The richest man started taking advantage of loopholes after joining Alibaba.

Hangzhou, western part of the city.

No. 77 Gudun Road, headquarters of Weiguang Media.

Two weeks ago, this place was just a basement filled with the smell of mold and burnt radiators.

Now, the lights in the entire building stay on all night.

As soon as the $100 million from Alibaba arrived, the first thing Lin Che did was buy the building.

It's not a rental.

It's a purchase.

Pay in cash, all at once.

This nouveau riche-style behavior has drawn attention from the entire Hangzhou real estate industry.

Three o'clock in the morning.

In front of the floor-to-ceiling windows on the top floor.

Lin Che held a glass of whiskey with ice in his hand.

Beneath our feet lies the Weiguang Logistics Distribution Center, which is currently undergoing expansion.

Countless heavy trucks bearing the "Weiguang Express" logo, like a long steel dragon, meandered in and out of the night.

The roar of the engine was so loud that even through the double-layered soundproof glass, one could vaguely feel the ground vibrating.

"Brother Che."

Fatty Wang pushed open the door and came in, holding a newly printed report in his hand.

His large gold chain glittered under the lights, and the fat on his face trembled slightly with excitement.

"It exploded."

"It's completely blown up."

Fatty Wang slammed the report on the table.

"The pre-sale period for Singles' Day has only been running for 48 hours."

"Daily order volume has surpassed..." He held up two fingers, swallowed, and said, "Two million orders!"

Two million orders.

In the e-commerce landscape of 2014, this was equivalent to Vipshop's entire day's volume and half of JD.com's peak volume.

Microgroup buying only took one month.

"And this too."

Fatty Wang turned on the projector on the wall.

On the screen were the front pages of major technology media outlets.

36Kr: "A Hidden Unicorn Emerges: Weipintuan Valued at Over $10 Billion, a Dark Horse in the Alibaba Group?"

Huxiu: "The Third Pole of E-commerce? In-depth Analysis of the Viral Growth Behind the 'Group Buying Model'"

LatePost: Who exactly is that young man who got Tencent to blacklist him and Alibaba to foot the bill?

The media has gone mad.

The investment world has gone mad.

In an era where traffic is becoming increasingly expensive, micro-group buying is like an anomaly, using the most primitive and brutal methods to tear through the defenses of the giants.

"Lower-tier markets," "social e-commerce," "consumption downgrade"... these terms that will only become hot topics in the next few years were ignited by Lin Che on this night.

Lin Che looked at the sensational headlines on the screen.

He didn't laugh.

He simply swirled the wine in his glass, watching the amber liquid leave streaks on the glass's surface.

"Fatty."

Lin Che spoke, his voice very soft.

Do you know what a unicorn is?

"A company worth a billion US dollars?" Fatty Wang asked tentatively.

"No."

Lin Che walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling window and looked down at the bustling logistics park below.

Those trucks were carrying not only small commodities from Yiwu, but also the desires of the most basic level of China's economy.

"A unicorn is a monster."

Lin Che's eyes deepened.

"It eats grass, but what it produces is blood."

"It squeezes every last drop of profit from the supply chain with low prices and traps users in their last minute with algorithms."

"Then, these flesh and blood are piled up into a growth curve that Wall Street can understand."

He turned around and pointed to the constantly changing GMV number on the screen.

"This isn't money."

"This is the ticket to power."

Just a month ago, he was a gambler who had to borrow money from underground banks at exorbitant interest rates to earn millions of dollars.

Now, he holds $100 million in cash, controls tens of millions of daily active users, and holds the key to logistics in western Hangzhou.

Even CEO Ma has to give him some face, and even Sequoia Capital has to be mindful of his feelings.

"Brother Che..."

Fatty Wang was stunned by the sudden sense of oppression emanating from Lin Che.

He felt that the person in front of him was no longer the brother who ate boxed lunches with him, but a tyrant who was rising from the shadows to the throne.

"The media are all looking for you."

Fatty Wang whispered, "We want to arrange an exclusive interview. There are also a few VCs (venture capitalists) sitting in the lobby downstairs all day, saying they want to give us money."

"not see."

Lin Che downed the wine in his glass in one gulp.

The spicy liquid slid down my throat like a fire.

"Let them wait."

"In this circle, the more mysterious you are, the more valuable you are."

Lin Che put down his wine glass and straightened his collar.

"And the real guests are arriving soon."

"A guest?" Fatty Wang was taken aback.

"Buzz—"

The anonymous Nokia phone in Lin Che's pocket vibrated.

This is not a text message.

It's a phone call.

Lin Che took out his phone.

The caller ID showed a number without any notes.

But he knew who it was.

The location of that number is Hangzhou, Alibaba Campus.

Lin Che answered the phone.

"Feed".

"Come to the Lakeside Garden."

It was Mr. Ma's voice on the other end of the phone.

Unlike last time, he was not as composed, nor as domineering as when he was offered amnesty.

This time, Mr. Ma's voice carried an extremely suppressed chill.

It's like a volcano about to erupt.

"Now."

Only two words.

Then came the busy tone of "beep beep beep".

Lin Che stared at the blacked-out phone screen.

He knew that what was bound to happen had finally arrived.

The report from Muddy Waters should have already been sent to Mr. Ma's email address.

That 80-page short-selling report detailed how the Weiguang Group created a false prosperity through "left-hand to right-hand" transactions.

"Brother Che, who is it?" Fatty Wang's heart skipped a beat when he saw Lin Che's serious expression.

"Mr. Ma."

Lin Che put his phone back in his pocket.

He walked to the mirror and looked at himself in it.

Young, handsome, and worth hundreds of millions.

This was the highlight of his life.

It was also a moment on the edge of a cliff.

"Fatty."

Lin Che turned his head, a crazy smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Turn on all the lights in the logistics park."

"Start all the trucks!"

"Even if the truck is empty, you have to get it running."

"Huh? Why?"

"Because of tonight."

Lin Che pushed open the door and strode out.

"I want Mr. Ma to see this."

Even if he is the emperor.

"He can't do without my...rebel army."

......

Half an hour later.

Lakeside Garden.

This time, there was no tea, no discussion.

As soon as he entered, Lin Che saw a printed English document that was slammed onto the coffee table.

[Muddy Waters Research: Alibaba Group – “Plan W” Fraud: How a Shadow Company Inflated its IPO Valuation Through Fake Transactions]

Mr. Ma stood by the window, his back to Lin Che.

Joseph Tsai sat on the sofa, his face as pale as a sheet of paper.

In the corner, although Li Mo had been fired, Lao Xiao was sweating profusely, holding a phone, seemingly in urgent communication with his legal team in the United States.

The air was so thick it was suffocating.

This is a nuclear bomb.

Moreover, it landed precisely on Alibaba's head on the eve of its IPO.

"explain."

Mr. Ma did not turn around.

The voice was as cold as the Siberian wind.

Lin Che stepped forward.

He didn't read the report.

Because he knew every word, even every punctuation mark, in that report better than anyone else.

That was part of his memories from his past life.

It was also a time bomb he planted himself in this lifetime.

He picked up the report and flipped through it.

"Well written."

Lin Che commented calmly, "The logic is rigorous, and the data is detailed, especially the part about the related transactions of Weiguang Logistics, which is almost like something written by our internal auditors."

"How dare you say that?!"

Old Xiao couldn't hold back any longer. He covered the microphone and shouted, "Muddy Waters is questioning our GMV! They're questioning whether our group-buying platform is a tool for fraud! Our pre-market stock price has already dropped by 5%! If this isn't handled properly, tomorrow's IPO..."

"The IPO will continue."

Lin Che interrupted him.

The voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable certainty.

He threw the report back onto the table.

"Smack."

"Mr. Ma."

Lin Che watched President Ma's retreating figure.

Why do you think Muddy Waters released its report at this time?

"Is it for justice? Is it to uncover the truth?"

"No."

Lin Che smiled.

"It's because they're greedy."

"It's because they shorted Alibaba; they wanted to drive down the stock price so they could profit from it."

Mr. Ma finally turned around.

His eyes held a complex mix of anger, disappointment, but mostly... expectation.

He was hoping that this young man, who had repeatedly created miracles, could once again provide a solution to break the deadlock.

"What do you want to say?" Mr. Ma asked.

"I want to say that we only have one path now."

Lin Che stepped forward.

"Acknowledge the existence of the Microlight Group."

"But don't admit to fabricating the story."

"We want to tell the whole world."

A wolf-like glint flashed in Lin Che's eyes.

"This is not a fabrication."

"This is the greatest innovation in the history of Chinese e-commerce."

"Muddy Waters says we're the shadows."

"Then let's step into the sunlight."

"Let them see."

"Is this unicorn made of paper?"

"Now."

Lin Che reached out his hand, as if he had already grasped the sword for retaliation.

"Am I qualified to sit at the poker table, Mr. Ma?"

Mr. Ma stared at Lin Che.

I stared at it for a full ten seconds.

Then, he picked up the phone on the table.

"Notify the public relations department."

Mr. Ma's voice regained its former domineering tone.

"Preparing for the press conference."

"I want the whole world to know."

"Muddy Waters has really messed up this time."