There was no long-sleeved shirt in the trunk of Li Mu's car. The reason why he said that was to embarrass Ding Zhenglin. However, his voice was very low, as if he was deliberately avoiding Ding Zhenglin. Moreover, his tone was full of concern. It seemed that he really cared about Lin Ching-ah in private.
However, this sentence still entered Ding Zhenglin's ears, which instantly made him feel a little embarrassed. Originally, he had thought that he couldn't be picked out for a business trip no matter what, but at this moment, he felt that he had become a clown in strange clothes. He felt extremely uncomfortable from head to toe. This kind of feeling was so great that Ding Zhenglin wanted to quickly tear off his suit and change it into a simple T-shirt. At least changing into a short-sleeved shirt would make him feel better.
However, in this situation, Ding Zhenglin could only bite the bullet and say, "I turned the air conditioner too low. I'll turn it up a little."
As he said that, he reached for the remote control.
Lin Ching-ah also guessed Li Mu's intention. Although she felt a little cold after entering the room, she knew that she couldn't believe what Li Mu had just said. Therefore, she could only laugh in her heart and pretend that it didn't matter on her face. She said to the two of them, "It's okay. I'm not cold."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ding Zhenglin turned the air conditioner from 16 degrees to 24 degrees. He wanted to take off his suit jacket, but he hesitated again and again and was too embarrassed to do so.
Li Mu felt that if Ding Zhenglin felt awkward and cramped during the interview, his whole psychological state would be greatly affected. If he wanted to trick him into giving up Sequoia and joining Makino Technology, he had to hit his confidence in his current role.
At this time, Li Mu invited him to sit down and said, "Mr. Ding, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting because of the traffic on the road."
Ding Zhenglin hurriedly said, "You're welcome."
Li Mu smiled and asked Ding Zhenglin, "Boss Ding, how long have you been working in the investment bank?"
Ding Zhenglin was restless because of his outfit, so when he was asked a question by Li Mu, who was almost ten years younger than him, he felt as if he was being questioned by an elder. He could not help but say nervously, "I've been working in the investment bank for eight years. I joined right after I graduated."
Nodding his head, Li Mu smiled. "Then you can be considered a veteran in the investment industry. Truth be told, I don't know much about financial operations, so feel free to correct me if Chairman Ding feels that my words are too amateurish."
"You're flattering me. You're very smart when it comes to financial operations. It's simple, direct, and effective. Even people like us who specialize in finance are amazed." Ding Zhenglin was particularly modest, but it was not a modesty that could be faked. Facing a 20-year-old billionaire like Li Mu, Ding Zhenglin basically could not find any sense of superiority. Even though he felt that Makino Technology's capital operation was very weak and unorganized, he did not dare to underestimate Li Mu's vision in terms of capital.
Normally, the current Internet companies were all bragging and telling stories. Most Internet entrepreneurs only held a mouse pad in their hands and dared to tell their investors that they were going to open a global chain of Internet cafes. After such people started their business, they would be very active in financial operations and could play with financing. In contrast, Li Mu's two rounds of financing were too simple. There was almost no technical operation. Looking at the operation alone, he really lacked experience.
However, Ding Zhenglin looked at this problem from another angle. Makino Technology rose rapidly with only two rounds of financing. This speed was almost unprecedented in the Internet field. The rapid development of Makino Technology was inseparable from Li Mu's operation. On the other hand, it seemed to be related to his financing strategy. Li Mu's first financing with Baidu was to introduce Baidu's traffic. Before the second financing, he kicked Baidu away because Baidu's traffic was no longer significant to him. After the second financing, the people who invested in Makino Technology were all Li Mu's friends. Hui Ka Ming and Chen Ze paid for the shares of Makino Technology, but no one would interfere with Li Mu's daily operation of Makino Technology. Therefore, Li Mu still had 100% control over Makino Technology. From another perspective, this was also one of Li Mu's strategies. If Li Mu had introduced real venture capital companies earlier, it would have been difficult for him to ensure his unshakable position in the company.
Therefore, on the whole, Ding Zhenglin felt that Li Mu was a very good person in financial operations. The Great Way was the simplest. He was using the simplest way to achieve the greatest effect.
Li Mu, on the other hand, laughed self-deprecatingly. "You think so because you've been blinded by the success of Muye Technology."
Li Mu knew very well that Ding Zhenglin felt that he was very smart in financial operations. In fact, it was a kind of result determinism. After he saw the success of Makino Technology, he felt that Makino Technology's approach was very good. It was just like how the later generations advocated how awesome and wise Lao Gan Ma was by not going public. In fact, this was a kind of result determinism. On the other hand, when he calmed down and thought about it, was Lao Gan Ma's approach really awesome? Not necessarily. It was not because she did not go public that Lao Gan Ma was successful. It was because after she succeeded in Lao Gan Ma, according to her usual development model, it was no longer important for her to go public.
Lao Gan Ma had a good product as the core. Not only did it expand the market for her, but it also strengthened the supply and marketing relationship for her. Therefore, her cash flow was strong. Coupled with the light assets, the overall operation had been good. However, this good model was the same as Li Mu's financial operations. It was effective, but it lacked sufficient technical content. At the same time, it also restricted the possibility of diversified development.
The initial model of Lao Gan Ma was: Production, Sales, Profit
After the start, the model was: More Production, More Sales, More Profit
All along, their development goal had only been to produce more, sell more, and earn more.
Li Mu would not deny this simple, direct, crude, and effective business model, but he pursued a slightly higher level on the basis of simplicity and practicality. He hoped that his layout could continue to break through, and he also hoped that the model of his industry could continue to break through. Therefore, he was not happy about Ding Zhenglin's praise at all. Instead, he was more aware of his own shortcomings. If he only wanted to maintain the current situation, make money steadily, and spend money with peace of mind, the current simple and effective model was enough. However, if he wanted to break through, he must change the current development model.
Ding Zhenglin pondered for a moment and seemed to have grasped the meaning in Li Mu's words. Therefore, he also realized that Li Mu was actually not satisfied with his own financial operations.
Thinking of this, Ding Zhenglin began to lead the topic on the right track. He said seriously, "Mr. Li, you should be a leader who focuses on the development of the Internet and Internet products. If you are worried that the financial aspect will not be able to keep up with the development of Makino Technology, I think the best way is to attract a veteran venture capital company like Sequoia to join. If Makino Technology chooses Sequoia for the C round, Sequoia will definitely use more than 40 years of accumulated financial operation experience to help Makino Technology develop better. Sequoia's strength in the US financial industry is extraordinary. If Makino Technology wants to go public in the US in the future, we can provide the most direct and effective help."
Li Mu nodded in agreement and said with a smile, "The future of Makino Technology must be going public in the US, but the problem now is not how many stops we have to make before going public, but how many people will get on board before going public."
The meaning in Li Mu's words was a little vague. What he wanted to express was that going public in the US was his goal, but he was no longer thinking about financing. What he was thinking about was attracting more professionals to join before going public.
Although Ding Zhenglin was very good at financial operations and investment strategic vision, he seemed to be slightly lacking in understanding the hidden meaning of other people's words. He did not understand the meaning in Li Mu's words. Instead, he said with a face of agreement, "What Li Zong said is really right! Now is a critical juncture for more people to get on board and move forward together. If Sequoia joins, Makino Technology's road to going public in the US will definitely be faster and faster! "
Li Mu smiled indifferently and said, "Mr. Ding, you didn't understand what I meant. To make an inappropriate analogy, if Makino Technology is a train, then it has now completed its last formation. Before arriving at the next destination, it will not stop to regroup and set off again. However, if there is a suitable person, a suitable individual, Makino Technology will take them on this train and go together to the next station."
Ding Zhenglin was dumbfounded. He looked at Li Mu in astonishment and asked after a while, "Li Zong, what do you mean?"
Li Mu was helpless, and Lin Ching-ah, who was beside him, also secretly shook her head. Ding Zhenglin was confused. What did he mean by not regroup and set off again? What did he mean by suitable person and suitable individual? He was sensitive to finance, but when it came to this kind of roundabout talk, his brain circuit was really not good enough.
Li Mu decided to be straightforward and said indifferently, "Mr. Ding, let's get to the point. Makino Technology is not going to do C Series financing for the time being before going public. Our goal is to achieve the goal of going public on NASDAQ by the end of 2003 or the first half of 2004. In the next one and a half to two years, Makino Technology will go all out. Therefore, in this short period of time, we only accept individuals to join Makino Technology. We are not going to accept any other companies or organizations to join."
After hearing such straightforward words, Ding Zhenglin suddenly became anxious. He stood up and said indignantly, "Li Zong, aren't you fooling people? You are the one who announced to the public that you want to do C Series financing, and the whole industry is waiting to talk to you about C Series financing. You asked Mr. Lin to make a phone call, and I came to talk to you in this summer in the high temperature of more than 30 degrees Celsius. I was afraid that I would lose my manners in front of you, and I didn't even dare to take off my coat. Now you suddenly say this, aren't you playing a monkey?! "
Li Mu raised his head and looked at Ding Zhenglin's red face. He said innocently, "When did we say that we were going to do C Series financing?"
Ding Zhenglin blurted out, "Didn't the people from Mingcheng Capital reveal it? Isn't Mingcheng Capital the lead investor of Makino Technology's B Series financing? "
Li Mu nodded. "Yes, you said it yourself. It was the people from Mingcheng Capital who revealed the news. What does it have to do with me?"
"I … this …"
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