Rebirth of the Rich Second Generation's Growth Diary

Chapter 173: The Difference Between High and Low
Although it was already autumn, the venue was still somewhat stuffy.

Li Xu leaned back in his chair, silently watching the host on stage begin to introduce the second project.

They weren't chosen for the second project either; it was a coffee and catering project from another university, which sounded a bit like Luckin Coffee later on.

However, perhaps because this project didn't appeal to investors, or perhaps because there are too many similar competing products on the market right now, it was only valued at three million.

Compared to the previous project, this team did not feel disappointed about the three million yuan amount; on the contrary, they were quite happy.

Li Xu found this scene somewhat amusing. However, he also understood a principle: whether a project has investment potential is sometimes not something investors can clearly see. Successful investment is actually a matter of luck, while investment failure is the norm.

The conference continued, and Ye Ruida, who was standing next to him, frowned slightly when he saw that none of the projects had reached the 50 million standard.

When he turned his head to the side, he noticed that Li Xu was also looking at him. Ye Ruida lowered his voice and chuckled, "Li Xu, do you think it's possible that none of our eight projects will be able to reach the 50 million standard?"

Li Xu glanced at Ye Ruida but remained silent.

It wasn't until the fifth project that it was finally Zhang Ye and Ye Jinhe's turn.

Behind the host, a large screen displayed information about the smart parking project.

The host picked up the microphone and slowly began: "This year is a pivotal year marked by the convergence of national urbanization and the explosive growth of the mobile internet. The urbanization rate has surpassed 54.8%, and the number of cars in first-tier cities has exceeded five million. However, the parking space shortage generally exceeds 50%, making parking a persistent problem in urban governance. At the same time, 4G networks have been officially commercialized, and the penetration rate of smartphones has exceeded 35%, giving smart parking projects a dual boost in both technology and market. Furthermore, the State Council's 'Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Healthy Development of Smart Cities' explicitly supports 'Internet + Transportation' innovation, further catalyzing industry opportunities with policy dividends."

Upon hearing this opening remark, Li Xu's eyes flickered slightly, and he could immediately discern the difference.

Compared to the previous projects, none of them were mentioned with such high expectations by the host. Clearly, this project was highly favored by the judges.

Li Xu subconsciously glanced to the side, and just then, Ye Jinhe turned around, looked at Li Xu, and a smile appeared on her face.

As expected, the host continued, providing a detailed review of the project's profit model, technological features, advantages over competing products, and commercial potential, giving it a very high rating.

Upon hearing this, Li Xu noticed that many investors in the audience showed expressions of interest.

After reading a commentary that was far longer than the previous projects, the host smiled slightly and began the final summary: "This project demonstrates foresight in terms of technical feasibility, lightweight business model, and policy alignment. Although it still needs to overcome the pressure of B2B implementation and competition from industry giants, its team's capabilities combined with the current trend make it a promising candidate to become an important node in smart city infrastructure!"

The final investment value was set at 50 million! The first project with an investment value of 50 million finally appeared at the conference, and the audience burst into applause.

Ye Ruida chuckled inappropriately, not bothering to lower his voice, and casually said to Li Xu, "If this project can be invested in for 50 million, then our project will definitely be worth more than 50 million."

Ye Ruida has never been one to vie for fame or fortune, but he is inherently very proud. Having worked alongside Li Xu for so long, he naturally has immense confidence in their project.

However, precisely because Ye Ruida did not try to hide it, his words clearly reached Ye Jinhe's ears, even though there was someone between them.

Ye Jinhe turned her head and gave Ye Ruida a deep look, but didn't say anything strange. What she was thinking was anyone's guess.

At this point, there were three more projects, and some people felt that these projects might all exceed 50 million.

As the host quickly announced the next project, and the investor was only willing to put up one million, a few scattered whispers inevitably arose in the room.

The seventh project was finally Li Xu and his team's turn. When the Tsinghua and Peking University smart campus solutions appeared behind the host, Li Xu's expression turned serious.

At this moment, Ye Jin, who was standing next to her, asked in a low voice, "Is this project your project?"

Li Xu nodded.

Upon receiving an affirmative answer, Ye Jinhe's expression turned serious.

She adjusted her posture, crossed her arms over her chest, and focused her gaze on the large screen behind the host, reading the introduction word by word.

At this moment, the host slowly picked up the microphone. Everyone thought that the host would follow the previous routine, first introduce the project, and then announce its value.

But the host's first words surprised everyone.

The host said, "This project is the one that the judges unanimously agreed has the highest investment value. According to the preliminary assessment, it can obtain at least 80 million yuan in investment, led by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission!"

The approach is different from other projects.

Li Xu was also stunned for a moment, while Ye Ruida next to him laughed happily, patted Li Xu on the shoulder and said, "Brother, this time it's in the bag."

These words made Ye Jinhe frown slightly.

The host then briefly introduced the smart campus solution and concluded by saying, "The smart campus solution project from Tsinghua and Peking Universities uses credit scores as a link to integrate scattered campus services into a closed loop. This not only solves the pain points of university management but also opens up a new path for monetizing educational data. The team's technological expertise, campus resource advantages, and the annual policy dividends for university informatization are enough to support a valuation of 80 million!"

"If we can cover 50 universities and validate the business model within three years, we can make further investments. The potential for subsequent expansion into the vocational education and primary and secondary school markets is huge!"

With the conference concluded, even Li Xu felt a weight lifted from his shoulders, and he let out a soft sigh of relief.

Just then, Ye Jinhe took the initiative to strike up a conversation with him again. With a bright smile on her face, Ye Jinhe said, "If nothing unexpected happens, tomorrow will be the solo match between our two teams."

Li Xu nodded, but his gaze went past Ye Jin and landed on Zhang Ye.

Zhang Ye was also looking at Li Xu. The two just smiled at each other and didn't exchange any further words.

The current situation is clear.

The host then began to introduce the last project. When the host mentioned that the last project was worth three million, everyone knew that the project that would advance to the final business roadshow the next day had been decided!

……

On the eve of the business roadshow, Li Xu went through the prepared materials one last time.

It was already late at night, but he couldn't fall asleep for a while.

He had called everyone else back; at this point, no one else was needed to help.

He leaned back in his chair, his eyes slightly narrowed; it was extremely quiet outside.

At this moment, his mood calmed down. Scenes from his previous life flashed before his eyes, and now he had finally transformed into a different person.

He slowly exhaled, no longer thinking about tomorrow's business roadshow.

He began to recall his father's business, down to the many details.

He pondered for a long time. The office was dimly lit, and the shadows almost engulfed him.

It wasn't until a car drove by outside and the sound of its tires screeching against the ground that he was pulled out of his reverie.

He chuckled softly. At that moment, tomorrow's business roadshow seemed less important, and his gaze became deep and sharp.

……

The next day, it was the same familiar meeting hall.

Li Xu changed into a white shirt, paired with dress pants and leather shoes.

Before going on stage, he rolled up his sleeves, revealing his muscular forearms. He wasn't wearing an expensive watch, and he looked clean and professional.

The other members of the team nodded in agreement as they looked at Li Xu.

Everyone gathered around him, and Xia Xiaohe said gently, "Don't be nervous."

Tang Qiaoning chuckled and said, "It's not the first time. Li Xu has seen it all, so he won't be nervous, right, Li Xu?"

Xia Xiaohe fell silent and glanced at Tang Qiaoning.

Just then, without saying a word, An Duoduo reached out and put her hand on Li Xu's shoulder, smoothing out the wrinkles in his clothes. Tang Qiaoning blinked and gave An Duoduo a deep look.

When the spotlight shone down, only the host remained on the stage.

Next, under the host's arrangement, Li Xu and the representatives of Tonghuo Technology walked onto the stage one by one.

To Li Xu's surprise, the speaker at Tonghuo Technology was not Zhang Ye, but Ye Jinhe.

The two walked onto the stage face to face, and then turned to face the audience.

The host stepped forward and began explaining the rules of the roadshow.

Li Xu chuckled softly, in a voice only Ye Jin could hear, and said, "I didn't expect Tonghuo Technology to send you."

Ye Jinhe smiled and said, "This is a bit unexpected. Let's see if you can subdue me or I can defeat you."

The host didn't waste much time; in the brief moment that Li Xu and Ye Jin were whispering, he stood to the side.

He then said, "Next, let's give the time to Li Xu. Please let Li Xu give us a project roadshow of the smart campus solution!"

The host then walked over to Ye Jin and gestured for her to enter.

Ye Jinhe smiled slightly and followed the host off the stage.

Only Li Xu remained on the stage, and the spotlight shone down.

The competition process is divided into three parts. The first part is the introduction of the projects by both sides.

Li Xu took a deep breath, smiled confidently, and began operating the remote control in his hand.

In an instant, the original project introduction interface on the big screen disappeared, and was replaced by a real-time data screen of the campus card, with colorful data and charts constantly jumping around.

"Look everyone," Li Xu said, pointing to the screen, his voice loud and clear, "this is the Tsinghua-Peking University credit score heat map from our smart campus system."

As he explained, the colors in different areas of the screen changed continuously, like a dynamic painting.

"Before the introduction of our credit score system, the issue of reserving seats in the library was a long-standing problem for university management. Students often got up early and stayed up late to reserve seats, and even engaged in some uncivilized behavior. But now, as you can see, the rate of reserving seats in the library has decreased by 30%."

Li Xu clicked the mouse, and a set of data comparison charts appeared on the screen, clearly showing the changes in seat occupancy rate before and after.

"This is all thanks to the credit score system. Credit scores are linked to students' daily behavior. Maliciously reserving seats will lower credit scores, which in turn will affect many of students' rights on campus, such as scholarship evaluation and eligibility to participate in club activities. As a result, students will naturally regulate their behavior."

They began to whisper among themselves, and some nodded slightly.

Although An Duoduo and the others in the audience were already used to this system, Li Xu's intuitive introduction to others still made them feel an indescribable excitement.

In a sense, they really changed Tsinghua and Peking Universities!

Next, Li Xu continued to elaborate based on the real-time operational data displayed on the large screen, introducing the social matching function and the smart campus express locker function. With Li Xu's introduction and the operational data of the past six months, the investors in the audience nodded frequently.

Finally, as the event drew to a close, Li Xu slowly exhaled and smiled as he spoke: "A truly smart campus is not about monitoring students, but about finding the right people for the right resources!" For a moment, many people pondered the meaning of his words, and the vice president of Tsinghua and Peking Universities, sitting on the judging panel, smiled.

……

After stepping down, Li Xu's mood was not greatly affected.

Their project had taken so long that he had memorized everything and was confident that he had made no mistakes, thus completing the roadshow.

Judging from the expressions of the judges in the audience, the desired effect was basically achieved.

Sitting next to him, Ye Ruida patted him on the shoulder and said, "Well done, brother."

Li Xu nodded slightly.

However, at that moment, Zhang Ye, who was sitting next to him, suddenly laughed. Li Xu raised an eyebrow and looked over.

Zhang Ye didn't look at Li Xu, but instead focused his gaze on Ye Jinhe, saying, "Looks like there's no pressure anymore."

Ye Jin nodded gently.

Upon hearing this, Li Xu's eyes flickered slightly.

Then, at the host's arrangement, Ye Jin walked gracefully onto the stage.

When Ye Jinhe took the stage, she did not use a traditional PowerPoint presentation to introduce the project. Instead, the LED screen suddenly switched to a real-time heat map from Gaode Maps, showing parking lots in the Zhongguancun area of ​​the capital city as a burning deep red.

Ye Jin released the laser pointer: "Judges, what you are seeing is not a traffic jam—this is a capital incinerator that burns 480 million RMB per hour!"

Li Xu frowned. He suddenly remembered that when he was in the technology competition, he used a similar approach and method during his presentation: to throw out a piece of data and create a huge pain point.

As expected, after Ye Jinhe said that, many investors in the audience watched her on stage with great interest.

A moment later, Li Xu narrowed his eyes slightly. He suddenly realized that Ye Jin, whom he had only met once, was far more capable than he had imagined.

Their smart parking solution is not difficult to understand, so Ye Jinhe didn't spend much time introducing the business. Instead, he focused on introducing the aspects that investors were more concerned about.

Ye Jin stood on the stage with great confidence. Behind her, a 3D demonstration of the core equipment appeared on the screen, and a black sensor appeared at that moment.

Ye Jinhe didn't look at the screen, but she seemed to know where the video was playing. She confidently stated, "Our geomagnetic detection module uses the latest Bluetooth 4.0 chip, and the unit price is reduced to 1200 yuan, 41% cheaper than Hikvision's!" She added, "We also have a battery supply agreement with BYD: 'Installation costs will be reduced by another 67%!'"

Li Xu noticed that the investors' expressions had become extremely interested.

Just then, he suddenly saw Ye Jin on the stage give him a meaningful look.

Just as Li Xu was wondering, the scene suddenly changed again, and Ye Jinhe directly brought up the real-time data of Gaode API interface: "We have connected to the real-time traffic conditions of 84 cities across the country, and our AI dispatch system can predict the supply and demand of parking spaces 15 minutes later."

After a pause, Ye Jinhe's tone suddenly sharpened as she said, "We strive for absolute rigor in terms of data validity. However, as far as I know, Tsinghua and Peking University's credit score system has a certain rate of misjudgment. Take parking, for example. Parking behavior is also categorized into the credit score system, but is Tsinghua and Peking University's data valid and accurate? For instance, there are currently 9 empty parking spaces in the Second Library of Tsinghua and Peking University, but your credit score system shows... zero vacant spaces?"

Upon seeing this, both Li Xu and Ye Ruida's eyelids twitched simultaneously.

The two exchanged a glance, realizing that Ye Jin and this roadshow were indeed well-prepared.

This minor bug wasn't a defect in their system, but rather a delay in data integration, measured in minutes. However, they never expected that Ye Jinhe would use it to attack their project.

Most of the investors in the audience did not understand the technology and were very likely to be misled by Ye Jinhe.

Ye Ruida said coldly, "This woman is quite interesting."

Li Xu chuckled lightly: "The Ye family is quite formidable."

Ye Ruida glared at Li Xu with annoyance.

Ye Jinhe's performance wasn't over yet. She took out another letter, opened it four times, and pulled out a document: "This is the strategic investment agreement for UnionPay Merchant Services that we received three days ago—they promised to open payment gateways in 3800 business districts across the country."

Li Xu crossed his arms, fully aware that this was because Alipay and WeChat Pay were constantly squeezing UnionPay's survival space. It was precisely because of this environment that Ye Jin was able to negotiate this business with them so smoothly.

Ye Ruida said with a smile, "This time, our opponent is indeed extraordinary."

When Ye Jinhe finished her performance, she gently bowed to the judges and audience below the stage and said with a smile: "A truly valuable project is based on the whole society, rather than being confined to a closed space and playing house. Our project is a powerful practice that truly responds to the government's construction of smart cities!"

When Ye Jinhe came down from the stage, she raised her neck slightly, like a proud swan.

(End of this chapter)