My 1999

Parofon Manor, which covers an area of ​​1.2 acres and has only one building, is only ordinary among the many manors around Silicon Valley.

But among the Chinese community in Silicon Valley, it is not famous, but it is also very well-known.

This is a place where many top Chinese wealthy people and politicians often gather.

Yang Zhiyuan, the richest Chinese man, is one of them.

"Mr. Yang, this is the wine you asked for."

A waiter wearing a vest and bow tie came over with a bottle of 1992 Lafite.

"Open it."

Yang Zhiyuan said.

The waiter opened it and handed him the cork.

Yang Zhiyuan took it and smelled it. After looking at it for a few times, he nodded.

Checking the oak cork is something that many gourmets will do. One is to see if the oak cork has any peculiar smell.

The smell of oak cork indicates that there may be a problem with the quality of the wine.

The second is to check the age of the wine.

To a certain extent, the degree to which the cork is stained by wine can also tell how long the wine has aged.

The higher the degree of cork staining in wine, the longer the wine has been bottled.

For example, in some old vintage wines, the cork has been very softened by the wine, sometimes reaching more than half of its length.

Not having much dye color on the cork can indicate that the wine has been bottled for a short period of time, and sometimes it can also indicate that the wine may not have been stored in the right way.

For example, if the wine is stored upright, the wine liquid and cork are completely separated, so no matter how long it is stored, there will be almost no color on the cork.

Looking at the age of wine from the cork has a very good benefit: identifying the authenticity of the wine.

Sometimes some counterfeiters use old vintage wines as old vintage wines, but the degree of cork staining is very small, indicating that these old wines may be fake wines.

The third is to look at the storage condition of the wine.

If mold appears on the surface of the cork, it means the wine was stored at too high a humidity.

The cork sometimes shows that the wine has flowed to the top. This phenomenon indicates that the wine has leaked, the quality has been damaged, and the wine may have gone bad.

Given the status of Parofon Manor, the wine here should be fine.

But today's guests are extraordinary, and even Yang Zhiyuan doesn't want to make any mistakes in the reception.

Seeing the crimson wine entering the glass, Yang Zhiyuan's face showed a hint of anxiety.

Although the Nasdaq crisis has become a thing of the past and Yahoo's stock price has slowly recovered, there has not been a big breakthrough in terms of revenue.

As a result, Yahoo's stock price has never exceeded US$50 billion, which is still not as good as Yahoo Japan's subsidiary.

If it were just that, it wouldn't make him anxious.

What's more important is that Yahoo's new business, the search engine, has never been able to defeat Google, and has been further and further left behind.

The bad news doesn't stop there.

Hongmeng Company received a huge financing of US$15.7 billion, and then the news that the portal business expanded significantly in China and Southeast Asia made him even more uneasy.

Although China and Southeast Asia are not mainstream markets, Yahoo's foundation is the portal. If Hongmeng Sina is allowed to develop, will it covet the entire Asian market?

Will it covet the European market?

The answer is yes.

The expansion of capital never ends.

So when Larry Ellison called, he made an offer to MGM even though he refused.

Hongmeng is already the most valuable Internet company.

Although it cannot prevent it from becoming more powerful, it must not be allowed to further threaten Yahoo's mainstream business.

Therefore, it is in Yahoo's best interests to let it spend its funds on Vivendi Global.

But Hongmeng is both an enemy and a friend. Yahoo also needs them to provide search technology and experience to compete with Google's expansion in the English market.

Therefore, he didn't want to get into trouble with Xu Liang.

This is one of the reasons why he took the initiative to treat guests.

Dong Dong…….

There was a knock on the door.

Yang Zhiyuan, who interrupted his thoughts, turned his head.

"Come in."

Squeak, the door opens.

"BOSS, Mr. Xu is here."

After the secretary reminded him, he stepped aside and let Xu Liang out from behind.

Yang Zhiyuan quickly stood up and greeted him.

"Haha, Xu Liang, finally I've been waiting for you."

As soon as Xu Liang was about to shake hands, the other party gave him a warm hug.

Some are unexpected, and some are reasonable.

"Brother Yang, I haven't seen you for a long time. You are getting more and more energetic. It seems that Yahoo has been developing very well during this period."

"No matter how good Yahoo is, it can't compare to Hongmeng. In less than four years, it is now valued at more than 65 billion U.S. dollars. Your brother's ability can be found all over the world."

Hongmeng’s market value at the time of Series B financing was US$53.5 billion, plus US$10.7 billion after financing, and US$5 billion in corporate bonds.

The valuation alone exceeds US$65 billion.

"My achievements are not worth mentioning in front of Brother Yang.

Yahoo was founded only five years ago and has a market value of more than 100 billion U.S. dollars. Although Hongmeng is developing well, it is still far from Yahoo's results. "

Xu Liang's compliment put a smile on Yang Zhiyuan's face.

Yahoo's past glory is something he has always been proud of.

"All achievements are in the past tense, and we should look forward. So let's not brag to each other here. Let's go and sit inside." Yang Zhiyuan said with a smile.

"please."

The two came in and sat down.

The accompanying secretary and bodyguard also sat down next to him.

Pass the menu to Xu Liang.

"The Chaoshan cuisine here is very authentic. What do you want to eat?"

"Looking at the name of the manor, I thought it mainly served Western food, but I didn't expect it to be Chaoshan cuisine." Xu Liang said with a smile.

"Parofon Manor is a name for people outside to follow the local customs. Among us Chinese people, we all call this place 'Chao Manor'."

"Chaozhuang?"

Yang Zhiyuan explained: "Parofeng Manor, or Chao Manor, is a private club built by Liu Qizhi, a wealthy Chinese businessman in the last century. He is from Chaoshan, so the taste of the food is mainly Chaoshan cuisine.

You also know that it is difficult to eat authentic Chinese food in the United States.

As time went by, Chaozhuang's reputation grew, and it became a gathering place for wealthy Chinese Americans, especially those from southern China. "

Before the reform of China, eight out of ten overseas Chinese were from the south.

Most of the southerners live in Chaoshan, Shunde and other places.

After the reform, more and more people studied abroad and did business, and northern and southern China became balanced.

Xu Liang opened the menu.

He doesn’t know much about Chaoshan cuisine.

Although he has been a rich man throughout his two lives, he does not have much appetite.

He can have any of the top ingredients such as Black Sea caviar, French matsutake, Tibetan pork, and Japanese Wagyu beef.

As long as you eat healthy, ordinary beef, mutton, and ordinary vegetables are fine.

So, I ended up ordering a few of the signature dishes on the menu.

"Why don't you order more? I know you have a big appetite."

Xu Liang shook his head, "You don't need to eat too much at night."

Yang Zhiyuan smiled and ordered a dozen dishes before stopping.

"I've sobered up. Try the 1992 Lafite."

Xu Liang was not polite and handed over the wine glass.

The drinks were divided.

After putting it on the tip of his nose and smelling it, Xu Liang smiled and said, "It is indeed a good wine."

"You are my distinguished guest, so of course you must treat me with the best wine."

Xu Liang said directly without playing riddles with him.

"Distinguished guest? Not necessarily. During this period, your brother has been cooperating with Google and Oracle to attack Hongmeng very badly. Now many people in the company are suggesting to me to terminate the cooperation with Yahoo."

"Brother, are you talking about Yahoo's acquisition of MGM?"

"if not?"

"I said this was a misunderstanding, do you believe me?"

Xu Liang smiled calmly, "I'm very willing to hear what kind of misunderstanding this is."

Yang Zhiyuan sighed, "Xu Liang, we are all compatriots and friends for many years, so I won't hide it from you. Although Yahoo has received your help in the search engine, its development is not as good as Google's.

Yahoo's daily search traffic is now only 170 million, while Google has exceeded 290 million.

Moreover, Google's search database has exceeded 3 billion, which is almost twice that of Yahoo.

After more than a year of development, the gap has not narrowed, but has become wider.

In order to bridge this gap, we can only think of ways from other directions.

Hongmeng is currently the largest and best-developed Internet company in the world, and you are the best person to imitate.

Hongmeng’s main business is Internet search and pan-entertainment.

We are already developing Internet search, but the foundation of pan-entertainment is very weak. Therefore, we plan to acquire MGM to lay the foundation for Yahoo in the pan-entertainment industry.

Therefore, the strategy of acquiring MGM is Yahoo’s future development strategy, and it is not intended to target Hongmeng! "

Looking at Yang Zhiyuan who was talking eloquently and with a sincere tone.

Xu Liang sighed.

In his heart, Yang Zhiyuan has always been a programmer sitting in the CEO position and is not very good at management.

But look at how eloquent he is now.

Xu Liang's mood at this moment can be described in one sentence.

You thick-browed guy has also betrayed the revolution!

After taking a slight breath, he calmed down his unnecessary thoughts.

"Brother Yang, if I remember correctly, Hongmeng's acquisition of MGM has been in the works for more than a month, and Yahoo's acquisition of MGM has only been a week. Don't tell me that you don't know anything about it."

For multi-billion dollar transactions, detailed background checks must be conducted beforehand.

Such a big deal as Hongmeng's acquisition of MGM will definitely be reflected in the investigation data.

"Brother Xu, please believe me. I really didn't know about this at the beginning. ...You know, the corporate system in the United States is different from that in China. The CEO responsibility system is popular here, and the chairman has no way to intervene in the management of the company. .

I only found out about it after Terry Semel decided to buy MGM. Yang Zhiyuan said sincerely.

Xu Liang looked at the confident man in front of him.

I didn't believe a word he said.

How dare Terry Semel make the final decision on a multi-billion dollar deal without the authorization of the board of directors?

"I believe Brother Yang, but now that it has happened, there is no point in pursuing who is right and who is wrong."

"That's right. There is no point in pursuing right or wrong. The most important thing for us now is to jointly kill Google and not let it continue to grow."

Xu Liang understood the reminder in Yang Zhiyuan's tone.

Indeed, if Hongmeng and Yahoo fall out now, only Google will benefit.

"Gentlemen, your orders are ready."

The waiter's words interrupted the strange atmosphere between the two of them.

All kinds of exquisite dishes were put on the table.

The aroma that hits your nose is tempting.

"Brother Yang, I'm just crazy. Let's talk while we eat?"

Yang Zhiyuan agreed, "Come on, Brother Xu, this 'Qilin Sends a Child' is a signature dish in Chaoshan cuisine. Try it."

"Then I won't be polite."

Xu Liang picked up some with chopsticks and put it into his mouth.

"how is the taste?"

“Very good, very different from northern food.”

"Northern cuisine is more flavorful, while southern cuisine is lighter, highlighting the original taste of the ingredients, and is relatively healthier. Come and try this 'Thick Mushroom Mustard Green', which is also a classic dish in Chaoshan cuisine."

After eating more, the tense atmosphere calmed down.

The two of them exchanged cups, and the number of dishes on the table quickly decreased.

However, most of it went into Xu Liang's stomach.

Except for eating some at the beginning, Yang Zhiyuan spent most of the time watching Xu Liang eat and drink.

"Brother Xu's appetite is really enviable."

"Envy? Now many people in China are using this to laugh at me for looking like a pig." Xu Liang said with a smile.

"In the West, the pig is a very intelligent animal."

"It doesn't matter, no matter what they say, I just want to be happy."

"Brother, I see it clearly. Life is only a hundred years long. If you have to depend on other people's faces for your happiness, anger, sorrow, food, clothing, housing and transportation, then your life will be too tiring.

But unfortunately, not everyone wants you to live such a free and easy life. "Yang Zhiyuan sighed.

"Free and easy? Maybe. But today I've had enough wine and food, so it's time for me to say goodbye."

Saying that, Xu Liang slowly stood up.

Yang Zhiyuan's expression changed, "Brother Xu, it's still early, why are you in such a hurry to go back? Why don't I show you around here? In addition to eating, there are many fun places here."

"Fun? It's just Huang and gambling. I'm not interested in this."

In his two lifetimes combined, he had no interest in gambling.

This thing is completely an IQ tax.

As long as you have some knowledge, you will know that no matter how powerful the gambler is, it is impossible to beat the banker.

As for 'Huang', Brother Dong's lessons can be remembered for his whole life.

Especially in the United States, Ellison is eager to grab his sore foot.

Therefore, whether in the United States or in China, his purpose is to do things with a high profile and be a low-key person.

There is no need to go to any messy party.

To avoid being cheated.

"Brother Yang, if you have any unfinished words, please feel free to ask. I will promise you everything I can."

Yang Zhiyuan looked at him deeply.

"I hope that Yahoo can continue to cooperate with Hongmeng and not do things that make relatives happy and haters happy because of a misunderstanding."

Xu Liang smiled and nodded.

"I thought it was a big deal. No problem, I can promise you. And Hongmeng and Yahoo are close partners."

"real?"

"certainly."

After seeing that he didn't seem to be cheating, Yang Zhiyuan breathed a sigh of relief.