Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 166 Seeing Cheng Wei Again
Inside a private room at Donglaishun Lamb Hot Pot.

Plates of freshly sliced, tender lamb were placed around the copper pot.

The waiter collected the tray and turned his attention to the one wearing a mask among the five guests: "Hello, all your dishes have been served. Is there anything else you need?"

"No need. We can get our own tea. You can go out now."

"Ok."

Knowing that the five guests wanted to discuss something, the waiter quietly left the private room.

As he closed the door, a thought popped into his head: Why does that person wearing a mask look a bit like a celebrity?

However, it's not unusual to run into celebrities in Beijing. The fact that he didn't recognize the person suggests that the person wasn't a big star.

Unfortunately, what the waiter didn't know was that among the five people sitting in that small private room of less than 20 square meters, two were worth over 5 billion, one was worth several billion, and the remaining two were also future billionaires.

Seeing the door to the private room close, Chen Xiu didn't bother with further pleasantries. She pulled down her mask and started preparing the dipping sauce herself.

Add minced white garlic, chopped green onions and cilantro to the yellowish-brown sesame paste, along with some chili oil and aged vinegar. Then, roll the blanched gray mutton in the paste and start eating!

His focused expression on cooking seemed perfectly normal to Wei Feng and Xiong Ben.

However, in Cheng Wei's complicated feelings, Chen Xiu's reluctance to talk to him, rather than eat, clearly indicated that the grudge between them had not yet disappeared.

Thinking of this, Cheng Wei glanced at Zhang Bo, who had accompanied him, and gestured for him to speak.

Receiving a look from his friend and boss, Zhang Bo forced a smile and asked, "Xiu, how was your year?"

Wow, what a terrible opening!

Zhang Bo and Cheng Wei both thought of it at the same time, and a hint of embarrassment flashed across their faces.

Chen Xiu, who was eating meat, was also embarrassed by the question.

He looked up at Zhang Bo, then turned to Cheng Wei on the right: "Even if you don't usually pay attention to my information, you should have checked it before sending the message, right?"

"Hehe, Old Zhang hasn't seen you in so long, he's lost his tongue."

Cheng Wei smiled and smoothed things over, which successfully started the conversation after making Zhang Bo feel awkward for a moment.

Seeing Zhang Bo silently pursing his lips, a smile flashed in Chen Xiu's eyes: "I haven't been paying much attention to you guys. Last week when I went to Shenzhen, Pony Ma mentioned that Didi plans to acquire Uber's domestic business this year?"

"Yes, Liu Qing is currently communicating with Uber's headquarters in the United States..."

When talking about Didi's development, Cheng Wei's smile became much more confident.

Before Chen Xiu could ask any more questions, he began to recount the changes Didi had undergone in the past 15 years in a slightly boastful tone.

"Last June, we launched our ride-sharing service, and in the same month, we started our intercity service. In July, we raised another $3 billion, with Tencent and Ali participating. Then in November, we launched our carpooling feature, which further reduced the cost of rides for users..."

When talking about Didi's rapid changes, Cheng Wei was both proud and excited.

He felt that this was a way of proving to Chen Xiu that he could lead Didi to develop even better.

This kind of proof is more of a battle of egos.

If Chen Xiu had said "You're pretty good" after Cheng Wei finished speaking, Cheng Wei would have left the dinner party feeling extremely satisfied, and their relationship could have returned to what it was before.

However, Chen Xiu did not do that...

He just listened while continuing to eat his hot pot meat.

Occasionally, he would give Wei Feng and Xiong Ben a wink, signaling them not to just watch but to eat too.

Cheng Wei witnessed this scene, but it did not diminish his talkativeness, because he saved the most brilliant part of his report card for last.

"...January of this year!"

Cheng Wei suddenly raised his voice, then stopped.

In public speaking, this technique always implies that what follows is of utmost importance.

Zhang Bo, Wei Feng, and Xiong Ben all put down their chopsticks and turned their gazes to Cheng Wei.

Chen Xiu, who was already feeling a bit tired of the food, put down her chopsticks, took a sip of tea, and waited for Cheng Wei to continue.

Feeling himself become the center of attention in the private room, Cheng Wei coughed lightly and said, "According to statistics from January of this year, Didi's total order volume across all platforms reached 14.3 billion last year!"

"This data is equivalent to twice the total number of taxi orders in the United States last year, and exceeds the total number of orders since Uber was founded. Didi is now the true No.1 online ride-hailing platform!"

Cheng Wei's eyes gleamed as he stared intently at Chen Xiu.

In his opinion, with this achievement, Chen Xiu should at least congratulate him, right?
Following his gaze, Zhang Bo, Wei Feng, and Xiong Ben also silently turned their eyes to Chen Xiu, wanting to know how he would react.

Having long been accustomed to being watched, Chen Xiu calmly put down her teacup in the face of the four people's gazes, then picked up her chopsticks and, between picking up some meat, offered Cheng Wei a word of congratulations.

"Congratulations! Keep up the good work and strive to set sail soon!"

"That's it?"

Cheng Wei stared wide-eyed at Chen Xiu, feeling that the congratulations he had received were a bit too insignificant.

While eating mutton, Chen Xiu asked, "What else do you want me to say?"

"Don't you have anything more detailed to say to me?"

"for example?"

"You can give me more recognition, and then we can talk about Didi's development path. In the future, will we choose autonomous driving to reduce costs, or will we explore the downstream market and cooperate with electric vehicles to reduce costs? You can talk about these things!"

Cheng Wei didn't even bother to pretend; he directly revealed what he wanted.

He wanted both praise and recognition from Chen Xiu, Didi's former chief strategist, and advice to provide him with references.

Chen Xiu chewed on the mutton in her mouth, stared at Cheng Wei for a moment, and thought he was really dreaming. "Brother Wei, is my approval really that important to you?"

"Uh, yes, it's very important."

"Excessive pursuit of attention from others is a form of self-perception disorder; I suggest you see a psychologist..."

"laugh!"

The sudden laughter made Cheng Wei turn his head and glare angrily at the source of the sound. When he saw that the person laughing was Zhang Bo, he grimaced and curled his lips in annoyance.

Even if two other people laugh, there's nothing he can do...

Cheng Wei took a deep breath, ignoring Chen Xiu's earnest teasing, and continued, "So, what suggestions do you have for Didi's future development direction?"

"No! I had such a fulfilling year last year, how could I have had the mind to think about Didi?"

"Didn't you even think about it at the slightest?"

“I have already left Didi, which means I no longer have any specific work responsibilities to this company, so why bother myself with unnecessary trouble?”

Chen Xiu spoke with such confidence that Cheng Wei was dumbfounded.

He originally thought that Chen Xiu's resignation was just a momentary impulse, and that although she resigned on the surface, she must have been thinking about everything related to Didi behind the scenes!
As a result, Chen Xiu didn't pay any attention to Didi.

Cheng Wei stared blankly at Chen Xiu, his whole body seemingly deflated, and slowly leaned back in his chair. It turned out that from beginning to end, he had never truly understood the other person...

Seeing Cheng Wei suddenly lose interest, Chen Xiu comforted him, "Since you're already here, eat more meat! After this meal, who knows when the next one will be?"

"Too."

Cheng Wei nodded slightly and picked up his chopsticks with a nonchalant expression.

Although he was disappointed by Chen Xiu's reaction, he was, after all, the head of an internet giant, and he was quite adept at regulating his emotions.

Cheng Wei scalded the whole plate of lamb in one go, chewed the lamb coated in sauce, and took a deep breath.

Once he had swallowed the meat in his mouth, he had calmed down and then brought up a new topic with Chen Xiu.

"The Mobike bike-sharing company you invested in is a project that solves the last-mile transportation problem, and Didi has also found a similar one."

Chen Xiu raised an eyebrow at him, and said nonchalantly, "You mean ofo?"

You know this place?

"Hmm, what do you mean by mentioning it to me?"

"As two companies in the same field, we will definitely have a day of direct competition in the future, just like Didi and Kuaidi back then."

Cheng Wei looked at Chen Xiu with a serious expression, a stark contrast to his previous expectant look.

To this, Chen Xiu simply shook her head, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

"ofo isn't your company, and Mobike wasn't founded by me, so what kind of direct competition is this? If you really want to prove something, focus your efforts on Didi and increase its valuation, so that my shares will be worth more."

"Even if you didn't say it, I would still do it!"

"Speaking of Didi, there's something I really want to ask."

"what?"

Cheng Wei's momentum faltered, and a barely perceptible hint of anticipation appeared in his eyes.

Chen Xiu put down her chopsticks and asked curiously, "Where do you plan to list Didi? Domestically? In Hong Kong? Or...?"

"This one……"

Cheng Wei pushed up his glasses, turned his head away awkwardly, and avoided Chen Xiu's gaze.

This reaction confirmed Chen Xiu's answer.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something to Cheng Wei, but after thinking about it, he felt that he didn't have anything to say.

Cheng Wei isn't stupid; he should be able to think of everything that needs to be thought of. The fact that he still made this choice is simply because he was forced into it by others.

Feeling slightly annoyed, Chen Xiu took a sip of tea and, regardless of whether it would be of any use, said one more thing.

“Brother Wei, I don’t know what you’ve weighed or how many compromises you’ve made, but this is a very serious matter, far more complex than just one company. You’d better think about it some more.”

"Forehead……"

Cheng Wei stood there speechless, wanting to defend himself, but feeling that it would be useless to say anything, so he decided to remain silent.

Finally, he simply gulped down the tea and left the private room, making an excuse that he was full.

Before Chen Xiu could react, Zhang Bo got up to say goodbye.

Before leaving, he thought for a moment and decided to say a few more words.

"Xiu, you haven't changed much from before. I really admire you."

"What do you admire about me?"

"Treat others with sincerity and be strict with yourself. Many people become arrogant after achieving success, but you seem to be in good control."

"Hehe, that's too high a compliment. I'm just an ordinary person."

Chen Xiu shook her head, not accepting the assessment.

He had a clear understanding of himself, and his desires were no less than others', but he had more self-control than others, though he was still somewhat indulgent in women...

(End of this chapter)