Chinese Entertainment Intelligence King

Chapter 330 18% of JD.com's shares, that reassuring brat.
It was cold, so the two of them found a hot pot restaurant. It was just the two of them. They opened two bottles of baijiu (Chinese liquor) and started eating hot pot while drinking.

They didn't rush to discuss financing; instead, they mostly complained about the financial crisis.

When the financial crisis hit, the dot-com bubble burst, and many companies were brought back to reality, facing difficult times.

Take Weibo for example. Before the financial crisis, its valuation and financing once reached $5 million, which many people said was conservative at the time.

As for Weibo's current valuation, Yan Li has never looked into it in detail, to avoid feeling uncomfortable.

If Weibo is like this, then JD.com is even worse than Weibo.

Weibo is at least a small hot spot, and it's the industry leader. JD.com, on the other hand, hasn't fully established its reputation yet, and its scale and tolerance for error are far inferior to Taobao.

When Yan Li first invested in JD.com, the latter was valued at approximately $1.5 million.

After a period of development, JD.com has achieved outstanding performance in terms of reputation, size, and profitability, but its valuation is still less than $1 million after the financial crisis.

According to Mr. Liu, someone once said they could invest at a valuation of $3000 million, but the valuation has shrunk drastically.

But more often than not, many people don't even want to invest that amount. Before coming to Hengdian, Mr. Liu had met quite a few investors, and the more he talked to them, the more disheartened he became.

"If it weren't for Mr. Xu's help, JD.com's cash flow would have dried up by now."

Boss Liu took a big gulp of wine, his face turning a little red. Yan Li put a piece of tripe on his plate.

"Old Liu, just tell me the truth, how long can JD.com last?"

"Two months, maybe even less than two months."

Mr. Liu smiled bitterly: "We've already started using money from one end of the wall to pay off another. If no more money comes in, the best outcome is to find a seller to bail us out, and the worst outcome is that the company will be dissolved."

JD.com considered selling, but there were no buyers. The only one to express interest was a certain home appliance giant, but they offered a very low price.

Selling at this price means that Mr. Liu and his founding team have worked for nothing over the past few years, and Yan Li and Today Capital also left at a loss.

Mr. Xu of Capital Today strongly supports Liu and the JD.com model and does not want to let previous investments and efforts go to waste.

But one person can't make a difference, and Capital Today can't make decisions on its own. In the current situation, others must join in to ensure JD.com's survival before Capital Today will invest.

"Old Liu, you should have contacted me sooner."

Yan Li complained about Lao Liu, saying that he had been so wary of him that the company was almost bankrupt. He was quite tolerant of Lao Liu.

Of course, Boss Liu couldn't say, "I'm afraid you'll devour me," but instead put on an expression of concern for his brother.

"I know you're not in a good situation right now, and I'm afraid I'll put you in a difficult position."

The so-called "Yan Li bankruptcy theory" is not believed by discerning people, but many people believe that he is having a hard time, because everyone is having a hard time.

It's no secret that Yan Li made his fortune in the stock market and has a bunch of money-devouring beasts under his control, so outsiders speculate that he must have been greatly affected by the financial crisis, otherwise, given his personality, he would never have tolerated negative rumors for so long.

"What is this nonsense?!"

Mr. Liu is a man of honor, and Yan Li also played the emotional card: "From a public standpoint, if JD.com collapses, my previous investments will be gone. From a private standpoint, we've always gotten along well, and I consider you a good friend and brother. How could I just stand by and watch you suffer without offering a helping hand?"

“I really didn’t know you were in such a difficult situation before, otherwise I would have contacted you long ago. Even if I’m short of money, I will still squeeze out the money to save JD.com for you.”

Mr. Liu was very moved. He stood up and raised his glass: "Mr. Yan... no, brother... I won't say anything more, I'll drink it."

Yan Li got up and finished his drink, and the two acted like good buddies for a while.

To be honest, Lao Liu's acting skills are not bad. I'll arrange for him to play a role sometime.

After playing the role of good brothers, it's time to talk about the practicalities. Simply put, how much money Yan Li pays and how many shares Lao Liu gives him.

JD.com is short of money, and the amount it needs is enormous; it could easily take on a $1 million investment.

He could afford to eat it, but he couldn't afford to give out shares.

Therefore, Mr. Liu could only estimate a figure to cover the funding gap and ensure short-term future development.

The financial crisis is currently severe, making it an unsuitable time for financing. Therefore, Mr. Liu's main objective is to survive and ensure that the company does not go bankrupt in the short term. He plans to wait until the financial crisis is over before considering large-scale financing.

Prior to this, JD.com had already discussed the funding requirements, which were approximately between $1500 million and $20 million, with a stake of around 2000% to be offered.

It is worth mentioning that the 20% stake released by JD.com also diluted Yan Li's stake.

In other words, if Yan Li doesn't invest money, his 8% stake becomes 6.4%; if he invests money, the total share capital becomes new shares + 6.4%, not 8%.

Yan Li tapped his fingers lightly on the table. Some of the money he had withdrawn from the stock market was used to make money during the financial crisis, and the rest he kept in reserve.

Previously, Yi'an Cinema used some reserve funds to acquire shares, but not too much. He now has enough money to acquire all the shares released by JD.com.

But Mr. Liu probably won't agree, and Today Capital, which has put in a lot of effort, certainly won't agree either.

Don't say you disagree; just threaten to let JD.com go bankrupt and force them to agree.

Judging from future intelligence, Liu still has a chance to survive. Yan Li will be the one who suffers from a complete breakup. Besides, no business would do things this way.

Appropriate pressure and leverage are business negotiation skills; extreme pressure, however, will not lead to cooperation but to enmity, and will also affect Yan Li's business reputation if word gets out.

Yan Li has no intention of swallowing up JD.com. This time, he intends to lend a helping hand to Liu Qiangdong at a critical moment and do him a favor.

If some shares are used to resort to extreme oppression and threats, then it deviates from the original intention and is likely to backfire.

So, eating it all is definitely impossible, but at this price, it's really a rare treat, so we should eat as much as we can.

When JD.com raises a lot of funds later, Yan Li may not necessarily invest heavily in it. He has more shares now, and he will have more shares left after future dilution.

"How much can Mr. Xu provide?"

"If the financing goes smoothly, we can raise $800 million today."

Yan Li nodded. He didn't ask how many shares JD.com would give to Jinri, as each company's terms and contracts were different.

Capital Today is stubbornly supporting JD.com and has even taken out a debt, so its threat to Liu's control is limited, and it's hard to say whether it will offer any preferential treatment.

On the other hand, Capital Today might be worried that JD.com will go under and all its previous investment will be wasted, so it might offer JD.com more favorable financing terms.

Therefore, Yan Li doesn't need to dwell on the conditions offered by Today Capital and JD.com; they can only be used as a reference.

JD.com needs $1500 million to $2000 million. Even if they spend $800 million today, the shortfall is still significant, so JD.com's bottom line will likely be lower.

"Old Liu, I can consider offering $1000 million for 12% of the shares."

Mr. Liu's eyes lit up; he never expected that Yan Li would actually offer $1000 million.

Given the current market uncertainty, it's impossible for Yan Li to be without funds. Under these circumstances, the fact that he managed to scrape together $1000 million and tens of millions of RMB to help him shows that Yan Li's financial resources are even greater than he imagined.

However, 12% of the shares is still a bit too much. Combined, Yan Li's stake is almost 20%, and Today Capital's stake is also substantial. If these two were to join forces…

Yan Li could tell what Lao Liu was thinking just by looking at his expression, so he took a sip of his drink.

"Old Liu, I barely negotiated this price. If I really cut it down, you would probably agree, but that would hurt our brotherhood."

"I really wanted to help you out, bro. I wouldn't call it being the most generous, but I've done my best and done right by my brother."

"Of course, I also admit that there are reasons why I am optimistic about JD.com's model. Therefore, the shareholding ratio cannot be reduced. If that doesn't work, I can give you more money. We can also devote some resources to Weibo. In fact, we can even sign a concerted action agreement."

In business, talking only about feelings is fake; adding a touch of pragmatism to feelings makes it more real.

Then, by providing the other party with the resources they want and weakening the threat to themselves, they cannot help but be tempted.

Sure enough, Mr. Liu hesitated for a moment and said, "I still need to discuss it with the company and Mr. Xu, but there shouldn't be any problems."

"Okay, it's a pleasure to work with you."

Yan Li put his arm around Boss Liu and drank a glass together, reiterating that he had no intention of getting involved with JD.com.

"Let's talk things over, bro. I'm still waiting for you to take me to Nasdaq to ring the bell for JD.com."

"..."

The situation at JD.com was indeed serious. After finishing the drinks, Mr. Liu left Hengdian and returned to Beijing before the next day.

After two more phone calls, an agreement was finally reached.

Yan Li, or rather his Yanye Capital, invested $1100 million plus related resources to acquire a 12% stake in JD.com.

After Yan Ye invested, Capital Today immediately followed suit, and the actions of the two companies also prompted two previously hesitant investors to prepare to invest as well.

JD.com's Series B funding round is expected to raise $2300 million to $2500 million.

With more funds available, coupled with Yan Li's insistence on prioritizing shares, JD.com released 20% more shares than initially expected.

Therefore, Yan Li's existing shares were diluted even more, and with the addition of 12% new shares, the total shares were just over 18%.

Yan Li was fairly satisfied with this. With nearly one-fifth of the shares, plus some related terms, even if it didn't reach 10% by the time JD.com went public, it wouldn't be much different, and that would be worth a fortune.

So if you want to make money, you have to invest. If you invest in the right stocks, you can make a fortune.

...

Although it will take some time to finalize the specific financing agreement, JD.com quickly released the news to the public in order to appease its internal staff and restore its external image.

Yan Li's specific investment and shareholding ratio have not been disclosed to the public, but according to "insiders," it is no less than ten million US dollars.

Before the outside world could react to this news, Pang Yidian, who had been advocating for Yan Li's bankruptcy, was already in an uproar.

It's fake, absolutely fake. If Yan Li could come up with tens of millions of dollars, he'd eat shit.

Less than ten minutes after the Weibo post was published, Yanye Capital and JD.com officially announced the financing on their official Weibo accounts.

Yan Li personally retweeted and tagged Pang Yidian—【I'll help you promote this; remember to keep your promise】

His move immediately garnered attention on Weibo, leading to the successful creation of the Weibo electronic pet, Pang Yidian. Perhaps out of a sense of shame, or perhaps fearing repercussions from powerful figures, Pang Yidian refrained from boasting about evidence and instead chose to remain silent.

Although he was ridiculed by Yan Li's supporters, Yan Li did not provoke him further, also because he was worried that Yan Li would delete his account and run away, thus depriving Weibo of a clown and a dumping ground for criticism.

Yan Li's strong response, the huge success of "Painted Skin", the merger with Yi An, and the investment in JD.com have helped him shake off the so-called bankruptcy rumors.

Even those who thought he had financial problems gradually came to believe that Yan Li might have gotten out of his predicament.

That business role model born in the 80s is back!
Yan Li's supporters and fans were overjoyed. The commotion was so great that even Yan Li was a little dazed, almost thinking that he had really walked on the edge of bankruptcy.

However, to be fair, this incident has significantly enhanced Yan Li's image.

Compared to the smooth sailing and rampant success of geniuses, people prefer to see self-made heroes fall into dire straits, turn the tide, and ultimately return as champions.

Yes, even a character needs to have ups and downs, a curve, a trough and a climax.

Originally, the near-death experience that Yan Li staged was meant to deal with those who were envious and wanted to take advantage of him by borrowing money. Now it seems that it has also been very beneficial to his personal image.

Yan Li went along with it, tacitly accepting this character's comeback storyline, and even considering making it more fleshed out and refined.

Even if it's just for the sake of storytelling, a crisis is needed to highlight the difficulties of starting a business, the unity of the company, and the wisdom and prowess of the entrepreneur.

While Yan Li was filming and writing the script, Fan Xiaopang finally joined the cast of "New Three Kingdoms".

Yan Li rides Red Hare during the day, and at night... cough cough.

Fan Xiaopang's role this time was a cameo, and because he was both popular and busy, he only had a week available. Half of the crew filmed scenes centered around Diao Chan.

"You have a bigger ego than I do."

Yan Li complained that apart from adjusting his schedule when he took leave from the crew, his other engagements were all in accordance with the crew's filming schedule, which was similar to that of other actors.

Of course, Yan Li did this because Lu Bu's scenes were relatively few, the normal filming schedule wasn't so rushed, the filming tasks were easier, and there was some free time for him to handle his work.

Fan Xiaopang sneered: "Heh, you've even set up a mobile office, who dares to put on airs with you?"

During the filming of "New Three Kingdoms", a luxury RV followed the crew at all times, whether indoors or outdoors.

Aside from filming, Yan Li would work in his RV during breaks and while waiting for his turn.

Some actors previously felt that although Yan Li was kind and friendly, he was still a bit arrogant, always climbing into the RV.

Later, when the actors who knew him got into the RV, they realized that it had been specially modified, with a small office inside. Yan Li wasn't there to rest and relax, but to handle work during breaks in filming.

When word got out, many actors were impressed; no wonder he could make a fortune!

Fan Xiaopang wasn't unhappy that Yan Li had set up a mobile office; the woman was angry that Yan Li wouldn't let her get into the RV so as not to disturb her work.

Yan Li was perfectly justified in this. As soon as she got into the RV, she would either drag him to the bedroom or crawl under the table. Who could stand that?

In full view of everyone, with a man and a woman alone together, if the RV moves around a bit, it's bound to create a "RV door" again.

This year alone, Yan Li has already been embroiled in three scandals: the blog scandal, the yacht scandal, and the bankruptcy scandal. Now, even the word "scandal" makes him feel disgusted. Let him get through 2008 peacefully.

After teasing Yan Li, Fan Xiaopang called out to Yu Zheng, who had just entered the set. Yu Zheng jogged over and greeted Yan Li first.

"President Yan is here too."

"Hmm, things are looking promising today."

Yan Li asked Ding Feng to get Yu Zheng a cup of hot water. It was cold today, and this guy probably parked far away; his face was all white from the cold as he drove here.

Yu Zheng took a sip of water to warm himself up and then started whispering with Fan Xiaopang.

Several dramas are currently being filmed in Hengdian, including "Locking Up the Autumn," written and produced by Yu Zheng. The female lead of this drama is Yang Rong, Yu's old classmate.

By the way, it's worth mentioning that Yang Rong has signed with Yu Zheng's studio, becoming one of only two artists signed under his management.

Yang Rong was the second person to be signed. The first one was a male actor that Yu Zheng had picked up himself, named He Shengming.

Yu Zheng Studio is a joint venture studio under Yi An, with Yi An and Yu Zheng each holding a portion of the shares, so these two can actually be considered half of Yi An's artists.

In this way, Yan Li could legitimately allocate resources to Yang Rong.

At the same time, Yu Zheng and Yang Rong have a good personal relationship and he can take care of her. Most importantly, Yu Zheng is not interested in women, so Yan Li can rest assured.

Aside from Fan Xiaopang and Wang Ou, Yang Rong was the first woman personally arranged by Yan Li to be introduced into the Yi An system. People like Huo Siyan, Jiang Xin, and Bai Bing were given resources, but they were never considered true members of the Yi An system.

This also shows that, although Yan Li didn't say it, he still had a bit of a preference for Yang Rong.

Of course, the fact that Yu Zheng was a suitable and appropriate place to go was also a key reason.

Yu Zheng was happy with this arrangement. He had a good relationship with Qin Lan and also got along well with Fan Xiaopang. If he could also help Yan Li take good care of Yang Rong, wouldn't he be able to thrive in the Yi An faction?

He even considered extending this idea to other areas, such as signing Qin Lan into his own studio.

After the blog scandal, in order to avoid a quiet life and prevent the company from assigning her work, Qin Lan bought out the remaining part of her contract and became a freelance artist like Dong Xuan.

Yu Zheng wanted to take advantage of the situation, but Qin Lan ignored him, not only refusing to sign the contract but also turning down Yu Zheng's new drama "Beauty's Rival in Palace".

Yu Zheng felt it was a pity, as he truly believed that Qin Lan's image and temperament were very suitable for his role in the drama.

Just as he was wondering whether to ask someone else, Fan Xiaopang found out about the situation and called Yu Zheng over this time to talk to him about the show.

Although the previous drama "Rouge Snow" received mediocre reviews, it achieved excellent viewership ratings, which made Fan Xiaopang take Qi Yuzheng seriously.

From what I remember, the dramas he participated in might not have been huge hits, but they did achieve very high TV ratings.

"The Imperial Palace of the Qing Dynasty" also won the annual championship of a satellite TV station. This year, "Rouge Snow" and "The Last Princess" both ranked among the top in the TV ratings of Hunan TV.

These impressive achievements boosted Yu Zheng's standing within Yi'an, and Fan Xiaopang also wanted to collaborate with him more.

Yu Zheng was somewhat troubled. For the drama "Beauty's Rival in Palace," he planned to find a female lead who was beautiful, gentle, and resilient. Fan Xiaopang was too beautiful, which was somewhat different from the character's image.

But he didn't dare offend Fan Xiaopang, and he was also a little envious of Fan's popularity and influence, so he was in a dilemma.

Yan Liduo was shrewd and quickly noticed Yu Zheng's signs. After Fan Xiaopang went to make his rounds, he asked Yu Zheng about the inside story.

Not daring to offend Fan Xiaopang, let alone Yan Li, Yu spoke frankly: "President Yan, I actually prefer Qin Lan, then Wang Ou. Yang Xue from the company can also be considered, but she's not good at selling dramas."

Actually, he had someone else in mind, and that was Ruby Lin.

However, Yu Zheng also understood that "Beauty's Rival in Palace" had a large investment and seemed to be quite popular.

The female lead should either be an artist from the company, a woman associated with Yan Li, or someone with vested interests. Yan Li would find it hard to accept anyone else. Lin Xinru has no connections whatsoever and is also from Huayi Brothers, so she is practically sentenced to "death".

Where is Yang Rong?

Yan Li asked another question, and Yu Zheng shook his head: "He's short. And his aura is a bit soft."

She's alright at playing a young mistress in the Republican era, but when it comes to playing a queen, she doesn't quite pull it off.

"Whom do you prefer? Let me help you persuade them."

Yan Li had made up his mind. According to this, Wang Ou felt that he was also lacking. It was either Qin Lan or Fan Xiaopang, as these two really had the aura of harem lords.

As for other actors in the company or Yi An's group, they do have similar qualities, but their fame and influence are somewhat lacking.

We're not considering outside actors for now; we don't want the money to go to outsiders.

Yu Zheng hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and uttered two words: "Qin Lan".

Yan Li didn't know if the two were genuinely close friends or if Yu Zheng truly admired Qin Lan. In any case, both Wang Ou and Fan Xiaopang had played the female lead in his dramas, but it seemed that Yu wasn't particularly fond of either of them.

Yan Li hesitated for a moment, then persuaded Fan Xiaopang not to play the simple role, as she didn't need this one.

However, it was not easy to get Qin Lan to act. After the blog scandal, Qin almost considered retiring from the entertainment industry. In the past six months, she has not only canceled filming, but also most of her other activities.

The female lead in "Beauty's Rival in Palace" has to shoulder a major responsibility, involving the life and death of the entire project. She has a lot of responsibility on her shoulders, and Qin Lan's desire to back out is probably quite strong.

However, Yan Li really wanted her to act in a play, so that she could get out of the shadow of the blog scandal and stop being watched over by him every day.

"let me try."

Yan Li didn't give a definitive answer, allowing Yu Zheng to consider other candidates further, since preparations for filming wouldn't begin until next year, and there was plenty of time.

Yu Zheng nodded and then talked to Yan Li about Yang Mi, who was recommended to him by Qin Lan. He even went to visit the set of the currently filming "Chinese Paladin 3" and was impressed with her, so he planned to give her a try.

However, he was a little unsure about this person's situation with Yan Li, so he decided to probe a little.

“Simply company artists with outstanding potential, use them however you see fit.”

Yan Li spoke the truth, and Yu Zheng's eyes showed a slight surprise. He had seen Yan Li take advantage of his own people so often that he was a little unaccustomed to him suddenly not doing so.

But this is fine too. Yan Li's women need to be treated with some respect. As for the company's artists, it's up to him, the big producer, to decide.

"By the way, didn't your studio sign a male actor? Talk to the 'New Three Kingdoms' production team later and see if they can arrange a better role for him."

The artists in Yu Zheng's studio are practically part of Yi An's inner circle, so they should be given opportunities to help them. This can also be seen as a way to win over and appease Yu Zheng.

"Really? Thank you, President Yan, on his behalf."

Yan Li almost couldn't help but shiver. What was with this guy's sudden shy expression after thanking her?

However, Yan Li quickly realized something and was speechless. It turned out that the two artists in Yu Zheng's studio were all people with connections.

This guy even muttered to himself that he was cheating on his neighbor, but he was actually following suit while he was muttering about it, wasn't he?!

Yan Li inwardly grumbled, but inwardly he trusted and felt even more at ease with Yu Zheng…

　(5000/179000)

　　
　
(End of this chapter)