Transmigrating Into the Beautiful CEO’s Doomed Substitute - Chapter 103

No longer needing to waste time arguing to convince group members, the BP (Business Plan) assignment proceeded smoothly, gradually catching up on the lost progress.

However, as the group leader, Qi Zheng still had to ensure that each member completed their assigned parts on time and also coordinate their differing opinions.

“Qi, you work in the CEO’s office at the Shen Group and have participated in many important project negotiations. Wouldn’t it be more convenient if you shared some data models so we could just modify the data inside?”

This topic was not new, and Qi Zheng always refused without hesitation. The reason was simple: these were the Shen Group’s commercial secrets, and she couldn’t casually disclose them. Even if it was just a model without real data, she was unwilling to share the information she had accessed in the secretarial office with others.

“You’re too rigid. Business isn’t like scientific research; it requires appropriate flexibility.” The classmate shook his head, spreading his hands, and sighed, “You really should work a few more years. Some tempering is indeed necessary.”

The implication was that he felt Qi Zheng was not smooth enough in her dealings and lacked flexibility.

The average work experience of the students in the class was about five years, with the highest being nearly eight. In their eyes, Qi Zheng was indeed a newcomer.

Such implicit doubts had existed since she started the program, but since Qi Zheng’s grades and classroom performance were impeccable, no one brought it up. Now, with the final major assignment requiring strong coordination and balancing abilities, they finally seized the opportunity to magnify it infinitely.

“Protecting commercial secrets and upholding the company’s interests are matters of principle, not experience. I believe this is only related to a person’s character and beliefs and won’t change with an increase in work experience.”

The classmate was an Indian who had come to the US for his undergraduate degree, worked in Silicon Valley for a few years after graduation, and then came to study for an MBA, hoping to secure a promotion opportunity. He usually had the most opinions during small group discussions, listing all kinds of plans and ideas. However, when it came time for group meetings or assignment submissions, his phone was perpetually unreachable.

He had expected to be the group leader this time, based on seniority and active participation, but to his surprise, the leader turned out to be Qi Zheng.

Taken aback by Qi Zheng’s retort, his expression was awkward, and he couldn’t push back strongly, as he was indeed trying to cut corners.

He stammered for a while, finally finding an excuse: “Although it’s a major assignment, we can’t treat it exactly like real work. After all, we don’t have the resources or time.”

That much was true. The students almost all came from well-known companies. The advantage of a large company is a big platform and ample resources, so they certainly don’t need to build everything from scratch.

But Qi Zheng cherished this opportunity. If she wanted to start a business, she had to start from the bottom. She couldn’t let go of any chance, no matter how insignificant. She would have to rely on herself for much of the work and needed to adapt to multiple roles.

Just like now, facing the doubts and dissatisfaction of her group members, she behaved differently from her past low-key and silent self, where she would try to avoid conflict as a means of resolution.

Qi Zheng maintained a poised smile: “It’s not real work, but at this moment, it’s more important than work. The hard studying of the past year and more depends on this to showcase the results. Missing such a good opportunity would be more frustrating than a simple work mistake.”

This grade would definitely go on their resumes, and no one wanted to get a ‘C’ on this assignment, which was the closest to a real business environment.

After the meeting, Li Yunshan laughed unrestrainedly as she walked with Qi Zheng towards the small wonton shop: “I was so happy to see him get stumped! He talks so much usually, but doesn’t want to do any actual work. I can’t believe he suggested you bring out the Shen Group’s calculation model. I even suspect the projects he worked on at his previous company were all plagiarized.”

“There will definitely be no shortage of people like this in the future. We just need to stick to our principles. We can’t control what others do, we can only strive to make ourselves stronger so we can choose not to work with people like that.”

Li Yunshan laughed even louder: “You’re absolutely right! We have to work hard to become our own boss and, when we meet people like that, just say ‘no way’!”

Qi Zheng was already a regular at the shop, and her order was mostly fixed. The moment she walked in, the proprietress smiled and nodded, knowing what she would have today.

“The assignment is basically settled; it’s time to formally start the business.” Last week, Qi Zheng had sent her business plan to the inboxes of several angel investors, hoping for a response.

“Did you submit the application for B University’s entrepreneurship fund? I heard the competition is quite fierce this year.”

“I’ve sent the materials for everything I can apply for. I hope to hear back next week.”

Qi Zheng felt a bit nervous about this, as it was her first time single-handedly approaching these venture capital funds in her personal capacity.

“But Neil Consulting also sent you an interview invitation. Are you still going?”

Neil Consulting was one of the five major renowned consulting firms in the US, and it had been heavily expanding its Asian market in recent years, moving its Asia-Pacific headquarters from Hong Kong to H City the year before last.

“Yes, I will. If the venture capital doesn’t pan out, at least I’ll ensure I’m not unemployed after graduation.”

Since she had told Shen Zhibing that she planned to stay in the US, Qi Zheng had made plans for both employment and entrepreneurship. Furthermore, she also had to repay the tuition fees the Shen Group had covered for her studies.

Li Yunshan chewed on her spoon for a moment, then realized: “I always felt you were a bit different after you came back from your last vacation, and now I finally know what changed.”

Qi Zheng took a bite of her scallion pancake, a little curious. Zhuang Muqing had said the same thing, and she really wanted to hear it.

“Before, you always seemed a little melancholic, hard to put my finger on, but you’re not as vibrant as you are now. If you had told me you wanted to start a business then, I would definitely have advised you to reconsider.”

Qi Zheng listened quietly. She hadn’t felt such a huge change in herself. But her mindset was certainly different. She could now be more fully invested in pursuing what she wanted to do.

“Sounds like a good change.”

“It absolutely is.”

Qi Zheng finished her assignment; it was already 1 a.m. She massaged her neck to stretch and opened her email to check if there was any response to the startup applications she had sent out earlier. She had been mentally prepared, but the replies she had received this past week were few and far between, with most having gone unanswered.

The occasional replies were all polite rejections.

Too many people in the world want to start businesses. She knew she wouldn’t be the lucky one who succeeded on the first try, but she still didn’t want to give up.

Deciding to come for an MBA was absolutely the right decision. Here, she had met classmates from different industries and fields, as well as professors with unique insights into business theory. More importantly, she now had the alumni resources of the B University School of Business.

This was not something that could simply be bought for a few hundred thousand. Here, Qi Zheng’s ambition was nurtured and gradually grew. She admitted that Shen Zhibing had spurred her on, but after calming down, she knew she wasn’t doing this for anyone else.

She wanted to forge her own path. Only then would she possess the genuine ability to choose.

With such a firm goal, seeing rejection emails didn’t feel so disheartening. To be precise, she didn’t allow herself much time to feel down; she had to race against time to find the next opportunity.

What she wanted to do was to provide an immersive integration service specifically for international students who had recently arrived in the US, especially the younger ones. This was not the typical services popular on the market now, such as rental assistance, social networking, or even illegal ghostwriting of assignments.

Her focus was on how young people could adapt when first arriving in a strange cultural environment, and how to achieve a rapid and natural transformation under intense academic pressure. This was once a formidable hurdle for her, let alone for those who had just become adults.

However, there were very few, if any, people currently offering this kind of service. It wasn’t completely nonexistent, but it was fragmented and scattered across various projects. Qi Zheng’s first step was integration—consolidating fundamental projects into one closed loop, and then optimizing it.

She discussed her idea with a few Chinese classmates, and they all agreed there was a market need. However, they also objectively pointed out that the target customer base was small, and gaining initial trust would be difficult.

Who would feel comfortable entrusting their children to an unfamiliar company or organization to help them integrate?

Qi Zheng modified her initial plan accordingly, shifting the first batch of customers from students studying alone to those accompanied by a parent.

Li Yunshan looked at her newly revised version and mused, “That might work, but then you’d have to convince two clients.”

Qi Zheng smiled. Actually, the target customer was still one person, but it had shifted to the parent.

Seeing Li Yunshan still looked doubtful, she continued to explain: “Parents who accompany their children usually have better financial conditions and the ability to purchase such services. Furthermore, coming along as a companion shows a greater concern for the child’s life. If we can win them over, we won’t have to worry about word-of-mouth.”

Li Yunshan thought it made sense. Parents usually have their own small social circles. When they encounter something good, they’ll surely share and recommend it immediately. Given the niche nature of their service, they wouldn’t need extensive advertising.

“Targeted in-depth focus is more effective than trying to cover everything.”

Qi Zheng revised her approach, adjusted the explanations for a few crucial parts, and sent the new business plan to several new funds.

She had noticed the Lemon Fund, which had recently been promoting its services at B University. It offered an amount that was not too high, but had a relatively low application threshold, attracting significant attention.

However, there was very little information about the Lemon Fund, leaving Qi Zheng unsure where to start. She could only send the business plan to the email address listed in the promotional brochure.

Li Yunshan already planned to stay in the US after graduation. After hearing Qi Zheng’s startup plan, she became interested and decided to venture into it together.

“This Lemon Fund looks a bit strange. It doesn’t seem to have invested in anyone before. Could it be a scam to steal ideas?”

Qi Zheng had considered this possibility, but she didn’t want to miss an opportunity.

“What was initially submitted was only a framework; the specific data is incomplete. Besides, our product needs to be executed and requires resource integration. Stealing the idea wouldn’t be worth it.”

Indeed, this was not an “internet project” suitable for rapid replication. Even if the capital took the idea, they would still need people to execute it.

“The inability to quickly replicate is also annoying. Don’t you know that capital loves hens that can lay eggs in the short term, preferably non-stop every day?”

Qi Zheng smiled and reassured her: “That’s why we need to try more options. Maybe we’ll encounter an investor who isn’t so eager for quick returns.”

Qi Zheng herself didn’t expect that three days later, she would receive a reply from the Lemon Fund, saying they were very interested in her business plan and wanted to learn more.

She was vaguely scrolling through her email but instantly became wide awake, immediately getting up to call Li Yunshan.

“Qi Zheng, are you sleepwalking in the middle of the night and thought of me first?”

“Yunshan, the Lemon Fund replied! We have a chance!”