Chapter 1670
Unconventional
Have a hearty dinner.
"This roasted pig's trotter is delicious, it's chewy and bouncy."
Lazy Sheep slurped up a bone.
Eating at home is not as refined as eating out.
In front of her were various shrimp shells, lobster shells, scallop shells, crab shells...
Zhang Yuan felt that she might have some of Nezha's attributes, like a shrimp soldier or crab general specializing in attacking.
Of course, it also has special attacks on pigs and cows, so it might not be Nezha, but the Great Sage.
"Aren't you afraid of getting scolded by the director for eating so much?"
"Can we still film action scenes?" Zhang Yuan joked.
She wasn't angry at all.
A person who weighs 180 pounds will get angry if told they eat too much.
If you say she's fat and has big ears, she'll get angry.
But a dog weighing around 100 pounds wouldn't get angry.
Because I knew it was a joke.
"I played a disabled person, have you forgotten?"
She played the ruthless one.
Cold-blooded and ruthless, Iron Hand Chasing Life—these are the Four Great Constables.
The original novel features male characters, but the movie changed the character of Wuqing to a woman.
Sisi's understanding is that the change to a woman was for the purpose of filming romantic scenes, so that the male and female leads could fall in love.
That's a correct understanding.
She's quite clever; she saw through this at a glance.
Unlike some actresses who naively believe that the director made special changes for them because of their fame, she doesn't.
Whether she plays the role or not, it has to be changed to a woman.
Because Chen Jiashang is a Hong Kong director, there is a path dependency.
This shows that Hong Kong's film industry has declined.
They're still using the same old methods from over a decade ago.
Similarly, in the period action film "Brotherhood of Blades," Lu Yang did not force a love-hate relationship between the female lead and the male lead.
The main characters are three tough guys, and the women are just supporting characters. How wonderful!
"Anyway, he's in a wheelchair for most of the scenes."
"There are wires in the action scenes too, but I don't move much, so it's fine." She tilted her head confidently.
"Besides, your cooking is delicious, so what's wrong with me eating more?"
"Okay, as long as you like it."
"Yes, I'm taking a plane back to Hengdian in a bit."
"I'll have the cleaning lady clean the kitchen; you're already very tired."
“You’re the one who’s tired, that’s why you came all the way back.” Zhang Yuan reached out and gently took her hand.
"I'll come find you from now on."
"It's rare to get a break, and the journey to and from here is too tiring."
"I was just trying to show my sincerity," she said, completely unconcerned. "Besides, you're very busy too."
"Going public is very important, but I'm fine with filming."
Zhang Yuan rubbed his temples, feeling somewhat touched.
"Then I'll see you off in a bit."
"I'm also going to the south."
After we finished eating, we went to the sofa and chatted for a while, then went to the airport with her to return to Hengdian.
After boarding the plane, she, who had previously claimed not to be tired, soon fell asleep.
Zhang Yuan watched silently.
Although I didn't have work, the day was still very busy.
But he felt much more at ease, and the frustration caused by the feeling of being powerless was also relieved.
They still have a tacit understanding.
This tacit understanding brings a pleasant sense of security.
After getting off the plane, she rushed to the film set, while Zhang Yuan headed towards Shanghai.
The following morning, he rushed to a small office in Shanghai.
The venue is indeed not large, but it's not as small as miHoYo's 50 square meters.
However, after receiving the money they were given, the three "expanded their operations" and gritted their teeth to move to a 100-square-meter office.
Those three individuals, who will later be worth tens of billions, are currently at a stage where their vision is not yet very broad.
Zhang Yuan arrived at Xiaohongshu's office.
At this point, it was still a startup company, with only a few dozen people in total.
"Heh." After observing, Zhang Yuan found it interesting.
A company with only a few dozen employees dares to ask me to be their spokesperson.
It seems the boss has a very broad mind.
The current situation is that one side dares to speak, and the other dares to act.
However, the other person's ambition far exceeded his expectations.
"Hello there!"
Soon, a woman who looked older than her age, but was actually younger than him, jogged up to him.
"I am Qu Fang, the general manager of Xiaohongshu."
This person is also the founder.
The company has two founders, one male and one female.
The woman is this one, and the man's name is Mao Wenchao.
First of all, both of them are top students. The woman graduated from Beijing Foreign Studies University and joined Bertelsmann after graduation.
Bertelsmann is an international media giant, a Fortune 500 company from Germany.
Mao Wenchao is even more impressive. He graduated from Jiaotong University with a major in mechanical and electronic engineering, but after leaving school, he didn't work in his field. Instead, he went directly to intern at the consulting giant Bain.
He later moved into the private equity industry.
Both are overseas returnees and elites, definitely high achievers.
Of course, they all come from well-off families; otherwise, they wouldn't have become successful right after graduating from school.
This means that one of the founders had worked at a world-class media company and had a deep understanding of marketing and media.
The other one has worked for consulting giants and private equity firms, has a lot of experience in market analysis, and has also been in contact with a large number of startups.
One understands media, the other understands the market.
After these two came together, they each took on different roles, which led to the company that later became known as one of the "Four Kings of the Internet in Shanghai".
The four kings are Xiaohongshu, Pinduoduo, Ctrip, miHoYo, and Bilibili.
There are five Heavenly Kings; that's common knowledge.
Initially, the two of them only set up an online community called "Xiaohongshu Overseas Shopping Guide" in a private house in Shanghai.
It has that garage startup vibe.
The content consists of seven PDFs compiled by Qu Fang, containing various overseas shopping guides and suggestions.
It provides detailed information on which products from which countries are good, how to buy them, and where to buy them cheaply.
This immediately tapped into the growing consumer desires and Chinese people's yearning for overseas shopping.
It was downloaded 500,000 times within a few weeks.
Based on this achievement, Mao Wenchao sought funding, while Qu Fang led a team to create the Xiaohongshu app.
The target is clear: sophisticated urban girls who use iPhones.
The specific business we want to pursue is cross-border e-commerce!
It's only been 13 years, and we already know how ahead of its time this idea is.
Therefore, unlike other fashion apps, Xiaohongshu had a clear goal from the beginning and knew how to make a profit.
Moreover, both founders are very experienced and not novice entrepreneurs.
Later, when people mentioned Xiaohongshu, they all thought of it as a social media app for women, a place where certain special groups were born.
Actually, that's not the case. From beginning to end, it has always been a company whose underlying logic is selling goods.
Fashion, styling, and lifestyle advice are just a facade used to attract customers.
"I really like you and have seen all your works."
After he sat down, the female boss chatted with him for a long time, mostly about fans.
Women...
He cooperated, and it took him a long time to start talking about his company.
"Your photos from school went viral."
"The click-through rate record on our platform was broken within a few days."
"Your cycling outfit style is now being called a boyfriend outfit template by our users."
Oh... Zhang Yuan understands now. I was wondering why they would want me to be their spokesperson when they were all female users.
That's true, opposites attract.
Lao Tzu often goes overseas to film movies, which makes him more sophisticated than the average actor, aligning with their desire to get into cross-border e-commerce.
"I haven't had much contact with your website or the fashion blogger industry."
"Please give me your guidance." "No, not at all. It's your presence that should be your guidance," the female boss said politely.
"Oh, perfect timing, our CEO is here too."
It was another founder, Mao Wenchao, who exuded an elite aura and dressed like a successful person.
After this person arrived, the conversation became more business-oriented.
He introduced his company.
We registered at the beginning of this year, set up an office in the middle of the year, and only recently started using the software.
New, absolutely new, undeniably new, it's a completely new company.
However, thanks to the efforts of Mao Wenchao, a veteran in private equity, they have already secured angel round funding.
Zhang Yuan understood that the other party wanted to tell him, "Don't underestimate our company just because it's small. We have money and a promising future."
"Let me be frank, I am an endorser for online shopping platforms."
"I am a brand ambassador for Vancl."
"The endorsement fee they gave me was not low."
Let me make this clear: I'm not giving away cheap deals.
He said that just to make things difficult for the other person!
If it becomes a giant in the future, and I'm already here, shouldn't I take advantage of it?
Regardless of whether it's the Internet's "Demon-Sealing Tower" or not, it's rife with all sorts of problems.
It's better for me to have the key to the Demon-Sealing Tower in my hands than for it to be in the hands of those greedy people who only know how to make money.
Moreover, this platform can also help with the promotion and distribution of films, especially those aimed at women, making it a good channel.
The development of Xiaomoushu can be roughly divided into three stages.
The first stage is how to buy; the second stage is to buy from me; the third stage is, which family member knows?
The so-called "Little Red Book strategy guide" is actually a lifestyle and social acceptance.
Reaching this stage is impressive; everyone uses Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book), and we're practically family.
Few companies in China can achieve this level of success.
Apart from Huawei, only Huawei can gain social recognition through patriotism.
Actually, there's another seemingly inconspicuous company that also achieved this.
Pop Mart.
After openly discussing his net worth, he added...
"My contract with Vancl still has some time left."
"If you want me to be your spokesperson, I can terminate the contract or not renew it."
"But you have to show far more sincerity than the other side."
Sincerity is the essence of joy.
Zhang Yuan continued to scare them.
His goal was to put the other party in a difficult position, and then he could easily back down.
How about this, I become a partner in your company, then we'll save on endorsement fees... That's his plan.
However, what these two did exceeded his expectations.
"That's only natural; we already consulted your business market rates."
"It's basically the highest grade in China." Boss Mao not only didn't back down, but instead acknowledged its value.
"Speaking of which, we're quite destined to meet," the man suddenly laughed.
"Our company has completed its angel round of financing."
"Although it has been established for a short time, its valuation is already in the tens of millions."
"Coincidentally, our financing party is quite familiar with you."
"Who?"
“ZhenFund,” Mr. Mao replied.
“Seriously… Oh.” Zhang Yuan immediately realized.
That's correct; it's familiar.
ZhenFund is an investment company founded by two of the three founders of New Oriental.
So this is the place.
It seems these two have made quite a bit of money since parting ways with Lao Yu, with many successful investments.
I've spoken with Xu Xiaoping, especially, several times by phone and in person, about the movie "American Dreams in China."
"Mr. Xu said that you are not only an excellent actor, but also a very young but very courageous investor."
"Uh... sort of." The other person's sudden remark made him slightly cautious.
"What's even more coincidental is that there were acquaintances there as well."
"They just mentioned you to me a while ago."
This guy recently attended a Jiaotong University alumni dinner and met three guys who were bragging to him.
He said he had just received an investment from a big star.
It's those three guys from miHoYo.
They are all top science and engineering students from Jiaotong University.
When this was mentioned, the other person smiled knowingly.
Zhang Yuan was suspicious; it was obvious that the other person wanted to get closer to him.
Want to haggle?
Even friends wouldn't break bones, let alone offer it for free.
"Your investment in my alumni shows that you have a passion for startups and are a visionary investor."
"I would like to give you a detailed introduction to our company's future plans."
The other party then launched into a long, rambling speech.
Zhang Yuan listened and wondered if this guy was addicted or something.
It sounds like they're giving a presentation to investors, not looking for a spokesperson.
What do you think of our company?
"We aspire to become a national cross-border e-commerce giant."
At this point, the two founders exchanged a glance.
"The plan is good, but no one knows what the future holds."
"It's still far from certain."
"What is it you wanted to see me about today?" He became increasingly suspicious and asked in an unusually direct tone.
The two bosses exchanged another glance, and finally the man spoke.
"We have a request."
"Although the company has received angel investment, it faces significant pressure in terms of daily operating funds."
"We don't have much money to invest in advertising and promotion."
"So, could you change the way you reward me for this endorsement?"
"What do you mean?" Zhang Yuan was even more confused.
"That's right, you're endorsing us, and the compensation won't be in cash."
"That is?"
"We will pay you compensation with company shares."
"To share in our progress and future."
"I believe that an excellent and insightful investor like yourself will see that this is a mutually beneficial solution."
Zhang Yuan: ...
what?
After spending half my life baiting the bucket, there are still fish jumping into it on their own?
This whole thing is really embarrassing.
He came with the intention of seducing young women, but when he arrived, he found that the women had taken off their clothes and were lying on the bed, having already taken their medication.
If I don't take action, wouldn't that be unreasonable?
He understood that the other party's intention was to "get something for free" from him.
That's incredibly bold!
Otherwise, they might become giants in the future.
They want me to be their spokesperson to quickly increase their brand awareness, but they don't have the money.
I want the goods, but I don't want to pay for them. What should I do?
They're asking for funding because they want me to know that their company is valuable right now.
Mentioning Xu Xiaoping and those people from Mihoyo is an attempt to curry favor.
Incidentally, he learned from these people that he was someone who would invest in startups, which led to this whole situation.
Only then did I dare to have this idea.
Exchanging shares for endorsements is a practice that exists, not a new one.
It's more common overseas, but not so common in China these days.
Even I'm a bit lost when it comes to dealing with him.
He had been preparing his confession plan for more than half a year, and when he finally stood in front of his goddess, she blushed and confessed first... That's how he felt.
"Is this appropriate?" He hesitated for a moment.
"We think it's a good fit."
"We are also very confident that this will bring substantial benefits to both parties."
"After all, endorsement is also a collaboration, and the goal of collaboration is to ensure that everyone benefits in the long term."
The other party even tried to persuade him.
Zhang Yuan was not used to it.
Why aren't they playing by the rules?! (End of Chapter)