Chapter 1 Sitting in the Front Row

Sitting in the very front row, Ma Yang yawned, then smacked his lips, wondering why the press conference was still going on after two hours.

These people just kept asking questions, on and on!

The presentation was so boring, but the people in the back seemed to be getting more and more excited, constantly asking questions.

Ma Yang wanted to leave a long time ago, but he was sitting in the first row, so he was too conspicuous. Besides, he was here on behalf of Brother Qian, so he was worried that leaving would have a bad impact. He could only sit there bored.

He De Sheng leaned over and whispered, "Mr. Ma, do you want to ask a question?"

Ma Yang shook his head. "Ask a question? I have absolutely no interest in grilled cold noodles. It's putting me to sleep."

He De Sheng nodded. Indeed, Meng Chang had talked so much about internet thinking and used so many made-up words that other investors found it fascinating, but for Mr. Ma, it was like chewing wax.

Not asking questions was also good.

It would save Mr. Ma from embarrassing himself with a question. With so many investors watching, it would be a little awkward.

Just don't say too much, check in, and leave. That's how he'd complete the task assigned by President Pei.

As for He De Sheng himself, he didn't plan to ask any questions either.

He De Sheng's attitude was similar to Li Shi's. He couldn't get much out of asking now.

Meng Chang had his own very complete theoretical system and business model, and his ability to adapt on the spot was also top-notch. No matter what questions these investors asked, he could definitely answer them fluently.

Asking one more question or one less wouldn't make much of a difference.

Soon, the investors at the scene had asked almost everything they wanted to.

Because most of the investors wanted to ask about similar things, once one person got an answer, the others wouldn't ask the same question again.

Meng Chang glanced at the time. Two and a half hours in total.

He had met the expected time.

These investors had asked questions for a full half hour, which was enough to show that the press conference was very successful and had aroused widespread attention from investors.

Even if he didn't get any investment this time, it didn't matter. After these investors left, the "Cold Noodles Girl" brand would inevitably be widely circulated in the investment circle, attracting a certain amount of attention.

In this way, there would be a good foundation for hyping up the popularity through various marketing methods in the future.

As long as there was enough time and enough investors continued to pay attention, someone would eventually invest.

Meng Chang was about to announce the end of the press conference, but he held back.

He suddenly felt like something was missing. This press conference wasn't quite complete!

His eyes swept across the room, then stopped on the long face in the front row.

Meng Chang understood instantly.

He was missing the question from the representative of Tengda Group!

As an entrepreneur, Meng Chang possessed a crucial and excellent quality: shamelessness.

If someone offered you free publicity, wouldn't you take it?

From the moment he got this investment, Meng Chang had been trying every possible way to latch onto Tengda's popularity.

At first, he promoted the fact that he had received investment from Tengda, including emphasizing in his previous speech that "Cold Noodles Girl" and "Touching Fish Takeaway" were in a state of differentiated competition. All of this was, in fact, an attempt to ride the wave of Tengda's fame.

The reason for singling out Touching Fish Takeaway was to create a false impression for the investors, making them feel as if Tengda was intentionally supporting "Cold Noodles Girl" to compete with Touching Fish Takeaway through differentiation.

These investors would naturally speculate further: if "Cold Noodles Girl" grew stronger in the future, could it use Touching Fish Takeaway's existing delivery staff or even carry out some kind of commercial integration or cooperation?

Once investors were subtly influenced to have this idea, the likelihood of them investing in "Cold Noodles Girl" would greatly increase.

And now, President Pei wasn't here, but Mr. Ma was fully representing President Pei.

But Mr. Ma hadn't said a word. How boring was that?

Getting Mr. Ma to ask a couple of questions and answering them himself couldn't possibly be a loss.

As long as Mr. Ma didn't very clearly question or oppose his business model, then after the press conference, he could tell the outside world that Tengda's investment executives were very optimistic about the "Cold Noodles Girl" business model, which would be a great success.

As for what if Mr. Ma very clearly questioned him?

Meng Chang felt that this possibility was extremely low.

Because although his business model had many problems, they were all unfalsifiable.

In layman's terms, you could only say that it wouldn't work when the model failed commercially. But it was impossible to find the logical flaws in this model through pure debate.

Of course, there was also a third possibility: Mr. Ma might refuse to ask questions.

But in that case, Meng Chang would still have an explanation: he could directly say that his business model was perfect, and even Tengda's investment executives couldn't find fault with it.

In short, as long as he shifted the attention to Mr. Ma, it would be beneficial to him in every way.

Thinking of this, Meng Chang immediately turned his attention to Mr. Ma. "Mr. Ma, do you have any questions you'd like to ask?"

Ma Yang was playing absentmindedly with the ten-yuan bottle of mineral water in front of him, and a staff member had already handed him a microphone.

He was about to say "no" when He De Sheng gently nudged him with his elbow.

He De Sheng lowered his voice. "Mr. Ma, just ask two questions."

Ma Yang didn't understand the intricacies of the situation, but He De Sheng did.

Although He De Sheng had invested 2 million yuan in Meng Chang according to President Pei's instructions, He De Sheng wasn't too happy about Meng Chang's behavior of trying to ride on Tengda's popularity.

If Mr. Ma said "no questions," he would only be taken advantage of even more, so He De Sheng quickly reminded him.

Ma Yang didn't know what was going on, but since He De Sheng wanted him to ask questions, then he would.

He took the microphone from the staff member and cleared his throat.

But for a moment, he didn't know what to ask.

Ma Yang and Meng Chang stared at each other.

Ma Yang racked his brains but couldn't think of any good questions, so he just asked casually, "Are your grilled cold noodles... tasty?"

Meng Chang was stunned. He felt a little dizzy.

What did that mean?

Why wasn't Mr. Ma following the script?

Who would ask that?

Wasn't he here to talk about the flavor of the grilled cold noodles after he'd spent two hours explaining the business model and internet thinking?

But after all, he reacted quickly. He only paused for two seconds before immediately reacting and smiling slightly. "The issue of taste varies from person to person. Everyone will give a different answer."

"'Cold Noodles Girl' will hire a professional nutritionist in the first stage to conduct a comprehensive control over the raw materials, production processes, and procedures of the grilled cold noodles."

Ma Yang nodded. "Oh... so this will ensure that the grilled cold noodles will definitely be delicious?"

Meng Chang was stunned again. "Theoretically speaking, it's an inevitable result."

Ma Yang nodded and didn't pursue the question, then thought of another question.

"What does 'multi-dimensional fusion' mean? I didn't understand it."

"Could you explain it again?"

Ma Yang looked at Meng Chang on the stage very sincerely.

Because the two-hour speech was too long, Ma Yang had listened intermittently, so he hadn't remembered many of the terms. Only "multi-dimensional fusion" had made a deep impression on him.

Meng Chang was stunned again.

He didn't understand?

Even though it was a made-up word, he shouldn't have been unable to understand it, right?

Moreover, not understanding was already outrageous enough, but he actually openly said in front of so many investors that he didn't understand and wanted him to explain it again?

It seemed like a very stupid question, but Meng Chang instead abandoned his contempt and became wary.

How could the vice president who was once responsible for Tengda's investments be a fool?

A simple answer suddenly seemed to be fraught with danger.

But time was tight, and Meng Chang couldn't think for too long.

"Simply put, multi-dimensional fusion is the combination of ecological systems in multiple dimensions, interacting with each other, producing a chemical effect similar to a fusion reaction, and generating huge energy."

"In business, there are similar models. Once successful, you can obtain huge... commercial returns."

Because he couldn't figure out what Mr. Ma's intention was in asking this question, Meng Chang could only choose the safest and most correct answer.

Ma Yang was silent for two seconds. "Fusion is a physical reaction."

Meng Chang: "?"

Ma Yang continued, "In other words, your 'multi-dimensional fusion' is simply the cooperation and interaction between various departments."

Meng Chang stammered a few times. "Uh... if you use the most common way of understanding it, you can understand it that way, but this understanding is not comprehensive. Because compared to multi-departmental cooperation and interaction, 'multi-dimensional fusion' focuses on a more macro aspect and a higher level. And the difference in levels will make things that are the same in form become different in essence..."

Ma Yang thought to himself that he had already asked two questions, so it was probably enough.

He nodded. "Okay, I don't have any other questions."

Meng Chang breathed a sigh of relief and quickly smiled. "Okay, thank you very much for your questions, Mr. Ma! Then today's press conference is over. If you are interested in 'Cold Noodles Girl', you can come to me at any time to chat..."

The press conference ended. Some investors got up and left, while others went forward to talk to Meng Chang, obviously wanting to ask a few more questions in private.

Ma Yang had been waiting impatiently for a long time. Like an elementary school student who had finally waited for school to be over, he grabbed He De Sheng and left.

But this scene was completely seen by Li Shi.

Xue Zhebin noticed that Li Shi's expression was a little strange and asked in a low voice, "What's wrong, Mr. Li?"

Li Shi looked at Ma Yang's departing figure, frowning and lost in thought.

"Are those the kinds of questions that Mr. Ma would ask?"

"Tsk, doesn't seem like it."

Xue Zhebin was confused. "What? Were those questions asked at a high level?"

First, he asked if the cold noodles were tasty, and then he asked what "multi-dimensional fusion," a term that had been repeatedly explained at the press conference, meant. What kind of high-level questions were those?

If it were Xue Zhebin, he wouldn't even have the nerve to open his mouth in front of so many investors and bosses because the questions were too simple and too childish. It was a little embarrassing.

Li Shi shook his head. "If you think that way, then you're completely wrong!"

"The two questions that Mr. Ma asked, including every word he said, were all indirect attacks, hitting Meng Chang's weak spots and making him very uncomfortable!"

"Of course, Meng Chang is extremely clever after all, and he reacted quickly, responding perfectly."

"This ability to react on the spot is indeed very strong."

"But no matter how perfect his responses were, he was ultimately suppressed by Mr. Ma in terms of 'momentum'. The stupider investors can't see it, but the smarter ones can definitely feel it."

"However, this is not enough to shake the investors' optimism about Meng Chang, but it will only make it more difficult for Meng Chang to attract investment."

Li Shi was silent for a moment, then said with emotion, "Based on my understanding of Mr. Ma, he definitely couldn't have made this kind of subtle move."

"Although He De Sheng is a little better, his skills are still far behind. He doesn't have this ability."

"I'm afraid that President Pei had already made arrangements before he sent Mr. Ma here. Mr. Ma is acting as President Pei's mouthpiece!"

"That's right, even if President Pei didn't know about 'Cold Noodles Girl' at first, President Pei must have received the news after Meng Chang raised Tengda's banner and tried to ride on its popularity."

"This kind of small figure isn't worth his personal appearance. If he really came, Meng Chang would have caught the opportunity to ride on an even bigger wave of his fame."

"Therefore, President Pei sent Mr. Ma here to actually make an implicit indication and statement on behalf of Tengda, and also to knock Meng Chang into shape."

"With Meng Chang's level of intelligence, he won't fail to feel it."