I'm reborn and I'm an international student again?

Chapter 957 Using Magic to Defeat Magic

That evening, at the Chen family villa.

"Give me the spatula!" Saori said, her face flushed, waving her little hands in the air as she stood on tiptoe.

Zhao Lingshan placed one hand on her forehead, held something in the other, and shouted with a smirk, "Hey shorty, do you want to go get a stool? You've already finished one dish, it's my turn now."

"Nana, come help me!" Saori shouted angrily upstairs.

"Why are you guys making a fuss again? I've run up and down several times already," Jin Nana said helplessly while cleaning upstairs.

"Wang Wang Wang!"

"Wang Wang!"

At the kitchen doorway, two snow-white Bichon Frises started barking, their eyes fixed on the dishes on the table.

"What are you guys up to now? You never have a moment's peace." Chen Xi sighed as he stood at a distance after returning home.

"Darling, she's bullying me again." Saori ran and threw herself into Chen Xi's arms.

"You tattletale!" Zhao Lingshan pointed ahead with a spatula.

"Alright, I see you guys are bored at home. I'll find you something to do!" Chen Xi's eyes lit up.

"What is it?" Jin Nana, who had been peeking down the stairs, came down.

"That means doing live streaming..." Chen Xi explained the details of his meeting with Song Quan that day.

"Huh? Didn't you say before that live-streaming e-commerce wasn't a good thing? Why do you suddenly want to do it again? Did your boss force you to do it?" Zhao Lingshan asked, looking puzzled.

“I think Songquan is envious of Wulin’s business and is determined to do live-streaming e-commerce in Xinlu. Now Xinlu has a technology industry, finance, and an internet company. It’s going to develop in all aspects! If I don’t do it, he will definitely find someone else to do it. The supply and marketing cooperative also called and said that a company has proposed a cooperation on live-streaming e-commerce. Rather than letting other internet celebrities eat this juicy meat, I might as well secure it first.” Chen Xi lit a cigarette.

"So what exactly do you plan to do? Set up Tianya's live streaming base in Xinlu?" Zhao Lingshan asked again.

“No, this live-streaming base is independent and has nothing to do with Tianya. It mainly focuses on live-streaming agricultural products.” Chen Xi shook his head.

“But the new platform has no popularity and we need to start from scratch. That seems difficult, and there are quite a few live streaming platforms on the market now…” Saori chimed in.

"Didn't Songquan say they would provide good policies? Can we take this opportunity to advertise?" Jin Nana leaned over.

After listening, Chen Xi nodded: "There are indeed many live streaming platforms at present, but most of them follow the idol-making model. That is, they forcibly concentrate all the traffic and recommendation slots on a few top streamers. After inflating their data into myths of billions in sales, they then attract more capital and attention to enter the market."

"Isn't that great? With a few top influencers leading the way, the platform's brand awareness will be fully established." Zhao Lingshan waved the spatula in the air.

"It looks good in the short term, but in the long run it's like drinking poison to quench thirst. When the top streamers become too powerful to control, they'll turn around and hold the platform hostage. They'll use their massive traffic to blackmail merchants, demanding the lowest prices across the entire network. In this process, tens of millions of small businesses and farmers not only won't get a share, but they'll also have to pay for their slots to benefit those internet celebrities. This isn't doing business; it's cyber landlords collecting rent." Chen Xi exhaled a puff of smoke.

"So what do you plan to do?" Saori looked up at him curiously.

"I want to adopt a traffic equality model, without creating idols or any billionaire livestreamers. This independent agricultural product livestreaming platform will break down the algorithm and distribute traffic evenly to every ordinary person who broadcasts from the fields. I want every fruit farmer and every livestock breeder across the country, even if they only have a few dozen followers, to be able to sell what they grow in their fields. No single livestreamer can form an absolute monopoly on this platform, so everyone's profit margins will not be squeezed to the extreme."

"But if the traffic is all scattered, and there's no explosive performance news, how can we attract buyers who like to watch the excitement?" Jin Nana frowned slightly and expressed her concern.

"That's why I mentioned earlier that we should take advantage of Songquan's policies. Since the city needs tax revenue and political achievements, the initial promotion costs and logistics and warehousing reductions should naturally be paid for by the government. With the supply and marketing cooperative as a backer to attract customers, we can target the most grassroots markets. Although we don't have those dazzling billion-dollar internet celebrities, the army of ants gathered from these millions of small farmers is an absolute torrent that no one can ignore. The most important point is that Songquan said they wanted me to set up a live-streaming base. Although I accepted the offer, I didn't say I had to do it well!"

“This approach seems to be detrimental to the platform, meaning it will reduce tax revenue. What if Matsuzumi blames us for this later?” Saori asked, puzzled.

"Don't worry, I'll use magic to defeat magic! Alright, this task is now in the hands of my three beloved concubines!" Chen Xi laughed, hands on his hips.

"You really think you're the emperor? Die!" Jin Nana kicked out.

Half an hour later, Chen Caiyue returned home and saw a table full of delicious food. She ran over in surprise and exclaimed, "Wow, who made this?!"

"Mom, I made this soup!"

"Mom, I cooked this fish."

"Mom, I made these dishes!"

The three women kept pointing at the things on the table, as if they wanted to take credit.

“Daughters are still the best. I’ve never tasted a dish cooked by my son.” Chen Caiyue picked up a piece of pork rib and put it in her mouth, glancing at Chen Xi beside her as she spoke.

"Uh..." Chen Xi scratched his head awkwardly.

Judging by his cooking skills, he probably surpasses those three women; he's just too lazy to cook.

"Songquan called you to a meeting today, didn't he?" Chen Caiyue asked during lunch.

"Yeah, how did you know?" Chen Xi asked, shoveling rice into her mouth.

"I also had a meeting today. Songquan talked about setting up the live-streaming base and even praised you by name. But not everyone was happy to hear that..."

"for example?"

"Feng Yun!"

"He's in Xinlu for a meeting? He doesn't have any major businesses here." Chen Xi frowned.

"His visit here seems to be related to that financial big data center."

"Buzz."

As the two were talking, Chen Xi's phone suddenly rang; it was a text message.

As if on cue, the man who sent the text message appeared; it was none other than Feng Yun.

"Feng Yun is looking for me." Chen Xi waved her phone after reading the message.

"Then you go after you finish eating. I'll take my three precious daughters to the hot springs," Chen Caiyue announced, and the three women cheered immediately.

After finishing his meal, Chen Xi went to the hotel where Feng Yun was staying, following the address provided.

This is the best hotel in Xinlu, right near his home.

After ringing the doorbell, Feng Yun made a gesture of invitation with a blank expression.

The tea on the table had already been brewed, and there were several used teacups on it, indicating that other people had just been entertained.

"Mr. Feng seems a bit unhappy." After sitting down, Chen Xi lit a cigarette. "How could I be happy? The supply and marketing cooperative said they wanted to do a live broadcast. I thought it would end quickly, but I didn't expect you to get involved." Feng Yun poured him a cup of tea.

"I had no choice, it was what the boss asked me to do," Chen Xi chuckled.

"Don't give me that crap. What kind of leader would you give a damn about? I knew from the first time I met you that you and I are the same kind of people!" Feng Yun curled his lip, his face full of disdain.

"What kind of person?"

"Fearless in the face of power!"

"Hahaha, you flatter me too much. I'm a coward!"

"Do you know how much of an impact live-streaming e-commerce will have on Taobao if it takes off? Especially on a large-scale platform like yours! Wulin started live-streaming a long time ago, but so far it hasn't overshadowed Taobao." Feng Yun took a sip of tea, his face still displeased.

“My platform is different from others…” Chen Xi said, expressing his thoughts.

After hearing this, Feng Yun's expression immediately improved.

In his view, the live streaming platform that Chen Xi wanted to create could never become a behemoth.

Because it avoids the Matthew effect and instead adopts a more inclusive model, the platform can't grow large in the short term, since streamers join primarily for the money. If the platform doesn't offer the prospect of overnight riches, it lacks appeal.

While the inclusive model is more conducive to long-term development, that is only true if the platform is established.

This approach of immediately pushing traffic to its peak will probably lead to its collapse in about a year.

Feng Yun did not delve into this issue, but rather glossed over it.

“I came to Xinlu this time mainly for the big data center. As you know, the system that banks used before was all from Alibaba. Now they’ve gone solo, which is a huge blow to Ant Financial’s IPO.” Feng Yun put down his teacup and tapped the table with his hand.

"I understand, so you mean..."

"I talked to them about this big data center. But these bankers pushed you out, saying that you were originally the one who took over Ding Ningwen's big data center, and they're the newcomers who have something to discuss with you. How could I not know they were just passing the buck? After all that wrangling today, I said I wanted to get involved..."

"Oh, I think this is a good idea!" Chen Xi took a sip of tea, his expression calm.

"But the conditions they proposed were very harsh, because some banks objected," Feng Yun said simply.

Ant Financial's cooperation model with banks is joint lending and loan assistance.

Traditional city commercial banks and rural commercial banks are limited by geographical constraints, making it difficult for them to expand their retail lending business across provinces.

The emergence of Ant Financial has given these small and medium-sized banks the wings of the internet.

As long as banks provide funds, they can continuously acquire borrowers from all over the country, and their loan volume and book profits will experience explosive growth in a short period of time.

However, in the long run, in this kind of cooperation, customers will only trust Alipay and have no idea which bank is actually lending money behind the scenes.

Banks have completely lost direct contact with borrowers, transforming themselves into mere wholesalers of funds. They have also abandoned independent risk control and assessment, relying entirely on algorithms and credit scores provided by Ant Financial. If Ant Financial's data model deviates, banks will face uncontrollable bad debt risks.

So, banks aren't stupid either.

It's impossible to let a small, insignificant financial company like Ant Financial control them; we must regain control.

"Mr. Feng, I remember you said on TV before that you don't love money and aren't interested in it. Then why bother with all this effort to go public?" Chen Xi joked.

"Forget it, with so many cameras pointed at me, what can I say? That I love money and am very interested in money?" Feng Yun rolled his eyes.

He paused for a moment and then said, "Of course I want to change the current domestic financial model, that is, to break the inefficient and arrogant monopoly of banks."

"So you have to fight against the banks, but you also have to cooperate with them. That sounds contradictory."

"Have you ever heard of building high walls, storing up grain, and delaying the proclamation of kingship? Now is not the time to declare yourself king!" Feng used his finger to dip in tea and wrote the character 'king' on the table.

Making money is fine, but why make it sound so high and mighty? Chen Xi just rolled his eyes.

"I agree with what Mr. Feng just said."

Which sentence?

"You said when I walked in that we're the same kind of people. So, do you dare to play for the big score?"

"What big?" Feng Yun immediately became alert; he had a feeling it wasn't anything good.

“I can’t tell you now. If you really don’t care about money, really care about the public, and really want to carry out reforms, then agree to those bankers’ conditions and share data! Anyway, Aba is so rich, and you’ve made a lot of money now…” Chen Xi stroked his chin, his eyes darting around as he sized up the short man in front of him.

"What about live-streaming e-commerce..." Feng Yun suddenly didn't want to talk about it anymore and quickly changed the subject.

"You can also do live-streaming e-commerce on Taobao. Just open a small window, and merchants can do their own live streams or hire someone to do it. This kind of technology shouldn't be difficult for you. And Hema Fresh, I'll have the live streamers help with the operation. Don't worry, they definitely won't steal your business; on the contrary, they'll help you."

Chen Xi's words relieved Feng Yun.

Actually, it's very difficult to run an e-commerce platform now; the competition is too fierce.

Platforms like Pinduoduo and JD.com have long since broken Taobao's monopoly, leading to a significant reduction in Taobao's profits. Feng Yun, who built his fortune on gadgets, naturally couldn't afford to let his platform fail.

"President Feng, have you considered what impact it would have on you and the group if Ant Financial's IPO fails?" Chen Xi asked.

"It's impossible for it not to succeed. I never even thought it would fail!" Feng Yun assured him firmly.

However, that's what he said, but that's not what he really thought.

Chen Xi understood this as well, so he asked again, "What if the IPO is successful?"

“That ant will become an Asian financial behemoth!” Feng Yun smiled smugly.

"Let's set aside national financial sovereignty and the disorderly expansion of capital; let's talk about the impact Ant Group's successful IPO would have on other tech companies. If Ant Group achieves the highest IPO valuation in history by using a lending model disguised as technology, then all other internet giants in China with massive user traffic will accelerate the allocation of their core resources to financial lending! Have you thought about that?"

“Young Chen, your conclusion is too outrageous…” Feng Yun was a little guilty, but his words were still firm and powerful.

Chen Xi knew.

People are driven by either money or power!

Normal. (End of Chapter)