Chapter 1438: The Reason for Being Formidable

Zheng Yao actually cared more about the development of Future Group than Zhao Fusheng did.

The reason was simple: although Zhao Fusheng was the major shareholder and chairman of Future Group, Zheng Yao was the leader who had built the company from nothing, growing it from small to large.

So many times, Zhao Fusheng didn't have to put much effort into convincing Zheng Yao.

As long as he could provide a reasonable explanation and prove that this choice was most beneficial for Future Group's development, Zheng Yao would accept it.

Just like now, Zheng Yao quickly accepted Zhao Fusheng's explanation.

"I hope you won't regret your decision."

Finally, Zheng Yao said to Zhao Fusheng.

Clearly, she felt unwilling inside, after all, they had worked hard to find so many projects, and now they had to give up some of them, even knowing that those projects would develop well in the future.

Anyone would feel reluctant in that situation.

"Regret? Not likely."

Zhao Fusheng smiled and waved his hand: "There will be many opportunities in the future; you need to learn to distinguish."

"Distinguish?"

Zheng Yao clearly didn't understand Zhao Fusheng's words.

Zhao Fusheng smiled slightly and nodded: "That's right, distinguish. Distinguish whether something is beneficial or detrimental to us. Distinguish what the return rate will be after we invest in a project."

"For example, there are two projects. One has a cycle of five years, the other ten years. The former requires an investment of one million, and after five years we can recover five million. The latter requires an investment of five hundred thousand, and after ten years we can recover ten million."

"Tell me, under these circumstances, how should we choose?"

"This..."

Zheng Yao hesitated upon hearing Zhao Fusheng's words; clearly, this choice left her a bit bewildered.

After a long while, she looked at Zhao Fusheng: "How would you choose?"

"Me?"

Zhao Fusheng smiled, pointed at himself, then shook his head: "I don't need to choose."

"Why?" Zheng Yao was puzzled; why did he pose a question to her that he himself didn't need to answer?

Zhao Fusheng shrugged: "Because I'm the boss. I don't need to make such choices, since the company isn't managed by me, but by you. As the CEO, aren't you the one who makes the decisions?"

Hearing this, Zheng Yao was left speechless.

Though she didn't want to admit it, she had to acknowledge that Zhao Fusheng was right.

The CEO is the one who makes decisions.

The person who ultimately approves a company's policies and strategies is not the chairman, but the CEO, because the CEO is directly accountable to the board of directors.

"Alright, stop overthinking." Zhao Fusheng smiled and said to Zheng Yao: "Focus more on the company's affairs. I plan to stay home and accompany the baby recently."

Fan Baobao was over a month pregnant, nearly two months, and would soon start experiencing morning sickness. Zhao's mother suggested that Zhao Fusheng minimize outside activities and stay home with his wife.

As Zhao's mother put it: "Money can never be fully earned, but the suffering your wife endures to give you a child lasts a lifetime."

Zhao Fusheng deeply agreed and decided to follow his mother's advice.

"Okay, I understand." Zheng Yao nodded: "You're the boss; you call the shots."

Seeing her use his own words to mock him, Zhao Fusheng felt quite helpless, glared at Zheng Yao, and decided not to argue with her.

After teasing Zhao Fusheng, Zheng Yao let him off.

...

...

Zhao Fusheng wasn't joking; he really intended to take a break.

Sometimes, constantly pushing forward can be exhausting, because you never have the time or opportunity to rest.

Many people never understand why those working in big cities always say they can't stop.

It's simple: the pace of their environment is too fast.

If you slow down, the people around you won't wait. To survive, everyone has to compete to be faster.

With time on his hands, Zhao Fusheng had plenty of leisure—reading books and staying home with Fan Baobao.

"Honey, why can I never find the songs you hum?"

Fan Baobao asked Zhao Fusheng curiously.

Zhao Fusheng chuckled; most of the songs he hummed were ones he had heard in his previous life. It would be strange if Fan Baobao could find them.

"Tell me, did you write them yourself?" Fan Baobao insisted.

Zhao Fusheng shook his head: "I don't have that talent; I just hum for fun."

Then he said to Fan Baobao: "By the way, didn't you make plans to go shopping with Zhou Yun? Why didn't you go?"

"Old Jiang's movie is about to be released, so she's accompanying him." Fan Baobao said helplessly.

Zhao Fusheng then remembered that Jiang Wen's so-called first commercial film, "The Sun Also Rises," was about to be released.

It was touted as the biggest blockbuster of the summer season, and Huayi had put a lot of effort into its promotion, apparently expecting to make a fortune.

But unfortunately, they were likely to be disappointed.

Before "Let the Bullets Fly," Old Jiang's movies were clearly a pitfall.

Of course, Zhao Fusheng wouldn't point that out. Jiang Wen's films weren't bad; they were just hard for most audiences to understand.

Most people go to the cinema for spiritual pleasure and joy, but Old Jiang's movies are often obscure and difficult, deterring many.

This wasn't an era of nostalgia, so audiences' appreciation requirements were different.

"By the way, will you go to the premiere?"

Fan Baobao asked Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng thought for a moment and shook his head: "I won't go. If I do, they might think I'm just there to watch the excitement."

Fan Baobao didn't think much about it; she assumed Zhao Fusheng wasn't going to avoid making Huayi think he was there to settle scores. Only Zhao Fusheng knew that he wasn't going to spare Jiang Wen's face from embarrassment.

Some things simply cannot be said directly.

That's the most basic principle of interpersonal communication.

"Son, why do you have so much work every day?"

Seeing Zhao Fusheng about to head back to the study to review documents, Zhao's mother couldn't help but complain.

Zhao Fusheng smiled: "You say that, but the group is a huge operation. Even though I don't have to manage it, I still need to keep an eye on things."

"Just like your father, born to toil."

Zhao's mother glared at her son in exasperation and went off to accompany her daughter-in-law.

Now, in her eyes, Zhao Fusheng wasn't as precious as Fan Baobao, because Fan Baobao carried the next generation of the Zhao family. They say grandparents dote on grandchildren, and there's some truth to that.

Even Zhao Fusheng could clearly feel how much his mother loved the unborn life. His father was even more so, calling almost every day to ask about Fan Baobao's condition.

Zhao Fusheng even felt a bit jealous.

But thinking about it, being jealous of his own son or daughter made him laugh.

...

...

When idle, one has time to follow the news, and Zhao Fusheng was no exception.

However, the first half of 2006 seemed uneventful, except for a surprise from Evan Williams in the US. Due to poor business expansion, he emailed Zhao Fusheng saying he planned to develop new software.

Zhao Fusheng didn't know if this software would become Twitter, but regardless, since Evan Williams wanted to do it, Zhao Fusheng naturally expressed support. He personally called Evan Williams, telling him that if needed, he could be his solid backing.

This statement made Evan Williams extremely grateful, as other shareholders had almost lost confidence in him, but Zhao Fusheng still chose to trust him.

Zhao Fusheng didn't mind; at worst, he'd invest a few more million dollars.

Although Twitter's future market value wasn't as夸张 as Facebook's, it was still a company worth tens of billions. Even if his shares were diluted through successive funding rounds, as long as he maintained over ten percent, that would be shares worth billions of dollars.

For Zhao Fusheng, all he needed was time.

Quietly, April 2006 passed.

As Fan Baobao began to experience morning sickness, Zhao Fusheng knew his good days were over.