Chapter 82: The "Sponsor Representative" Exam
Murong Feng and Guo Yong stood at the arrival hall exit, chatting casually.
"Yong, you've been working hard following me around these days. Do you want to take a break?" After continuous flights and meetings, Murong Feng felt tired despite enjoying it. Thinking of Guo Yong silently following him everywhere despite not understanding much about investments, Murong Feng felt apologetic.
Guo Yong's cold face showed a hint of a sunny smile as he said seriously, "Murong, to be honest, I really enjoy working with you. It's not like before with all the violence, fighting over territory, and scheming. You and the people around you, do things I've never experienced before... I like living in the sunlight like this."
Murong Feng nodded with relief, "I'm glad you like it, Yong!"
Murong Feng had been worried Guo Yong would find it boring, given how different his current life was from his previous violent one. Hearing this reassured him. Guo Yong was now his closest subordinate, so they needed to understand each other.
"Yong, I don't have many security concerns now. Why don't you look at the companies below and see if any interest you? You could join one to learn, giving yourself another path for the future. You can't spend your whole life fighting," Murong Feng said sincerely.
Guo Yong's face immediately turned serious, "Murong, I swore to Mr. Guo that I'd protect your safety. I won't go anywhere except by your side..." Then he smiled, "Actually, I think I'll learn more staying with you!"
Murong Feng could only laugh, "Alright, as long as you're not bored, continue being my driver and assistant."
Though he said this, Murong Feng decided to gradually give Guo Yong more responsibilities. After all, he used to be a capable leader under Guo Guodong - it would be a waste of his talents to just be a driver and bodyguard!
As they were talking, a cheerful voice called out, "Murong!"
Looking up, they saw a pretty girl in a red t-shirt and blue jeans with a ponytail bouncing towards them. It was Ye Zi.
Murong Feng was surprised as he hugged Ye Zi's slender waist, asking with a smile, "Ye Zi, why are you dressed like this?" He remembered she had gone to Sichuan to guide a pre-IPO company, leaving in a business suit. Why did she return looking like a fresh college student?
Ye Zi laughed, "What's strange about this? The boss gave me a few days off to revise for the exam. I figured I'd already studied so much, everything I needed to remember was in my head. More studying would just confuse me. So I went to play in Qingcheng Mountain! How do I look? Like a backpacker, right?"
Murong Feng was both amused and exasperated, "Oh Ye Zi! If you'd told me you weren't studying and wanted to play around, I would have flown over to join you. I thought you were revising, so I didn't even dare call much."
Ye Zi pouted, "You're so busy, how could I disturb you?" Indeed, since founding Changan Capital, Murong Feng had become much busier, often working over 10 hours a day, unlike his previously idle lifestyle.
Murong Feng was speechless. He knew that while part of it was not wanting to disturb Ye Zi's studying, the main reason was that he had been focused on work. He quickly changed the subject, asking how her trip to Qingcheng Mountain was.
At this, Ye Zi immediately brightened up and enthusiastically started recounting all the fun she had in Qingcheng Mountain.
Guo Yong took Ye Zi's luggage as the three walked towards the parking garage, listening to Ye Zi's vivid descriptions of Qingcheng's serene beauty - the Celestial Master Cave, Shangqing Palace, the cliffs and caves of Front and Back Mountains, the ancient Taoist and xianxia legends. She switched between talking about Taoism and immortal cultivation, showing quite the potential as a mystic storyteller, frequently making all three of them laugh.
After getting the car from the parking garage, Guo Yong first drove Ye Zi to her apartment, then took Murong Feng home. With the exam tomorrow, Murong Feng wanted to give Ye Zi a relaxed environment to prepare.
Ye Zi was taking this year's "Sponsor Representative Competency Exam".
Sponsor representatives were the most important assets for securities firms acting as sponsors, and the top talent in China's investment banking industry. The number of sponsor representatives a securities firm has reflected its level in investment banking to some extent.
Therefore, every year, hundreds of securities firms in China would register all their employees with over two years of investment banking experience to take the Sponsor Representative Competency Exam. Passing the exam would immediately elevate one's status in the company to a privileged level, with senior positions and salaries over 100,000 yuan.
When they turned back towards Murong Feng's apartment, things finally quieted down.
Murong Feng tossed his phone aside in frustration and sighed to Guo Yong in front, "Yong, look at all the messy things I'm dealing with now. It's so annoying..."
Guo Yong smiled, "Murong, many people wish they could be as busy as you, but they still find themselves idle every day, dreaming of success. Success always comes with a price."
Murong Feng laughed in surprise, "Yong, you're quite philosophical."
Guo Yong just smiled and focused on driving.
After a moment of silence, Murong Feng called Tang Qing.
"Qing'er, I'm back in Beijing, just got off the plane."
Tang Qing's voice was gentle: "You've had a long day, get some early rest. Don't work too late tonight!"
After exchanging a few sweet words, they hung up. Only then did Murong Feng truly feel like everything was settled. He leaned back in his seat, gently closing his eyes to rest.
What a mess this all was!
....
The next morning.
The three-person startup team for Kaixin.com arrived punctually at Chang'an Capital's office.
They communicated well with the investment team led by Zhou Haitao. Zhou Haitao's views were similar to Murong Feng's, repeatedly saying that Murong Feng had a good nose for investing. Social networking sites were developing rapidly abroad, but no company or website with market dominance had emerged in China yet. Xiaonei, 51.com, Juyou, etc. were all developing well, but still in the early stages of jointly exploring this market. This Kaixin.com had a good management team and product strategy, so it should have a chance to carve out a piece of this market. But how big a piece remained to be seen.
This project was worth investing in.
However, according to Chang'an Capital's investment ratios for different enterprise growth stages, the maximum investment for a seed-stage company like Kaixin.com was $1 million. Zhou Haitao suggested investing $500,000 in the first round, to see the company's overall management level and growth rate, before following up with a second investment when it entered the growth stage.
Murong Feng understood this was a principle that private equity funds should follow, but he personally liked this project and team very much. So the final decision was that Chang'an Capital would invest $500,000, while Murong Feng would invest
The three-person startup team led by Qin Lan didn't want to give up controlling stake in the company and firmly believed in its future prospects, so they were very insistent on the companies valuation and investment equity ratio. Murong Feng didn't push too hard either. In the end, it was decided that Chang'an Capital's investment would account for 11.5% equity, Murong Feng's personal investment for 25%, and management would hold 63.5%, with the three founders dividing up these shares based on their own initial startup contributions. Surprisingly, Qin Lan had the highest share at 45%, while the other two had 10% and 8.5% respectively.
Kaixin.com became the first VC project that Chang'an Capital had invested in after its establishment. After the news was announced, it caused a small stir in the industry and media. However, how Kaixin.com would develop afterwards would depend on Qin Lan and her team's own efforts.
.....
The "Sponsor Representative Exam" only lasted one day, with a comprehensive securities knowledge test in the morning and an investment banking professional exam in the afternoon. After smoothly completing all the questions, Ye Zi walked out of the exam room with light steps. She immediately spotted Murong Feng smiling at her next to her "Little Silver" car. She happily ran over and threw herself into Murong Feng's arms, disregarding the gazes of people around them.
After lightly kissing Ye Zi's cheek, Murong Feng took the keys to start the car and asked with a smile, "Ye Zi, how did the exam go?"
"It was okay, all multiple choice and true/false questions. I thought it was quite simple, not as terrifying as they say," Ye Zi answered lightly.
Murong Feng praised her, "Our Ye Zi is so smart, how could those old guys in your investment bank compare to you!"
Hearing his endless praise, Ye Zi chided playfully, "Alright, alright, I've been so tired for so many days and finally finished the exam. I don't care anymore, we'll see the results in half a month! Murong, what good food are you treating me to tonight as a reward?"
Murong Feng smiled, "I guarantee it will be delicious in every way, you'll be satisfied!"
That night, the two enjoyed a sumptuous Mediterranean feast and fine wine in the elegant environment of the Taverna restaurant in the courtyard of The Hidden City on Gongti North Road. Ye Zi was delighted with the large plates of vegetable salad, exclaiming how delicious it was.
That night when they returned home, the details of the passionate reunion between the long-separated couple needed not be described to outsiders.
The day after Ye Zi finished her exam, she flew back to Chengdu. The project in Sichuan was short-staffed and urgently waiting for her return.
Murong Feng began to study the courses at Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business, undecided between enrolling in the EMBA program or the China Enterprise CEO Program on the Advanced Management Course.
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