Chapter 795: Google Goes Public
Cao Jingwen just said it casually, but unexpectedly Yuan Ji didn't know what was wrong with him. He rebuked her in a condescending manner: "This is not how you drink red wine. It took the French hundreds of years to remove the sugar in red wine. You actually said that it should be sweeter? You don't appreciate red wine at all."
This sudden scene caught both Lu Yiming and Shi Qingxue off guard.
What was even more unexpected to them was that Cao Jingwen actually apologized timidly, saying, "I'm sorry, I haven't drunk it..."
Seeing this scene, Lu Yiming immediately became unhappy. After all, he regarded Cao Jingwen as a friend. How could he tolerate Cao Jingwen being PUAed by Yuan Ji?
"Isn't red wine made for people to drink? Is it a sin not to like red wine? I think this kind of red wine is not good, it's sour and astringent, it's better to drink happy water."
As he was talking, he ran to the refrigerator next to the counter, took out a bottle of Arctic Ocean, cracked the lid off, and gulped down most of the bottle. Then he leaned back in his chair, burped, and said, "It feels good."
When Yuan Ji saw this scene, he looked at him with disdain, as if he was looking at a country bumpkin who had come to the city. "You're drinking happy water in a high-end French restaurant?"
Lu Yiming gave him a sidelong look and said, "Why? Is it not possible?"
Yuan Ji shook his head and said, "It's tasteless. It's really tasteless."
Lu Yiming couldn't help but laugh: "Taste? What is taste? Drinking red wine and eating steak is considered tasteful? Then your taste is too low."
Yuan Ji had no idea who was sitting in front of him, and he said, "So you are just a country bumpkin. Let me tell you, if you want to enter the upper class, learning to taste red wine and understanding red wine culture is very necessary basic knowledge. Including table manners. If you don't understand, you will be laughed at when you go out to eat with others in the future. Young people, there is no harm in learning more things. You should accept more advanced foreign culture and don't be a frog in the well in China."
After teaching Lu Yiming a lesson, Yuan Ji looked at Shi Qingxue with great pride, wanting to see some expression of admiration on Shi Qingxue's face.
However, he was disappointed. Shi Qingxue had a cold expression on her face. Even Yuan Ji felt that Shi Qingxue looked at him strangely, as if she was looking at an idiot.
Yuan Ji quickly drove away this terrible thought in his mind, telling himself that he must be overthinking it.
Yuan Ji felt very disappointed that he couldn't show off in front of Shi Qingxue.
Just when Yuan Ji wanted to try harder and continue to show off, Lu Yiming's cell phone rang. He took out his phone and found that it was an overseas number, so he said, "Hello?"
Yuan Ji was very unhappy. He felt that Lu Yiming's behavior was extremely rude.
He muttered in his heart: "A country bumpkin is a country bumpkin. He doesn't even know the slightest manners."
The call was from Larry Page, and Lu Yiming started chatting with him directly in English.
Lu Yiming's English was not bad to begin with, and he had used English frequently over the years, so he spoke English very fluently, which surprised Yuan Ji.
He had previously thought that Lu Yiming was just a country bumpkin, but he didn't expect his English to be so good.
On the phone, Larry Page excitedly told Lu Yiming: "Lu, there will be an important day in a few days, you won't forget it, right?"
Lu Yiming thought about it and really couldn't think of any important dates recently, so he asked tentatively: "Why? Is it your birthday?"
When Larry Page heard what Lu Yiming said, his tone was full of disbelief: "My God, you actually forgot? I told you a month in advance that Google is going to go public. You have to come in person and we will go to Nasdaq to ring the bell together."
Of course, Lu Yiming would not say that no one would remember such things for no reason, so he could only say casually: "Ah, how could I not remember? I was just joking with you. Don't worry, I will definitely go to Nasdaq to ring the bell when Google goes public."
If Larry Page was in front of Lu Yiming, he would definitely roll his eyes to the sky. Since Lu Yiming said so, Larry Page was helpless and could only remind him again and again: "Then you must be on time, you are indispensable to Google."
"Okay, okay, I got it. I'm just getting ready to eat, and it's hard for you to call me so late at night."
After hanging up the phone, Lu Yiming couldn't help but complain: "Hey, it's just a listing, it's not a big deal, you have to make me go to the United States."
He casually said to Shi Qingxue: "I will be going to the United States again in a few days. Google is preparing to go public, and Larry Page asked me to go and ring the bell with him."
Although Cao Jingwen had never been abroad and didn't understand the changing world, she knew about Nasdaq and Google. She immediately couldn't help but ask curiously, "Isn't Nasdaq the US stock market? Google is listed on the US stock market, why did they ask you to ring the bell?"
Lu Yiming said: "Because I invested in Google, I now own 7.5% of Google's shares, which is a relatively large share among single shareholders."
Yuan Ji couldn't help laughing when he heard this. "There should be a limit to bragging in front of girls. Google is a hot Internet company on Wall Street now. Even Amundi is very interested in it. It's a pity that you can't get the quota. You still hold 7.5% of the shares?"
He thought that Lu Yiming was just bragging to show off in front of girls, just like him. In order to avenge Lu Yiming's contempt for him, he mercilessly exposed Lu Yiming's lies.
Lu Yiming had a very bad impression of Yuan Ji, so he didn't bother to explain to Yuan Ji and just said, "Believe it or not."
Lu Yiming's attitude angered Yuan Ji. He thought that since he had exposed Lu Yiming's lies, Lu Yiming would immediately come out to make amends. He wanted to see Lu Yiming embarrassed in front of the beautiful woman.
But things obviously did not develop in the direction he expected.
He sneered, "What do you mean believe it or not? I think you can't keep bragging. You're ringing the bell at Nasdaq. Didn't you just hear what she said about what I do?"
Then, he warned Cao Jingwen seriously, "You, don't contact this kind of liar in the future, otherwise you won't know when he will cheat you."
Cao Jingwen was very unhappy and said with a straight face: "Yuan Ji, Lu Yiming is my friend, I don't allow you to say that about him."
How could Cao Jingwen not know whether he was a liar or not?
As the richest man in Asia, isn’t it normal for him to have some Google shares?
Seeing Cao Jingwen still speaking for Lu Yiming, Yuan Ji was furious and stood up and said, "It seems that our values are very different. You are not worthy of me. Let's break up. I won't eat this meal. It's disgusting. But don't worry, I will pay for it, otherwise you country bumpkins will have to wash dishes here."
Seeing Yuan Ji getting up to leave, Cao Jingwen was very sad and wanted to chase him to keep him. Lu Yiming said, "Okay, if you can't hold the sand, you might as well throw it away. He is determined to look down on you, why are you still trying to get close to him? Can you still have a little self-respect?"
Shi Qingxue patted Lu Yiming's thigh and said angrily, "You're still talking."
Lu Yiming insisted, "That's right. Besides, I'm doing this for Cao Jingwen's own good. That guy is just a psychopath. He's almost talking nonsense to Bai Kong. He feels superior even when drinking red wine. He must be mentally ill. The sooner we break up, the better."
Cao Jingwen sat back in her seat, took a deep breath, and tried to hold back the tears that were about to fall. She said, "I'm fine. Lu Yiming is right. It's better to break up with this kind of man as soon as possible."
Thinking of Yuan Ji's eyes and behavior just now, Shi Qingxue was speechless. She sighed to Cao Jingwen and said, "How did you meet such a top-notch person?"
Cao Jingwen curled her lips and said depressedly: "When we were together before, I just thought he was a little arrogant, who knew it would be like this."
Yuan Ji's identity as a returned overseas master's degree holder is still quite popular these days, and he has worked in large asset management companies such as Amundi. Both the accumulated connections and work experience will be of great benefit to his future development.
Judging from the "hardware" alone, he can be considered a wealthy son-in-law in front of Yuan Ji.
But this guy's brain is broken. He is completely self-centered and doesn't care about the feelings of people around him at all. Being too controlling is not a good thing in a marriage.
Lu Yiming comforted Cao Jingwen and said, "There's no need to shed tears for this kind of man. He showed his true colors after a meal. If you don't know how to distinguish between him and others, how can you keep him for the New Year? Don't worry, I will introduce you to a few rich second-generations. When the time comes, you can marry into a wealthy family and become a young lady. Wouldn't it be wonderful to live a life of luxury?"
Shi Qingxue rolled her eyes at Lu Yiming and said, "Stop talking nonsense here. Can't you see that she is sad?"
However, Cao Jingwen took a deep breath, wiped the tears from her eyes, and said to Lu Yiming with a smile: "That's what you said, introduce me to a rich second-generation. I want someone who is young, handsome, and has a good temper."
Lu Yiming smiled and said, "No problem, I have everything."
As they were talking, the food they ordered came up. It was originally for four people, but now it was a bit too much for three people. Cao Jingwen said, "Do you want to refund some? I heard that the food here is quite expensive."
Lu Yiming smiled and said, "Didn't that guy just say that he paid for it? Since he wants to be the big boss, why are you thinking so much?"
Two days later, Lu Yiming and Shi Qingxue prepared to go to the United States.
When the plane landed, Larry Page and Sergey Brin went to the airport in person to greet them. At this moment, the two were in high spirits. Although they were still wearing tech geek suits, the aura of successful people was gushing out of them and could not be stopped.
Sergey Brin saw Lu Yiming coming down the gangway and went up to him and said, "Lu, I was worried that you had forgotten our agreement."
Lu Yiming glanced at Larry Page and said with a smile: "How could I forget such an important thing?"
Larry Page was so speechless after hearing this.
Larry Page said, "Lu, you haven't come to see the company since it moved. Let's go to the office first."
Google just moved into its headquarters in Mountain View, Santa Clara County, California last year. With the rapid development of the company's business, offices in Palo Alto and other nearby Silicon Valley are no longer sufficient.
Therefore, Google rented a series of office buildings in Mountain View, hoping to accommodate more than 1,000 people working at the same time, which is what everyone knows as the Google headquarters.
Larry Page and Sergey Brin had a very good impression of investor Lu Yiming because Lu Yiming never interfered with Google's development and even seldom visited the company.
Whenever they encounter difficulties in business, they can always get something out of Lu Yiming with just a phone call or an email.
Who doesn’t like such an investor?
So when facing Lu Yiming, the two were very enthusiastic.
Although Lu Yiming had a smile on his face, he was actually feeling emotional in his heart. Only by living in this era can one know how fast things are changing.
Today, Google has grown into a large multinational company, but a few years ago, when it was founded by Sergey Brin and Larry Page, it was not favored by the market at all.
In 1997, Google was just a research project called 'BackRub', and even Larry Page and Sergey Brin had no confidence in the project.
The group arrived at the new Google headquarters. Looking at the spacious and bright office, Lu Yiming smiled and said, "I never expected that Google, which couldn't even sell for a million dollars a few years ago, is about to go public."
Talking about the past, Larry Page was also full of emotion: "We really wanted to sell it to Yahoo for $1 million. Unfortunately, we were rejected and even humiliated."
Lu Yiming said: "Fortunately, Yahoo refused, otherwise there would be no Google today."
Sergey Brin said: "Yes, fate is sometimes really strange, even we never thought we would come to this point."
At that time, Yahoo was at its peak and had great , while Google, compared to it, was just standing in the corner and was not even a minion.
As the saying goes, things change over time.
It took less than 30 years. At the beginning, Yahoo was unwilling to pay even one million US dollars, but now it is unable to defeat Google, its competitor in the search field, even after spending ten billion US dollars.
Today's Google, which came later but was the first to arrive, has left its old predecessor Yahoo on the beach, and has taken over a large part of Yahoo's search engine business, achieving rapid development.
In 2002, Google was already world-famous, and a reversal occurred in the same year: Yahoo wanted to acquire Google.
On September 22, 2004, apparently because of Lu Yiming's butterfly wings, Google was listed on NASDAQ more than a month later than in the previous life.
But what was coming finally came. On the opening day, Google's market value broke through the 23.2 billion US dollar mark, shocking the world.
Another Internet wealth myth is born!
Founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin successfully made it onto the billionaire list, but what attracted even more attention was the young Asian face who rang the bell at Nasdaq with the two of them.
Lu Yiming, the angel investor, still holds 7.5% of Google's shares and has never been diluted. His shares are now worth $1.74 billion!
Google's listing not only caused a sensation in the United States, but also because of the participation of Lu Yiming, a Chinese from Xia, the news quickly spread back to China.
1.74 billion US dollars?
If converted to domestic terms, wouldn’t that be 14.3 billion?
On the day Lu Yiming returned to China, reporters from all over the country who had received the news had already blocked the airport.
Seeing Lu Yiming coming out of the arrival gate, these reporters rushed towards Lu Yiming with their cameras as if they were going to war.
"Mr. Lu, when did you invest in Google? Why haven't I heard you mention it before?"
Lu Yiming raised his eyebrows and said jokingly, "I have invested in so many companies. Do I have to tell you about every one of them?"
"Many people are saying that if you sell your Google shares now, your assets will increase by more than 10 billion. Will you sell your shares?"
In their opinion, 14.3 billion is a fortune that any normal person would choose to cash out and run. After all, stocks go up and down, and no one can predict what will happen in the future.
This is the mentality of small retail investors. They will lose sleep and eat if the stock price drops one point, and will quickly sell off the stocks in their hands if the stock price rises one point. They will feel safe when they have the money.
However, Lu Yiming didn't need this little money. He immediately said, "I definitely won't sell this stock. I don't need money. It's only a few hundred million. It's nothing. I plan to continue to hold more Google shares."
Although everyone is used to Lu Yiming's pretense, when the words "not short of money" come out of Lu Yiming's mouth, everyone still feels hurt.
Another reporter asked, "Google seems to be interested in entering the Xiaguo market. What do you think of this, Mr. Lu? Will you help Google expand its territory for money?"
When Lu Yiming heard this question, he couldn't help but look up at the reporter who asked the question.
This person has bad intentions.
What does "opening up new frontiers" mean? Can this word be used in this way?
Even if it is used in this way, Google is a company in the United States, and Lu Yiming is from Xia country. He helped Google expand its territory in Xia country. Lu Yiming is helping foreigners to attack his own people, which is definitely treason.
How could Lu Yiming not know the pitfalls here?
He said decisively: "I am just one of Google's investors and cannot interfere with Google's specific business decisions."
Obviously, this is just passing the buck.
After all, no one can bear the charge of treason. Lu Yiming is not a fool, so he naturally cannot accept this topic. Moreover, Google's final outcome is to withdraw from the Xiaguo market. Since he already knew the answer, Lu Yiming was too lazy to bother with it. He just didn't come and could save some money.
Seeing that Lu Yiming didn't fall into the trap, the reporter was a little disappointed, but his preparations didn't stop there. He immediately asked, "Google in the United States and Baidu in Xia are both search engines. As far as I know, you, the richest man Lu, only invested in Google, but not Baidu. Why is that?"
