He Desheng hesitated for a moment: “Mr. Pei… if we use the money earned from selling profitable companies to invest in other companies, then what about the additional investment for the money-losing companies?”

Pei Qian said, “I’ll provide it.”

He Desheng nodded: “Very well, Mr. Pei.”

He didn’t ask further questions. This rule had been established by Mr. Pei long ago. Although it seemed quite unreasonable, it still had to be firmly implemented.

For Pei Qian, investing this way ensured that funds would be rapidly consumed.

Both game DLCs were selling remarkably well, and it looked like another unexpected windfall was coming in. Using it to fill these holes was perfectly appropriate.

But… who should receive it?

Pei Qian looked through the reports. These five companies showing no movement seemed like the best choice, but the problem was… they still had plenty of funds in their accounts.

Thinking about it, this made sense. The reason they showed no movement was precisely because they weren’t willing to spend money on marketing, right? If they were willing to spend, they would have shown some movement long ago.

For such companies, Mr. Pei had to be cautious about giving them money.

If they spent money this slowly, what good were they?

So, he still needed to select from among the companies that could spend money efficiently.

“Which of these companies spends money the fastest?” Pei Qian asked.

He Desheng immediately answered: “That would be Meng Chang’s Cold Noodle Girl, of course.”

Pei Qian continued to ask: “What’s the specific business situation there?”

He Desheng thought for a moment and said: “I went to the capital to check it out once and tried the grilled cold noodles at the store. How should I put it… the current situation of the store is quite booming, I suppose.”

“When I went, there was a long queue outside the store, and business seemed good. Some online media have also reported on it.”

“However, some of these reports were paid for, as Cold Noodle Girl spent a large portion of their marketing budget on this. It’s hard to say exactly how much of the queue is genuine.”

“But… the taste of the food is decent, comparable to general mid-to-high-end noodle houses, with better environment, quality, and sense of ceremony. Currently, the prices of several signature dishes are partially subsidized.”

“What can be confirmed is that a large proportion of the people queuing are genuine customers who have come because of its reputation, though not all of them are real.”

Pei Qian: “The food items are subsidized?”

He Desheng nodded: “Yes, for instance, the Gold Medal Grilled Cold Noodles are being sold at a loss of one or two yuan. Because all these ingredients are the most expensive in the supply chain, plus labor and transportation costs, there’s no profit margin.”

“Of course, whether customers can taste the difference is another matter…”

“According to Meng Chang, this is called ‘using a point to drive a plane.’ That is, making some signature products with a high cost-performance ratio, using the best raw materials, then subsidizing to lower the selling price. This makes customers feel these signature products are worth the money, thereby increasing brand awareness faster and financing to expand market share.”

“And the money spent on these subsidies can be earned back later by introducing new menu items.”

“However, in the short term, it’s still very difficult to rely on introducing new menu items to make money—almost impossible.”

“So, with all expenses combined, the Cold Noodle Girl project is spending money very quickly. Of course, its popularity is also growing the fastest.”

“Hmm…” Pei Qian fell into deep thought.

He had heard about this Cold Noodle Girl many times. Just through casual exposure, he had already learned quite a bit about this project.

It had to be said that this Meng Chang was quite skilled at spending money. Other companies that received investment were all very careful with their finances, planning to spend two or three million yuan over half a year or a year. But this Meng Chang dared to aim to spend it all in just over a month.

For Pei Qian, this was truly a talent for spending money.

The reason Pei Qian was hesitating was mainly because he was uncertain about which type of company to invest his money in.

Companies that were making money definitely couldn’t receive more investment and must be sold immediately—there was no question about that.

Those companies that weren’t making money and had no publicity seemed safe, but they might not be safe. Because such companies were often very careful with their money, and their lack of publicity was only because they hadn’t started marketing yet. What if they were potentially high performers and exploded after receiving additional investment?

Moreover, these companies spent money too slowly. Pei Qian felt uneasy about investing in them.

In contrast, companies like Cold Noodle Girl, though highly visible, also spent money quickly.

There’s a saying, “money in the pocket brings peace of mind,” but for Pei Qian, it was “money spent brings peace of mind.” He could only feel at ease when these companies spent their money; otherwise, it always felt like a ticking time bomb that could explode at any moment.

Looking at it this way, investing in Cold Noodle Girl wasn’t a bad choice.

If Cold Noodle Girl’s popularity was artificially inflated and it could never make a profit, then this investment would be like throwing money into water.

If Cold Noodle Girl became profitable, then he would sell it off quickly at that time.

After thinking it through, Pei Qian finally made up his mind: “For those companies that aren’t profitable but still have money left, provide additional investment of one or two million yuan as needed, but don’t invest too much.”

“For Cold Noodle Girl, invest six million yuan.”

He Desheng didn’t ask further questions, just nodded: “Very well, Mr. Pei.”

Pei Qian suddenly thought of something else and said, “By the way, regarding the six million for Cold Noodle Girl, there’s one requirement. It must be kept confidential. Meng Chang cannot reveal under any circumstances that this money comes from Tenda.”

He Desheng was taken aback for a moment but still nodded: “Understood.”

He wasn’t clear about how many rounds of game theory Mr. Pei had gone through during this period, or exactly what level he was operating on. But since Mr. Pei had decided to invest, it must be a well-calculated move with certainty of success.

Pei Qian symbolically flipped through the materials in front of him, feeling that this plan was now foolproof.

Continue to invest in companies that weren’t making money, less in low-risk ones and more in high-risk ones—very reasonable.

The reason for particularly emphasizing that the 6 million yuan must be kept confidential was mainly to avoid situations like what happened with “Smart Students Come Here.” If many investors heard that Dreams Venture was making a decisive move by directly giving 6 million yuan to Cold Noodle Girl, wouldn’t they follow suit and directly drive up the valuation of this company?

What if it took off then?

Investing in other companies was always in increments of one or two million yuan, but suddenly pumping out 6 million yuan for Cold Noodle Girl would raise suspicions, potentially triggering a series of uncontrollable consequences.

That’s why Pei Qian specifically required that Meng Chang could only receive this investment on the condition that he must keep the source of the money confidential.

Of course, Pei Qian didn’t expect this information to be completely sealed and airtight. He just hoped it could be concealed for as long as possible with minimal impact.

Anyway, given Meng Chang’s rate of spending, he would use up all the money before this news spread, which would be fine.

…

After Mr. Pei left, He Desheng began calling the founders of several companies one by one.

“Hello? President Zheng. It’s like this—Tenda is planning to transfer all our shares in your company. Other company shareholders have the right of first refusal. Please discuss among yourselves whether you want to introduce third-party capital…”

President Zheng’s company was one of the two companies that had started showing profits.

On the other end of the phone, President Zheng was momentarily stunned when he heard He Desheng say they wanted to transfer all their shares.

According to the law, company shareholders cannot withdraw capital at will, as it would constitute the crime of capital withdrawal, and must transfer shares through normal channels.

But the problem was… why was Tenda selling its shares?

President Zheng felt very confused. This wasn’t right. Hadn’t their company just started making money? Hadn’t they just seen the light at the end of the tunnel? And now Tenda was so impatient that they wanted to sell all their shares?

Mr. Pei shouldn’t be such a short-sighted person, should he?

Besides, this couldn’t even be called short-sighted. This was being dim-witted—no normal person would do something so stupid.

Was Mr. Pei a stupid person? Of course not!

That’s why President Zheng felt extremely confused.

After a moment of silence, President Zheng said, “Director He, to be honest, if I could buy all the shares Tenda holds together with the other shareholders, I’d be smiling in my dreams.”

“But I don’t want to do that because a person shouldn’t forget their roots.”

“When our company was at its most difficult time, it was Tenda that extended a helping hand and provided us with life-saving funds. Now that the company’s financial situation has improved, we’re seeing the light, and we can make profits. Whether we seek other financing or develop step by step slowly, we can develop very well.”

“So why does Director He want to transfer the shares now? You won’t make much money by transferring now. You must believe in us. Continuing to hold shares will earn you more…”

He Desheng smiled: “President Zheng, it’s not that we don’t believe in you, absolutely not. It’s just that this is Mr. Pei’s rule—we will transfer shares and exit once a company has made money. As for why, I don’t know, and you don’t need to ask. I’m just an executor.”

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone.

After a long while, President Zheng sighed: “I see, I understand now.”

“Mr. Pei is truly offering help in times of need! Extending a helping hand when we were most difficult, and gracefully withdrawing after we overcame the difficulties—such magnanimity is truly admirable!”

“Whether Mr. Pei’s purpose is to build goodwill or simply to help others, we will always remember this kindness!”

“Rest assured, Tenda will forever be our friend from now on. We will find ways to repay this kindness!”

Company owners are not fools. After a brief consideration, he understood the reason behind it.

Logically speaking, investing in startups is the riskiest investment behavior because most companies will close down or go bankrupt, with only a very small number of companies making it to the end.

And those investors who are keen on investing in startups are counting on one out of ten companies succeeding and making up for the losses of the other nine.

Once a promising company emerges, they would want to hold onto the shares as long as possible and sell at the most appropriate high point to maximize their interests.

Now President Zheng’s company had just begun to turn around, which by no means looked like it was at its peak.

And Tenda’s decision to transfer shares now was practically no different from doing charity!

Offering help in times of difficulty, and leaving after seeing the light—what a noble spirit!

Of course, Dreams Venture did profit from this investment, just not as much as it could have. But in President Zheng’s view, this was a sacrifice, a dedication!

He Desheng also felt a bit embarrassed by the praise and quickly explained: “Actually, you don’t need to take it too seriously. This is Mr. Pei’s rule, and it applies to all other companies as well…”

President Zheng said, “It’s precisely because of this that it’s even more touching! Mr. Pei helps us not out of personal relationships, but out of justice and belief.”

“Director He, you don’t need to say more. In short, we will remember this kindness well. If there’s anything we can cooperate on in the future, just ask!”

After calling the two profitable companies, both owners expressed endless gratitude.

He Desheng then called those companies that had spent a considerable amount of money but still showed no signs of profitability.

“Hello? President Liu. Hello, hello. It’s like this—Dreams Venture plans to provide you with an additional investment of one million yuan. I’m just giving you advance notice.”

President Liu, on the other end of the phone, was also stunned, somewhat in disbelief: “Ah? An additional investment of one million?”

He Desheng nodded: “Yes, is there any problem?”

President Liu hurriedly said: “No problem, of course there’s no problem! I just find it a bit surprising. Our current operating condition is not particularly good, profitability is far away, we’ve spent money but haven’t seen results. I was still wondering how to talk to you about this…”

“I didn’t expect you to trust us so much! Thank you, thank you so much!”