Rebirth at the Start: This Fate is Too Explosive!

Chapter 57 We must take down ByteDance!

Ye Fan quickly stopped his parents:

"Mom and Dad, don't worry, don't worry. Here's what I'll do! I'll get you two top students' notes. You don't need to argue anymore. They're the kind of students who score around 650. Anyway, arguing about my notes won't help you. Even if you study them, you won't get my score, right?"

The couple agreed that it made sense.

What Ye Fan was really thinking was: My notes? He knew best what his notes looked like. Du Fu with an AK? Li Bai delivering takeout on a small electric stove? He even wrote a bunch of nonsensical things, including some Japanese teachers. This wasn't helping others; it was harming children!

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back home.

Ye Fan had just brewed a cup of tea, and the steam was rising when his phone suddenly rang.

A phone call from Jian Jingli.

The voice of Jian Jingli, trembling with excitement, came from the other end of the phone:

"Little brother, you didn't lie to me! What you said about getting into Tsinghua or Peking University being easy is actually true! Ahhh! You even got the top score in the whole province! My goodness! You're amazing, little brother!"

Ye Fan took a sip of tea, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up in a smile:

"Sister Jing, I told you so! These days, nobody believes you when you tell the truth. Now you should believe me, right?"

Jian Jingli's voice was filled with undisguised excitement:

"I believe you! I completely believe you now. From now on, I'll believe whatever you say, little brother! I'll never doubt you again!"

Ye Fan chuckled and shook his head:

"Sister Jing, keep it low-key!"

There was a brief silence on the other end of the phone, followed by Jian Jingli's hesitant voice:

"Wait a minute, little brother...you said last time you wanted to study in Nanjing! But with your scores, the admissions offices of Tsinghua and Peking University must be fighting tooth and nail for you, right? So where are you planning to go?"

Ye Fan toyed with the teacup in his hand, his tone light and cheerful:

"Of course I'll go to Nanjing University! I've already reached an agreement with Nanjing University, so I'll go there. Tsinghua and Peking University did contact me, but I turned them down!"

"What?"

Jian Jingli's voice suddenly rose in pitch:

"You actually gave up on Tsinghua and Peking University? This...don't your parents have any objections?"

Ye Fan gazed at the tea leaves floating in the teacup, his smile deepening:

"Don't worry! They all respect me, and they support me in choosing where I want to go!"

Jian Jingli was silent for a moment, then sighed:

"Your uncle and aunt are so open-minded. If it were any other parent, they would probably be frantic if they knew their child was the top scorer but still gave up Tsinghua and Peking University!"

She paused, then couldn't help but ask again:

"But... are you really not going to reconsider?"

"I'm not considering it!"

.............

The two chatted for a while longer.

Finally, Jian Jingli warmly invited Ye Fan to her home for dinner.

But Ye Fan politely declined.

"Sister Jing, it's really unfortunate today, I already have plans with someone else, I'll definitely go another day!"

Of course, he couldn't break his promise—he had made an appointment with Liu Ruyan the day before yesterday to watch the game together tonight.

More importantly, a special surprise is prepared for tonight!

My phone vibrated at four o'clock in the afternoon.

It was a message from Liu Ruyan: "[I've already booked a room at the same hotel as last time. However, I'll be arriving a little late, around 10 PM. I'm currently at my maternal grandfather's house in Yanning for a family dinner, so I won't be able to get there until later.]"

Ye Fan replied briefly with "Okay," a smile unconsciously creeping onto his lips before locking his phone.

He leaned back on the sofa, his fingers unconsciously tapping the armrest, his mind tracing the development trajectory of ByteDance.

Founded in 2012, this company, with its revolutionary news aggregation app "Toutiao," has opened up a new landscape for information distribution through algorithmic recommendations, accumulating hundreds of millions of users in just two years and becoming a leader in the industry.

Today, it has accumulated hundreds of millions of users and has become one of the leading news apps in China. This product can be said to be ByteDance's core business.

His thoughts continued to expand: last year's "Funny Pictures" entered a niche market with its lighthearted and humorous content.

This year, it innovatively launched the "Micro Headline" social function, a short-content social platform similar to Weibo, which was later integrated into Toutiao and became part of its social functions.

Continuously improve the product matrix! But at present, the company mainly relies on the revenue from Toutiao's Google Play, and its cash flow is not very tight.

What truly propelled this company to take off was Xiaodou, a product that began development in 2015 and officially launched in September 2016. This product would completely change the company's destiny.

Now is the best window of opportunity for investment. Ye Fan remembers that this year, ByteDance will receive $1 million in funding from Sequoia Capital. He needs to be the first to invest in ByteDance before the investment company makes its move.

"We need to hurry."

Ye Fan muttered to himself, already planning his itinerary in his mind.

He planned to discuss with Liu Ruyan first, register the investment company as soon as possible, and then fly directly to Beijing.

Time is money, and he had to act before that crucial funding round. With that thought, he unconsciously sat up straight, his eyes gleaming with determination.

ByteDance is too important, especially the Douyin app they launched in 16. Ye Fan has to acquire it!

He recalled the miracles created by Xiaodou in his previous life: not only did it spark a short video revolution in China, but its overseas version, TikTok, also caused a frenzy around the world.

Until one day, the U.S. government suddenly wielded the big stick of sanctions under the pretext of "national security"—data privacy, geopolitics, business competition, and a list of seemingly legitimate charges.

But Ye Fan knew that the real reason was that this app from the East had broken the Western media's monopoly on discourse, allowing countless hidden truths to be exposed.

Behind this lies a struggle for discourse power between two major powers, China and the United States, in the digital economy era, resulting from political maneuvering between the two countries.

"Phew—" Ye Fan let out a long sigh and glanced at the calendar.

On July 9, after Brazil's historic match against Germany, he set off for Beijing.

Before that, two things must be done: persuade Liu Ruyan to register the investment company.

He picked up the teacup, which had long since gone cold. The bitter tea went down his throat, but it only made him more clear-headed—this business game concerning the future could not afford the slightest mistake.

Then they happily went to Zhao Mingzhe's house!

He shouted from more than ten meters away:

"Old Zhao, Old Zhao! Come out quickly!"

Holy crap!

Zhao Mingzhe rushed out the door in one stride, cursing in a low voice:

"Are you out of your mind? Would it kill you to just walk in like that? You're acting like Li Yunlong is here! Grandpa Li next door is going to beat me with a broom again!"

This is no joke—the last time Fatty Wang came to see him, he was yelling like that at the door, and as a result, Grandpa Li got so angry that he rushed out and pointed at Zhao Mingzhe's nose, cursing for half an hour: What kind of scoundrels are you hanging out with? They're always like ghosts being summoned!

This is why he rushed out as soon as Ye Fan shouted for Lao Zhao!

Ye Fan suppressed a laugh and deliberately raised his voice:

"Isn't this to celebrate your good grades?"

Zhao Mingzhe was so anxious he was jumping up and down:

"Celebrate my ass! What does Grandpa Li care if you get into Tsinghua University or roast sweet potatoes? Disturbing his afternoon nap is a capital offense!"

Ye Fan drawled out the words, a mischievous grin on his face:

"I know!"

Zhao Mingzhe was so angry he wanted to hit someone:

"You know that, yet you still yell like that?"

Ye Fan leaned close to his ear and said in a cheeky tone:

"You did so well on the test, you probably still think you're dreaming! Let Grandpa Li scold you a couple of times and you'll know it's real! I'm helping you, understand?"

Zhao Mingzhe turned and went inside the house:

"Damn it! Ye Gou, you're such a jerk!"