Chapter Six: Quibbling

A week later, Gu Zhi returned to Shenjuan with his mother, Lin Zhi.

When they set off for home, it was Cai Chongxin, the second-in-command at Ali, who personally drove them to the station. Ma Chuan had just received a five-million-dollar investment from Gu Zhi and was already busy, unable to spare even a second. Cai Chongxin, sharp-eyed and always reliable as Ma Chuan’s right-hand man, had volunteered to see the mother and son off.

Though Gu Zhi said nothing, inwardly he held a certain dissatisfaction toward Cai Chongxin. The investment negotiations with Ali had not been as smooth as he had anticipated; otherwise, the talks would not have dragged on for an entire week. The greatest obstacle throughout was precisely this second-in-command, Cai Chongxin.

Cai Chongxin hailed from Wanwan, held Canadian citizenship, possessed a New York State attorney’s license, and had worked as a venture capitalist. By any measure, he was a bona fide member of the global elite. After Ma Chuan founded Ali, Cai Chongxin decisively gave up a job with an annual salary of five million to join the fledgling company. As one of Ali’s true power players, he remained by Ma Chuan’s side from the early days of the startup all the way until 2017, whereas most of the original eighteen co-founders had already left.

His abilities were beyond question. Had history unfolded as it once did, without Cai Chongxin bringing in investment from Goldman Sachs, Ali’s future might have taken a very different shape. But now, with Gu Zhi reborn and determined to intercept Goldman Sachs’ investment, Cai Chongxin naturally became his greatest obstacle.

Cai Chongxin’s studies and work abroad made him deeply versed in the rules by which Western corporations operated, but this also caused him to instinctively distrust mainland Chinese businessmen. On one hand, the mainland’s economy was only just beginning to take off; on the other, Wanwan was already one of Asia’s Four Little Dragons. It was hardly surprising that someone from Wanwan might think this way.

Thus, when Cai Chongxin heard that a mainland garment merchant wanted to invest in Ali, he was strongly opposed. Gu Zhi suspected that Ma Chuan’s rejection of thirty-eight investors in his previous life was likely influenced, at least in part, by Cai Chongxin.

When Gu Zhi and Lin Zhi arrived in Hangzhou, Cai Chongxin did not hesitate to voice his opposition to Ma Chuan and joined him in vetting Lin Zhi.

On one point, both Ma Chuan and Cai Chongxin agreed: at this stage, Ali could not accept investment lightly, and they had to ensure that any investor could bring more than just money—be it follow-on A and B rounds, international perspective, or powerful publicity channels.

Clearly, Lin Zhi’s investment failed to meet their standards. Moreover, with Cai Chongxin’s constant whispering in his ear, Ma Chuan himself wanted to attract a renowned foreign capital group.

Yet none of them expected that the real mastermind behind this negotiation was not Lin Zhi, but her son—a high school student still underage!

Absurd!

That was the unanimous thought among all the senior management in the Ali office when the truth came out. Cai Chongxin’s face darkened instantly, and his opinion of mainland investors plummeted another notch. Investment was no child’s play; how could one let a minor participate, much less make decisions?

Fortunately, Gu Zhi was well prepared. He immediately delivered a fluent speech in English, not only giving a simple self-introduction but also laying out in detail Ali’s early development plan, speaking with such clarity and logic that everyone was taken aback—including Lin Zhi herself.

Her first thought was about her son’s studies. She knew he did well in school, but she had never expected his spoken English to be so smooth. Ma Chuan, Cai Chongxin, and the other senior staff were stunned for a full two seconds.

What Gu Zhi described aligned almost perfectly with their own early plans for Ali, and in some ways, his vision was even more comprehensive and purposeful. These were ideas that had only ever existed in the minds of a select few executives—how could a student they barely knew be so intimately familiar with Ali?

As for his English, they were less surprised. China had entered an era of nationwide English study, with the language a compulsory subject in high school and college entrance exams. Many well-off families hired private tutors or even foreign teachers, and bilingual education from an early age was not uncommon. For a wealthy businesswoman like Lin Zhi, it was hardly rare that her child spoke fluent English.

Only Lin Zhi herself knew that her son had never practiced English specifically.

In truth, Gu Zhi’s use of English was not meant to show off, but simply to suit his audience. It was well known that Ma Chuan used to practice his English daily by chatting with foreign tourists by West Lake, even giving free guided tours. His love of English was obvious to all. Now, hearing Gu Zhi speak even more fluently than himself, Ma Chuan was naturally impressed and delighted.

Put plainly, it was all to win over Mr. Ma.

At the same time, Gu Zhi’s bold statements threw out enough bombshells to make Ma Chuan eager to converse with him at length. It was also a way to awe the deeply skeptical Cai Chongxin, to ensure he would not look down on them.

After that, Ma Chuan dismissed everyone—including Cai Chongxin—and Gu Zhi sent his mother away as well. The two talked in private for an entire day; no one knew what they discussed. Both sides tacitly kept the conversation confidential. When Lin Zhi asked afterward, Gu Zhi merely said they had chatted casually.

In any case, when they emerged, Ma Chuan announced to the company that he had accepted Gu Zhi’s five-million-dollar investment—calculated at the current exchange rate of 8.28, amounting to 41.4 million yuan.

The intention to invest was settled, but the matter wasn’t over. Next, they had to determine what percentage of Ali shares Gu Zhi would receive in return.

This became a pure tug-of-war, with Gu Zhi and Cai Chongxin on either side.

Gu Zhi had originally hoped to take a flat fifty percent, just like Goldman Sachs had in history. Cai Chongxin firmly refused and argued his case relentlessly.

After all, Gu Zhi was not a heavyweight international group like Goldman Sachs, and his bargaining position was much weaker. With his experience in venture capital, Cai Chongxin did his utmost to suppress Gu Zhi’s share, hoping to keep as much equity as possible in the founders’ hands.

He had not expected Gu Zhi to be so articulate—not just in English, but even more so in Chinese. When it came to debate, neither, with their overseas experience, could outdo the other. Gu Zhi’s breadth of knowledge was astonishing; he seemed to know the intricacies of investment better than Cai himself, hardly the mark of an ordinary high schooler.

With Lin Zhi backing her son, there was no hope of outwitting them.

And so the two sides haggled for a full week. In the end, Gu Zhi’s lack of practical experience cost him, and he secured only forty-five percent of Ali’s shares.

For this reason, his dislike of Cai Chongxin only deepened.

Lin Zhi, however, took advantage of the week to enjoy Hangzhou to the fullest, visiting West Lake, Lingyin Temple, Hefang Street, the Grand Canal, Yue Fei’s Mausoleum, and the Dragon Well tea fields.

Before leaving, she bought a large bundle of Dragon Well and chrysanthemum tea to bring home for Consultant Zhi, who enjoyed a cup of tea after every class to soothe his throat. She also picked up West Lake lotus root starch, Victory Cake, and dried bamboo shoots—specialties of Hangzhou.

When mother and son returned, their arms were laden with parcels. Fortunately, they weren’t taking the train; otherwise, the ten-hour journey would have been pure torment.