bookrandom Chapter 629 1. Be extra careful.
Chapter 629 1. Be extra careful.
Li Xiangyang nodded, feigning interest: "Could you elaborate? For example, in Thailand, which supermarkets are you primarily partnering with?"
Mr. Zhang answered without hesitation: "Mainly Big C supermarket chains, and some local wholesalers. We have an office in Bangkok specifically responsible for the Southeast Asian market."
"That's wonderful!" A hint of excitement flashed in Li Xiangyang's eyes. "I've always wanted to enter the international market with my products, and I never expected to find such a powerful partner as your company."
Chen Jianshe chimed in at the opportune moment, "Mr. Li, we've inspected your product quality; it absolutely meets export standards. We're very confident about this cooperation."
“In that case, let’s finalize the contract quickly.” Li Xiangyang took out the prepared checkbook. “I can give you the 150,000 yuan advance payment right now.”
Upon seeing the checkbook, a glint of greed flashed in the eyes of both General Manager Zhang and Chen Jianshe.
"Mr. Li is such a straightforward person!" Mr. Zhang laughed heartily. "I love working with people like you."
Just then, Li Xiangyang deliberately frowned: "However, I have one more small request."
"Please speak." Mr. Zhang's smile was somewhat stiff.
"I'd like to see your company's business license and export permit," Li Xiangyang said casually. "It's not that I don't trust you, but it's mainly because our company's financial regulations require that such a large sum of money have complete documentation."
General Manager Zhang and Chen Jianshe exchanged a glance. Chen Jianshe quickly said, "Boss Li, these documents are all in the company safe. I didn't bring them today. How about we schedule another time tomorrow?"
"Can't it be today?" Li Xiangyang glanced at his watch. "It's only eight o'clock. Your company should still have someone on duty, right?"
"Well..." Mr. Zhang hesitated, "The key to the safe is with the finance manager, but she's on leave today."
Li Xiangyang sneered inwardly; these excuses were full of holes. But outwardly, he nodded understandingly: "Alright then, let's meet at your company at ten o'clock tomorrow morning."
“This…” Chen Jianshe seemed a little anxious, “Mr. Li, there’s no need to rush about the documents. We can sign the contract first, and I’ll send you copies of the documents tomorrow.”
“No,” Li Xiangyang insisted. “That’s just how the company policy is; there’s nothing I can do about it.”
Seeing that Li Xiangyang's attitude was firm, General Manager Zhang had no choice but to say, "Alright, tomorrow morning at ten o'clock, Huayuan Trading Company, see you there."
"Okay, it's settled then." Li Xiangyang stood up to leave. "By the way, could I have your business card? I need to report to my partner when I get back."
Mr. Zhang took a business card out of his suit pocket and handed it to Li Xiangyang. Li Xiangyang took it and saw that the business card was beautifully made and read "Zhang Jianhua, Chairman of Huayuan Trading Co., Ltd."
"Mr. Zhang, I look forward to meeting you tomorrow." Li Xiangyang shook hands.
After leaving the hotel, Li Xiangyang immediately dialed Captain Zhao's number.
"Captain, the fish have taken the bait. They want me to go to Huayuan Trading Company at 10 a.m. tomorrow."
“Very good, we’ve already checked. Huayuan Trading Company’s registered address is a fake address; the company doesn’t exist at all,” Captain Zhao said. “They’ll definitely just rent an office temporarily to fool you.”
"Then what do we do tomorrow?"
"Go at the agreed time, and we'll follow you secretly. If they give themselves away, we'll act immediately."
The next morning, Li Xiangyang arrived at the address provided by General Manager Zhang on time. It was on the eighth floor of an office building, with a sign that read "Huayuan Trading Co., Ltd." hanging at the entrance.
Pushing open the door, the interior was fairly well-decorated, with a reception desk and several offices. Chen Jianshe greeted them.
"Mr. Li, you've arrived! General Manager Zhang is waiting for you in his office."
Upon entering General Manager Zhang's office, Li Xiangyang noticed that there were indeed some documents and photocopies of the business license on the desk.
"Mr. Li, look, this is our business license," Mr. Zhang said, pointing to the documents on the table.
Li Xiangyang picked it up and examined it closely. On the surface, it did look legitimate, but he noticed a detail—the registered capital on the business license was 500 million yuan, but just downstairs, he saw that the company's signboard had been hung up yesterday, and there were obvious nail marks on the wall.
"Mr. Zhang, your company seems very powerful." Li Xiangyang pretended to be very impressed.
"Not at all, we're just starting out," Mr. Zhang said modestly. "But Mr. Li, rest assured, our capabilities will absolutely guarantee the smooth progress of this cooperation."
"That's good." Li Xiangyang took out his checkbook from his bag. "Now that all the documents are in order, I'll give you the advance payment right now."
When they saw that Li Xiangyang was really going to write a check, both General Manager Zhang and Chen Jianshe became excited.
Li Xiangyang pretended to fill out the check, but he was actually waiting for a signal. Sure enough, a few minutes later, footsteps came from outside the door.
"Excuse me, is this Huayuan Trading Company located here?" a voice came from outside the door.
Chen Jianshe got up to open the door and saw several people in uniform standing there.
"We are from the Industry and Commerce Bureau. Someone has reported your company for suspected fraud. Please cooperate with our investigation."
Mr. Zhang's face turned pale instantly, and Chen Jianshe also panicked.
"Comrade, is there some misunderstanding here?" General Manager Zhang asked, trying to appear calm.
"Whether there's a misunderstanding or not, we'll know after the investigation." The leading law enforcement officer flashed his badge. "Please show us all your company's relevant licenses and permits."
Just then, Li Xiangyang stood up: "Comrades, I can testify that these two people are indeed suspected of fraud. They just tried to swindle me out of 150,000 yuan."
Only then did General Manager Zhang and Chen Jianshe realize they had been tricked. Chen Jianshe, though blustering, said, "You're talking nonsense! We have a legitimate business partnership!"
"A legitimate business partnership?" Li Xiangyang sneered. "Then explain why you're asking me to pay for the raw materials upfront? What legitimate trading company operates like that?"
Law enforcement officers began searching the office and quickly discovered the problem. In Mr. Zhang's drawer, they found several similar contract templates, as well as contact information and documents from other companies.
"It seems you have more than just Mr. Li as a target," the law enforcement officer said, holding up the evidence.
Faced with overwhelming evidence, Mr. Zhang and Mr. Chen could no longer deny the facts and had to admit to the fraud.
Seeing that General Manager Zhang and Chen Jianshe were taken away, Li Xiangyang breathed a long sigh of relief.
Back at the factory, Wang Ergou was already waiting.
"How's it going? Those two con artists have been caught?"
“Yes, they were caught red-handed.” Li Xiangyang sat down and poured himself a cup of tea. “The enforcement team said they found a lot of evidence in that makeshift office. It seems this gang has already scammed several companies.”
"Those business owners who got scammed are truly pitiful," Wang Ergou sighed. "Luckily, we were quick-witted, otherwise 150,000 yuan would have been lost."
“Yes,” Li Xiangyang put down his teacup. “This incident has taught us a lesson: in the future, when we encounter such seemingly too-good-to-be-true opportunities, we must be more cautious.”