I can become stronger by paying salaries. I have one billion employees!

Chapter 380 Car sharing? Even a dog wouldn't do that! Shared e-bikes are alright! A billion in interest-free loans?
Upon learning of OFO's expansion plans, Cheng Wei, who was far away in Yanjing, did not hesitate at all. He immediately deployed another 50,000 shared bicycles in North China and transferred a group of people from headquarters to East China to establish a branch company.

The battle with OFO bicycles is now unavoidable!
If you continue north, whether in the Northeast or the Northwest, most places, except for a few cities, are not suitable for developing a bike-sharing business.

If Didi Bike wants to increase its market share and profitability, the only way is to expand southward.

Chang Wei, the owner of Ofo bikes, realized that his battle with Cheng Wei was fruitless after several months, and he also considered heading south.

Both sides had a tacit understanding and chose Shanghai as their bridgehead.

On February 20, Tugo launched its car-sharing service, with 100 Mercedes-Benz Smart Fortwos appearing on the streets of Yanjing.

First came shared bikes, now comes shared cars.

This truly opened the eyes of the locals in Yanjing; it was truly astounding!
New users receive a '¥999 ​​discount gift pack' upon registration, with a deposit of ¥1500. Payment options include Orange Pay, Zhifubao, or online banking.

起步价15元（含30分钟时长费），里程费每公里1.88元，时长费按每分钟计算，白天（7:00-21:00）每分钟0.28元，夜间（21:00-7:00）每分钟0.02元。

The pricing model is "starting price + mileage + duration"!
简单来说，一个人在白天租了一辆奔驰Smart，一共开了40分钟、30公里，费用便是15+1.88*30+0.28*(40-30)=74.2元。

It works out to less than 2.5 yuan per kilometer. With the new customer discount, it's almost half price. You can drive a Mercedes for 30 yuan.

Despite the high deposit, users are still flocking to try it out.

Internet media outlets are scrambling to report on it!
"Car sharing is here! You can drive a Mercedes without owning one!"

"TOGO, a car-sharing service provider and a new darling of investors, has secured 3000 million yuan in Series A funding!"

"100 Mercedes-Benz Smart cars have appeared on the streets of Yanjing. Would you be willing to try driving one?"

After seeing the news, Chen Yansen couldn't help but laugh. Trying to get involved in car sharing in 2013 was like lighting a light in a toilet—purely courting death.

Problems such as deposits, parking, and car maintenance are enough to bankrupt a car-sharing company.

Half a step ahead is a genius, one step ahead is a madman.

In his view, the business model of car sharing is sound, but perhaps the most suitable time will be 30 or 50 years from now.

He has no interest in car-sharing, but he is very optimistic about the market for shared e-bikes.

Compared to the high cost and complex parking issues of cars, electric bicycles are better suited to short-distance travel needs and hold enormous potential.

Once shared bikes become widespread and user habits are cultivated, shared e-bikes can be launched to the market. By optimizing battery life and safety standards, they can seize the initiative in this blue ocean market.

Especially in mountainous cities, where the terrain (road slope) limits the operation of shared bicycles, shared e-bikes can fill the market gap.

Before the Lunar New Year, Pei Yi had spoken with him about wanting to acquire an electric vehicle manufacturing plant in Wuxi.

Firstly, it is used to meet the needs of the delivery riders of Kuaipao;

Secondly, becoming a supplier of OFO electric bicycles will increase revenue streams.

Therefore, Chen Yansen spoke with Ma Liyun, Ma Wenteng, Zhu Xiaohu and Zhang Lei. After all, it was a major investment decision for the project. If he did it without saying a word, wouldn't he be like Ma Liyun?

Chen Yansen considers himself to be at least half a decent person.

Small, behind-the-scenes actions are acceptable, but they shouldn't go too far.

After hearing this, Xiao Ma and Zhang Lei readily agreed; although Zhu Xiaohu was dissatisfied, he did not object in the end; only Ma Liyun had the biggest objection, but since the other investors all agreed, Lao Ma had no choice.

“Beep bell—!”

Chen Yansen picked up his phone; it was a call from Zhou Shouzhi.

"Boss, Mr. Xu is downstairs," Zhou Shouzhi said.

What is he here to do?
Chen Yansen asked, puzzled.

However, Xu Zhenhui was ultimately the head of the Central Division. In recent years, under his care, Pinbei Mall and Orange Technology have developed smoothly in the virtual city.

Now that the other party has come, he naturally cannot be negligent.

Thinking of this, he pushed open the door and went out, taking the elevator to the first floor. Zhou Shouzhi was sitting with Xu Zhenhui in the lounge area, chatting and drinking tea. Two people dressed as secretaries were also sitting nearby.

A black, older model Audi was parked outside.

Xu Zhenhui looked up and saw Chen Yansen. Just as he was about to get up, Chen Yansen quickly stepped forward and pressed him back into his seat.

Chen Yansen said with a smile, "Mr. Xu, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"Please have a seat, Mr. Chen!" Xu Zhenhui gestured.

Chen Yansen didn't stand on ceremony, pulled up a chair, and sat down on the other person's left.

"Is Mr. Xu here at the Virtual College to attend the school's anniversary celebration?" Chen Yansen asked proactively.

"That's right. I heard from Tang Qingshan that you plan to build a large data center in Luzhou?"

Xu Zhenhui asked the question directly.

"There are indeed relevant plans, and we are currently in the site selection stage," Chen Yansen said truthfully without hiding anything.

"Mr. Chen, could you leave this industry to Xucheng?" Xu Zhenhui asked directly.

He knew that Orange Technology had bought a 46-square-meter industrial land in Luzhou to build its group headquarters. At that time, Pinbei, Jinri Technology and Orange Payment would all move to Luzhou, and the level of Internet development in Xucheng would return to what it was before 2010.

But he was powerless; compared to Meng Yuanzhi, his resources and policies were far inferior.

Senlian Capital will eventually move away.

"The most critical requirements for a data center are a stable power supply and abundant bandwidth resources. Virtual cities are not the optimal choice," Chen Yansen shook his head.

Friendship is friendship, business is business.

He wouldn't arbitrarily change the company's strategic plan just because Xu Zhenhui had previously shown him kindness.

This data center is of great significance to Orange Technology, and we cannot afford to make any mistakes.

“I will help you with the power supply and bandwidth resources. In addition, Luzhou is located in an earthquake zone. It’s better to be safe than sorry. It’s not safe to put the data center in Luzhou.”

Xu Zhenhui already had a plan in mind, which went straight to the heart of the matter.

In fact, he was not wrong.

The main reason Chen Yansen has not yet finalized the matter is that he is waiting for the research report from the Huian Provincial Geological Association, and he is also afraid of natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods.

"I can also help you with renovations, fire safety, and low-interest loans. You're a young entrepreneur trained by the Virtual Academy, practically a half-Void City resident. You can't leave nothing behind, can you?"

Xu Zhenhui said pitifully.

That old bastard Tang Qingshan is so loose-lipped; he's always causing trouble for me.

The key point is that he had already promised Meng Yuanzhi this, and it wouldn't be good to change his mind at the last minute.

After a moment's thought, Chen Yansen realized that Tang Qingshan was probably doing it on purpose.

He frowned slightly, thought for a few seconds, then smiled faintly and made a very unreasonable request: "Mr. Xu, to be honest, I have already promised Mr. Meng in advance."

Upon hearing this, Xu Zhenhui's face darkened. Since the other party had brought up Meng Yuanzhi, he couldn't insist any further.

“Therefore, in terms of funding, if Virtual City can provide an interest-free loan of 10 billion yuan, I can consider building a data center of the same size in Virtual City,” Chen Yansen continued.

What a twist!

Before Xu Zhenhui could even feel happy, he heard the words "10 billion" and "interest-free loan" again, and instantly felt troubled.

This does not comply with regulations!
But he knew that if he didn't agree, Chen Yansen would have a reason to refuse him.

(End of this chapter)