Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 240 The Exchange Between Two Layered Cakes
The meditation room was always nestled among flowers and trees. Listening to the gurgling water, Chen Xiu couldn't help but wonder where the stream in this temple came from.
“Temples are all built by water. There is a Dragon Well from the Tang Dynasty in Jingshan Temple. With a little use, it has become a spring for the stream.”

Standing in the courtyard, Ma Yun began to explain.

Seeing Chen Xiu listening intently and looking thoughtful, he had already guessed what she was thinking.

Chen Xiu turned to look at him: "This place is secluded and quiet, making it a good place for cultivation."

"No matter how good it is, as long as you don't become a monk, you still have to deal with all sorts of complicated work. Mr. Chen, did you come to see me to discuss spiritual practice?"

"Hehe, I'm just an ordinary person, I don't know anything about cultivation. I've come to bother you, Mr. Ma, because I have some work-related matters to discuss."

After explaining to Ma Yun, Chen Xiu took two steps closer to him and asked, "How has Taobao's live-streaming sales service been doing since it launched last year?"

Ma Yun glanced at Chen Xiu, puzzled, but her expression quickly returned to calm and indifferent.

"Taobao's data can be accessed online. Mr. Chen, are you interested in the e-commerce sector?"

"The e-commerce sector has already seen an oligopoly, and even Tencent has repeatedly failed. I'm not so ignorant as to lack self-awareness."

"Then what are you doing?"

"I'm actually more interested in understanding whether live streaming combined with e-commerce has a traffic-driving effect on the live streaming sector, or whether live streaming can only be used as a supplementary tool."

Upon hearing this, Ma Yun realized what was happening and looked at Chen Xiu. Their eyes met, and no further explanation was needed.

Ma Yun chuckled but did not reply.

Chen Xiu took a short step and then said, "I wonder if Mr. Ma has heard of Douyin, the small company I started with ByteDance?"

"Hehe, Douyin is not a small company. It has been established for less than two years, but its valuation has already reached several billion US dollars. It is the most valued unicorn in the Internet industry."

"I was lucky and happened to catch the right trend. It was also because I was young and reckless and messed around a lot, which actually increased its user base."

"How can it be considered a pointless exercise..."

Ma Yun wanted to refute Chen Xiu, but the words caught in his throat. He thought: This kid is playing games with me. If he's trying to get Ali to invest in Douyin, he's going to too much trouble. Douyin doesn't lack investors right now. He must have something else on his mind. I'll go and get him to say more.

"The traffic-driving events that Mr. Chen organized for Douyin have given the internet industry a vivid lesson. I've long advocated the concept of 'content is king,' but I never imagined combining content with internet interaction. Mr. Chen's ingenious ideas are truly admirable!"

"I don't deserve such praise. I succeeded by sheer accident. I was still quite confused afterward."

Chen Xiu said modestly, thinking to herself: If I were to immediately tell him to add a shopping cart on Douyin and use Douyin to drive traffic to Taobao, it would seem too obvious and make him think I have ulterior motives. I wouldn't be able to ask for any benefits or make any demands. It would be better to take a roundabout approach and try to guide him to think of it himself.

Who knows how many tricks these two have up their sleeves?

After a moment's thought, Ma Yun tentatively asked, "President Chen, are you planning to add e-commerce functionality to Douyin?"

"No, no, Douyin doesn't have the capability to build e-commerce channels yet. I just want to learn from Mr. Ma and see if there are any other breakthroughs."

A cold glint seemed to flash in Ma Yun's previously squinted eyes, but when she looked at Chen Xiu again, her expression returned to its usual calm and indifferent state.

"Another breakthrough? What do you mean?"

Ma Yun had a general idea of ​​Chen Xiu's purpose, but he also realized that if he directly asked Douyin and Taobao to cooperate, it would be too straightforward and put him in a passive position.

However, upon further reflection, Ma Yun understood the meaning behind Chen Xiu's earlier guidance.

As his thoughts shifted, he felt that the young man's long journey to the mountains to find him was enough to show his sincerity, and since Ali's family was so wealthy, he shouldn't be too petty.

So, before Chen Xiu could respond to the question, Ma Yun added another sentence.

"If a mature e-commerce company were to partner with Douyin, wouldn't that be a new breakthrough?"

"If such an opportunity were available, it would be wonderful! It's just that mature e-commerce companies are hard to find..."

At this point, Chen Xiu suddenly stopped, looking hesitant.

Seeing the mocking smile on Ma Yun's face, he knew that the other party had guessed his purpose and was interested in cooperating.

Immediately, Chen Xiu chuckled inwardly, but maintained a hesitant demeanor on her face: "Mr. Ma, have you already guessed what I'm thinking?"

"Haha! If you have any good ideas, just say them directly. As long as they are reasonable, we can cooperate once. There's no need to beat around the bush like this."

"Hehe, the main reason is that Douyin and Taobao are too different in size. I'm worried that Mr. Ma will look down on us small businesses."

"Douyin's user base is growing rapidly; how can it be considered a small, insignificant company!"

Ma Yun offered words of encouragement, but the joy in his eyes was clearly visible.

Chen Xiu's praise was based on reality; Ahri is indeed a behemoth now, so Ma Yun was very pleased to hear it.

Seeing the joy on Ma Yun's face, Chen Xiu thought to himself: I've flattered you. Now that I'm talking to you about cooperation and asking you for something, you can't refuse, can you?

"Mr. Ma, does that mean you've agreed to the collaboration between Douyin and Taobao?"

"Hmm, tell me about the specific form of cooperation first."

Ma Yun's joy vanished instantly. She crossed her arms, rested her chin on her hand, and pretended to be deep in thought, seamlessly transitioning between different states.

Chen Xiu was secretly amazed when she saw this, but then she thought that this was a big shot in the industry after all, and it would be a loss of class if he didn't have this kind of manners.

Fortunately, he was well-prepared today and wasn't worried that Ma Yun wouldn't fall for his trap.

"My idea is to add a shopping cart mode to the Douyin interface, which would be a link that takes users directly to a Taobao store..."

Chen Xiu explained the cooperation model to Ma Yun in detail. Ma Yun listened attentively without asking any questions.

After he finished speaking, Ma Yun stroked his chin and said, "President Chen, the cooperation model you mentioned can be simply summarized as Douyin helping Taobao drive traffic. Forgive me for being curious, but what do you get out of this cooperation?"

"Cooperation is about mutual benefit. If there is only giving and no receiving, I don't think such a cooperative relationship is sustainable or reasonable. Did I overlook something just now? Or is there something you didn't say?"

Ma Yun has been in the business world for decades and has seen all kinds of tricks.

Just by listening to Chen Xiu's explanation, he had already sorted out the relationship between the two parties and was able to analyze it from a completely objective perspective. This rationality alone is enough to demonstrate his competence.

Chen Xiu had already prepared an explanation for this issue.

"Mr. Ma, some benefits are not visible, and some benefits may not be realized until later."

"Can you tell me more specifically?"

"Douyin is about to hold its Series B financing round and is also building its overseas market. We need a lot of funds for development, and establishing a partnership with Taobao can effectively increase the company's valuation."

"That makes sense. So what will be delivered in the future?"

“By driving traffic to Taobao, we are actually helping Taobao merchants increase their revenue. As the number of users continues to grow in the future, this public domain traffic will also become a revenue stream.”

"understood."

Ma Yun nodded, most of the suspicion on her face had disappeared, but a hint of hesitation remained in her eyes.

"Mr. Chen, I agree with and understand the two benefits you mentioned. Do you have any other requests?"

"Have."

Chen Xiu's eyes shone brightly. His initial act of feigning weakness while holding Ma Yun transformed in an instant into an outward display of his inherent confidence.

Ma Yun praised Chen Xiu as an outstanding person, and seeing him display such an attitude at this moment, he couldn't help but secretly admire him.

"What do you want?"

"Currently, Kuaishou maintains its leading position in the short video market, and I want Douyin to become number one."

"it is good!"

Ma Yun clapped his hands and laughed, expressing his approval of Chen Xiu's idea and even more so his courage to admit it.

After laughing, he asked curiously, "What exactly do you want to do?"

"Blueberry TV is preparing a hit variety show called 'Keep Running' this year. The online broadcasting rights have been sold to iQiyi, Tencent, and Youku. Blueberry TV's own online TV is also broadcasting it. I would like to ask Mr. Ma to have his staff help make a connection so that Douyin can become the exclusive short video platform for 'Keep Running'."

"That's easy. You can just tell Lu Yuan later. What else?"

"Gone."

Chen Xiu shrugged, looked at the puzzled Ma Yun, and said, "Cooperation is about mutual benefit. Douyin and Taobao have already had many benefits from their cooperation. The entry of 'Running Man' is helping Douyin attract traffic. If I ask for more, it would be a bit greedy."

"Knowing when to advance and when to retreat, understanding the proper measure, Chen Xiu, your character is truly rare."

Ma Yun said with a sigh.

He had lowered his hands at some point and was pacing along the mottled walls of the temple, a thoughtful expression on Ma Yun's face.

After a while, he suddenly stopped and said smugly, "Since we're going to drive traffic, let's go big! Let's announce the collaboration between Douyin and Taobao through a live stream, just like you did before, and get a few popular celebrities to help us out!"

"star?"

“I wasn’t talking about you. Lu Yuan told me a while ago that Liu Qianqian is currently working with Ali Pictures. She should be quite popular.”

"Liu Qianqian?"

Chen Xiu murmured, her eyes darting around as if a multitude of thoughts were welling up inside her.

Seeing this, Ma Yun suddenly thought: Could this kid have feelings for Liu Qianqian? Interesting. Let me test him. If he does, that will be even more interesting.

"Mr. Chen..."

"Mr. Ma, I have an idea!"

"Hmm? What are your thoughts?"

"A TV series I invested in called 'Eternal Love' is about to premiere. Liu Qianqian starred in the movie version, which was also invested in by Ali Pictures. If the main creators from both sides come to Douyin live broadcast room to promote it, the topic will definitely be full of buzz and attract a huge amount of traffic!"

Chen Xiu said with great enthusiasm, her face full of desire for traffic, without the slightest bit of coyness about romantic feelings.

Ma Yun thought it was feasible and couldn't help but think: No wonder you succeeded. A hot-blooded young man, faced with the opportunity to get in touch with Liu Qianqian, actually only wanted to use her to gain traffic. Tsk tsk, I admire you.

Chen Xiu, oblivious to the strange look in Ma Yun's eyes, asked, "Mr. Ma, do you think this approach of jointly promoting our work through a live stream, while also promoting Douyin's collaboration with Taobao, is feasible?"

"feasible."

"How about we make arrangements as soon as possible? The Spring Festival is approaching, and celebrities' schedules are still very tight."

Ma Yun nodded with a smirk, then turned and called out to Fan Luyuan, who was not far away, "Luyuan, come here for a second!"

(End of this chapter)