44: Chapter 44 Aiming for a Market Value of 500 Million

The sixth day of the Lunar New Year.

The sound of firecrackers from the New Year's Eve celebrations still echoed in the cold air, but Shen Du had already made all the arrangements for the reconstruction of his old family home.

After leaving enough funds for the construction team to expedite the work and asking the neighbors to keep an eye on his mother.

He started his car and drove back to Shanghai.

Returning this early wasn't because of any sudden changes in the world of fame and fortune.

For a trader accustomed to capital markets, there were very few things left that could throw him off balance.

This trip back to Shanghai was for Meituan's New Year strategic meeting and annual report.

Under Shen Du's strategic planning, Meituan had already transformed into a behemoth.

Shen Du had long preferred to stay behind the scenes, never interfering in administrative trifles.

However, he held the core and largest share of equity in his hands.

In an era where capital was king, the status of the largest shareholder meant possessing absolute say.

Therefore, even if Shen Du did not want to listen to dry operational data.

Wang Xing, as the helmsman, still had to submit the past year's report card and the plans for the new year to his desk for review.

This was the rule of the capital world, and also Wang Xing's respect for this boss.

The car drove into the city center of Shanghai.

Shen Du turned on the car's Bluetooth, and Wang Xing's call came in right on time.

"Mr. Shen, Happy New Year."

On the other end of the line, Wang Xing's voice carried the exhaustion of working non-stop, yet he could not hide the excitement of his expanding territory:

"I have finished compiling the data for the New Year's strategy. I'm waiting for you to set a time so I can report to you."

"In addition... there is an itinerary at the beginning of the year that I need you to decide on."

"Speak."

Shen Du held the steering wheel with one hand, his tone calm.

"The city is leading the organization of a 'New Year Express Delivery Industry Conference' that will be held soon."

"I am currently out of town, leading a team to grind out offline promotions in several key cities. I am truly tied up and cannot make it back to Shanghai."

Wang Xing paused, his tone respectful:

"Meituan absolutely cannot be absent from this conference."

"So... I have to implore you, our big boss behind the scenes, to personally come out and represent Meituan to hold down the fort."

Shen Du watched the buildings flash by outside the car window.

He had always disliked such social occasions.

But since this concerned Meituan's industry standing and policy orientation for the start of the year, he didn't mind meeting those peers.

"Got it. Send me the time and location."

Shen Du responded indifferently and hung up the phone.

However, just as he parked the car in the garage of his high-end apartment and was about to put down his phone and go upstairs to rest.

A ripple came from deep within his mind.

Shen Du pushed open the door to his private apartment located in the heart of Lujiazui, preparing to toss his phone onto the sofa.

The silent, deep blue light screen in his mind began to flicker.

"Ding! Host detected entering the public eye. Triggering main rise quest three: 'Stirring Shanghai'!"

Immediately after, a series of system text flashed across his vision:

"Quest Objective: Utilize existing core subordinates to develop a brand-new niche market within the specified time."

"The target market capitalization must reach 500 million RMB."

"Core Requirement: During this period, you must obtain at least a 30% share of this market."

"Quest Reward: Era Dividend — Technology Industry 'Choose One of Three' Access Package (Includes core patents, technical blueprints, and the initial R&D team)."

"Hidden Mechanism: If the host completes the quest with an absolute market share exceeding expectations and causes a huge sensation in the industry, the reward will directly evolve into the ultimate 'Choose Two of Three' version!"

The slightly weary Shen Du felt his pupils constrict when he saw the four words "Technology Industry."

He straightened his body on the sofa.

If the first reward of "Meituan shares" was to build a cash flow machine for him.

Then this reward was a qualitative change in nature.

The system had directly skipped traditional O2O and jumped into the field of hard technology.

"Technology... this is the primary productive force of the future."

Shen Du tapped his fingers lightly on his knee, a ripple of emotion rising in his heart.

As a reborn person, he knew clearly what the upcoming 4G era meant.

It was not just a carnival of mobile internet, but the beginning of a reshuffling of the technology landscape.

If this "Choose One of Three" package contained chips and semiconductors.

Or the nascent technology for pure electric new energy vehicles.

That meant what he would open up in the future would be a trillion-level market.

On this planet, those who play with finance are only considered rich; only those who master core technology can be called "Chaebols."

After the excitement, calmness took control of his brain again.

Shen Du began to ruminate on the details of the mission:

"Develop a new market, market cap of 500 million, obtain at least a 30% share of the same market..."

He sensed the difficulty in it.

The "new market" mentioned in this mission likely referred to a national scale, not limited to Shanghai alone.

Because in early 2011 in Shanghai.

If one only held a 30% share in a single city, the scale of the market would struggle to support a valuation of 500 million.

This meant.

He must, in this grand drama.

Precisely cut into a national-level track that hadn't been valued by giants yet but had strong explosive potential, and clear the field.

Shen Du gazed at the lights of Lujiazui outside the window, his mind deducing rapidly.

Since the system reward pointed to hard technology, for this first battle as a pledge of loyalty, he didn't intend to just get a passing grade.

Since he was doing it, he was going to take that ultimate "Choose Two of Three."

Shen Du's breathing leveled out.

He stood up, walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, and looked down at the Huangpu River beneath his feet. Ambition surged in his eyes.

The first reward issued by the system was the controlling stake in Meituan.

This was already the ultimate dream in the eyes of ordinary people.

But in Shen Du's capital blueprint, this was just an "ATM" providing ammunition.

But the second era dividend touched upon the barriers of hard technology.

As long as he drew chip manufacturing, semiconductor architecture, or the core battery pack R&D for new energy electric vehicles in this "Choose One of Three"...

As long as he got the technical blueprints and the team.

At the juncture of the 4G network explosion, he, Shen Du, could bridge years of R&D gaps and create a trillion-level empire.

In the face of such temptation, a true hunter was terrifyingly rational.

Shen Du picked up the ice water on the table and drank it in one gulp.

His brain, like a precision computer, broke down the mission details:

"Develop a new market, market cap 500 million, share at least 30%."

These three conditions seemed to support each other, but were actually full of logical traps.

In early 2011, when the mobile internet hadn't fully exploded, solidifying a 500 million market cap with real money was definitely not something that could be bluffed through with a PPT.

"Relying only on Shanghai, this single city, he definitely couldn't swallow this market..."

Shen Du's eyes were clear.

He keenly perceived that if he only held a 30% share in the single city of Shanghai, the overall industry scale couldn't reach the lower limit of a 500 million valuation.

This meant the mission was forcing him to use Shanghai as a springboard to leverage a track affecting the national market.

This was a blitzkrieg.

He had to use his existing team within a very short time to precisely cut into a nascent field, and then use capital to stake his claim.

Just as Shen Du's brain was constantly screening the commercial tracks of 2011.

There was a knock at the door.

After a while, the solid wood door was pushed open.

Xu Hao stood at the door, watching Shen Du's back as he stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, lowering his voice to remind him:

"Brother Shen, it's getting late. We should go attend the New Year Express Delivery Conference in Shanghai."

Shen Du, having his train of thought interrupted, did not show any displeasure.

A flash of thought passed through his eyes in the reflection of the floor-to-ceiling window.

He immediately sealed the deductions regarding the "national market" and "500 million market cap" into his mind.

Not finding an entry point immediately was not important.

Since the main quest was "Stirring Shanghai," then today's industry conference was undoubtedly the best touchstone and weather vane.

Might as well go and meet those internet giants personally. See exactly how many fat sheep and hungry wolves were in this hunting ground.

Shen Du turned around, picked up the high-end suit draped on the sofa armrest, put it on, and adjusted his collar.

When he raised his head again, the fervor in his eyes had faded, replaced by the indifference of a trader.

He looked at Xu Hao outside the door, nodded indifferently, and gave the order:

"Let's go!"

Half an hour later, the black G-Wagon stopped outside the gate of the Shanghai International Convention Center.

Shen Du, with Xu Hao, walked into the vanity fair that gathered the top logistics and internet giants of the Yangtze River Delta, under the welcome of the organizers' senior management.

When stepping into the main venue, there was no suspense.

The organizers led Shen Du directly to the very front of the venue.

The absolute "C-position" in the center of the first row.

In a place like Shanghai that emphasized seniority.

Those who could sit in this position were usually political bigwigs or old-school Chaebols.

But today, Shen Du sat here, and no one around raised any objections.

This was definitely not the organizers showing off, but a solid crushing of status.

Because under Shen Du's strategy, Meituan had long since shaken off the peers struggling in the quagmire of group buying.

Relying on the massive express delivery network built in advance, Meituan had become the representative of the largest express delivery platform in the country.

In the face of data and market share, seniority took a back seat.

Shen Du sat down on the wide leather seat. His gaze swept over the seat cards beside him.

The representative of JD.com was ranked in the second position of the first row.

Looking at the familiar Logo, a playful smirk curled at the corner of Shen Du's mouth.

In the original trajectory, JD.com was still grinding away at large-scale warehousing and logistics at this time.

But it just so happened that Shen Du, in his previous game against "The Three Young Masters of Shanghai," had thrown out the concept of intra-city warehousing and distribution.

As a result, those three second-generation heirs.

Used family resources to create an "intra-city express delivery" game within JD.com's plate.

Pushing JD.com to the position of industry runner-up.

In other words, this so-called "industry second" was nothing more than a spare piece Shen Du had dropped back then.

As for Alibaba Group, which would call the shots in the local life sector in the future...

Shen Du's gaze passed over the front row and landed on several nervous-looking Alibaba representatives in the second row near the edge.

Although Alibaba was currently the king in the e-commerce field.

But in the track of "Express Delivery and Local Life," they hadn't officially entered the game yet.

They were only conducting small-scale trials in the Zhejiang area.

In this venue in early 2011.

The future giants could only sit obediently behind Shen Du at this moment.

At this moment, the stage began to stir.