Upon hearing Zhang Tianxing's intention to buy a building, Huang Yuanshan was taken aback, surprised by his charisma. He pondered for a moment; the bank had many properties to dispose of, but few met Zhang Tianxing's requirements.
Noticing Huang Yuanshan's contemplative expression, Zhang Tianxing immediately said, "Manager Huang, we are about to establish a crayfish hot pot chain company. If it's convenient, our company's accounts could be with you."
"Really? I'll check the ledgers right away. We have many properties, but what type are you looking for, Mr. Zhang?"
"Office space, a building would be fine too," Zhang Tianxing stated calmly.
Huang Yuanshan, with his distinguished appearance and efficient demeanor, would be an asset to Zhang Tianxing. Having their accounts managed by him wouldn't be an issue, especially considering Huang Yuanshan's capabilities. The key now was Huang Yuanshan's attitude.
A while later, Huang Yuanshan returned with a map.
"We have a few locations that fit your criteria, Mr. Zhang. Take a look. One is at Yingjiazui, a six-story unfinished building that could be a seaview property."
"And here, on the Bund, there's a twenty-one-story office building. It was mortgaged to us by an electronics factory, but their products had issues, leading to a large recall and their inability to repay the loan."
This location was excellent. In ten years, it would be prime real estate. However, a twenty-one-story building wouldn't come cheap.
"This place is a bit inconvenient for transportation, and the surrounding area is currently undeveloped. But its advantage is its price; this building can be acquired for ten million yuan."
Hearing this price, Zhang Tianxing was tempted. He couldn't help but be tempted; this was a bargain price.
In twenty years, ten million yuan wouldn't even buy a large apartment.
But being without money was a real hassle.
Zhang Tianxing couldn't recall how he left the bank; his mind was solely occupied with how to quickly earn ten million yuan.
Yan Ruyu waved her small hand in front of Zhang Tianxing's eyes. She was puzzled; ever since leaving the bank, Zhang Tianxing had been in a daze. She heard him murmuring, "Ten million..."
"Are you thinking of buying the electronics factory building?"
Zhang Tianxing nodded, "I've set my sights on that place, but the money is still far off."
"I have at most three million yuan. I can't go any higher," Yan Ruyu revealed her bottom line. She couldn't possibly spend all her savings on a building.
Zhang Tianxing shook his head, "I'll figure something out. If we can secure it, great. If not, we can at least rent it."
Merely thinking wouldn't help. Zhang Tianxing smacked his forehead forcefully; his mind was blank, devoid of any brilliant ideas.
Seeing Zhang Tianxing's expression, Yan Ruyu couldn't help but smile.
"Actually, I have some good news. Would you like to hear it?"
"What good news? Tell me, let's see if it's worth celebrating."
"Someone wants to acquire your Tianxing Network Company, offering five million yuan."
Zhang Tianxing fell silent. From five thousand to five million, an offer of five million in such a short time indicated genuine interest. However, Zhang Tianxing had no intention of selling at the moment.
"Let's ask for ten million. See if they're interested. If they agree, we can sign the contract. Our focus will be on the search engine project."
Yan Ruyu hadn't expected Zhang Tianxing to think this way. She had initially thought he would say, "I'm not short of money, I wouldn't sell it to you for any amount."
Unexpectedly, Zhang Tianxing named a high price of ten million. Internet companies often commanded high premiums, and selling Tianxing Network Company for ten million seemed plausible.
After all, their primary business was in the catering industry; the internet company was Zhang Tianxing's personal venture.
It seemed Zhang Tianxing intended to use this internet company to acquire the building. Yan Ruyu felt a touch of envy for him.
It was good to be young, to do whatever you wanted, and to pursue it without hesitation.
"Tianxing, what if they don't agree to the acquisition?"
"Then we'll develop it ourselves slowly. If they acquire it, we'll give them full access to the Net Bar Assistant."
All good things come to an end. It turned out Zhang Tianxing had registered the company merely to negotiate a better price.
Yan Ruyu looked at Zhang Tianxing with some concern. If he sold the internet company, what if someone offered an even higher price for the catering business?
Zhang Tianxing noticed Yan Ruyu's worry and chuckled, "My dear sister, haven't you considered what my family does? I can honestly say we are in the business of selling crayfish. I will never exit the catering industry. At most, I'll let others in; we won't be greedy and try to keep everything for ourselves. Greed makes one vulnerable to attacks."
The market was vast, and people were diverse. Many, in their pursuit of small gains, resorted to despicable acts behind people's backs.
Yan Ruyu conveyed Zhang Tianxing's demand. The other party fell silent, indicating Zhang Tianxing's high price was likely unattainable. Yan Ruyu's mood brightened.
Not long after, Yan Ruyu's phone rang.
"Manager Yan, we are sincere. We believe no one else will offer such a high price."
"I don't quite understand. This function isn't complex; why don't you develop your own software instead of choosing to acquire at a high price?" Yan Ruyu asked, puzzled.
"That's all thanks to your genius programmer. After he designed it, he applied for a patent. We cannot circumvent this patent, so we can only acquire your company."
"Then I feel ten million yuan is truly not too much," Yan Ruyu said, hanging up the phone.
It seemed Zhang Tianxing's wealth was about to surpass hers. As long as Zhang Tianxing agreed to sell, they would likely get at least eight million, given the other party's eagerness.
Zhang Tianxing observed the situation and said, "How about this, Sister Yan? Tell them that if they are sincere, the relevant person should come over. We'll negotiate the price ourselves. If they agree, we'll talk; if not, we'll part ways. Anyway, we earn a small amount of money every day."
Good heavens, it seemed Zhang Tianxing was quite dissatisfied with the offer. Ten million was a joke; a listed company could easily fetch hundreds of millions.
The other party's primary interest was the patent. When Gao Ningning heard this news, she was astonished.
She couldn't fathom that the work of the four of them over five days could be sold for nine million yuan, a sum she had never dared to dream of. What astonished her even more was that Zhang Tianxing was not satisfied with the offer.
Zhang Tianxing had also stated that if the technology was transferred, the four of them would not lack money.
Gao Ningning was in a state of conflict. Not accepting the money felt unjust; she felt entitled to a share of the earnings from the "child" she had created.
However, at the outset, the financier, Zhang Tianxing, had already paid them in full. Therefore, in principle, the current selling price had nothing to do with them.
Yet, they felt a pang of envy. It seemed the four of them were too naive, only suited for writing code and developing small programs.
Soon, good news arrived: the acquirer of Net Bar Assistant was none other than Li Honghong, one of the titans of the internet industry and the creator of Bai Du.