A flush of excitent rose on Zhang Zhidong’s face.
“There are several Korean ga developers currently negotiating with us. But to be honest, they’re not A-grade gas. Titles like Blood Alliance from TJ Soft or Mu Online from SY Soft are already negotiating with other companies. That’s why we targeted HS Venture Capital and reached out, but we received no reply.”
“I know. That’s why I ca in person. On my way back from attending President Hu Jintao’s inauguration.”
ntioning that I had attended Hu Jintao’s inauguration was intentional.
“...You were invited to the inauguration?”
“Would I have been able to attend otherwise?”
Zhang Zhidong sucked in a breath. His deanor imdiately beca more respectful.
This was China. A country that moved on guanxi and personal networks.
In other countries, such things were seen as breeding grounds for corruption, but in China, it was simply the reality.
“That’s not what matters right now. Don’t try to use Chinese law requiring foreign companies to work through a dostic corporation as leverage in this negotiation. If I feel like it, I can put a Chinese national up front and establish a company in a day. That cannot be your weapon against .”
Negotiation 101: create tension.
I brought this up to plant fear—my way of telling them that all the leverage they believed they had could be completely neutralized.
“We have no intention of doing that. If we can bring the gas held by HS Venture Capital into China and service them here, we can grow faster than anyone.”
Zhang Zhidong was far more proactive than Ma Huateng.
Ma Huateng simply listened silently.
“What do you think about HS Venture Capital and Tencent establishing a joint venture with a 49:51 split, using that company to distribute gas?”
Zhang Zhidong presented a reasonable proposal—tempting enough that he could have been greedy, yet he wasn’t.
“And you’re satisfied with that?”
“Right now, guiding our existing users toward the gaming sector is our priority. Of course, we must eventually make gas dostically. Korean gas are superior for the mont, but who knows how long that will last? We need to diversify our revenue imdiately; that’s the best route for us.”
This was the classic tactic Tencent used during its growth.
Offer basic services first, then gradually increase its stake and influence.
I was about to nod when Ma Huateng finally spoke.
“This approach is wrong.”
Startled, Zhang Zhidong turned his head.
“I believe the joint venture shouldn’t be with HS Venture Capital—it should be with you, Kim Muhyuk.”
Interesting. To call out so directly... I watched him, curious.
He had clearly been organizing his thoughts while I spoke with Zhang Zhidong.
“My assumption is that Dreamhigh Investnt is essentially yours. Am I correct?”
I shrugged, neither confirming nor denying.
“And HS Venture Capital must also be a venture investnt company funded with your own money.”
Again, I neither confird nor denied.
“If so, then long-term, it makes more sense to establish a joint venture with you personally. After all, I believe you are Tencent’s largest shareholder.”
Ma Huateng truly was a genius. With only a handful of clues, he had deduced my identity.
“And? Is that your final point?”
“No. If you are the hidden owner of Dreamhigh, then you must be close to the Party as well. That ans you can shield us from regulations or political pressure. That is the primary reason for this proposal.”
“We are already Tencent’s largest shareholder. And...”
I looked at Ma Huateng sharply.
“Ma Huateng, aren’t you deeply connected to Jiang Zemin’s Shanghai Clique?”
“H-How did you...?”
For the first ti, Ma Huateng’s composure cracked.
“What matters now is not that. What matters is that I am very close to President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao. That ans the connection you hold through Jiang Zemin could be severed. Even so, you want to stand in front?”
Ma Huateng couldn’t answer imdiately.
His eyes trembled. Zhang Zhidong also looked restless.
“Hu Jintao and Jiang Zemin cannot coexist. Right now their factions are cooperating, but if things collapse between them later, what will you do?”
Even if Ma Huateng secured a link to Hu Jintao through , eventually, the Shanghai Clique and the Communist Youth League would fight.
That was why I never intended to inject Youth League funds into Tencent in the first place.
It could beco a liability.
“That is...”
Ma Huateng’s voice faded.
“When the ti cos to choose one side, that choice will be yours. I have no intention of showing my face publicly.”
Trying to use as a shield? What an absurd trick.
I crossed my arms and silently stared at him.
“Now, now, I’m not sure why the conversation suddenly veered that way. Let’s return to the business discussion first.”
Zhang Zhidong cut in, trying to reset the atmosphere.
I turned away from Ma Huateng and looked at Zhang Zhidong.
“Fine. It’s not as though I didn’t know all this when I invested. Let’s put politics aside and focus on business.”
Ma Huateng still hadn’t recovered from the shock, so Zhang Zhidong took the lead.
“In that case, Dreamhigh and Tencent will establish a joint venture with a 49:51 split. Of course, the 49% stake will be transferred to Dreamhigh at no cost.”
“How far is the preparation?”
After glancing at Ma Huateng, Zhang Zhidong continued.
“The website is complete. QQ ssenger IDs can be linked imdiately.”
That was Tencent’s magic. The magic that allowed a latecor to surpass early leaders.
As ti passed, QQ ssenger users would grow, and with a single QQ ID, users could access every service Tencent provided.
A sealed Tencent ecosystem.
That was Ma Huateng’s dream.
“So all you need now are the gas to launch service imdiately.”
“Exactly.”
Hearing that everything else was ready, I nodded.
It seed the only delay had been securing contracts with developers.
“Is Blood Alliance from TJ dia and Mu Online from SY Soft all you need?”
“Yes. Just those two—Korea’s most popular gas. If we can service them in China, success is guaranteed. They’re already proven hits in Korea and Taiwan. Once they enter China, we can dominate the entire Chinese gaming market.”
Zhang Zhidong spoke with absolute confidence.
“Then let step outside and ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) make a call. Is there sowhere quiet?”
“Ah! I’ll guide you.”
He stood and led to an empty eting room next door.
“You can make your call here. I’ll go speak with Ma Huateng.”
After bowing, he left.
Once I confird he was gone, I pulled out my phone from my suit pocket.
Before the third ring, Hyunseong answered.
— Hey, Muhyuk.
“Busy?”
— Sa as always. Reviewing incoming investnt proposals, etings...
“You can talk now?”
— Yeah. Break ti.
Good timing.
“TJ Soft and SY Soft—both preparing to enter China, right?”
— TJ? SY? Hold on. Let check.
I heard him flipping through papers. Soon ca rustling and his voice again.
— Blood Alliance is still under review. Mu Online is about to finalize a partnership with The Nine.
The Nine operated CNNIC, China’s largest online entertainnt portal.
As of 2002, they had over ten million mbers, high-quality online ga services, and extensive infrastructure.
Under normal circumstances, they would never abandon such a partner for Tencent.
“Can you kill the deals?”
— Hmm... As long as I want to, yes. I’m the largest shareholder. But what’s going on all of a sudden?
“There’s a Chinese IT company I invested in—Tencent.”
— Oh, that one? QQ? They contacted us several tis wanting a eting. But we had no reason to get involved with a Chinese company, so we ignored them.
Hyunseong really had beco a businessman—he even knew China’s IT landscape.
I smiled.
“Right. But Dreamhigh is their biggest shareholder. Tencent seems desperate to get into ga publishing.”
— Really? Now I get it. You want Tencent to be the Chinese publishing partner for those two gas, right?
“Yeah. Can you make it happen?”
He didn’t hesitate.
— We usually avoid ddling in managent, but if you want it, we’ll do it. I’ll set up etings with the executives right away.
“Thanks. We’ll offer better terms than The Nine, so don’t worry.”
— That’ll make negotiations easier. I’ll handle it and text you?
I wasn’t going to let Tencent grow at Hyunseong’s expense.
“Yeah. Text is better. Proceed with that. I can trust you, right?”
— Of course. You never ask for favors like this. I’ll kill both deals. I have enough influence.
I answered his confident tone with a laugh.
— See you in Korea. Let’s grab a al.
“Sure. When I’m back, let’s et.”
I hung up and stared at my phone.
If Hyunseong spoke that confidently, it was already done.
I turned to Manager Ma, who had been silently standing and keeping watch.
“Let’s go finish this.”
“Yes, Boss.”
* * *
Zhang Zhidong returned after guiding Kim Muhyuk out.
Ma Huateng, stiff-faced, asked him:
“How much does he actually know?”
Sitting down, Zhang Zhidong replied:
“I don’t know. How did he learn you were connected to the Shanghai Clique? Only a handful know that.”
Lowering his voice, Ma Huateng muttered:
“Does this an our entire plan collapses? What about the investnt we were supposed to receive from Naspers?”
“...You said they were the investnt company that launders the Shanghai Clique’s money, right?”
Ma Huateng nodded anxiously.
“They were directly instructed by the Shanghai Clique to invest in us. I refused, but they warned that doing business would beco difficult if I kept refusing.”
Zhang Zhidong cursed.
“Damn it. Without Dreamhigh’s approval, we can’t accept any new investnt. I planned to bring it up carefully, but everything’s blown up. If he knows about your Shanghai Clique connection, he’ll never accept new investors.”
“We can force it. If we raise capital through a paid-in capital increase—”
Before he could finish, Zhang Zhidong snapped at him.
“Weren’t you listening? He’s the one who can give us what we need! Blood Alliance and Mu Online, Ma Huateng! You know how successful those gas were in Taiwan! And you want to give that up?”
Ma Huateng lowered his eyes, unable to argue.
“You said it yourself. Without this, we have no future. Future revenue will co from gas. We must prepare now so we can dominate the Chinese gaming market. And then the global market. Isn’t that your vision? That’s why I dropped everything to focus on this.”
“But...”
“I told you before. Once politics enters business, things like this will happen constantly. If the internal Party struggle ends with the Youth League winning? We’re finished. That’s why I said we shouldn’t get involved in central politics.”
His sharp retort made Ma Huateng sigh deeply.
“Ha... Let’s just bring it up for now.”
“I don’t know. If this fails, I’m withdrawing from all Tencent operations. Rember that.”
Just as Ma Huateng opened his mouth to respond, there was a knock.
When the door opened, Kim Muhyuk stepped in, raising an eyebrow.
He had clearly sensed the tense atmosphere.
“It seems the two of you had a disagreent.”
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