Stronger by Paying Salaries and I Have 1 Billion Employees

As the host, Ma Liyun sent dinner invitations at three in the afternoon to the representatives attending the investment conference.

The restaurant was set for Jinsha Hall on West Lake.

After arriving in Hang City, Chen Yansen first returned to his hotel to rest for an hour. He then had his driver swing by Fast Taxi’s headquarters to pick up Cheng Weixing and Fan Junyan before heading straight for West Lake.

When he arrived at the restaurant, he spotted Zhou Shouzhi the moment he stepped out of the car. Zhou was deep in conversation with a middle-aged man in a royal blue suit.

The man was in his thirties, with a crew cut, narrow eyes, and a sharp gaze. From the way he stood while talking to Zhou Shouzhi, it was easy to tell he was a shrewd and assertive individual.

Zhu Xiaohu, the General Manager of Jinsha Venture Capital!

Chen Yansen instantly identified him. A Hu City native, a graduate of Fudan and Jiaoda, and the angel investor for Eleme.

He gathered where there was profit and scattered where there was none—his investment style was cold and ruthless.

His repeated rejections of Zhang Xuhao’s requests for follow-up investment made the man’s ingrained rationality and decisiveness plain to see.

Although his investment in Eleme had cost him one million US Dollars, he was able to cut his losses in a timely manner once he saw the writing on the wall for the food delivery market in Hu City.

”Allen, the man you wanted to see is here!” Zhou Shouzhi said upon spotting Chen Yansen. He raised a hand in greeting, using the moment to alert Zhu Xiaohu, who had his back to them.

Zhu Xiaohu turned instinctively, only to see a well-built young man striding toward them.

He was followed by a dozen or so staff members in sharp business suits, their presence washing over them with the force of a tidal wave.

”President Chen, a pleasure. For the past two years, my ears have been ringing with your name.”

Zhu Xiaohu approached with a faint smile and a joke, not daring to underestimate the young man before him.

”You’re too kind, President Zhu,” Chen Yansen said unhurriedly. ”I’ve only been in the industry for two years, so there’s still much for me to learn. I hope you’ll give me some pointers when you have the time.”

The three men stood outside exchanging pleasantries, with Zhou Shouzhi occasionally chiming in as they discussed recent changes and new trends in the internet industry.

The price war between Jingdong and Sunning also became a topic of their conversation.

As one of Jingdong’s key investors, Zhou Shouzhi greatly admired Liu Qiangdong’s management style. He saw shades of Bezos in the man, which was why he had vigorously pushed for DST’s investment in Jingdong.

”So, you believe the ultimate winner in the home appliance sector will be Jingdong? Don’t forget, Sunning has over 1,700 brick-and-mortar chain stores and tens of thousands of suppliers.”

Zhu Xiaohu countered with a smile, his brow slightly furrowed.

”I’ve met Zhang Jindong. That’s why I’m even more certain that Jingdong won’t lose to Sunning in the home appliance space.”

Zhou Shouzhi said with a shrug, his tone firm.

Zhu Xiaohu nodded and didn’t press the issue, but he was scoffing internally. ’Damn! You went to Harvard Business School, not some Buddhist Academy. Stop acting like you can see the future.’

Just then, Liu Zhiping from Penguin also arrived at Jinsha Hall with his team.

”Brother Martin!” Chen Yansen called out in greeting.

”Let’s talk inside!” Liu Zhiping said with a laugh. ”This spring chill is fine for you young folks, but I’m not built for it anymore.”

The group chatted as they walked, and it wasn’t long before they ran into Ma Liyun and Cai Xin, who had come out to welcome them.

The party of more than forty people entered a lavishly decorated banquet hall and took their seats.

In addition to the people from Ah Li, there were also representatives from Hongyi Capital, Huake Investment Attraction, and Macquarie Capital.

Cheng Weixing swallowed nervously. He had never expected so many investment firms to show up for Fast Taxi’s Series A funding round.

Ma Liyun made a point of sitting directly across from Chen Yansen, his eyes narrowed as he secretly sized the young man up.

The speed of Pinbei’s growth had caught him by surprise. He had a nagging feeling that Chen Yansen posed an even greater threat to Ah Li than Jingdong did.

”President Chen, if Kuai Pao were to start its Series B funding round, would Ah Li be able to invest?” Ma Liyun asked, testing the waters.

”Of course, no problem,” Chen Yansen agreed without hesitation.

’As long as Ah Li doesn’t threaten my controlling stake, Ma Liyun can invest as much as he wants. Better to bring Ah Li on board with the promise of profit than to create a new rival.’

Ma Liyun was taken aback for a moment, then replied, ”President Chen, I’m serious.”

”So am I,” Chen Yansen answered, his gaze firm.

Ma Liyun smiled, but his mind was filled with doubt.

’Logically, considering the significant competition between them, the other man had no reason to let him invest.’

’But in reality, Chen Yansen hadn’t shut Ah Li out of either Fast Taxi or Kuai Pao.’

’This kid didn’t play by the book at all!’

As toasts were exchanged throughout the dinner, the faces of Zhu Xiaohu and Ma Liyun gradually grew flushed.

Chen Yansen discovered that E-commerce Ma had an astonishing capacity for alcohol. After just one round of drinks, Zhu Xiaohu, Liu Zhiping, and Zhou Shouzhi were already red-faced and tipsy.

”President Chen, what is your expected valuation for Fast Taxi?” the Macquarie Capital representative suddenly asked.

The question caused the clamor in the banquet hall to gradually die down.

Ma Liyun’s brow furrowed for a moment before relaxing. Since the topic had come up, there was no harm in discussing it early.

In fact, Chen Yansen had already settled on a rough valuation range with the three main investors—Ah Li, Penguin, and DST. It was just that Jinsha Venture Capital, Hongyi Capital, Huake Investment Attraction, and Macquarie Capital weren’t aware of this.

Fast Taxi currently had no competitors, which meant it had the vast market all to itself.

Based on Fast Taxi’s market potential, growth projections, profit model, and cash flow, Penguin had given it a valuation of 500 million US Dollars.

DST’s valuation was 550 million US Dollars, a figure that also factored in Chen Yansen’s exceptional ability to execute.

Ah Li’s valuation was 450 million US Dollars. Its strategic investment department had arrived at this figure by factoring in revenue streams like driver commissions, advertising, and data services, combined with Fast Taxi’s team background, city coverage, and the capital environment.

Chen Yansen looked at the representative from Macquarie Capital and casually tossed out a number: ”700 million US Dollars.”

Zhu Xiaohu of Jinsha Venture Capital scoffed. He curled his lip and shook his head, silently cursing Chen Yansen for being too greedy.

’Fast Taxi hasn’t even conquered the Hang City market yet. What gives it the right to demand a 700 million US Dollar valuation?’

The representatives from Hongyi Capital and Macquarie Capital were taken aback; clearly, this figure far exceeded their expectations.

The representative from Huake Investment Attraction glanced at the expressions on Liu Zhiping and Zhou Shouzhi’s faces. He grew thoughtful, and a realization dawned on him: Penguin’s and DST’s valuations were likely not far from that 700 million US Dollar figure.

That was why those two were able to remain so composed.

A smile played at the corners of Ma Liyun’s eyes as he took in everyone’s reactions. He would absolutely not accept a valuation of 700 million US Dollars.

He was confident that Penguin and DST wouldn’t agree either—not unless Fast Taxi’s daily order volume could reach 300,000 and its operational scope doubled.

But he wasn’t worried. ’This is just business,’ he thought. ’As long as everyone is willing to negotiate, we can always find a point of mutual agreement.’