Reborn: Billionaire in College

Ever since Chen Pingjiang used the power of his group to suppress the campus network some time ago, he wanted to keep a low profile for a while.

However, many media outlets recently broke the news that Red Dress Leader Zhou Hongyi and Pony Ma arrived in Dongjiang one after another and held talks with Chen Pingjiang.

As 360 and Tencent were fighting each other, outsiders analyzed that the reason why the leaders of these two companies went to Dongjiang was probably to win the support of Chen Pingjiang.

The 3Q war, which has been raging for more than half a year, has finally reached a fever pitch.

First, Tencent launched the 1.0Beta version of QQ Doctor at the beginning of the year, announcing its official entry into the field of security software. It then launched the 3.2 version of QQ Doctor, which looked very similar to 360 and was forcibly promoted during the Spring Festival. The sensitive 360 ​​soon realized the threat of QQ Doctor, and some employees who were on vacation were urgently recalled to deal with this emergency. 360 responded quickly, and QQ Doctor was rushed into the market even though the product itself was not mature. Many users uninstalled QQ Doctor, and its market share quickly dropped to below 10%. 360 became the winner of this confrontation.

Unwilling to accept defeat, Pony Ma renamed QQ Doctor to "QQ Computer Manager" at the end of May and the beginning of June. The new version of the software combined QQ Doctor and QQ Software Management into one, added functions such as cloud Trojan detection and plug-in cleaning, and covered all the mainstream functions of 5 Security Guard. The user experience is extremely similar to that of 360. Tencent's move caught 360 and Kingsoft off guard.

As time entered September, I don’t know if it was inspired by Chen Pingjiang’s thundering methods, but Xiao Ma Ge became more and more radical.

On September 9, many netizens reported that a "QQ Computer Manager" icon suddenly appeared on their desktops and would automatically start when they turned on their computers. This was the second large-scale mandatory installation of QQ Doctor after the mandatory installation of QQ Doctor during the Spring Festival in 22. With QQ's huge user base, QQ Computer Manager will directly threaten 2010's survival in the security field.

A few days later, 360 released a "privacy protector" tool that was aimed directly at QQ, claiming that it could monitor QQ's behavior in real time and remind users that "a certain chat software" was peeping at users' personal privacy files and data without their permission. This caused netizens to worry and panic about the QQ client.

Thus, the two families started a war of words.

Tencent sued 360 for unfair competition, and 360 responded that Tencent was suing it at this time because it was guilty and was trying to divert attention.

At this point, there was still room for recovery if both families were willing to make concessions.

But I don't know if it was because they were really angry, or because of the previous example of Chen Pingjiang beating Chen Yizhou, but both sides unexpectedly pushed the situation in an uncontrollable direction.

First, Pony Ma, together with Kingsoft and Baidu, issued a "Joint Statement Against 360's Unfair Competition and Strengthening Industry Self-Discipline."

The statement jointly requested the competent authorities to resolutely stop 360's unfair commercial competition and conduct a thorough investigation into 360's malicious intimidation and deception of users.

This is equivalent to forcing the official to take action to suppress 360, which is a bit like calling the parents when you can't do anything about it.

Zhou Hongyi is the stubborn little prince. He launched "360 QQ Bodyguard" with the aim of comprehensively protecting the security of QQ users, including blocking QQ from viewing user privacy files, preventing Trojans from stealing QQ, accelerating QQ, filtering advertisements and other functions.

The number of downloads exceeded 72 million within 2000 hours and continued to increase rapidly.

Tencent was so anxious that it made a strong statement, saying that 360 QQ Bodyguard was a plug-in.

Next, Xiao Ma Ge also made a bad move.

At 11 p.m. on November 3, Tencent announced in an open letter that it would stop running QQ software on computers with 6 software installed, and advocated that 360 software must be uninstalled before logging into QQ.

Zhou Hongyi said that the number of 360 software users who were forced to uninstall reached 6000 million.

If before this, the majority of the people were still half supporting 360 and half supporting QQ.

After this incident, netizens were furious and almost called Tencent autistic.

The incompatibility war initiated by Tencent is almost a dimensional strike, just like the two-dimensional strike in "The Three-Body Problem". Apart from a little support from public opinion, 360 can be said to have no ability to fight back.

Zhou Hongyi's purpose of coming to Dongjiang was very clear, which was to persuade Chen Pingjiang to help him, or at least not to stand on the side of Tencent. If necessary, he could also use social platforms such as Weibo and Renren to put pressure on Tencent.

"Mr. Chen, Tencent is really going too far this time. It is companies like this that have restricted the development of other small domestic companies. I sincerely hope you can help me." The Red-robed Leader has been a little irritated recently, and his lips are worn out. "Besides, haven't your two products always been in competition? It just so happens that we at 360 can send an open letter to the majority of users, supporting users to use the PC version of WeChat to replace QQ."

After thinking about his words, Chen Pingjiang tried to use a gentle tone and said, "Old Zhou, it's not that I won't help you, but once I get out of this, this matter will continue to escalate and eventually become irreversible. You also know that although I got away with it before, there were also many sensitive voices saying that Renren.com was too powerful, forcing me to keep a low profile for a while."

"Besides, I don't think you can't talk about this matter. There's really no need to make things so awkward."

Zhou Hongyi's face turned bitter, and he seemed to have disappointment written all over his face.

"What can we talk about? Tencent can do other things if it doesn't make security software. We, 360, have no chance of going public if we don't make security software. We were the first to do it, but they insisted on intervening. If we don't fight, we'll die. If we fight, we'll die too. How can I choose?" Zhou Hongyi's cell phone rang as he was talking on the phone: "Hello, Lao Qi, what do you want to talk to me about?"

Chen Pingjiang couldn't hear what Zhou Hongyi was talking about on the phone, but he could see fear written all over Zhou's face.

After hanging up the phone, Zhou Hongyi was obviously panicked.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Chen, we haven't finished talking yet, but I have to go."

Chen Pingjiang probably guessed something, but still asked, "What's going on?"

"Xiao Ma is playing dirty tricks." Zhou Hongyi's face was gloomy. "My CEO called me and told me that more than 30 foreigners showed up at the company headquarters. He told me to run quickly and fly to wherever I can. The rest can be dealt with later."

"Where are you going?"

"Hong Kong. I have a house there. I'll stay there for a while."

Chen Pingjiang sighed: "You can go directly to Dongjiang Airport and take my private plane. I will call the airline. It may be too late to wait for the civil aviation flight."

Zhou Hongyi came up and shook Chen Pingjiang's hand gratefully: "Mr. Chen, I cannot thank you enough for your kindness. I will treat you to a meal when I come back."

"Safe travels."

…………

Lao Zhou is gone. He came quickly and left quickly. He came in a hurry and left in a panic.

If we talk about ruthlessness, Xiao Ma Ge is still the most ruthless. Chen Pingjiang feels inferior to him in this respect.

Of course, the two situations are different.

Xiaonei has no power to fight back against Renren, but QQ is in a life-and-death situation against 360. If anyone is to blame, it's because Zhou has made people angry.

In this matter, Chen Pingjiang can act as a peacemaker, but in the end it is impossible for him to help either side.

Just like he said, after Renren went bankrupt, its nature changed.

Anyway, the two families will shake hands and make peace in the end.

Compared to Zhou Hongyi's haste when he came, Pony Ma seemed much more calm when he came to see Chen Pingjiang.

Although it has been criticized a lot, forcing users to choose between two options is indeed a nuclear bomb.

If 360 doesn't work, you can use QQ Security Manager. But QQ has been in business for more than ten years, and interpersonal relationships are all on it. It can't be replaced just like that. Even though there is WeChat now, WeChat's main strength is still on the mobile side.

After seeing Xiao Ma Ge, Chen Pingjiang smiled and said, "Did you two make an appointment? Lao Zhou ran away from me to Hong Kong yesterday, and you came here today."

Brother Xiao Ma raised his eyebrows when he heard this: "Oh? Did he come to see you too?"

Chen Pingjiang smiled and nodded: "You've pushed them to that point, aren't they anxious? I heard that Wang Gongquan tried to be the peacemaker but you rejected him."

Xiao Ma also shook his head and sighed: "I don't want that either. It's just that what he did was too much. He actually transplanted my QQ to the 360 ​​Security Guard panel. From now on, it's not the user who manages QQ, but 360 who manages my QQ. If he wants to uninstall it, he can uninstall it for me. He can even control my pop-up windows from being sent out." After that, Xiao Ma changed the subject: "He came to you for help to deal with Tencent together?"

When asking this question, Pony Ma was a little nervous. Tencent, with its huge business, didn't care about 360. But if Renren helped, Tencent would not be a match.

Moreover, in Pony Ma's opinion, Renren has sufficient motivation and can take advantage of this opportunity to promote the PC version of WeChat.

"Yes, but don't panic. I didn't agree to it. I told him that we can't help each other. I can try to make peace, but I won't end it."

Hearing this, Xiao Ma Ge breathed a sigh of relief: "It's good that you don't help, it's good that you don't help..."

The meeting place was in a private room of a teahouse. The owner had closed the door and refused to receive any customers, so it was very quiet.

On the tea table, the smell of sandalwood curled up, and outside the box came the melodious sound of a guqin.

Chen Pingjiang personally poured a cup of tea for Brother Ma: "Brother Ma, this incident has become big enough. It won't be long before the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will intervene. It's time to quit while we're ahead."

Xiao Ma took a sip of tea and said, "Brother, I am very grateful that you can not help either side, but after all, they started this matter first. If I stop, will Lao Zhou stop?"

"This bag is on me, I told him to stop."

Seeing Chen Pingjiang speak so confidently, Xiao Ma Ge was stunned for a moment, and then sighed after a long time.

"In fact, I also know how the outside world has viewed us over the years. They say we can only copy whatever is popular, and that we use our own advantages to crush small businesses. I would like to make a few remarks about this. Tencent also has to be responsible for its shareholders and the tens of thousands of families behind it. We also have to survive. The Internet circle is so small and there is only so much we can do. Does Tencent only have to do the existing businesses in the future and cannot do any other new businesses? Because once we do it, others will accuse us of bullying the weak."

"Of course, I admit that Tencent cannot compare with Renren in terms of innovation, and I don't have your courage. Whether it's Toutiao, social games, or Zhihu group buying, you were the first to start. You dare to make mobile phones and chips, which we can't compare with. But not all companies are Renren!"

Chen Pingjiang looked at Xiao Ma, whose expression was moved, and knew that he was also expressing his true feelings.

From a certain perspective, what Xiao Ma said is not wrong. The pressure on the heads of large companies is unimaginable to others.

The melodious sound of the piano diluted the awkward atmosphere.

Chen Pingjiang said: "I understand your difficulties, but what the outside world says is not wrong. You did Alibaba's online shopping, and you also want to get involved when SNS becomes popular. I won't talk about games, and the same is true for the security software this time. I personally think that large companies should still have the vision and responsibilities of large companies. Today, Tencent should actually change its style and approach."

"Hmm? Mr. Chen, tell me in detail."

“Don’t think about doing everything yourself, because there are so many products on the market that you can’t finish them all, and there is no way to guarantee that every product will be successful. Instead of doing that, why not take it easy, just like you invested in Dianping, why not fill in the ecosystem through investment. If you compete, you are a demon to those small companies, but if you just invest, you are an angel in their eyes.”

"Tencent's reputation in the market is actually quite bad. It's time to spend some effort to change the public's inherent perception of you. Don't always think about fighting among yourself and rolling up your sleeves. Try to go out and enter the global market. The era of mobile games is coming soon. With Tencent's strength, it shouldn't be a problem to develop some best-selling mobile games? If you conquer cities and territories abroad, everyone will treat you as a hero. If you bully others at home, others will think you are barbaric. Think about it yourself."

If someone else said this, Xiao Ma Ge would ask with disdain, what qualifications do you have to give me advice?

But if Chen Pingjiang said it, Xiao Ma Ge would only think it made sense.

It can't be said to be eye-opening, but it can give inspiration from another perspective.

"Mr. Chen, are you optimistic about the future of the mobile game market?"

Chen Pingjiang nodded: "Under Moore's Law, the components of smartphones are becoming more and more advanced. Future smartphones will definitely be able to run AAA games. Users don't necessarily have to rely on computers to play games. Using fragmented time to play games on smartphones will become a trend in the future."

"So you guys won't do it? Renren's gaming division is very strong."

"Maybe I will do it, but I won't make it my main focus. In fact, I've left the Internet business to my subordinates to deal with. My focus is on mobile phones, chips and other high-tech products, such as drones, robots, new energy vehicles and private rockets."

Brother Xiao Ma was stunned for a long time before he smiled bitterly and nodded: "I'm not as free and easy as you, but I admire your courage. It is said that different industries are like different mountains. I would never dare to do those industrial projects without foundation and accumulation. If your new company needs funds in the future, I am willing to invest in it in my personal name."

"Haha, no problem. What I lack most now is money."

…………

Xiao Ma Ge also left on the third day after he returned.

360 company responded that "360 and QQ are guaranteed to run at the same time", and then 360 company's "QQ Bodyguard" software was quietly taken offline from its official website.

Another day, 360 issued an open letter saying that it was willing to put aside the dispute and restore peace to the Internet, and 360 QQ Bodyguard was officially taken offline.

On the other hand, QQ has begun to restore compatibility with 360.

At this point, 360 and Tencent each called off their battles, and the "3Q War" that had attracted the attention of hundreds of millions of people across the country came to an abrupt end.

Judging from the direct results of the battle, Tencent completely defeated 360, easily defeating the relatively low-frequency, non-urgent security products with its high-frequency, rigid-demand instant messaging products.

However, 360 became famous overnight and won widespread sympathy from netizens. It also went public shortly after the 3Q war and escaped the fate of being strangled.

Many years later, Zhou Hongyi reviewed the impact of this incident in his book and commented on his rival Tencent: "Since the 3Q war, Tencent began to reflect on its past business model, gradually transitioning from the model of building its own Internet empire to a business model of building an industry ecosystem with Tencent as the core through acquisitions, investments and mergers. Tencent has become more open and has become a more powerful and respected company. Today, its scale is far beyond the reach of others."

Zhou Hongyi believes that it was his own efforts that prompted Tengxu's changes.

However, those who knew the inside story just smiled after seeing it.

It was clearly the day after Xiao Ma returned to Shenzhen from Dongjiang that the future development direction was determined at the group’s internal reflection meeting.

“We need to be more open and inclusive and look more overseas.”

In an internal letter, Ma wrote:
"If there hadn't been challenges from our competitors, we probably wouldn't have suffered so much and wouldn't have had so much reflection. One day in the future, when we reach a new height, we will thank today's competitors for the training they gave us. I also want to thank Renren CEO Chen for enlightening me and letting me know what kind of excellent company Tencent should become."

Since the 3Q War, Tencent has organized many reflection meetings and invited netizens to participate, facing public criticism head-on and ultimately achieving rapid evolution and iteration.

Chen Pingjiang would not brag to others that he had mediated the dispute himself.

When I went to the clothes, I learned the name and the name.

I have taken away Xiao Ma Ge's luck so many times, it's time for me to return it to him once.

From another perspective, Chen Pingjiang also feels that instead of wasting time internally, domestic companies should enter the global market as early as possible.

This step will be difficult though!

Penetrating the mist of history, when Chen Pingjiang sees a large number of apps such as Tiktok, Temu, short dramas, and Genshin Impact taking over foreign projects and carrying out strong cultural output in the future, he hopes that day will come sooner.

After returning from Hong Kong and understanding everything, Zhou Hongyi came to Dongjiang again and thanked Chen Pingjiang in person.

During the meal, Chen Pingjiang also mentioned the future development direction of 360.

"360 does not necessarily need to compete with QQ Security Guard in the civilian sector. Instead, it can try to cooperate with universities, government agencies, and enterprises to resist cyber attacks from abroad. It can devote all its energy to the research of national cyber security protection and global cyber security, and assist key government, military, scientific research, and financial units in defending against cyber espionage attacks specifically targeting mainland China."

Zhou Hongyi's eyes lit up after listening to this, and he gave a thumbs up excitedly: "Mr. Chen, you have a high vision. Listening to your words is worth more than studying for ten years. As long as I join the national team, Uncle Hat will not dare to look for me in the future."

"Come, I'll toast you a glass." (End of this chapter)