1994: Starting with unpaid leave

Chapter 167 Guiding Lei Jun (Part 2)

"Wow!"

Chen Zhiyong couldn't hold back and spat out the mouthful of soy milk he had just drunk onto the ground after it only went through his mouth once.

Seeing this, several elderly gentlemen from Beijing at the next table exchanged glances, their eyes filled with kind smiles.

Clearly, this wasn't the first time they'd encountered this situation.

They then each picked up their bowls of soy milk and took a couple of sips.

He put down the bowl, let out a long sigh, and felt content.

Having anticipated this, Dong Jianguo waited until Chen Zhiyong finished vomiting before bringing over the plate of braised pork and wheat cakes.

Unable to refuse the other party's earnest invitation, Dong Jianguo accompanied him to fulfill his vow.

As expected.

Douzhi (fermented mung bean juice) will punish every arrogant out-of-town kid.

Who could stand the smell of water left over from washing dishes overnight?!

"Ptooey! Ptooey! Ugh, what's that smell?!"

Chen Zhiyong bent over, one hand supporting himself on the table, the other hand frantically fanning himself in front of him, trying to dispel the strange taste in his mouth of stale sour water mixed with rotten cabbage leaves.

"Hahaha!"

Dong Jianguo handed over a bottle of Beibingyang soda, laughing so hard he almost fell over.

"I told you not to buy it, but you wouldn't listen! This is the biological weapon of Beijing! So many heroes have fallen victim to this!"

Chen Zhiyong straightened up, his face ashen. He took out a Hongtashan cigarette from his pocket, lit it with trembling hands, and took two deep drags before he felt the churning in his stomach subside.

"Jianguo, you're so mean! A true friend would have snatched the bowl from me and smashed it on the ground when they saw me buying douzhi!"

"Yes, yes, I'll smash the shop while I'm at it!"

Rinse your mouth and press it in.

Chen Zhiyong took the soda and gulped down half of it. The cool, sweet water dripped down his neck, finally suppressing the pungent smell.

"No, you have to take care of my meal. My heart can't take any excitement, I need to eat something good to nourish myself."

Chen Zhiyong patted his chest, looking as if he had suffered a great injustice.

Seeing Chen Zhiyong wave his hand, Dong Jianguo had no choice but to order him a bowl of Old Beijing Fried Sauce Noodles.

While waiting for his noodles, Chen Zhiyong wiped his sweat and looked out the window at the college students whizzing by on their old bicycles. He sighed, "Jianguo, you know, Beijing is just different. People on the street all have an air of erudition about them. Back in Shenzhen, everyone's face is screaming 'Make Money.'"

2

"Each has its own merits. People in different places have their own way of life." Dong Jianguo smiled. "Making money is the only hard truth, and Shenzhen's future development won't be bad either."

"That's true. We're close to Hong Kong. Once Hong Kong returns to China in two years, Shenzhen will be set to take off!"

Dong Jianguo neither confirmed nor denied the allegations.

The rise of Shenzhen is undeniable, while the decline of Hong Kong is also evident.

This world is truly amazing.

Just then, the curtain of the noodle shop was lifted, and four more people entered.

Two men and two women, all looking to be in their early twenties, dressed quite stylishly, and spoke standard Mandarin with a slight southern accent.

"Boss, four bowls of noodles, please. Mine has extra green beans!"

One of the young men, wearing black-rimmed glasses, called out, then turned to his companions and said, "Don't give up, everyone! Keep going, there's still hope!"

Dong Jianguo subconsciously looked up.

Upon seeing this, my heart skipped a beat.

The young man was only slightly shorter than me, with thick black hair and delicate features.

At the same time, his sharp eyes give him a combination of the scholarly air of a programmer and the calm demeanor of a manager, despite his otherwise refined appearance.

This face—the more I look at it, the more it resembles a young Lei Jun?

The moment the thought crossed Dong Jianguo's mind, he realized he might be going crazy.

What a coincidence! I just arrived in the capital and I've already encountered a powerful figure.

Dong Jianguo shook his head, realizing he was overthinking things, and lowered his head to start eating his braised pork bun.

"Zhiyong, eat your noodles. They won't taste good if they get cold and clump together."

"Hey, here I am."

Just as Chen Zhiyong picked up his chopsticks, the other group of people sat down at the table next to Dong Jianguo and his group.

"Brother Jun, what do you think we're going to do with our company? Sales aren't meeting expectations, and people inside are saying we're going to have to lay off another batch of people—" a girl asked with some concern.

"If this continues, Jinshan will be finished—"

Another boy said that his face was full of anxiety that shouldn't be there for someone his age.

The young man at the head of the group straightened his back and said confidently, "Don't worry, there's always a way out. As long as we're heading in the right direction, there won't be any problems!"

"Exactly, what's the use of thinking about that? I believe in Brother Jun! Kingsoft will definitely get out of this predicament! It's just office software, let's go out and do some more this afternoon, we'll definitely sell it!"

Dong Jianguo straightened up, and suddenly realized:

That's really true!

Chen Zhiyong saw Dong Jianguo's chopsticks stop in mid-air, looking like he'd seen a ghost. Following his gaze, Chen Zhiyong also saw the people at that table.

"What's wrong, Jian Guo? Are there any acquaintances at that table?"

"No, they're not acquaintances." Dong Jianguo lowered his voice and whispered in Chen Zhiyong's ear, "But I might know who they are."

"Who is it? Why are you being so mysterious?"

At the next table, the young man recognized by Dong Jianguo seemed to sense the intense gaze from this side. He turned around and his eyes met Dong Jianguo's.

He paused for a moment, then smiled politely and nodded.

Dong Jianguo quickly returned the smile, then turned to Chen Zhiyong and said, "Zhiyong, don't eat anymore. This meal is on me. You go back to the guesthouse and do me a favor."

"Huh? You're leaving already? I haven't even had two bites of my noodles!"

"Forget about the noodles, listen to me, hurry back to the guesthouse and pack up all the 'Hezhiwei' spicy strips and that bag of pickled chicken feet we brought! Go now!"

Although Chen Zhiyong was completely confused, seeing Dong Jianguo's serious expression, he didn't dare to ask any more questions. He wiped his mouth, paid the bill, and went back with the unfinished noodles.

Dong Jianguo straightened his clothes, picked up his half-finished Beibingyang soda, and got up to walk to the next table.

"Excuse me, everyone, may I bother you?"

Dong Jianguo smiled, revealing a set of white teeth.

The four people at the table stopped eating and looked at the suddenly appearing man from Northeast China with some surprise.

"Hello, is there anything I can help you with?" the young man called "Brother Jun" asked politely.

"Well, I overheard you talking about office software, and I happen to be very interested in that," Dong Jianguo said, getting straight to the point. "Would I be willing to sit down and chat with you about it?"

The people at that table exchanged glances, their eyes filled with joy.

They were all programmers at Kingsoft.

Prior to this, they devoted almost all their energy to the office software developed in-house.

The company had hoped to compete with the renowned Microsoft after entering the market, but sales were dismal, and the company's cash flow was almost depleted.

"Sir, how many copies of our software are you planning to buy?"

"Rest assured, we are a well-known software developer, and we offer a lifetime free warranty once sold!"

"Brother, it's obvious you have a strong sense of patriotism and supporting domestic products is your duty, right?"

"Although you may not have used our products before, rest assured, we are by no means inferior to Microsoft's; we have all the features they have! Most importantly, the price is 20% cheaper!"

Dong Jianguo frowned slightly and waved his hands repeatedly: "Stop, I'm not trying to buy your software. I'm trying to tell you that your software won't sell anyway, so you should find another way!"

The words, once spoken, were like a bucket of cold water poured on the group. Apart from Lei Jun, the three young men present immediately turned cold.

"Why are you making fun of us when you have nothing better to do?!"

"You say you're interested if you're not going to buy? Let's go!"

Being publicly chased away, Dong Jianguo didn't panic but instead laughed. He spread his hands and asked, "Gentlemen, did you do any research before developing this software? How many copies do you think you can sell after it's finished?"

"5000 sets!" Lei Jun replied.

"So how many units have been sold so far?"

"Less than a thousand—no, what business is it of yours how many we sell?"

"Of course it's none of my business, but I feel you're wasting your time, and I think it's a bit of a shame."

"Ladies and gentlemen, before you develop office software, have you ever considered how many genuine office software packages Microsoft, as an industry pioneer, sells in China each year?"

Upon hearing this, the group was visibly taken aback.

A young girl retorted, "It's different. Their sales are bad because they're expensive and there's a lot of piracy—"

"So you think a 8% discount is a lot cheaper? Or are you not confident that your products won't be pirated?"

"this----"

The girl was speechless for a moment.

"And don't you even consider that even if you manage to create office software, how many people in the country would actually use it?"

"Doing business is inherently a huge funnel. Your products naturally filter out most of your customers. It's only natural that those who are interested in your products won't be found in the vast sea of ​​people."

As soon as Dong Jianguo finished speaking, the faces of the three people at the dinner table all dimmed considerably.

They had always had doubts, but they never really stopped to think about them properly.

After Dong Jianguo said that, I suddenly felt like my mask for shame had been ripped off.

Lei Jun, sitting opposite Dong Jianguo, suddenly brightened up. He vaguely grasped at some idea, but it seemed to slip away in an instant: "Sir, what do you think we should do to avoid wasting our time?"

Seeing the light in Lei Jun's eyes, Dong Jianguo nodded secretly.

There are many smart people in the world, but few who are both smart and resilient. From this perspective, Reiro is indeed a worthwhile investment.

"Of course, we should target blue ocean markets!"

"Think about how many computers there are in the whole country right now? Are there more people in China who know about computers or those who don't?"

""

"Make money off the people who are in the most numbers!"

Just then, Chen Zhiyong came running back, panting, carrying a plastic bag filled with snacks that Dong Jianguo had brought all the way from Hecheng.

"Come on, everyone, don't just talk about it, try some of the snacks I brought."

As he spoke, Dong Jianguo took out the spicy strips from the bag and distributed them to everyone.

The group tore open the packaging and tasted it, their eyes lighting up at the sight of the sweet and spicy flavor inside.

"This is----"

"These are snacks produced by my workers in my food processing plant —"

"It tastes so good, it must be very expensive, right?"

In response to Lei Jun's question, Dong Jianguo waved his hand and said, "That's not necessarily true. Price is also an important factor in selecting customers."

"The food is delicious, but if I price it too high, no one will buy it. Who am I supposed to sell it to?!"

"On the contrary, if I set the price lower, more people will be able to afford it."

"Although the profit per transaction has decreased, the sales volume has actually increased, so we can earn more in comparison. Isn't that right?"

The three young men at the table frowned: "So, you're planning to—make us lower the price of our products?"

1

"No—" Lei Jun shook his head: "I guess this brother wants to persuade us to switch to a product that the general public can afford to sell—am I right?"

Dong Jianguo nodded with satisfaction.

Talking to smart people is so much easier.

In his past life, there was a store manager in his shop who was a big fan of Lei Jun. When talking to the employees, he would often tell Lei Jun's stories to encourage everyone.

Dong Jianguo listened to it a few times back then, treating it like a storytelling session, and found it quite interesting.

So he probably knows Lei Jun's current situation.

1995 was the first darkest moment in Lei Jun's career.

The disastrous failure of the "Pangu Components" project he spearheaded directly led to the near collapse of Kingsoft Software and plunged him into immense self-doubt.

What Dong Jianguo did was simply to give him a helping hand before he truly hit rock bottom.

It's not that I want anything in particular, I just want to make a good connection.

Seeing Dong Jianguo nod, Lei Jun smiled and said, "Brother, would you mind if we spoke in private for a moment?"

"No problem."

Dong Jianguo and Lei Jun walked outside the store and started chatting.

Dong Jianguo was quite impressed with him.

As for the criticisms, such as Xiaomi computers being thinner than a one-yuan coin and Xiaomi cars having a carbon fiber dual-airflow hood—

It's not too late to remind him later.

After all, changing makes someone a good comrade!

"Brother Jianguo, I've been quite frustrated lately, thank you for clearing up my doubts with just a few words—but why did you help me?"

Because you will become very rich in the future!

These are thoughts I would only keep to myself; I would never say them aloud to the other person's face.

"It's hard to say, maybe it's fate!"

"However, as soon as you entered the store, your aura was completely different from that of your colleagues."

"I think it's easier to see what kind of person someone really is in a difficult situation."

"As a team leader, I think you have a lot more pressure than your colleagues."

"But you still have the energy to encourage and cheer them up when they're complaining. I think you're a really good person."

"So—let's be friends?"

Seeing Dong Jianguo's outstretched hand, Lei Jun smiled and shook hands with him on the side of the road in Beijing.