Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 462 Ma Yun Agrees to Help
Yuyuan Road, Shanghai.

Just as Chen Xiu and Ma Yun met at the Tan Palace, his parents also welcomed a group of familiar guests.

In the living room, Zhao Lu sat on the sofa with her legs crossed, dealing with Chen Duling and her daughter Lin Hongying sitting to her side while listening to Chen Mingjie and Chen Duling's father reminiscing about the past.

Finally, feeling that the two old men's talk about youth was too boring, she turned to Lin Hongying and smiled:
"Hongying, look, we've been chatting for so long, and I haven't even had a chance to ask you why you came here today! Hehe, I haven't asked yet?"

"Um……"

Lin Hongying pondered for a moment, first glancing at the silent Chen Duling out of the corner of her eye, and then looking at her husband who was chatting happily and had forgotten the purpose of their trip.

It seems I'll have to take matters into my own hands!
Lin Hongying thought to herself, her lips and eyes curving upwards as she said to Zhao Lu, "Sister Zhao, actually we came here today mainly to find Xiao Xiu. Old Chen, are you done talking?"

"What?"*2
Lin Hongying's last sentence was directed at Chen Duling's father, but because they shared the same surname, Chen Mingjie also responded.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Lu immediately turned her eyes to look at the back of the head.

Chen Mingjie realized what was happening and apologized repeatedly, stating that Zhao Lu usually addressed him in the same way.

This little incident didn't bother Chen Duling's family too much, because as Lin Hongying called out, Chen Duling's father remembered the purpose of their trip.

"Ahem, well, Mingjie, I'd like to ask you for a favor."

"What's going on? So serious?"

Chen Mingjie frowned as he looked at his friend, thinking to himself: Knowing his personality, he wouldn't ask me for help unless it was something extremely important. It seems this matter is quite serious...

Mr. Chen smiled and said, "It's not a big deal, it's mainly related to you."

"What exactly is it? If I can help, please let me know..."

"Dangdang!"

The crisp, clear sound interrupted Chen Mingjie's "generous agreement".

Before he could turn around to look, the person who had made the commotion had already joined the conversation.

"Oh dear! It's so cold, I can barely hold my cup. Looks like I should listen to my son's advice and retire early, right, Old Chen?"

Zhao Lu glanced at Chen Mingjie teasingly, and was about to get up to pick up the cup on the ground when a figure was faster than her.

"Auntie, where's the mop?"

Chen Duling held the empty cup, bit her lower lip lightly, and looked at Zhao Lu with a mixture of anticipation and timidity.

Seeing this, Zhao Lu chuckled and said, "It's okay, just wipe it with a tissue. The air conditioner is on, it'll be fine in a bit..."

Before she could finish speaking, Chen Duling had already done as instructed.

Zhao Lu stared at her movements, her lips twitching slightly. She glanced at Chen Mingjie and then nodded almost imperceptibly.

Upon receiving the signal, Chen Mingjie breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Dudu, don't bother, just leave it there. Old Chen, what did you say you wanted to ask me for a favor?"

"Actually, it's not a big deal. It's just that Dudu signed with Chen Xiu's company last year, so I wanted to bring her here to thank Chen Xiu in person."

"so……"

Normally, when faced with such a request to see his son, Chen Mingjie would definitely make an excuse to refuse or leave the matter to Zhao Lu.

But since Zhao Lu has already expressed her opinion, he no longer needs to make things difficult for her.

Pushing up his glasses, Chen Mingjie said, "It's like this, in order not to affect my and Zhao Lu's normal life, Xiao Xiu moved out last year. If you want to see him, Zhao Lu and I can take you there."

Hey, hey, hey, you could have just agreed yourself, why did you have to drag me into it?

Zhao Lu muttered to herself, then thought that although Chen Xiu was with Su Xiao, there should be no one at the new house, so it wouldn't hurt to contact her there later.

Upon hearing Chen Mingjie's words, Chen's father and Lin Hongying naturally agreed.

"Mingjie, then I'll leave it to you!"

"Whatever you say, it's a trivial matter."

"Sister Zhao, how about Dudu and I go buy some things first, and then cook dinner at Chen Xiu's place tonight?"

"No need. Old Chen and I were going to see Xiaoxiu today anyway. We've already bought everything, so we can just take it with us."

Zhao Lu waved her hand, and Chen Mingjie could only nod in agreement.

Seeing the stark difference in their family status, Lin Hongying and Chen's father exchanged a glance and suddenly realized they had made a mistake in their approach to winning over Chen...

……

Life, entertainment, and consumption constitute the complete industrial chain of the Internet.

Ma Yun pursed her lips slightly, silently repeating Chen Xiu's summary, and couldn't help but feel a sense of agreement.

As two giants in the internet industry, Ali and Penguin have been constantly strengthening their own foundations while also planning to encroach on each other's pillar industries.

However, without exception, all attempts ended in failure.

These failures gave Ma Yun a glimpse into a crucial area between e-commerce and instant messaging—an area that neither Ali nor Tencent had ventured into—which he identified as leisure and entertainment.

In order to enter the entertainment industry as early as possible, Ma Yun had already begun to make arrangements in the film and television culture industry, and even raised the priority of major cultural and entertainment projects to the forefront of the company.

However, to his utter surprise, the entertainment between e-commerce and instant messaging was not long videos, but short videos!
This discrepancy between the length of the error and the length of the error caused Ali to miss out on its strategic moves in the final major market segment, while also allowing Douyin to rise strongly, squeezing out Baidu and becoming the third largest internet platform after Ali and Tencent.

Ma Yun also reviewed the situation, but not as clearly as Chen Xiu.

After a moment of contemplation, Ma Yun half-closed his eyes and said, "You sound so eloquent; could it be that you already have a conclusion?"

"That makes sense."

Chen Xiu nodded dismissively, and had no intention of hiding anything about it.

Ma Yun lifted her eyelids, staring intently at Chen Xiu, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes, and her opinion of him rose even higher.

"You mean you knew all along that Douyin would succeed?"

Chen Xiu chuckled and shook his head: "Mr. Ma, what can you do even if you know some things?" "What do you mean?"

"WeChat's predecessor was QQ, and Taobao was born 15 years ago. Their dominance is already solid, and no newcomer can surpass them. Douyin can only survive in the cracks between you, and it also has to face the challenges of Kuaishou and Weishi. It's just good luck that it has come this far."

"Hehe, I don't remember you being such a humble person."

Ma Yun squinted at Chen Xiu, feeling that not a single punctuation mark of what he said afterward was worthy of belief.

Chen Xiu didn't take it to heart, but as she pondered with her head down, she turned her eyes slightly.

"The domestic internet market has now stabilized. If we want to improve further, the best option is to expand overseas. Ali's SpeedPass has performed quite well in the last two years."

"That was also thanks to TikTok's traffic and promotion..."

At this point, Ma Yun suddenly stopped, his expression becoming cautious.

"President Chen, it seems that Douyin's overseas expansion is ahead of all other companies."

"TikTok is about to go public, and it will be owned by two different companies from Douyin. We welcome Ali to invest in it."

Chen Xiu pretended to be confused to lure Ma Yun into asking questions.

With so much groundwork laid, Ma Yun certainly wouldn't let the conversation end there.

"Douyin remains the largest shareholder of TikTok. Although they appear to be two separate companies, they are actually one entity. Last month, Mr. Sun from SoftBank complained to me on the phone that TikTok sold too few shares before its IPO, which he found particularly regrettable."

We've finally gotten to that.

Chen Xiu feigned curiosity and said, "I've heard of Mr. Sun from SoftBank many times, but I've never met him in person."

“I’m quite familiar with him, and he has invited me to visit his place for vacations and long-term stays many times.”

"OK, if I'd like to get to know Mr. Sun, could Mr. Ma help me with the introduction?"

"Ok??"

Ma Yun frowned slightly, a look of surprise flashing across her face.

He stared at Chen Xiu for a while, then asked, "Why do you want to get to know President Sun?"

"things related to work."

"Can you tell me?"

"If you can agree to help with the introduction, then I can tell you part of the story."

Chen Xiu looked at Ma Yun with a smile on her lips, stating her purpose in a righteous and open manner.

Upon hearing this, Ma Yun immediately perked up.

Helping to arrange meetings was not difficult for him, but Chen Xiu's purpose in doing so intrigued him.

"Why don't you tell me what it is first, so I can make an easier appointment?"

"No, that won't do. There are ways to make an appointment and ways not to make one. Mr. Ma, please don't force me."

The more Chen Xiuyue said that, the more Ma Yun wanted to know.

"If I agree to help, when do you plan to meet with General Manager Sun?"

How far in advance should I inform him if I want to make a date with him?

"Others make appointments at least a week in advance, but I don't need to!"

Ma Yun waved his hand, intending to show off in front of Chen Xiu, but...

"That's great. I don't want to see him yet. I'll ask you for help again in a few months, Mr. Ma."

"How many months?"

Ma Yun's eyes widened, his expression changed, and he immediately seized the opportunity to move closer to Chen Xiu.

"Is what you're talking about related to TikTok's IPO?"

"Hehe, just a little bit."

Chen Xiu raised his hand and pinched her, then no matter how much Ma Yun guessed, he refused to say anything more.

Seeing this, Ma Yun didn't press the matter. Only after confirming that Douyin and WeChat's Spring Festival red envelope campaign was a short-term collaboration and that neither company intended to cooperate long-term, did his heart, which had been hanging in suspense since last night, finally settle down.

Looking at the remaining tea in the cup, Ma Yun picked it up and drank it all in one gulp, then got up from the sofa, supporting himself on his knees.

"OK! That concludes today's visit. I need to head back to Hangzhou now."

"Mr. Ma, won't you stay for dinner?"

"My family is waiting for me to have dinner, so I can't keep you company. When is the next time you want to see Mr. Sun? Remember to let me know in advance."

"must."

Chen Xiu reached out and shook hands with Ma Yun. The two looked at each other and smiled, their eyes filled with admiration and respect.

Chen Xiu glanced at the door and said, "Mr. Ma, let me see you off."

"Great! It's a pity I came in a hurry today, and time was too tight, otherwise I would have liked to have a proper chat with you..."

Ma Yun walked beside Chen Xiu, muttering to herself, before seamlessly transitioning to another topic, saying that she and Chen Xiu shared many similar ideas and that their future collaboration would be very promising.

Chen Xiu accompanied him all the way from the living room to the front hall.

As they stepped outside, the commotion coming from the courtyard made them stop their conversation.

"Excuse me, this is my son's house. Are you the new bodyguards?"

(End of this chapter)