After rebirth, I became a great master

Chapter 483 The Range of the Cannon

The plane tickets are booked.

There are four in total.

However, Zhou Haoran needed to go to school first to take his final exams.

Fortunately, he has a doctorate.

It's not a traditional exam anymore; all you need to do is submit a high-quality research report.

Zhou Haoran submitted a paper.

That would far exceed the level of a typical research report.

Dean Cheng had been giving him the green light all along, and it was fine if he didn't take the final exams. He smiled and said, "I heard that you've become quite famous in the United States recently?"

Zhou Haoran smiled and said, "Yes, I'm going to the United States the day after tomorrow to take care of some things."

Dean Cheng nodded. "Some people in the college want to invite you to give a lecture on the internet to the students. What do you say?"

“I don’t have time…” Zhou Haoran remembered something, “Didn’t Zhang Chaoyang come a few days ago? Didn’t he say that Old Zhang is amazing? He gives speeches all over the country, and all those people who start internet businesses across the country regard him as an idol and follow in his footsteps to start their own businesses?”

Dean Cheng said, "Yes, he said you are more capable than him and that you should be the one to speak."

"The domestic internet infrastructure is not good enough yet, and the entrepreneurial wave is not strong enough. Let's wait and see."

Zhou Haoran is no longer going to start his own business.

However, this doesn't stop him from holding several special lectures as a "master" to talk to internet entrepreneurs across the country about how to operate in the internet industry, so that they can avoid some detours.

At noon, I called Dongfang Lang.

Eating in the designated area for school leaders in the school cafeteria.

"I failed three subjects!"

Dongfang Lang cursed and swore.

Zhou Haoran chuckled and said, "What? You think I'd expel you? Go find a teacher in the academic affairs office and sort it out!"

"Then why are you embarrassed..."

Dongfang Lang scratched his head.

Zhou Haoran didn't bother with these matters and asked in a low voice, "What's going on with that teacher Zheng Shuangwen?"

"what happened?"

Dongfang Lang didn't take it seriously.

Zhou Haoran asked, "I remember you told me that you slept with her, right?"

"How many times has this happened!"

Dongfang Lang snorted.

"Then..." Zhou Haoran twitched the corner of his mouth, "are you still in contact?"

"Yes!" Dongfang Lang didn't take it seriously. "We would meet up once every ten days or half a month. We even went to a hotel together at Christmas."

Zhou Haoran was speechless. "What about Qiao Hai?"

“Qiao Hai also slept with her.” Dongfang Lang’s expression turned strange. “Teacher Zheng told me that she was the one who took the initiative to ask him out. She went to book the room, otherwise that kid wouldn’t have had the courage.”

"No way..."

Zhou Haoran found it absurd.

"what happened?"

Dongfang Lang was puzzled.

Zhou Haoran said with a complicated expression, "I'm going to the United States with Qiao Hai. I'll be with Sister Suiqing, and he'll be bringing Zheng Shuangwen with him."

"No way?" Dongfang Lang's eyes widened. "What does Qiao Hai mean? Is he serious?"

Zhou Haoran said, somewhat exasperated, "I don't know. I was quite puzzled when the Red Mansion Teahouse opened. He brought Teacher Zheng along to the cocktail party that evening."

Dongfang Lang said blankly, "This Qiao Hai, can't be that naive? He slept with Zheng Shuangwen a few times and already considers her his girlfriend? That won't do, that Teacher Zheng has an improper lifestyle!"

Zhou Haoran retorted angrily, "Your conduct is improper, wasn't it you who seduced her?"

Dongfang Lang snorted, "That has nothing to do with me. Do you know that she actually has a boyfriend?"

"Huh?" Zhou Haoran knew that Teacher Zheng and her boyfriend were in a long-distance relationship. "Didn't they break up?"

"Where would I get a share?" Dongfang Lang was amused by him. "You seem as naive as Qiao Hai."

"Isn't it?"

Zhou Haoran was shocked.

Dongfang Lang said, "Her boyfriend came to see her at the harbor during the Christmas period."

"how do you know?"

Zhou Haoran didn't believe it.

Dongfang Lang said helplessly, "Didn't I tell you? During the Christmas period, I went out with her to a hotel once. At first, I suggested it be in the evening, but she said she didn't have time in the evening because her boyfriend was visiting and she had to spend time with him. She told me to go to her during the day, and she made an excuse that she had something to do at school, so she came to meet me."

"You... you..."

Zhou Haoran was completely speechless.

Dongfang Lang asked, "Have you slept with her?"

“No, the range isn’t that far.” Zhou Haoran recalled for a moment, “If you put it that way, I might remember. There were several times when I felt something was off, and maybe she was deliberately trying to seduce me.”

Dongfang Lang laughed heartily: "That's it!"

Zhou Haoran frowned and said, "You should break up with her right away."

“Of course…” Dongfang Lang also had the same realization. “I thought Qiao Hai was just playing around. If he’s serious… no, if he’s serious, it’ll definitely cause trouble later. We have to advise him not to get too involved with Teacher Zheng. Just let it be.”

Zhou Haoran said irritably, "We're going to take her to America anyway."

"We should try to persuade them properly!"

Dongfang Lang looked solemn.

"Go ahead and try to persuade me. I've never had any misconduct issues!"

Zhou Haoran was vigilant enough not to be swayed by a scumbag woman's advances.

……

This trip to the United States with Qiao Suiqing is different from the last one.

Last time I went through customs, I was queuing with Black people, Arabs, and Middle Easterners. The whole process was humiliating.

After returning to China, Zhou Haoran applied for a diplomatic passport.

It didn't pass.

However, they also successfully applied for and obtained a green channel specifically for important officials and public figures.

With the green channel, crossing the border becomes much easier.

Not only that.

An academic exchange program in Silicon Valley helped him obtain a green card on the grounds of being an "extraordinary foreigner," enabling him to frequently travel to the United States for work and academic exchanges. All it took was a simple interview and a small green card production fee; he received it on the same day.

With a green card, you won't need to apply for a visa every time.

That would be even more convenient.

However, a green card is often seen as a harbinger of immigration.

This matter needs to be explained to Director Dou.

To avoid causing misunderstandings.

The main purpose of this trip to the United States is to negotiate with ICQ.

The Microsoft incident had really terrified them.

Gao Defen's expression of horror was undisguised, and her voice trembled as she said, "Dr. Zhou, I've finally met you."

Zhou Haoran smiled and said, "Long time no see."

The two met at a hotel in San Jose.

There were only seven or eight people in total.

"Let's sit down and talk."

Zhou Haoran took the initiative right from the start.

Gao Defen said nervously, "Dr. Zhou, we all know about Microsoft's situation. You...you're amazing!"

"is it?"

Zhou Haoran remained calm.

Gao Defen said, "Since Microsoft acquired Hotmail, its market value has dropped by $360 billion. Many media outlets have said that this may be the most painful failure in the history of mergers and acquisitions!"

Zhou Haoran smiled and said, "It's not that bad. It's mainly because Microsoft's style is too aggressive. I oppose monopolies, and I hope there can be a fair and transparent market environment in the IT industry."

Gao Defen said repeatedly, "Yes, our team has always had the same idea."

"Oh?" Zhou Haoran's eyes lit up. "So, our values ​​are quite similar?"

Gao Defen laughed and said, "Yes, it looks very similar!"

"That's great. Only when our values ​​align can we achieve better cooperation."

Zhou Haoran has an air of awe and reverence.

There's nothing we can do; ICQ is terrified.

We have no choice but to compromise.

As an Israeli startup, ICQ's only way to survive was to be sold to a large American company. However, if Dr. Zhou Haoren developed an instant messaging product and promoted its open-source nature... ICQ would instantly lose its market appeal.

Just like the recent plunge in Microsoft's stock price.

The market was initially optimistic about Microsoft's acquisition of Hotmail, but the sentiment immediately reversed once Dr. Zhou's email service was open-sourced.

An open-source email service has been released.

It's easy to imagine that hundreds or even thousands of email products based on free and open-source frameworks will appear on the market in a short period of time, and all of them will have a better user experience than Microsoft's Hotmail!

What value does Hotmail still have?
ICQ doesn't want to follow in their footsteps.

Next, we'll discuss the terms of cooperation.

Zhou Haoran said calmly, "I'll say it again, $500 million, my terms will not change."

“We think $500 million is a good amount.”

Gao Defen's attitude was unusual.

Qiao Hai, standing to the side, smiled.

As expected, the initiative in business negotiations has always been in the hands of those with the most powerful weapons.

“However…” Gao Defen then expressed his difficulty, “Dr. Zhou, as you know, we are an Israeli startup. We don’t have that much cash on hand, we can’t even come up with $10.”

"Then who are you?"

Zhou Haoran was not in a hurry at all.

Gao Defen said, "We are considering using shares to pay for this part of the strategic cooperation."

Zhou Haoran nodded. "Okay."

Gao Defen was delighted, "We are willing to offer 5% of the shares!"

"5%?" Zhou Haoran frowned slightly. "Your small company is valued at $1 million?"

Gao Defen answered decisively, "Yes!"

"That doesn't make sense."

Zhou Haoran shook his head, disagreeing.

Gao Defen said, "Four months ago, we completed our Series B funding round, which valued us at $40 million."

"Did the valuation increase from $40 million to $100 million in just four months?"

Zhou Haoran knew this was a reasonable valuation trend, but he couldn't accept it.

Gao Defen then conceded, "Dr. Zhou, what are your comments?"

"As for me..." Zhou Haoran couldn't go too far. "My original opinion was at least 10%. But seeing your sincerity, let's compromise. I only want 7.5% of the shares."

"can!"

Gao Defen agreed without hesitation.

Zhou Haoran was somewhat surprised, "You don't need to discuss it with your team and the board of directors?"

Gao Defen felt bitter and sighed, "Dr. Zhou, this is a critical moment for the survival of ICQ. I have obtained full authorization from the team and the board of directors."

"Happy cooperation!"

Zhou Haoran stood up and shook hands with the other person.

Gao Defen and the others all breathed a long sigh of relief and showed satisfied smiles.

Ok!

Dr. Zhou is easy to talk to!

ICQ is saved!
Qiao Hai, however, was not satisfied. On the way back, he said, "Isn't the price too low?"

Zhou Haoran said, "It's already quite high."

“$500 million…” Qiao Hai shook his head. “I think that’s a bit low. Judging from their attitude, they would have accepted $1000 million.”

“This is not $500 million.”

"Isn't it?"

"After realizing the profits from these 7.5% of the shares..." Zhou Haoran was very satisfied with the result, "It might even be more profitable than the email partnership with Microsoft!"

(End of this chapter)