"I know about Amazon! A friend of mine in the U.S. told me that they recently secured venture capital funding, supposedly as much as 50 million U.S. dollars! It's because of that money that they weren't affected by the dot-com bubble crisis. If our company could get an investment that big, we wouldn't have a single worry!"
Qiu Yangping had some connections and was somewhat informed about developments among his American counterparts. However, he had no idea that the "venture capital funding" he was talking about actually came from none other than Mavi—the very person they were about to meet at the Summer Palace.
As the two chatted, two black Mercedes-Benz sedans with imposing "tiger-head" front designs suddenly rolled up at the parking lot entrance.
Before they could even react, a luxurious red Hongqi sedan with a consulate license plate—CA7460—followed behind the Benzes.
No, rather than "following," it was more like the two Mercedes-Benzes were escorting the Hongqi. Mavi and Qiu Yangping could clearly see that behind the Hongqi, another two identical black Mercedes-Benzes were also trailing closely.
The grandeur of this convoy completely overshadowed the tiny Alto that the two had arrived in—it was an overwhelming contrast.
"Whoa… a Hongqi sedan flanked by four Mercedes-Benzes, and the plates are from the consulate. President Ma, do you think the person inside could be…?" Qiu Yangping asked in astonishment.
To his surprise, the usually composed President Ma, upon witnessing Mavi's extravagant arrival, was visibly shaken. His eyes, even down to his toes, radiated envy. Or rather, he was completely stunned by the luxury of the motorcade. At this point in his life, he had great ambitions but little real progress to show for them.
The two men stood dumbfounded next to their Alto, watching as the Mercedes-Benzes and the Hongqi came to a stop not far away.
About two minutes later, the doors of the four luxury sedans opened simultaneously, and a group of black-suited bodyguards—almost enough to form a soccer team—swiftly emerged.
They moved in an orderly fashion, assembling in front of the Hongqi before their captain respectfully stepped forward and opened the car door.
"Young Master, we've arrived at the Summer Palace."
"Hmm."
Inside the Hongqi, Mavi stretched lazily. Beside him, the beautiful Jennifer seemed captivated by culture. She eagerly observed every brick, every wall, and the red palace gates of the Summer Palace.
"The scenery inside is even better. You can take your time admiring it once we go in," Mavi said. Though he was now a Russian foreign guest in official terms, he shared Jennifer's deep interest in culture—it was, after all, the legacy of his ancestors.
"What kind of place is the Summer Palace? It looks huge from the outside! Is the restaurant we're going to actually inside it?" Jennifer asked curiously, unfamiliar with history.
"The Summer Palace was the imperial garden of the Qing Dynasty, built by Emperor Qianlong. Today, it's a key cultural heritage site. Next to it is the Old Summer Palace, which used to house countless rare treasures, ancient calligraphy, and paintings. But one day, the evil Eight-Nation Alliance invaded Beijing, looting and destroying many of these historical artifacts. Most of them were taken overseas and have never been recovered..."
Mavi recounted what he had learned from history books, describing the tragic fate of the Old Summer Palace. (Both the Eight-Nation Alliance and the Anglo-French forces burned down the Old Summer Palace—first in 1860, when the Anglo-French army occupied Tianjin and then entered Beijing, looting and setting fire to the imperial gardens in the western suburbs. The second time was in 1900, when the Eight-Nation Alliance captured Beijing.)
Jennifer, who had a pure and kind heart, was outraged after hearing the story. "That Eight-Nation Alliance was horrible! Which eight countries were they? How could they be so evil?"
"Japan, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Austria-Hungary, the United States… and… Russia…"
As soon as Mavi finished listing the countries, an awkward silence fell between him and Jennifer.
Only then did it hit him—he was now officially a Russian citizen. Even though he had nothing to do with those historical invasions, it still felt like he was taking the blame just by association!
"Ahem, it's getting late. We should get out of the car," Mavi said, his face reddening. He had initially wanted to impress Jennifer with his "vast knowledge," but instead, he had inadvertently put himself in an awkward situation.
Turns out, showing off really can backfire! He silently told himself that he should probably do less of it in the future.
As Mavi stepped out of the car, he didn't immediately notice that a familiar man nearby was staring at him with intense interest.
That man even attempted to approach Mavi and introduce himself, but before he could get close, the alert black-suited bodyguards intercepted him.
"Sir, please do not proceed any further," one of the local bodyguards said , unaware that the man in front of him would one day become China's richest entrepreneur.
At that moment, Mavi was busy helping Jennifer out of the Hongqi, so he didn't pay attention.
However, as he turned toward the main entrance of the Summer Palace, he caught a glimpse—just five meters away—of an incredibly familiar figure pacing nervously.
He instinctively turned his head and realized that the person was none other than the man he was scheduled to meet today: the founder of Alibaba, Ma Yun—better known as Jack Ma!
"That man is my friend," Mavi immediately instructed his translator to relay the message to the local bodyguards. It wasn't that he couldn't speak , but rather, his Russian identity required him to maintain the illusion that he had never learned it.
The female translator nodded and quickly conveyed the message . "This gentleman is a friend of Mr. Mavi. He's fine."
With that, the bodyguards apologized with a slight bow and stepped aside, allowing Ma Yun and Qiu Yangping to enter.
Ma Yun was both surprised and grateful that Mavi had recognized him so quickly.
With a friendly smile, he stepped forward, extended his hand, and greeted Mavi in fluent English:
"Hello, Mr. Mavi! I'm from Alibaba. Our company, like Amazon—the one you invested in earlier—is also an e-commerce business. Currently, very few people in China are working in this space, and Alibaba is the second-largest e-commerce platform in the country…"
Jack Ma, being a former English teacher, spoke fluently. Due to his company's financial struggles, he was eager to introduce himself and his business. He had even rehearsed this opening speech in front of a mirror countless times.
Mavi listened patiently, but he wasn't fully focused on the content.
What occupied his mind instead was the realization that, in this lifetime, he had truly made something of himself. He was now meeting a future business tycoon—not as a hopeful entrepreneur, but as an investor.
This scene would definitely be recorded in history.
Even if Mavi never mentioned it, with Jack Ma's personality, he would certainly bring it up in future interviews.
And once the media caught wind of this early investment, they would surely dig into every detail…