"What misunderstanding?!" Yang Xu impatiently interrupted him. "You thousand hundred fought with Taoxun, and now our Feitong is being scolded. Is this how you treat comrades? Don't forget, to help Qianbai, Feitong gave up such a huge piece of the Taoxun pie! Now, our market share has been snatched by Shunda. Do you know how much I've lost? Vice President Yao, if you don't give me an explanation today, I don't think we should cooperate anymore!"
Yao Hongbo was quite displeased. Feitong abandoning the Taoxun order was because Qianbai paid them, wasn't it? If there were no benefits, would Yang Xu be willing to cooperate? Feitong being scolded now was clearly due to their own express company's problems! Yet now, Yang Xu actually had the nerve to act like a victim.
However, they were still allies, and it wasn't good to fall out at this time.
"Director Yang, please calm down. Taoxun has now acquired Shunda, and it is our common enemy, wouldn't you agree?" Yao Hongbo tried to persuade him. "Think about it, who will be happiest if we have internal conflict at this time? It's Taoxun, isn't it? Do you really think that withdrawing cooperation at this juncture will make Taoxun redistribute the cake to you?"
"Don't tell me all that nonsense!" Yang Xu impatiently interrupted him. "You must be responsible for my losses! Do you really think Feitong can't survive without your Qianbai?!"
Yao Hongbo was so angry he felt like spitting blood. Yang Xu was clearly trying to take advantage of the situation.
He said somewhat helplessly, "Then Director Yang, what is your intention..."
"My intention is very simple!" Yang Xu announced loudly. "Since Su Ming and the others can invest in Qianbai, why can't they invest in Feitong? Anyway, your Qianbai is helpless against Taoxun. It's better to invest in Feitong and win against Shunda in express delivery. Perhaps then you'll have a chance to defeat Taoxun!"
Yao Hongbo felt his blood pressure surge. Yang Xu had truly revealed his true intentions.
He said rather coldly, "Oh? Director Yang, Shunda has a great reputation online now, much better than Feitong. Do you have the confidence to defeat it?"
"Of course!" Yang Xu sneered. "I've already figured out what Shunda has been doing recently! They've bought quite a few logistics warehouses and optimized their sorting system. Anything they can do, I can do too! As long as there's enough investor money, I can buy more warehouses than them and achieve faster delivery speeds!"
Yao Hongbo couldn't help but say, "Shunda's good reputation isn't just because they deliver fast; their service attitude is also good."
"That's easy! Just add service attitude to the employee performance appraisal. If a deliveryman can't do it, deduct their pay. Isn't that enough?"
Yao Hongbo was slightly taken aback. He felt that this wasn't a good idea. He couldn't help but say, "Director Yang, isn't this a bit much? Aren't you worried about causing dissatisfaction among the deliverymen?"
"Heh, what use is their dissatisfaction? There's plenty of labor available. If they don't do it, there are others who will. If they don't do it, they can get lost!" Yang Xu said impatiently.
Yao Hongbo hesitated to speak, then couldn't help but try to persuade him again, "Director Yang, are you sure you won't reconsider?" xxs壹贰
"Vice President Yao, why are you so fixated on these minor details?" Yang Xu said with displeasure. "The competition between express companies is, in the final analysis, a price war! As long as I set the prices low enough, I can snatch business away from Shunda. Why do you care about those deliverymen? Anyway, they are all outsourced. Even if something happens, the express company won't be held responsible!"
Yao Hongbo was silent for a moment and said, "I can't make a decision on this matter. I need to ask for the opinions of Director Su and the others."
"Alright, I'll wait for your reply." After speaking, Yang Xu hung up the phone.
Yao Hongbo was helpless. He could only contact those investors again and hold another emergency video conference.
At the start of the meeting, Su Ming said somewhat displeased, "Hongbo, we chose you because we value your ability to handle Qianbai's affairs with full authority. You drag us all into meetings every day. What is this all about?"
"Director Su, this is related to the cooperation with Feitong, so I must consult all of you." Yao Hongbo said helplessly, then he relayed Yang Xu's terms.
There was an uproar among them. Clearly, Yang Xu's act of taking advantage of the situation displeased them greatly, and they all condemned Yang Xu as despicable.
"Hongbo, what's your opinion?" Zhan Li asked in a deep voice.
"I think..." Yao Hongbo said, "We might as well seize this opportunity to abandon the cooperation with Feitong! Express companies are black holes. If we truly want to invest, we don't know how much money we'll throw into them! Even if we stop cooperating, won't Feitong still accept Qianbai's orders in the future? Moreover..."
He took a deep breath and mustered his courage, saying, "Esteemed directors, Taoxun is currently on the rise. We don't need to compete with them for supremacy at this time! The prospects of the online shopping market are huge. How can such a large market not accommodate two online shopping companies?"
His words immediately caused an uproar.
"Yao Hongbo! Why are you boosting others' morale and dampening our own spirit?" Jin Kaiyuan said with a dark face. "So many of us have invested so much money in Qianbai, but it wasn't to be satisfied with being second!"
Yao Hongbo felt exhausted. He truly felt that now was not the time to fight for victory, but it was clear that he couldn't persuade those investors.
Those investors had already put in a considerable amount of money, and they were unwilling to back down and prolong the battle now.
"Kaiyuan, don't be angry," Su Ming advised. "I think Hongbo is just dissatisfied with Yang Xu taking advantage of the situation and wants to save us money. However, thinking about it carefully, Yang Xu's words are not without reason. Attacking Taoxun through express delivery is also a good idea. Of course, investment is possible, and helping him with a price war can also be considered, but helping him buy warehouses is a pipe dream."
Everyone nodded in agreement, all supporting Su Ming's opinion.
Yao Hongbo sighed powerlessly, deciding that he was just an employee, and he would execute whatever they decided.
After a discussion, the few of them reached a consensus. Investing in Feitong Express was acceptable, but the amount of investment could not be as high as Yang Xu's exorbitant demand. As for the negotiation, it would naturally be handled by Yao Hongbo.
Yao Hongbo had no choice but to agree.
In the evening, Ye Zhi was packing her luggage when her phone suddenly rang.
The call was from Zhan Ruoqing. Ye Zhi pressed the answer button.
"Ye Zhi, can I come over tonight?" Zhan Ruoqing said somewhat shyly.
"Ah?" Ye Zhi immediately felt a bit awkward. "Tonight probably won't work. I have a business trip tomorrow, and my flight is at 5:30 AM. Did something happen?"