"Breaking news! Renren.com's first round of financing reached 50 million US dollars, setting a record for the highest Series A financing amount for Chinese internet companies!"
"Founded less than a year ago, Renren.com is valued at 250 million US dollars, equivalent to 1.9 billion RMB."
"Sina Finance reported: Yesterday, social platform Renren.com announced the completion of its first round of strategic investment of 50 million US dollars provided by Sequoia Capital China Fund. It is reported that Renren.com is..."
"Just yesterday, China's richest person under the age of twenty was born!"
"As of press time, Renren.com stated that everything is subject to the company's official announcement, and other details are inconvenient to disclose."
"Data shows that in May, Renren.com's average daily IP visits reached 1.6 million, and average daily PV page views also reached over 50 million. Its Alexa global ranking is around 100, while Xiaonei.com, previously China's largest 2.0 community website, currently ranks around 200."
All major sections of Renren.com and numerous financial news outlets placed this news at the top of their homepages.
The first trending search on Baidu was Renren.com, and the second was Chen Pingjiang.
A series of news reports left people dizzy and dazed.
When the news reached Huijin Building, everyone in the office went crazy.
Employees who hadn't been there long enough or were newly hired looked at the older employees who had already received stock options, their eyes full of envy.
Shu Mang, usually stingy, waved his hand generously, arranging for all departments in the company to have their own gatherings led by their respective department heads, with all expenses reimbursed by the company.
The group of middle and senior managers who initially followed Chen Pingjiang to build his empire could hardly imagine achieving financial freedom so easily?
As long as the company's valuation continues to rise, and once the stock option exercise period ends, each of them will see their net worth at least surge dramatically.
It was truly a windfall from heaven! It made everyone dizzy.
Chen Pingjiang's phone was almost overwhelmed with calls, with congratulatory calls and text messages pouring in frantically.
He Zhiyu and his wife, Liu Cheng and his wife, Wan Qiping, these seniors Chen Pingjiang interacted with in the early days of his entrepreneurship, as well as Zhu Guangtong, Kuang Minghong, Ning Yongde, these leaders at various levels of the school, dormitory roommates, classmates, student union classmates, without exception.
Cong Nini: "Daddy, woo-hoo, please keep me, I can warm the bed, and easily master all kinds of positions."
Ge Mengshi: "Congratulations!"
Yan Yan: "Tired? Dinner together tonight?"
Chen Pingjiang smiled knowingly and replied to the messages.
Zhang Xinyue stared blankly at the news on the computer, her feelings a mixture of emotions she couldn't quite articulate.
She was happy for Chen Pingjiang's achievements, yet also felt that after such a long time, he was getting further and further away.
"Oh my god! This world is too crazy, I want to go back to Mars!"
"Asking for clarification, has Renren.com been acquired by a foreign consortium? Will our private information be unsafe then?"
"The commenter above is ridiculous, that's just financing! Moreover, Sequoia is just an investment firm, and you shouldn't think of yourself as too important."
"I have a share in CEO Chen's current net worth!"
"They say he's still a few months shy of twenty, and he's already so rich. Oh my god, this world is so unfair."
"Come on, sisters, what are you waiting for with such a diamond bachelor? Are there any classmates or friends of Chen Pingjiang here?"
"Next, Renren.com is probably going to make big moves."
"..."
In front of the camera, Chen Pingjiang always spoke eloquently with a smile:
"From the thumb culture of the SMS economy to the bourgeois culture of the white-collar class, the rise of every new culture often brings about changes and revolutions in the lifestyle of a class, followed by profound economic revolutions, creating many enterprises that provide related services, and promoting the prosperity of a related industry. This rule is clearly most applicable to the burgeoning online community culture."
"As a leader in domestic online communities, Renren.com actively explores various possibilities and strives to bring users a better social experience."
"As a communication platform, Renren.com provides real-time basic information with a well-defined group. You can search based on previously known information, and then get the opportunity for direct communication with the people you want to connect with.
Everyone shares a common living environment, common communication tools, common communication language, and common free time, so the need for communication is stronger than in real life."
"In today's highly competitive society, more and more people are joining the SNS website platform.
These include high school graduates who have just experienced the baptism of the college entrance examination, university students living the best student lives of their lives, and even young people who have already entered society and are striving in different job positions.
Here they can relieve their inner stress, make up for deficiencies in real life, and even foster friendships through alternative communication methods."
"..."
"Me personally? Sorry, I personally have no feelings for these boring number games. Compared to money, I care more about how grand a stage Renren.com can be led onto, and more about what it can bring to the world and to people's lives."
"Yes, you can also say that. I don't love money."
"Well, my biggest regret might be founding Renren.com, otherwise I should be sitting in a bright classroom studying diligently now."
The interview ended.
The well-known reporter from Dongjiang TV saw a different kind of light in her eyes as she looked at Chen Pingjiang.
This young richest person under twenty, his charismatic personality, networking ability, and eloquence all deeply impressed her.
If she were ten years younger, she swore she would chase Chen Pingjiang even to the ends of the earth.
————————
Dinner time.
Yan Liming's family, who were part of the system, were eating dinner as usual, while watching Dongjiang News on TV.
"Yes, this financing represents the market's affirmation of Renren.com..."
Li Yuhua instantly widened her eyes when she saw the familiar figure, and waved to Yan Liming, who was serving rice in the kitchen:
"Old Yan, come quickly, come and see."
Seeing his wife's flustered expression, Yan Liming thought it was some incredible big news, and hurried over a couple of steps.
At this moment, Li Yuhua stared at Yan Yan beside her, and asked:
"I'm not mistaken, am I? Is that Little Chen?"
Yan Yan looked at Chen Pingjiang's demeanor on TV, her beautiful eyes gleaming, and nodded repeatedly.
The family had no mind to eat, and stared at the news.
After it ended, no one spoke for a long time.
It was Li Yuhua who broke the silence:
"Old Yan, how is this calculation made?"
Yan Liming felt that the food in his mouth was no longer tasty, how did this kid make such a big splash so quietly?
"The exchange rate is 7.6 now, calculate it yourself."
"Isn't that 380 million? Although I don't know the exact proportion, wouldn't Little Chen's net worth be at least 1 billion?"
"More or less."
Li Yunhua, feeling as if she was floating on a cloud, looked at her precious daughter's cool and indifferent appearance, and couldn't help but feel a headache.
Sometimes this kind of personality is also very bad.
"This happened several days ago, Yan Yan, why didn't you mention it?"
Yan Yan retorted with a serious expression:
"That's his work, why should I care too much? In my heart, no matter how much money he has, he's still him."
Li Yuhua instantly felt there was no point talking to this daughter.
Yan Liming, who had recovered his senses, put down his chopsticks, wiped his mouth, and mused:
"The internet industry is currently seeing a lot of hot money, and is highly sought after by capital. It's not surprising that they can raise so much money."
Li Yuhua rolled her eyes at him:
"You talk as if there are many such companies in your district, and Little Chen is only twenty, not even that!"
Yan Liming didn't speak, but he had to admit it in his heart.
Yes, he's not even twenty yet, and he already has a net worth of at least one billion.
And looking at how he spoke appropriately and eloquently in the interview, casually using various professional terms, he's truly not simple.
For the first time, Yan Liming had to seriously face this "pig" that had gotten to his "cabbage" (daughter).
——————————
The same scene was also unfolding at Ge Bingyi's home.
Ge Bingyi blinked his eyes, thinking he had seen wrongly, and after realizing what was happening, he quickly called his wife over.
He immediately called Ge Mengshi.
"This... this Little Chen, what's going on?"
The elderly couple hadn't yet fully processed the shocking news.
Ge Mengshi pouted:
"Nothing's going on, he's my current boss."
"?"
Ge Mengshi could only patiently explain:
"Alright, last time I was really annoyed by your constant nagging about marriage, so I found him to pretend to be my boyfriend. In reality, we have no relationship whatsoever. Also, I've already resigned from my previous company, and now I'm working for another company under him."
Ge Bingyi and his wife didn't recover for a long time, staring blankly at their daughter, unable to speak.
Son-in-law!
Fake!
Job!
Resigned!
Any one of these pieces of news could make the old couple explode on the spot, let alone two pieces of news combined.
Seeing her father speechless for a long time, Ge Mengshi feared he would faint from anger, and quickly admitted her mistake:
"It's already happened, please don't be angry. You can hit me or scold me as much as you want."
After a long while, Ge Bingyi finally caught his breath:
"From childhood to now, have I ever laid a finger on you? And you say 'hit me or scold me'. I think you're just certain that I won't do anything to you, that's why you dare to be so unrestrained."
Originally, Ge Bingyi was quite happy that his daughter had found a rich man, at least she wouldn't have to worry about life in the future.
But he didn't expect...
Fortunately, Ge's mother said something:
"It's better that it's fake. If it were real, Shishi wouldn't be able to hold onto him at all. Think about it, Little Chen is so young and so rich, what kind of woman couldn't he find? Why would he look for an older woman who's a full zodiac cycle older than him?"
The more Ge Mengshi listened, the more something felt off.
No.
Mom, I can probably tell you're trying to help me.
But why does it sound worse the more I listen?
Seemingly noticing the defiance in Ge Mengshi's eyes.
Ge's mother gave her a look, and still said:
"What? Did I say something wrong?"
"No..."
At this moment, Ge Mengshi showed no resemblance to her usual dominant self, wielding immense power in the corporation.
But, to be fair.
Although Ge Mengshi was a full zodiac cycle older than Chen Pingjiang.
She looked at most twenty-six or twenty-seven, and since she worked in an office every day, she wasn't exposed to the elements.
Furthermore, with her substantial income, she used top-tier cosmetics, had skincare treatments at least once a week, and never stopped her yoga and fitness routine.
Time really hadn't left many traces on her face.
Ge Bingyi looked at the mother and daughter performing their double act, and sneered:
"Since that's the case, stay away from him from now on."
On this point, Ge's mother was very much in agreement.
As a woman herself, she knew very well that very few women could resist such a man.
If this man had even a slight inclination, no one could escape him.
"He's my boss now, I've signed a contract, it's not like I can just leave whenever I want."
"Then have your mother quickly find you someone, and get married immediately."
Ge Mengshi felt like the conversation was utterly impossible, as if she had re-entered a cursed nightmare, caught in a loop.
Annoyed, she grabbed her bag and walked out.
"Look at how spoiled you've made her."
"You only know how to blame me, you're no different. Besides, what if she gets angry and leaves and doesn't come back?"
(End of this chapter)