After the Divorce, I Could Hear the Voice of the Future-Chapter 94: Dead End

"Shangri-La Hotel, sixth floor banquet hall."

Hu Weiwei made small talk for a bit and then left. It was apparent that Lu Liang was her best choice, but not her only choice.

Lu Liang stood at the company entrance, watching her take the elevator until she disappeared down the corridor before he turned and headed back to the office.

Walking through the office area, he beckoned Wen Chao over, and the two entered the office together. Lu Liang asked, "Has the funding proposal from ofo come over yet?"

Wen Chao pulled out the report. "It came this morning. The A-round is set to start on August 29, with a preliminary valuation of 15 million US dollars."

ofo's average daily active users had already exceeded 150,000, completing the wager agreement between both parties more than a month in advance. Thus, Mr. Dai took the opportunity to release the A-round funding proposal.

"Preliminary?" Lu Liang looked up, puzzled.

"Mr. Dai said he wants to first see Mobike's funding reaction and then adjust ofo's valuation based on the actual situation."

Although ofo was founded earlier than Mobike, Mobike had the support of Hu Weiwei, Li Bing, Wang Xiaofeng, and others, who were very experienced.

Mr. Dai strategically used Mobike as a stepping stone. Otherwise, with the relatively low-cost Little Huang bikes, surpassing Mobike's market share to become the industry leader was just a matter of time.

"Those who start businesses and make a name for themselves are indeed no fools."

Lu Liang understood and looked down at the report. As the president of the Beijing University Student Union and general manager of ofo, Mr. Dai had hosted a rally in the campus auditorium yesterday.

He delivered an impassioned speech titled "2000 Beijing University People Undertaking a Big Venture," which received support from the university authorities and various capital sources from Yanjing.

Jinsha Venture Capital's Zhu Hu even singled him out for praise, expressing his anticipation for ofo's A-round funding and his ongoing interest in the company.

Zhu Hu of Jinsha Venture Capital and Shen Peng of Redwood were regarded as the big and small kings of domestic investment, with stakes in almost all leading internet companies.

Every entrepreneur aspired to win their favor.

Hu Weiwei didn't want to become Li Bing's puppet, so she invited Lu Liang to join and increase her say in decisions.

Mr. Dai didn't want Lu Liang to dominate alone and was preparing to bring in other venture capitalists, with Zhu Hu of Jinsha being his best choice.

Lu Liang thought for a moment and then smiled, "Tell Mr. Dai the financing plan is approved, and I'll come by next Friday to see it."

He originally had reservations, but then he thought, there was nothing he couldn't understand as he had a similar relationship with Little Wang and Old Meng.

Everyone didn't want their sovereignty taken away, so they tried in every way to balance the power between the founders and the investors.

Thinking it over, Lu Liang turned to Wen Chao, "Get me the information on Li Bing and NIO, and it would be best to investigate the companies that have intended to enter the automobile industry in recent years."

He had realized that the path of seizing power was untenable. Even if he successfully seized power, it would likely be hard to win back the loyalty of the creators.

He would have to start his own business, build his own team. Private funding was already in preparation, and new energy initiatives also needed to be scheduled.

Wen Chao nodded. Suddenly, Lu Liang called out to him, "Have Xiao Chen go to the high-speed rail station tomorrow to pick up someone named Fang Shiyu."

Lately, he had spent an hour every day interviewing drivers, but no matter how many he interviewed, he was never satisfied or reassured.

He suddenly remembered a cousin back home who had served in the military and had driven for leaders, but had to leave the service because he had no money or connections.

Last year, after his discharge, he was driving and delivering goods in town, so Lu Liang had his mother help inquire about him.

Unlike other positions, driving skills could be honed gradually, but trustworthiness was the primary criteria.

Rather than hiring strangers from society, it was better to bring in someone from his hometown, at least someone whose background he knew well, and he would feel more at ease using them.

According to his mother, Shiyu had always been an honest and straightforward child, an ideal candidate for military service, yet he couldn't stay on.

A mother wouldn't mislead her own son, right?

The following afternoon, Chen Jinchun led a burly man who stood over 1.8 meters tall into the company, carrying a bulging backpack, his dark skin making the white T-shirt he wore seem to glow like a sacred garment.

The burly man looked mature, appearing to be in his thirties at a glance, but his eyes were timid like those of a child. "Jinchun, is this my brother's company?"

Chen Jinchun felt a lump in her chest but managed to reveal a stiff smile, "Yes, take a seat. I'll go find Mr. Lu."

At first, she opposed this nickname until the burly man showed his ID, revealing he was 22 years old, three months younger than her.

Chen Jinchun hadn't knocked yet when Lu Liang, looking delighted, opened the door and walked over to the burly man, squeezing his arm that was thicker than his own leg, "Shiyu, long time no see! It's been almost a year since your discharge, and you are still this strong?"

Lu Liang hadn't seen his cousin in several years. He was in the military when Lu Liang got married a few years ago, and before that, it has been four or five years since they had last seen each other during a holiday.

"I didn't expect him to grow so strong," even though he was only a little taller than Lu Liang, he looked a whole size bigger.

Asking him to be the driver, you probably wouldn't even need a bodyguard.

Fang Shiyu smiled sheepishly, "Maybe I eat a lot."

"Being able to eat is a blessing; let's go inside and talk."

Lu Liang's face was full of smiles, and he warmly slung his arm over his shoulder as they headed to the office.

Since entering the building, Fang Shiyu hadn't blinked, curiously inspecting everything around him.

Lu Liang smiled and said, "This place is still quite small; next month, we're moving somewhere else."

"This place is small?"

Fang Shiyu looked bewildered; a forty-something square meter office was already not small, plus it was on a high floor with a great view.

Lu Liang made tea and offered him a cigarette, but Fang Shiyu shook his head, "Bro, I don't."

"It's good, you don't; like me, I can't quit; I can only try to smoke less."

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Lu Liang didn't insist, lit a cigarette for himself, and started discussing his plan, "From now on, when I go out, you follow me."

"When I don't go out, just sit over there, play on the computer, play on your phone, but don't bother anyone while they're working."

He pointed to the place next to Chen Jinchun and Wen Chao, where he had cleared a temporary workstation with just one computer yesterday.

"There are hardly any days off, but if you need to take a leave, just let me know."

Fang Shiyu waved his hand, "Bro, I won't take leaves."

Lu Liang joked, "Don't speak so absolutely; what if you meet a girl you like, it's normal to ask for a leave to date her."

"No… it won't happen."

Fang Shiyu, his skin dark, couldn't show any change in complexion, but his anxious tone revealed he was a bit shy.

Lu Liang chuckled and continued, "Your salary for now will be ten thousand, with all allowances adding up to about twelve thousand; after social insurance and housing fund deductions, you'll still take home about ten thousand."

Fang Shiyu responded gloomily, "That's too much; I only make 4500 a month driving and unloading trucks at home."

Lu Liang tried not to laugh, "How can here be the same as home? Ten thousand is actually quite less."

He pointed to the door, "Her name is Chen Jinchun, you've met her, right?"

"Yeah, Jinchun," Fang Shiyu nodded.

"Jinchun?"

Lu Liang suddenly laughed, remembering his cousin enlisted at 19, demobilized at 21, and was now 22, indeed younger than Chen Jinchun.

"Latter, go talk to her; she'll help you arrange your accommodations and buy some clothes and daily necessities for you. If you have any questions later on, you can ask her."

The company didn't provide accommodation, but since Fang Shiyu was his cousin and had been called from his hometown,

it wouldn't be convenient for him to stay with Lu Liang, so they rented a one-bedroom apartment near the company.

Lu Liang had finished giving instructions, called Chen Jinchun over, and had her take his cousin to settle in before joining them for dinner after work.

Mushang was still on the road, so he let him drive the Urus first, and when it was time for dinner after work, Lu Liang let him take the wheel directly.

You could tell his driving skills were okay, just a bit nervous, Lu Liang smiled and said, "Drive boldly, there's insurance if you crash."

Fang Shiyu nodded once and then fell silent, concentrating on the road ahead, always keeping the speed below 80.

Not only did he look mature, his driving was mature too, letting others overtake or cut in front of him if they wanted.

But there were few who cut in line; he muttered, "Bro, people in Modu have better manners than those at home."

Lu Liang kept silent, smiling. Decent manners also depended on the price of the car.

With such a conspicuous Taurus logo in front, anyone thinking of cutting in would have to consider whether their insurance could cover the repair costs.

During the busiest rush-hour traffic, his cousin drove steadily, making Lu Liang feel relieved.