The Red Era: Living in Seclusion in a Siheyuan as a Boss

Chapter 779 Xia Country's "Silicon Valley"!!!
After forty years of development since the beginning of the new century, Liujiazhuang and the surrounding areas have become increasingly urbanized and metropolitanized.

From the late 1980s to the early 2000s, coal mining operations were completely stopped in the northeastern part of Liujiazhuang High-tech Development Zone (Jingxi Coal Mining Area), and 500,000 mu of greening work was completed within ten years.

The Yongding River basin has gradually formed a large-scale greening pattern characterized by clear water, green banks, and beautiful scenery.

Liujiazhuang High-tech Development Zone is located in the western part of Yanjing City, covering a total area of ​​800 square kilometers. It is the economic and cultural sub-center of Yanjing.

In 2000, Yanjing's GDP reached over one trillion yuan, of which Liujiazhuang High-tech Development Zone accounted for 680 billion yuan, more than half of the total.

With the continuous advancement of technological innovation, Liujiazhuang High-tech Development Zone has become a nationally renowned "Silicon Valley"-style innovation hub.

The area is home to more than 100 Fortune 500 companies' Asia-Pacific headquarters and over 2000 high-growth technology companies.

Every night, the science park is brightly lit, and in the glass-walled office buildings, countless researchers are still working hard to break through technological bottlenecks.

The "Future Plaza" in the center of the development zone has become one of the new landmarks of Yanjing City. The plaza is surrounded by a cutting-edge science and technology museum, digital library and smart convention and exhibition center.

Almost every year, various science and technology exhibitions and innovation forums are held here, attracting participants and visitors from all over the world.

In terms of green development, the development zone has built the nation's first "zero-carbon demonstration park," with all buildings using solar photovoltaic panels and ground source heat pump systems.

The former MTG coal mining area has now been transformed into an ecological park with hundreds of thousands of acres of forest.

The transportation network here is also becoming increasingly sophisticated. The nation's first high-speed train has shortened the journey between Liujiazhuang Development Zone in western Beijing and Jingang City to just 45 minutes.

Standing on the observation deck on the 108th floor of the "Future Star" building, one can overlook the modern urban landscape and the distant Yongding River ecological corridor, which complement each other and present a beautiful picture of the harmonious coexistence of technology and nature.

Liujiazhuang and the surrounding mountainous area, once impoverished, were jokingly referred to as "poor mountain gullies" due to their remote location, poor transportation, and lack of infrastructure.

On this barren land, the villagers have lived a hard life for generations, toiling in the fields.

However, since the 1960s, this once quiet mountain valley has undergone tremendous changes.

Under the correct leadership of Liu Zhiye, the people of Liujiazhuang seized development opportunities, took the lead in industrial transformation, and gradually integrated the surrounding scattered natural villages.

In just a few decades, this place has undergone a magnificent transformation from a traditional rural area to a modern urban area: first, the Liujiazhuang Commune was established, then the subdistrict office was set up, and subsequently, the Economic Development Zone and the High-tech Industrial Development Zone were approved to be established, and finally, it was upgraded to a prefecture-level administrative unit.

By 2001, Liujiazhuang had become a "Pearl of Yanjing" and a new engine for economic development in northern China.

Despite rapid economic development and vigorous urban construction, the people of Liujiazhuang have persisted in environmental protection for decades.

The Municipal Urban and Rural Construction Leading Group took the lead in coordinating the Liujiazhuang Economic Development Zone and its subordinate townships to formulate specific plans.

With the efforts of the district government and the district government, the Yongding River and all the surrounding areas have been cleared and vacated, making the living environment of Baisheng more ecologically vibrant.

Through "greening construction," the Liujiazhuang High-tech Development Zone has basically completed the six-in-one integration of "demolition, construction, greening, transformation, renovation, and management," and the urbanization process has been greatly promoted. The original rural management model has been transformed into a community management model.

Strolling through the streets of Liujiazhuang, one can feel the vibrant energy of this new science and technology city everywhere.

The smart streetlights on both sides of the main road automatically adjust their brightness according to pedestrian traffic, and there are brightly colored recycling bins along the roadside.

In the central business district, electric buses were used for the first time in the world, shuttling between office buildings to provide convenient transportation services for people.

The educational facilities in the development zone are also becoming increasingly complete. Ten years ago, the "Science and Technology Innovation Center" was built near the university town in Liujiazhuang NA District. It adopts the integrated "industry-university-research" education model and has jointly built more than 50 joint laboratories with various enterprises in the zone.

Research and development teams testing new products can be seen everywhere on campus, and the creative discussions of young students can be heard everywhere.

Liujiazhuang area also boasts the most educational resources in Yanjing. For decades, the people of Liujiazhuang have attracted thirty prestigious universities, foreign educational and training institutions, high-end laboratories, and research and development centers by virtue of their dedication to education and their excellent economic, geographical, and environmental conditions.

In the heart of Liujiazhuang University Town, a building shaped like a DNA double helix rises from the ground – this is the "Science and Technology Innovation Center".

Designed by internationally renowned architects, this building not only boasts a futuristic exterior but also houses world-leading research facilities.

The center houses a quantum computing laboratory, a biomedical research and development base, and an electronic chip research institute, attracting top scientists from around the world to conduct cutting-edge research here.

Michael is a researcher from the United States. He used to be a chip engineer at Qualcomm and is now an employee of Huawei's HiSilicon.

Standing in front of the glass curtain wall of the Science and Technology Innovation Center, Michael looked out at the brightly lit city night view and couldn't help but sigh: "When I first came to Liujiazhuang ten years ago, there were only a few lonely office buildings here."

Today, this place has become a global center for technological innovation. His colleague Zhang Ming smiled and handed him a cup of coffee: "Yes, we have witnessed the transformation of this city."

I remember when I first joined the company, the area around the company was still a vast construction site; now, even the banks of the Yongding River have been transformed into eco-technology parks.

In the quantum computing laboratory of the science and technology innovation center, a research team from around the world is conducting a groundbreaking experiment.

Rodri was adjusting sophisticated instruments and told his team members, "The research conditions here are even better than in Silicon Valley."

The government not only provided state-of-the-art equipment but also established a comprehensive mechanism for the transformation of research findings into practical applications.

Just last week, their quantum chip project received support from the National Major Science and Technology Project Fund.

As night falls, the Science and Technology Innovation Center remains brightly lit.

Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, you can see citizens strolling along the smart walkway on both sides of the Yongding River's ecological corridor.

On the river, several cleaning boats are automatically removing floating debris.

Not far away at the subway station, a high-speed train is slowly pulling into the "Science and Technology Innovation Center Station," carrying another group of experts and scholars who have come to attend the International Electronics Conference.

In a chain coffee shop in the university town, young scholars from all over the world are having a lively discussion.

Maria, from Germany, exclaimed excitedly, "I never expected the innovative atmosphere here to be so amazing!"
Last week, I attended a startup roadshow at the Science and Technology Innovation Center, and five venture capital firms immediately expressed their willingness to invest. Her classmate, Wang Lei, added, "What's most attractive about the Liujiazhuang High-tech Development Zone isn't just its complete industrial chain, but also its open and inclusive innovation culture."

Outside the café's glass window, a futuristic-looking garbage truck is slowly driving along the street, its LED screen displaying announcements for the upcoming International Internet Summit.

In the top-floor conference room of the Science and Technology Innovation Center, an international seminar on "3rd Generation Communication Technology Standards" is underway.

Technical experts from different countries attended the conference and shared their research data.

Li Qiang, director of the Liujiazhuang Development Zone Management Committee, stated: "We plan to develop the development zone into the world's first demonstration zone for the application of 3G communication network technology within the next three years."

Inside the conference room, experts from various countries nodded in agreement.

Andersson, a communications expert from Sweden, stood up and added, "Yanjing's communications infrastructure is extremely advanced. The 2.5G network coverage in Liujiazhuang has reached 98%, which provides excellent infrastructure conditions for the future application of 3G technology." As soon as he finished speaking, a real-time distribution map of the 3G base stations under construction in the development zone was displayed on the large screen. The dense green dots almost covered the entire high-tech development zone.

In a annex building of the science and technology innovation center, a secret project called "Future Lab" is underway.

Professor Lin, the head of the laboratory, is leading his team to test the newly developed intelligent city management system. This system can integrate and analyze data on traffic, energy, security, and other aspects of the entire development zone in real time. "The system is currently running stably, and energy consumption has been reduced by 15%," reported Xiao Wang, a system engineer, while watching the data displayed on the screen.

Professor Lin nodded in satisfaction: "Let's optimize the algorithm a bit more, and we can start trial operation in the central business district next month."

Taobao Mall Yanjing Headquarters, 18th Floor, Ali Building, Jianguo Avenue, High-tech Development Zone.

Taobao Mall is a newly established online shopping platform by the "Ali Group". It imitates the "Amazon" online shopping platform in the United States, but Taobao is mainly C2C.

The core of the C2C operating model is a consumer-to-consumer e-commerce platform where individual sellers sell goods directly to consumers through Taobao. The platform provides transaction support, payment security, and a credit rating system, characterized by low barriers to entry for entrepreneurship and a wide variety of products.

Limited by the underdeveloped internet user base in China, Taobao is still in its early stages. In addition, it has an even more powerful competitor—eBay.

eBay was founded earlier than Taobao and currently occupies 80% of the online shopping market in China.

In the office of Taobao Mall, CEO Ma Feiyun, who is in his thirties, is having a heated discussion with his team members about strategies to break through the competition.

The whiteboard in the meeting room was covered with market analysis data, and several boxes of freshly made instant noodles were piled up in the corner.

“We must find a breakthrough through differentiation,” Ma Feiyun said, tapping the table. “eBay is powerful, but they don’t understand the Xia Guo market.”

Operations Director Zhang Yong's eyes suddenly lit up: "We must launch the escrow transaction system as soon as possible to solve the trust issue between buyers and sellers!"

Meanwhile, at the eBay Yanjing branch on the other side of Jianguo Road in the development zone, Marketing Director Smith was frowning as he reviewed the latest reports.

“The growth rate of Taobao Pay is not exceeding expectations,” he told his assistant. “We should immediately launch the ‘Summer Promotion’ program and accelerate the development of a localized payment system.”

Outside the window, the landmark building of the development zone, "Future Star," is holding a lighting ceremony, with a dazzling light show illuminating the entire night sky.

The tech team at Taobao is working overnight to develop new features.

The programmers stared at the code flashing on the screen, the office echoing with the sound of keyboards clicking.

"The guaranteed payment system has passed the test!" the technical director shouted excitedly.

Ma Feiyun immediately summoned the marketing department: "We will immediately launch a major advertising campaign on major websites and media outlets. We are not short of money now. We will use money to fight a beautiful turnaround battle."

As the first rays of sunlight shone on the development zone in the early morning, an advertisement proclaiming "Full guarantee, worry-free shopping" had already been plastered all over major portal websites.

Companies like T-News, NewWolf, Yahoo, and QianDu, all major internet technology companies, belong to the same group as "Ali Group"—either "Liu's Financial Investment Group" or "Jingxi Capital"—and are essentially one family.

The advertising campaign by Bao Mall quickly swept across the entire internet.

The homepage carousel ads of major portal websites, keyword bidding in search engines, and even bus stop signs on the streets are all covered with the eye-catching slogan "Guaranteed transaction, safe and worry-free".

Ma Feiyun personally recorded a passionate promotional video in the newly built digital studio in the development zone: "On Taobao, every transaction is guaranteed by the platform, allowing you to buy with confidence and sell with peace of mind!"

The effects of this marketing blitz were immediate.

In its first week, Taobao saw over 150 million new registered users and a 300% increase in transaction volume compared to the previous week.

In the restaurant at Jingxi International, Li Yanhong was having lunch with several engineers from Qiandu and discussing this phenomenon: "They found the key to localization—the trust mechanism. This was indeed a blind spot in eBay's C2C model."

Li Yanhong is the founder and CEO of Baidu, an internet company, and is one of the iconic figures in China's internet industry.

Li Yanhong was a top student from a young age, but she grew up in an ordinary working-class family.

Influenced by his family, he understood from a young age the importance of changing his destiny through education.

In the early 1990s, after graduating from Yenching University with a degree in Information Management, Li Yanhong went to the State University of New York at Buffalo, the "beacon of light," to pursue a master's degree in Computer Science.

During her time in the "beacon of the world," Li Yanhong served as a senior consultant at Dow Jones and designed a real-time financial information system for the online edition of The Wall Street Journal.

During this period, he proposed the "hyperlink analysis" algorithm and applied for a patent. This invention predates the "web page level" patent applied for by Google's founders.

In 1997, Li Yanhong joined Infoseek, where he created the second-generation search engine in Silicon Valley.

Li Yanhong's entrepreneurial journey began with his profound understanding of search technology and his insight into the Chinese market.

Three years ago, Li Yanhong realized the enormous potential of the Chinese internet and the inadequacy of Chinese search technology while attending the Internet Summit held in Liujiazhuang.

This prompted him to return to China to start his own business, and at the end of that year he received 3000 million yuan in investment from the venture capital department of "Liu's Financial Investment Group" and established Qiandu Company.

Baidu was founded just as the global internet bubble was bursting, but it quickly gained a foothold in the Chinese market.

In September of last year, "Jingxi Capital" and "Liu's Financial Investment Group" jointly invested an additional 200 million yuan in Qiandu.

Li Yanhong's success lies not only in his business acumen, but also in his profound understanding of technology and keen grasp of market trends.

He is not only a technical expert, but also a visionary entrepreneur.

With 2 million yuan in funding from two financial giants, Baidu, under the leadership of Li Yanhong, quickly captured 90% of the internet search market.

In the headquarters office of Qiandu, Li Yanhong was gazing out the window at the rapid changes taking place in the development zone, her hands supporting her chin.

His assistant strode in and handed over a latest data report: "Mr. Li, according to our monitoring, after Taobao Mall launched its escrow service, user dwell time increased by 65%, which is also a significant boon to our search advertising business."

Li Yanhong took the report and smiled slightly: "Ma Feiyun made a brilliant move."

"Notify the technology department that we need to immediately optimize the bidding algorithm for e-commerce keywords." He turned and wrote a few keywords on the whiteboard: "User Experience," "Business Loop," and "Localization Innovation."

Meanwhile, at the eBay office on the other side of the development zone, Smith was holding an emergency meeting.

The projector displayed Taobao's recent growth curve, and the steep upward line made the atmosphere in the conference room particularly heavy.

“Contact our headquarters immediately,” Smith told the technical team. “We need to launch a Chinese version of the PayPal payment system as soon as possible.”

As night falls, the neon lights in the development zone illuminate one after another.

In Taobao Mall's server room, the technical team is closely monitoring traffic peaks.

"The system load has reached 70%," the operations manager wiped the sweat from his brow. "We need funds to immediately expand the server capacity." Ma Feiyun made a decisive decision: "Contact Jingxi Capital and Liu's Financial Group. I need the money..."

(End of this chapter)