thousand a month, or even more than ten thousand."

"Compared to the money in hand, the five social insurances and one housing fund are not very attractive."

"The job of a food delivery rider is not long-term; it's impossible to do it for a lifetime. The five social insurances and one housing fund are not very meaningful to people like them."

"I believe that most food delivery riders and couriers are actually unwilling to pay social insurance and housing fund contributions. Nobody would be willing to accept less money in their pocket."

"For the company, this also increases labor costs."

"As for other employee benefits, your company is very profitable and can make money from other products to subsidize them, but that would be a bit difficult for Huang Tuan."

"so……"

Before Little Ma could finish speaking, Wang Donglai interrupted him.

Actually, interrupting someone is very impolite.

But Wang Donglai didn't want to hear Xiao Ma continue.

“Mr. Ma, I understand what you’re saying. You’re not the first person to say this to me.”

"However, I don't think so."

"You can't just allow officials to set fires while forbidding ordinary people to light lamps. The express delivery industry also engaged in price wars back then, but now that it's Xinghuo Express, that's not allowed."

"Don't say things like 'orders are preferentially allocated to e-commerce platforms'."

"At the current prices, courier companies are just making less money, not losing money."

"Even if there are losses, it's not because of losses in the courier business."

"The development of the domestic express delivery and logistics industry is dependent on the construction of the national transportation network and the realization of access to every village."

"These things are the foundation. Without them, there would be no logistics and express delivery as we know them today."

"It can be said that logistics and express delivery companies nowadays are just reaping the benefits without spending a penny."

"But that doesn't mean we have no obligations. Logistics and express delivery have just started to connect the whole country, making trade more convenient and business activities no longer limited to one place."

"Initially, the delivery and logistics were efficient, and everyone was patient and willing to wait."

"However, despite the rapid development of logistics and express delivery, the delivery time has not changed much, and the service has also remained the same."

"For franchise outlets, there is no door-to-door delivery; express delivery takes three to five days, and the courier's salary level is low."

“I don’t think these phenomena are right, and I don’t approve of them.”

"Now that Galaxy Technology has established PinYiDao, we should provide better services to consumers."

"Faster delivery times and higher service levels mean that our delivery workers should also have a respected and dignified profession."

"These things aren't difficult; you just need to control your profit-driven mindset."

"Many people are unwilling to do this; they only want to make a lot of money in a stable environment."

"However, since Mr. Ma has already called me, I can't refuse to give him face."

"If the express delivery industry, such as STO Express, YTO Express, ZTO Express, and Yunda Express, are willing to follow Galaxy Technology's employee benefits and measures, improve delivery timeliness, and enhance the quality of express delivery services, I can stop the price war and let everyone compete for market share based on service level. In the fierce competition of e-commerce order allocation, I will not show any favoritism."

"If we can do that, the price war can stop immediately! If we can't, then we'll have to rely on all sorts of tricks!"

Wang Donglai said this casually.

On the other end of the phone, Brother Ma's face darkened; he was not satisfied with Wang Donglai's answer at all.

If we really do as Wang Dong said, the profit margin will probably drop by half, or even more.

Moreover, Xinghuo Express has Pinduoduo as a source of orders, while STO Express, YTO Express, ZTO Express, and Yunda Express can only rely on Taotian Group.

Wang Donglai said he wouldn't discriminate against the three major express delivery companies (STO Express, YTO Express, ZTO Express, and Yunda Express), but Pony Ma (Ma Huateng, CEO of Alibaba) simply wouldn't believe that. Because even if he were in that position, he wouldn't do that.

If you project your own experience onto others, you naturally won't believe it.

However, Xiao Ma didn't get angry immediately. He thought about it for a moment before speaking, "I can convey Mr. Wang's request, but I can't guarantee whether Chen Jun will accept it."

"In the competitive business environment of the food delivery industry, Mr. Wang has chosen to use a movie to launch an online public opinion offensive. Isn't that a bit too much?"

"As I said before, we see each other all the time, so it's better to be harmonious and make money. There's absolutely no need to make things so ugly."

"If Mr. Wang has any objections to Huang Tuan, he can certainly bring them up. Even if he has any objections to Wang Xing, I can arrange for Wang Xing to apologize and make amends to Mr. Wang. I wonder what Mr. Wang's opinion is?"

When the topic turned to Huang Tuan, Xiao Ma's tone became serious.

After all, Tencent's investment in the express delivery industry is not much, far less than that of Huangtuan.

It seems that this phone call, while seemingly about two things, is actually about Huang Tuan, with the express delivery just being mentioned incidentally.

Wang Xing, the founder of a prestigious listed company, is now considered a junior in Pony Ma's eyes.

This is consistent with their social status and wealth.

In front of Little Ma, Wang Xing was indeed just a junior at this moment.

The apology that Brother Ma mentioned is something he can indeed do.

After all, Galaxy Technology's chosen offensive move did indeed strike at Huang Tuan's Achilles' heel.

In the past, everyone engaged in simple price wars or bought media outlets to spread negative news about their competitors in order to compete in the business.

Who would have thought that Galaxy Technology would actually produce a movie and then broadcast it directly on its own video platform to maximize its influence?

Now that's great, anyone who can access the internet can see this.

This was originally just a small matter, and compared to the benefits brought by food delivery, some developmental issues could be temporarily ignored.

But who could have imagined that Galaxy Technology would directly break through this barrier?

The power of film, the seventh art form of human language, is indeed not to be underestimated.

The influence of the previous book, "I Am a Medicine God," was immense; I can't go into the details in the book.

And now, another one called "Life Against the Grain" has popped up, which is even more outrageous.

Little Ma has invested a lot of money in Huang Tuan, but hasn't recouped it yet. If he loses his value because of a movie, he'll be furious.

This isn't Ma Yun being overly pessimistic; he has already received definite information.

The higher authorities have taken notice of this matter, and leaders have requested that it be resolved as soon as possible.

Whether it's suppressing the trending topics or resolving the matter completely, either way is fine.

Both Tencent's and Taotian's media outlets are quite simple; they can easily control media attention and suppress the impact of an event.

However, this film was produced under the leadership of Galaxy Technology and was released on Galaxy Technology's video platform.

Douyin is currently the most popular short video platform in China, with a huge number of active users.

Even if other platforms strictly ban discussions about "Life Against the Grain," as long as Douyin doesn't follow suit, these bans will be useless and will only become a joke.

That's why Pony Ma personally went to communicate with Wang Dong.

However, Little Ma had no idea of ​​the difference between his and Wang Donglai's ideas.

"Mr. Ma, since you brought up the food delivery industry, I assume you've also seen the movie 'Life Against the Grain'?"

"I think Mr. Ma might ask Wang Xing if there are any fictional parts in the movie about food delivery?"

“Mr. Ma, I have an official data summary document that you probably haven’t seen before.”

"It's about the current working conditions of food delivery riders across the country. The data is all publicly available and highly credible."

"Of the hundreds of thousands of delivery riders employed by food delivery platforms, I'd like to ask: how many of them are full-time, officially employed workers, and not just outsourced employees?"

"Mr. Ma doesn't need to give his answer. I don't want to argue or debate pointlessly."

"If the platform allows more time for delivery, makes the penalties more reasonable, and uses more positive incentives, I think the situation would be much better."

"Technology is neutral and should be used for good, not to turn people into accessories to tools."

"Because the world is not lacking in grand principles, but in people who abide by them."

"Mr. Ma can say that I am naive or immature, but I don't care, because Galaxy Technology has always been an adjunct to my scientific research, not my main business."

"Hundreds of thousands of food delivery riders across the country are sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, grandfathers, the pillars of their families, and children who are also worried about by their parents."

"A large enterprise must assume certain social responsibilities, and I think Mr. Ma would not deny that."

"But I haven't seen that in the food delivery sector."

"Don't talk about job opportunities; this is an inevitable behavior for food delivery companies, otherwise how would they deliver food?"

"Food delivery should not be a low-end industry, but a high-end service industry. I want to try to change that."

"Mr. Ma, we have different principles, so we can't work together. You can also relay today's conversation to others."

After saying that, Wang Donglai hung up on Xiao Ma's call.

On the other end of the phone, Brother Ma was momentarily stunned as he listened to the dial tone.

Because he really hadn't expected Wang Donglai to think that way.

Surprisingly, their goal wasn't to crush Huang Tuan, seize market share, or make money.

Rather, they disapproved of Wang Xing's actions.

Actually, Little Ma didn't think much of Wang Xing's actions either. It's not surprising that businessmen from Wang Xing's hometown have this kind of personality.

As long as Huang Tuan can make money for him, that's enough.

In the business world, elitism like that of Wang Xing is actually more favored by capital, because ruthlessness is more likely to lead to success.

Now, for this very reason, it has become a problem for development.

What a joke.

Brother Ma frowned, his mind racing as he considered how to resolve the matter more effectively and quickly.

As for whether or not to tell Wang Xing, Little Ma naturally wouldn't do that. (End of Chapter)