Who would still start a business seriously after being reborn?

Chapter 619 Mediation? You think you're worthy?
The car door opened, and Qian Buqun and Chen Yongzheng, who were not exactly rivals, got out at the same time. They exchanged a knowing glance and shook hands with each other insincerely.

They all understood their role in this mediation: to use both carrot and stick tactics to try and save Lianxiang Group.

Qian Buqun once visited Momo Group, and was personally received by the chairman of Momo Group, which was a very high-level reception.

He had assumed it would be the same this time, but he and Chen Yongzheng stood at the door for a long time, pretending to be elegant, but they didn't see the expected scene of a warm welcome from Momo Group executives.

The industrial park gates remained busy, with vehicles entering and exiting in an orderly manner, but none of the reception staff who should have been there for someone of their rank appeared.

A few minutes later, a young woman wearing the Momo Group's administrative uniform jogged over with a professional smile on her face.

"Are you Mr. Qian and Mr. Chen? I am Chen Yafang, the Deputy Director of Public Relations and Government Affairs at Momo Group. I am truly sorry, our chairman is in Shandong Province for business negotiations, and our General Manager Cheng is attending a very important technical demonstration meeting. We are unable to leave, but he specifically instructed me to convey his sincere apologies to you both and to accompany you on a tour of our park."

The girl's tone was respectful and polite, without a single flaw, but the meaning behind her words was like a bucket of cold water poured on the hearts of the two tycoons.

Du Yusheng and Cheng Yi didn't come out to greet them personally; instead, they only sent a deputy director of the affairs department to receive them.

This is not hospitality, this is humiliation, and it is a condescending humiliation!

Qian Buqun's smile froze instantly.

Chen Yongzheng's brows were also tightly furrowed. When had he ever been treated so poorly within the Microsoft system?

Although we are competing, this is basic business competition. We are all civilized people in the IT industry, so we should at least save each other some face.
What's most infuriating is that the two of them came together and even sent a letter of invitation beforehand, yet they couldn't even get a meeting with the boss of Momo Group? The other party didn't even bother to come up with a decent excuse.

"Minister Chen." Qian Buqun, being a seasoned veteran, quickly adjusted his expression and smiled, "We've come here with the utmost sincerity, hoping to discuss some issues concerning the healthy development of the industry with President Cheng in person. Could you please inform President Cheng that the matters we need to discuss are very important, and ask him to come over as soon as possible after his meeting?"

Chen Yafang maintained a polite smile and said, "I will inform President Cheng. This way, please."

After she finished speaking, she made a gesture of invitation, pointing towards the interior of the park.

Qian Buqun and Chen Yongzheng came today with a mission, and they were determined to see Cheng Yi. They exchanged a glance and could only suppress their displeasure and anger. Under Chen Yafang's guidance, they began this very awkward tour of the park.

They saw the busy and efficient R&D center, the vibrant game project team, and the demo of the new version of the Moc-os system under testing...

The park exudes a vibrant and confident atmosphere.

This aura seemed to be silently proclaiming the future of the Momo Group to them.

Chen Yafang's introduction was professional and fluent, but only scratched the surface and never went into any core details.

She was always very polite, yet she always maintained a sense of distance.

This visit was an ordeal for both Qian Buqun and Chen Yongzheng.

They felt like they were being paraded through the streets, and they sensed an undisguised contempt.

The tour lasted for more than an hour and finally stopped at an on-site café in the park.

"Please have a seat and rest for a moment. Mr. Cheng's meeting should be ending soon. He said that since you are both returnees from overseas, you must enjoy coffee, so we chose this place." Chen Yafang smiled as she ordered coffee for them, then politely stood aside without saying anything more.

The end? Will it really end soon?
Both of them knew in their hearts that this was probably just empty talk.

The aroma of coffee wafted through the air, but it couldn't dispel the humiliation in their hearts.

Qian Buqun finally couldn't help but lower his voice and say to Chen Yongzheng, "This President Cheng is getting more and more arrogant."

Qian Buqun's tone was full of dissatisfaction.

However, Qian Buqun preferred communicating with Cheng Yi rather than Du Yusheng.

After the previous kidnapping incident, Qian Buqun's trust in Du Yusheng was almost zero.

Because he felt that Du Yusheng was very unreliable.

Chen Yongzheng's expression was also not good, and he said coldly, "He doesn't take us seriously at all."

Chen Yongzheng held his coffee cup, his fingers were icy cold, and he felt a tightness in his chest.

All his pride was shattered by this cold reception.

Only now did he realize with absolute clarity that he and Cheng Yi seemed to have lost the right to have an equal dialogue.

The so-called mediation was probably just a joke in Cheng Yi's eyes, a one-sided wishful thinking.

Momo Group gave them a resounding, even hilarious, response with a silent tour of the park.

In the coffee shop, time slowly slips away amidst the aroma of freshly ground coffee beans.

Qian Buqun tapped the table unconsciously with his fingertips, while Chen Yongzheng adjusted the position of his wristwatch for the third time.

This expensive watch seemed to serve only as a reminder of how he was wasting time, bit by bit.

Just as Chen Yongzheng was about to lose his last bit of patience and get up to leave, the door to the coffee shop was pushed open.

It's Cheng Yi.

He was wearing a simple dark sweater and casual pants, and his face showed a hint of fatigue.

He didn't walk towards them immediately, but first whispered a few words to Chen Yafang, who had been waiting quietly to the side. Chen Yafang nodded and quietly withdrew to make the arrangements.

After arranging the work, he slowly walked towards Qian Buqun and Chen Yongzheng, a slightly apologetic smile on his face, and said, "President Qian, President Chen, I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting."

His voice was calm, without much emotion: "There's a lot of debate about the kernel architecture for the next major version of Moc-os. Several experts from Europe are stubborn and insist on getting to the bottom of it, so it's dragged on until now."

He naturally pulled out a chair and sat down, his gaze sweeping over the already cold coffee in front of the two of them. He asked in surprise, "Is the coffee not to your liking? Should I ask them to get two new cups? The baristas in our park are quite skilled."

"No need, Mr. Cheng." Qian Buqun replied almost subconsciously, and Chen Yongzheng also forced a smile to indicate that it was not necessary.

Cheng Yi nodded, leaned back slightly, and casually rested his arms on the armrests of the chair, creating a seemingly relaxed yet highly controlled posture.

He didn't exchange pleasantries, didn't offer much explanation for his lateness, and didn't even ask why they had come. He just looked at them, as if waiting for them to speak first.

An invisible pressure instantly enveloped the small coffee table.

All the mediation opening remarks that Qian Buqun and Chen Yongzheng had prepared regarding healthy competition in the industry, market order, and win-win cooperation were stuck in their throats under this pressure and their recent experience, and they couldn't utter a single word.

They sat on the cold benches in the coffee shop for almost an hour, thinking about many things. What they thought about most was that they realized the other person didn't care at all why they had come.

The so-called mediation is nothing but a laughable joke in the face of the other party's current size.

They are not qualified to bring it up, and the other party will not even bother to answer.

The air fell into a suffocating silence once again.

Qian Buqun took a deep breath, knowing he had to say something to break the awkward silence.

His mind raced, and he came up with a relatively safe topic that suited their identities and could also be used to test the other party's attitude.

"President Cheng is extremely busy, all for technological breakthroughs, which is understandable." Qian Buqun tried to make his tone natural and smiled, "Speaking of which, the China Internet Conference, originally scheduled for the beginning of this month, has been postponed to November due to some recent changes in the industry. I wonder if President Cheng will attend? The industry is eagerly anticipating hearing Momo's perspective on internet development."

He cleverly replaced this disastrous business battle with some industry variables.

Chen Yongzheng immediately followed suit, trying to regain some initiative, saying, "Yes, if President Cheng could share some views on the construction of the operating system ecosystem or the prospects of the mobile Internet at the conference, it would surely become the most eye-catching focus of the conference."

This statement was both a compliment and a test, an attempt to gauge Cheng Yi's ambition for influence in the industry.

After listening, Cheng Yi revealed a barely perceptible smile, a smile that made Qian Buqun and Chen Yongzheng feel as if their thoughts had been read.

"Internet Conference?" Cheng Yi said casually, "Of course Momo Group will participate. It's a good opportunity to learn from industry veterans and friends."

He paused, looking at the two of them, and continued, "As for sharing viewpoints... Dr. Yu Sen might talk about some new advancements in the Moc-os system in terms of large-scale concurrent processing and security. They're tech people, they prefer to talk about these practical things. As for myself..."

He shrugged and said, "It's not confirmed yet. Nobody can say for sure what will happen in November. Maybe I'll start promoting the Asian market then."

Hearing Cheng Yi say that, Chen Yongzheng's heart skipped a beat.

He knew that Cheng Yi was referring to Microsoft.

In November, we're going to promote the Asian market. What are we promoting?
It must be the operating system.

"However," Cheng Yi changed the subject, as if he had suddenly remembered something, and smiled, "Lianxiang Group's recent attempts have been quite good. Although they have encountered some setbacks, they are still a bold exploration. Perhaps that forum is more suitable for Chairman Yang to share some valuable experiences and lessons? It should also provide some inspiration for the development of the industry."

"..."

Qian Buqun felt like he almost choked on the mouthful of cold coffee he had just drunk.

Cheng Yi's words were practically a killing blow to the spirit.

He not only completely ignored their willingness to mediate, but also steered the conversation toward Lianxiang's failure, even suggesting that Yang Yuanqing share the failure case at the conference.

This was tantamount to humiliating Lianxiang and the power they represented right in front of them.

After the friction was finished, they were asked if it felt good.

The conversation that followed completely fell into Cheng Yi's rhythm.

He briefly discussed his views on global internet trends, and the foresight and grand vision he revealed in his words secretly alarmed Qian Buqun and Chen Yongzheng.

After chatting for about fifteen minutes, Cheng Yi glanced at his watch and said, "Excuse me, gentlemen, I have another video conference with Europe in a little while. I'm very happy to have chatted with you both today, and I thank you for bringing some valuable information from the Internet Conference. If you're free, I'll treat you to dinner tonight."

After saying that, he stood up and made a gesture to see the guest out.

"No need, no need, we've already made arrangements for tonight." Qian Buqun and Chen Yongzheng immediately stood up as well, their previous humiliation replaced by a sense of powerless defeat.

They felt that they hadn't come to mediate, but rather to humiliate themselves.

However, they are also clearly aware of the current gap between the two sides.

Qian Buqun and Chen Yongzheng walked out of the coffee shop first, and Cheng Yi followed them out, pretending to be polite.

"President Cheng, please wait a moment. You're busy," Qian Buqun quickly said.

"Mr. Cheng, you're too kind." Chen Yongzheng forced a smile and nodded.

Cheng Yi didn't actually see them off. He simply nodded to Chen Yafang, who had reappeared, and said, "Minister Chen, please see General Manager Qian and General Manager Chen off for me."

"Yes!"

Watching Qian Buqun and Chen Yongzheng leave hastily with Chen Yafang, Cheng Yi's composure vanished, and his eyes became deep and cold.

He knew that today's benching and brief meeting would convey his attitude more effectively than any strong words.

Mediation? Are they qualified?
He turned around and instructed Li Weiwei, who had been waiting quietly to his side, "Notify Yu Sen, Huang Ganping, Huang Wenrong, and Zhang Lingyu to go to Conference Room One for a meeting in ten minutes."

"Yes," Li Weiwei replied immediately and began making a phone call.

Ten minutes later, in Conference Room Number One.

Yu Sen, Huang Ganping, Huang Wenrong, and Zhang Lingyu arrived one after another.

"President Cheng, have the people from IBM and Microsoft left?" Huang Wenrong spoke first.

He is in charge of the group's finances and capital operations, and is extremely sensitive to the movements of these two giants.

"I'm leaving." Cheng Yi said succinctly, "After being left out in the cold for more than an hour, you should know your own limitations."

Upon hearing this, a hint of pleasure flashed in Zhang Lingyu's beautiful almond-shaped eyes. She snorted, "Mediate? They're not worthy of it! Lianxiang attacked first, and now they want to call in their parents when they can't win? President Cheng, should I have my people increase the pressure on Lianxiang's channels?"

She manages Momo Internet Cafe's vast offline network and ground promotion efforts, and her methods have always been direct and effective.

Cheng Yi waved his hand and said, "Lianxiang is already like a grasshopper in autumn, it won't be able to jump around for much longer. The fact that Yang Yuanqing called them over shows that Lianxiang is already in a panic. The focus now is not on Lianxiang, but on the government and enterprise procurement that is about to begin."

When the topic of government and enterprise procurement was brought up, Huang Wenrong and the other three immediately became serious.

Yes, the government and enterprise procurement in October is just around the corner.

They've been preparing for this for so long, all for this one tremor in October.

(End of this chapter)