Chapter 207 Backstabbing Xie Jingxing

The Clippers team is sold for nearly $20 billion. All bidders are group investors, except Steve Ballmer, who publicly stated that he would seek the acquisition in his personal capacity.

As the billionaire president of Microsoft, he has the ability to do this without having to partner with anyone to raise funds.

Therefore, this invitation for joint acquisition was a shortcut for Xie Jingxing to easily integrate into the American capital circle, but he chose to refuse.

Through the design of a complex equity structure, WhatsApp was able to comply with both the US legal system for an American company and the Chinese legal system for a Chinese company.

The 7% stake he directly holds is outside this framework and he only enjoys share property rights but not management voting rights. He can only add icing on the cake but not provide timely assistance.

In short, no matter who WhatsApp ultimately owns, it will not affect it. What it is doing now is just free after-sales service, and it can just sit back and watch the building collapse.

Based on such tacit consensus, Apple and Microsoft are trying to win over the other party rather than putting pressure on others.

Amazon's ambiguous attitude is consistent with Jan Koum's judgment - Bezos is drooling over mobile payment like a pervert.

Apple cares more about instant messaging than mobile payments, and Microsoft cares more about cloud storage information services than mobile payments. They are more inclined to directly remove Tencent from the WhatsApp board of directors, including the chair.

Amazon, as the first e-commerce stock, is extremely hungry for mobile payments. Just look at its peer Alibaba, which is about to be listed on the US stock market.

No matter what, they are unwilling to watch PayPal take off easily, so it is not impossible to maintain the status quo and let the American traitors take advantage of Tencent's mobile payment technology reserves to develop the mobile payment business as soon as possible.

Xie Jingxing stayed in Silicon Valley for a week to test the attitudes of all parties, and returned to China with the equity change contract which was still in the approval process.

“You want to pledge your shares to Tencent?”

Ten thousand meters above the sky again, the bed of the Gulfstream business jet was in a mess. Zhou Fenglan said thoughtfully: "But we don't need too much money."

"Just giving an attitude. I have a lot of cooperation with Tencent." Xie Jingxing panted.

Zhou Fenglan frowned slightly: "Aren't you a little too kind to Tencent? A little kindness is often met with resentment."

"I hope they can keep WhatsApp. After all, we have invested a lot in this project." Xie Jingxing replied in a muffled voice.

Zhou Fenglan half-opened her red lips and squinted her eyes comfortably. She slid her hands across the man's shoulders in her arms and carefully stroked the hideous scar on his chest.

From Tencent's perspective, it is natural that it is willing to offer a higher valuation and lower interest than traditional banks in exchange for the 7% stake she holds in WhatsApp.

This means that Xie Jingxing guarantees to advance and retreat with WhatsApp in the competition for WhatsApp's equity.

Admittedly, perhaps he personally prefers Tencent to hold on; but how can the latter feel at ease enjoying the goodwill from its partners? It can be expected that it will give back in other ways.

Until today, Zhou Fenglan felt that he could no longer see clearly what Xie Jingxing was thinking. Was it out of emotional feelings or rational considerations? Was everything business?
"Enemy..." She murmured softly with blurred eyes.

Xie Jing Xing suddenly trembled, hugged the soft body in his arms and said, "What?"

"I said, you should have died on the streets of Manhattan last year."

Zhou Fenglan repeated weakly, quietly enjoying a moment of afterglow to restore his strength, wiped the rice soup that had flowed out with a look of regret on his face, and crossed his feet on the head of the bed, showing off his perfect yoga skills.

Xie Jingxing was lying beside her, watching her strange posture, and simply turned his back to her.

Yu Tong would cooperate in the flirting to some extent, and Zhou Fenglan didn't even pretend. He did it again and again as if he was completing a task, which reminded him of the high-quality breeding cattle imported from Australia by Yunshan Group.

After several days in a row, it was really thinner than the rice soup in the treacherous breakfast shop at the entrance of the community. Xie Jingxing smacked his lips unconsciously, missing the soup stewed by Song Anli and fell asleep.

When the sheets gradually dried, Zhou Fenglan got out of bed with his tired body and took a shower, then used a wet towel to wipe the body of his sleeping enemy.

I accidentally saw a book on the bedside and was stunned for a moment - "The Three-Body Problem". Ever since Liu Cixin published "Death's End", "The Three-Body Problem" has been high on the Columbia University Library's borrowing list.

Even though I’m so tired from working all day that I don’t want to take a shower afterwards, I still have time to read science fiction novels again.

Zhou Fenglan didn't believe it. Out of curiosity, he picked up the book and turned to the page with the bookmark. He saw a handwritten note: Die together.

She understood instantly and looked at Xie Jingxing who was sleeping in astonishment.

In Liu Cixin's writing, faced with the invasion of the powerful and unmatched Three-Body aliens, the people on Earth came up with the tactic of mutual destruction.

As long as the Trisolarans invade, the humans on Earth will send signals to the entire universe, attracting more powerful alien species to invade and kill both sides.

Thus, the Trisolarans and the people on Earth reached a delicate balance.

There is no competitor in this world that can kill Tencent, Apple, and Microsoft, but there are many foreign enemies that are capable of taking over What'sapp by force.

When all other plans fail, I'll overturn the table, screw the diners and the suckling pig, and no one else can have what I can't have.

This is Xie Jingxing's background, just like his attitude towards miHoYo at the beginning of his rebirth. It doesn't matter whether it is madness or paranoia, at least it can be a weapon in certain specific situations.

If he had the power to decide, he would sell WhatsApp to Facebook!
Zhou Fenglan had no doubt about this. Her cheeks flushed and goose bumps appeared on her skin unconsciously. This was her childhood sweetheart, the man she loved.

…………

Midnight in Beijing.

The neon-lit shopping mall signs reflected the long line of luxury cars on the street, and men of all kinds were coming in and out with women of similar appearance.

The high-end singing girl with a diploma from Xinghai Conservatory of Music had just performed a festive song to liven up the atmosphere in the private room, but the three men in glasses looked indifferent, as if it had nothing to do with them and they were smiling reservedly.

"Mr. Wang, I toast to you. No friendship without fighting." The square-faced man with glasses started the conversation while reeking of alcohol.

The middle-aged bald man with glasses said, "Boss Peng, let's have a good drink today. We won't talk about anything else."

"You two should have a good drink. It's not easy to put together this group today." Shen Nanpeng, speaking in a soft Jiangsu and Zhejiang accent, pushed up his glasses and added half-jokingly.

Wang Xing didn't know what to say, so he raised his glass and said, "Come on, let's toast to Mr. Shen."

"Of course, we should drink this glass of wine." Peng Zhijian agreed with a smile on his face.

Shen Nanpeng stopped talking, clinked his glasses and drank it all in one gulp with sincerity.

Today's situation was like "going from the stove to the kang", skipping over the founders of Dianping, Zhang Tao and Xie Jingxing, as well as Alibaba, to discuss the feasibility of Meituan's acquisition of Dianping.

It was the first time the three parties met, and there wasn't much serious stuff to talk about. They just drank a little to get a feel for each other before discussing other things.

Peng Zhijian, who has clear ideas and a slightly bandit-like style of doing things, drank the wine without any hesitation: "To be honest, I have wanted to meet Mr. Wang for a long time, but I never had the chance."

"Today I have finally gotten what I wanted. There must be a second match later. I will arrange it."

He stood up and walked out with shaky steps: "I'm going to the bathroom, I'll drink when I come back."

I went to the toilet, flushed the toilet, took off my glasses, washed my face with cold water, and cleared my mind. I looked at the rosy face in the dressing mirror, lowered my head, hunched my chest, and exhaled deeply.

The shares of Dianping held by Tencent and Sequoia China are enough to encourage Meituan to acquire it.

That is to say, once the merger is successful, according to the current valuation, Xie Jingxing's shareholding in the "New Meituan" will be diluted by nearly half and will no longer have influence. The alliance of Tencent + Grapefruit Capital + Dianping + Ele.me collapsed on the spot, and Ele.me and Grapefruit Capital were stabbed in the back.

Shen Nanpeng didn't know what Tencent was thinking, so he didn't communicate directly with Liu Chih-Ping but contacted him first to test the waters.

And he...did not report the matter to Liu Chih-Ping, gave up Ele.me and stabbed Xie Jingxing in the back. If this decision had put the big boss in a dilemma at the beginning of its planning, then his existence would have been meaningless.

"It's just a preliminary test." Peng Zhijian convinced himself after putting on his glasses.

As I was thinking about this, the bathroom door was pushed open and a young man wearing glasses walked in drunkenly. He hugged the sink and vomited, turning into a huge ball of blood.

"Brother, lend me a fire."

The young man had vomited enough and wiped the stains from the corners of his mouth. His eyes widened and he rubbed his trouser pocket with his tongue. A thick stack of hundred-dollar bills fell out of it, along with a work badge.

When Peng Zhijian saw the words "Ele.me" and "Operation" on his work badge, he sneered undisguisedly and turned away.

That’s right, Xie Jingxing is awesome. The series of strategies and tactics he formulated caused Ele.me and Dianping to burn through more than a billion in cash in half a year, making it difficult for Meituan to survive. Now the cash flow has broken down and it has to raise funds.

Unfortunately, Zhang Tao was not the right person to trust. He was good at maintaining the status quo but lacked the courage. He spent all day leading Dianping to fight with Meituan in the second- and third-tier markets, with Baidu Nuomi following closely behind.

Zhang Xuhao is even more interesting. He is aggressive. He first took over Taodiandian and then entered Beijing to put Baidu Waimai under pressure.

To the extent that Baidu has been debating every day whether it can shift its resources to the food delivery business as the market competition pressure for the group buying business is not great.

But the problem is that a small grassroots market operation employee can embezzle and accept bribes of millions in just a few months, and every night in high-end shopping malls throughout Beijing, there are Ele.me market operation department employees spending lavishly.

Peng Zhijian swore, based on his more than ten years of experience in venture capital, that if such a startup could beat Meituan, he would go to the toilet and eat a hot shit.

Business is business and there is no backstabbing. Tencent should make the choice that best suits its own interests.

Promote Meituan's acquisition of Dianping, unify the group buying business, and abandon Ele.me, obtaining the entire local life traffic entrance to support mobile payment business.

"Let's just get to know each other briefly tonight. If it's convenient later, I'll invite Mr. Xie and the people from Ali to sit down and have a cup of tea."

In the other box, Shen Nanpeng expressed his attitude slowly and methodically.

Sequoia China has bet on Ele.me, Meituan and Dianping.com respectively. As the money burning becomes more and more serious, the pressure on the major investor is very heavy, and it is very happy to see negotiations and mergers and acquisitions to burn less money.

Apart from this, he did not have too many interests involved, and it was entirely Wang Xing's idea to skip Zhang Tao and Xie Jingxing and make initial contact with Tencent.

"It may be difficult to talk to Ali."

As expected, Wang Xing was not very willing to do this.

With the princess singing with him present, Shen Nanpeng took a sip of wine and insisted cryptically: "Let's talk first, mainly to see what Tencent's attitude is."

“General Peng is still very enthusiastic.”

Wang Xing forced a smile on his face and sighed inwardly.

By acquiring Dianping and unifying the group buying market, cash flow has been released. Tencent and Xiyou are no longer rivals. Meituan is confident that it can crush Ele.me with one hand.

This was the plan Su He had proposed a few months ago. His subconscious reaction at the time was whether it had to be implemented through Xie Jingxing.

Facts have proved that this seems to be the case. Alibaba is unwilling to replicate Didi and Tencent sitting on the same board of directors. Does Tencent think so too, or can Peng Zhijian make decisions on behalf of Tencent?

Judging from Shen Nanpeng's subtle hints, he has oversimplified the matter. At the very least, the relationship between Tencent and Xie Jingxing is much deeper than what is shown in public information, to the point where they do not need to consider the grudges with Alibaba.

Peng Zhijian personally believes that Meituan is more optimistic about becoming famous through a successful merger and acquisition, but if it were not for two powerful figures, Pony Ma and Martin Lau, at the helm, Tencent's internal struggle for interests would not be weaker than Baidu's.

From an outsider's perspective, Shen Nanpeng can clearly see how important this person is.

The more Wang Xing thought about it, the more silent he became. He should have seen the situation clearly, but the fact that Taihe Capital was introduced and Xie Jingxing was asked to mediate the merger and acquisition really made him feel uncomfortable.

The previous confrontation with Su He in Huaqing Jiayuan Community was still vivid in my mind. For my second venture, I still had to kneel down and beg for food from capital. Compared with the failed experience of my first venture, wasn't that no progress at all?

"How much does Su He want?"

Shen Nanpeng had finished a glass of wine and Peng Zhijian hadn't come back yet. He was so annoyed that he had to find something to say to break the silence.

Wang Xing unconsciously clenched his teeth and said, "10%."

"...about the same, this is the price." Shen Nanpeng was silent for a moment and rubbed his temple to give his opinion.

Just like Liu Qing brought in many celebrity investors to raise $7 million for Didi so that it could have the financial strength to acquire Kuaidi.

If Meituan wants to acquire Dianping, it will have to raise a large amount of cash first. Diluting its equity by about 20% is a foregone conclusion. This requires the cooperation of both Alibaba and Tencent.

If they do not cooperate in taking extreme measures to exit and crash the market, the equity structure will be diluted to nothing just by taking over the hundreds of millions of dollars worth of shares they hold.

It's really not expensive for Taihe to acquire 10% of the shares. Stop messing around and just acquire Dianping.com honestly. Maybe there will be a chance to acquire Ele.me.

Shen Nanpeng was so worried that his head ached. As far as he knew, Xie Jingxing and Zhang Xuhao had a bit of a strained relationship, so he might not forcefully support Ele.me.

"Sorry, I had to take a phone call at the last minute. Let me make up for how much you drank." Peng Zhijian returned to the box with a smile.

Wang Xing seemed more enthusiastic than before and stood up to greet him: "We've all had two drinks, are you okay?"

"It must work. If not, I'll write you an IOU and make it up next time!" Peng Zhijian waved his arms generously.

The two of them were arm in arm and quite speculative. Shen Nanpeng watched coldly, thinking that it was really a bad fate. Wang Xing valued his self-esteem more than getting rich, and Xie Jingxing's methods were too drastic at the beginning.

I have to find a way to talk to this guy later. This matter will be resolved sooner or later.

…………

The next morning, the Gulfstream business jet that crossed the ocean landed at Zhuhai Airport.

The cabin door opened and the heat wave hit him. Xie Jingxing straightened the collar of his shirt and said, "Go to Shenzhen for me and give this book to Brother Xiao Ma."

"Do not need anything?"

Zhou Fenglan raised her eyebrows. After all, she had no name or status, so it was not appropriate for her to go to Tencent alone to negotiate terms.

Xie Jing Xing smiled: "Women have long hair but little knowledge! I have a revolutionary friendship with Brother Xiao Ma, and I am making some business suggestions and charging for them, which makes outsiders laugh at me."

"Oh."

Zhou Fenglan glanced at Song Anli who came to pick him up at the airport, and decided to satisfy his face, so hesitantly responded.

(End of this chapter)