Ning Yongde smiled as he watched Chen Pingjiang sit opposite him, slouching with his legs crossed, occasionally bouncing them.
If it were anyone else, he would probably frown, but if this person was Chen Pingjiang, Principal Comrade instead felt a sense of familiarity.
This was a sign of not treating him as an outsider.
After glancing over the various application forms in front of him, Chen Pingjiang said with a smile,
"Principal, did you call me here just for these?"
Ning Yongde pretended to sternly say,
"What, you don't approve?"
"How could that be!"
After saying that, Chen Pingjiang picked up his pen and quickly signed his name on the Party membership application and various reports.
The shrewd Chen Pingjiang knew Ning Yongde and the University of Finance and Economics' intentions too well and didn't expose them.
Anyway, for honors given for free, it was better to accept them.
How imposing it would be to directly announce his title when he goes out in the future.
"Your 'Grab a Parking Spot' game has been quite popular recently; my granddaughter is also playing it. I hear you're looking for funding?"
Chen Pingjiang nodded and didn't hide it:
"Currently, we're waiting for the best offer. I'll sell it to whoever offers the most, provided, of course, that they have sufficient resources behind them."
"Fundraising means expansion, so you'll definitely be short-handed, right?"
Ning Yongde said with a smile,
"Some school leaders from other universities have contacted me, hoping to recommend students to intern at Renrenwang, and some even hope that Renrenwang's campus recruitment this year can be hosted at their schools. Of course, if it's difficult, then never mind."
Different schools have different approaches to internships.
Some universities may offer internship opportunities as part of their curriculum, while others may require students to find internship opportunities on their own.
During the internship period, there will be dedicated teachers responsible for guiding and supervising students' internship work, including team leaders, professional teachers, and external mentors.
In addition, there will also be a series of management measures and processes, such as planning management, process management, and communication, to ensure the quality and effectiveness of the internship.
Chen Pingjiang raised an eyebrow:
"Oh, summer vacation is coming soon. I almost forgot I was a student if you hadn't mentioned it. After summer vacation comes autumn recruitment."
"Principal, what do you think of this idea? For autumn recruitment, I'll only hold it internally within our university, and other universities can be excluded. But for intern recruitment, Renrenwang and Zhizhen Catering will be open year-round. We will offer regularization to outstanding interns and early admission."
This was typical of Chen Pingjiang, wanting only the sweets, not the cannonballs.
After all, prioritizing internships before campus recruitment will become a trend for major internet companies in the future.
More and more internet companies explicitly state internet internship experience in their requirements for HR positions.
Job hunting is not like opening a blind box.
Reducing the sunk costs for both parties when choosing a job is a good way for everyone.
Rather than through autumn recruitment, recruiting fresh graduates who might breach contracts, not meet job requirements, or fail probation, it's better to observe them through internships first.
Keep those who are suitable, and let go of those who are not.
Moreover, recruiting interns can also snatch up outstanding students before autumn recruitment, while saving costs.
Ning Yongde saw through Chen Pingjiang's thoughts at a glance, smiled, and tapped Chen Pingjiang with his finger.
"You! You're too clever."
As he walked out of the administrative building, a girl with a ponytail walked towards him.
She spotted Chen Pingjiang from afar and sweetly called out,
"Hello, Chairman?"
Chen Pingjiang was completely bewildered.
"Did you call the wrong person?"
"No, I didn't. I'm a freshman executive of the Industrial Management Student Union. Don't you remember me? At the beginning of the month, a new election was held, and you were elected the new Chairman of the Industrial Management College Student Union with a high number of votes."
Chen Pingjiang was stunned.
This Hao Shaoping was really impressive; such a big event as the student union's election was quietly completed without the new chairman even being present.
Actually, it wasn't Hao Shaoping's fault.
The entire company was extremely busy recently, so how could he dare to disturb Chen Pingjiang for what seemed to Chen Pingjiang like the smallest possible matter?
So he quietly handled it himself.
Of course, no one would object, nor would anyone dare to object.
Just like that, Chen Pingjiang became the youngest college student union chairman in the history of the University of Finance and Economics.
If not unparalleled, then certainly unprecedented.
The only one to be elected student union chairman in his freshman year.
The current Chen Pingjiang has become an unattainable presence in the eyes of the University of Finance and Economics faculty and students.
The school authorities are very good at creating buzz, occasionally putting the previous exclusive interview with Chen Pingjiang on the cafeteria TVs.
Even the recent popularity of "Grab a Parking Spot" was introduced on a full page of the school newspaper.
When the word count wasn't enough, they brought up stories of Chen Pingjiang attending classes.
A certain lecturer shared his personal experience:
"Chen Pingjiang is the most outstanding student I've ever seen. He always sits in the first row during class, actively asks questions, and his homework is always the best."
As if by some strange impulse, Chen Pingjiang walked to the Industrial Management Class 4 classroom, where a finance lesson was being held.
Standing in the hallway, he heard the female teacher loudly proclaiming:
"Students, you must not confuse the differences between VC and PE; it will be on the exam. They differ in form, investment targets, identity, investment time, investment scale, and power.
For example, your class monitor Chen Pingjiang's Renrenwang, for its first round of financing, it would mostly be in contact with VC investors; of course, that's not to say there wouldn't be PE, because Renrenwang's scale is already quite substantial."
Wow, are they using me as a case study in class now?
And she's saying it so naturally.
If I just walk straight into the classroom now, will it make the teacher awkward and make the students think I'm showing off?
But if I don't go in, wouldn't that be like walking in fine clothes at night?
After "struggling" for two seconds, Chen Pingjiang still stood at the entrance of the classroom.
"Reporting, teacher, I'm late."
The teacher and all the students in Industrial Management Class 4 looked at Chen Pingjiang as if they had seen a ghost, thinking they were mistaken.
The female teacher even laughed:
"Speak of the devil, and he shall appear. Please come in quickly, Chen Pingjiang."
On his way to find a seat, he was met with various looks of delight, and Cong Nini even subtly winked at him.
"Brother Chen, I never even dared to dream that I would actually encounter you in class."
"Me too, but I think he specially came here to show off."
"Interview time, how did it feel hearing them praise you at the door just now?"
"Brother Chen, my Renrenwang account is XXXX. Please give me some extra gold coins in 'Grab a Parking Spot'."
"..."
As soon as Chen Pingjiang sat down, a bunch of people, disregarding that they were still in class, surrounded him, chattering away.
Surprisingly, for the remaining half of the class, Chen Pingjiang actually listened with unusual seriousness, which made the lecturer feel quite honored.
After class, when Chen Pingjiang and a few classmates reached the parking lot at the entrance of the teaching building, they waved goodbye.
The volcano gray Panamera glittered brilliantly under the sunlight.
With a roar of the engine, it gradually drove away.
"How come I feel that the class monitor changes cars more frequently than girlfriends? Wasn't it a G-Wagon a while ago?"
"That's old news. This car was bought almost half a month ago," the "King of Knowledge" Zhao Shaoyang introduced.
"I feel like the distance between us and the class monitor is getting further and further."
Cong Nini, walking nearby, quipped,
"There's no furthest, only further."
Students from other majors nearby, as they passed this group, hearing their words, all stopped to glance sideways.
.........
Chen Pingjiang sat in the meeting room, listening to Shu Mang give a report.
"Currently, twenty-four VC/PE investment firms, including Sequoia, GSR Ventures, Northern Light Venture Capital, IDG, CDH Investments, DCM, and Tencent, have contacted us, all responding with the talking points arranged by Chairman Chen. Oh, and SoftBank also came this morning."
"Also, some individual investors such as former Sohu CEO Gu Yongqiang, Sina COO Lin Xinhe, and former TOM Group CEO Wang Xuan have also completed initial discussions with us."
After Shu Mang finished speaking, Wan Yuqian immediately took over:
"In the past few days, the atmosphere in the company has become increasingly restless. Everyone has heard that a large number of investment firms have contacted us and are all speculating about who we will choose and what the company's current valuation is. Some veteran employees with stock options are even losing the motivation to work."
Chen Pingjiang sneered:
"I'm not in a hurry, so what are they hurrying for? If this happens again, first time a warning, second time they take severance and leave. That's not what they should be concerned about; instead, they should focus their attention on their work."
In fact, it wasn't just the employees in the company who were restless.
Chen Pingjiang clearly knew that even many of the executives present were quite restless, and many even wondered why Chen Pingjiang was still calmly "sitting on the Diaoyutai" at this point and not opening the financing window.
Chen Pingjiang looked back at Miao Bingwei, who immediately understood and began to report:
"The first 'Grab a Parking Spot' competition is already in the warm-up phase, player response has been strong, the prize vehicle for first place is a Peugeot 206 provided by Dongfeng Peugeot, and it can go online in the next two days."
"Some car manufacturers who previously rejected us have recently recontacted me, with an attitude completely different from before; as arrogant as they were before, they are now just as humble."
Li Xi recently felt his back straighten by three points, walking with a swagger, and truly had the illusion in his heart that "fortunes can change dramatically over time."
Those car manufacturers who previously wouldn't even meet them did a 360-degree attitude U-turn.
"The first advertising fee from some manufacturers has already been transferred to the company's designated account."
Hearing this, Chen Pingjiang smiled lightly:
"Did Weng Yingliang, the deputy director of the Chery Automobile Sales Company's Communications and Promotion Department, contact you?"
He smiled, and Li Xi followed suit:
"When I saw that guy again, his guts were turning green with regret. I heard his direct superior scolded him fiercely, not because of the money, but blaming him for not collaborating on more car models, only collaborating on the most basic Chery QQ. Because of this, he poured so much out to me that day that I slept all day."
There was a burst of laughter in the meeting room.
Who among them didn't have pent-up frustration to vent?
Only Miao Bingwei's smile was a bit awkward.
He had thought a daily active user count of 200,000 was an astronomical figure at the time and would have been satisfied with 100,000 daily active users.
Who knew it's almost ten times that now?
However, when it was Zhuo Ling and Zou Yu's turn to report, neither of them could smile anymore.
"Official agencies and media are currently in a wait-and-see state. I personally think there are probably two reasons. First, Renrenwang's scale is not yet large enough, and its foundation is relatively weak. Second, it is quite heavily entertainment-oriented.
We also contacted talent agencies and production teams for some variety shows; their asking prices were quite high, and our budget couldn't even afford a few people. Internet celebrities, comparatively, have lower demands, and some have actually joined."
After Zhuo Ling finished, Zou Yu also said:
"My side is slightly better than Lingling's, but despite some achievements, the problem we face is the same—insufficient funds. Although I don't need to invest so much money in any single individual, the sheer volume is a challenge.
Whether calculated by post or by month, the expenses are not small. After all, their own production budgets are there, and people can't possibly 'generate power with love' just for a vague future and be fooled by a few words from us."
Chen Pingjiang nodded:
"Time is on our side. Currently no competitors are eyeing this segment; at most, there's Sina Blog, which is still different in type from us. In the early stages, we can spend money first, and by the mid-stage, when we have more and more users, they will proactively come to join us."
When the meeting adjourned, Chen Pingjiang added:
"In the next two days, several batches of interns from various schools in Dongjiang will be joining different departments. Please put in more effort to guide them. Those who perform well can be offered full-time employment upon graduation."
"Hooray! We've been increasingly short-handed recently!" the two "golden flowers" from the content department shouted happily.
(End of this chapter)