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Chapter 515 0503 [Old Master Chen's Internet Legend]

As Chen Guiliang left the lounge and headed to the awards hall, he encountered many entrepreneurs and representatives of organizations along the way.

Little Ma is also here today; he's here as an award presenter.

The group was led to their seats and waited quietly for the awards ceremony to begin.

The lights went out and then music started playing.

The stage's large screen emitted a futuristic blue light, and a male dancer in a suit moved in sync with the changes on the screen. Gradually, the background content on the screen became richer, and the number of dancers in suits increased.

The central theme of this dance is probably that Chinese entrepreneurs have overcome numerous obstacles and worked alongside the Chinese economy to achieve its growth and prosperity. Some of the symbols in the dance represent the CCTV Annual Economic Figure Award, witnessing China's economic take-off alongside these entrepreneurs.

After the opening dance, the four hosts walked in from both sides of the stage.

Two men and two women: Wang Xiaoya, Chen Weihong, Ouyang Xiadan, and Rui Chenggang.

Wang Xiaoya spoke first: "Distinguished guests, old and new friends, and viewers in front of the television..."

Chen Weihong continued, "Tonight on this dazzling stage, we will witness together the birth of the pride of China's economy in 2011..."

Ouyang Xiadan: "..."

Rui Chenggang: "..."

The four hosts each spoke twice, and also gave a general overview of the domestic and international economic situation this year.

Then a video clip was played on site, showcasing the winners.

It's basically just taking one representative quote from each person's award-winning video interview.

The quote that was extracted from Dongzi's speech was: "Concentrate on doing one thing well."

The quote from Chen Guiliang that was extracted was: "User experience is always the top priority."

The first award presenter was Director Li from the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

This kind of thing is something that everyone in every industry wants a piece of, and even the award presenters have their own agendas.

For example, Director Li didn't start by talking about the awards ceremony, but instead described the development of China's aviation industry this year.

Director Li also summarized the current economic situation with a humorous poem in the style of an old cadre: "The world economy is facing risks, but the Chinese economy is still warm. The Chinese economy is also declining, but its performance is still outstanding."

The audience burst into laughter and applause.

Chen Guiliang was overjoyed and clapped along with everyone else.

The main thing was Director Li's heavy Shandong accent, which added a touch of joy to his recitation of poetry. It was just like listening to a crosstalk performance or watching a skit.

Seeing that he had received a standing ovation, Director Li was inspired to write a poem: "Everyone may also be concerned about next year's development."

Host Chen Weihong reacted quickly: "Will there be an interpretation next year? Please compose another poem."

Director Li smiled broadly and spontaneously recited two lines of doggerel: "How will the economy be next year? The Chinese economy will still shine!"

Another burst of laughter and applause followed.

Reciting doggerel in the Shandong dialect is hilarious...

Director Li came to present an award to Mr. Shi of ZTE. After reciting a limerick, he promptly opened the envelope and revealed the winner.

Soon after, a video was played, detailing ZTE's development over the years, especially its achievements in the past year.

After receiving the award, Wang Xiaoya said, "This year we've set up a special segment called the Annual Follow-up Questions. The questions come from three groups: the audience, international participants, and the on-site observation group. The on-site observation group consists of past winners and media friends. Which group would you like to ask questions to?"

Mr. Shi said, "With so many leaders, friends and guests here, I will ask questions on the spot."

Liu Haitao, a previous award winner and chief scientist of the 973 Internet of Things project, was selected. He asked, "I just watched the video. ZTE has 35000 patents at home and abroad. Mr. Shi, among so many patents, which one makes ZTE the most money and gives us international influence?"

Mr. Shi said, "ZTE's mobile phone patents account for half of the domestic mobile phone patent market. Let me give you an example. We have a very well-known smartphone. This phone is called Blade overseas and 880 in China. This phone is supported by two core patents. It was very popular when it was launched in Europe last year and has been a hit in various European countries. It also sold 800 million units in China, which can be said to have brought ZTE a lot of benefits..."

Chen Guiliang applauded sincerely in congratulations.

Because of the two patents that Mr. Shi mentioned, the HarmonyOS phone uses one of them.

Of course, they also paid patent fees to ZTE.

The second award presenter was Academician Deng, Vice Chairman of the China Association for Science and Technology.

Director Li spoke on behalf of the aviation field, while Academician Deng naturally spoke on behalf of the scientific research field.

He introduced the current state of scientific research in China, especially China's investment in scientific research, which has surpassed Japan to rank second in the world, and immediately won applause from the audience.

Host Rui Chenggang said, "Speaking of the second one, please welcome Academician Deng to announce the second winner of tonight's award."

Academician Deng opened the letter and read: "The recipient of the China Economic Person of the Year Award is... Mr. Chen Guiliang, Chairman of ByteDance and Game Science!"

Amid a round of applause, Rui Chenggang said, "Okay, let's watch Mr. Chen Guiliang's short film."

The scene is of a mountain village, but who knows which rural area it was filmed in.

A voice-over says, "He was born in a rural area of ​​southern Sichuan and was a left-behind child."

Then came the interview footage of Chen Guiliang: "At that time, the rural education situation was not good, and the idea that studying was useless filled the campus. In my junior high school class, there were more than 80 students in total, and only I was admitted to a key high school. There were less than ten other students who went to regular high schools, and the rest went to work after graduating from junior high school."

The scene then shifts to an unknown high school campus: "The rural boy's first visit to the county town left him with a great sense of loss and a prolonged state of confusion."

Here's another interview with Chen Guiliang: "I didn't understand much about the things the students in the county town were discussing, and I'd never even heard of them before. HTO, Koyote, Jay Chou... honestly, I didn't know who Jay Chou was back then. They wore better clothes, and mine even had patches. It was so embarrassing, I was too ashamed to wear them out. I wore my school uniform every day, but there was only one set, and it would eventually have to be replaced. I also grew taller quickly, and by my second year of high school, my school uniform pants no longer fit."

"Back then, I was both arrogant and insecure. I liked to stand up for others to show my presence, but I was also so insecure that I hid in my dorm every day reading random books. My grades dropped very quickly."

The scene then shifts to the Peking University campus: "He signed up for the New Concept Writing Competition, and his brilliant essay amazed everyone, attracting applications from various prestigious universities. In the end, he chose Peking University."

Chen Guiliang said, "At that time, it was considered a special admission, but there were basic requirements. You had to pass the first-tier university entrance exam to be admitted. It would be too embarrassing to be rejected under these conditions, so I studied like crazy. As a result, my score in the mock exam was only second-tier, but in the college entrance exam, I actually exceeded the admission line of Peking University."

The scene shifts to the Peking University Science Park Incubation Center: "While his classmates were still considering which campus club to join, he chose to start his own business."

Chen Guiliang said, "I was always poor, but suddenly I received royalties and a bonus for being admitted to Peking University. The total amount was about 100,000 yuan. At the time, I didn't know how to spend it, so I started two companies."

The screen then shifts to the company and a US stock exchange: "In just a few years, one of his companies has reached a market capitalization of tens of billions of dollars in the US, while the other holds the number one market share in the Chinese online gaming market!"

Chen Guiliang said, "User experience is always the top priority. My business philosophy is like making friends: you only get what you give sincerely. If you treat your friends well, they will treat you well in return. If you treat your users well, they will choose you..."

"What impressed me most was ByteDance's IPO. My English has always been terrible, I've been unable to understand English songs. For the IPO roadshow, I practiced hard for a year until I could communicate face-to-face with Americans. It was the eve of the economic crisis, and the listing environment was very bad. Our whole team, including myself, was under tremendous pressure. After the IPO, the stock price quickly fell below the issue price..."

The scene shifts to consumers queuing to buy mobile phones: "His games are wildly popular both domestically and internationally, and his Weibo product has become a social focus. But at this very moment, he turned his attention to the smartphone field and opened up his self-developed system to form the Chinese HarmonyOS Alliance!" Chen Guiliang said, "Going it alone is rarely successful, especially when we are lagging behind as a whole. When I was reading, I came across the Anti-Japanese National United Front. This inspired me, and perhaps we could also form a national united front for mobile phones..."

The video finally finished playing, and the whole audience burst into applause.

Chen Guiliang's experience is not the most legendary among Chinese entrepreneurs.

But it's definitely one of the fastest-growing companies, having grown so large in just a few years.

Ouyang Xiadan said, "Congratulations to Mr. Chen Guiliang. Let's give Mr. Chen Guiliang a round of applause as he comes to the stage to receive the award!"

Chen Guiliang strode towards the stage.

As the music plays, a narration begins: "Starting with 10 yuan in royalties and bonuses, from selling game cards all over campus to founding Renren.com, HaiNei.com, and Weibo, and then forming the Mobile National United Front. He came from a rural area in southern Sichuan, and after seven years of hard work, he has worked in multiple fields, creating a business legend in the Internet age!"

"Alright, let's invite Academician Deng to present the award to Mr. Chen!"

Two hostesses came over with the trophy, and Academician Deng handed it to Chen Guiliang and shook hands to congratulate him.

Chen Guiliang smiled and raised the trophy.

Rui Chenggang exclaimed, "So young! How old is Mr. Chen this year?"

Chen Guiliang said, "Not young, he's already 26."

Rui Chenggang said, "I'll say your age in the traditional Chinese way. I calculated it, and you should only be 25 years old."

"More or less," Chen Guiliang said.

Ouyang Xiadan said, "Not only are you young, but you're also incredibly handsome. If you weren't a boss, you could totally go into acting and become a star."

Chen Guiliang said, "I do make movies."

"Have you filmed it?" Ouyang Xiadan asked in surprise.

Chen Guiliang said, "In 'Crazy Stone,' I played a security guard. In 'iPartment,' I had many lines. In 'The Founding of a Republic,' I played Mr. Wen Lihe, the eldest son of Mr. Wen Yiduo."

Ouyang Xiadan said, "Then you must be the best actress among well-known entrepreneurs. No, the best movie actress."

Chen Guiliang smiled and said, "My film and television company is already filming two projects. One movie and one TV series."

Rui Chenggang quickly followed up, saying, "It seems that after smartphones, Mr. Chen is about to enter a new field. Please give your acceptance speech."

Chen Guiliang said, "I am very happy to receive this award. I thank my family, friends, teachers, and colleagues. Especially my colleagues in R&D, I often make inexplicable requests. Some of these requests even seem like science fiction, and they are under a lot of pressure. One word from the boss and the employees are exhausted. I hope they can complain about me less behind my back. Thank you!"

"Hahaha!"

A soft laugh rippled through the room.

Ouyang Xiadan said, "Okay, Mr. Chen, please choose your question format. Audience question, international question, or question from the audience?"

Chen Guiliang said, "Let's have questions from the audience. Most of the questions are from netizens, and I answer them too many times. As for international questions, we won't argue with foreigners this year."

Rui Chenggang said, "Our on-site observation team is eager to get started."

Ouyang Xiadan said, "Why don't we choose one of Mr. Chen's fellow villagers?"

Rui Chenggang immediately reacted: "Mr. Liu Yonghao has raised his hand. Mr. Liu Yonghao is our Person of the Year award winner for 2006 and 2010. Mr. Liu, please ask your question!"

Liu Yong chuckled and stood up, holding the microphone: "Hello, Mr. Chen."

Chen Guiliang said, "Hello, Mr. Liu, I've heard so much about you. When I was little, my family raised pigs and fed them Hope pig feed. Back then, I didn't even know Andy Lau, but I had heard of Liu Yonghao, who sold pig feed."

"Hahahaha!"

The whole place burst into laughter.

Liu Yonghao was very pleased to hear this: "Thank you for the support of Mr. Chen and his family, and also thank you to all the farmers who supported Hope Group back then. I was very moved when I watched the video just now. I also came from a rural area in Sichuan, and I know how difficult it is to start a business. Especially Mr. Chen, who is involved in games, websites, and mobile phones. By the way, you also mentioned that you want to make film and television dramas. How do you choose projects, allocate energy, and coordinate development across so many fields?"

Chen Guiliang said, "Actually, it's not really a cross-industry move. The projects I invest in can complement each other. It seems like a big leap for companies that make games and websites to go into making mobile phones. But smartphones are the future direction of development, and they control the traffic interface of the mobile Internet, which can promote the growth of games and websites. Others may think that I'm laying bricks one minute and digging a pool the next, but actually I'm building a house with a swimming pool."

Liu Yonghao asked the host, "May I ask one more question?"

Rui Chenggang looked at the countdown on the big screen: "Okay, the Q&A session isn't over yet."

Liu Yonghao asked, "What shocked me the most was Mr. Chen's open-source self-developed mobile phone system, which successfully built the HarmonyOS mobile phone camp. Did you have confidence back then?"

Chen Guiliang said, "I have absolutely no confidence."

Liu Yong laughed and said, "Haha."

Chen Guiliang said, "At the time, my idea was to do my best. If we messed it up, we would switch to the mainstream system on the market. Just like Microsoft in the computer field, if the application ecosystem of domestic systems cannot be built, we must join Microsoft's arms."

"Some people online call me a saint, even calling me Chen Sheng. I'm not that noble. The reason I open-sourced HarmonyOS is because I know very well that hoarding our own system will inevitably lead to failure, and HarmonyOS will become worthless. Rather than that, it's better to share our system and unite all forces that can be united for common development!"

After he finished speaking, the audience erupted in applause once again.

Moreover, the applause this time was particularly enthusiastic.

Many entrepreneurs didn't understand Chen Guiliang's initial move to open-source HarmonyOS, but looking back now, they are amazed and consider it a "divine move."

Chen Guiliang is now speaking the truth, but he still amazes the entrepreneurs.

While the logic is sound, making such a choice is incredibly difficult.

Who would willingly share their research, which they've invested heavily in, with competitors in the same industry for free? Moreover, to show their sincerity, they've chosen to establish a foundation to manage the project instead of keeping it entirely under their control.

Vision, open-mindedness, and decisiveness—these qualities are all indispensable!

After Chen Guiliang accepted the award and stepped off the stage, the next presenter was Little Ma, and the winner was Liu Qiangdong.

Wang Xiaoya said, "We know that the internet has always been very open. Recently, Mr. Ma said that the internet should continue to be open. What do you hope will continue to be open?"

Pony Ma said, "As everyone knows, the internet is inherently open. The so-called openness in the past referred to the openness of internet infrastructure and public services. True openness, however, has only emerged in the last few years. Especially this year, domestic internet companies have been gradually raising the banner of openness. Tencent is no exception..."

As he spoke, Pony Ma pointed to Chen Guiliang, who had just stepped down from the stage: "Mr. Chen just mentioned that the HarmonyOS system is open source, which is a great act of openness. We at Tencent cannot let ByteDance have all the credit..."

The camera lens focused on Chen Guiliang, who smiled and waved at the camera.

After a long discussion of open topics, Pony Ma finally revealed the winner: Liu Qiangdong.

Dongzi's video was in a different style altogether. After rapidly switching between photos of him in a suit, it showed Liu Qiangdong delivering packages in work clothes...

(End of this chapter)