Yahoo's forty percent stake in Taobao represented a huge crisis for the company's founding team. The best way to resolve this crisis was to buy back Yahoo's shares. While repurchasing all of them wasn't necessary, they needed to acquire at least half to start.

However, Yahoo's new CEO had significant reservations about Jack Ma, believing he had not managed Yahoo China effectively. But Yahoo China was merely a foster child in Jack Ma's eyes. Naturally, he wouldn't expend much effort on it when he barely had time to care for his own biological child, Taobao.

Given his strong reservations about Jack Ma, Yahoo's new CEO was certainly not going to relinquish the shares so easily. The only reason he hadn't made any moves yet was that he was waiting for the right opportunity.

According to the agreement from Yahoo's initial investment, its voting rights in Taobao were set to increase to forty percent five years later, in 2010. For the preceding five years, Yahoo held thirty-five percent of the voting rights. The remaining five percent had been transferred by Yang Zhiyuan to Jack Ma's founding team to exercise on their behalf. Therefore, although Jack Ma's founding team was only the second-largest shareholder, they exercised the most voting rights and could firmly control Taobao's decision-making power.

But after 2010, once Yahoo reclaimed that five percent, it would become the single largest shareholder by voting rights, and its number of board seats would increase from one to two. This was undoubtedly unacceptable to Jack Ma's founding team, as it posed a threat of them losing control over the company.

Therefore, they had to start preparing for this eventuality and find a way to buy back Yahoo's shares. However, Yahoo's new CEO maintained a hardline stance and had no intention of selling the shares to Taobao's founding team.

At this very moment, Yi Anguo arrived at Taobao's headquarters with his assistant, Zhou Mengdie. He requested a meeting with Jack Ma, introducing himself under his standing identity: the CEO of Hong Kong Hualong Investment Company.

Hong Kong Hualong Investment Company's reputation was undoubtedly significant by now. They had invested in Hua Xing Technology, Anjing Online Supermarket, Penguin Company, Qiangdong Company, Vancl, and No.1 Online Supermarket.

Although Jack Ma had never dealt with Hong Kong Hualong Investment Company, that didn't stop him from knowing about it. And why did Jack Ma know so much about the company? Because all of its major investments—Anjing Online Supermarket, Penguin Company, Qiangdong Company, Vancl, and No.1 Online Supermarket—were formidable competitors to Taobao. When it came to competitors, Jack Ma certainly put in the effort to understand them. To know your enemy and know yourself is the key to victory.

Penguin Company and Anjing Online Supermarket, in particular, were no less formidable than Taobao. Penguin Company was also listed in Hong Kong. After Taobao went public, its stock price had soared, and its market value, which once peaked at over 20 billion US dollars, left Penguin Company far behind. By now, however, Taobao's market value had plummeted to less than 5 billion US dollars, while Penguin Company's remained steady at over 10 billion US dollars—more than double Taobao's.

Although Anjing Online Supermarket wasn't publicly listed, its market value would undoubtedly be substantial if it were to go public, given its current scale and assets. And while Qiangdong Company's valuation wasn't as high, its growth momentum was not to be underestimated. Behind all of these companies stood a single major shareholder: Hong Kong Hualong Investment Company.

Anjing Online Supermarket was Taobao's biggest market competitor. Taobao could afford to overlook Penguin Company in the e-commerce sector, as it posed no threat to its dominance. It could also disregard smaller companies like Qiangdong Company, Vancl, and No.1 Online Supermarket, whose influence was limited to specific regions. Anjing Online Supermarket, however, was a different story. It had already launched in major and mid-sized cities across the country, and even in many third-tier cities, with its influence growing constantly.

The key was that Anjing Online Supermarket had also introduced B2C services, allowing brand merchants to set up shop with nationwide free shipping. And just as Taobao had Alipay, Anjing Online Supermarket had its own Anjing Pay. Jack Ma had already realized that Anjing Online Supermarket was destined to become Taobao's greatest rival.

Although Anjing Online Supermarket had several shareholders, with a man named Yi Haiyang as its public-facing founder, the intelligence Jack Ma possessed indicated otherwise. Yi Haiyang held a relatively small stake, and the rest of the founding team held even less. Hong Kong Hualong Investment Company was the majority shareholder; one could say that Yi Haiyang and the other founders were essentially working for them.

Yet now, the primary investor and major shareholder behind his greatest rival had taken the initiative to request a meeting. Jack Ma couldn't begin to fathom their motives. However, regardless of the other party's purpose for coming all the way to Hangzhou to see him, Jack Ma had no reason to refuse their request.

When they met, although it was Yi Anguo's first real encounter with Jack Ma, he was no stranger to his appearance. In the era before his rebirth, the internet was highly developed, and Jack Ma was a household name.

"Mr. Ma, I hope you don't mind my taking the liberty of visiting you," Yi Anguo said with a smile.

"To have friends come from afar, is that not a delight? I have long admired the Hong Kong Hualong Investment Company!" Jack Ma said with a hearty laugh.

"I have two great regrets in my life," Yi Anguo said earnestly. "One is not investing in Taobao at its inception to become a major shareholder. The second is not investing in Penguin Company at its start to become one of its major shareholders.

"It's a great pity that Japan's SoftBank and the South African company got the better deal, earning the money that our own people should have.

"And then there's America's Yahoo. If the opportunity, the means, and the possibility arise, I am very keen to take their place, even if it requires paying a steep price."

"Mr. Yi, if we had you and Hualong Investment Company back then, Taobao wouldn't have had to go all the way to Japan to seek investment!" Jack Ma said with a sigh of helplessness.

"Back in 2005, facing immense pressure from eBay, Taobao had no choice but to accept an investment from America's Yahoo to fight back. At the time, there were simply no visionary domestic investors like you, Mr. Yi, or companies like Hualong Investment willing to back us. They didn't believe in the internet economy or see the potential in e-commerce. Our hands were tied!

"Penguin Company's situation was much the same. When they were on the verge of bankruptcy, their initial investor, that Mr. Li from Hong Kong, refused to inject any more capital. No other domestic enterprise was willing to step up. In the end, only the South African company would invest.

"It wasn't that we were unwilling to accept investment from domestic companies or individuals. It was that they all looked down on us. We truly had no other choice!"

"Yes, but let's not dwell on the past. It's over and done with, and there's no use bringing it up again," Yi Anguo said with a nod.

"Not long ago, our Hualong Company invested in Penguin, acquiring a twenty percent stake. I'm sure you're well aware of this, Mr. Ma.

"Our purpose in coming here today is the same: we hope to invest in Taobao and acquire a twenty percent stake as well.

"Of course, if you would prefer we invest more and take a larger share, that would be even better.

"Furthermore, you can rest assured on one point. I am only interested in investing in Taobao; I have no interest whatsoever in managing it. Therefore, I am willing to relinquish all my voting rights and entrust them to your founding team. How does that sound?"

"You want to invest in our company? Aren't you afraid of raising a tiger that will one day come back to bite you? One day we could completely defeat your Anjing Online Supermarket," Jack Ma countered.

"Business is business, and competition is inevitable. Whether Taobao defeats Anjing Online Supermarket, or Anjing Online Supermarket defeats Taobao, it's all part of the game. I can accept either outcome," Yi Anguo said calmly.

"Look at how powerful America's Yahoo used to be. Isn't it now a setting sun?

"Taobao is no different. You have many competitors now, and you will have more in the future. You will always have them. If you aren't careful and a newcomer overtakes and defeats you, that's perfectly normal. After all, companies that enjoy lasting prosperity and never fall are a small minority.

"It's like the ancient dynasties of our country. The Qin Dynasty was formidable, was it not? Yet it collapsed in the second generation. The Han Dynasty was powerful, no? But after a few hundred years, it too fell to pieces.

"In the golden age of the Tang Dynasty, envoys from countless nations came to pay tribute—how magnificent it was! But it too fell after just a few hundred years.

"We are talking about a mere commercial company. No matter how capable you are, Jack Ma, you will retire one day. Can you guarantee that your successor can continue your legacy of brilliance?"

"Mr. Yi, to be honest, Taobao's financial situation is excellent right now," Jack Ma said after a moment of thought. "We have over six billion RMB in cash between our bank and company accounts. We are not short on funds and have no current plans for a new round of financing."

Yi Anguo shook his head. "I think you're more aware of the crisis Taobao is facing than I am. What you lack right now is another major shareholder to dilute Yahoo's stake. That would be the most beneficial move for your team. I'm not wrong, am I?"

"If we accept your investment, it's true that Yahoo's shares would be diluted," Jack Ma countered. "But wouldn't our founding team's shares be diluted as well?"

"That is true," Yi Anguo nodded. "However, I am prepared to entrust the twenty percent voting rights that would belong to me to your founding team to manage. That way, your team's existing voting rights combined with my twenty percent would give you a clear majority. You would no longer have to worry about Yahoo seizing power. Wouldn't that resolve your ownership crisis?"

"You make a good point, Mr. Yi. However, we could simply use our own money to buy back the shares from Yahoo," Jack Ma replied, sounding completely unconcerned.

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