Chapter 56

Chapter 56 Tianqi Annual Meeting

After Xu Yuan and Sun Tianqi signed the contract, they did not go to find Ye Hao immediately.

Instead, they deliberately waited a while longer. Ye Hao must have already known that they had approached Sun Tianqi.

Since that was the case, it was better to let the other party worry a little longer.

Ye Hao had been pressuring Sun Tianqi through Xu Yuan, and Xu Yuan really disliked this passive feeling.

Since the cooperation between the two of them was now due to Xu Yuan acting as a graft, and Xu Yuan had already guessed what Ye Hao was up to, Xu Yuan had to secure the greatest benefit!

Lin Changyuan’s 5% was a courtesy gift thrown out by Ye Hao, but Xu Yuan was not satisfied with it.

  ……

“Dad, Mom asked you to come back early. There are a lot of people bringing gifts to the house.”

It was already past eight in the evening, and the imperial capital was shrouded in darkness. Ye Hao stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, unusually lost in thought.

Ye Sisi called to urge him to come home early, but Ye Hao could only give a brief, perfunctory response.

“Sisi, have mom accept the gift for now. Dad will handle it slowly when he gets home. Be good, Dad will be home by ten at the latest.”

“Okay. But Dad, it’s almost New Year. What’s there to be so busy with at the company? You have so many people under you, why do you have to handle everything personally?” Ye Sisi was a bit puzzled. No matter how big or small the matter, Ye Hao personally dealt with everything at Longhua, such a large company.

“Sisi, judgment and decision-making must always be in your own hands; as for execution, that’s what they are supposed to do,” Ye Hao gently advised.

“All right, then come back early, okay?”

After hanging up the phone, Ye Hao still stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, staring intently at the situation downstairs at the company.

Finally, after another half hour, the familiar Maybach Pullman appeared.

“Where exactly did Xu Yuan go?” Ye Hao murmured to himself.

After leaving Tianqi, Xu Yuan did not have driver Sun send him off, but disappeared for several hours before reappearing.

Ye Hao felt uneasy; Xu Yuan had no leverage in Tianqi, and that 5% stake was insignificant, so he shouldn’t be acting so unusually.

Sun Tianqi must have made a promise to Xu Yuan. Even if Xu Yuan was upset, as a businessman, he wouldn’t sacrifice his interests over a minor emotion.

Xu Yuan’s best option now was to bring Sun Tianqi’s compromised terms to persuade Ye Hao, and then secure the promise from Sun Tianqi.

  ……

“President Ye, have you been waiting long?”

Xu Yuan pushed the door open and saw Ye Hao looking at him with a hint of grievance, which immediately lifted his spirits.

Ye Hao shrugged, young people always repay in kind.

“President Xu, let’s get down to business.” Ye Hao was getting a bit impatient and didn’t want to be polite anymore.

“President Sun was worried you wouldn’t attend the annual meeting, so he asked me to persuade you. But I think you will definitely go,” Xu Yuan said as he plopped down on the sofa.

“I will indeed go. What else? Did President Sun say anything else?” Ye Hao frowned. Sun Tianqi had only asked Xu Yuan to invite him to the annual meeting.

Could Sun Tianqi not know Ye Hao’s intentions? Regardless, Ye Hao would personally attend the shareholders’ meeting after the annual meeting.

This was something that didn’t need any thought. Ye Hao didn’t believe that Sun Tianqi had only asked Xu Yuan to convey this message.

“Yes, he said Penguin’s steps are too big, and he trusts President Ye more.” Xu Yuan switched to on-the-spot fabrication mode.

“The reform at Tianqi is necessary; times are progressing.” Ye Hao let out a slight sigh of relief. If Sun Tianqi didn’t want to be completely suppressed by Penguin, cooperating with him was the only option.

However, Ye Hao’s thinking was similar to Penguin’s. He had been stalling Sun Tianqi, simply trying to continuously push down the bottom line that Sun Tianqi could accept.

“But… President Ye also cooperates with Penguin, right? Otherwise, I wouldn’t be the one acting as this messenger.” Xu Yuan squinted. Ye Hao insisting on playing hide-and-seek with Sun Tianqi definitely meant he had some concerns.

Ye Hao just nodded and didn’t say much. In business, there are no real enemies, only eternal interests.

He and Tencent share the same goal, but they are competing for dominance.

Tencent and Weibo cooperate closely, and after Tianqi’s future reforms, Weibo is practically a natural battleground.

Moreover, Tencent is a giant in the internet technology industry, with a large young consumer base in its entertainment sector. Ye Hao doesn’t have market share in this area, so he is definitely at a disadvantage.

So what Ye Hao really wants is a tripartite cooperation: Sun Tianqi, Penguin, and himself, all working together as one. Ye Hao would act as the bridge between the two sides and take the lead.

However, what startled Ye Hao a bit was that since Xu Yuan had realized he wanted to push forward Tianqi’s reform, why was his attitude like this now?

Xu Yuan would also be a beneficiary of pushing Tianqi’s reform!

“President Xu already holds 5% of Tianqi’s shares, and I suppose President Sun has promised some other benefits as well. President Xu won’t lose out on this trip.”

They are all of the same kind; Ye Hao still couldn’t figure out Xu Yuan’s thoughts. No one dislikes having little money, only not having enough.

“It’s not a loss. According to President Ye’s plan, Tianqi’s stock price will definitely soar in the next few years, and its profitability will be unprecedented. I spent over 100 million to buy shares worth 400 million, so it’s already a profit. Doubling or even tripling the overall return shouldn’t be a problem,” Xu Yuan nodded and said.

After the shareholders’ meeting, whether led by Ye Hao or by Penguin, with this 5% stake, he could make a huge profit in the future.

But Xu Yuan didn’t have the scale of Longhua or Penguin. What about after that? Xu Yuan wanted more than just this.

“So, you shouldn’t be too greedy, Mr. Xu. Mr. Sun really has nothing else to say?” Ye Hao frowned.

“Mr. Ye, why don’t you ask him in person on that day? By the way, I also downloaded Weibo on my phone.”

Funny enough, I left a bit early this morning and missed the chance to watch the commotion.

I heard a celebrity tripped at the airport and ended up trending number one. Mr. Ye, do you think it’s funny or not?

Xu Yuan looked at Ye Hao with a smile, his eyes full of meaning and thought-provoking.

  ……

After Xu Yuan left, Ye Hao fell into deep contemplation. This was different from what he had originally thought; according to his idea, Xu Yuan should have come with Sun Tianqi’s sincerity.
Even if Sun Tianqi was unwilling to compromise with him, Xu Yuan would still advise Sun Tianqi for his own interests.

But now, Ye Hao was completely confused about the situation—what exactly did Xu Yuan want?
It was already past ten o’clock at night, and Ye Hao had originally promised Ye Sisi that he would go home early.

Taking out his phone, Ye Hao hesitated for a long time before finally dialing Sun Tianqi’s number.

“President Sun…”

  ……

“Just lie down and rest comfortably for two days!”

Xu Yuan lay in the bathtub of the presidential suite, enjoying the luxury of watching TV while soaking in the bath.

This hotel was arranged by Ye Hao, and Xu Yuan wasn’t going to waste the opportunity to stay here.

He guessed that at this moment, Ye Hao was probably chatting with Sun Tianqi. But whether the two were getting along or not, Xu Yuan didn’t care anymore.

“They’re all old foxes,” Xu Yuan couldn’t help but sigh.

Ye Hao was a seasoned fox, and Sun Tianqi was no less cunning.

Xu Yuan had always thought Sun Tianqi was too soft, but considering he was the founder of Tianqi Entertainment, a giant in the industry, there was no way he was without some tricks up his sleeve.

Everything had to wait until the day after tomorrow’s annual meeting; only then could it be determined who would win or lose.

  ……

“It’s really lively!”

Xu Yuan looked especially handsome in a suit as he stepped down from the Maybach Pullman.

The annual meeting venue had two entrances in total; the celebrities naturally used the red carpet entrance, which attracted a lot of media.

Shareholders like Xu Yuan, or Tianqi’s business partners, naturally used the VIP guest entrance.

Although there were some financial news media as well, compared to the red carpet entrance, they were like a small player facing a giant.

Click click click…

The flashbulbs kept going off, and Xu Yuan was still a bit unaccustomed.

Also entering together were several other business celebrities who often appeared on financial news; these financial reporters were almost all surrounding them.

Xu Yuan, on the other hand, didn’t have a single reporter around him—after all, financial news doesn’t care whether you’re handsome or not.

The target audiences are different, so naturally, the more active big shots are more popular.

“Yo, is that you?”

Xu Yuan was about to enter the venue when he suddenly heard someone seemingly calling out to him. He turned his head and found the person looked somewhat familiar.

The man was dressed neatly, with an extraordinary aura, appearing to be in his forties or fifties, and was smiling at Xu Yuan.

Several financial reporters who wanted to come up and interview the man were stopped by the bodyguards nearby.

Xu Yuan looked at him, somewhat puzzled, and asked, “You are…”

“Hehe, young man, important people tend to forget things. I also helped catch that big grass carp you caught that day.”

The man walked up, smiling as he looked at Xu Yuan. He hadn’t expected to run into him here either.

“Oh, it’s you, big brother!” Xu Yuan finally realized. The person who helped him catch fish and said he would spend ten thousand yuan to buy it was none other than the man in front of him.

“Haha… we really are fated to meet here. Let me introduce myself, Huang from Tianyu Group.”

“Xu Yuan, shareholder of Tianqi.”

The two smiled and shook hands. Xu Yuan’s expression seemed calm, but inside he was a storm of emotions.

Mr. Huang from Tianyu Group, in his previous life, the Tianyu Pharmaceuticals he was about to invest in was one of the group’s subsidiaries.

This Mr. Huang is considered a legend in the business world. He started out in Hong Kong in his early years, then moved to the mainland, overcoming countless obstacles to establish Tianyu Group, which is a conglomerate worth hundreds of billions.

Xu Yuan had only seen him in financial magazines in his previous life, and just now he almost didn’t recognize him.

He actually came too? Tianqi Entertainment really has that much face?

I’m afraid that at today’s annual meeting, no one has a higher net worth than Mr. Huang.

“Let’s not chat here anymore, let’s go inside first,” Mr. Huang said with a smile.

Tianyu also holds shares in Tianqi, but not many, not enough to warrant Mr. Huang coming in person.

Mr. Huang came this time because there is a charity banquet at the end of the annual meeting.

Besides being a business tycoon, Mr. Huang also has the identity of a philanthropist. Although Tianqi cannot compare to Tianyu in scale, in the media industry, Tianyu is no match for Tianqi. Mr. Huang specifically came over to make an appearance.

“Please, after you.”

When it comes to senior figures in business, a certain level of respect must be shown, so Xu Yuan did not dare to delay.

“No need to be so polite, let’s go together.” Mr. Huang chuckled, looking very approachable, and put his arm around Xu Yuan’s shoulder as they walked into the venue.

Those financial reporters saw this scene and immediately felt like they had caught a big scoop, snapping photos nonstop.

Xu Yuan touched his nose, thinking that this time it would be hard not to become famous.

Thanks to classmate Xiao Yang for tipping 100 Qidian coins.