Chapter 463 - 249: Thanks to Old Shen for the Rocket

There was a Spicy King branch on the 6th floor of the Huanmao IAPM Mall.

Qi Sheng and his friends had just stepped out of the elevator, not yet even at the restaurant’s entrance.

But they already saw a spectacular, dragon-like queue snaking for a full hundred meters.

"Hello, if you’re here for Spicy King, please take a number from me to get in line."

Two Spicy King greeters were posted at the elevator entrance, offering warm welcomes.

"This place is terrifyingly popular, isn’t it?"

It was Wang Han’s first time visiting his good buddy’s restaurant.

The sight of that long line made his skin crawl.

’No wonder even Boss Shen from Sequoia couldn’t sit still.’

’A line this spectacular... I doubt even Haidilao gets this, right?’

"We have a reservation."

Su Kai smiled and nodded at the employee, then turned to Qi Sheng and the others.

"Good thing I made a reservation. Otherwise, we’d be waiting in line for two hours."

"If the food’s good, a two-hour wait isn’t out of the question."

He Yu, however, wasn’t particularly surprised.

In the Southwest Region, Spicy King was always this popular.

Nobody would be caught dead eating at the local hot pot brands.

If you wanted hot pot, you ate at Spicy King.

At least, that’s how it was among the younger crowd.

The middle-aged and older generations, of course, were more concerned with value for money.

For such price-sensitive customers, the average cost per person at Spicy King was a bit steep.

Many of the people waiting in line saw Su Kai’s group being led inside by an employee.

Though a little envious, none of them considered giving up their spot in line.

Spicy King’s Shanghai locations may not have been open for long, but its reputation had already spread like wildfire.

In this day and age, the traffic generated by short-form videos was immense.

Online, videos of the insane lines at Spicy King frequently topped the trending charts for food content.

The "Spicy King Challenge" was particularly popular. Many influencers who prided themselves on their spice tolerance went, only to be left in tears.

This, in turn, drove a massive wave of traffic to Spicy King.

In the half-year or so since Spicy King had opened...

...only a handful of people had managed to finish the absurdly spicy soup base without batting an eye.

Even setting aside the spice level, just looking at the reviews on food apps...

...it was worth a two-hour wait to experience the so-called pinnacle of Sichuan and Chongqing hot pot.

...

Inside the private room.

When Shen Nanping saw Su Kai enter with several others, he smiled, stood up, and walked over to them.

"President Qi, I’ve heard President Su go on and on about how young and accomplished you are. Seeing you in person, I’m certainly not disappointed."

"You’re too kind, President Shen. Let’s sit down and talk."

Qi Sheng smiled and shook Shen Nanping’s hand, and they sat down next to each other.

Su Kai and the others found their own seats as well.

The private room wasn’t large, with enough space for about eight people.

It was more than enough for Qi Sheng’s party.

"Previously, all the Spicy King locations were in the Southwest, so I never had the chance to try it."

"No wonder President Su recommended it so highly. He practically gave me his word on it."

Shen Nanping had arrived a bit early, as was his habit.

When he came out of the elevator and saw the bustling queue...

...even Shen Nanping, who was accustomed to high-end restaurants, was completely stunned.

He had made it a point to ask a few of the young people in line.

Aside from thinking it was a bit pricey, they all agreed the food was leagues better than Haidilao.

Besides, eating at Haidilao wasn’t cheap these days either.

When you added it all up, the cost was about the same as eating at Spicy King.

But the dining experience was completely different.

At one, you had to order carefully, afraid of going over budget.

At the other, you could order whatever you wanted, as long as you didn’t waste it.

In terms of flavor, Spicy King absolutely demolished Haidilao.

If Shen Nanping, a titan of the investment world, still couldn’t see the terrifying potential of Spicy King...

...he might as well pack it in and go sell sweet potatoes.

And so, Shen Nanping was extremely cordial toward Qi Sheng.

Su Kai had been worried that Qi Sheng bringing his friends along unannounced might displease Shen Nanping.

Seeing Shen Nanping and Qi Sheng getting along so well, Su Kai let out a long sigh of relief.

’Then again, no matter how powerful Shen Nanping is, he can’t really affect Qi Sheng.’

If Spicy King were to even hint at a new round of funding, countless investors would come flocking.

The most they could do is haggle over the valuation for a long time.

After the hot pot meal, Shen Nanping was even more invested in the Spicy King project.

A mere 4% stake couldn’t possibly satisfy his appetite.

They found a bathhouse to wash off the lingering smell of hot pot.

While they were soaking, Shen Nanping started discussing the investment details with Qi Sheng.

"Chairman Qi, we at Sequoia are very willing to be Spicy King’s cornerstone investor, but I hope Sequoia can secure a 7% stake in this round."

Qi Sheng refused without a second thought.

"That’s impossible. The arrangement with Jinshi Capital was settled long ago."

"Black Ant Capital is also a Series A shareholder and has priority investment rights."

"So there’s no room for negotiation?"

Shen Nanping’s brow furrowed, and his aura turned unconsciously imposing.

An ordinary entrepreneur would have been trembling in their boots.

But to Qi Sheng, it was like a gentle breeze.

If he were really pushed, Chairman Qi could just fund it himself.

His monthly income was as high as nine "small goals."

In terms of financial firepower, he was in no way inferior to these so-called top venture capital firms.

Qi Sheng simply smiled, saying nothing, and closed his eyes to enjoy the warm water cascading over his body.

Nearby, Wang Han silently lowered his head, pondering a question.

’Can Ah Sheng’s girlfriend really handle that?’

’That fucking thing is the size of a black dude’s, isn’t it?’

Wang Han’s eyes were red with envy.

He wasn’t particularly envious of how handsome or rich Qi Sheng was.

But when it came to a matter of a man’s pride, he was truly eaten up with envy.

It wasn’t that he was small himself—he was only 10 centimeters smaller than Qi Sheng.

But if he had that kind of size...

...wouldn’t he be able to make any woman ecstatic?

...

"Alright, I respect Chairman Qi’s decision. However, I hope that in subsequent rounds, Sequoia will have the right to lead the investment!"

In the end, Shen Nanping relented and made a concession.

After all, Qi Sheng held all the cards.

With 600 million US Dollars from Black Ant Capital and Jinshi Capital...

...Spicy King wasn’t in any urgent need of funds in the short term.

If Sequoia didn’t get on board quickly...

...they might be squeezed out by other top VCs down the line.

"As long as you can accept our valuation, why not let Sequoia lead the round?"

Qi Sheng had no intention of completely shutting Shen Nanping down, so he readily agreed.

"Haha, excellent! Even if Spicy King’s valuation hits 50 billion US Dollars, Sequoia can still afford it!"

Shen Nanping’s domineering statement showcased his firm’s immense financial backing.

With the official business settled, the atmosphere naturally became much more harmonious.

As for the rest of the bathing session, it was tacitly canceled by Shen Nanping and his group.

Their masculine pride made it impossible for them to continue soaking.

They returned to the lounge area and grabbed some fruit.

Finding an empty table, they started chatting about recent hot topics.

Regarding Qi Sheng’s acquisition of Universal Entertainment and his home-run bet on the box office smash *Demon Child*...

...Shen Nanping was deeply impressed. He asked curiously, "Chairman Qi, are you very interested in the entertainment industry?"

"Not really. My girlfriend likes to act, so I just casually bought a company for her to play around with."

Qi Sheng waved his hand. "I never thought some rights I randomly bought would lead to a 3 billion box office."

Shen Nanping: "..."

If he weren’t so well-mannered, he would have had the urge to smack Qi Sheng with a slipper.

He’d never met such a master of the humblebrag!

But the man truly did have an eye for investment and an uncanny ability to pick winners.

"Chairman Qi, are you considering a funding round for Universal Entertainment?"

Shen Nanping had researched the various companies under Qi Sheng’s name, and they all had considerable potential.

Even a legacy film company on its last legs like Universal Entertainment...

...had been revitalized after Qi Sheng took the helm.

As a businessman, Shen Nanping naturally hoped all his investments would yield satisfactory returns.

And Qi Sheng seemed to possess a magical ability to generate massive profits.

"President Shen, Universal Entertainment’s portfolio is too small. It’s not yet worth the attention of a top-tier VC like Sequoia."

Qi Sheng refused without a moment’s hesitation.

Companies like Spicy King or Pop Mart could be considered for external financing.

One was unlikely to pay dividends in its early stages, and the other’s profitability was comparatively weaker.

But a film company like Universal Entertainment, blessed by Qi Sheng’s Midas touch...

...was making money faster than a printing press.

He’d have to be a fool to open the company up for financing from Sequoia and the like.

Wasn’t it better to keep all the profits for himself?

Shen Nanping hadn’t expected Qi Sheng to reject him outright without even waiting to hear a valuation.

His other companies, like Banyan Tree Group and Zhuangyu Catering, weren’t short on capital at the moment either.

It would be impossible unless Sequoia offered a price Qi Sheng simply couldn’t refuse, which was unlikely.

"Chairman Qi, surely Pop Mart won’t refuse an investment from Sequoia, right?"

Having been rejected on all fronts by Qi Sheng, Shen Nanping asked with a hint of resignation.

"Of course not. I’m sure President Su is well aware of how rapidly Pop Mart is developing. What valuation does President Shen have in mind?"

Shen Nanping pondered for a moment. "One billion US Dollars?"

"Very reasonable."

Qi Sheng silently gave "Old Shen" a thumbs-up in his head.

Compared to the price he had acquired it for, the valuation had more than tripled.

"As for the stake, we’d want no less than 10%."

Shen Nanping was willing to throw down that much money because he was optimistic about Pop Mart’s recent operational strategy.

Since he couldn’t get on Universal Entertainment’s gravy train, seeking a stake in Pop Mart was the next best thing.

As long as the two companies engaged in deep cooperation, Pop Mart could also get a huge piece of the pie.

The recent box office success of *Demon Child* was a perfect example.

Pop Mart, having prepared in advance, made a killing of three to four hundred million yuan from merchandise alone.

If it weren’t for Qi Sheng being the boss of both...

...the two companies could never have cooperated so seamlessly.

"10% is fine, but the valuation will have to go up."

Seeing Shen Nanping’s brow twitch, Qi Sheng calmly explained.

"Pop Mart recently acquired the license for Ultraman and plans to develop Ultraman trading cards. Both revenue and net profit are about to see a significant jump."

"Ultraman cards?"

Shen Nanping’s eyebrow shot up. "I remember that IP. Isn’t it held by Xin Chuanghua?"

The master license for Ultraman in China belongs to Xin Chuanghua.

That company is a real cash cow.

They rake in a fortune every day just from the Ultraman license alone.

"We just signed a partnership agreement with Xin Chuanghua, securing the full Ultraman license. We’ll be developing designer toys and cards based on it."

Qi Sheng saw Shen Nanping’s eyes light up and knew he was hooked.

In reality, Qi Sheng had swooped in and stolen the development strategy right out from under Card Game.

This would boost Pop Mart’s valuation to the next level.

Card Game, just with their little Ultraman cards...

...was pulling in over a billion yuan in profit every year.

Although their time in the spotlight only lasted a few years before they fizzled out.

But as long as the investment prospects were there, Shen Nanping was sure to be tempted.

On top of that, Pop Mart had also pocketed the red-hot *Demon Child* IP.

A valuation of 1.5 billion US Dollars no longer seemed so unacceptable.

"Then we’ll go with Chairman Qi’s valuation. Sequoia will take a 10% stake!"

Shen Nanping didn’t mind spending an extra few tens of millions of US Dollars to earn Qi Sheng’s goodwill.

Normally, a project this small wouldn’t even be on his radar.

"A pleasure doing business with you!"

Qi Sheng smiled and extended his hand to Shen Nanping, mentally thanking "Old Shen" for the cash injection.

With Sequoia investing at a 1.5 billion US Dollar valuation...

...the one billion yuan from the system’s reward had already achieved a paper return of over four times.

There were still a few months left until the end of the year.

It was entirely possible for Qi Sheng to increase that paper return to over ten times.

When that happened, he would get another one-billion-yuan investment allowance to spend as he pleased.

It might not seem like much.

But once the sums involved reached the scale of tens, or even hundreds, of billions of US Dollars...

...even a 1% increase would be an astronomical figure.

’What more was there to say? A big thank you to Old Shen for the sponsorship.’