Restart life

Chapter 570 0558 [The Richest Man's Choice]

Just as ByteDance, Tencent, and Alibaba were locked in a fierce battle, JD.com successfully completed its Series D financing.

Chen Guiliang and Xiao Ma both made follow-up investments this time.

Liu Qiangdong's shareholding has dropped to only 18.8%, but he still holds 83.7% of the voting rights.

Tiger Global Management 16.4%, Tencent 15.8%, Xiyi Capital (Chen Guiliang) 13.2%, DST (Russian venture capital) 8.3%, Capital Today 6.1%, Saudi Arabia 3.9%...

Fight when it's time to fight, and cooperate when it's time to cooperate.

Sure enough, several companies that had been fiercely competing in the fields of instant messaging and mobile payment suddenly found themselves sitting together at the China Cloud Computing Industry Conference.

This year is a crucial year for the promotion of cloud computing applications. The fervor surrounding the Spring Festival Gala red envelopes has just subsided, and the term "big data" has already become a hot topic.

There are many companies involved in cloud computing, but three giants have emerged: ByteDance Cloud, Alibaba Cloud, and Tencent Cloud.

Other cloud providers like Baidu Cloud, NetEase Cloud, Shanda Cloud, and Kingsoft Cloud have clearly fallen behind.

Baidu Cloud, in particular, was among the earliest to develop and deploy its technology, but it has become increasingly outdated and has fallen behind. The fundamental reason is its wavering strategic direction, its excessive focus on short-term returns, and its reluctance to invest heavily in technological development.

At this year's China Cloud Computing Conference, Jack Ma made a grand entrance with his eloquent speech, taking the lead in calling for the "de-IOE" movement.

The so-called "de-IOE" refers to the localization of cloud computing software and hardware.

Lenovo, Huawei, Inspur, and Sugon responded immediately because they were developing and producing cloud computing-related hardware.

Chen Guiliang was very supportive, as Youke, like Alibaba and Tencent, possesses its own self-developed cloud computing system, platform, and database.

Chinese software and hardware manufacturers are working together to drive foreign companies out of the cloud computing field!

……

"Damn, your brother is really awesome, he managed to invite so many big shots!" the senior brother exclaimed in amazement.

Chen Guirong said, "Of course we have to give face to the richest man. You can take charge of the kitchen, I'm going to explain the banquet to them."

At that moment, a group of business tycoons arrived at the restaurant.

During the cloud computing conference, Chen Guiliang invited the CEOs of several major companies. Even Yang Yuanqing from Lenovo was included—he had to be invited; deliberately omitting one or two would be too offensive.

Chen Guirong had memorized her script last night. By introducing the dishes (including tea and snacks), she also recounted the banquet procedures of ancient high-ranking officials, anecdotes about famous people, and historical allusions.

Moreover, they don't boast about their own cuisine. For example, Kung Pao Chicken is explained as an improvement on Shandong cuisine's braised chicken.

It was originally created when Ding Baozhen was the governor of Shandong Province, and he had his own chef improve the recipe. When Ding Baozhen was transferred to Sichuan as governor-general, he further improved it by incorporating Sichuan cuisine flavors.

Chen Guirong only graduated from junior high school, so of course he wasn't very well-educated and hired a cultural consultant.

But this kid was quick-witted and had memorized those things perfectly. He even added his own professional knowledge as a chef, making his explanations particularly eloquent.

Yang Yuanqing smiled and said, "Mr. Chen, your restaurant is quite nice, with a rich historical and cultural heritage. Moreover, the waiters' uniforms are also very unique."

Chen Guiliang said, "The waiters here must have at least a college diploma. Many of them graduated from flight attendant programs."

Ma Jieke joked, "Are you suggesting that a future flight attendant work as a restaurant server?"

"It's all about serving the people," Chen Guiliang said.

The group of bigwigs immediately burst into laughter.

Chen Guiliang then pointed to the young lady playing the pipa and said, "These are also top students from art schools, and you need to make a reservation in advance to enjoy them. No matter what performance the guests want to see, as long as they make a reservation in advance, the restaurant will invite them. Today, we have specially prepared a Peking Opera performance, with a script outline that I wrote myself."

Little Ma finally showed interest, put down his chopsticks, and waited to watch the performance.

Galileo was tried by three judges!
But then an actor dressed as Bao Zheng, accompanied by tinkling music, began reciting: "Traitorous officials are truly despicable, believing in science rather than God. Galileo will be tried in a three-judge panel, and the heliocentric theory will be eradicated. I am—a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church..."

"puff!"

Zheng Yelai, president of Huawei's IT product line, almost spat out the wine in his mouth.

That's fucking outrageous.

The waitresses standing around were also watching this scene for the first time. As the plot unfolded, they felt increasingly uncomfortable holding back their emotions.

Guests can laugh heartily, but the women must maintain their composure.

Some of the waiters couldn't hold it in any longer, so they quickly turned to face the wall, laughed silently for a few moments, and then turned back.

It's hard not to laugh when you see it for the first time.

But then the bishop dressed as Bao Zheng and the juror dressed as a clown began to interrogate Galileo, who was dressed as a scholar.

Galileo introduced himself by singing, "Galileo was born in the small town of Pisa."

Juror: "A country bumpkin."

Bishop: "Hmm~"

Galileo sang: "I have loved physics and astronomy since childhood."

Juror: "He's been reactionary since he was a child."

Galileo: "I too have watched the clock's swing and calculated its movements; I too have gazed upon the bright moon..."

Juror: "How about it?"

Galileo gestured and sang, "They're all huge pits!"

"Ha ha!"

"Clap clap clap!"

The entire audience burst into laughter and applauded.

No one was eating anymore; everyone was intently watching the performance.

The guests present were all highly educated, with most graduating from science and engineering programs. "The Trial of Galileo" was perfectly suited to their tastes. There was absolutely no barrier to entry for Peking Opera appreciation; it could be enjoyed directly as a spoken drama, yet it had a unique charm compared to a spoken drama.

Ma Jieke even swayed his head as he listened, staring at the subtitles above the stage, and softly sang along with the actors. His father was a performer of traditional Chinese performing arts, and he himself could sing Peking Opera, and this play was entirely composed of lyrics adapted from well-known arias.

However, towards the end of the song, Ma Jieke couldn't continue singing—he couldn't help but laugh.

The plot and lyrics become increasingly absurd. The bishop interrogates Galileo's daughter, who sings that Galileo made the telescope to spy on the widow next door and invented the thermometer to warm wine. The Leaning Tower of Pisa ball experiment is actually Galileo throwing a bridal ball to choose a husband for his daughter.

After the performance, Ma Jie immediately ran over to take photos with the performers, and asked them which organization they belonged to, inviting them to perform at Alibaba.

Sun Pishu, CEO of Inspur, laughed heartily and clinked glasses with Chen Guiliang: "Mr. Chen, you truly deserve to be called a talented man from Peking University. Your Peking Opera writing is truly unique."

Chen Guiliang said, "I only wrote an outline; the actual creation still needs to be left to professionals."

"That's not simple either; this Peking Opera performance is quite unique," Leibusi said.

Lei Jun has returned to Kingsoft, and this time he is attending the meeting on behalf of Kingsoft Cloud.

Pony Ma got down to business: "Since everyone supports moving away from IOE (IBM, Oracle, and EMC), let's discuss a general framework here. We'll set up the initial framework, and all cooperation and competition will take place within this framework."

Chen Guiliang waved to his cousin, Chen Guirong, who immediately invited everyone to move to the tea room.

A group of industry leaders began their discussion in the tea room, jointly finalizing the basic rules and framework for the industry. The main goal was to reach a preliminary consensus, which will then be discussed at the conference.

……

In just over a month, my cousin's restaurant became famous.

He is well-known in wealthy circles.

Chen Guiliang brings his friends to eat whenever he has free time. One reason is to bring business to his restaurant, and another is that the food here suits his taste better.

"Damn, the food here is still the best." Xie Yang ate his rice like crazy.

Xie Yang is a regular here, and he comes every weekend.

He didn't need anyone to serve him; he cooked whatever ingredients were available, treating the place like his own kitchen. Chen Guirong cooked personally, charging Xie Yang only the cost price.

Chen Guiliang was lying on the sofa playing on his phone.

Tao Xue stared at the television hanging on the wall. The TV series adapted from her novel was filmed last year, but it was delayed until this year to premiere on Beijing Satellite TV.

At the same time, there were no other TV dramas that could compete, but "Silk Road Smoke and Dust" quickly became a ratings hit.

It will also appear on Dragon TV, Anhui TV, and other TV stations.

Dilraba Dilmurat and other leading actresses began to rise to fame.

After finishing one bowl of rice, Xie Yang asked, "Are you going back for the high school anniversary celebration?"

“It’s been almost ten years since I graduated, and it’s also the 110th anniversary of our alma mater. I definitely have to go back,” Chen Guiliang said. “You’ve received the invitation, haven’t you?”

Xie Yang said, "Received it. The high school class group chat has been lively these past few days; they've already started organizing a class reunion."

"I estimate that at most one table will be filled with old classmates who will come," Chen Guiliang said.

Xie Yang chuckled and said, "Actually, you don't have to go. You can just let me go alone. Then I'll be the most awesome person, a senior executive of a big company returning home in glory, showing off to my old classmates."

“Okay,” Chen Guiliang said, “then I’ll call the principal and tell him to tell me not to go back.”

Xie Yang uttered a single word: "Damn!"

Tao Xue interjected, "The school anniversary is in early September, right? Why are you already contacting them at this time?"

Xie Yang said, "Mr. Chen is a big shot, so we definitely need to invite him in advance."

Tao Xue said, "I'm a writer for a popular TV series now, why doesn't my alma mater invite me?"

"That means you're not famous enough," Chen Guiliang joked.

"Tch!" Tao Xue continued watching the TV series.

The clattering of high heels rang out as Chen Zhixi walked in carrying her bag.

"Here to freeload again?" Xie Yang said.

Chen Zhixi said, "Aren't you here to freeload too? My home is much closer to here."

Chen Guiliang continued playing on his phone, while Tao Xue was still watching a TV series.

Chen Zhixi complained, "Boss, that guy Tian Yusheng is too difficult to deal with. He's directing for the first time and he has so many demands. For his movie 'Ex-Files,' I cast male actors from our company, but he either complained that their temperament wasn't right or that their acting wasn't good enough."

"If someone's acting isn't good, let him be trained slowly." Chen Guiliang didn't indulge him.

The actors definitely need to be replaced.

Han also has his own studio and is deeply integrated with Yuehua Entertainment.

Zheng Kai is an artist under Huayi Brothers.

When ByteDance produces movies, it will definitely prioritize casting its own contracted actors.

Chen Zhixi tentatively asked, "Does the boss think it would be more suitable for Park Han-byul, who just arrived, to be the female lead or the second female lead? Also, I think some of the overly intimate scenes could be cut."

This was Chen Zhixi's main purpose in coming here tonight; she felt that Park Han-byul might be the boss's woman.

Chen Guiliang was somewhat surprised: "She really came to China?"

“They arrived last month.” Chen Zhixi thought to herself, just as she expected.

Chen Guiliang said, "You can arrange it however you like."

(End of this chapter)