After rebirth, I became a great master

Chapter 477 Seeking Fame, Not Fortune

By around 3 p.m., the event had basically ended.

Aside from a few scholars from the Dream of the Red Chamber, only a few of Zhou Haoran's direct followers remained.

"Haoran..." Qiao Hai put on his coat and prepared to leave, asking in a low voice, "Are you sure? Is Bill Gates really coming tonight?"

Zhou Haoran nodded. "Yes."

"Really?" Qiao Hai asked doubtfully. "I had my assistant keep an eye on it. The Crown TV news at noon reported on Bill Gates, saying that he was still in talks."

Zhou Haoran smiled and said, "He'll be over tonight."

"Can you make it?"

"These kinds of people have their schedules packed full, all of which were planned days in advance."

"Then I'll bring my computer over tonight!"

Qiao Hai was relieved after hearing this.

Zhou Haoran asked curiously, "What are you doing with the computer?"

Qiao Hai laughed and said, "Let me demonstrate our email to him! The stability and maturity of our email framework are, in my opinion, no worse than Yahoo Mail!"

"It's much more advanced than Yahoo Mail, but it was developed in a shorter time and still needs to be refined in terms of details."

Zhou Haoran was very confident about this.

Because in his previous life, he worked at Yahoo while studying in the United States and participated in the upgrade and development of Yahoo Mail.

“That’s right.” Qiao Hai was also very proud of this. “Let Bill Gates see for himself and see if he’s really willing to spend $2000 million!”

"This……"

Zhou Haoran hesitated.

Qiao Hai was puzzled. "What's wrong?"

Zhou Haoran said worriedly, "What if Bill Gates gets interested and actually wants to buy it?"

"Huh?" Qiao Hai was taken aback. "Then our plan has been accomplished?"

Zhou Haoran gave him a deep look. "Just for a mere 2000 million US dollars, I went through all this trouble?"

"You're not doing this to cooperate with him, are you?"

Qiao Hai then realized that the master's ambitions lay elsewhere.

Zhou Haoran pondered for a moment and said, "Cooperation is fine, after all, $2000 million is not a small amount of money. But now that things have come to this point with Microsoft, they are already angry and have decided that I am 'extorting' them."

"It's not important, is it?"

Qiao Hai felt that business is business, and whether the relationship was good or bad didn't matter.

Zhou Haoran frowned and said, "If things had gone smoothly from the beginning and the $2000 million cooperation had been completed without any problems, I would definitely have agreed. But things are not quite right now; the other party is already upset. And more importantly, things are different now than they were two months ago; Microsoft's reputation is ruined!"

"It smells bad?"

Qiao Hai raised an eyebrow.

Zhou Haoran said angrily, "I told you to pay attention to Silicon Valley news, didn't you read it?"

“I…” Qiao Hai had actually been paying attention, and then remembered something. “You mean the anti-monopoly lawsuit? The U.S. Department of Justice, together with more than a dozen states, has filed a lawsuit against Microsoft at the same time. It might break up Microsoft.”

Zhou Haoran hummed in agreement. "That's it. Otherwise, why do you think Bill Gates came to China this time?"

"What does this have to do with coming to China?"

Qiao Hai didn't understand.

Zhou Haoran said, "Microsoft China is currently just a sales company, and its employees are all sales personnel. If Microsoft wants to develop its business comprehensively in China, it must abide by our country's policy guidelines... Microsoft is unwilling to compromise, which is why the two sides have not reached an agreement."

Qiao Hai suddenly realized and said, "Recently, Microsoft has been subjected to an antitrust investigation in the United States, which has made Microsoft feel a crisis, so it can only ease its relationship with them."

Zhou Haoran nodded. "Yes, Microsoft will definitely compromise completely and then invest heavily in the domestic market, establishing multiple departments such as product lines, R&D lines, and marketing lines. They might even open an Asia-Pacific research center in China."

"If the deal goes through, it will be a major success for our country in attracting investment in the high-tech sector!"

Qiao Hai is no longer a college student; his standards have risen.

They immediately realized the significant meaning of Microsoft's entry into China.

Zhou Haoran was very satisfied and said with a smile, "That's right, otherwise why would Bill Gates' visit be so popular? If it's successful, it will be a landmark event. Next, Oracle, Cisco, Apple, Nokia, Sony, and others can also follow this template to develop in China. It won't just be about bringing products and sales, but also bringing capital, technology, experience, talent, and the industrial chain. Only then will China's IT industry truly have a starting point to move closer to the international stage."

Twenty or thirty years later, China's IT industry has become unprecedentedly strong.

It is the undisputed second in the world.

In the early stages of development, the talent pool consisted of either those returning from overseas or those trained by foreign companies.

The starting point was Microsoft's full-scale entry into China.

"So, the US antitrust investigation into Microsoft is actually a great thing for us! It forces Microsoft to assess the risks and compromise with domestic interests," Qiao Hai laughed. "But what does this have to do with our email?"

Zhou Haoran narrowed his eyes, "The more serious Microsoft's predicament, the more actively Microsoft will cooperate with China, which will be more beneficial to our country."

"Yours is way too big..."

Qiao Hai thought it was a bit far-fetched.

How can your small email product influence national strategy?

"In the United States, Microsoft has a terrible reputation. It killed Netscape by using its monopoly. If I were to cooperate with them at this time, it would be like aiding and abetting evil. On the contrary, I can only get widespread support by resisting monopolies and advocating open source."

Zhou Haoran has always cared more about fame than money.

Because the name is "wallet".

No matter how much money you have, if your wallet is too small, it won't be able to hold it all.

Qiao Hai's expression turned serious. "That's true. If you want to have a better image in Silicon Valley in the future, refusing to cooperate with Microsoft and promoting open source is a better choice."

Zhou Haoran said calmly, "As a great man, my influence cannot be limited to the country."

“2000 million US dollars…” Qiao Hai felt it was a pity.

Zhou Haoran laughed and said, "Only by taking down Microsoft can we deter the petty thieves. Otherwise, even a small startup like ICQ would dare to bargain with me."

"That's true!" Qiao Hai didn't say much more. "Then it's simple. I'll change my clothes tonight and come over. I got a tuxedo, it looks really good."

"Do you have a girlfriend? You can bring her along; it's better to bring a female companion to a cocktail party."

"Then I'll call Teacher Zheng Shuangwen."

"Who?"

Zhou Haoran felt a little dizzy.

Guests attending the evening cocktail party also had to leave, go home to change clothes, dress up nicely, and bring their female companions.

Even 20 or 30 years from now, this kind of activity will still not be popular in the country.

In other words, the entertainment industry might do something like this.

It has become a semi-public arena for fame and fortune.

In reality, these cocktail parties are all private events. Because they are not open to the public, many celebrities and socialites bring their wives along, emphasizing a genuine social interaction.

This is a harbor.

During the Republic of China era, cocktail parties were very popular. Now in the 1990s, because there are many foreign companies in the harbor, many foreigners also like to hold such events, so much so that the upper class in the harbor is no stranger to these events and participates in them.

This is part of the reason why the port city is out of step with other domestic cities and looks down on each other.

Once we align with international standards, it's easy to become disconnected from domestic ones.

The guests have all left.

Only a few gentlemen from the Red Mansion Teahouse and Qiao Nuo, who was taking notes, remained in the teahouse.

Today's opening ceremony made everyone realize how remarkable this young gentleman is.

Especially Wei Qingfeng.

The higher the level, the deeper the feeling.

The rest is easy.

What will the rules be like for the Dream of the Red Chamber Teahouse in the future?
That naturally means it's up to Mr. Zhou Haoran to decide.

Zhou Haoran was the first to propose adopting a membership system.

Only members can patronize the Red Mansion Teahouse.

Because of limited space at Haoran Mansion, there is a limit to the number of members, with a maximum of 999 people.

The annual membership fee is 9999 yuan.

Membership fees will increase year by year.

If payment is not made by the due date, the membership will be revoked.

This ensures that the Red Mansion Teahouse is frequented only by business elites, not ordinary people. Serving these affluent business elites allows for higher prices.

For example, drinking tea.

It doesn't matter what kind of product it is, or whether you drink it or not.

The fee is 888 yuan per person per hour.

For example, private kitchens.

Even the lowest standard package costs over 10 yuan.

The main principle is "better to have none than to have something of poor quality".

As for the old traditions of the Red Mansion Teahouse, such as helping businessmen solve their problems, giving them advice, settling disputes, and resolving lawsuits... it's best to stop doing those things.

Providing suggestions is the job of consulting firms.

What if the idea doesn't work? Wouldn't that ruin the reputation of the Dream of the Red Chamber Teahouse?
As for settling disputes and resolving lawsuits... this was possible in the old society when the legal system was imperfect, but it's not possible in modern society.

The Red Mansion Teahouse provides a platform for business elites to gather and exchange information.

Customers can exchange information and cooperate with each other here.

The old patterns need to be changed.

The others didn't think much of it.

The main problem is that I can't understand it.

Wei Qingfeng was different. Having been in the business world for so many years, he immediately understood Zhou Haoran's true intention and said, "Master, are you trying to downplay the existence of Master Honglou?"

"Yes!"

Zhou Haoran was very open and honest.

"Aren't we going to abandon tradition?"

Wei Qingfeng was not old, only in his forties, but he was diagnosed with cancer and did not have much time left, so he began to care about his reputation before and after his death.

Zhou Haoran explained, “Tradition is necessary, but it must keep up with the times. In the past, when merchants encountered trouble, they would go to the Red Mansion Teahouse to find a ‘teacher’ to solve their problems. That’s impossible now. In the old society, ‘teachers’ were all graduates of the imperial examinations, so naturally they could do whatever they wanted. But that doesn’t work in modern society. Every rule and regulation is a boundary.”

Wei Qingfeng was unwilling to accept this, "Then the 'Master of the Red Chamber' will cease to exist?"

“No, it will exist.” Zhou Haoran said with a serious expression. “It just won’t have any functions or responsibilities. The gentlemen of the Red Mansion Teahouse, including myself, will exist as part of the inheritance of intangible cultural heritage, instead of dealing with business disputes and seeking fame rather than profit.”

Wei Qingfeng understood immediately after hearing this.

From now on, the gentlemen at the Red Mansion Teahouse will all become mascots, serving only as decorations and not doing any actual work.

Yes!

To avoid ruining your reputation if you mishandle things!
(End of this chapter)