I'm in the county town, and you say I'm a big shot?

Chapter 823 Why are all the big investors suddenly eyeing the niche field of aerospace? And why are they all flocking to it?

Why is Ma Yun suddenly getting involved?
Has Alibaba never been involved in the aerospace industry in the past?
Fang Qingye was slightly taken aback at first, but quickly regained her composure and said with a smile, "Teacher Ma is really quick... It seems I need to have a chat with him."

After saying that, he looked at Wang Yang with a serious expression: "Mr. Wang, you don't need to worry about the rocket for now. Focus on your current work. As for OKMicro Aerospace, please have your team develop a short-term, medium-term, and long-term plan as soon as possible. Then we can discuss R&D, investment, and talent development based on that plan."

“Okay, we’ll get started right away!” Wang Yang replied immediately, but in his heart he was thinking something else.

But... Fang Qingye said she wanted to talk to Ma Yun?
Why are you so arrogant?

After a while of discussion, Fang Qingye led his men away, leaving the engineers from OKMicro Aerospace to continue their discussion.

Some were relieved to finally have a willing investor, and OKMicro Aerospace was saved; others were worried about the dilution of equity, and still others were curious about the relationship between Fang Qingye and Ma Yun.

"You guys said Fang Qingye just said he wanted to talk to Ma Yun? How come he's so arrogant?"

“I don’t know how impressive it is, but I always feel that Ma Yun’s sudden investment in and acquisition of a controlling stake in LandSpace is aimed at Fang Qingye.” The speaker was CTO Hu Bo, who was the most senior engineer, technically proficient, and also knew how to navigate interpersonal relationships.

"President Hu is right. We were hoping that LandSpace's 'Zhuque' series rockets would be successful soon so we could use them to launch satellites and stop having to beg the aerospace technology companies to arrange 'Long March' rockets... But it seems that's still hopeless," a young engineer sighed.

In fact, Wang Yang was also pondering this in his heart.

What the hell is going on?

Why are these big investors suddenly focusing on the niche field of aerospace? And why are they all flocking to it?

Having too many big shots isn't necessarily a good thing...

However, as the company's CEO and the core of the team, he cannot say anything that would affect team unity.

So he began, “Don’t overthink it. Right now, the most important thing is to follow Chairman Fang’s instructions and formulate our company’s development plan! Haven’t you all been complaining that your ideals are lofty but difficult to achieve? Now the opportunity has come, and we must seize it! We must plan a ‘Starlink Project’ that belongs to China!”

……

Fang Qingye and her group returned to Shencheng Building. Inside the Audi, Bai Ou couldn't help but say, "We just acquired OKMicro Aerospace, and then Alibaba invested in and took control of LandSpace? Isn't that too much of a coincidence? I have a feeling that Ma Yun is deliberately trying to strangle us."

Fang Qingye smiled and said, "Broaden your horizons. From another perspective, if more private capital enters the aerospace field and promotes the development of the entire industry, it would be a good thing... As for Ma Yun's true intentions, I would like to talk to him face to face... I think he would be willing to talk to me."

“Yes, we really should have a good talk. Cooperation benefits both sides, while conflict harms both. Ma Yun should understand this principle as well,” Bai Ou echoed.

"I'll handle this. Bai Ou, your priority now is to buy back the shares of the other two companies, preferably through full acquisition, and a reasonable premium is acceptable," Fang Qingye said calmly.

"In addition, we must be very careful with the strategic capital increase and equity incentive plan for Wang Yang's team. We must protect the interests of our company, but we also cannot let Wang Yang's team feel that they are being taken advantage of, since we still need to rely on them."

"Understood. I've assigned this matter to Li Li, who will work with the finance and legal departments to develop a plan," Bai Ou replied.

"Also, we should hire one or two experts or professors in the aerospace field, part-time or otherwise, as special advisors to Tuofang Technology," Fang Qingye added.

Bai Ou immediately understood Fang Qingye's intention. In the aerospace field, everyone at Tuofang Technology was a complete novice.

To put it bluntly, if Wang Yang's team did anything underhanded during the operation, they might have been sold out and were even helping the seller count the money.

"Okay, I'll arrange it as soon as possible," Bai Ou replied.

Fang Qingye didn't say anything more, but turned to look at the sky outside the window.

The sky was somewhat overcast. Under Bai Ou's supervision, the follow-up matters regarding the acquisition of OKMicro Aerospace were proceeding smoothly. Fang Qingye returned to Nanxin; he still had a lot of business to attend to at Jinghai Bank.

Time quickly passed to the end of March, and the fireworks of March illuminated Yangzhou.

However, Fang Qingye's destination was not Yangzhou, but Hangzhou.

He plans to attend the opening ceremony and inspect the work of the Jinghai Bank Hangzhou branch, which is about to open.

In fact, Jinghai Bank opens several new branches every year, and Fang Qingye rarely attends them in person; usually, the vice president attends on his behalf. However, the Hangzhou branch is Jinghai Bank's first branch outside the province, making it different, so Fang Qingye decided to attend in person. Furthermore, he also wanted to take this opportunity to meet Ma Yun.

The internal integration of OKMicro Aerospace is progressing smoothly under Bai Ou's management. One of the company's shareholders, Shencheng Gesi Information Technology Co., Ltd., is willing to sell its 15.2% stake, and the acquisition of shares by another shareholder, Shencheng Canlin Asset Management Center, is also under negotiation.

The strategic capital increase and equity incentive plan, which Li Li was in charge of, has been approved by the senior management meeting of Tuofang and has also been reviewed by Fang Qingye.

The main points are: Tuofang Technology will make large-scale investments, which will dilute the equity held by Wang Yang's team. However, through the company's internal shareholding platform, their overall shareholding will remain stable at around 20%. In addition, Tuofang will allocate 10% of its own shares to establish a share pool to reward employees who have made significant contributions to the company.

Wang Yang's team has agreed to the plan in principle, but some details are still under negotiation, and some clauses may be adjusted. However, Fang Qingye no longer needs to worry about these things.

Once the internal integration of OKMicro Aerospace is completed, the company will be ready to set sail, aiming for the stars and the sea.

What Fang Qingye needs to do is create a relaxed external environment for this dream—meeting Ma Yun is just one step in that process.

As the Maybach cruised along the Shenhai Expressway, the scenery outside the window was typical of the Jiangnan water towns. Vast fields of golden rapeseed flowers were the most eye-catching, while neat tea gardens sprouted tender green buds. Occasionally, a few blooming peach or pear blossoms dotted the landscape. Fields and villages intertwined, and a bright spring scene unfolded outside the car window, making one feel refreshed and relaxed.

Fang Qingye gazed at the beautiful scenery outside the window, took out her phone, and dialed a number—to Ma Yun.

"Hello, Teacher Ma, I'm Qingye."

"I'm on my way to Hangzhou, mainly to attend the opening ceremony of our Hangzhou branch, and I'd like to go fishing with you while I'm there."

"Okay, okay, tomorrow afternoon, fine! You make the arrangements."

"See you tomorrow afternoon, goodbye." Fang Qingye said and hung up the phone.

At that moment, Ma Yun was in her office at Ant Group's headquarters, Ant Z Space, on Xixi Road in Hangzhou's West Lake, discussing work with Ant Group executives such as Peng Lei and Jing Xiandong, as well as Huang Hao, president of MYbank.

Ant Group is undergoing a major business restructuring: Ant Financial will refocus on payment and commercial financial services, abandoning its focus on social networking as its core business. Meanwhile, its subsidiary MYbank will continue to concentrate on serving small and micro enterprises, and Tianhong Fund (Yu'ebao) will maintain its current growth momentum.

Upon hearing that Ma Yun had received a call from Fang Qingye, Huang Hao asked, "Is President Fang coming to Hangzhou?"

“Yes, mainly to attend the opening ceremony of Jinghai Bank’s Hangzhou branch, and he also said he wanted to go fishing with me,” Ma Yun said with a smile.

"This Fang Qingye is quite interesting. He came all the way to Hangzhou to fish; he must be really addicted," Peng Lei said with a smile.

"Hehe... The real intention is not in the wine, and Fang Qingye is certainly not just after fishing." Ma Yun smiled slightly and said meaningfully.

Those present were all intelligent people, and they naturally understood the implication in Ma Yun's words.

After all, Alibaba recently made a move that surprised the outside world: it actually invested in and acquired a controlling stake in a private aerospace company!
Build rockets!
Fang Qingye also recently acquired an aerospace company to build satellites!
Not to mention outsiders, even people inside Alibaba couldn't help but speculate.

What kind of sparks will fly when these two meet?
(End of this chapter)