Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 160 Working out with Pony the Horse

"Hehe, hehe."

Pony Ma shook his head speechlessly, then looked at Chen Xiu with a very strange expression.

"I thought that when you said you were going to act, it was just an excuse, or a passing interest, and that you would occasionally play small roles for fun. But now it seems that you really love acting!"

"Once you've finished your career, it's normal to do something you enjoy, right?"

Chen Xiu spoke these words with exceptional sincerity.

After a brief eye contact with Pony Ma, he also saw a hint of reminiscence on the face of this internet mogul known for his refined and low-key demeanor.

After a while, Pony Ma, whose expression had returned to calm, chuckled softly.

"At first I couldn't understand why you left Didi. Given the situation at the time, if you had allied with Tencent, you could have easily squeezed out Cheng Wei. Now it seems you were just putting on an act?"

"This is really not it."

Chen Xiu shook her head in denial, explaining, "After Didi merged with Kuaidi, its internal management became increasingly rigid. Even if I were to fight with Cheng Wei, all I would get would be a Didi that requires constant compromise."

“Initially, I had limited capital, then went through multiple rounds of financing in the middle, and later there were two large-scale mergers and acquisitions. With more internal voices, things became more difficult to do. Given all that, I might as well start my own company.”

This was the first time Chen Xiu had spoken to someone about her true thoughts on doing so since leaving Didi.

Pony Ma, who thought he would use "acting" as an excuse again, first showed a hint of approval on his face when he heard these words, and then a look of surprise appeared on his face.

"You're very confident."

"How do you say this?"

"Didi is already an oligopoly in the online ride-hailing industry. If it successfully acquires Uber's company in China this year, further solidifying its oligopoly position, its valuation will not be less than $350 billion!"

As a strategic investment company of Tencent, Pony Ma was naturally aware of the major moves within Didi, which is why he was surprised by Chen Xiu's words.

"From what you just said, I think you believe that Douyin's prospects are definitely no less than Didi's, is that right?"

Pony Ma's tone was very curious, and her gaze toward Chen Xiu became more inquisitive.

Under his gaze, Chen Xiu brought up a completely unrelated topic.

“350 billion US dollars, then the remaining Didi shares I hold will appreciate in value again. Mr. Ma, does Tencent still have any plans to increase its stake in Didi?”

"You don't want to stay at all?"

"Investing is all about buying low and selling high. I feel that this price has met my expectations, so cashing out wouldn't be a bad idea, right?"

"...You can discuss this with Martin."

Pony said dejectedly that he felt he couldn't understand Chen Xiu anymore.

If Chen Xiu truly loves acting and is giving up everything he's built in the internet industry, then it's just a case of a young person achieving success overnight and starting to act recklessly; he can simply stop paying attention to it later.

However, this is not the case.

In addition to co-founding Douyin with ByteDance, Chen Xiu has also invested in new sectors of the internet industry and even brought entrepreneurs to Tencent to seek investment.

These two behaviors are quite contradictory.

Seeing Pony's puzzled expression, Chen Xiu didn't know how to explain it, because it was impossible to explain, so she simply skipped the topic.

"Mr. Ma, shall we eat first?"

"Okay! Let's eat."

Pony nodded, feeling that he had probably gained nothing from this dinner.

No matter how wealthy or powerful you become, you still need to eat.

The two, who had already chatted for quite some time, lost interest in continuing their conversation after picking up their chopsticks. Apart from occasionally sharing their opinions on the dishes, they had no other interaction.

When Pony Ma put down his chopsticks, Chen Xiu saw him take a pack of soft-pack cigarettes out of his pocket and put it on the table.

Do you smoke?

"You can draw one."

"Then I'll have one too."

Pony took a cigarette, lit it, and then pushed the cigarette case and lighter in front of Chen Xiu.

As Chen Xiu began to smoke, he glanced at the time.

This action also caught Pony Ma's attention: "Do you have other plans for tonight?"

"I usually like to go to the gym to exercise, and after eating, I usually check the time."

"You work out?"

Pony flicked his cigarette ash, a look of interest appearing in his eyes.

Unaware of his meaning, Chen Xiu simply said conservatively, "Just practice casually to stay healthy!"

"I've recently started working out too. I usually go to the gym after meals to stretch my legs. How about we go to the gym downstairs for a workout later?"

Chen Xiu stared at Pony's horse for a while, and after confirming that he was seriously inviting her, she asked a question.

"Do you want me to give you a private coaching job?"

"hehe."

……

In fact, Chen Xiu guessed correctly.

Pony Ma, who had no other plans for the night and was in the midst of a fitness craze, genuinely wanted Pony Ma to be her personal trainer when she sent out this training invitation.

There's nothing we can do about it; Pony Ma's face is just so recognizable.

Whenever he goes to the gym, the coaches swarm around him like they're on steroids.

Even though Pony Ma later chose a coach and declared that no one else should bother him, the coach who trained him was still like a sycophant... which really affected his training experience.

Now that I've heard that Chen Xiu has a hobby of fitness, and judging from his physique, he must be quite fit, it's only natural for Pony Ma, who shares the same hobby, to extend an invitation.

When the two arrived at the hotel's gym, took off their suit jackets, and prepared to start their workout, Pony Ma's bodyguards silently stood on the outer edge of the equipment, trying to maintain a distance that wouldn't obstruct their view but still allowed them to keep an eye on their boss's movements.

Regarding fitness, Chen Xiu does have this habit. After undergoing systematic strengthening, her training intensity has even caught up with that of Xiong Ben, a muscular man.

It's just that I don't eat enough normally, so the pieces don't appear particularly large.

However, in terms of fitness level alone, he definitely surpasses most coaches.

Compared to Chen Xiu's physical condition, Pony Ma, who had been pampered for many years, had already turned pale and was sweating profusely on his forehead when he completed the third set of squats, and was waving his hands repeatedly.

"I can't take it anymore, I need to rest between groups, you can come over!"

"Yeah, that's okay."

Chen Xiu originally wanted to say that he wasn't used to using the Smith machine for squats, but seeing Pony Ma's inability to get up from the chair, he gave him some face.

Clang, clang, clang, one set of squats finished.

Chen Xiu's face was not red, she was not out of breath, and she didn't even sweat.

Words can offer comfort, but physical reactions don't lie.

Seeing Chen Xiu's reaction of not even breaking a sweat, Pony Ma knew that there was a significant gap between their training levels.

However, since we're already here, and we extended the training invitation ourselves, it would be rather impolite to end it right at the beginning.

Pony thought this to herself, but she was already somewhat resistant to going back to that Smith shelf. For a moment, she couldn't help but feel conflicted.

Seeing his reluctance, Chen Xiu understood and said, "Mr. Ma, these trousers of ours are a bit difficult to stretch. How about we switch to training the upper body instead?"

"Great! That's what I think too."

Pony Ma reacted very quickly. Having worked out for a while, he naturally understood that the training intensity for the upper body was much lower than that for the lower body.

As long as it's not too tiring, it's possible to persevere through a whole training session.

However, Pony Ma ultimately underestimated the situation.

Through the previous training, Chen Xiu already knew Pony's training level.

When training his upper body, he began to precisely control his movements. Basically, every set of training pushed Pony to exhaustion, but not to the point of being unable to continue due to pain.

At this intensity, after half an hour of training, Pony felt even more refreshed than if she had trained for two hours at the gym.

By the end of the practice, Chen Xiu was only slightly sweaty, and the hem of her clothes was slightly wrinkled.

Pony Ma was drenched in sweat, his shirt plastered to his back, his face flushed, but he looked somewhat excited.

"Hu~~"

Letting out a long breath, Pony, who had thoroughly enjoyed the workout, looked at Chen Xiu and said, "Why didn't I feel this way before when I was working out?"

"You should ask yourself that, ask your coach! Why are you asking me?"

Chen Xiu's reply was somewhat impolite, but Pony Ma didn't seem to care at all.

Just now, several of the last groups, when they couldn't keep up, were rambling on and on, and Chen Xiu used various forms of verbal encouragement to motivate them.

After a high-intensity and emotionally charged exchange, the two became closer than when they first met, so Pony Ma was not going to let a mere question go unanswered.

"Phew, working out is really great. All the alcohol I drank at noon turned into sweat."

Pony wiped his sweat with a towel, thought for a moment, took out his phone, and held it out to Chen Xiu.

"Let's add each other on WeChat. If we can find the time together next time, let's meet up again."

"……Fine."

Although training with a Bronze player is tiring, what can you do when this Bronze player is Pony's horse!

Chen Xiu added Pony Ma on WeChat. Just as she was about to put her phone away, she saw him turn on the front camera and take a selfie.

"Mr. Ma, what are you doing?"

"After a workout, you should post something on social media to commemorate it, right? Do you want one too?"

"You still care about this?"

"What are you talking about? I have a life to live too!"

Pony Ma feigned displeasure and pouted, then held up her phone and asked Chen Xiu if she wanted to take a picture too.

"Take a picture, can you send me the photos later? I want to post them on my WeChat Moments too."

"Sure! You can post this kind of lifestyle content freely; it won't affect the stock price."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiu nodded slightly and moved closer to Pony Ma, taking a photo with him.

After taking the group photo, I received the photo via WeChat.

Chen Xiu looked up, about to say something, when she caught a glimpse of three or four people standing on the outer edge of the gym. She immediately turned to look and found that they were also looking in her direction. They probably recognized her and Pony Ma.

"Instead of letting them speculate, I might as well post something on my WeChat Moments and record my life."

Pony Ma stared at his phone and said calmly, his tone somewhat helpless.

Chen Xiu felt that his life was not much different from that of a celebrity; he was also watched and gossiped about by all sorts of people, except that he didn't need to earn money by acting...

After posting on WeChat Moments, Pony Ma stood up from her seat and waved to her bodyguard.

"Alright, that's enough for today. We'll keep in touch via WeChat later."

"Ok."

"I'll have someone arrange a car to take you."

"Thank you, this is your fee for today's private coaching."

Chen Xiu didn't bring an assistant on this trip, which would have been more convenient with a car escorting her away.

Upon hearing his words, Pony Ma simply smiled nonchalantly, then turned and left.

(End of this chapter)