165: Discussing investment

Qin Yu sat in the passenger seat and glanced at Lei Jun in the rearview mirror. Seeing her eyes closed, he didn't dare to speak and only quietly lowered the volume of the music.

About twenty minutes later, the car stopped in front of a grand-looking small building.

There was no sign at the entrance of the building, only two security guards in black suits standing there. When they saw the car, they immediately saluted.

Lei Jun opened her eyes and looked out through the car window. The exterior walls of the small building were made of dark stone, and two retro lanterns hung at the entrance. The light was warm and yellow, making it look less like an entertainment venue and more like a private club.

“Sister Lei, we're here.” Wu Tian was the first to get out of the car and opened the rear door.

When Lei Jun stepped out of the car, her feet landed on the red-carpeted ground.

She walked into the building. In the foyer stood a large fish tank where several colorful fish swam back and forth, the sound of water gurgling softly.

A waitress wearing a cheongsam led them into a private room. When she pushed open the door, Lei Jun saw a middle-aged man sitting inside. He wore gold-rimmed glasses and a gray Mao suit, and was currently looking down while pouring tea.

Hearing the movement, the middle-aged man looked up. His eyes behind the lenses were bright as he sized up Lei Jun, then said with a smile, “This must be Miss Lei? I’ve heard much about you.”

Lei Jun walked over and sat opposite him, and the waitress poured her a cup of tea.

She picked up the teacup and caught a faint fragrance at the tip of her nose; it was the scent of Longjing.

“You must be Expert Li? Thank you for making the trip.”

Expert Li smiled and set down the purple clay teapot, his fingers stroking its surface. “It’s no trouble. Qin Yu and the others told me it's regarding an investment in a mobile game.”

He picked up his own teacup, took a sip, and then pulled a tablet out of the briefcase beside him, placing it on the table.

He then proceeded with a thorough analysis, concluding that star universe era had the potential to be profitable and was a good investment project.

Lei Jun nodded.

“Expert Li, do you know about Xingyun Interactive Entertainment? That's the company making this game.”

Expert Li paused for a moment, then nodded. “I do. I specifically looked into them. The company is called Xingyun Interactive Entertainment, and the founder is named Zhang Li. He used to be a project manager at NetEase before leaving to start his own business.”

He took a document out of his briefcase.

“This is the information I gathered. Their company has been established for three years, and they've only worked on this one game. They haven't done any other miscellaneous projects; they're very focused.”

The word 'focused' tipped the scales in Lei Jun's heart a bit further.

She had seen too many short-sighted companies that would immediately copy others' work as soon as one game became popular, ultimately ruining their brand.

“Is their funding gap large?”

“Not large,” Expert Li said, flipping through the documents. “They’ve already invested nearly two hundred million. They aren't short by much now; it's mainly for the open beta promotion and server expansion.”

He looked up at Lei Jun.

“If you can invest fifty million for a 10% stake, it’s an absolute bargain. If this game explodes, its market value will at least increase tenfold.”

Lei Jun nodded, having already made her decision.

She looked toward Qin Yu and the others. The three were sitting on the nearby sofa, not daring to breathe loudly, though their eyes drifted over from time to time.

“Expert Li, thank you for your hard work. Let's leave it at that for today.” Expert Li knew she wanted to talk with her own people and stood up with a smile. “Alright, then I’ll take my leave. Let me know if you have any other questions.”

After the door to the private room closed, Qin Yu immediately leaned in with an eager smile on his face.

“Sister Lei, you heard what Expert Li said, right? This project is definitely solid!”

His gaze fell on the documents in front of Lei Jun.

If Sister Lei invested, could he follow suit and invest a little too?

Even if he only invested a few hundred thousand, a tenfold return would be several million.

Wu Tian and Guo Hao also came over. Wu Tian was holding the tablet Expert Li had left behind, repeatedly looking at the data. “Sister Lei, this data is really good. It's much better than the projects I invested in before.”

Guo Hao rubbed his hands, unable to hide the excitement on his face. “Sister Lei, if you're investing, count us in!”

Lei Jun took a business card out of her bag and placed it on the table... it was the one Zhang Li had handed her last time, printed with the words 'Xingyun Interactive Entertainment, Zhang Li'.

“Qin Yu, contact Zhang Li and ask if he has secured any investment.” Her finger tapped the business card. “If not, tell him to come to Shanghai and say that I want to invest in his company.”

Qin Yu picked up the business card, overjoyed.

He nodded quickly. “Okay, I'll call right now!”

If Sister Lei invested fifty million for 10%, then if he invested five million, he could get 1%. If it increased tenfold, that would be fifty million!

To Sister Lei, it was a small profit, but to him, it was a fortune!

Wu Tian leaned over to glance at the business card, his heart also racing with excitement.

His family was in real estate, and he had a lot of spare cash on hand lately with nowhere to invest it.

If he could follow Sister Lei’s lead, it would be a guaranteed profit.

“Sister Lei, can we invest a little too?”

Guo Hao quickly chimed in. “Yeah, Sister Lei, we definitely won't invest much, just want to share in your good fortune.”

Although he had money, compared to Sister Lei, it was a drop in the bucket.

Being able to invest alongside Sister Lei would not only make him money but also bring them closer together; such an opportunity was rare.

Seeing the three of them so excited, Lei Jun couldn't help but smile.

“Fine.” She nodded. “Discuss among yourselves how much to invest, but let me be clear: once you've invested, don't regret it. Profits and losses are your own responsibility.”

“No regrets, absolutely no regrets!” the three said in unison... Then they sent Lei Jun back to school and immediately called Zhang Li.

Qin Yu quickly dialed Zhang Li's number, while Wu Tian and Guo Hao crowded around him, their ears almost pressed against the phone.

At that moment, in the offices of Xingyun Interactive Entertainment, Zhang Li was slumped in his office chair, rubbing his aching temples.

The office was a mess, with several empty coffee cups strewn on the floor, and the air was filled with the bitter smell of coffee and tobacco.

On the computer screen in front of him were the closed beta stats for star universe era. Although they looked good, he was in no mood to celebrate!

The capital chain was broken, and the servers were barely holding up.

He picked up the thermos on his desk and took a sip of cold tea, his mouth filled with bitterness.

Over the past few days, he had visited over a dozen investment firms, only to be either rejected or lowballed ridiculously. One firm even offered to invest thirty million for a 50% stake, which was practically robbery.

He rubbed his face. Having not slept well for days, he had quite a bit of stubble.

Just then, his phone rang.

He didn't even look, assuming it was a debt collector, and answered irritably, “Who is it?”

An unfamiliar male voice came from the other end: “Is this CEO Zhang Li?”

Zhang Li frowned. The voice was quite steady and didn't sound like a debt collector.

He sat up straight, his ears perking up. “I am Zhang Li. Who are you?”

“My name is Qin Yu!” Qin Yu's voice carried a hint of condescension. “I have your business card here. Sister Lei asked me to call you.”