The Birth of Shanghai's First Conglomerate

The farmhouse resort arranged by Gao Hu.

Located halfway up a mountain, the area boasts beautiful scenery and is also home to many geese.

People from Guangdong love to eat farm-style dishes, and high-end gatherings are usually held at farms.

After Chen Pingsheng and his group arrived, Gao Hu first talked about the recent development of Guangdong Feiyangyang, and then discussed some small entrepreneurial projects supported by the Dream Fund.

And you know what? Some of the store managers actually did a pretty good job.

To be honest, Chen Pingsheng wasn't too keen on investing in the catering industry anymore, mainly because he predicted that housing prices would fall in a few years.

Competition in the catering industry will be beyond imagination.

To put it bluntly, it's all about cost-effectiveness. When you reach the extreme of cost-effectiveness, it's hard to guarantee the high salaries that employees deserve.

This is also the main reason why the stock price of Boiling Sheep has never exceeded 10 billion.

You should know that it has more than 1,000 self-operated stores nationwide, which is approaching 1800.

The investment in these stores alone would be no less than three billion.

However, its stock price is still only 8 billion.

Most of the revenue was used to pay employee salaries.

"Old Chen, the new self-service fast food is quite popular now. I know a few store managers who opened this kind of store and they are doing quite well."

For chefs, the best business opportunity is naturally opening a restaurant.

So-called new-style fast food generally falls into two categories: one is fully self-service, where you can eat as much food as you want for a certain price per person.

Another option is to serve yourself food using a plate, and the price is calculated by weight.

Clearly, the second option is more in line with a market economy.

Chen Pingsheng said, "The era of involution in the catering industry is probably over in less than three years. In the future, unless the catering industry is really unique, it will be an era of price competition."

This is just a reminder; in other words, it's about small profits but quick turnover.

They follow the same pattern as Boiling Sheep.

If we can't provide the same level of service as Haidilao, then we should offer excellent value for money.

He paused, then added, "You may not have realized it yet, but Bobo Milk Tea on Chu Qiuyan's side is definitely feeling the pressure. Four or five new milk tea shops are popping up on just one street. Luckily, she switched to selling milk tea and ice cream a few years ago, otherwise she would be in a very difficult situation now."

In comparison, Deer Antler Coffee is doing quite well, mainly because it has fewer competitors.

Its only competitor in the same category is Starbucks.

The consumer market as a whole is declining, although it is not very obvious, but it is definitely noticeable.

The simplest point is that there is less lavish spending of public funds on meals and entertainment.

This one point alone has a huge impact.

Chen Pingsheng will no longer invest in high-end restaurants; there's absolutely no need for it.

The future environment won't allow it.

The small-but-exquisite model is bound to become a new trend in the catering industry.

Gao Hu agreed, "Old Chen, you're going to Tengying Art School this afternoon, right?"

"We'll head there after dinner. The main reason for this trip is to increase investment in short dramas and Tencent Video. We might even buy a large headquarters here specifically for the development of Tencent Video and short dramas."

"You've spent at least 20 billion on the headquarters building alone over the past few years, haven't you?"

Gao Hu clicked his tongue in amazement.

The headquarters in Guangzhou Baiyun alone has a 28-story building, and more than 10 billion yuan has been spent in Hong Kong, not to mention the projects in Shanghai and Beijing.

These buildings alone are worth tens of billions.

"more or less."

Chen Pingsheng laughed and said, "Look at how much of a glutton Dapiwa is. If I don't spend more money to buy commercial real estate, I'm really afraid she won't be able to hold onto the family's small assets in the future."

Chen An'an, who was enjoying her meal, immediately put down the goose leg she was holding upon hearing this.

"Dad, you have to work harder. Buying houses isn't enough. It would be best to buy a big island too, and we can build a small country on it."

Haha, Chen An'an was amused by her own idea.

"You've been watching too much Teletubbies; all you do is daydream."

Chen Pingsheng ignored her; his wife was unexpectedly pregnant again, and he didn't know if it was a boy.

Anyway, the whole family is quite looking forward to it.

After finishing their meal, they headed to Tengying Art School in Huadu.

Xu Jing handed him an online survey form. Some time ago, Tengying Art School eliminated two thousand students at once.

The online controversy has caused quite a stir.

I've only ever heard of companies laying off employees, but I've never heard of an arts school laying off students on such a large scale.

Some students, after returning home, simply stopped looking for the cause within themselves and kept blaming the school.

This has led to countless parents joining in the online rant and rave; these days, anyone with a mobile phone can become a keyboard warrior.

Chen Pingsheng didn't care at all.

He runs his own school and doesn't make money from tuition fees, so why should he indulge those interns who don't pay attention in class and only want to date after class?

That's right, he regarded all the students in this art school as his own interns.

The company provides them with learning subsidies and salaries, not for them to date.

This first wave of eliminations only made everyone realize the cruelty of Tengying Art School.

After three years, it would be considered very good if 100 out of 5,000 people could still remain.

Of course, as some are eliminated, others will come in to fill the vacancies.

This is actually quite similar to the artist training classes he ran at Tencent Entertainment in his early days.

Bai Lu, the winner of the first batch of artist training courses, has now firmly established himself as a top-tier artist.

Without enduring the bitter cold, how can the plum blossoms exude their fragrant aroma?

Chen Pingsheng said, "You don't need to worry about any of that. Just keep an eye out for office buildings for sale here. I'm planning to buy another building to use as the headquarters of Tengyou Media."

The Douyin app, launched on September 20th, has seen its user base grow exponentially in just two months.

It has to be said that Douyin has a truly unique advantage in user recommendations and core algorithms.

Purchasing a separate headquarters building also means that he has completely elevated the newly established Tengyou Media to the same level as Xinteng Live.

We need to start providing strong support.

Once Douyin really takes off, the commercial value derived from Tencent Media will far exceed that of a restaurant startup.

The Dream Realization Fund will truly begin its efforts from Tengyou Media.

Chen An'an, who was standing to the side, also listened attentively. She rarely listened to what the teacher said at school, but she could listen to everything her father said.

Perhaps she does have a bit of business acumen.

We arrived at the magnificent entrance of the art school.

Chen Pingsheng parked his car outside and walked inside.

The female principal and the teachers inside came to greet him at the door, and along the way, he could see most of the students craning their necks to watch.

Chen Pingsheng greeted everyone with a smile along the way.

Chen An'an, on the other hand, almost said something like "Hello comrades, comrades, you've worked hard"—such arrogant and boastful words.

With her hands behind her back, her poor academic performance didn't stop her from attracting everyone's attention.

There's nothing I can do, my dad is just that amazing.

Consequently, whenever she came to her family's company, it was as if the king was going on a patrol.

She claims that if she studies hard, she can get into Tsinghua or Peking University, but even if she doesn't study hard, a bunch of Tsinghua and Peking University students would be vying to work for her.

That's the advantage of being born into the right family.

"Dad, didn't I look really cool just now?"

"So handsome, he's almost too handsome to look like a ghost."

After listening to the work reports from several principals in his office, Chen Pingsheng prepared to attend a school-wide speech event.

This was specially arranged by Xu Jing. The main reason is that the art school has been promoting the idea that students should shoot more short videos whenever they have free time.

Many people don't take it seriously at all.

This is why short videos haven't taken off at art schools at all.

Without even a basic fan base, Tencent Media would never sign them.

If you want a media company to become a hit, you must have the ability to consistently produce top internet celebrities.

To put it simply, this place can be both a short drama filming base and an internet celebrity training base.

It could also be a top-tier training ground for the future entertainment industry.

Only by combining these three elements can profits be maximized.

After all, he invests three to four hundred million yuan in this prestigious art school every year.

Half of the money goes to pay the interns' salaries, and the other half goes to cover the teachers' salaries and living expenses.

Such a large investment is equivalent to the total annual profit of two or three A-share listed companies.

No company can sustain itself in the long run without investment and returns. Therefore, the production of short videos and short dramas is bound to take off within arts schools.

The audience consisted of thousands of people, while the stage was filled with school leaders and the big boss himself.

Fortunately, the weather was pretty good today; there wasn't too much scorching sun or a strong southeast wind.

Chen Pingsheng patted his microphone and then said:

"Before I came here, I saw a lot of comments online, which basically said that our art school is a vampire company, and even more so a company that eats people up without spitting out the bones, and cursed the boss as a heartless capitalist."

Zhang Zihan arrived the earliest and took a spot at the very front.

Others may not know the story of the big boss, but she knows it very well.

He is truly a business legend, but he is too low-key and would never expose his speeches online.

Therefore, few people know that he is also the famous owner of Shuiyunjian.

To be honest, she also tried to apply to Shuiyunjian, but unfortunately, the number of applicants had already soared to over 100,000 in just three days after the quota was released.

There's no way to squeeze in.

Such a big boss is not someone they can easily get in touch with outside.

She was quite puzzled as to why there was an eight or nine-year-old girl sitting next to her.
"I can understand why those who were eliminated are so rude. After all, it's inevitable to vent some of their grievances. But this doesn't change my school's principles."

"I'd also like to give you a friendly reminder that there will be a placement test every month from now on. Of the first batch of 5,000 students who enter over the three-year term, I estimate that no more than 100 will actually graduate and successfully sign with Tencent Entertainment."

"It's probably one in fifty to make it, so you'd better give up those unrealistic fantasies. If you don't even have the qualifications to fight your way out of five thousand people, then I want to ask you, what makes you think you can become a big star in the entertainment industry?"

“If you can’t even do this, you’re destined to be a piece of trash in the future. Why should I waste resources on a piece of trash? I’d rather send you to the factory to tighten screws sooner.”

Chen Pingsheng spoke without any regard for sentimentality, and there was absolutely no sense of high-mindedness in his words.

In short, if you can't rely on your parents and you're not relying on yourself, then you might as well get lost.

He possesses every ounce of the ruthlessness and decisiveness expected of an entrepreneur.

Because he knew that reality was cruel.

If you don't work hard yourself, it's impossible to expect someone else to hold an umbrella for you.

"Many people come in and, before they even start learning, start showing off on social media or in front of their families, saying things like, 'I'm going to be a big star, I'm destined to be extraordinary,' and then they start blocking their old friends, not wanting to listen to anyone, and wanting to pursue pretty female classmates."

"Excuse my bluntness, but this kind of person is only fit to work in a factory and tighten screws."

"I'm not here to encourage you, because my rules are right here: those who can't do it will be eliminated. I also ask you to recognize yourselves: you didn't pay tuition here, and you don't have to pay for food or accommodation. You can get a salary of three thousand every month without doing anything."

"To put it simply, you haven't created a single penny of value for my company, but the money I'm paying you is the result of the collective efforts of tens of thousands of employees in the company."

"So, they work hard to earn money, why should they support a bunch of good-for-nothings?"

"What gives you the right to call us trash?"

A hothead stood up. He was somewhat talented and thought he had a lot of backbone.

To his surprise, Chen Pingsheng didn't even look up at him. "Not bad, you've got guts."

"I'm stating the facts. Just because you have a little money doesn't give you the right to call us trash."

He believed he was right and didn't think there would be any negative consequences for doing so.

After all, the school had said a lot of nice things about the big boss before I even entered the school.

Chen Pingsheng didn't give him a chance to speak again and waved his hand to have him thrown out.

“I don’t know what gave him the confidence to refute me in public. If you also think he’s right, you can stand up and leave.”

That's the truth, and it's very ruthless.

No one was foolish enough to stand up anymore, but Chen Pingsheng still gave them a reminder: "The entertainment industry is cruel. If you don't have the talent, you have to bow down and be subservient. If you can't even do that, I really don't know what you will rely on to make it in the entertainment industry in the future."

"Enough with the nonsense. Last month, one of you named Zhang Zihan filmed three short dramas. Who is she? Please stand up and let me see."

Zhang Zihan was quite surprised; her parents had only seen her name on television.

I thought it sounded nice, so I named her that.

With delicate features, she is quite a striking young beauty.

She is around twenty years old.

Chen Pingsheng smiled and said, "First of all, I must congratulate you. One of the three dramas you filmed became a hit, and the income is very high. You should be able to receive five million in cash as a bonus at the end of the month."

Suddenly, the entire audience was shocked.

Zhang Zihan was startled, while the little girl next to her was grinning foolishly at her.

"Sit down. Short dramas are also an extra source of income for you. You can make more if you have time in the future."

"There might be a large sum of money to be made, since in addition to our fixed filming salary, we also receive a certain percentage of the lead actor's share of the profits."

"In addition, the rise of short videos is definitely a new track for young people. Our group has also established its own Tengyou Media. If you can get more than one million fans, even if you are eliminated, Tengyou Media will give you a future."

"If you can get a contract there and become an internet celebrity, your future income will not be less than 300,000 to 500,000 yuan."

"This is much better than being laid off and forced to work in a factory tightening screws. Everyone, you must cherish the new era opportunity that the group has created for you."

Chen Pingsheng still emphasized one point to them.

……

The student who left was named Zhang Gang, and he was twenty-one years old.

He originally thought that with his excellent exam results, even if he stood up and said a few words in rebuttal, everyone would just applaud him.

But no one spoke up for justice.

Before coming to Tengying Art School, he was just a hairdressing student. After he came here, everyone told him not to forget himself when he became a big star.

Gradually, he developed a somewhat arrogant personality, and even posted on his WeChat Moments that his former brothers were no longer worthy of being his brothers.

Then I proactively deleted and blocked a large number of my former classmates and friends.

He kept only those he considered worthy to be his brothers.

When the big boss came over, he was actually thinking about how to make a big splash.

When he heard them being called useless, he realized that the person on stage used to be just a street vendor selling durians.

Why criticize them? Give them time and they might not be any worse than them.

Just didn't expect it.

He merely stood there and loudly retorted a couple of times, but what he received in return was not applause at all.

Instead, everyone remained silent and stared at him as if he were a fool; no one regarded him as a hero.

The teachers who used to praise his talent were now endlessly indifferent.

She didn't even bother to look at him again.

Perhaps they never imagined they would produce such a stupid student.

After he came out, Zhang realized that he seemed to have lost something important.

That was a door that had once been open to him, but now it was closed.

When he tried to re-enter the entertainment industry, he found himself completely lost.

It was as if this path had completely disappeared; all the talent and achievements he thought he had were nothing but a joke once he stepped out of that door.

There must have been feelings of heartache, disappointment, and injustice.

He is still an only child at his age and has been pampered by his parents since childhood.

Even if they frequently got into fights at school, all they got in return was a few words of scolding from the teachers.

I never imagined that he would be fired just because of two rebuttals.

Then, the path to the entertainment industry became impossible to find.

Even though all his teachers told him he was talented, it didn't change anything.

In fact, what he least expected was still the same.

It's not that someone has talent and can become a big star, but rather that the person on stage wants someone to be a big star.

Whoever is the big star.

That's just how reality is. Why should someone who has no value be allowed to refute you in front of everyone?

Chen Pingsheng believes this is due to a lack of harsh social experience.

He spends hundreds of millions of yuan every year to run schools, not so that they can openly refute him.

It's not that they're stupid, it's just that they were overprotected by their parents.

After leaving this place, Zhang Gang, unwilling to accept defeat, went to Hengdian to work as an extra. After several years of struggling and squandering more than 200,000 yuan of his rural parents' money, he was still unknown.

It's difficult enough to support myself.

In contrast, consider those who entered the school with him and ultimately stayed.

Backed by Tencent Entertainment, the two companies are now worlds apart.

Even if they met again, they wouldn't bother to give him a second glance.

No one will laugh at his foolishness back then.

It's his own fault for forgetting his birth and forgetting that he was just a country boy.

(End of this chapter)