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墨書 Inktalez
“Lao Wu, what’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?” Jiang Yizhou walked into the room and saw Wu Ming guarding the door, while the inside was quiet, with only one more person present.
“Your venture capital has arrived!” Wu Ming suppressed his excitement, hugged Jiang Yizhou's shoulders, and whispered in his ear.
Wu Ming didn’t understand much about these big-picture things or future prospects; he was more of a pure technician. So he had just been chatting with that person, waiting for Jiang Yizhou to join the conversation.
More importantly, when Jiang Yizhou initially invited him to invest and take shares, he hadn’t agreed. However, seeing that it seemed to attract venture capital now, he felt like he might be missing out…
With a mix of excitement and disappointment, Wu Ming accompanied Jiang Yizhou inside.
“Hello, Mr. Zhou, I am…”
Sitting at his computer desk was none other than Zhou Quan. Jiang Yizhou had a deep impression of him because the name IDG was well-known in Chinese venture capital circles. Even though he had never dealt with venture capital in his previous life and had no plans to start a business, he was somewhat familiar with the histories of major companies in the industry.
IDG played a significant role in this landscape. When he first heard that Zhou Quan was from IDG on a forum, Jiang Yizhou took note of it and remembered it vividly. However, he never replied to him in the end, which left him feeling quite disheartened.
“I know you; you’re the one who ran up to stop me. It’s a pity I didn’t take your Plan seriously back then!” Zhou Quan greeted him warmly.
Feeling the beeping sounds coming from a row of computer cases and noticing the cramped space that couldn’t accommodate even a small meeting table, Jiang Yizhou awkwardly gestured for an invitation, “It’s really a bit cramped here; how about we go to the café downstairs to talk?”
Zhou Quan didn’t mind at all and nodded, following the two out of the room.
“Maybe we’ll become the next Yahoo! The next Netscape! The next miracle of the Internet! Oh~~” Li Jian, always the lively one, started to boast about all the grand things that their boss Jiang Yizhou had said once the door closed behind them!
If they really became a great Internet company, even if they only entered as interns, they would still be considered company veterans, and everyone could potentially become millionaires!
A group of soon-to-graduate college students thought about how they might be involved in such a promising venture and became restless.
“Quiet!!!” Wu Ming suddenly pushed open the door and shouted into the cramped room, “Are you all done with your work? I’ll be back later to check on progress; have everything ready!”
Feeling the silence return, he took several documents from Jiang Yizhou's drawer and slowly closed the door behind him, his footsteps growing fainter.
……
"I wonder if Mr. Zhou has seen the Plan I handed to you back then?" Jiang Yizhou felt a bit anxious; every moment was new and could not be resolved by past experiences. Listening to stories of Jack Ma effortlessly dealing with Masayoshi Son during his student years, he never imagined he would find himself in a similar situation.
"Of course I've seen it!" Zhou Quan had spent quite some time locating that Plan and had read through it roughly afterward. However, the Internet was still in a phase of exploration, and no one knew what would dominate the future, especially with these early-stage projects that were burning cash without profitability while promising bright prospects.
"But I still want to hear your thoughts," Zhou Quan said casually, maintaining the upper hand in the conversation.
Wu Ming had followed from behind and sat down next to Jiang Yizhou, handing him several documents he had prepared earlier.
Jiang Yizhou licked his somewhat dry lips, reminding himself to seize the opportunity until his heartbeat gradually stabilized.
"Mr. Zhou, Instant Messaging software—I prefer to call it social software because Instant Messaging is merely a means of connecting people, while what truly matters is social interaction."
"The role of the Internet is to connect people and information, while Social Network forms a web with each person as a node, linking points together. When one person has ten, twenty, or even a hundred users on qi, they become inseparable from this Social Network and turn into our loyal users."
After that, Jiang Yizhou didn't elaborate much; the equation of user count equating to advertising revenue often held true. As for how to achieve it, practical exploration was still needed—truthfully, he didn't know either.
They discussed many topics afterward, but Jiang Yizhou never received the response he desired from Zhou Quan, even after sharing some plans for qi's future.
In the end, it was polite but yielded little practical outcome. Zhou Quan left, and both of them fell into silence; the time for celebration had not yet arrived. Getting carried away at this moment could lead to disastrous consequences.
As they walked up the stairs, Wu Ming asked in confusion, "Why didn't you share any of this with me? What’s this about opening a branch in the U.S.? You’re not seriously thinking about targeting the foreign market all along, are you? Can you handle that?"
Jiang Yizhou felt helpless because the domestic Internet landscape was too shallow at this point; it was very likely they would face dire consequences. E-commerce and social platforms required convenient online payment methods to support them, and advertising revenue wouldn't be substantial.
Given how few ads could fit on that panel for qi, based on his experience with QQ in later years, Jiang Yizhou remained skeptical about making significant advertising revenue through Instant Messaging.
Wu Ming's concerns were not unfounded; being unfamiliar with the terrain meant they would need time to adapt when expanding their operations.
"Boss, Wu Ge, how's it going? Have you reached an agreement?" Li Jian smiled broadly, revealing more than eight teeth, eagerly looking at the two, while the other five shared the same expression.
Jiang Yizhou had no trace of a smile on his face, but he didn't dismiss the matter either. "What are you thinking? This is a critical moment. How much money we can secure needs to be discussed slowly! Stop daydreaming and focus on your work!"
Li Jian felt a bit confused. Was the deal successful or not? Although it seemed to hint at a smooth negotiation, he couldn't sense any excitement.
Jiang Yizhou continued to think about how to prepare for the negotiation, treating it like explaining to professors during a university defense.
...
Zhou Quan returned to the company and began contemplating the plan that Jiang Yizhou had handed him, which contained detailed strategies for the future of Qi.
After studying it for a long time, Zhou Quan's resolve to invest in him grew stronger. This detailed plan added significant value; although the team only had two core members along with a bunch of newcomers who couldn't execute much yet, more people could be recruited. What he valued was Jiang Yizhou as an individual.
In other words, he believed this person was worth his investment.
However, such an investment still required careful consideration. They had only broadly confirmed the matters at hand; details regarding proportions, amounts, and personnel issues still needed to be addressed. Hopefully, there would be fruitful outcomes!
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