For Taotao, its layout in the express delivery industry is almost bankrupt, and it has to turn to cooperation with logistics companies. Even HNA Cargo is within their consideration.

As its own son, EMI, did not live up to expectations, the newly-established express delivery company was unable to gain enough market share, resulting in continuous losses and inability to make ends meet, and was unable to continue to develop.

The Qingyuntongda Group used the high profits it earned from its logistics and same-city delivery businesses to subsidize its express delivery business, forcing its express delivery peers to retreat step by step and leaving it with no rivals at all.

Cainiao can barely compete with Hummingbird in big cities by relying on continuous investment in direct sales, but it is completely crushed in small and medium-sized cities and rural areas.

The remaining SF Express and the Post Office that are still cooperating have high unit prices for their customers and can only meet the transportation needs of high-end products. They are simply not backward compatible. Neither merchants nor customers will accept buying a product for ten yuan and spending twenty yuan to ship it through SF Express or the Post Office.

This is the value of the Tongda system. It can meet the needs of almost all different consumer groups. It has a complete system, moderate prices and good timeliness.

For consumers, there are three main reasons for choosing e-commerce online shopping. The first is that the variety and prices of e-commerce merchants are attractive enough, the goods are complete and the lower the price, the better, and quality is second.

The second is that the after-sales service quality of the e-commerce platform should be good, so that transaction disputes can be handled in a timely manner once they arise.

Both of them are connected through the Internet and there is no intuitive feeling.

The only face-to-face contact is always the moment when the courier comes to deliver the goods or picks them up. The other factors include the waiting time for the package, whether the product is damaged during transportation, whether the courier comes to provide quality service, etc.

Historically, there was no Hummingbird, only Cainiao, which allowed consumers to send and pick up items by themselves. Consumers had no choice but to accept it. But now it is different. Hummingbird provides 24-hour door-to-door delivery and collection service by default.

Comparison is harmful!
Fengniao never refuses to cooperate with third-party express delivery companies, but has some small rigid requirements, such as investing in order to obtain a veto power on major decisions, refusing platform kidnapping, refusing ultra-low unit prices, and refusing to lose money to gain publicity.

This is because most of the items purchased on Pinxixi are large items, and consumers have a high average order value and do not care about paying a few dozen extra shipping fees. Naturally, there is no reason for companies to spend money to help Taotao.

These conditions almost eliminated the possibility that Taotao could use the hummingbird to get through the difficult times.

For normal express delivery companies, Taotao's express orders are delicious poison. If they don't eat them, they will starve to death. If they eat them, sooner or later they will be killed by the low-price strategy.

During the cooperation between the two parties, express delivery companies that do not have pricing power have only meager profits but also have to bear huge investments, and their heavy asset model has low risk resistance.

This is true for any business. When more than 50% of orders come from the same customer, a core conflict will lead to sudden death. For example, if Huaban had not intervened in time, the Apple supply chain OEM companies in later generations would have been hard to escape bankruptcy.

Qingyun Group used it once on Zhaoxu Electronics, and now it is using it on the Tongda Group. Taotao was instantly confused, and the cooked duck flew away. One can imagine its resentment towards Pinxixi.

However, they dare not cut off cooperation with Tongda Group immediately because there is no suitable alternative in the market.

E-commerce companies can certainly easily control express delivery companies by relying on their monopoly position, but when the Tongda Group becomes bigger and has other revenue supplements and no longer relies mainly on Taobao orders to survive, the offense and defense positions change.

Even SF Express, which has a normal history, can easily say no to Taotao. It is the only one that provides high-end air express services. If you don’t accept it, build your own...

"Pinxixi E-commerce, a subsidiary of Qingyun Group, and eight other companies jointly applied to Lijiapo, Hong Kong and American financial institutions to issue three-year, 15% annual interest bonds with a face value of US$5 billion.

Currently, it has been taken over by six institutions including Goldman Sachs, Americas, Temasek, Lee Ka Po Sovereign Investment Fund, HSBC, and Bank of China Hong Kong. It is expected that the subscription will be opened in early April and the funds will be credited in May.

According to public information, most of the funds raised will be used for fixed asset investment, including the purchase of 7.5 vehicles of various types, investment in cold chain transportation and storage, and recruitment and training of personnel..."

Qiantang, Ali's headquarters.

Listening to the business briefing, Jack Ma's face was more solemn than ever before, but before he could speak, Cai Zhongxin guessed what he wanted to say and shook his head:
"We have had in-depth discussions with the heads of major investment institutions to raise the funds needed to purchase Yahoo shares, and there will be no problem in redeeming and paying the additional compensation for the equity.

But the proposal to invest in the sinking market was rejected immediately. They would not agree to waste money and time in rural areas, let alone increase direct competition in the express delivery industry. "

Jack Ma refused to give up. “Can’t they see the huge success that Pinxixi has achieved in rural areas? Are they going to watch their competitors complete their layout and surpass Taotao?”

"Jack, let's stick to the facts. Please calm down!"

Cai Zhongxin signaled to continue the work report, then lowered his voice and said: "The results of 08 are there, and everyone knows that Sun Tongyu's departure was not due to performance.

If the company rashly denies its overall strategy simply because of competition from Pinduoduo, it will cause confusion among everyone in the group, especially those who made decisions at the time.

How do you and I explain the brilliant achievements the company has made in the past two years?"

Zhang Yong also said silently: "Boss Ma, going back to the old ways is not a good idea. Even Boss Sun will not support it."

Facing the double denial from his right-hand men, Jack Ma did not back down. “That’s because Pinxixi didn’t exist at that time. No one told us that we could cultivate a new e-commerce giant just by relying on a policy.

I am confident that I can convince Mr. Sun to support my plan."

The huge debate interrupted the meeting again. As the president of the local lifestyle business group that competes head-on with Qingyun Group, Lu Qianxi joined in and expressed his views clearly.

"I think Mr. Ma is right. Now that rural areas have already exploded with sufficient market potential, the group should adjust its competition strategy in a timely manner according to the actual situation.

If we don’t find a way to curb the development of Pinxixi, we will face the second and third betrayals of the Tongda Group and we will have no way to deal with it.

They have currently raised US$15 billion in financing to upgrade back-end technology and equipment, increase the number of warehousing and logistics centers and transportation capacity, and will invest more resources to compete with the group in the future.

Please forgive me for being frank, but the Group is losing its competitive advantage bit by bit. If we don’t change, we will face challenges in more areas in the future.

For example, in the field of mobile payments, Weifuzhi has become the strongest competitor of Alipay; the Pinxixi group buying platform is devouring the sales network of Taotao's small and medium-sized merchants.

All of this stems from Pinxixi's e-commerce layout in rural areas, which is an area that the group cannot enter now. Without shaking this foundation, no matter how many resources the group invests, it will not be able to achieve an overwhelming victory."

Lu Qianxi ended with an extremely pessimistic statement, "As long as Qingyun Group can still obtain continuous nutrient support from the rural market, it will become a nightmare for all competitors!

A powerful opponent who cannot be defeated!"

Many people understand this, but almost everyone is helpless.

How could Cai Chongxin not understand this?

But all he could do was take out his cell phone, press the speaker button, and repeat what everyone had just said to the investor on the other end of the phone.

"No, Cai, the money invested by Goldman Sachs will not be used to support Jack to expand the rural market. We have agreed that..."

Jack Ma finally couldn't help but said, "But I noticed that Goldman Sachs is trying to invest in Pinxixi."

“No, we are investing in the urban areas of Pinduoduo group buying, not its rural market.”

The head of Goldman Sachs Investment pointed out the difference neatly: "Group buying business is a sub-segment of e-commerce. According to the cooperation agreement, Goldman Sachs did not violate any regulations."

Jack Ma was anxious and was about to speak.

Cai Zhongxin was afraid that the two would quarrel, so he interrupted and said, "Tom, I want to ask your real intention. Is investing in the rural market and grabbing the market share of Pinxixi no longer in your plan?"

Tom said calmly, "Of course not! Cai, you are the best financial officer on the planet. You should understand that any long-term investment of more than three years is not on the priority investment list.

No investor wants to invest in such a stupid project, which has almost no liquidity, uncontrollable risks, and it is easy to end up with nothing.

It is impossible to cash out and it is impossible to maintain super high and stable returns, but the investment amount is still so huge.

Expansion achieved solely through short-term subsidy policies is like building a castle on the beach; no matter how beautiful it is, it is illusory.

Goldman Sachs can provide Ali with more than $10 billion in support, but it must ensure that it is used for plans to break away from Yahoo's control and implement the group's existing strategic goals, and nothing else.

Investors give Goldman Sachs the right to monitor the whereabouts of every penny invested to ensure that they do not get out of control, otherwise it will cause big trouble, which will be a result that neither party wants to face!

Believe me, don't make any decision that tries to fool investors. Even just verbal temptations will shake their determination to firmly support!

Finally, let me give you some purely personal opinions. If investment is really needed, then Pinduoduo e-commerce will be Goldman Sachs’ first choice. After all, the leader is more favored.”

After hanging up the phone, Cai Zhongxin also spoke his mind, "Instead of discussing here how to enter the rural market, we should mobilize resources to apply to the higher authorities to cancel the subsidies for home appliances going to the countryside.

At the very least, the subsidy amount and duration should be reduced. As long as this preferential policy support is lost, the cost of cultivating the rural market for Pinxixi will at least double, and they will definitely give up. "

Jack Ma didn't say anything. He was calculating the specific gains and losses. Lu Qianxi couldn't help but ask, "What if Pinxixi continues to insist?"

Cai Zhongxin doesn't believe it. "No one would bear the loss of tens of billions every year to cultivate a market that takes ten to eight years to produce output."

Lu Qianxi asked again, "What about Qingyun Agricultural Service Company?"

This time it was Zhang Yong's turn to refute, "That's even better. With a double investment, Qingyun Group will be dragged down by this grand strategy sooner or later. By then, we can pick up the ready-made ones at the lowest cost."

"What if they grit their teeth and persevere until they succeed?"

"How can it be……"

Zhang Yong was about to continue speaking when he suddenly realized something was wrong. This was Mr. Ma's voice, and his face looked very ugly. His eyes were fixed on his phone, as if he was reading something.

This made him not know how to deal with it for a moment.

For the first time, Jack Ma publicly got angry at his right-hand men at an internal meeting, "Answer my question, if successful, what kind of unfavorable situation will the group face?"

Just now, during the conversation time, he had a brief exchange of opinions with Sun Zhengyi. Unfortunately, he failed to convince the other party, and Sun Zhengyi started to persuade him instead.

This made Jack Ma feel like he was abandoned by the whole world in an instant. Everyone was questioning his decision. No one could understand why something that had been concluded in 08 was being brought up for discussion again.

Faced with the founder’s suppressed anger, Cai Zhongxin had to come out to explain, “That proves that there is great potential in cultivating the rural market. When the time comes, the group can mobilize resources to fight for market share.”

Jack Ma sneered, “I’m afraid that by then it won’t be a group scramble, but a far more powerful opponent than Ali, who will in turn squeeze our market share.

This is the first time I have experienced the shortsightedness and reality of capital. Just wait and see. If you miss the best opportunity now, it will be impossible to make up for it even if you spend ten times the price in the future. "

Cai Zhongxin understood his frustration and unwillingness, but he only needed one sentence to calm his anger, "The agreement with Yahoo expires at the end of the year, and Jerry Yang has publicly stated that he will take back all voting rights.

As well as the second board seat, Yahoo will become the actual controller of Ali. Due to the end of the protection agreement, the founding team, including you, is at risk of being kicked out at any time.

At this critical juncture, any unfavorable remarks regarding the group's strategic decision-making transformation may shake the positive impression of you as outstanding and wise in the eyes of investors.

Once you no longer firmly protect their interests and implement strategies that are consistent with investment logic, and instead waste resources on rural areas, it will inevitably influence them to make irrational decisions.

Mr. Ma, this world is very realistic. Once the traditional impression is overturned, things will become out of control. We will lose the favor of the capital market and will not have enough funds to buy back Yahoo shares.

Everything will be in vain. Do you want both sides to suffer losses in the end?

Even if there is absolute support from the top, and there is another equity transfer event of Payment Insurance, and Ali’s main business is separated and injected into the new company, then what?
We will lose all mainstream capital support in the world, and the new Ali will become the mortal enemy of the capital market. This catastrophic consequence is something no one can afford.

Believe me, Jobs is not the first great founder to be kicked out of a company, and he will definitely not be the last. "

Jack Ma, fortunately, as a qualified, even extremely outstanding businessman, his ability to self-regulate his mentality is very strong.

"Sorry, I was too impulsive."

It took him only a few minutes to recover, but he looked a little lonely, "What was the topic just now? Oh, Tongda Group used Qingyun's name to issue bonds publicly.

Then ask their leaders to come to Qiantang to discuss it face to face. If anyone refuses, let Taotao issue a statement to sever cooperation and drive it away completely. "

Zhang Yong was a little confused, "Boss Ma, I'm afraid this can't be done for the time being."

Jack Ma was angry. "This won't work, and that won't work either. Why don't you just take over this position? If you can't even handle a small matter, what's the point of having you?

NS! "

Lu Qianxi was worried about causing a bigger dispute, and was also surprised that Mr. Ma seemed to be in a bad state, so he quickly stood up and said, “Mr. Ma, it’s not that Mr. Zhang can’t do it.

Rather, the bosses of the Tongda Group are all in the United States on a business trip and will not be back until the end of March.”

Jack Ma was stunned. For a moment he wanted to overturn the table publicly, but in the end he suppressed his anger and said:
"Nothing can be done. All the express delivery companies that we supported are now in the red. Is Zhou Shaoning sleepwalking?
With so much money invested, there would still be some movement even if it was thrown into the water.

Looking at Cainiao and Taodiandian, they are suffering huge losses of tens of millions every month. The most important thing is that there is no hope of success in any of them!
Who can tell me how to deal with all this? "

For a moment, the meeting place fell silent.

In the end, it was Cai Zhongxin who stepped in to break the deadlock. “The root of the problem is that Qingyun Group used the policy of bringing home appliances to the countryside to build a solid fortress in rural areas that cannot be shaken in a short period of time.

As long as they can influence policy changes, Qingyun Group, which has lost its foundation, will pay a heavy price for its blind expansion. "

"What about Pinduoduo? Bank of America acquired a 75% stake at a valuation of $3 billion. This alone is $2.25 million, and its February performance is also said to be over $30 billion.

Many venture capitalists have changed their minds and are ready to pay a high price for their shares. We will face a stronger opponent. How can we win? "

Jack Ma is worried about the speed of Qingyun's development, but he is now powerless as he is tied up by the Yahoo agreement and can only watch his competitors conquer everywhere.

He couldn't even terminate his cooperation with the Tongda Group, because at this critical moment, losing the support of the Tongda Group would mean a fatal blow to Taotao's business.

Without a relatively cheap and stable express delivery channel, Taotao's business would be paralyzed within three days. The direct consequence of the sharp decline in user experience is that competitors have an opportunity to take advantage.

Jack Ma could see it, and his competitors could see it too, that Qing Yun was challenging him with practical actions, but he could only watch coldly and dared not respond drastically.

Take advantage of this rare window of development.

Qingyuntongda Group issued bonds to buy cars and land to build logistics centers and cold chain storage warehouses, and trained personnel to grab market share in the logistics market, increase revenue dilution and reduce the proportion of Taotao business in Tongda Group's business.

According to the results of the internal meeting of the Tongda Group, it will strive to reduce the proportion of the existing Taotao business from 70% to 50% by the end of this year.

Before the end of 2011, it will be reduced to around 25%, maintaining a similar situation to SF Express and completely getting rid of the influence of Taotao.

Reducing it does not mean that the Tongda Group will completely give up its cooperation with Taotao. Instead, it will further deepen the ties. E-commerce can determine the rise and fall of express delivery companies, and powerful express delivery companies can also determine the life and death of e-commerce companies.

What they need to do is to develop multiple sources of income for the company and reduce risks.

Jack Ma understood and that’s what they are doing now.

The Tongda Group uses its mature logistics network to continuously squeeze the living space of new entrants, forcing the companies supported by Ali to continuously increase their infrastructure construction.

For example, increasing investment in logistics centers, internal urban transfer and allocation centers, transport trucks and delivery vehicles, grassroots site network coverage, and staff salary and benefits.

Don’t vote?

Express delivery requires accuracy and speed. The so-called service is obtained by investing money. Without investment, there will be no service. Packages are lost every day and the goods purchased by customers are delivered thousands of miles away.

With complaints every day, Taotao merchants will vote with their feet and choose to cancel cooperation with enterprises and switch to the more convenient Tongda system, even with Taotao subsidies.

With billions of packages involved every year, who would dare to provide subsidies of tens or even hundreds of billions?
It is even more impossible to force merchants to pay, as Pinxixi e-commerce is watching closely and waiting for Taotao to make a mistake.

投？
That would be even worse. The Tongda Group's strategy is to lure you into a trap, wait for you to invest real money, and then target you at every turn. For example, lowering prices is a tried and tested strategy. I can still make a small profit if I lower the price by 1 yuan.

You are already operating at a loss. If you reduce the price by one dollar per order, and put it on the scale of billions, you are guaranteed to lose everything.

Logistics warehouses across the country often purchase or lease thousands or even tens of thousands of vehicles, with an initial investment of hundreds of millions. They also lose hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars every year to subsidize orders. Anyone who comes here will despair.

Besides, do you think this is the end?
Don't forget that hundreds of thousands of people in Qingyun Group are watching you all the time. If you recruit someone and he or she gets familiar with the position, he or she will be poached. Don't ever think about building a reliable grassroots team. No one will talk about service.

Just this one move could completely destroy Ali's strategy of rebuilding the express delivery system, but Jack Ma didn't dare to act at this time.

The capital market is very dissatisfied with Fubao's transfer of equity. If he continues to openly trample on the bottom line of capital and adopt a loss-making strategy, he may not even be able to keep the control of the company! (End of this chapter)