While waiting for Chen Pingjiang, Tian Hongrui took the four of them on a tour around the company.
Naturally, he was somewhat curious, wondering what kind of magic these four possessed to attract Chen Pingjiang to rush back in the shortest possible time, regardless of the hundreds of kilometers of distance.
Since Chen Pingjiang valued them so much, Tian Hongrui had no reason to neglect them.
"This is our operations department for Dungeon & Fighter, and upstairs is League of Legends. You can look around, I'll have Xiao Li show you," Tian Hongrui said. "Chairman Chen is estimated to be back within three hours. Then I'll take you to meet him."
Cai Haoyu and the others were somewhat flattered, not expecting Chen Pingjiang to be so approachable.
The fact that he chose to rush back immediately for the four of them made them feel a little excited.
The beauty named Xiao Li was also quite striking; if one had to describe her, "baby face with big breasts" would fit.
This was certainly captivating for the miHoYo foursome.
However, all four of them were tech geeks, and in front of such a beauty, they were a bit reserved at first.
"This is our staff cafeteria, I'll bring you here for a meal later."
"This entire floor is our activity area, with a gym, board games, lounges, massage chair rooms, and card and chess rooms. Downstairs is our indoor basketball court."
"This floor is our staff supermarket and water bar, where we usually relax and have afternoon tea."
"The 14th floor is the company's internal library and internet café area. Books here are free for everyone to read, and when you're tired after work, you can come here to play games with friends. This place is usually very popular."
"..."
Led by Xiao Li, they were all dazzled.
Oh my god, is this the grandeur of a big internet company?
This doesn't look like a workplace at all; if there were a simple bed, you wouldn't even need to leave the building for a month.
They have everything you could want!
In contrast, they could only huddle in Da Wei-ge's dorm room now.
Jin Zhicheng repeatedly sighed,
"Working here is truly an enjoyment."
Cai Haoyu nodded, his eyes full of envy.
"If our studio can grow in the future, we must also build a headquarters like this."
At noon, inside the Renren.com Group's restaurant, they ate until their mouths were greasy.
To be fair, Jiaoda's cafeteria wasn't bad, but it was far from having the variety of Renren.com's cafeteria, which offered every cuisine and flavor imaginable.
After the meal, just as they were about to find a place for a nap, Xiao Li received a call from Tian Hongrui and told them,
"Chairman Chen is back. I'll take you to meet General Manager Tian now."
"Finally,"
They exhaled a long breath, filled with immense anticipation for the upcoming meeting.
When they followed Tian Hongrui into the elevator and arrived on the 26th floor, they realized it was different from other floors.
If other office floors were a hive of tense activity, the 26th floor was exceptionally quiet.
The modern style decor appeared business-like and grand.
Tian Hongrui smiled and introduced,
"This floor is Chairman Chen's exclusive space. Besides his office, only his secretary and assistants work here. That's the boardroom, also the group's largest meeting room, used for the highest-level board meetings and executive conferences. The remaining areas are President Chen's tea room, gym, and similar facilities."
They looked around with bewildered eyes, like Grandma Liu entering Grand View Garden, dying of envy.
After pushing open the heavy door, Cai Haoyu and the four of them finally met the legendary Chen Pingjiang.
Chen Pingjiang smiled, looking at the still somewhat youthful miHoYo foursome, and waved his hand,
"Don't just stand there, find a seat, make yourselves at home."
The God of Wealth has arrived, shouldn't we serve him well?
After everyone introduced themselves, Chen Pingjiang's gaze shifted to Jin Zhicheng, who was not as prominent.
Jin Zhicheng saw Chen Pingjiang smiling at him and awkwardly returned a smile, not knowing why.
What a pity, Chen Pingjiang thought.
Previously, when miHoYo was mentioned, besides Cai Haoyu's name being heard often, Jin Zhicheng's name was next.
In March 2012, he left the team after receiving an offer from Cisco.
When he left miHoYo, he transferred his 13% stake to Liu Wei and Luo Yuhao for 13,000 yuan.
Later, some estimated that if miHoYo's market value was 200 billion, then 13% would be about 26 billion, and many said he suffered a huge loss.
This wasn't just a huge loss; it was an utterly devastating loss.
However, at that time, although miHoYo had received investment from Sky-mobi, its progress was still not very smooth.
On one side was an uncertain entrepreneurial dream, and on the other, the allure of an international giant.
Either choice seemed difficult.
When talking about miHoYo, one must mention Sky-mobi.
Liu Wei participated in the Entrepreneurship Junior Year program, achieved a good third-place finish, and after receiving an interest-free loan and free office space, also met Song Tao—the owner of Sky-mobi.
Song Tao exchanged 1 million yuan for a 15% stake in miHoYo.
If miHoYo's valuation is 200 billion, then 15% would be 30 billion.
What kind of concept is this?
If you deposited this money into a one-year fixed deposit at 2% interest, 30 billion * 2% / 365 would mean 1.67 million in interest daily.
Later, according to several founders, this angel investment was their only external investment.
As for Sky-mobi, perhaps many haven't heard of it.
Back then, it had some fame, focusing on mobile app market content distribution.
It listed on NASDAQ in 2010, touted as China's first mobile internet stock.
But in Chen Pingjiang's eyes, they were all small fry.
Chen Pingjiang was momentarily in a dilemma.
Investing in miHoYo now was a good opportunity because Sky-mobi hadn't entered the game yet, and Chen Pingjiang could get a bargain.
But unfortunately, Jin Zhicheng hadn't exited either.
Among them, Liu Wei, who frequently participated in entrepreneurship competitions, acted as the main speaker, with Cai Haoyu assisting.
After sitting down, they eagerly pulled out a pile of awards and business plans.
"President Chen, we are miHoYo Game Studio, mainly developing mobile games. We have successively developed a [Flash-based plug-in online game platform], the game 'Posuo Wuyu', the misato game engine, 'Bubble Hero', and 'Fly Me 2 The Moon', which launched recently. We won the Gold Award in the second technical innovation competition held by the Institute of Computing Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and..."
Liu Wei wanted to continue, but Chen Pingjiang interrupted him with a smile.
"There's no need to treat me like the venture capital firms or investors you've met before. Let's just meet as friends, talk about life, discuss ideals, envision the future, and tell me about your plans."
Liu Wei was instantly bewildered by Chen Pingjiang's unexpected attitude.
Why isn't this person playing by the rules?
"Why do you want to make mobile games?"
Chen Pingjiang asked.
Cai Haoyu thought for a moment and said,
"It's evident that mobile data traffic will surpass PC traffic in the future. Last year, the Orange S1 and iPhone 4 were launched one after another. Your company's WeChat and Weibo also emerged, along with Zhihu and Toutiao. The world is undergoing monumental changes, which is why we decided to go all-in on the mobile internet gaming sector."
Chen Pingjiang nodded with emotion.
To some extent, miHoYo's success was not accidental; one could even boldly say it was inevitable.
These four individuals, holding the same beliefs and interests, experienced numerous setbacks and were destined to achieve final success.
miHoYo Studio was founded in 2009, and by the time Honkai Impact 3rd launched in 2016, with 1.1 billion in revenue in one year, this could only be considered a small-scale success.
Genshin Impact's release in 2020 was what propelled miHoYo into the ranks of advanced gaming companies.
Before that, they had gone through one high-stakes gamble after another.
Honkai 1 failed spectacularly; it was a buy-to-play game priced at only 6 yuan.
Honkai 2 did make 100 million, but they immediately turned around and used the bulk of the revenue to develop Honkai 3.
Honkai 3 earned 1.1 billion, and 700 million was immediately diverted to develop Genshin Impact.
Each time was a fight for survival at the limit; one failure would mean losing everything.
The second question Chen Pingjiang asked at this point was,
"Why come to me?"
Liu Wei said,
"It's mainly a funding issue, but funding isn't the only problem. It's good to rest under a big tree. What we primarily lack now are channels and promotion, which are our weaknesses. It's very possible that we could create a game, but it wouldn't sell because we lack channels for publicity."
Chen Pingjiang asked with a smile,
"How much money do you need?"
They looked at each other, hesitated for a moment, and finally, Cai Haoyu held up one finger:
"One million yuan will be enough."
Unexpectedly, as soon as he finished speaking, Tian Hongrui and Chen Pingjiang exchanged glances and both burst into laughter.
Finally, Tian Hongrui explained,
"One million yuan is too little, isn't it? What if a game isn't made well? What then? More fundraising?"
"President Chen, I think one million yuan is enough for us for now. Perhaps we'll have our next game ready by then?"
Cai Haoyu said.
Chen Pingjiang nodded, thinking,
'You won't be able to make anything good, not with Honkai 1 looking like that...'
But Chen Pingjiang didn't try to persuade them, because there was no need.
These people were young and stubborn; they would certainly want to make games their own way, and only by experiencing failure firsthand could they grow.
Chen Pingjiang wasn't going to pull up seedlings to help them grow.
On the other hand, too much persuasion would only make them more conflicted.
These few people had an inherent obsession with equity, though it might also be because game companies like theirs weren't short of money.
"So, how much equity are you willing to give up?"
"15%!"
After saying this, the few of them stared intently at Chen Pingjiang, trying to observe the micro-expressions on his face.
Unexpectedly, Chen Pingjiang didn't hesitate at all:
"One million yuan for a 15% stake is fine, but this is only for cash, and does not involve resources."
"Uh, why?"
Liu Wei asked, puzzled.
"Let me do the math for you, and you'll see how unreasonable your request is,"
Chen Pingjiang said with a smile.
"1 million yuan for a 15% stake means your company's overall valuation reaches 6.66 million yuan. Can you tell me what about your company is worth that much? You have no proprietary technology, no formal office space, no notable game titles, and no fans or channels of your own. Is it just the few of you that are worth 6.66 million yuan?"
With every word Chen Pingjiang spoke, the miHoYo foursome's faces flushed a bit more.
Indeed, they had thought too simply.
Now that Chen Pingjiang had laid out the numbers like this, their cover had been completely blown.
"But even so, I still agreed to your overall valuation of 6.66 million yuan. However, you also want to leverage Renren.com's promotion and Orange Phone's channels, and these resources are where the real value lies. Think about it, how much could I sell these things for to other companies?"
"You probably don't realize this, but let me give you a figure: Renren.com might charge tens of millions for a single advertisement. And that doesn't even include the channels of the Orange App Store. In today's society, money is not everything; resources are the most valuable thing."
"With Renren.com's promotion and Orange's channels, what game couldn't I make popular? If that's the case, why would I still invest in miHoYo? And if all these things were converted into cash, this part alone could amount to tens of millions."
Chen Pingjiang's series of points left everyone stunned.
How could they have thought of all this?
Their initial courage to come to Renren.com was purely based on their confidence in their own technology and sheer drive, but all of that was now mercilessly exposed.
The few of them fell silent, bowing their heads, lost in thought.
A deep silence filled the office.
He shouldn't push them too hard, lest the duck in hand fly away.
Chen Pingjiang mused,
"I'll give you a choice. First, to avoid dampening your entrepreneurial enthusiasm, I will not seek a controlling stake. The four of you combined will still be the major shareholders, with absolute control. If you're concerned about subsequent introductions of other external capital or the establishment of an option pool leading to dilution of shares, then I suggest you implement a dual-class share structure (AB share system). This way, even if your shares fall below 40%, you can still control the company.
Second, I will provide you with all the resource channels you need. Also, our 22nd floor is currently vacant and can be used by you. You can also go to Orange Tech's headquarters at Qingshan Lake Base, which is more convenient because it has dormitories.
Third, I can help you recruit employees in the name of Renren.com and Orange Tech, whether for game planning or development. This will certainly be better than your unknown small company recruiting people yourselves."
"I've offered you so much, and I only ask for 30% equity, requiring the signing of a full ratchet anti-dilution clause, and an agreement that if any of you founders wish to transfer shares in the future, I will have the right of first refusal."
Cai Haoyu and the others were somewhat swayed by the scenario Chen Pingjiang outlined.
Having money, a venue, and help with recruitment was incredibly friendly to them.
Even more importantly, Chen Pingjiang wasn't seeking a controlling stake and only wanted 30% of the equity.
With almost no consideration, Cai Haoyu said,
"Everything else is fine, but what does this full ratchet clause mean?"
Tian Hongrui smiled and chimed in,
"I'm not from a finance background, so I can't explain the specifics very well, but roughly, it means this 30% equity will never be diluted."
"Okay, I have no problem."
"Then I have no problem either."
"..."
What else was there to think about?
They originally thought they might have to give up 40%, but now they found 30% would suffice.
The reason Chen Pingjiang didn't ask for 40% was that he didn't want to be too absolute, to avoid resentment, as this was only the first round.
Although Chen Pingjiang knew miHoYo had only raised one round, Cai Haoyu and his team were unaware of this.
Moreover, this 30% equity, combined with a future 20% option pool, already accounted for 50% of miHoYo's total share capital, leaving the founders with only 50%.
At the same time, if Jin Zhicheng still transferred the 11% miHoYo equity he held in March 2012 as originally planned, Chen Pingjiang would have the right of first refusal.
That would add up to 41%.
Chen Pingjiang wasn't worried at all: would Jin Zhicheng still go to Cisco as originally planned?
Because without Chen Pingjiang's guidance, Honkai 1's data wouldn't look good.
If he provided some resources but not too many, Honkai 1 would surely fail.
Chen Pingjiang didn't need to force their growth; letting them gradually figure out how to make good games and develop commercially successful games recognized by the market was key.
After the intent was finalized, Chen Pingjiang called in Renren.com's legal department to draft the agreement.
The agreement stipulated that of the 30% stake acquired, 28% would belong to Chen Pingjiang personally, and 2% to Renren.com.
After all, business is business and private matters are private.
Renren.com had other shareholders, and if Renren.com wasn't given this 2%, it would charge for promoting Genshin Impact in the future.
Chen Pingjiang did this to avoid objections from his other shareholders, and also because Renren.com was now a listed company, requiring compliant and transparent financials.
As for Orange Tech, he alone made the decisions.
After finalizing all this, Chen Pingjiang was in high spirits.
Picking up tens of billions for free, how could he not be in a good mood?
"Come on, let's go have dinner tonight,"
Chen Pingjiang said, smiling as he patted Cai Haoyu's shoulder.
They were all similar in age, so there was no generation gap.
Even if Chen Pingjiang wasn't an otaku, he could still name Hatsune Miku.
During dinner that evening, Cai Haoyu unexpectedly brought a surprise to Chen Pingjiang.
They no longer talked about anime EVA, but instead shifted the topic to brain-computer interfaces, aerospace rockets, and artificial suns.
It was then that Chen Pingjiang remembered that, it seemed, in the future, Cai Haoyu would resign as miHoYo's legal representative and chairman, with Liu Wei taking over, and he would even withdraw from the board of directors.
Regarding this personnel change, miHoYo officially responded to the investment community:
"To adapt to the company's future development needs, miHoYo founder Cai Haoyu will dedicate more energy to the research and application of cutting-edge technologies, new project R&D, and connecting domestic and international R&D resources."
Indeed, in the eyes of an otaku, only technology can save the world.
Starting with anime games, they later created the globally popular game Genshin Impact.
With a steady stream of cash flow, miHoYo began appearing frequently in VC circles.
They even invested in nuclear fusion!
With Genshin Impact as a money-printing machine and no other projects planned, they naturally had more money than they knew what to do with.
Why not invest?
In cutting-edge technology, if you put Chen Pingjiang in his place, even he wouldn't dare dabble in brain-computer interfaces and nuclear fusion.
Almost no VC dared to touch them.
But in China, there are quite a few people like Cai Haoyu who put aside daily affairs to pursue the "sea of stars" in cutting-edge technology.
For example, Zhang Yiming also resigned as ByteDance CEO, and at that time, he mentioned in a letter his interest in emerging technology fields such as virtual reality, life sciences, and scientific computing.
He stated that seizing this opportunity required innovators to break free from business inertia to explore—he even emotionally spoke of dedicating himself to it for ten years.
Wang Xing and Wang Huiwen of Meituan also went to work on large AI models—Lightyear Beyond.
Su Hua, the head of Kuaishou, announced his resignation as CEO less than a year after Kuaishou went public, retreating behind the scenes to frequently look at various projects, including controlled nuclear fusion.
Looking back, it's always full of romance when tycoons step behind the scenes.
After achieving financial freedom, they begin to search for technologies that could change the world, supporting more entrepreneurs through investment, and betting on the future they believe in.
Perhaps, this is the poetry and distant horizons for China's new generation of founders.
(End of Chapter)