Who would still start a business seriously after being reborn?

Chapter 539 Yang Yuanqing's Visit

Jingzhou City, Momo Group President's Office.

Lin Qingyin stared intently at the progress bar on the screen, which represented the progress of the [Network Bodyguard] test.

"It's done!" A relieved smile finally appeared on Lin Qingyin's usually cold face as she gently tapped the Enter key.

"Core node stress test passed, proxy coverage in key Southeast Asian regions reached 87.2%, Network Guardian 1.0 is officially launched!"

Cheng Yi walked over to Lin Qingyin and watched as the curve representing network latency in Southeast Asia on the screen quickly changed from a glaring red and yellow to a comfortable green.

He knew that the technological counterattack had also succeeded.

The network security guard not only bypasses malicious interference from ISPs, but its superior acceleration performance even allows players to experience a level of enjoyment that surpasses the state before the interference occurred.

"Qingyin, you are a great contributor to our group." Cheng Yi praised sincerely.

Lin Qingyin raised her head, her clear eyes looking at Cheng Yi, filled with the weariness of completing a difficult task and a hint of pride. She gently tugged at Cheng Yi's sleeve, her voice carrying a rare softness and dependence: "Want to go shopping?"

Cheng Yi's heart softened when he saw her expectant eyes.

In this thrilling counterattack, Lin Qingyin was the key executor, and the pressure she faced was unimaginable.

He bent down and kissed her smooth forehead, then smiled and said, "No problem, I'll take you to visit the Grand View Garden tonight."

Lin Qingyin squinted her eyes contentedly, like a cat being stroked. Hearing that she could go shopping, all her fatigue seemed to vanish instantly.

However, at this moment, Momo Group's counterattack storm had only just begun!
The office door was pushed open, and Huang Wenrong walked in with steady steps, a calm smile on his face like that of a hunter seeing his prey step into a trap.

He walked straight up to Cheng Yi and said, "President Cheng, the time has come."

A glint flashed in Cheng Yi's eyes: "Is everything ready?"

“Yes, Enze Capital has joined forces with three top hedge funds, including Quantum Fund and Bridgewater, as well as our secret allies on Wall Street, mobilizing a total of more than $62 billion.” Huang Wenrong’s tone was calm and even, as if he were talking about an insignificant number.

"After a sharp drop of 4.7% at the opening, Samsung Electronics' stock price is currently fluctuating downwards amid panic selling and some institutional bargain hunting, and the short-selling channel has been fully opened."

"This is the irrefutable evidence we have gathered regarding Samsung Semiconductor's falsification of yield rates, bribery of foreign telecom executives, and the use of its market dominance to suppress competitors. We have also anonymously and precisely delivered it to several top investigative journalists at The Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, and Bloomberg. We expect the first wave of explosive news to be released in about an hour."

Cheng Yi immediately smiled.

The technological counterattack crippled Samsung's network and brand image, the propaganda war nailed Samsung to the pillar of shame, and now, it's time for the financial capital to deliver the fatal blow.

Samsung gave him three hard moves, so it's not an exaggeration for him to retaliate with three 'missiles', is it?
What he wanted was never just to stop Samsung's harassment, but to completely break the hand that this Asian giant was reaching out to, and even to take a bite out of him.

"Notify Mike," Cheng Yi said firmly. "According to the plan, short sell across the board. We must make Samsung's market value evaporate by at least 10% of its stock price today. We need to teach them a lesson they won't forget."

Huang Wenrong nodded slightly and said, "Okay."

Seoul, Samsung Group headquarters.

The CEO's office was deathly silent.

The chairman was in the United States negotiating a cooperation with Microsoft when this incident happened.

It's really frustrating.

It's not that they lack strength, but rather that they don't fully respect their enemy.

From the very beginning, they never intended to fight Momo Group to the death, and they never imagined that Momo Group would fight them to the death for a game.

President Lee Jae-yong sat in his executive chair, a thoughtful expression on his face.

He really wanted to say to Momo Group: "Brother, we were just testing the waters. Do you even know what testing means?"
Isn't China the most particular about Sun Tzu's Art of War?

Sun Tzu's Art of War states: When you are capable, feign incapacity; when you are active, feign inactivity; when you are near, feign distance; when you are far, feign proximity.

So those bastards at Momo Group don't even look at this?
Encountering such an uncultured opponent is truly frustrating.

Lee Jae-young is really feeling wronged right now.

Samsung wasn't incapable of fighting; they were simply unprepared.

They were like a burly man driving a BMW, patting a seemingly weak man on a bicycle with the back of a knife.

Logically speaking, the other party should be scared.

They either beg for mercy or apologize.

But who could have imagined that the cyclist would snatch the machete from him and chase after him, stabbing him dozens of times?
This is completely unconventional.

If it were a fair fight, Samsung could easily beat Momo Group to a pulp, even without using machetes.

But now, they are too passive.

The chairman led his think tank to the United States for negotiations, but Lee Jae-yong was unable to mobilize some factions at the group headquarters.

It's so sad... I feel so bad...

Lee Jae-yong took a deep breath, trying to compose himself, and looked at the dismal performance of his company's stock price on the computer screen, along with the constant stream of headlines from major financial media outlets around the world:

Shocking scandal! Samsung Electronics exposed for falsifying semiconductor yield rates and bribing telecom giants to suppress competitors!

"Wall Street's coordinated short-selling attack causes Samsung Electronics' stock price to plummet, wiping out over $10 billion in a single day!"

The Twilight of Asian Tech Giants? Samsung Trapped in Multiple Crises!

"Bang!" Li Zairong suddenly swept the expensive porcelain on the table to the ground, shards flying everywhere.

His chest heaved violently as he slowly raised his head to look at Park Jung-hwan and Lee Myung-ho, who stood with their hands at their sides, their faces ashen.

"A bunch of useless trash!" Lee Jae-yong said in a deep voice, "Is this what you call petty tricks? Is this the result you've given me? The chairman is currently negotiating in the United States. If Microsoft knew about our current predicament, wouldn't they make exorbitant demands? Wouldn't they propose some unreasonable conditions?"

Park Jung-hwan and Lee Myung-ho kept their heads down, not daring to utter a single word.

They were also very frustrated. Overall, the way this matter was handled was not quite right.

Yes, this is the "attack when the enemy is unprepared" principle from Sun Tzu's Art of War. They weren't weak, they were just unprepared.

"Did I call you here to be mute?" Lee Jae-yong asked coldly.

Park Jung-hwan said in a trembling voice, "President, we need time to sort things out. Just half a month will do. Right now, everything is in full swing, and we're a bit overwhelmed. After all these years, we've never encountered a situation like this before, and the crisis response capabilities of different departments are still somewhat lacking."

“Lacking?” Lee Jae-yong snorted coldly.

It's not just a lack, it's downright passing the buck.

However, Park Jung-hwan is not wrong. Over the years, apart from Toshiba, no other company has dared to do this.

They excel at attacking, but are not good at defending.

Because no one dared to attack them.

Lee Jae-young looked at Park Jung-hwan and said, "Continue."

Park Jung-hwan immediately said, "Lianxiang Group has a high reputation in China's IT industry, and their president has a good relationship with you. If he can help us mediate, and we give Momo Group some symbolic benefits, this matter can definitely be temporarily resolved. When the chairman returns from the United States, we will have sorted things out, and then we will teach Momo Group a lesson."

“Yes,” Li Minghao quickly replied.

"Yes, yes, yes, all you know is 'yes'!" Li Zairong pointed at Li Minghao and cursed, "You call yourself the head of the strategy room? I'll be the head of the cleaning room tomorrow!"

Li Minghao was immediately frightened and lowered his head again.

Lee Jae-young glanced at Park Jung-hwan, his expression softening slightly.

Park Jung-hwan was his trusted subordinate, and he didn't want to replace him at this time.

Li Zairong said, "Then do as you say. I'll call Yang Yuanqing in a bit and settle this matter as soon as possible."

“Okay.” Park Jung-hwan’s face lit up with joy, and he quickly agreed.

Today is December 16th, the fifth day of the eleventh month in the lunar calendar.

Jingzhou City experienced its first snowfall of 2004.

In the president's office of Momo Group, sunlight streamed through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows onto the gleaming mahogany tea table, making the valuable Yixing purple clay tea set on the table shine brightly.

The delicate aroma of tea, mingled with the refined fragrance of top-grade Longjing tea, slowly diffused in the tranquil space.

The atmosphere was very peaceful, even with a hint of deliberate leisure.

Cheng Yi personally held the teapot, his movements fluid and graceful, pouring the emerald green tea into the warm and lustrous Ru kiln teacup in front of Yang Yuanqing.

Yang Yuanqing, a prominent figure in China's IT industry, was sitting in the main seat with his usual gentle smile on his face.

"Mr. Yang, please try this pre-Qingming Longjing tea. A friend brought it from Lion Peak, and it's quite palatable." Cheng Yi's tone was humble and polite, and his smile was sincere, as if he were simply entertaining an ordinary elder.

Yang Yuanqing picked up the teacup, gently sniffed the aroma, and praised, "Fragrant and mellow, excellent tea."

He took a small sip, put down his teacup, and looked at Cheng Yi's face. He got straight to the point and said, "President Cheng, although the tea is good, I'm not here to discuss tea. Lee Jae-yong of Samsung asked me to act as an intermediary, hoping to sit down with Momo Group and turn hostility into friendship."

Cheng Yi's smile remained unchanged as he poured Yang Yuanqing another cup of tea.

He leaned back slightly, relaxed, and tapped his fingers lightly on the smooth mahogany armrest, making a soft tapping sound.

"Oh? Samsung?" Cheng Yi's tone carried a perfectly timed hint of surprise as he smiled and said, "I will naturally give Mr. Yang face, but I wonder how Samsung intends to resolve this conflict?"

Yang Yuanqing's heart sank slightly. Cheng Yi's reaction was too calm, so calm that it made him feel uneasy.

It was as if Cheng Yi had known all along that he would come.

Yang Yuanqing adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and slowly said, "Li Zairong means that everything that happened before was a misunderstanding, and that the subordinates made a mistake in execution. Samsung is willing to immediately stop all unfavorable actions against Momo Group and 'Honghuang Zhanji', and promises to seek possible cooperation in the future on the basis of fair competition. At the same time, Samsung is willing to pay 1000 million US dollars to compensate Momo Group for its losses during this period."

"1000 million US dollars?" Cheng Yi chuckled as if he had heard something amusing.

His laughter sounded somewhat abrupt in the quiet tea room.

Cheng Yi felt he had been impolite and immediately stopped laughing, saying, "Mr. Yang, do you think Samsung's compensation can make up for the revenue we've lost these past few days? Can it buy back the trust of the players we lost due to their malicious attacks? Can it offset the risk of our collapse in the Southeast Asian market caused by their collaboration with ISPs to suppress us?"

The smile on his face gradually faded, and his eyes sharpened considerably. He asked, "Or is it possible to counter their attempt to paralyze our Hong Kong servers by using national-level cyberattack capabilities?"

Yang Yuanqing frowned slightly; Cheng Yi's assertiveness and aggressiveness exceeded his expectations.

He said in a deep voice, "President Cheng, it's better to resolve conflicts than to let them fester. Samsung is, after all, a technology giant in Asia and even globally, with a deep foundation. A momentary squabble won't benefit either side. Didn't you reach a truce with Microsoft? Why can't you give Samsung a chance?"

"Microsoft?" Cheng Yi picked up his teacup, took a slow sip, and looked out the window at the bustling street scene of Jingzhou, a glint of light in his eyes.

He slowly put down his teacup, refocused his gaze on Yang Yuanqing, and said clearly, word by word, "We agreed to mediate with Microsoft because we couldn't beat them at the time."

"???" Yang Yuanqing didn't expect Cheng Yi to be so honest. He thought Cheng Yi was trying to find some grand excuse after he had been building up his emotions for so long.

Unexpectedly, Cheng Yi replied confidently: "Because I can't beat him."

But it really makes a lot of sense...

He was speechless.

Cheng Yi slowly said, "Sigh, Microsoft is really too strong, so strong that it's frightening. Their Windows system is rooted in billions of computers around the world, and with the help of PC industry giants like you, they can be considered a true ecosystem overlord."

"At that time, we were still inexperienced. The Moc-os system had just gained a foothold in internet cafes. Our foundation was unstable and our ecosystem was fragile. If Microsoft were to launch a full-scale crackdown, even if we managed to take a bite out of them, we would be severely damaged, or even completely wiped out. Therefore, the ceasefire was a strategic compromise for us, and also an indelible shame in the history of Momo Group's development."

Cheng Yi leaned forward slightly, his deliberately concealed sharpness now unleashed, like a drawn sword, radiating cold light: "And now, I'm unwilling to mediate with Samsung because we can defeat Samsung!"

"Mr. Yang, I'm not trying to embarrass you, but the humiliation of mediating with Microsoft is enough once. I don't want to go through this again, so I'm sorry."

When Yang Yuanqing saw that Cheng Yi had directly refused to mediate, she felt she had lost face.

He had already given Lee Jae-young his assurance.

For someone as concerned about his image as him, if he were to suffer a crushing defeat, he would lose both face and substance.

(End of this chapter)