Only after being reborn did I realize how fascinating the world of the rich is.

Soon, Zhang Liang and Le Jiahao arrived at the chairman's office of the Le Group to discuss whether to continue their cooperation with Cui Zhongxian.

"Brother Liang, do you want to continue investing here?" Le Jiahao asked impatiently.

Zhang Liang curled his lip, looking nonchalant, and said, "Why would I throw a shot? This Korean bastard doesn't know his own limitations. He insisted on going up against Li Xiaofeng. I must be out of my mind to follow him around like this."

I'm not going to invest in Meiyi Media anymore. Why should I follow them into this group-buying website? I only like the traditional, steady way of doing business. I don't understand or like this money-burning internet approach.

Besides, is Li Xiaofeng someone we can easily deal with? He has hundreds of billions in net assets and is ahead of us in many ways. If we just follow in his footsteps, we'll be played to death!

Hearing Zhang Liang's words, Le Jiahao seemed somewhat disappointed. He had discussed this matter with his mother, Cheng Wanyi, but his mother's attitude was one of full support, believing that this was an opportunity for the Le Group to transform and diversify.

So, still somewhat unwilling to give up, he asked, "Didn't President Cui already say that we shouldn't compete with them for first place? Being second is fine too. Is he wrong?"

Zhang Liang smiled, shook his head, and said, "What do you think is the point of striving for first place? Is it merely to capture a larger market share?"

"Is not it?"

"It's not just about ensuring our survival in this market, but also about keeping pace with newcomers."

But the second place is different. If there are other competitors in the market, would you say their competitor is the second place or the first place?

"Of course it's number one!"

"Wrong. They might use the first place as a benchmark, but the most important thing is to trample the second place underfoot. Think about it, only by surpassing the second place can you be qualified to compete with the first place. Don't you think so?"

Le Jiahao couldn't help but nod.

Zhang Liang smiled and continued, "Although I don't understand the internet industry, I've seen it all, even if I haven't eaten pork. I've found that this industry is a winner-takes-all industry."

Once they start competing, it becomes a bloody, vicious competition. The companies that survive are not the losers; they are the ones that no one can defeat. The real losers are those who simply cannot survive.

Just look at Taobao and JD.com. Taobao's scale is miles ahead of JD.com. JD.com is merely a small player in the e-commerce world, barely managing to gain a foothold.

"Actually, being a JD.com is pretty good too. Although its size is far smaller than Taobao, it's still very powerful in the e-commerce field. Didn't President Cui say that our goal is to become number two?"

"Why don't you understand? I'm asking you this: what makes you think you can be like JD.com? You may only know these two e-commerce platforms, but do you know how many e-commerce platforms were wiped out by Taobao before?"

Despite the apparent abundance of group-buying platforms now, the ultimate dominant player is likely to be Lee's Tesco.com. Even if others manage to survive, they will only become insignificant players.

Investing billions to be a peripheral player in the internet industry? Am I crazy, or are you? If you had that kind of money, wouldn't it be better to acquire more land, build more properties, and make money steadily and honestly?

Le Jiahao argued confidently: "But the real estate market has cycles. There are so many real estate companies now, and so many houses are built every year. Although the demand for real estate in mainland China is large, it will eventually become saturated."

In fact, various real estate companies are trying to transform through diversification. My mother also believes that although real estate is profitable now, a qualified businessman should plan ahead.

Zhang Liang shook his head and said with a hint of helplessness, "Transformation is not so easy. To succeed in an industry, money is not enough."

I think Cui Zhongxian is a bit ambitious but incompetent. He has never personally managed to successfully run a business. I even suspect that he doesn't know how to do it at all and only knows how to throw money at it.

But Li Xiaofeng started out in advertising, and he made Wanzhong Media very successful, which means he has a track record of success.

In addition, his investment skills are also very impressive. He not only did not suffer losses during the several fluctuations in the Shanghai real estate industry, but also made a fortune during these fluctuations through his foresight.

In particular, in 07, he not only cashed out his real estate holdings in advance, but also cashed out all his shares in Wanzhong Media, and then successfully bought at the bottom in 08.

Ultimately, relying on this real estate investment at rock-bottom prices, he not only regained control of Wanzhong Media, but also integrated the resources at hand to create the Li Group.

Do you think Cui Zhongxian would be his match?

“But now Meiyi Media has caught up in terms of scale, and even surpassed Dingdian Media at one point. This shows that Li Xiaofeng isn’t as powerful as you think!” Le Jiahao’s tone was unconvinced.

Zhang Liang said irritably, "What do you know? In my opinion, they don't even consider Meiyi Supermedia as a competitor. They're busy honing their skills!"

Think about it, Meiyi is currently spending a lot of money to buy internet film and television copyrights. How long can this growth model last? Only by producing its own films and television dramas like Dingdian can it go further.

The Li Group has net assets of at least 20 billion yuan, so why aren't they burning through cash? Do you think it's because they can't afford it?

"However, the Puyu Group is much larger than the Li Group!"

"So what? Puyu Group is larger than Li Group, but Puyu Group's roots are in Korea. Do you think they would abandon their roots in Korea and go all out to fight Li Group? Just think about it and you'll know it's impossible!"

Don't be fooled by Cui Zhongxian's current arrogance and his seemingly wealthy and powerful demeanor. In reality, his strength is far inferior to Li Xiaofeng's. He's using the Puyu Group as a backer and bluffing to get us to fight for him.

When Qin Kai founded the Qin Group, wasn't this the same tactic he used? He attracted a large number of small and medium-sized investors to prop him up, and in the end, he swallowed them all up!

This world is a game of big fish eat little fish, and little fish eat shrimp. I think sometimes people shouldn't have such high ambitions. Just not messing around is enough to make money for the family.

Let Cui Zhongxian do whatever he wants if he wants. I'm not going to be a stepping stone for him. Isn't it better to just be a well-off rich man?"

Le Jiahao nodded slightly and remained silent.