36: Chapter 36 Rising with the help of others, the Third Young Master is in awe.

Young Master Jie, Zhou Wennan, and Zhu Shuyan held their breath, their backs straight.

Shen Du leaned back against the chair, playing his trump card.

He broke down the mature O2O business closed-loop model from the future into several concepts:

"Express delivery, grocery shopping, and the increasingly popular e-commerce."

"In the future, the internet will become more and more advanced, and mobile devices will become more convenient."

Shen Du's voice was steady: "When all of this is connected by an invisible network, a massive user base..."

"...only needs to tap an order button in a mobile app..."

...to bind virtual traffic with physical entities.

The brows of the three men furrowed.

In their commercial understanding, the internet was mostly for obtaining information and entertainment, or like Taobao, buying and selling on the PC end.

The blueprint Shen Du painted stuffed the entire city's physical network into a mobile phone.

It left these three second-generation heirs, accustomed to traditional markets, in a brief silence.

Silence spread through the private room.

This group of second-generation heirs, who grew up surrounded by business, had keen instincts.

As these concepts pieced themselves together in their minds...

"Clap."

Young Master Jie straightened his back, and the wine glass in his hand clattered onto the walnut table.

A few drops of wine splashed out, staining the tablecloth, but he didn't care.

He stared at Shen Du: "Young Master Shen, do you mean..."

"In other words, in the future, as long as you have a phone connected to the internet, whether it's a hot meal ordered from a restaurant, fresh produce with dirt still on it from the market, or even goods from a shopping mall..."

"...they can all be coordinated and then delivered to your doorstep instantly?"

Zhou Wennan and Zhu Shuyan, hearing this summary, turned to look at each other.

In 2010, an era where physical giants were still fighting tooth and nail for prime locations...

...the "online traffic monopoly plus offline instant delivery" closed-loop model that Shen Du threw out...

...shattered their inherent understanding of business.

Facing the three men's reactions...

Shen Du remained leaning against the back of his chair.

He had originally just wanted to use the information gap, throw out some advanced concepts, and establish his background persona.

Yet unintentionally...

...he had pushed this e-commerce form, which would only take shape years later, onto the table of Shanghai's capital players ahead of time.

The private room was silent for nearly a minute.

"Huuu—"

Young Master Jie let out a long breath, snapping back to reality from this blueprint.

When he raised his head to look at Shen Du again...

...the previous defensiveness and probing had faded, replaced by admiration.

"Young Master Shen, I completely understand what you mean."

Young Master Jie braced his hands on the table, his voice tight:

"You never intended to redistribute the interests at the bottom level at all."

"You are trying to play a new card in the stagnant, solidified water of Shanghai."

At this point, Young Master Jie's Adam's apple bobbed.

He leaned forward slightly, carefully choosing his words, and probed:

"Then, may I ask..."

Young Master Jie looked into Shen Du's eyes, his tone cautious:

"If we three also want to shamelessly follow behind you and set up a stall in this new industry... would it hinder you?"

Facing this probing attempt to grab a share of the food, Shen Du didn't even frown.

He nodded, his tone indifferent:

"Such a large plate, a market of over a billion people nationwide, Meituan can't eat it all alone."

This seemingly casual delegation of power was Shen Du's open scheme.

He picked up his wine glass, looking at the three "catfish" about to be released into the water.

He knew well the iron law that "monopoly will inevitably lead to backlash."

If Meituan hogged all the food in Shanghai, it would sooner or later be forcibly dismembered by jealous parties.

It was better to just muddy the waters.

As long as these three local powerhouses, Young Master Jie and his friends, took the lead in entering the game and raised the banner to open a few new markets...

...the first and second-tier families outside would definitely follow suit.

The market pool would be brought to a boil, and with more people doing it...

...it would not only shield Meituan from the open and hidden arrows aimed at the first bird to fly...

...but it would also, through capital burning and internal competition, rapidly ripen this local life market that would otherwise take years to popularize.

Hearing this understated delegation of power from Shen Du...

...the hearts of Young Master Jie and the other two skipped a beat.

In their skewed perception...

...only those who stand at the top of the pyramid, viewing money as mere numbers...

...and possessing that kind of background...

...could have the magnanimity not to care about the gains or losses of a single city or stronghold.

Young Master Jie gave a thumbs up, his tone awestruck:

"As expected of Young Master Shen, this level of magnanimity is truly different from ours."

Immediately after, his expression turned serious.

On the spot, representing Zhou Wennan and Zhu Shuyan beside him, he drew a red line for Shen Du:

"Young Master Shen, it is our honor that you are willing to let us have a share of the meat."

"But the rules cannot be broken."

"We will absolutely never smash Meituan's plate!"

Young Master Jie's tone was categorical: "From now on, no matter how this industry develops, we will absolutely never cross the line to steal your share!"

Zhou Wennan and Zhu Shuyan nodded along, their eyes resolute.

Looking at these three second-generation heirs swearing oaths before him...

Shen Du nodded slightly, remaining calm on the surface, while coolly completing the final step of his trap in his heart.

Relying on an accidental information gap...

...he hadn't even said a single harsh word...

...and had bloodlessly built a moat for Meituan's territory in Shanghai.

With the red line drawn, the atmosphere in the private room relaxed.

Young Master Jie glanced at the patek philippe on his wrist.

He realized that this private conversation had gone on long enough and had achieved the expected results.

Continuing to keep him in this enclosed space would be tactless.

He took the initiative to stand up and straightened the hem of his suit.

In this four-person space, Young Master Jie switched to the role of a guide.

"Young Master Shen, quite a few people have come today; basically everyone in this circle has arrived."

Young Master Jie bowed slightly and suggested:

"If you don't mind, allow me to take you out and introduce you to them one by one?"

Young Master Jie lowered his voice, offering the second-tier circle outside as a gift:

"In the future, when you roll out this new business, whether it's capital flow, offline merchants, or logistics resources..."

"...those people outside can, to some extent, act as errand runners for you and be at your beck and call."

Shen Du's purpose in attending the banquet today was not just to handle these three people in the private room.

To expand Meituan's footprint in Shanghai...

...the families outside who controlled the mid-to-low-end merchants and the lifeblood of local logistics were the foundation he needed to recruit.

Facing Young Master Jie's proposal, Shen Du nodded indifferently and went with the flow:

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Young Master Jie."

Hearing this, Young Master Jie turned around.

He walked to the walnut door, personally gripped the brass handle, and pulled it open.

"Boom—"

The door opened.

The sound waves and clamor from the terrace outside flooded into the private room.

It broke the silence inside the room.

Shen Du had one hand in his suit pocket and strode out with long legs.

Surrounded by Young Master Jie, Zhou Wennan, and Zhu Shuyan...

...Shen Du stepped out of the private room.

Facing the spotlights on the terrace, he walked toward the young masters outside holding their wine glasses.

...

Late at night in early winter, on the banks of the Huangpu River.

A black Mercedes G55 AMG drove on the wide asphalt road.

Inside the car, Shen Du leaned back against the leather seat.

His fingers toyed with that heavy Nokia 5230.

Accompanied by the "click" sound of the buttons, the contacts scrolled on the screen.

Those newly entered names...

...whether it was the three young masters of Shanghai or the heads of the second-tier families...

...were all lying in this old phone at this moment.

Shen Du's gaze swept across the screen. A thought flashed through his mind: Perhaps it was time to switch to a touchscreen phone.

But when the screen's light swept over the Richard Mille on his wrist and disappeared into the fabric of his suit...

...he dismissed the thought.

In this era, a touchscreen represented trendiness.

But for Shen Du now, what communication tool he used was no longer important.

Under the halo of his assets...

...this old Nokia wouldn't seem shabby; instead, it would be imagined by these second-generation heirs as a "nostalgic quirk."

"Snap."

Shen Du tossed the Nokia into the center console and looked at the night view outside the car window.

He whispered softly:

"This party was worth attending."

In the driver's seat, Xu Hao gripped the steering wheel tightly, the veins on the back of his hands bulging.

Hearing Shen Du's whisper from the back seat...

...he didn't dare to reply, fearing he would disturb his boss.

But his heavy, rapid breathing betrayed his inner excitement.

In Xu Hao's mind, the scene he had witnessed in the waiting area downstairs played back.

At the time, he was sitting outside smoking with the driver.

He had seen with his own eyes...

...that Young Master Jie, who usually ran wild in the circle, actually acted like a lackey, trailing half a step behind, personally escorting Shen Du to the steps.

Not only was he all smiles and bowing proactively, but when they shook hands to say goodbye, Young Master Jie's posture was extremely low.

"Tsk... Brother Shen is just too fierce."

Xu Hao stared at the road ahead, suppressing his heart's wild pounding.

A young man from another province, able to make the top "local powerhouse" of Shanghai proactively fawn to such an extent.

Xu Hao's understanding was overturned.

He firmly imagined that the origin behind Shen Du must be a truly heaven-reaching, powerful figure.

A kind of fanaticism swept through his entire body.

Xu Hao gritted his teeth.

Swearing in his heart: He had bet on the right person this time.

From now on, he was the blade in Shen Du's hand.