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

Chen Mo did not attend the class reunion after the college entrance examination.

The class group chat was lively all day.

Some people booked a hot pot restaurant, some clamored to go to karaoke, and others joked that Chen Mo, the soon-to-be Tsinghua University student, had to treat everyone.

Chen Mo simply sent a red envelope in the group chat, the amount of which was small, but it caused quite a stir in the group.

Liu Jianguo also popped up in the group chat.

"You can relax now that the exam is over, but be careful and don't drink alcohol."

The bottom row reads "Received".

Chen Mo smiled at the group messages but didn't participate further.

His high school farewell was over, but he still had many things to take care of.

On Douyin, Chen Liping withstood the first wave of trouble.

The penguins and Ali's attempts to probe were all thwarted at the outskirts.

Zhang Ming also temporarily suppressed the voices within ByteDance.

More importantly, Douyin's data is still skyrocketing.

On the day the college entrance examination ended, Douyin's daily active users had exceeded 20 million.

The average daily usage time per user continues to rise.

Young users, college students, and white-collar workers in first- and second-tier cities have been rapidly penetrated by Douyin's short video content.

External valuations of Douyin have also begun to rise from two billion US dollars.

Sequoia Capital, IDG Capital, Matrix Partners, and other newly entered investment firms initially thought the valuations were too high.

Now I'm just glad I didn't leave the meeting room.

A few days later, Chen Mo convened a shareholders' meeting of Douyin via telephone.

The meeting was short.

Chen Mo directly proposed to formally appoint Chen Liping as CEO of Douyin Group, with full responsibility for company management, external cooperation, capital relations and organizational development.

Zhang Nan was completely separated from the ByteDance system and became the Chief Technology and Product Officer of Douyin Group, responsible for product, algorithm, growth and creator ecosystem.

After a moment of silence, Zhang Ming was the first to agree.

Sequoia Capital, IDG Capital, Matrix Partners, Qiming Venture Partners, and other institutions subsequently all approved the proposals.

No one objected.

Because over this period of time, Chen Liping and Zhang Nan have already proven themselves.

……

In the family compound, Li Xiuyun brought freshly washed fruit to the living room, where Chen Jianguo sat on the sofa with several documents in front of him.

These documents were all compiled by Lin Wan at Chen Mo's request.

Integrate new housing information and decoration plans.

There was also a very thin company briefing.

Of course, it's the abridged version.

Chen Mo did not reveal the details that truly involved core equity, overseas accounts, Taichu No. 2, and Chuangsheng Capital.

It's not about continuing to hide it, but rather that there's no need to completely overwhelm your parents.

"So, you've already bought the house?"

Looking at the information, Li Xiuyun still felt it was somewhat unreal.

"Um."

Chen Mo nodded.

"The king of buildings in Sunac, the sixteenth and seventeenth floors."

"The floors after the sixteenth are reserved for drivers and security personnel."

"There are two apartments on the seventeenth floor. After the renovation, you and your sister can move in."

Chen Jianguo frowned: "Does your sister know?"

"I don't know yet."

"So when are you planning to say it?"

"Wait until the renovation plan is finalized."

Li Xiuyun looked at the floor plan, saying nothing, but her hand touched the 200-square-meter floor plan several times.

She and Chen Jianguo lived in the company's residential compound for half their lives.

The house is small, and the hallway lights are intermittent.

I've thought about moving before.

But even the best apartments in Jiangcheng were just **** to them in the past.

Now my son has bought four sets.

Chen Jianguo put down the documents.

"You're telling us all this today, not just to get us to move, are you?"

Chen Mo looked at his father.

"Dad, Mom, I want to ask you something."

Li Xiuyun looked up: "What?"

"Do you want to continue working here in the future?"

The living room fell silent.

The couple had actually thought about this issue over the past few days.

They had never considered not going to work before.

Work is a part of life, and also a part of security.

But since Chen Mo confessed, many things have changed.

Going back to work means that the meager salary is meaningless.

But if they were suddenly left with nothing to do at home every day, they would feel empty inside.

Chen Jianguo and Li Xiuyun exchanged a glance.

The couple's expressions were somewhat complicated; clearly, they had discussed this issue repeatedly in private over the past two days.

"Your mother and I have discussed it."

Chen Jianguo spoke first: "Originally, we thought that we couldn't let you lose your secure job, so we had to leave you a way out."

"But look at us now, our meager salaries aren't even enough to cover your taxes. Staying at your current job will only make you more vulnerable to scrutiny from colleagues and superiors."

"Most importantly," Li Xiuyun added from the side, "you're now dealing with deals worth hundreds of millions. Your father and I may be getting old, but we were through the tough competition to get into vocational school back then, so we have some perspective."

"If we stay at home every day growing flowers and drinking tea, in a few years our minds will be completely out of touch with the times."

"By then, we'll have a hard time even understanding what you're saying, let alone vetting your work. We don't want to be stuck in our ways and become a burden to you."

As Chen Mo listened to his parents' words, a surge of warmth welled up in his heart.

He suddenly realized that he had indeed underestimated his parents.

In the late 70s and early 80s, those who were able to pass the entrance exam for vocational high schools were considered to have a degree that was no less valuable than that of later undergraduate students; in fact, they could be considered among the best of their peers.

My father was steady and experienced within the system, while my mother was a restless and adventurous person who had run a toy store and sold Amway products. She had a very basic business intuition about cash flow and customer psychology.

What they lack is not ability, but a stage that transcends time.

"Since Mom and Dad have this idea, then listen to me and quit your job." Chen Mo sat up straight, his mind racing.

When looking for projects for my parents, I found that traditional industries have no future, while cutting-edge internet technologies have too high barriers to entry.

The best option is to perfectly combine the mother's past retail experience with the support of Douyin and Xingchen Technology, so that there is both a physical foothold and unlimited potential.

At the turn of 2015, one industry was on the eve of explosive growth.

"Mom, you used to own a toy store and did direct sales, so you're very familiar with customer operations, right?" Chen Mo smiled at Li Xiuyun.

"Of course. When I opened my toy store, all the kids in the village wanted to go there. Later, when I did Amway, I also led a team of more than a dozen people."

Li Xiuyun looked proud as she recalled her past glory.

"Then let's start with the toy industry, which you're most familiar with."

"You still run a toy store?" Li Xiuyun was stunned. Although her store was very popular before, it didn't actually make much profit. Later, she had to close the store because she was getting busier and busier with work.

"It's not a traditional toy store."

Chen Mo shook his head.

"To be precise, it's a trendy toy."

Li Xiuyun was even more confused.

What are trendy toys?

Chen Mo thought for a moment, then instead of using those complicated concepts, he picked up an apple from the coffee table and placed it in the center of the table.

"Mom, when you used to sell toys, kids bought the toys themselves."

"For example, remote control cars, Barbie dolls, and building blocks."

"But young people are different now."

"They're not just buying toys, they're buying an emotion."

"It's beautiful, cute, rare, can be displayed on a table, can be photographed and posted on social media, and can be shared with like-minded people."

He picked up an orange and placed it next to the apple.

"There's also something called blind boxes."

"The problem is that consumers don't know which specific product it is before they buy it."

"Regular version, hidden version, limited edition."

"I only realized what I had received the moment I opened it."

Li Xiuyun's brows furrowed slowly as she listened.

"Isn't this just like when we were kids, buying Little Raccoon instant noodles and unpacking Water Margin cards?"

Chen Mo smiled.

"Yes, that's the logic."

Li Xiuyun immediately understood.

"I understand."

"Back then, kids would buy a whole box of instant noodles just to collect a complete set of cards."

"Some people don't like noodles, but they just want to eat them."

Chen Mo nodded.

"Now it's just a change in packaging and a change in target consumers."

"It used to be kids collecting cards."

"In the future, young people will buy trendy toys, figurines, blind boxes, and grains."

Chen Jianguo asked, "And what is 'grain'?"

"It can be understood as the surrounding area."

Chen Mo said, "Characters from animation, games, movies, idols, and novels can be made into badges, standees, keychains, and cards."

"People who like a certain character are willing to spend money to buy these things."

Chen Jianguo listened in disbelief: "Just a card, a small ornament, can sell for money?"

"Yes," Chen Mo said, "and the profit margin is not low."

Li Xiuyun was clearly intrigued.

It's not that she doesn't understand consumption.

Back when she ran a toy store, she knew that children's money was actually the easiest to earn.

Parents are the ones who actually spend the money, but it is the children who decide on the purchase desires.

The trendy toys Chen Mo is talking about now are just young people instead of children.

"So you want me to do this?"

"Yes," Chen Mo said, "The first step is to open a physical trendy toy store."

"The store doesn't need to be too big, but the decoration needs to be nice. The location should be in the new Jiangcheng shopping mall or the core commercial street of the new urban area."

"You are familiar with retail, and you are also familiar with the consumption psychology of parents and young people."

"Dad can help you manage the accounts, processes, and suppliers."

When Chen Jianguo heard the word "accountant," his expression finally became more serious.

"Where do the goods come from?"

"Start by sourcing from established brands and distributors."

Chen Mo said, "But this is only the first step."

"What's truly important is creating your own intellectual property."

Li Xiuyun then asked, "What is IP?"

Chen Mo laughed and said, "You can think of it as a signature role."

"For example, a very cute little doll, a small animal with a story, or an image that is memorable at first glance."

"Once this character becomes popular, all related merchandise will sell."

"As for where the IP comes from, you don't need to worry. Star Technology can fund the incubation and buy out the works of some promising designers."

Li Xiuyun's mind raced, and she slapped her thigh: "I get it now! When the TV station used to broadcast 'Journey to the West,' the school gates were full of images of the golden headband and the golden cudgel."

"Now your Douyin account can be a TV station. If we can make our dolls popular on Douyin, all the little girls in China will come and buy them!"

Chen Mo smiled and gave a thumbs up: "Mom, it's a real shame you don't go to business school with your business acumen. That's exactly right."

"Your new company is tentatively named Xingchao Culture. Xingchen Technology will initially invest 50 million as seed money to build a national warehouse in Jiangcheng and open its first flagship store in a core business district."

"Mom is in charge of the front-end site selection, aesthetics, sales, and fan management; Dad is in charge of the back-end supply chain, warehousing, and risk control."

Chen Mo stood up, refilled his parents' water glasses, and continued, "We need to ride the wave of Douyin (TikTok) to make Xingchao Culture the number one trendy toy giant in China. Dad, Mom, the future of Jiangcheng depends on you two major taxpayers."

A long silence fell over the living room.

With 50 million yuan in start-up capital, backed by Douyin (TikTok's Chinese version) with 20 million daily active users that are growing rapidly, and supported by a top-notch professional team, the company is poised for success.

This kind of stage is no longer just for opening a small shop; it's sending them directly to take charge of a vast business empire.

Chen Jianguo looked at his son, who was now half a head taller than him, and his heart was in turmoil.

He thought his life would just be like this, working his way up in a small company until retirement, spending his days reading newspapers and drinking tea.

But now, his son has laid out a grand scroll before him, rekindling the pride in his bones.

Li Xiuyun listened with a radiant smile. If given a choice, who would want to stay in a lifeless workplace, repeating the same routine every day?

"Let's do it!"

Li Xiuyun slammed her hand on the coffee table, turned to her husband, and said, "Jianguo, tomorrow morning, let's go to our workplaces together to hand in our resignations. We've lived half our lives; in the end, we can't let our son look down on us!"

Chen Jianguo took a deep breath, glanced at Chen Mo, and said in a deep voice:

"Okay. I'll complete the resignation procedures tomorrow."

Seeing the fighting spirit burning in his parents' eyes, Chen Mo smiled.

In their past lives, they worked diligently and frugally to make a living, spending their entire lives sheltering their families and children from the storms of life, but they lost their own lives in the process.

In this life, he not only wants to stand at the top of the world, but also wants his parents to stand in the center of a dazzling stage, to live a truly wonderful and unforgettable life.