Chapter 128 Acquisition of Bumblebee

Those who have grown crops when the wind blows have the advantage of time and place.

On October 7, the strongest typhoon since the founding of the People's Republic of China landed in Lingnan, bringing heavy rains to Zhejiang and Shanghai.

The demand for public transportation has surged, coupled with the aftermath of the Golden Week holiday, the entire online ride-hailing market has exploded.

Didi's '70 billion subsidy' plan has allocated more resources, with market coverage in Zhejiang and Shanghai reaching 43%, and market share in Shanghai increasing to %.

At this point, the bloody battle in the online car-hailing industry in Shanghai that lasted from summer to autumn has finally come to a conclusion. Kuaidi followed Didi and publicly announced that its market share in Shanghai has exceeded 40%. Bumblebee Taxi, which originally started in Shanghai, has been completely left behind.

“Disasters are usually followed by accumulation of wealth.”

The umbrella shook off the water droplets, and Xie Jingxing and Song Anli walked briskly into the deserted coffee shop. The middle-aged female boss with short burgundy hair stood at the solid wooden bar, concentrating on turning the classic brass hand-cranked coffee grinder.

Liu Qing sat at the bar wearing a Chanel blue and white casual suit jacket, with dark lip gloss and eye makeup on her lips. She carried the unique warm sandalwood scent of Lutens's Orphan fragrance. "Be careful with your words, or your colleagues in the GR department will criticize you."

“Can I avoid criticism by donating money?”

Xie Jingxing sat down beside her and added two sugar cubes and milk to the black coffee. Liu Qing frowned as she watched.

He explained helplessly, "I forgot where I read in a book that said you can recover from a cold in two weeks without taking medicine. It seems not quite accurate. My mouth has been very bitter lately."

"Okay, we've donated money, but it's more about travel subsidies. Can you give me some advice?"

Liu Qing folded his hands on his knees, sitting upright with a calm expression.

Xie Jingxing shook his head. He donated a total of two million in his personal name, Xiyou and Taihe. The money was not much and the nature was relatively pure, with no return.

Yunshan Group donated a large amount of money to the disaster. He directly posted on Weibo that the first person in charge of the Yunhe Logistics branch in the disaster-stricken area has the obligation and need to unconditionally open the storage center and mobilize all mobile forces to cooperate with the administrative department in disaster relief.

All costs are covered by the company, which clearly uses real money to exchange for reputation and goodwill. Everyone, from the general public to the leaders, knows it but can say nothing.

Didi can't play it this way. Even though the price subsidies in Shanghai and Zhejiang are so exaggerated that taking a taxi is cheaper than taking the bus, it cannot publicize it. Don't sneak into the village and shoot. Anyone who says anything more will be considered taking advantage of the disaster to make money.

You should know that at this moment, talks organized by the ministry/commission level in Beijing are ongoing. The fact that the Zhejiang and Shanghai regions allow Didi and Kuaidi to quietly escalate the price war to such a level is already a reflection of the fact that there is indeed a demand gap in public transportation that needs to be filled urgently.

Xie Jingxing cautiously tested the edge of the minefield, but he really didn't have any effective suggestions.

"In fact, I'm quite surprised at the growth of your market coverage in Zhejiang Province. Keep up the good work." He praised like coaxing a child.

Liu Qing pursed his lips and looked disgusted: "Kuaishou reduced the subsidy at the same time as us, and we took advantage of the new customers."

"This is a technical success and is certainly worthy of recognition. The biggest gap between us and Uber comes from technology." Xie Jingxing couldn't help laughing.

Liu Qing squinted at him and said sarcastically, "You always have a point."

Having said that, he couldn't help but laugh with glee. Didi launched the '10 billion subsidies' and simultaneously lowered the overall basic subsidies in all regions across the country to 5 yuan for both passengers and drivers. Three days later, Kuaidi followed suit and lowered the subsidies, from 5 yuan for drivers to 10 yuan for passengers.

Then something annoying happened. Didi's 10 billion yuan subsidy included a slashed amount of cash bonuses for new users, and two more details: one for bringing in new users and a floating bonus of 20 to yuan. These two details seemed to attract more passengers than the fixed subsidy of yuan.

After thinking about it for a while, we felt that something was not right, so we teamed up with Alipay yesterday to launch a campaign to attract new customers to receive cash red envelopes and floating red envelopes. However, less than ten hours later, we hurriedly shut down the campaign without even an explanation.

There are rumors that it was a technical failure. Kuaidi and Alipay had more than 20 million red envelopes stolen by users yesterday. The bank discovered the problem only after seeing the abnormal transaction frequency of the account and issued a risk warning.

Douban website broke the news that a programmer of Alipay called on his family to attract new users and earned more than 2,000 yuan. That night, he was interviewed and dismissed by Alibaba’s internal HRBP on the grounds of misconduct.

The real reason for this seemingly nonsensical accident is poor algorithm technology. Alibaba is a bit honest and simple-minded and thinks things are simple. Users really pay for new users...

Didi is backed by Tencent, a company with rich experience in game lottery technology. In addition, the activity plan was proposed by Xie Jingxing, and it took more than half a month to prepare and polish the rules. The floating algorithm was optimized using probability theory, and also involved commercial law research.

For example, it is easier to get a red envelope of 200 yuan in the fiercely competitive Shanghai and Beijing, but in most regional markets, even the Chinese God of War, who can command millions of soldiers to fight for him, cannot get a red envelope of 200 yuan.

If one commits a sin like Kuaidi, and distributes the huge sum of money to users all at once as promised, no amount of money will be enough to waste.

Therefore, the two companies simultaneously reduced their market subsidies. Didi, with its more mature marketing technology and the surge in market demand, finally made a big push into Kuaishou's stronghold in Zhejiang Province.

However, today's Didi will become Kuaidi in the near future.

Uber has a more mature technical algorithm, and can experiment with different marketing plans in different cities, and quickly replicate the most effective one to all regions where there is fierce market competition.

The day it enters the domestic market, all domestic online ride-hailing platforms will inevitably face the same kind of dimensionality reduction tragedy that is currently happening.

Liu Qing restrained his smile and exhaled lightly, looking towards the bar: "Are you mentally prepared for this?"

"It's hard to talk about this kind of thing. Which of Google and Facebook doesn't have an advantage over our domestic counterparts?"

The middle-aged female boss with short wine-red hair put down the mug she was wiping, poured a cup of honey lemonade and placed it in front of Xie Jingxing, teasing: "Boss Xie Fenghe is on a roll, maybe we can get some of his good fortune."

"Boss Deng, do you have dessert?" Xie Jingxing did not comment.

Deng Wei smiled and said, "Yes, of course we have to prepare in advance when inviting Mr. Xie to have afternoon tea. We will bake the Matcha Napoleon at noon."

"Personally, I admire President Deng for leading the Hornet to such a rapid rise."

Liu Qing said calmly, "As a working woman, I can empathize with President Deng's efforts in this process."

Since Deng Wei doesn't accept her suggestion of looking into the future, let's talk about the present. The current industry landscape is very clear. Alibaba and Tencent, the two industry giants, continue to dominate the war. Baidu, standing behind Bumblebee, withdrew and chose to switch to support Yidao Travel.

The Bumblebees will only end up dead if they continue to hold on as a discarded pawn. Today's topic is not to discuss whether they should sell themselves in time to cash out, but how much they can be sold for.

Deng Wei wanted to do the same trick of comparing prices from three stores again, but Liu Qing wasn't going to give her the chance.

"It's really hard to work in an industry dominated by men. It's no big deal if men fail a few times, but as women, if our work is not satisfactory, we will quickly lose the trust and support of investors and there will be no second chance." She pressed on step by step with a hint of meaning.

Xie Jingxing raised his eyebrows: "Why do your words sound so unpleasant to me?"

"You'll be able to hear things when you're sixty." Liu Qing responded quickly.

Xie Jing Xing chuckled, "You were an investor two months ago, and now you've become an entrepreneur. Aren't you a little bit ungrateful?"

"I am a female investor!" Liu Qing drew a clear line.

Deng Wei watched the two of them bickering and laughing, and she forced a smile on her face but felt very depressed.

In the first two months, Baidu gave her sufficient support when it first entered the market, and its spending power was no less than that of Didi. It also competed aggressively with Alibaba for AutoNavi.

However, the bloody battle in Shanghai to defend the base camp was always in a passive position, and the strategy of opening up a second battlefield to take Lingnan from south to north was not very effective. Two consecutive defeats not only indirectly led to Baidu abandoning Bumblebee, but also made many venture capitalists deeply doubt her personally.

After all, the fuse of the subsidy war in online car-hailing was that Bumblebee was waiting to be sold to Didi and Kuaidi, and it was not until Baidu invested heavily that it firmly believed in participating in the market competition. With Baidu jumping out of the game, no one could figure out whether it was simply incompetent or not interested in entrepreneurship, and only had the idea of ​​selling the company to cash in and run away, and no investor dared to trust it anymore.

In short, Deng Wei has exhausted the option of finding new investors, and now she can only sell herself.

Investor 5Y Capital, which had lost patience with Bumblebee and had exhausted its personal relationship with her, advised her to sell her to Baidu.

This option is the simplest and quickest, but Baidu's intention is very low. It looks like it is accepting a loss and acquiring the company in full. You will be happy if I give you the money and have no capital to bargain.

Deng Wei reasonably suspected that Li Yanhong was retaliating. Mr. Ma personally stepped in to take down AutoNavi several times, but Li Yanhong was arrogant and did not take it seriously. The two sides had conflicts and disputes over this.

Either the rumors within Baidu are true, and they are planning to cooperate with more powerful online ride-hailing platforms, compared to which Bumblebee is relatively useless.

Besides, she originally wanted to sell out at a good price last time, but it was Baidu that took the initiative to approach her and she stopped loving it when it was time to fart.

Deng Wei couldn't help but feel resentful, and out of personal feelings she didn't want to sell herself to Baidu.

Excluding this option, she felt a serious crisis as Didi and Kuaidi both reduced their spending in recent days.

Didi and Kuaidi not only occupy more than 80% of the market share in Shanghai, but also maintain almost the same market share nationwide. Apart from them, no one else in the market can take over Bumblebee.

When they reached a tacit understanding not to compete, the game of comparing prices from three stores and bidding against each other like last time could no longer be played. Deng Wei had clearly taken the initiative to ask Xie Jingxing out for afternoon tea, but she acted pretentiously and reservedly in order to test the attitudes of both parties.

The answer given by Liu Qing was not optimistic. They have actually begun to consider preparing for Uber to enter the country. Could it be that Didi and Kuaidi have reached a tacit understanding to unite to resist the two giants, CAR and Uber, which have not yet entered the market?
Rumors about cooperation within Baidu emerged in Deng Wei's mind, and for a moment she was overwhelmed with thoughts and felt increasingly heavy-hearted.

"Mr. Deng, the last time we met at the West Lake State Guesthouse, I told you that Mr. Cai and I had reached an agreement that neither of us would acquire Bumblebee. I'm still telling you the same thing today."

After eating half of the dessert, Xie Jingxing drank a sip of honey lemon water to moisten his throat, adding another weight to the scale in her heart.

Deng Wei was surprised, and after a brief recollection, she said, "Then I still say the same thing, this kind of game can't be taken seriously... Mr. Xie, there are no products that can't be sold, only prices that can't be sold."

"Not really. To be honest, the existence of Bumblebee must be valuable. Didi and Kuaidi are willing to respect Mr. Deng's choice."

Liu Qing took over the conversation, paused, and said half-jokingly: "Of course, on this basis, I hope that Mr. Deng can choose Didi. After all, we have had direct competition and know each other better. There is no acquaintance without fighting."

"Boss Liu is so quick to speak that he doesn't even give me a chance to breathe." Deng Wei had no choice but to reveal her cards.

"This is all because Mr. Xie put too much pressure on us, always saying 'time waits for no one'. I guess I'm following his example."

Liu Qing tilted his head to look at Xie Jingxing: "China Auto Rental is squatting at the doorstep of a bankrupt peer company to recruit, and President Cheng is currently attending a meeting in Beijing. For us, every second counts, and every minute of delay will increase the cost."

Bumblebee's on-book funds have been exhausted and its market share is becoming increasingly sluggish. Its valuation drops by one point every day it delays. Even if it can barely survive until China Auto Rental enters the market and the battle starts again, it will be scratched to death like those "innocent fish" that were affected before.

In fact, up to now, the most valuable thing about Bumblebee is its team that has been tested by major battles and is familiar with the southern market, as well as its accumulated data; market share comes second.

CAR Inc. can go to the doors of bankrupt peer companies to recruit, and it can also secretly go to the doors of Bumblebee, whose morale is low, to poach people.

Compared with the initial strategy of surrounding the cities from the countryside, Didi, which started from the big cities in the north and then expanded to the whole, is more compatible with Bumblebee. Liu Qing also expressed her willingness to complete the merger and acquisition quickly.

If it were Kuaidi’s Lu Chuanwei to talk today, Deng Wei might still be hesitant as to whether Didi and Kuaidi have really reached a tacit understanding, and whether there is a chance to sell themselves directly to CAR.

Unfortunately, the person sitting in front of her and talking with ease was Liu Chuanzhi's daughter. Deng Wei was so angry that her teeth were itching. It turned out that time was running out. If she had simply cashed out last time or if China Auto Rental had entered the game tomorrow, she would still have some room for maneuver.

Now she is awkwardly caught in the middle, and the best opportunity to sell herself is not on her side.

"Mr. Xie, do you have any ideas?" Deng Wei finally turned her gaze to Xie Jingxing.

Liu Qing unconsciously held the mug beside him and lowered his head to tidy up the hair around his ears.

"Mr. Xie is on sick leave these days." Xie Jingxing raised the dessert in his hand to indicate.

"..."

Deng Wei was speechless. Liu Qing raised his lips and said, "President Xie, please say a few words."

"Then I wish you a happy cooperation, and we will strive to end the battle within ten days." Xie Jingxing nodded slightly.

Deng Wei held out her hand: "How about I invite Mr. Liu to visit the company tomorrow?"

"great, see you tomorrow!"

…………

"Deng Wei will definitely take the initiative to find someone quick to talk."

Leaving the cafe and strolling in the alleys with an umbrella, Liu Qing frowned and said softly.

Xie Jing Xing put his hands in his windbreaker pockets and tightened his clothes: "It doesn't matter, her psychological defenses have been breached, it's better to talk about it sooner rather than later. We have the advantage of talking first."

"If I can't defeat the Bumblebee as you said, I would have let you down for your cooperation today and put pressure on me again." Liu Qing smiled.

Xie Jingxing didn't respond: "What's going on in the capital?"

"It's nothing. We can both reduce the intensity of competition and pave the way for the introduction of policies later. The results will probably come out by the end of this year or the first half of next year."

Liu Qing estimated the time and thought it would be very troublesome to formulate regulations and policies for the entire industry, as all necessary procedures had to be gone through.

The two walked and talked, and when they reached the alley, Xie Jingxing raised his wrist to check the time: "Let's have dinner together tonight?"

"It's too late. I have to go to Hangzhou to see Lu Chuanwei."

Liu Qing felt a little disgusted. It was true that Alibaba and Tencent had reached a tacit understanding, but Didi and Kuaidi had not negotiated at all and were just fooling Deng Wei.

Knowing that the peace talks have already been concluded and will inevitably fail, they still pretend to go through the process to lay the foundation for real peace talks in the future.

The more she thought about it, the more unhappy she became. She took out a bag from her backpack and slapped it hard into Xie Jingxing's arms: "Small entrepreneurs like us are just pawns in the hands of you big investors."

"What the hell is this?"

Xie Jingxing coughed twice when he was slapped and smelled a scent of medicinal herbs.

"It's Chinese medicine for colds. My mother often takes it and says it works pretty well."

Liu Qing took out a beautifully wrapped gift box and handed it to Song Anli: "I didn't prepare it last time in Harbin, so I'll give it to you."

(End of this chapter)