Returning to his senior year of high school, he went all in and made billions by buying at the botto

After picking up Chen Jing, Chen Mo stayed at home for one night, a rare occurrence. The next day, he drove straight to the Changhu High-tech Industrial Park.

The eighth floor of Douyin Group.

After more than half a month of intensive reconstruction, the first closed beta version of the program was finally completed.

The large screen at the front of the conference room displays the brand-new product interface.

Black background with white musical note logo.

There are no menus, no complicated categories, and no thumbnail lists common in traditional video software.

Upon opening the app, a 15-second vertical video immediately fills the entire screen.

Swipe up with your finger to seamlessly play the next video.

The right side displays the profile picture, like, comment, and share buttons, while the bottom shows the music title.

This interactive system is extremely bold in today's mobile internet products.

"Currently, the beta version only supports Android." Zhang Nan stood next to the large screen, speaking briskly, "The installation package has been compressed to 38 megabytes, and the first screen loading time under normal network conditions is controlled within two seconds. The recommendation system has completed its first round of integration."

"Music templates, basic filters, fast and slow motion shooting, and similar functions are also available."

Chen Mo held the test phone and swiped upwards repeatedly.

Dance, lip-syncing, campus scenery, pets, simple snippets of life.

Compared to the initial videos casually filmed by employees, the quality of the content has improved significantly.

But the problems remain obvious.

The dance moves are too professional for the average user to imitate.

The campus videos are more like promotional videos—exquisite, but lacking in entertainment.

"The product is pretty complete," Chen Mo said, putting down his phone, "but the content is still lacking."

The meeting room fell silent immediately.

The young manager in charge of operations explained, "We've already signed over two hundred campus creators. Most of them come from media, dance, and art schools, and they've also received our filming training."

"It's because they received too much training that it turned out like this," Chen Mo pointed to the screen. "Everyone is acting, but no one is expressing themselves."

"Douyin is not a micro-film platform, nor is it a competition arena for dancers."

"Ordinary users will only find this content visually appealing, but they won't feel the urge to create their own versions."

Zhang Nan nodded slightly.

This is also a question she has been thinking about recently.

The content team has invested a lot of manpower, and the videos are becoming more and more sophisticated, but the threshold for creation has also increased accordingly.

If users only watch and don't record, Douyin will ultimately remain just a video player.

"What's your idea?" Zhang Nan asked.

"Find a group of people who haven't received any professional training," Chen Mo said. "Give them the simplest music and templates, and see what they can produce."

Chen Mo then stood up and opened the conference room door.

"Brother Chen Mo!"

A clear, girlish voice rang out, and Chu Yiran poked half her head in, looking around the conference room.

"May we come in?"

Chu Yinuo stood behind her, clearly a little embarrassed.

The two sisters were not wearing their school uniforms today.

Chu Yinuo wore a light blue knit sweater and a white long skirt, exuding a quiet and gentle temperament.

Chu Yiran wore a pink sweatshirt and jeans, with her ponytail tied high, looking youthful and lively.

On their two slender wrists, they wore the same watches that Chen Mo had given them.

"Come in."

Chen Mo waved to the two of them, and many people in the conference room were immediately alerted.

Same beautiful face, completely different temperament.

This natural contrast makes it highly recognizable with almost no packaging.

Zhang Nan quickly understood Chen Mo's intention.

"Are you planning to have them participate in the test?"

"right."

Chen Mo handed the two test phones to the two sisters.

"There's a piece of software that hasn't been released yet."

"Take a look first."

Chu Yiran took the phone and immediately became interested after seeing the video playing in full screen.

Gently swipe your finger upwards.

The video can be switched directly.

She rowed again.

Then came the third time.

"This is pretty fun."

"There are only a little over two hundred videos on your phone," Zhang Nan reminded her. "You can try filming some first."

Chu Yiran quickly found the shooting button in the middle.

The music playlist then pops up.

She played some upbeat music and pulled her sister to stand in the open space of the conference room.

"Sis, let's take a picture."

"There are so many people here..."

Chu Yinuo looked at the dozen or so pairs of eyes around the conference table, her cheeks slightly flushed.

"It's okay, Brother Chen Mo, you take the picture for us."

After Chu Yiran finished speaking, she handed the phone directly to Chen Mo.

Chen Mo took the phone.

"What do you want to film?"

"Let me think about it."

Chu Yiran looked at her and her sister's clothes, and her eyes suddenly lit up.

She leaned close to Chu Yinuo's ear and whispered a few words.

Chu Yinuo shook her head at first, but in the end she couldn't persuade her sister otherwise.

The two stood side by side in front of the camera.

The music is ringing.

In the first half, Chu Yinuo quietly held a book, while Chu Yiran made exaggerated faces beside her, trying to distract her from reading.

When the music rhythm changes, the two turn around at the same time.

When they turned back again, the two sisters had switched places and changed their expressions.

Chu Yinuo, who had been quiet, blinked like her younger sister.

Chu Yiran, however, held the book and pretended to seriously push up glasses that weren't actually there.

The movements were not professional, and Chu Yinuo couldn't help but laugh, making the last two seconds a bit chaotic.

But when the fifteen-second video finished playing, laughter erupted in the conference room.

Authentic, relaxed, and with clear contrasts.

More importantly, any pair of sisters, friends, or even lovers can easily imitate it.

"Take another take."

The operations manager couldn't help but say, "We could have handled it much better in the last two seconds."

"Need not."

Chen Mo uploaded the video directly.

"Keep the laughter going."

"Why?" Chu Yiran asked.

"Because that's the best part."

What ordinary users need is not a flawless performance, but a performance that makes them feel, "I can make one too," after watching it.

After the video was uploaded, the system made a limited recommendation to the test accounts of the employees present.

Less than five minutes.

The number of views has exceeded 200.

Seventy-three likes.

Comments appeared quickly.

"Are they twins?"

"The older sister's laughter at the end was so cute."

"What's the name of the music? I want to make one with my roommate too."

"How exactly do you tell the two of them apart?"

Of the 200 beta testers, five have already clicked "Buy the same item".

Zhang Nan stared at the backend data, his eyes gradually brightening.

The completion rate was 92%, and the repeat playback rate was 37%.

These two figures far exceed the professional content meticulously filmed by the operations team.

"Is this what you call the desire to express oneself?"

She looked up at Chen Mo.

"To be precise, it's about a sense of participation."

Chen Mo said, "Professional content inspires awe in users, while template-based content encourages imitation."

"In its early days, Douyin didn't need actors, but rather the first person willing to take the lead."

Zhang Nan nodded, then immediately told the operations team, "Completely adjust the existing creator training program. Reduce courses on camera angles, lighting, and performance. Increase courses on music templates, motion design, and gameplay planning."

"Each video should convey only one message, and ideally, it should be replicable by ordinary users."

The operations manager quickly took notes.

Chu Yiran had no time to listen to the discussion; she was checking the comments on her phone, her eyes shining with excitement.

"Sis, there are really people who can't tell us apart!"

"It's inherently difficult to distinguish."

"Let's film one more."

She pulled Chu Yinuo up, ready to continue trying.

"Don't rush."

Chen Mo asked, "What do you think of this software?"

"It's fun."

Chu Yiran answered without hesitation.

"It's more convenient than posting videos on social media."

"What's wrong with it?"

"There are too few videos."

She thought for a moment and added, "Also, I don't feel anything when I click 'like'."

Zhang Nan was slightly taken aback.

What does "I don't feel anything" mean?

"Just press it once, and the number changes."

Chu Yiran gestured with her hand.

"Wouldn't it be more interesting if a heart appeared or a sound appeared when you placed the order?"

The product manager in the meeting room immediately looked up; this was actually a very small interaction detail.

Liking a product is one of the most frequently used actions.

Timely visual feedback can indeed reinforce user behavior.

"Write that down," Zhang Nan said. "Likes will add animation and slight vibration feedback."

Chu Yiran got more and more excited as she spoke.

Comments can also float over.

"When you see music you like, it's best to have a place to save it directly."

"Also, if someone follows me, could you please notify me immediately?"

She had no product experience whatsoever.

All opinions are based on the most direct user experience.

It is precisely this kind of feedback, which is not bound by existing product logic, that is most valuable.

Zhang Nan simply pulled her to sit down next to him.

"If you have any other thoughts, just say them."

Chu Yiran quickly struck up a lively conversation with the product team.

In contrast, Chu Yinuo was much quieter.

Holding another phone, she watched over a dozen videos before softly asking, "What if I come across content I don't like?"

"Just swipe past it," a product manager replied.

"But after swiping past it, will it recommend similar items again?"

Zhang Nan's expression shifted slightly: "At present, we will only reduce the weight of similar content."

"Can I long-press it to tell it I don't like it?"

Chu Yinuo said, "If it's just swiping away, it might mean I haven't finished watching it yet. Long-pressing and selecting 'dislike' would probably be more accurate."

Zhang Nan looked at her, a hint of surprise in his eyes.

The younger sister focuses on instant feedback and interactive fun.

However, the older sister noticed the negative feedback mechanism in the recommendation system.

The value these sisters brought was greater than she had anticipated.

"Add a long-press 'not interested' option," Zhang Nan told the algorithm lead, "and differentiate between skip, negative feedback, and reporting behaviors."

Chen Mo sat to the side without saying a word.

Many of Douyin's seemingly obvious features in the future have been gradually improved based on feedback from countless real users.

He possesses the memories of the final form, but it is impossible for him to customize all the details on his own.

Truly excellent products require someone willing to listen to the users.

From this perspective, Zhang Nan is indeed the most suitable person.

.......

One o'clock in the afternoon.

The first round of internal testing has ended.

The product team compiled 37 suggestions for modification.

Twelve of these items are given the highest priority.

More importantly, the content direction has been completely adjusted.

Exquisite is no longer the primary standard.

Low barriers to entry, fast pace, easy imitation, and realism have become the new core indicators.

After the meeting, Chen Liping called Chen Mo into his office alone.

"Xiao Mo, the product direction is now clear."

"But there are still two problems."

"explain."

"The first is copyright."

Chen Liping placed a price list on the table.

"After several record companies learned that we were going to make music short videos, they offered us quite high prices."

"If we acquire all the popular songs, the licensing fees in the first year alone could exceed 30 million."

"The second is the server."

"With few beta users, the pressure isn't apparent yet. Once officially launched, video bandwidth and storage costs will increase rapidly."

"Our current budget can support millions of users."

"To go further, we need to raise more funds."

Chen Mo flipped through the price list.

Thirty million in copyright fees is indeed a considerable sum for Douyin at present.

But music was the core of the early content ecosystem.

"Popular copyrights cannot be spared."

Chen Mo said, "But we can't be completely led by the record company."

"Establish an independent music department. While negotiating copyrights, we will also sign original musicians, campus singers, and online songwriters."

"We don't just buy music; we also need the ability to turn a song that nobody has ever heard into a national hit."

Chen Liping nodded thoughtfully.

"Where's the server?"

"First, we will negotiate long-term contracts with several domestic cloud computing and telecom operators."

"Use Xingchen Technology's credit to make overall purchases and drive down the unit price."

Chen Mo closed the document.

"In addition, we are preparing to launch our Series A funding round."

Chen Liping was startled.

"They haven't even used up the 100 million yuan yet, and they're already raising funds?"

Chen Mo continued, "Douyin's future development will exceed our expectations, so we must prepare in advance for funding and access to distribution channels."

"Understood, I'll arrange it!" Chen Liping now unconditionally trusted Chen Mo. He put away the documents and suddenly smiled, "Those two girls are quite suitable for a vocal duel."

"Zhang Nan has already asked me if they could become the first batch of signed creators."

"We won't sign for now." Chen Mo shook his head. "They still have to take the college entrance exam. Filming videos is just a way for them to relax."

What he needs is for the two sisters to participate happily, not to get them involved in online fame and fortune too early.

……

On the way back.

Chu was still fiddling with the test phone.

The video of the twins has been viewed over three thousand times.

It received over a thousand likes.

More than seventy people took the same photo.

"Brother Chen Mo, are we about to become famous?"

"What's so great about 3,000 views?"

"That's already a lot for me."

Chu Yiran excitedly scrolled through the comments.

Some people say I'm more lively than my older sister.

Chu Yinuo sat next to her and whispered a reminder: "Some people say you're too noisy."

"That person has no taste."

Chu Yiran didn't care at all.

She suddenly looked up.

When will this software be available for students to use?

The first batch of invitation codes will be released before the Spring Festival.

How much are you giving me?

Ten.

"That's too little."

"Then five will do."

"Ten is good!"

Chu Yiran quickly changed her tune, fearing that Chen Mo would continue to reduce the amount.

Chu Yinuo looked at her sister's happy face and a faint smile appeared in her eyes.

She wasn't particularly interested in the so-called number of views.

In comparison, she preferred the process of the three of them standing together and filming the video.

That relaxed and lively feeling was like going back to my childhood.

The Audi drove onto the highway back to Jiangcheng County.

The first video on Douyin that was truly created by an ordinary user and sparked widespread imitation was born in an ordinary meeting room.

No one knew that the 15-second video of the twins, which even included moments of laughter, would become the first classic case in Douyin's product history to be repeatedly mentioned.

No one knew that from this day forward, a completely new way of expressing content had quietly crossed its initial threshold.