The next private room.

Shen Fang and Xu Xin clinked glasses.

"Sister Xin, what happened?"

Xu Xin took a bite of fruit.

"I spoke with Zhuang Sheng today and told him your bottom line, but he rejected it outright."

Shen Fang narrowed his eyes.

"A flat refusal? That's not like your former boss's style."

Xu Xin rolled her eyes at Chen Fang.

"He's still my boss."

Shen Fang smiled: "It won't be like that anymore, go on."

“You’re right. Logically speaking, 8 million isn’t a high price, but it’s not low either. Even if he wanted to raise the price, he couldn’t just refuse outright. So I asked Zhuang Sheng, and he told me that someone had inquired about the price and offered 10 million US dollars.”

Shen Fang became interested upon hearing this.

"Then, Sister Xu, what makes you think that the person who inquired about the price is the mastermind behind it all?"

Xu Xin smiled: "Because he is Li Zeju."

Shen Kun was shocked upon hearing this: "Little Superman!!!"

Upon hearing this, Shen Fang's eyes flashed with a cold light. Damn it, it was him! If it was him who inquired about the price, there would be no doubt that he was capable of doing this. Most importantly, Li Zeju's investment style would never accept this kind of sunset industry.

"Identifying opportunities—investing—supporting growth—mergers and acquisitions—scaling up—successful exit—reinvesting" is the value cycle of "Little Superman" as a VC.

NetEase's current situation is completely inconsistent with Xiao Chaoren's investment style. The only possibility is that he wants to short NetEase, gain control of NetEase, drive up the stock price, and then resell it.

Shen Fang sat on the sofa, lost in thought for a long time.

"Sister Xin, what do you think?"

Xu Xin frowned.

"If he's targeting you, I think you should hold back. You should raise your bid to acquire Baring Asia's shares, otherwise NetEase will suffer a heavy blow. If you want to beat him, you have to pull out all the cancerous tumors in NetEase at once and let NetEase get out of its current gloom. Only when NetEase succeeds will Xiao Chao have no chance to make a move."

Shen Fang smiled and shook his head: "It's impossible to add more money. It's 8 million US dollars. Sister Xin, you should directly inform Ding Sanshi to hold a press conference and put on a show to prepare to leave NetEase."

Xu Xin suddenly realized: "You're planning to lure the snake out of its hole?"

Shen Fang nodded: "Force Li Zeju to take action, and incidentally give Zhuang Jiacheng some leverage to force him to sell his shares. Wanting to sell at a price? Dream on. Little Superman (Li Zeju's nickname) probably won't raise the price. His acquisition of NetEase was also for the purpose of selling NetEase; he had no intention of making NetEase successful. Let Lao Ding (Li Zeju's father) stick to his position and offer $50 million for the entire company as a package deal. Without control, Li Zeju can't use just the shares here; $10 million is no small sum, and he won't dare gamble on it."

"Old Ding must adopt a 'scorched earth' mentality to intimidate Li Zeju. If Li Zeju can come up with $50 million in one go, NetEase is fine without him. However, Li Zeju is not a generous person and will not take such a big risk. After a $50 million acquisition, who knows how much more money will be needed to stabilize the company, make it bigger, and get it back on track."

Upon hearing this, Xu Xin smiled and gave a thumbs up, saying, "What a brilliant series of schemes! A retreat from Maicheng, luring the snake out of its hole, mutual destruction, and a secret maneuver. President Shen truly lives up to his reputation as the great strategist of Tencent. You come up with a plan every now and then; you're incredibly clever."

Xu Xin took out her phone and dialed Ding Sanshi's number. She told Ding Sanshi what Shen Fang had said, and Ding Sanshi was astonished. What a brilliant series of schemes!

"Sister Xin, don't worry, I've read 'An Actor Prepares.' I'm a top-notch actor, just you wait and see."

Xu Xin hung up the phone.

Shen Fang stared at Xu Xin speechlessly.

"Why does Fatty Ding seem so unreliable? Good grief."

Xu Xin chuckled: "President Ding is an interesting person. I think he and you, the boss, will become good friends in the future."

Shen Fang laughed loudly: "I am his benefactor. Who would be friends with him? I made such a big sacrifice and put on such a big show. He should recognize me as his godfather."

Xu Xin rolled her eyes at Chen Fang.

"You're getting a good deal and you're still complaining. You're determined to get your hands on Baring Asia's shares, and San Shi has even agreed to give you 20% of the shares. Do you want to control the company?"

Shen Fang shook his head: "I will leave control to Fatty Ding. Once the stock price rises to around $50, I will gradually sell off my shares."

Xu Xin looked at Shen Fang in shock upon hearing this: "50???"

Shen Fang nodded: "50 US dollars. To be honest, although I am very optimistic about NetEase's future, and although it's a bit of a bargain, I'm prepared to sell half of the shares at around 50 US dollars."

Xu Xin was speechless... Selling it for a pittance of $50??

Shen Fang didn't want things to turn out this way either. NetEase's highest historical stock price exceeded $80, but Ding Yanyuhang later implemented a 1-for-5 stock split. Although the valuation remained the same, Ding Yanyuhang was a volatile company, with the stock price fluctuating wildly. Even if he gained control, it would be useless. Because of this incident, Ding Yanyuhang might scheme against him later over control. A snake bites deep, and Ding Yanyuhang was inherently a hegemonic figure. If he were to take control, Ding Yanyuhang would definitely not feel at ease. He never wanted to seize control of Ding Yanyuhang anyway; it would be better to sell it later. After all, investing in NetEase was for profit, and $50 was already considered the peak value 10 years ago.

"As long as NetEase recovers and gets back on track, Fatty Ding won't let me ride on his head. He might even pull some tricks. I'll just take the opportunity to make a quick buck and then quit. Otherwise, I'll just be a petty jerk."

Xu Xin covered her mouth and chuckled upon hearing this. Ding Sanshi really was that kind of person.

Xu Xin picked up her wine glass.

"Young boss, would you like a drink?"

Chen Fang said, "Sister Xin, it's just 'boss,' what do you mean 'little'? I'm hitting him. Men can't hear that word."

Xu Xin chuckled upon hearing this.

"Alright, whatever you say, boss. Cheers!"

Shen Fang laughed loudly: "I love hearing that word."

The two clinked glasses.

Xu Xin looked at Shen Fang.

"I truly never imagined I could become your subordinate. You gave me a hard time the very first time we met."

Shen Fang waved his hand: "Why bring this up? Let's go. My friends are waiting for me. Shall we go have some fun together?"

Xu Xin shook her head upon hearing this.

"No, I need to go home and see my mom. I haven't been back for a long time. I'm going to Beijing to work soon, and I want to spend more time with her."

Upon hearing this, Shen Fang smiled and said, "Please give my regards to Auntie. Xiao Kun, please take this to Sister Xin for me."

Shen Kun saw Xu Xin off.