After the Divorce, I Could Hear the Voice of the Future

"Can this contract be worth twenty million US dollars?"

After signing the contract, Lu Liang asked with a smile, and Zhu Hu also smiled, "I hope it can be worth two hundred million."

Just as Lu Liang had guessed, he had already found a buyer for ofo—the higher the selling price, the more he would earn.

Lu Liang chuckled, "Maybe in the C or D round, but the B round can't fetch that high a price yet."

Twenty million US dollars was still his expectation after a 20% premium, considering that greed must be tempered by reality.

With Dai Wei's financing methods, an investment of 1.7 million US dollars could potentially leverage three to eight times that amount.

By the time the company's funds were completely spent, the valuation for the next round would also likely be between three and eight times.

Lu Liang took the median of five times, roughly eighty-five million US dollars, as the expected valuation for the B round.

Zhu Hu smiled, seemingly agreeing with Lu Liang's estimation, and Lu Liang asked, "The veto power, how do you plan to use it?"

Zhu Hu shook his head, "It's not time to use it yet, using it rashly will only cause resentment among ofo's founders."

Lu Liang pondered, still unclear about one thing, "I really don't understand why Dai Wei would agree to it."

The board's veto power was almost the right of the chairman, but Dai Wei had given it up so easily.

To be precise, it was shared; now both Dai Wei and Zhu Hu had veto power.

"Just like I can't understand why Tianxing Capital got 20% of the shares, it's essentially the same."

Iron Boss might be strong, but after all, he is Iron Boss. In the business field, Dai Wei is just a novice entrepreneur.

A novice, albeit one born with a silver spoon, prone to mistakes, arrogance, and misunderstanding.

Lu Liang smiled knowingly,

Handed the contract to Wen Chao, "Hu, I'm off."

"Bye-bye, next time I'll visit you in Modu." Zhu Hu stood at the company's entrance, smiling as he watched Lu Liang leave.

Shen Peng had a good eye for investments, which he did not deny, but in judging people, Zhu Hu considered himself better than Shen Peng.

In half a year, Lu Liang achieved what others couldn't in ten or even twenty years, both in accomplishments and wealth.

Zhu Hu thought highly of him.

Leaving Golden Sand River Venture Capital, Lu Liang asked Wen Chao, "What time did you schedule with Mr. Zhang?"

Kuai Shou already had over two hundred million users, it was tough to get in, but ByteDance still held some hope.

So he had Wen Chao contact Zhang Yiming's assistant yesterday to schedule a meeting to talk.

"Three o'clock in the afternoon." Wen Chao opened his notepad.

"Then let's first visit their company."

Lu Liang, with a smile on his lips, planned to visit the offices of ByteDance and see if there were any hidden gems.

What's outstanding about ByteDance was its unique algorithm and recommendation system, but these aspects weren't impossible to replicate.

The saying goes well, being born into this world, how can one willingly stay beneath others.

Taking advantage of Zhang Yiming's absence at the office, Lu Liang decided to show his face—you never know who might secretly contact him.

In the financial markets, with two successful deals under his belt and one day netting a hundred million dollars in private equity, Lu Liang's reputation had greatly increased.

Even though it wasn't the agreed-upon time yet, the front desk receptionist dared not neglect him and treated him warmly and respectfully.

They invited Lu Liang to the company's reception room and called over a woman in her thirties, deputy director of administration.

"It might be my secretary who got the time wrong for meeting with Mr. Zhang," Lu Liang said without a second thought, immediately throwing Wen Chao under the bus.

"The phone reception there was a bit loud; I misheard." Wen Chao also handled it smoothly, with a sheepish expression.

The deputy director of administration, Ding Yazhen, made contact with Zhang Yiming, and came back to say, "Mr. Lu, please wait a moment, our Mr. Zhang is still on his way."

"No worries, it's our fault for getting the time wrong."

Lu Liang took a few sips of tea and, feeling bored, suggested visiting the company.

Ding Yazhen could hardly refuse and, after a moment's thought, smiled and said, "Mr. Lu, let me accompany you around."

A small group wandered through the administrative, marketing, and operations departments, among others.

Ding Yazhen was careful and did not take Lu Liang to the crucial departments, such as projects and technology.

Lu Liang smiled silently, not minding, as suggesting a visit to the core departments would be too obvious.

"So, this is how it operates..."

"DiDi, Neihan Duanzi, I've played with it for a while too—quite amusing."

Each department they visited, Lu Liang showed a keen interest.

Although he couldn't visit the most crucial departments, he could have others relay messages there.

An investor holding billions, interested in an industry, was enough to pique interest.

Soon, Zhang Yiming, born in 1983 and just two years older than Lu Liang, hurried over at the news.

32 years old this year and a five-time entrepreneur, ByteDance was his fifth venture.

Three years had passed, and last November, they had conducted a Series C funding round, reaching a valuation of five hundred million dollars.

"Mr. Lu, hello, sorry for my late arrival; shall we move to the meeting room?"

Zhang Yiming, experienced from five startups, knew all too well about the tricks of using a visit as a pretext for poaching.

Although Lu Liang was from a venture capital firm and seemed to have no competitive relationship, it was still something to be vigilant against.

"That's fine, let's go."

Lu Liang followed Zhang Yiming back to the reception room and spoke frankly, "Mr. Zhang, I am very interested in your ByteDance."

Zhang Yiming pondered for a while, "I'm truly sorry, Mr. Lu, but our company has no plans for fundraising at the moment. Could you leave your contact information? We'll invite you over when we're ready for the next funding round."

Last year having finished their Series C funding, they were preparing Watermelon Video; they had no intent on funding until they achieved results.

After all, fundraising means selling equity, and one naturally waits for a good price before selling.

Lu Liang felt a tinge of regret but didn't press further, instead asking, "Mr. Zhang, are you familiar with Kuai Shou?"

"Being in the industry, how could I not have heard of it?" Zhang Yiming narrowed his eyes, glancing at Ding Yazhen.

Their Watermelon Video was aimed to compete with Kuai Shou, but it was still a secret, supposedly unknown to anyone.

"I'm quite interested in the short video industry, but it seems that Kuai Shou has a strong regional attribute."

"Perhaps, but right now Kuai Shou is leading the short video industry—it's the market's choice."

"Maybe it's just me then."

Lu Liang observed Zhang Yiming, trying to discern something, but found him impervious and his interest waned.

After a brief chat, he prepared to leave. The two exchanged contact details, agreeing to collaborate in the next round of funding.

Zhang Yiming watched Lu Liang leave and turned to Ding Yazhen, "Which departments did you take Mr. Lu to?"

"Administrative, Marketing, Operations, and similar departments."

Ding Yazhen quickly explained, assuring she had been with him the whole time without visiting any off-limits areas.

Zhang Yiming pondered for a long while but decided not to doubt any further, "Go back to work then."

Watermelon Video was a secret, but ByteDance's entry into the short video industry was already not a secret.

Due to their app Neihan Duanzi, the June mid-month update started to trend toward a short video community.

"Book the tickets; we're heading back to Modu tonight."

Lu Liang logged into Weibo and composed a status: "Hoping for a collaboration opportunity next time, @ZhangYiming," attaching a photo of ByteDance's front desk.

The art of business can sometimes be plain and unglamorous: tour ByteDance, show interest, and finally express regret—naturally, this would stir some interest.