Five minutes later, he picked out a BMW X1, took the keys Chen Yansen handed him, and drove toward the city.
After getting Wu Shengyu settled, Chen Yansen returned to his office.
When he pulled out his phone, a friend request popped up. The profile picture was of a long-haired woman in her late twenties, wearing a biker jacket. She wasn’t what you’d call beautiful, but she had a cool, confident air that set her apart from her peers.
’Hu Weiyi?’
Chen Yansen read the self-introduction in the request and raised an eyebrow, instantly recognizing who she was.
’The founder of Mobike!’
’But it’s currently 2012, more than two years before Mobike will even be launched.’
’Besides, Hu Weiyi getting into the shared bicycle field was purely a coincidence.’
As the CEO of *Geek Auto* magazine, she’d met Li Bin, the CEO of Yiche Network, while helping the smart bike designer Chen Tengjiao find angel investors. Li Bin, however, refused to invest in the smart bike project.
He said bluntly that he was more interested in shared bikes and had even thought of a name for the product: Mobike.
It was a transliteration of Mobike, a portmanteau of "mobile" and "bike," meaning mobile bicycle.
’On second thought,’ Chen Yansen considered, ’under my influence, even Cheng Wei came up with DiDi Bike. It’s not so surprising that Hu Weiyi is entering the shared bicycle space early.’
Then, he tapped the accept button.
「Meanwhile.」
Far away in Hang City, Hu Weiyi was staring intently at her phone. When she saw that Chen Yansen had accepted her friend request, she immediately picked it up and, choosing her words carefully, typed out a greeting:
"President Chen, hello. I apologize for the intrusion. Regarding the shared bicycle project, I’ve drafted a business plan. May I send it to you? If it’s inconvenient for you to read, I can also explain it over the phone."
Hu Weiyi adopted an extremely humble tone. Her *Geek Auto* was just a small, niche magazine that relied entirely on sponsorships from car brands for revenue, making her completely incomparable to an internet tycoon like Chen Yansen.
She wouldn’t dare just send a file over directly; that would be a sign of extremely low emotional intelligence.
So as not to waste Chen Yansen’s time, her first message was both direct and extremely concise, giving off the feeling of a subordinate reporting to their boss.
’She’s a smart woman!’ Chen Yansen thought, glancing at the message.
’Normally, communicating by phone would be more efficient, but I have the Eidetic Memory talent. Of course, reading a document is faster for me.’
"Send it over. I’ll take a look."
When Hu Weiyi saw Chen Yansen’s reply, her heart sank. She thought he was just brushing her off, uninterested in the shared bicycle project.
Although she felt disappointed, she didn’t dare show it. She could only follow Chen Yansen’s lead, ask for his email address, and send him the business plan for Little Deer Bicycle.
At this point, she still didn’t know Li Bin, so naturally, she had no way of knowing about the Mobike product concept.
Half a month ago, she had been on a business trip to Yanjing and discovered DiDi Bike at a subway station entrance. With her keen business sense, she immediately realized the market potential and commercial value of this shared bicycle app.
So, as soon as she returned to Hang City, she launched the Little Deer Bicycle project.
Hu Weiyi knew full well that a single bicycle cost around 200-300 Hua Yuan. With the funds she had on hand, she could purchase a few hundred bikes at most, and the remaining money would have to go toward developing the app and hiring operations and dispatch staff.
Therefore, seeking angel financing became her only way out.
That’s when Cheng Weixing, who was making a killing in the ride-hailing market, entered her sights. The two were both alumni of Zhejiang University, and it was by relying on this connection that she was able to get Chen Yansen’s private contact information.
This was the importance of going to college—and a good college at that!
For example, the reason Zhang Xuhao’s Eleme was able to secure Series A funding was thanks to the help of the Jiaoda alumni network, because Zhu Xiaohu of Jinsha Venture Capital was also a Jiaoda graduate.
’Little Deer Bicycle?’
Chen Yansen’s expression was strange as realization dawned on him. ’It seems Hu Weiyi hasn’t connected with Li Bin yet.’
With that thought, he sent her a voice call invitation.
Seeing the invitation, Hu Weiyi panicked. Her breathing quickened. She took a few deep breaths, licked her lips, and then pressed the answer button.
"President Chen, hello," Hu Weiyi said with a small smile, taking the initiative to greet him.
"How much money do you want?" Chen Yansen asked bluntly.
"Two million," Hu Weiyi blurted out without much thought.
Hearing this, Chen Yansen chuckled. "You leveraged your connection with Cheng Weixing for just two million? Are you looking down on the CEO of Fast Taxi, or are you looking down on Senlian Capital?"
"I’m sorry, President Chen, that’s not what I meant. I just believe that in the initial stage, a shared bicycle project doesn’t require a lot of operating capital."
Hu Weiyi quickly explained, her face all smiles.
"How much equity for two million?" Chen Yansen asked.
"Twenty percent," Hu Weiyi offered cautiously.
"A ten-million valuation based on a business plan alone?" Chen Yansen asked in return with a smile.
In reality, it was possible, but it depended on the person.
A year ago, the Pinbei app, before it was even finished, had secured a valuation of two billion US dollars. Zhang Yiming’s Byte Technology, without even a proper business plan, got a valuation in the tens of millions. Cheng Wei’s DiDi Bike, also before it had launched, received a 50 million valuation.
As long as you had enough clout, anything was possible.
But Hu Weiyi’s resume was primarily in the media industry, which wasn’t convincing enough.
"What price did you have in mind, President Chen?" Hu Weiyi asked tentatively, her brow furrowing slightly.
"I’ll give you 50 million. The project is yours to manage. You’ll vest 1% equity each year, up to a maximum of 3%."
Chen Yansen said lightly.
The implication was that he was trading the position of project manager and a maximum of 3% equity for Hu Weiyi’s ’indentured servitude’.
Hu Weiyi was stunned. She had never expected this kind of outcome.
’Work for Chen Yansen?’
The moment the thought surfaced in her mind, Hu Weiyi was tempted.
Senlian Capital had over a dozen holding subsidiaries. The top, well-known companies included Orange Technology, Pinbei, Today Technology, Orange Pay, Kuai Pao, Fast Taxi, and Gaode Map, each with a valuation of no less than one billion US dollars.
’Even though the equity percentage is small, the value is much higher!’
It was said that Liao Wei, the CEO of Cloud Speed Express, only held 2% equity, but based on the company’s valuation, that stake was worth at least several billion Hua Yuan.
A look of delight crossed Hu Weiyi’s face, but after a moment’s thought, she still said, "President Chen, I came to you for an investment."
"Am I not giving you money? I’m not just investing in your project, I’m investing in you," Chen Yansen said with a soft chuckle.
From entrepreneur to employee in an instant!
Hu Weiyi wanted to board the great ship of Senlian Capital, but she also didn’t want to lose control of the project. For a moment, she was indecisive.
"Timing is crucial for both investing and accepting investment. Sway Taxi missed out on investments from Penguin and Huaxin, and when it was crushed, it didn’t even make a splash. DiDi Bike has been online for a month, and you’re not the only one watching it."
Chen Yansen said slowly and deliberately, a hint of nonchalance in his tone.
Once capital set its sights on this cake, shared bicycle apps would start popping up like mushrooms after a spring rain.
In his memory, besides Mobike and OFO, there were dozens of similar products like Hellobike, Xiaolan, Yong’an Travel, Xiaoming, Xiaobai, Time, Wukong, and 9M.
’I have many candidates. Hu Weiyi and Little Deer Bicycle aren’t my first choice.’
"President Chen, I’ve thought about it, and I agree to your proposal." Hu Weiyi understood what Chen Yansen meant. If she missed this opportunity, trying to communicate with him again would be next to impossible.
’An opportunity only comes once. If I don’t seize it, it’s gone.’
"The name ’Little Deer Bicycle’ is a bit lacking. Change it," Chen Yansen said.
"Do you have any suggestions, Boss?" Hu Weiyi was quick to change her form of address.
"OFO. It’s simple and easy to remember. And graphically, the letters look like a bicycle," Chen Yansen said in a flat tone.
’The shared bicycle space is destined to be a massive free-for-all.
But this product could also become part of Gaode Map’s O2O strategy. While the profit margins aren’t large, it still holds strategic value for the ecosystem.
Factoring in the Human Dao Fire, I can’t possibly lose money. Worst-case scenario, I’ll just find some ’sucker’ to take it off my hands in the future.’