Mount Emei, State Guesthouse. The night before the Shushan Swordsmanship Contest.
The moon was bright and the stars were shining brightly. The five-star hotel hidden in the jungle was emitting lights that did not belong to the silence of the mountains at this time.
The guests invited to the Sword Discussion Conference have already checked into the State Guesthouse.
The most sensational news at the Shushan Sword Conference was the news that former US President Clinton would give a keynote speech at the conference. Once it was announced, it instantly ignited the Chinese online community. However, the Guoxin incident was in the spotlight at the time, which slightly dimmed the news.
However, when the Shushan Sword Competition was about to open, the media's focus immediately shifted back.
As for the relationship between the former US president and the Internet, people can easily think of the "Zippergate" scandal that shocked the world a few years ago, when a former US prosecutor exposed the investigation report on the president's affair with White House intern Lewinsky on the Internet. Therefore, this former president's popularity is not inferior to the current Chinese Internet boom.
It is definitely a matter of pride for Alibaba to invite this former president. Therefore, this conference is called the Davos Forum of China's Internet. The provincial government has also made a lot of preparations for this conference.
Before Clinton arrived, reporters from more than 100 Chinese and foreign media outlets were waiting at various exits of Chengdu Airport. More than a dozen special cars, police cars and private bodyguards also gathered outside, waiting quietly.
At around 7:00 p.m., Clinton arrived at Chengdu Airport from Urumqi after attending an AIDS event organized by his foundation. He got into a Lincoln sedan and slowly drove out of the airport following the traffic, causing several female reporters outside to scream loudly.
Sichuan Province is striving to build an exhibition economy. The West China International Fair is a platform for investment promotion, trade and diplomacy. If the Shushan Sword Conference, which has been known as the Chinese Internet Davos Forum since its inception, is implemented, the impact of this trend will be more far-reaching and bring a larger window of opportunity for the future.
For those who attend the "West Lake Swordsmanship" of network elites, this may be the event with the most stringent requirements on personal safety. Both the invited VIPs and the journalists who attend with badges must pass the qualification review of the Provincial Public Security Department, and before entering the venue, they must deposit all their packages and pass the on-site security check to ensure that they are not carrying any dangerous items before they are allowed to enter.
When Liu Gao and members of the Chang'an Club arrived at the State Guesthouse, they felt very remote and dissatisfied that this forum organized by Boss Ma and called on Chinese Internet elites was held here.
After all, a Hangzhou native traveled thousands of miles to Sichuan Province to hold a sword-fighting contest. From the perspective of the exhibition economy, isn't it a favor to Sichuan Province? What kind of spirit is this? In the end, it can only be attributed to the world and feelings of martial arts fans. The sword-fighting contest in Shushan has a special chivalrous style, which can be seen from the fact that Boss Ma invited Jin Daxia and used Jin Daxia's martial arts pattern to present a sword-fighting contest.
When the black Audi entered, Liu Gao saw that the security of the State Guesthouse had been upgraded to the same level as that for receiving foreign leaders. He and the senior officials who accompanied him were able to pass through without any obstruction after revealing their identities. This was the taste of power that Liu Gao had been deeply immersed in and savoring.
As the president of the Chang'an Society and a famous entrepreneur with a strong background, Liu Gao, who received the invitation letter, was naturally accompanied by many officials who were "close to his faction" when he came to the foothills of Mount Emei in Sichuan Province.
Although his cousin had been criticized for the incident in Sichuan Province, the situation has always changed. Liu Gao no longer needs to rely on the Jiang family to support him. Now, the Lu family, as a strong arm, can provide him with sufficient capital and resources.
The Guoxin incident was an accident. Who knew it would break out in HKUST? Chen Yue would take the risk, but Liu Gao still understood him. After returning from studying in the United States, he gained more and more glory. In the future, he could establish connections with the country's top leaders. The effect brought about by this is, on the one hand, a road to the sky, but if it collapses, the consequences can be imagined. As for this incident, which would bring him great wealth and fame if it is covered up, it cannot be lost now, so sufficiently strong measures have been used to suppress it.
Qin Xizhen's appearance on the platform was probably the most difficult situation for them to guard against, but fortunately, this matter was under control. Now, the outside discussion had basically put Cheng Ran in a quagmire. His relationship with Qin Xizhen, and the rumors that his father was a bastard, like Cheng Feiyang, the father was a hero, and the son was a bastard, were like a mountain pressing down on him, locking his throat on the one hand, and beating him into a cesspool on the other. Liu Gao finally had time to go to Mount Emei to participate in this sword-discussing conference.
However, once he arrived here, although he enjoyed the flow of officials around him and some flattery, he could still think of the scene of meeting that young man that year. Who knew that so many events would happen afterwards... The person who he didn't take seriously at the time has now become a thorn in his side and he must get rid of him as soon as possible.
This is absurd in itself. After all, Liu Gao has come to where he is today, with ups and downs and excitement along the way. Those who became his opponents, including Academician Li, whom he once expelled, were not simple, and each struggle was a life-and-death struggle.
He has been attacked and humiliated all the way. Today, his success, honor and even official background make him look like a man in golden armor, but his body is even tougher than a man of steel. He attracts attention wherever he goes. He can drink tea with local officials, negotiate with government officials from various countries, and go to Harvard Business School to talk about the successful cases of the Nanxing Group in Harvard textbooks. He is the focus wherever he attends. As for the problem of being unable to resist the beauty test at his level, Liu Gao is more sober. Compared with the hegemony of the country, women are not so tempting, so he has never had any trouble here. Chang'an Club has booked the Wandao Hotel, and the models sent are also famous models. There is nothing he can't play with...
Although the role of a little queen like Qin Xizhen is indeed a hurdle that all men have a hard time overcoming, for most successful men, that kind of woman is an extremely difficult peak that they have to look up to and climb.
Although Qin Xizhen's platform was very powerful, on the one hand, Jiang Hongshao and Cheng Ran had to draw a line between them. Although it was a little late, after all, he was now independent of the Jiang family. On the other hand, Qin Xizhen could also be used to stir up a flame of public opinion that would overwhelm Cheng Ran. The power of this fire was enough to burn him to ashes. It even reached the point where the underworld in Hong Kong and Taiwan believed that he had deceived Qin Xizhen because of those rumors and public opinion flying abroad, and issued a hunting order...
Of course, this kind of thing cannot hurt Cheng Ran, but it shows the extent of the public slander he is facing at the moment.
"Many people criticized my policy issues, and even compared me with Cheng Feiyang of Fulong..." Liu Gao said to the people around him. Next to him was the main member of the Chang'an Club who came with him, Zhang Maosen of Nanmao Holdings. Currently, Zhang Maosen controls the media companies and the pharmaceutical field, which gives him a lot of say in these two areas. There is no need to mention Guo Fuxing of Guangtong Group. Guo Fuxing is a real estate tycoon in Beijing and is very good at capital means. The companies that he has targeted have been dormant in recent years, and battles for power have been going on, and Guo Fuxing is extremely active in them. As a member of the Chang'an Club, Guo Fuxing is reported by the outside world to be very powerful and has a close relationship with Liu Gao. There was a rumor not long ago that a trader who was leading a "state-owned enterprise listing to solve its difficulties" in a certain province heard that he was being targeted by Guo Fuxing, so he quickly mobilized various resources and relationships behind the scenes, and even asked a big boss in Beijing to ask the official to mediate. Guo Fuxing then laughed it off in front of the wine table set up by the department with a light sentence, "How dare I take the benchmark sample set up by your province? It's just a misunderstanding."
Liu Gao said, "… It seems that Cheng Feiyang is the representative of someone who has worked hard step by step to succeed, while I am just taking shortcuts? What kind of words are these?"
Everyone knew that this had always been a thorn in Liu Gao's heart. After Fu Long's defeat in the United States, many intellectuals and experts in related fields focused their attention on him, comparing Fu Long with Liu Gao's Nanxing Company, and some criticisms against Liu Gao began to appear.
This is also what Liu Gao hates the most. He and Fu Long are on two completely different paths, which leads to friction and confrontation between the two sides. In some interest communities and under the authority, most intellectuals will keep their mouths shut about this kind of thing.
If Fulong hadn't had the incident in the United States, and hadn't done as well as it does now, with its market expansion becoming stronger and its influence growing, it wouldn't have been a problem. But what they fear most is the rise of Fulong, which would make them the one whose balance tilts downward.
"After so many years of hard work, I gradually understand a truth. Self-reliance and development is a nice slogan. Anyone can say it, as if you have the guts to do it. But can you really do it? Let's take a look at Japan. In the 1980s, Japan thought that its IT and semiconductor fields were strong enough to compete with the United States. It was ready to break the international standards set by the United States and set its own standards and rules. What was the result? Incompatibility and huge losses. The United States used some tricks, and even a strong country like Japan had to bow down to the United States in the end.
Look at Silicon Valley in the United States. There are so many companies with both upstream and downstream capabilities. When a technology comes out, they can immediately enter this river. From top to bottom, there are people who continue to work on it, deeply develop it, and make things happen. But for us, we spend a lot of effort to come up with a technology, but no one takes over... and then it dies. The money is spent, the manpower and material resources are invested... but it all dies.”
Liu Gao looked at the crowd in front of him. "So I said that developing countries like us should face up to our own advantages. What are our advantages? In terms of technology, let alone the Americans, can we compete with the Japanese? Can we compete with the younger brothers of the developed countries in the United States? Not to mention the Americans. So we can only use our advantages and our markets to exchange with others..."
"If you want to sell products, I will help you sell them. I will help you enter this market, and do trade first. Then we can exchange technology and learn from each other. First, become stronger and survive, instead of fighting for technology and killing yourself. We can talk about technology later..."
"Yes, of course. Technology may lag behind for one generation, and it will lag behind for generations... Then why can't they do their own thing? If they have technology, it's impossible for them not to sell it to us. Without us, who will buy their technology? They will go bankrupt. So why can't the future world be a symbiotic relationship? We just use it and act like the master. Americans develop technology to serve us in every way. The world is a division of labor and cooperation. It doesn't mean that you have to finish one thing. What else can others do? And you can't finish it either."
"So what Fulong did was hated, and he is destined not to last long. Only the path we are taking is feasible."
Liu Gao said, "It's a pity that too many people can't see this point. They can only call me a traitor and a comprador. There are no new words... These people can only shout slogans, talk about backbone and national integrity... But overall they lack courage and vision."
…
After thinking for a while, Liu Gao said, "That's about it... I have to put these points in place in what I'm going to say at this Internet conference."
Someone nearby was taking notes. It seemed that the reporter for the newspaper company in which Zhang Maosen had a stake was called Lu Jie. The article "The Sorrow of the Goddess" which almost directed public opinion towards Cheng Ran as a "pretty boy cheating on a diva and deceiving the world to steal the name and take advantage of a national project" and was described by some intuitive industry insiders as a murderous and heartbreaking article was written by him.
He was a reporter, and this kind of secretarial work did not require him to write. However, it was precisely because of that article that Liu Gao noticed his work that he was called along by Zhang Maosen, the major shareholder of the magazine, and was chosen by Liu Gao.
At this time, Lu Jie had to do everything he could to get close to someone like Liu Gao. In his opinion, this was equivalent to building a ladder to success. After all, looking around, how many people could talk to former US President Clinton? Being appreciated by the president of the Chang'an Association, his future prospects were bright.
Someone came over and brought a message to everyone in the VIP building lounge. It was a letter from the contact person of Clinton's team, "Mr. Clinton is still meeting with guests, but this meeting has made him very tired. It's getting late. He has been busy all day. After seeing off the guests, he will rest. See you tomorrow."
The members of the Chang'an Society present were a little stunned. Clinton had not been in China for a long time. Previously, he had been involved in his foundation's activities in China. Now, after attending this sword-fighting conference, he would go to Tokyo, Japan to accept an honorary doctorate in law from Nihon University, and later would meet with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.
Many people are trying to use various connections to prepare for a meeting with the former president, who has countless secrets and is doomed to be surrounded by rumors, but they are basically turned away by the other party's team.
When Liu Gao was doing business in the United States, he had a good relationship with the former president's advisory group. He was also on the president's reception list once. At that time, Clinton appreciated him as a trading partner and the Chinese agent of American companies. In his opinion, Clinton had a hearty meeting with his "friend" at this time, and led the media the next day. It was almost a foregone conclusion, but now... they were blocked by the other side.
This made everyone in the Chang'an Association feel like they had hit a wall.
Guo Fuxing asked solemnly, "Who is the former president meeting with now?"
The contact person didn't say anything and just smiled politely.
Zhang Maosen on the side asked, "Who else could it be?"
Needless to say, Clinton arrived at the State Guesthouse at nearly nine o'clock. The only person he could meet immediately was the organizer of the conference, Mr. Ma, who was on the cover of Forbes, and who could invite the other party.
As for a popular guest like Clinton, of course he must keep it firmly in his hands. Whoever can talk with this heavyweight guest who comes to give the keynote speech will inevitably become the most eye-catching person in the entire sword-fighting conference.
"Please inform Mr. Clinton later that our old friend Liu Gao has arrived and hopes that we can find time to meet after the meeting tomorrow to discuss business."
The white man nodded and smiled, "Mr. Liu Gao, I understand."
"Then we won't disturb Mr. Clinton's rest." Liu Gao smiled and stood up.
As soon as he left, everyone followed him.
Lü Jie followed beside him, looking at Liu Gao's expression, and then laughed, "What's 'Shushan Sword Contest'? It's nothing more than 'Xiaoxia Sword Contest'... A group of Internet people have just gotten rid of the impact of the US Internet bubble and stepped out of the shadow. Now they are accused of messing around with finance. Anyway, they are exaggerating. The valuations of tens of millions of dollars and hundreds of millions of dollars are all fake. How can you ask them to show tens of millions or hundreds of millions of profits? Which one has real money to put on the table? So I say, 'It takes ten years to sharpen a sword'. I'm afraid it will take another ten or twenty years before the Internet industry will have a person who can be called an entrepreneurial leader like Chairman Liu Gaoliu!"
Zhang Maosen laughed and said, "Xiao Lu, it's over, it's over, we shouldn't do this to undermine others..."
Lu Jie smiled, "I know what Boss Ma is thinking. He wants others to regard the Shushan Sword Contest as the Davos Forum in Switzerland. Unfortunately, our Chairman Liu is here. I'm afraid his limelight will change hands."
Liu Gao smiled calmly, seeming satisfied with his response.
The recent news makes me feel upset and my liver hurts.