Chapter 650: Offline Payment Battle

Cloud Quick Pay’s university town promotion campaign continues with a bang, and its offline market has ballooned after reviewing the recent briefs, Pang Rui’s expression grows increasingly serious.

One noon after the Double Ninth Festival, Jin Bin receives a call from Zhang Xuhao and hurries to Pang Rui’s office.

Upon entering, he notices the potted green plant next to the desk.

Before Cloud Quick Pay appeared, Jin Bin remembered this plant being lush and vibrant, but now it looks somewhat wilted.

“President Pang, Hungry Yet?’s President Zhang called, wanting to team up with Alipay to target the college student market.”

“No way, we can’t avoid the Group-Buy Supply Chain.”

Jin Bin pulls out a stack of documents: “According to my research, the Group-Buy Supply Chain currently has self-built warehouses capable of rough processing in only twenty-six regions, meaning not all college town contractors have signed with the Group-Buy Supply Chain.”

Pang Rui turns her head, glances at the data he collected without saying a word.

“The development of self-built logistics is slow; we only need to start where the Group-Buy Supply Chain can’t reach. It’s actually quite easy.”

“Have you ever thought about why Jiang Qin insists on pulling Hungry Yet? into the fray?”

Jin Bin pauses: “Isn’t it just a convenient move?”

Pang Rui shakes her head wearily: “Group-buy dragging Hungry Yet? down is to make Alibaba invest money, then wage a price war with them to increase market demand and smoothly push the Group-Buy Supply Chain into areas they can’t reach.”

Jin Bin falls silent after hearing this.

“It’s a trap lure us to compete for the college market. No matter whether we win or lose, Jiang Qin will benefit.”

Hungry Yet? previously waged a fierce price war with group-buy delivery. The Group-Buy Supply Chain expanded aggressively, and now with the payment war starting, Jiang Qin has coerced Hungry Yet? again, clearly intending to continue the price war.

Tempting, fight on!

If it were the old Pang Rui, she might have agreed.

Like she used to say, no project from Alibaba has the right to hinder Alipay’s development.

But now, she’s started to reflect.

Because it was this mindset that led her to favor group-buy during the group purchasing war, resulting in raising a fierce tiger.

Now, if she disregards the bigger picture and continues to support Hungry Yet? in burning money for battle, group-buy might not even need to earn profits. Simply covering transportation costs would allow the Group-Buy Supply Chain to smoothly extend their reach.

The supplier is them, the selling platform is them, and the largest national college student forum is also theirs. In this closed loop, their development speed can be fierce.

Yes, Jiang Qin always says he’s not interested in e-commerce, but who would believe such nonsense?

He even claims he’s not interested in money.

Once group-buy’s self-built logistics are established, Alibaba will definitely face another competitor in the e-commerce field. This could be deadly.

Pang Rui always feels like Jiang Qin is cheating in business, not just controlling himself but even able to predict the competitors’ moves.

【I bet Alipay can get the license】

【Something like a barcode, a quick scan and ding, the consumer’s money transfers directly into our pocket】

Pang Rui recalls the first time she met Jiang Qin and heard him say this, feeling helplessly cursed by weakness.

“Then, President Pang, should I go and decline President Zhang?”

“Go ahead.”

“There’s also another matter.”

“What is it?”

“The media caught Jiang Qin leaving Linchuan and touring the four major cities.”

Cloud Quick Pay’s promotion in university towns is smooth, like a little girl who won’t resist, unlike his somewhat fierce little rich girl.

Honestly, Jiang Qin really hopes Alipay would support Hungry Yet? and take on a fight, otherwise it’s just plain boring.

However, Pang Rui clearly sees herself as the potential loser in the background of the Group-Buy Supply Chain. She’s unwilling to keep burning money on the food delivery battlefield, but Jiang Qin won’t stop.

After the Double Ninth Festival, he went on business trips, personally overseeing Cloud Quick Pay’s promotion in first-tier cities.

A week later, as autumn deepens, Wanzhong Mall in the four major first-tier cities starts recommending Cloud Quick Pay for settlement, offering exclusive discounted prices.

The business circle of Xihan Heqing also fully integrates Cloud Quick Pay, with items even displaying two price tags.

One is the original price, the other is the Cloud Quick Pay price.

Soon after, Xihan Heqing’s original membership card system was officially integrated into group-buy Cloud Quick Pay.

From Crazy Monday to Crazy Friday… The entire market’s pace was almost controlled by Cloud Quick Pay.

After dark, the lights are bright in Kyoto, and the streets of Sanlitun are flanked by two huge LED screens, one for Alipay and the other for Cloud Quick Pay, echoing each other under the night sky.

The street-level glass windows reflect the night’s lights, making the world seem to consist only of the blue of Alipay and the yellow of Cloud Quick Pay.

“I’m actually a bit lonely.”

Jiang Qin and the Kyoto division’s Yao Shengdong walk through the streets of Sanlitun, gazing at this somewhat unreal, colorful city, feeling inexplicably emotional.

Yao Shengdong is somewhat confused: “Why, boss?”

“I used to eat out using Public Review’s coupons, but now… I can only use my own.”

“?????”

Jiang Qin finds a hot pot restaurant and steps inside, only to bump into an acquaintance.

The man opposite, in a suit and with glossy hair, also pauses briefly when he sees Jiang Qin, then awkwardly averts his eyes.

“Zhen Hao, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I’m going to pay. You guys go get a taxi.”

The man in the suit is Zhou Zhenhao, a pioneer of the group purchasing era. Seeing him now, he seems to have lost his past recklessness.

He’s now in a rental housing business with a partner and even set up a website, but the competition is still fierce. During the peak rental season, he even has to go out and show properties himself.

Back during the group purchasing war, he boasted he could match Jiang Qin fifty-fifty. After rashly selling out his group-buy site, he kept resenting Ye Ziqing and Cui Yiting for seeking advice from Jiang Qin rather than listening to his strategies, but now looking back, it all seems like a dream.

Zhou Zhenhao pretends not to know him and pulls out his phone.

Just as he’s about to open Cloud Quick Pay, his hand pauses, then swipes to the next page and opens Alipay.

Perhaps not using Cloud Quick Pay’s discount is his last pride.

After the payment, Zhou Zhenhao brushes past Jiang Qin and steps into the dark night outside, lifting his head to look at the huge group-buy Cloud Quick Pay sign on the LED screen, feeling a long-lasting sense of disparity.

A college town group-buy site from years ago has now become a unicorn that competes with Alibaba.

“Boss, who was that?”

“Nobody, just a friend of a friend. We’re not close.”

Jiang Qin finds an empty table, takes out his phone, and begins typing furiously.

“Just finished work, came out to eat in Sanlitun with Yao Shengdong, the male manager of the Kyoto division, no girls, over.”

Shortly after sending the message, a reply comes through.

“Attended a professional course in the new building of the School of Finance. There are guys in the class, but none are handsome, over.”

“……”

The season of falling leaves, Linchuan’s maple forest has turned from fiery red to somewhat withered yellow. The morning sun filters through the gaps in the leaves, casting mottled shadows on the walkway of Academy Road Two, adding to the autumnal feeling.

The School of Finance has also flourished in recent years. Even graduate students have independent teaching and dormitory buildings, clearly showing financial power.

Currently, in room 203 on the second floor of the graduate school, a group of new first-year graduate students are each doing their own thing before the start of a professional course.

Some are watching dramas with headphones, some are giving themselves manicures, some guys are discussing last night’s game, and some are sitting alone, constantly scrolling through their phones.

The concept of class at the graduate stage is quite vague because students from the same class belong to different advisors. The concept of being classmates is less significant than the relationships with their advisors.

The School of Finance has about eight sessions of professional courses per week, less than two sessions a day, so even after more than two months since the start of the semester, there’s still a strong sense of unfamiliarity amongst the students.

But this is normal; some people might graduate without even knowing how many people are in their class, and if they socialize, it’s only with their own small circle.

“Do you think that end-of-the-world stuff is real?”

“Nonsense.”

“The Mayans are really mysterious, aren’t they…”

“If the end of the world is real, then before December 21st, I definitely need to find a boyfriend.”

As 2012 approaches, a prophecy by the Maya suddenly becomes viral online, with daily discussions on various social media platforms, maintaining high popularity.

Recently, a hailstorm occurred in the northern region, regarded as a sign of the upcoming apocalypse.

Also, recently, an old electrical box in Linchuan caught fire, also considered a sign of the apocalypse.

With the advancement of the internet, self-media are hyping up the concept of the end of the world, which increasingly seems like an internet frenzy rather than a harbinger of disaster.

At this moment, a graceful figure crosses the hallway, walking slowly and quietly enters the classroom from the morning’s light and shadow.

Conversations in the classroom suddenly drop a few decibels as people can’t help but turn their heads to look.

“She’s so beautiful, the more you look, the more beautiful she seems…”

“What’s her name?”

“Feng Nanshu.”

The little rich girl today is wearing a pale green sweater and stonewashed jeans, her hair high in a ponytail, revealing her slender swan’s neck. Her bright eyes carry a hint of naive clarity, yet her expression is cool and brisk, unable to hide her white, rich, and beautiful demeanor.

Remembering the start of the semester, many male students in the graduate school were stunned at their first sight of her.

At that time, she stood in the line at the welcome ceremony, quiet and unobtrusive, but her presence was still very strong due to that face.

“Hey, mesmerized?”

Seated in the third row, Xie Ziyi can’t help but reach out to pat Lu Wenhao in front of her, her lips curling slightly in a somewhat haughty manner.

Xie Ziyi’s close friend Zhang Shuya, seeing this, covers her mouth, unable to suppress a giggle.

Lu Wenhao is a rather handsome, sunny big boy, clearly popular, with his dress indicating good family conditions, definitely among the top tier of men.

Xie Ziyi also finds him quite interesting, having invited him to no less than five meals over these two months.

But Lu Wenhao isn’t one to stay put; he’s been involved in three scandals during this admission period, including one with an undergraduate TA, a true playboy.

Yet it’s such bad boys who are inexplicably more attractive.

“Interested in Feng the beauty? Want me to give you her WeChat?”

“Do you know her?”

“Not really, but we have the same advisor. We were pulled into the same research discussion group before.”

Xie Ziyi is also a strikingly beautiful woman, always confident in her looks, but after encountering Feng Nanshu, she feels a bit defeated.

People fear comparisons; once compared, her features and face shape seem rather ordinary.

“But I think she has a boyfriend. Last time during class, I saw her chat with a guy in the restroom. His contact name was ‘big teddy bear.’”

Lu Wenhao pauses: “Does that count as having a boyfriend?”

Zhang Shuya can’t help but interject: “From a girl’s perspective, ‘big teddy bear’ pretty much means husband.”

“Impossible. With a girlfriend like that, wouldn’t I follow her every day?”

“Then follow her.”

Xie Ziyi can’t help but retort, then turns her head towards the left, by the third window.

Feng Nanshu sits there, holding a pen, making notes on a document. The gentle sunlight pours over her, making her appear even more vibrant and stunningly beautiful. Her natural, unadorned purity makes even someone as jealous as Xie Ziyi feel it’s beautiful.

She can hardly imagine a girl like Feng Nanshu having a boyfriend. He must be incredibly handsome to have won her over.

Just then, a person in a yellow vest sneaks in, swiftly distributing a classroom full of flyers, then quickly leaves.

The flyers are about Cloud Quick Pay, which is recently becoming popular among college students and seems to be running a promotion.

“Ziyi, I need to go to the restroom. You coming?”

Xie Ziyi snaps back to reality, glances at Lu Wenhao: “I’m fine; I went before I came.”

“Alright then.”

Xie Ziyi watches Zhang Shuya leave, then taps the front seat: “Lu Wenhao, have you tried Cloud Quick Pay?”

Lu Wenhao, with a bit of a princely air: “Nope, I generally don’t eat on campus, and I seldom order takeout.”

“I heard Cloud Flash Pay is Jiang Qin’s creation. He’s also a grad student at Linchuan University. It’s been three months since the semester started, and I’ve never seen him in person.”

“Jiang Qin is just a recruitment gimmick. Do you really think you’ll have a chance to meet him?”

In his undergraduate years, Jiang Qin single-handedly built the commercial empire of the group-buying chain. His reputation among students is incredibly strong.

As Jiang Qin’s alma mater, Linchuan University uses him as a selling point, so many students come here hoping to meet him.

Some girls even fantasize about riding their bikes, hair flying, rushing through campus roads, and accidentally crashing into a luxury car, only to see Jiang Qin emerge, aloof.

One girl tried to act tough, looking up and shouting, “What are you going to do about it? I can even offer myself in return,” and then she was forced into a wealthy marriage…

But in reality, Jiang Qin hardly ever attends classes.

Just then, after coming back from the restroom, Zhang Shuya hurried over, lowering her voice, “Guess what I just found out?”

“Hmm?”

“Weren’t you curious about why Feng Nanshu always carries lots of documents, scribbling away? I just caught a glimpse. Guess what those documents are?”

Hearing this, Lu Wenhao couldn’t help but turn his head back, “What are they?”

“The Xitian Discount Season Price Adjustment Application.”

“?”

“Is Feng Nanshu working at Xitian now?”

Xie Ziyi thought she might have a job at Xitian. It’s not uncommon for grad students to work while studying and some start their graduate studies in their thirties or forties.

However, what Zhang Shuya didn’t notice was that Feng Nanshu wasn’t writing the “Xitian Discount Season Price Adjustment Application”; she was reviewing it.

An hour and a half later, the basic professional course for first-year grad students ended.

Xie Ziyi and Zhang Shuya walked out hand in hand, only to see several academic office teachers passing by the door, each nodding slightly to Feng Nanshu, who responded with a faint smile, graceful like a young wealthy matron.

Xie Ziyi furrowed her brows slightly, a hint of confusion in her gaze.

A few days later, Xitian really started a discount promotion, working with Cloud Flash Pay to retain more users for the group-buying network.

Huihui… about to collapse from exhaustion.

Wang Haini is pretty much in the same boat.

In their eyes, Feng Nanshu now only cares about her husband, disregarding her girlfriends, like a little demon.

But both of them are too proud to admit it, behaving as if they’re close friends, calling each other classmates during the day and greeting each other politely, purer than purified water.

If it weren’t for the poor soundproofing in Fenghua Li, they could hear the banging noises every night, Gao Wenhui might truly believe it.

“Nanshu, when is your husband coming back? I want to resign. I can’t finish these orders, and I still have to check reports. If the novel updates aren’t timely, I get scolded…”

“I don’t know when my husband’s classmate will come back.”

Feng Nanshu sat at the Xitian counter, with a blank expression, resting her chin on her hands, endlessly scrolling through Jiang Qin’s social network.

After the Double Ninth Festival, Cloud Flash Pay officially started to lay out its offline payment promotion, and Jiang Qin has been traveling around major cities for a week now.

She’s not used to sleeping alone, missing Jiang Qin every day.

At that moment, the bead curtain in front of Xitian was picked up, and Xie Ziyi and Zhang Shuya walked in, ordered milk tea, and then saw Feng Nanshu.

Being classmates and under the same mentor, Xie Ziyi and Zhang Shuya both greeted her.

Feng Nanshu responded sweetly, then had Gao Wenhui waive their bill, leaving Xie Ziyi surprised for a long time.

But when Gao Wenhui introduced herself as Feng Nanshu’s best friend, it seemed somewhat reasonable.

“By the way, has Lu Wenhao from our class added you on WeChat yet?”

“I don’t know him.”

“He’s the handsomest guy in our class, usually sits in front of me during lectures.”

Feng Nanshu glanced at Xie Ziyi, “There are no handsome guys in our class, but I have one at home.”

Xie Ziyi: “?”

After leaving Xitian, Xie Ziyi and Zhang Shuya headed back to their dorm, then saw a Mercedes speed past on the road.

“Looks like Lu Wenhao’s car…”

After getting Feng Nanshu’s WeChat contact, Lu Wenhao tried adding her several times but was always rejected. They barely spoke, yet he wasn’t discouraged.

In his view, no matter how cold a girl seems, just ask her out for a drive. Chasing her wouldn’t be hard, especially with a Mercedes.

The next day, Lu Wenhao, looking dashing, drove up to the academic building, flaunting his car keys as if to write on his forehead, “I am a handsome, wealthy heir,” but it failed to attract attention.

Then, Lu Wenhao bought milk tea for the entire class on Group-Buy, employing a little strategy.

While the others got ordinary milk tea, he ordered the most expensive one from Xitian for Feng Nanshu, planning to give it to her in front of everyone.

“Lu-Shao, when is your milk tea coming?”

“It’ll be delivered in five minutes!”

“He’s really splurging, with both a Mercedes and treating the class to milk tea. Which girl wouldn’t be flustered by such a wealthy heir?”

Lu Wenhao smiled slightly, casually spinning a pen in his hand.

Feng Nanshu arrived for class soon, even before the milk tea, but what surprised everyone was her unusual demeanor today.

She normally had a cold expression, seemingly unapproachable, but today she was smiling, her eyes sparkly.

Emotions can be seen, and everyone felt as though Feng Nanshu was like a changed person today, shifting from her cold demeanor to seeming somewhat cute.

“Who ordered the milk tea?”

Gao Wenhui followed the delivery guy, running all the way, and shouted as she entered.

After all these years, another person treating the whole class to milk tea, it’s really infuriating.

Even the part-time delivery guys at the school said they couldn’t handle it all, looking troubled.

Gao Wenhui was about to go for a walk to find inspiration for her afternoon update, so she helped with the delivery, catching up with Feng Nanshu after class.

Lu Wenhao raised his hand, “It was me, I ordered the milk tea for the class.”

“Sucker.”

“?”

Xie Ziyi and Gao Wenhui, having gotten acquainted, couldn’t help but observe, “Feng Nanshu seems different today.”

Gao Wenhui blinked, “What happened?”

“She usually never smiles, why is she so happy today?”

“Her husband is coming back today. She’s been waiting since last night, barely slept at all, insisting on watching TV with me all night. I don’t know how she’s so energetic.”

Hearing this, several people around were stunned.

Lu Wenhao had just picked up his milk tea but frowned after hearing this.

Zhang Shuya felt something was off, “Last time at Xitian, didn’t Feng Nanshu say she was single, not dating, just had a lifelong best friend?”

“Don’t listen to her nonsense. She’s actually a husband-slave…”

“?”

Hearing this, several people showed disbelief.

Indeed, Feng Nanshu did seem aloof, almost as if mundane things couldn’t pique her interest, always cool and haughty during classes.

The phrase “husband-slave” just didn’t seem to fit someone like her.

But what shocked people even more was that right after the afternoon lecture, Feng Nanshu darted out of the classroom so fast, even the chubby Gao Wenhui couldn’t catch up.