Chapter 188: 187 She Says She’s Very Busy
Han Yixuan had already discovered that as long as she put on a friendly face from the beginning, getting along well with Pei Ningle didn’t seem like such a difficult matter.
Just as the two young girls went together to the musical instrument store, Wang Heng also arrived at the Penguin Building and walked into one of their independent offices.
It wasn’t Lu Qi’s, but Qin Meng’s office.
Wang Heng walked in, and Qin Meng greeted him with a smile. This investment director not only cheerfully closed the door, pulled him to sit on the chair, but also poured him a cup of tea.
Then, Qin Meng sat back in his office chair and smiled, “Classmate Wang’s inside information is really impressive! So many days of continuous limit up, others can’t even buy in if they want to. Luckily we had yours…”
Wang Heng waved indifferently: “Just good luck, good luck.”
Qin Meng: “So when are we roughly exiting?”
Wang Heng: “When it’s risen about enough.”
This answer was as good as saying nothing.
But Qin Meng certainly wouldn’t complain, still smiling as he said, “Actually, I asked Classmate Wang to come today not for that stock, but mainly for another matter. Do you still remember that list you gave me?”
Wang Heng recalled for a moment and quickly remembered.
That time, while confirming onboarding to Qin Meng’s department, he had also checked off a few names from the list of investment targets under department investigation. From memory, it seemed to be Bilibili, Zhihu, Didi Chuxing, Dazhong Dianping, and Jindong.
Wang Heng: “Is there a problem?”
Qin Meng’s smile grew even warmer: “We had an internal meeting and discussed a list with over a dozen companies. Yesterday, the opinion from above came down, and three were approved: Bilibili, Zhihu, and Didi Chuxing. Almost exactly the same as the ones Classmate Wang checked.”
Wang Heng couldn’t help asking: “What about Dazhong Dianping and Jindong?”
Qin Meng: “Ten days ago, our Penguin’s win-win fund already invested in Dazhong Dianping. Jindong is also confirmed for investment, and the announcement will come out next month. And it’s not just investment; I hear they’re also establishing an e-commerce strategic cooperation agreement, specifically to compete against that one…”
No explanation needed; Wang Heng of course knew which company Penguin and Jindong were cooperating to compete against.
“Even without the list I mentioned, you’d still invest in these, right?”
Before Wang Heng finished speaking, he saw Qin Meng shake his head vigorously.
“No no no, it’s not like that. Of course Dazhong Dianping and Jindong go without saying; those were decided long ago. But the other three are different. For example, Bilibili and Zhihu—we had big differences of opinion because those two don’t have a clear, viable profit model and have a high chance of losing money while gaining fame. But if you consider their fame-building ability, they’re actually very valuable. Thanks to your report, it helped me explain that value to them clearly.”
“What about Didi Chuxing?”
Qin Meng thought for a moment and replied: “We started investing in this company last year, but not only can they not achieve profit, they’re also facing extremely fierce competition. Whether to continue was actually very controversial internally. Your points in the report were very good—of course, I played them up well too—so now we’ve decided not only to continue, but to add more investment, from one hundred million to five hundred million or even a billion!”
Wang Heng was stunned: “A billion? US dollars?”
Qin Meng: “Yes, billions of RMB. Food, clothing, housing, and transport are everyone’s basic demands; Didi Chuxing has huge potential, and the competition is huge too, so of course we need to burn more money.”
Hearing him say this, Wang Heng felt a bit tempted. Think about it—his submitted report influencing financing worth billions; that feeling… too bad he wouldn’t get even a dime.
At this time, Qin Meng said again: “Of course I didn’t take your credit. The report is signed with your name. So the leadership above seems a bit interested in you and wants to chat with you.”
Penguin’s top brass?
Wang Heng couldn’t help asking curiously: “Which leader? Not Little Pony Ge, right?”
Qin Meng laughed: “Of course not. It’s Director Lu, President Lu. He mainly handles Penguin’s external investments and some external coordination work. Let me tell you, this Director Lu is a real big shot who can influence Penguin Group’s decisions and talk directly to Little Pony Ge.”
Wang Heng: “This big shot wants to see me?”
Qin Meng: “No need for an in-person meeting; Director Lu means a video chat will do. Of course not today— in a few days, when he has time.”
Wang Heng: “Got it. Big shots at this level are all super busy; it’s normal to wait a few days for a video talk.”
“Exactly! The chance to talk with Director Lu is something many in our department are eagerly awaiting. Congrats, Classmate Wang!” Qin Meng looked at him with undisguised envy in his eyes.
But Wang Heng didn’t get carried away and asked again: “What does he plan to talk about? Do I need to prepare some materials in advance?”
Qin Meng contemplated for a moment and said carefully: “We’re not too clear either; after all, what Director Lu has been busy with lately isn’t something ordinary mid-level people like us can inquire about. But I think, besides investments, the things he worries about are competitors.”
“Competitors…” Wang Heng lowered his head in contemplation.
He knew his own weight well; when it came to details of executing strategies, he didn’t know much more than others. But for macroscopic strategies, he could point out the rivers and mountains with confidence. After all, he of course remembered the development trends of Penguin and other competitors in the coming years.
At this moment, Qin Meng picked up his mobile phone and glanced at it, his expression somewhat surprised.
Wang Heng noticed the change in the other’s expression but didn’t ask, just waiting quietly.
The next moment, Qin Meng asked: “Have you been having some disagreement with Director Lu lately?”
Wang Heng was somewhat bewildered: “No, why do you ask?”
Qin Meng shook his mobile phone: “I just told Director Lu that you’re here with me and asked if she wanted to have dinner together later. She said she’s very busy and has no time.”
Suddenly, Wang Heng was also a bit puzzled. Given Lu Qi’s attitude toward him in the past few days, it didn’t seem like she had given up at all. So why the refusal this time? The legendary playing hard to get?
Qin Meng put down his mobile phone and asked: “So, do you want to have dinner with me later? You’re not going to say you’re busy too, right?”
Faced with a dinner invitation from a fellow male, Wang Heng really wanted to say ‘busy,’ but that excuse had already been used by Lu Qi, and since Qin Meng specifically mentioned it, saying it himself would seem a bit excessive.
So Wang Heng replied: “Okay…”
————
There’s another chapter tonight, around midnight.
