The sequel of Qingyu Year is here! Li Guoqing breaks into Dangdang again to pry open the safe, and netizens comment: Can you post on Weibo while being investigated?

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After 72 days, Dangdang.com and Li Guoqing appeared in the public eye again.

Li Guoqing wants to take over Dangdang

Leifeng.com reported on July 7 that this morning, Dangdang.com's official Weibo account released a statement saying that Li Guoqing once again resorted to force, bringing more than 20 people to force their way into Dangdang early in the morning, prying open multiple safes and taking away information. The company has called the police and is currently handling the matter.

Dangdang officials emphasized that the normal purchases of Dangdang customers and the normal settlements of suppliers will not be affected.

In response, Li Guoqing said that Dangdang Chairman Li Guoqing, along with the directors and acting CEO, vice president of government affairs, vice president of human resources, vice president of marketing, vice president of finance and legal affairs, etc., took over Dangdang and started working in accordance with the law (resolutions of shareholders' meeting, resolutions of the board of directors, and articles of association). He hoped that Yu Yu would cooperate with the handover. He believed in judicial justice.

At around 11 a.m., Dangdang.com said that Li Guoqing had been taken away by the police.

Later, Li Guoqing said in a WeChat group, "I am under public security investigation and will not answer the phone."

Immediately afterwards, Dangdang issued another statement saying: Li Guoqing’s talk of taking over was a lie and he had been taken away by the police.

Around 12 o'clock, Li Guoqing once again posted on Weibo:

Dangdang is now in the legal handover period. Excuse me. As the chairman of Dangdang, my primary goal is to ensure the normal operation of Dangdang. Don't worry about this. Please work with peace of mind. The current organizational structure remains unchanged and everyone is doing their job. If you need to stamp or pay, please contact me or go to the new Dangdang headquarters. Dangdang's upstream and downstream partners don't have to worry. The payment for goods will be settled normally and the contact person will remain unchanged.

Careful netizens may have noticed that the response time of Dangdang.com and Li Guoqing was almost the same, and both sides insisted on their own opinions.

Dangdang.com insisted that Li Guoqing had been taken away by the police, but Li Guoqing continued to be active on Weibo, trying to prove that he had not been taken away by the police. It was not difficult to find from his consecutive Weibo posts that Li Guoqing had been emphasizing that he was the chairman of Dangdang, so it was natural for him to take out the information from the safe.

But Li Guoqing’s show is not over yet.

At around 13:00 in the afternoon, Li Guoqing spoke again on Weibo, intending to ask the board of directors to approve his resignation as CEO of Dangdang, retaining only the position of chairman of Dangdang. He also expressed his hope to play a greater role in strategic layout, selection of core executives, investment and financing, build an efficient corporate governance structure, and minimize interference with the business decisions of the professional management team.

But before the directors agreed, Li Guoqing announced another "important decision" on Weibo:

Adjust the organizational structure and personnel of Dangdang.com. Yao Danqian was appointed as the acting CEO of Dangdang to oversee the company's overall work; Chen Lijun was appointed as the COO of Dangdang to be responsible for the daily management of the company's various businesses.

From this morning till the time of publication, Li Guoqing has posted 6 consecutive Weibo posts. In response, netizens joked: Others start their companies offline, but Uncle Li Guoqing starts his company on Weibo. How awesome!

If the last time Li Guoqing publicly snatched the official seal was to regain actual control of Dangdang, then this time Li Guoqing brought people to pry open the safe, and Li Guoqing's purpose was to take over Dangdang in its entirety.

The bloody "power grab" battle is not over yet

And this battle for power is far from over.

According to a previous report by Leifeng.com (official account: Leifeng.com), on the afternoon of April 26, Dangdang.com co-founder Li Guoqing led four big men to Dangdang.com's office with the purpose of stealing Dangdang's official seal and financial seal. Not only that, Li Guoqing also posted a so-called "letter to all Dangdang employees", claiming that Yu Yu was only a director of Dangdang.com and had no authority.

Li Guoqing then issued an explanatory letter to his partners, stating that on April 24, Li Guoqing was elected as the chairman and president of Dangdang by shareholders' vote, and took full control of Dangdang.

Li Guoqing said that the disputes among Dangdang shareholders were temporary. Dangdang, its employees and its partners were not at fault. We, the husband and wife, the major shareholders, did not handle things well and we apologize for the inconvenience caused to everyone.

It is worth noting that the investigation results showed that Li Guoqing did not violate the law in the incident of Li Guoqing snatching the official seal. However, although he was not found to have violated the law, Li Guoqing's desire to actually control Dangdang seems to have not been realized.

Although the "violent seizure of the seal" did not succeed in "forcing the emperor to abdicate", Li Guoqing still has a move.

On June 15, the divorce case between Li Guoqing and Yu Yu was heard in the Beijing Dongcheng District Court. Logically, the two had already torn their relationship apart last year, with one of them smashing a cup in public and saying that he could not forgive Yu Yu, and the other "exposing" Li Guoqing in the circle of friends, directly accusing him of "syphilis, homosexuality, and a scumbag family", and now the divorce is a foregone conclusion.

But Yu Yu obviously did not want to fulfill Li Guoqing's wish. On that day, during the court trial, Yu Yu tried hard to prove that her relationship with Li Guoqing had not broken down. She said that during the two years and five months of separation, they had traveled together, Li Guoqing had given her roses on her birthday, and even kept half of the local mushrooms given to him by his friends for her.

It is obvious that Yu Yu does not want to divorce, but just does not want to put herself in a disadvantageous position.

Tianyancha shows that Yu Yu and Li Guoqing hold 64.2% and 27.51% of Dangdang's shares respectively, totaling 91.71% of the shares. In other words, if Yu Yu decisively divorces Li Guoqing, the 91.71% of Dangdang's shares as joint property will most likely be split in half. With half of the couple's joint shares, plus the support of the 8% minority shareholder, Li Guoqing can completely take over Dangdang and obtain the "scepter" legally and reasonably. Yu Yu will naturally not let Li Guoqing "succeed" easily.

Therefore, there is the scene of Li Guoqing today. However, judging from the current development of the incident, Dangdang's "power grab" dispute is gradually escalating, and the two sides are likely to use more drastic measures in the future.

Why can’t Li Guoqing give up Dangdang?

The matter has become a national complaint. As an entrepreneur, Li Guoqing founded his own company, Morning and Evening Reading, during the two years he and Yu Yu were separated. It stands to reason that Li Guoqing should be more generous and give up Dangdang.com and live in peace. However, judging from Li Guoqing's series of power grabbing actions, Li Guoqing has only one goal: to actually control Dangdang.com.

So, why is Li Guoqing so reluctant to let go of Dangdang?

First, as we all know, Dangdang.com has been operating as a husband-and-wife shop since its founding. Li Guoqing and his wife have similar voices, sitting on the front line and checking each other. When opinions are difficult to reach a consensus, they will waver in strategy and miss the golden period of development. This is probably one of the reasons why Li Guoqing's public seizure of the official seal was not illegal.

Secondly, compared with the brand Zaowan Dushu founded by Li Guoqing, Dangdang has a bright future. Leifeng.com learned that Dangdang has been profitable since its privatization and delisting in 2016. Chen Lijun, vice president of Dangdang, said in an interview with the Beijing News that Dangdang achieved sales of more than 10 billion in 2018, with a GMV of about 15 billion to 16 billion. The profit exceeded 400 million, and the company has been profitable for 5 consecutive years without any debt.

In 2019, its national book retail market size increased by 14.4% year-on-year, and online stores maintained a faster growth rate, with a year-on-year increase of 24.9%.

Since its launch in June last year, the total number of downloads of Morning and Evening Reading has been only 530,000, which is pitifully small compared to the billions of downloads of its peers, Fan Deng Reading and Himalaya.

It seems that Li Guoqing's "power grab" war is determined to continue.

Attached is the full text of Li Guoqing’s long letter:

A letter from Li Guoqing:

Dear small shareholders, colleagues, and industry colleagues:

Hello everyone! I am very grateful for the trust, support and dedication of all the small shareholders and employees of Dangdang. As a founding shareholder of Dangdang, I have been responsible for the company's operation and management for more than 20 years since the company was founded, leading Dangdang and its team to continue to grow and develop.

So far, Yu Yu and I still jointly hold more than 90% of the company's shares. Who will serve as the CEO and chairman of Dangdang and be responsible for leading Dangdang is originally a family matter. Four years ago, due to the great differences between Yu Yu and me on the operation and management of the company, I took the initiative to make concessions for the sake of maintaining a stable and harmonious family relationship. The two sides agreed that Yu Yu would manage Dangdang for three years, and after three years, Yu Yu would need to return the management rights of Dangdang to me. Now, four years have passed, and Yu Yu still has no intention of returning the management rights of the company.

The divorce case between Yu Yu and me is currently under trial. Although I am the sole founder of Dangdang and have led the company for more than 20 years, Yu Yu has repeatedly used insults, slander, and procrastination to gain an undue advantage in the division of property. I believe in the fairness of the law. As the common property of the couple, it is only natural that the couple should each get half of the equity.

When Yu Yu and I had a disagreement, Dangdang's minority shareholders fully supported me out of trust and recognition, which enabled me to gain the support of more than half of Dangdang's shareholders, and I was elected as the company's chairman and CEO in accordance with the law. Here, I would like to thank Dangdang's shareholders for their trust again. I have the responsibility and determination to lead Dangdang's shareholders, management and all employees to regroup and create greater glory.

It was not my original intention to fight for the inheritance, but I was deeply saddened by the strategic opportunities lost by Dangdang in the past few years. In the few years when I was forced to leave Dangdang, I watched Dangdang miss opportunities again and again and stray further and further from its original intention. I felt extremely sad and intolerable. Five years ago, I laid out: publishing, e-books, online literature, film IP, physical stores, cultural real estate, fashion own-brand department stores, etc. Each of these fields had the opportunity to grow a new Dangdang.com and should have obtained the same profit as the old Dangdang paper books. What makes me even more worried and angry is that the knowledge payment business that I have repeatedly urged but lacks traffic support, lacks layout, and has no improvement, and the platform department stores that have already taken shape are lackluster and are gradually sinking.

The excellent user experience I was striving for 6 years ago is either improving or deteriorating!

If we continue to be so lazy and decadent, and continue to play tricks and fight for power and profit, and continue to treat shareholders, employees, partners and users so harshly, how can we talk about the value of the company? Where is the future of Dangdang? It is not a pity that my 20 years of hard work has been wasted, but the lives and property of dozens of small shareholders are tied to Dangdang. How can their rights be protected?

Regarding the dispute between Li and Yu, the spectators are just watching it as gossip, but for me and many small shareholders, this is a self-rescue movement. It is not only to save my own rights and interests, to save the rights and interests of small shareholders, but also to save Dangdang and save the future. At the same time, it is also to save Yu Yu. If the business declines and the company's value shrinks, no matter how much equity is occupied, it will be like waste paper.

On the basis of ensuring the market share of paper books, we must promote Dangdang to achieve business upgrade and transformation. Eating the same bowl of rice for 20 years is a miracle in the Internet era, but an excellent leader must have a clear judgment: how long can this bowl of rice last? My strategic concept can be summarized in one sentence: eat what is in the bowl, and look at what is in the pot. This pot is to reconstruct Dangdang and make it the largest digital content aggregation and distribution platform in the Chinese world. Dangdang has this potential, and I still have this ambition. It is not too early, but it is not too late now. Seize the historical opportunity of the comprehensive upgrade of the content industry, give full play to Dangdang's inherent advantages in users and industrial resources, take out the courage and insight of the second entrepreneurial venture, work hard, reform its life, realize the phoenix nirvana, self-transformation, transcendence and breakthrough.

A profit of 600 million and a market value of 10 billion have never been the goal of Dangdang people. Our goal is a profit of 2 billion and a market value of 10 billion US dollars!

Rather than saying that I have been away from Dangdang for the past four years, it is better to say that I have been thinking about the old Dangdang, exploring the new Dangdang, looking for and discovering new ways out and breakthroughs for Dangdang, and designing and planning the blueprint and value points of Dangdang. Time waits for no one, and I must take on the responsibility! An old horse in the stable must accomplish his mission!

Although I have a clear understanding of the cultural layout and I am very enthusiastic about Dangdang, I am also aware that I am not good at leading a team: my habitual leadership style may inhibit the autonomy, enthusiasm and creativity of team members to a certain extent. I believe that I have changed my ways after starting a business again. In the management of reading in the morning and evening, I try to give full play to the potential and enthusiasm of employees, enable collective decision-making and achieve remarkable results, bringing extraordinary results. But after all, the old dog stumbles on the new road, and I intend to ask the board of directors to approve my resignation as CEO of Dangdang. For this reason, I ask the board of directors to elect Yao Danqian, the former senior vice president of Dangdang, as CEO, and I will only retain the position of chairman of Dangdang.

As chairman, I hope to play a greater role in strategic layout, selection of core executives, investment and financing, build an efficient corporate governance structure, and minimize interference with the operational decisions of the professional management team.

During the nearly two and a half years of separation from Yu Yu, I think I have had a sudden enlightenment in dealing with the major shareholder differences with Yu Yu, the corporate governance deadlock of Dangdang and other important issues. Dangdang's management must abandon the husband-and-wife management mentality and the interference of personal emotions. It must turn to serving users and the interests of all employees and shareholders! Dangdang belongs not only to major shareholders, but also to small shareholders, to all employees who have dedicated their youth to Dangdang, to colleagues in the industry who have accompanied us in our development and growth, and to readers who recognize Dangdang in the whole society.

Now I implore you to show your wisdom and courage, join hands to solve Dangdang's governance dilemma, and bring new vitality to Dangdang. Please support my proposal, and welcome you to recommend like-minded colleagues who are insightful, capable, responsible, and daring to work hard, and work together to promote Dangdang's self-transformation and transformation!

Old employees, especially the management, are the core wealth of the company. We have worked together for twenty years, sharing honor and disgrace, and going through hardships. As Dangdang is about to embark on a new journey and open a new chapter, I would like to open my arms and give a warm hug to every old Dangdang employee, and thank you for your youth and sweat for Dangdang. I also want to make an appointment with you: now we start from the beginning, and I look forward to you and me working hand in hand to go through the next twenty years together!

Please support my and Danqian’s work and work together to push Dangdang to greater success!

Li Guoqing, Chairman of Dangdang

June 3, 2020