Who would still start a business seriously after being reborn?

Chapter 494 Internal Strife within the Lianjiang Group
"Forget about Xiao Zhao and Da Zhao, let's take a shower first," Cheng Yi said with a smile. "I'm sleepy."

Lin Qingyin naturally understood Cheng Yi's meaning. She lowered her head, took out her pajamas from her suitcase, and walked into the bathroom by the bedroom door.

The sound of the shower water made Cheng Yi feel a little itchy, so he rummaged through his pajamas, intending to save time by showering together.

Just as Cheng Yi took out his pajamas, his phone rang.

"Damn it, can't a person just have a peaceful holiday?" Cheng Yi walked to the bedside and picked up his phone, clearly annoyed.

It was Li Weiwei calling again.

This strong woman is really driving me crazy.

Doesn't she celebrate the New Year?
However, Li Weiwei calling at this time must mean something urgent.

Cheng Yi answered the phone, composed himself, and said, "Weiwei, what's up?"

"President Cheng, something's happened at Lianjiang Group," Li Weiwei said. "I just received inside information that a huge change has occurred within Lianjiang Group. A man named Zhao He suddenly appeared at the Lianjiang Group's annual meeting and tried to seize control of the group."

"When did this happen?" Cheng Yi was stunned when he heard the news.

Li Weiwei said urgently, "It happened this afternoon. This Zhao He is a student who returned from studying in the United States. His identity is a mystery, but he is very rich. He is one of the seven major shareholders of Lianjiang Group, and he has already bought four of them."

Cheng Yi frowned and said, "Then he must have been planning this for a long time."

“Yes,” Li Weiwei said. “This Zhao He is a senior executive that Chen Hui invited back. He has been Chen Hui’s assistant and is very familiar with the business of Lianjiang Group. His sudden attack caught Chen Hui’s family off guard. Chen Hui’s personality is not suitable for dealing with this kind of thing. I heard that Chen Hongwen has already recalled Chen Zhi.”

"What's the point then?" Cheng Yi couldn't help but swear.

This is outrageous! Such a large corporation has been robbed.

It must be said that Chen Hui, this top student, was still too inexperienced, actually letting a wolf into the house and having four towers stolen.

They've already hit the nail on the head, and now they're only thinking of calling Chen Zhi back? What's the point?

In this era of rapid development, Chen Zhi, who rose from humble beginnings through hardship, is clearly far superior to Chen Hui, a privileged young master who only knows theory.

During the Lunar New Year, Lianjiang Group has really presented itself with a difficult problem.

The high-end market in China has now been handed over to Lianjiang Internet Cafe.

Since Shikuang Internet Cafe went out of business, Momo Internet Cafe and Lianjiang Internet Cafe have dominated the domestic internet cafe market.

If Lianjiang Internet Cafe changes hands, it will be like slashing a hole in the internet cafe industry.

If he's right, Zhao He, who returned from the United States, is likely a puppet supported by some European or American conglomerate.

Since 2003, many European and American conglomerates have been heavily supporting their domestic representatives, who have established various capital companies and invested heavily in domestic internet companies.

As investors, they also have the power to influence the direction of internet companies.

Almost none of the internet companies they invest in develop IT technology; they are all basically doing two things.

First, online lending.

First, the platform.

Online lending platforms prey on working professionals, charging exorbitant interest rates.

The platform exploits individual business owners, extracting high commissions.

This two-pronged approach effectively covered almost all population groups in China.

"Perhaps, I'm the one who caused their trouble." Cheng Yi vaguely felt that Zhao He might have some connection with Microsoft.

Otherwise, he really wouldn't have needed to make such a big fuss about taking action against Lianjiang Group.

Lianjiang Group can hardly be considered a unicorn company; it has simply benefited from the era's dividends.

"They're looking for a breakthrough." The more Cheng Yi thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

If Lianjiang Group changes hands, it will most likely switch back to the Microsoft operating system. At that time, some overseas game companies will definitely release new games that are compatible with Microsoft. Even the games held by Momo Group may turn against them.

Lianjiang Internet Cafes are found in almost every first- and second-tier city, and in terms of both scale and influence, they are among the best in the country.

"President Cheng, do we need any help?" Li Weiwei said. "I've prepared two proposals that could help Lianjiang Group. Would you like to take a look?"

"Forget about helping them. If we really want to help them, we'll need a lot of money." After careful consideration, Cheng Yi still refused, saying, "Lianjiang Group is too big. Even if we inject funds to help them regain control, we'll only get a portion of Lianjiang Group's shares at most."

“Yes, I’ve done the calculations, and it will require at least 23 billion,” Li Weiwei replied. “But if Lianjiang Group changes hands, our system may not be able to maintain its dominant position in the internet cafe industry. This is a classic case of our own backyard being on fire. If we waste our energy turning back, the expansion speed of our home version will definitely be affected.”

"Hmm." Cheng Yi had already considered the scenario that Li Weiwei had thought of several times.

However, for now, it's best to wait and see.

With the upcoming releases of Fantasy Westward Journey and World of Warcraft, they need a huge sum of money to upgrade the computer configurations at Momo Internet Cafe.

The hard drive, CPU, and graphics card all need to be upgraded.

Spending money on Lianjiang Group is too wasteful, because the group's rapid development is burning through cash. Chen Hui has completely borrowed the concept of internet cafes from abroad. While the concept is okay, it will greatly affect the group's ability to generate revenue.

This is also a pain point for Lianjiang Group.

That is, the speed of monetization has slowed down, and it is probably for this reason that a seed of chaos has been sown within Lianjiang Group.

In today's internet cafe industry, it's all about making money hand over fist.

If you can pick up money just by bending over, why bother using gold tweezers to pick it up? Isn't that just crazy?
What truly suited Lianjiang Group was Chen Zhi's original plan: uncontrolled and reckless expansion to squeeze out as much of the competitors' living space as possible.

Even their Momo Internet Cafe was almost wiped out by Chen Zhi's brutal fighting style.

Chen Hui's biggest problem is that he doesn't like to fight with people.

Cheng Yi added, "Send some people to keep a close eye on the Lianjiang Group's movements. The New Year is almost here, and I estimate that even if the Lianjiang Group decides to fight, it will have to wait until after the New Year."

"Okay." Li Weiwei was slightly disappointed that Cheng Yi was unwilling to step in.

Regardless of the analysis, Momo Group should have offered assistance.

After all, even a child understands the principle of "if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold".

Cheng Yi hung up the phone, feeling slightly annoyed.

This is the road to entrepreneurship; you never know when a few thorns will suddenly appear.

Dispelling his inner turmoil, Cheng Yi grabbed his pajamas and went into the bathroom.

"Ah, how did you get in here? You, you, you get out."

"Don't do this..."

"Don't, don't..."

"Well……"

The next morning, when Cheng Yi opened his eyes, Lin Qingyin was already up. Seeing Cheng Yi awake, Lin Qingyin blushed slightly and said, "We have guests." Cheng Yi quickly got up, dressed, and hastily washed his face in the bathroom before going to the living room.

It was his three maternal uncles who came over.

Cheng Yi hurried over to greet them and chatted with his three uncles.

Before long, junior high school classmates and high school classmates started coming to visit one after another.

Elementary school teachers, middle school teachers, high school teachers, and even former neighbors from the same street—anyone he had even a slight connection with—all came to visit him, practically wearing down his doorstep.

This state of affairs continued until New Year's Eve.

The intense reception over the past two days gave Cheng Yi the feeling that his soul was about to leave his body.

That's why they say everyone has their own expertise. If Du Yusheng were in charge of this kind of thing, he would definitely handle it with ease.

After all, Du Yusheng's record was receiving more than a hundred leaders on the day of the event.

Just by forcing a smile, you can make your face cramp up.

Lin Shengdong didn't return from another province until the afternoon of New Year's Eve.

Lin Shengdong had already sold his villa, and he bought a house with a yard in Zhongjing Haoting.

After sending off the old Kitchen God and welcoming the new one on New Year's Eve, the Lin Shengdong family and the Jiang Aiguo family gathered at Cheng Yi's house and had a lively New Year's Eve dinner together.

As the general manager of AAA Dongcang County Building Materials, Jiang Aiguo was already able to chat with Lin Shengdong.

Everyone chatted about their experiences over the past year. Everyone had their own stories and experiences, and under the influence of alcohol, they were almost ready to tell their stories as if they were telling a story.

On television, the New Year's bells are about to ring.

The host began a countdown with the audience.

"Ten, nine, eight..."

"Quick, get ready to set off firecrackers!" Cheng Jianshu, slightly drunk, shouted the order.

Cheng Yi, who had also drunk two glasses of wine, swayed unsteadily and, together with Lin Qingyin, picked up the long string of firecrackers they had prepared and ran into the yard.

"Seven, six, five..."

Soon, the others also rushed into the courtyard.

The chill of the winter night was palpable, but everyone's face was filled with a happy smile.

"Four, three, two, one! Happy New Year!!"

"Crackling..."

At the same time, Cheng Yi also lit firecrackers.

He scrambled back to the door, and the deafening sound of firecrackers followed.

Red paper scraps flew everywhere, and the smell of sulfur filled the air.

Almost at the same time, the entire Dongcang County seemed to be awakened, with deafening firecrackers going off from all directions, and countless fireworks streaking into the night sky and exploding with a bang!

Chrysanthemums, peonies, meteor showers... a riot of colors, dazzling and vibrant, painting the dark night sky with vibrant hues.

This scene was rarely seen in the days when fireworks and firecrackers were banned in my previous life.

The continuous roar of the explosions shook the air and resonated across the earth, officially announcing the arrival of the new year.

"Wow! So beautiful!" Lin Qingyin looked up, her hands in a prayer gesture. Her face was illuminated by the fireworks, her eyes sparkling with starlight.

Jiang Yuxi also looked up at the sky, the dazzling light swirling in her eyes. She took a deep breath of the cold air, which smelled of gunpowder, and shouted loudly at the vast starry sky: "Happy New Year!"

"Happy New Year!" Everyone wished each other a happy new year, their laughter drowned out by the sound of firecrackers filling the air.

Cheng Yi stood in the crowd, looking at his parents' happy and satisfied smiles, at Lin Qingyin's innocent joy, at Jiang Yuxi's bright profile under the fireworks, and then at the myriad lights in the night sky that he had personally pushed to become more dazzling and denser than in previous years. An indescribable sense of pride welled up from the bottom of his heart.

Returning home in glory, nothing could be better than this.

In his past life, he once heard an entrepreneur say something.

That man said that only by protecting the ordinary yet precious everyday life of his hometown could his struggle have truly been meaningful.

Now he understands what that sentence means.

"Happy New Year!" he whispered to himself.

Just then, his phone vibrated in his pocket.

He took it out and glanced at it; it was a text message from Zhang Lingyu, containing only a few simple words:

Happy New Year and best wishes for a peaceful year.

Cheng Yi smiled slightly and quickly tapped out a reply on the cold screen:
Happy New Year, and may you be safe and well. Thank you for your hard work.

Fireworks continued to bloom overhead, illuminating his resolute eyes.

The warmth and glory he felt at this moment were a scene he had never experienced in his previous life.

Whether it's Microsoft's sanctions, IBM's schemes, or emotional entanglements, they all seem less heavy under the glow of countless lights.

As 2004 officially began, regardless of success or failure, this year was destined to be the most significant chapter in his life since his rebirth.

Because the path he takes either disrupts the industry or is crushed by the times.

There is no third way!

After setting off the firecrackers, Lin Shengdong's family and Jiang Aiguo's family said goodbye and left.

On the morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year, Cheng Yi hurriedly visited his relatives and received two groups of county leaders before rushing back to Jingzhou City with Lin Yongxing.

Back at Momo Group, Cheng Yi learned that Yu Sen hadn't given the research center's veteran employees any time off. The integration of industrial software was complex and slow, and the veteran programmers were working tirelessly to overcome the challenges.

Apart from Yu Sen and a few other national treasure-level programmers, Li Weiwei and Zhang Lingyu also did not take a holiday.

"Teacher Yu." Cheng Yi walked into the research center carrying a bunch of New Year's goods. Looking at Yu Sen's hair, which was like a bird's nest, he smiled and said, "You should pay attention to balancing work and rest."

"Stop talking nonsense." Yu Sen glared at Cheng Yi and said, "You should hurry up and assemble a localization team. None of these industrial software programs have been localized. Even if we complete the integration, no one will be able to understand them."

"I've already handed it over to Chen Yafang. The localization team should be assembled by the fifteenth of the first lunar month at the latest," Cheng Yi said with a smile. "I heard from Li Weiwei that you encountered some problems with the coordination?"

“It’s not really a problem,” Yu Sen said. “It’s a bit complicated to get these software programs compatible with our system. If you want to participate in the government and enterprise procurement project in October this year, you’ll probably have to determine the category of the procurement project first. We definitely can’t handle procurement of all categories.”

"Mainly government procurement, education procurement, and construction procurement will suffice," Cheng Yi replied.

"Hmm... then there shouldn't be any problem. Let's speed things up as soon as possible." Yu Sen nodded slowly and said, "Cheng Yi, you need to find a way to optimize the software and hardware now. These industrial software programs have high configuration requirements. If we continue to use generic assembled machines, even with the best optimization, there will still be some lag."

(End of this chapter)