Rebirth 04: Starting from Taking an Unconventional Approach

Lu Hai scratched his chin: "Then they should be more willing to invest in us, right? After all, with China Mobile backing us, it's a sure thing."

"Not necessarily." Han Fei shook his head. "For a company the size of Tencent, the biggest fear isn't investing in the wrong project, but losing control of a particular sector. If they're certain our direction is the future, they'll try every means to acquire us. However, once they realize we have China Mobile as a backer, making it difficult to acquire us, they're likely to abandon the investment path and immediately launch Plan B: build their own platform and compete with all their might. In that case, having China Mobile's support won't be a shield; instead, it will become a catalyst for their accelerated entry. They might be mindful of China Mobile's attitude and dare not go too far with us. But Tencent's size is too enormous. Even if Qingniao doesn't lose, it will be caught in a long-term war of attrition, diverting its energy and slowing down its development."

An uneasy feeling spread like ripples in the conference room.

Wen Jie frowned deeply: "But Fei-ge, they'll find out about our cooperation with China Mobile sooner or later, won't they?"

"Wen Jie is right. Once the pilot programs in Guangdong and Zhejiang are launched, this matter can't be kept secret for long. So we need to delay them as much as possible, every day we can hold them off. The later they enter the field, the more advantageous it will be for us."

Han Fei picked up a marker and wrote the character "拖" (tuo, meaning drag) on ​​the whiteboard.

Everyone looked at Han Fei with puzzled expressions.

"Delay," Han Fei repeated. "Don't refuse, don't cooperate, don't reveal your secrets, and don't antagonize them. We can't agree, we can't reveal too much to them, but at the same time, we have to show a willingness to cooperate with them, keeping their core focus on investing in and valuing us, avoiding triggering Plan B, and preventing them from entering the competition. Let me summarize one last time: if we refuse to cooperate, Tencent will know that the investment route is not feasible, and they will immediately turn to doing things on their own. If they understand the level of support that headquarters provides to Qingniao, their investment willingness will change drastically. Perhaps, as Lu Hai said, they will be more willing to invest in us, even raising their offer; or perhaps they will completely close the investment window, no longer harboring any illusions about us, and directly activate Plan B. As for what will happen, it depends on what kind of feeling we can create for them."

"President Han's analysis was brilliant, outlining Tencent's trump cards and countermeasures. But there's one point you might have overlooked, or perhaps you don't want to mention."

As if controlled by a remote, everyone simultaneously turned to look at the documentation specialist in the technical team. She remained expressionless, seemingly unconcerned about their stares.

"Which point?" Han Fei asked.

"Xu Cheng is the Senior Director of Strategic Development. His purpose in coming here, besides probing, is likely to assess you as a person. All the data and conversations will ultimately be compiled into his judgment. If he thinks you're someone he can cooperate with, someone who can be recruited by capital, he'll be very patient and offer you a price you can't refuse. But if he believes you're a troublemaker, someone who will never relinquish control, then no matter how enthusiastic you are, his report back will only recommend activating Plan B. So, which side of Han Fei do you intend for him to see?"

Everyone looked at Han Fei with interest.

Han Fei smiled slightly: "This document specialist is absolutely right. Ultimately, Xu Cheng wants to see me. So I'll show him an ambitious, principled, driven, disciplined, and success-driven young entrepreneur—someone he can't easily categorize. Oh, you've reminded me of something. The reason I had the four of you attend this meeting is to ask if any of you are acquainted with Xu Cheng. If so, then I'll have to ask you to temporarily avoid him the day after tomorrow, so that Xu Cheng doesn't recognize us at first glance and completely expose us."

"Don't worry, President Han," Zhou Ming said, looking at the floor. "Xu Cheng has never seen us before."

"That's good," Han Fei said. "If there are no further problems, the four of you can go back to work with Wen Jie."

"Okay, Fei-ge." Wen Jie stood up and left with the three men from the technical team. The document specialist remained seated, motionless.

Han Fei looked at Lu Hai: "Lu Hai, while we're in the meeting, let's talk about the recent manuscript reserves and author contracts."

"Alright." Lu Hai opened his notebook. "Since we got the endorsement from Mobile and the print magazine, authors are much more willing to sign contracts. We've signed another 32 in the last few days, bringing the total to 53. There are 31 Level 1 contracts, three of which were brought in by Sun Yue. There are 11 Level 2 contracts, and some of these authors are already regretting not signing Level 1 contracts. There are also 11 Level 3 contracts, all from newly emerging authors who submitted their work after reading our promotional content. I signed those that I thought were good. We have 69 new manuscripts available for publication. 32 of them are new works by existing authors, 30 are existing manuscripts brought in by newly signed authors, and 7 are unsolicited submissions."

Han Fei nodded: "The presence of unsolicited submissions and emerging authors means we're starting to build a reputation in the field. That's a good sign. Have you selected any targeted submissions from Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces?"

"We've selected them." Lu Hai flipped to the last page of his notebook, which was covered with keywords. "Sun Yue and I have been sifting through the existing manuscripts these past two days and have picked out a few for now."

"Nine stories were selected from the Guangdong section. They are characterized by their fast pace, strong conflict, and high emotional intensity. For example, there is a story called 'Ghosts in the Factory,' which tells the story of a female assembly line worker who catches her supervisor and the boss's wife having an affair on the night shift. She is then framed for theft by them, but eventually kills them in retaliation. The story is set in Dongguan, which is quite fitting."

"We selected seven articles from Zhejiang Province, all of which revolved around business rivalries and family ethics. Sun Yue, the author of the 'Work Report,' also wrote 'Shareholders' Meeting,' which tells the story of a brother-in-law and brother-in-law vying for control of the company, ultimately being outmaneuvered by his own sister—the ending was quite brilliant."

"Very good," Han Fei said. "What about the copywriting database?"

"We're working on it simultaneously. It's the same story, but the copywriting focuses on different aspects in Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces. The copywriting in Guangdong leans towards excitement and plot twists, while the copywriting in Zhejiang leans towards authenticity and emotional impact."

"Okay," Han Fei said. "Let me summarize. The day after tomorrow, we can all work as usual. Those who need to review manuscripts should review them, and those who need to go out should go out. There's no need to deliberately avoid us or put on an act. Let him see that we're busy, that we're in disarray, and that we can't afford a grand reception. If Xu Cheng asks us questions, we can politely smile and nod. Everyone, we've gotten to where we are today not because of luck, but because every step we've taken has been perfectly timed. We must take this step the day after tomorrow as well."