Rebirth 04: Starting from Taking an Unconventional Approach

"What if we factor in the strategic premium?" Ma Huateng asked.

"Then... if Qingniao is acquired by Shengda or Xinlang, our losses... could rise to 400 million."

"Four hundred million." Tencent CTO Zhang Zhipeng slowly repeated, as if saying it aloud would make it easier to understand.

"But that's financial logic. What I'm asking is, if we don't invest now, and wait until Qingniao has established a foothold in Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces, and then sits at the same table with Shengda or some other company, will we still have a chance?" Ma Huateng shook his heels, waiting for everyone's answer.

"It's difficult," Xu Cheng finally said. "If we don't get in now, and wait until he starts talking to Shengda about copyright ecosystem, content industry chain, and full copyright development, and until he's attracted by Chen Tianjiao's online Disney story, then it won't be a matter of premium pricing when we try to bring him back."

"Xu Cheng," Zhang Zhipeng said, "how far have you progressed with the QQ traffic test you proposed before?"

"He said last time that he would have the team conduct a technical evaluation, but there's still no news. I didn't urge him because... it's pointless. He has countless reasons to explain why the evaluation results haven't been completed yet. Besides, urging him would be like telling Han Fei that we're in a hurry and really need this cooperation, which would actually make us lose the initiative in the negotiations and give Han Fei room to raise the price."

"Is it possible that he's deliberately stalling us?"

"Logically speaking, Han Fei does have an motive to delay," Xu Cheng said. "For example, to further confirm his market value and position. The longer he delays, the higher his bargaining power becomes. I don't deny that. But these are all just speculations. Every response he gave was very appropriate: technical evaluation takes time, the team needs to communicate, and the internal system needs to process the information. These reasons are reasonable in any company. We can't just conclude that he's delaying based on feelings alone; otherwise, we wouldn't be making decisions based on data, but on emotions."

"According to you," Zhang Zhipeng said, "if he's really dragging this out just to increase his own value and market position, is it possible... that they already knew about the bidding process in Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces, and that they were certain they would win?"

Silence fell over the meeting room as everyone looked at Zhang Zhipeng.

"What do you mean?" Ma Huateng asked.

Zhang Zhipeng touched his upper lip with his finger: "I have... a very unrealistic idea. Guangdong's bid had such strict conditions, and Qingniao won. Now Zhejiang Province is here, and their standards are so similar to Guangdong's. Don't you think... it's a coincidence? It's like someone is coordinating things behind the scenes."

Everyone looked surprised.

"Do you suspect something's going on here...?" Ma Huateng frowned and shook his head. "Zhipeng, the entire bidding process was open and compliant. There's no direct evidence of any underhanded dealings. Besides, China Mobile is a state-owned enterprise. Even if they really wanted to support an unknown small publishing house, they could have done it through other means, instead of using this risky and illegal method."

Zhang Zhipeng covered his right fist with his left palm. "It's nothing," he said, "I just feel...it's going too smoothly. This isn't a conclusion, just an intuition, not even a guess. I'm just a tech guy. You strategists can judge these things yourselves."

Ma Huateng touched his fingertips together, nodded thoughtfully, stood up, walked to the window, and turned his back to everyone: "So what is our next strategy? Be more specific."

Someone cautiously cleared their throat.

"Speak, Xu Cheng."

"The first step is still to lock in the deal," Xu Cheng said. "Since testing with open traffic is too slow, I suggest that the company directly issue a 'Strategic Cooperation Memorandum' to Qingniao, with only two core clauses. First, Tencent has the right to negotiate with Qingniao on any future financing activities, as well as the right of first refusal under the same conditions. Second, during the validity period of the memorandum, Qingniao shall not engage in similar in-depth cooperation with Tencent's competitors. This is not an exclusivity agreement, but it can form a de facto lock-in."

The morning sunlight streamed through the window, and Ma Huateng shielded his eyes with his hand: "Will he sign?"

"I believe that as long as his desire to cooperate with us is genuine, he has no reason to refuse. This memorandum does not involve any financial transactions, nor does it restrict Qingniao's normal operations. What Han Fei needs most right now is time; he needs to digest the pilot programs in Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces and solidify his team. Therefore, a memorandum that doesn't lock him out can actually help him block out other interference. It's beneficial to him, and we don't lose out either."

"The idea behind the memorandum is good. But what if he still drags his feet and doesn't sign it?"

"Pony, if Han Fei keeps dragging his feet, it will confirm the possibility we least want to see: he never intended to cooperate deeply with us in the first place, and may just be using our attention to raise his own price."

"So you mean this memorandum itself is a test? If he signs it, it means he's sincere; if he drags his feet, we should go all out and activate Plan B?"

Xu Cheng stared at the profile of Tencent CEO Ma Huateng outside the window, his head throbbing with pain. He felt like he was about to explode, and he wished he would just explode. Ever since he was woken up that morning and learned that Zhejiang Province had released a tender notice, he had been hoping someone would shake him awake and tell him that it was all just a nightmare.

"Yes." Xu Cheng sighed. "It's a two-way confirmation mechanism. We'll give him a memorandum that's gentle but not overly restrictive. If he won't even sign this, then we shouldn't have any more illusions about him."

"Okay," Ma Huateng said. "If we really are going to activate Plan B, have you considered whether, given Qingniao's current scale, we can catch up within three months? What would the cost be?"

"Frankly speaking, Pony, we probably can't catch up with Qingniao's content depth and author ecosystem. But we don't need to catch up completely. We just need to do two things: First, use QQ traffic to quickly build a user base of millions, proving that we are also competitive in this field; second, use this user base to lower Qingniao's valuation expectations, and even make China Mobile realize that this field is not only for Qingniao. At that time, the initiative will no longer be entirely in Han Fei's hands."

Ma Huateng nodded slowly: "Produce the final draft of the 'Strategic Cooperation Memorandum' within three days, and give Han Fei a week to give a clear response. If he doesn't sign it within a week, we'll consider this path closed. Meeting adjourned."

As Xu Cheng stepped outside, he saw Ma Huateng standing motionless, facing the window. Rectangular rays of sunlight slowly crawled across the floor.