bookrandom Chapter 618 Believing the other side will soon be finished
Chapter 618 Believing the other side will soon be finished
Despite saying that, Li Xiangyang knew in his heart that tonight was just the beginning.
Now that South China Investment has broken off relations, it will definitely take other actions next.
However, reporters will be here tomorrow. They will expose the misdeeds of Huanan Investment and see if they still dare to be so arrogant.
The next morning, provincial newspaper reporter Guo Ming arrived at Xiaoliang Village.
He was a middle-aged man in his early forties, wearing glasses, and looked very capable.
"Director Li, I heard about what happened last night on the way here," Guo Ming said, getting straight to the point. "The methods used by South China Investment are truly despicable."
Li Xiangyang recounted the events of the previous night in detail, emphasizing the other party's threats and violent tactics.
"Is there a recording?" Guo Ming asked.
“Yes.” Wang Ergou took out a small recorder. “Last night, the leader admitted that Zhang Wei sent them.”
Guo Ming listened to the recording, his expression growing increasingly serious: "This constitutes extortion."
“Not only that,” Li Xiangyang added, “they also froze our bank accounts and sent fake law enforcement officers to cause trouble at the factory.”
Guo Ming took out his notebook and began to take notes diligently: "Director Li, what evidence do you have?"
Li Xiangyang produced the bank's freeze notice and photos of the fake law enforcement officers.
“We’ve already checked, and both the tax bureau and the industry and commerce bureau said they didn’t send anyone here,” Wang Ergou said.
Guo Ming nodded: "These materials are very valuable. I'll publish the article today, and it will be in the paper tomorrow."
“Reporter Guo,” Li Xiangyang said in a deep voice, “this isn’t just my problem. Huanan Investment has similar practices throughout the province, and several companies have already been ruined by them.”
“I know.” Guo Ming put away his notebook. “This time we’re going to do a series of reports to thoroughly expose their evil deeds.”
After seeing the reporter off, Li Xiangyang and Wang Ergou arrived in the county.
As soon as Liu Jianjun saw them, he said, "Xiangyang, I've heard about what happened last night. The county is taking it very seriously and is preparing to set up a special task force to investigate Huanan Investment."
Upon hearing this good news, Wang Ergou immediately asked, "Then what else do we need to do?"
“Just cooperate with the investigation.” Liu Jianjun produced a document. “These are the contact details for the special task force. If Huanan Investment takes any further action, contact them directly.”
Li Xiangyang took the document, and a weight was finally lifted from his heart.
With official intervention, South China Investment no longer dared to act recklessly in public.
Back at the factory, Li Xiangyang told everyone the news.
"That's great!" Accountant Chen almost jumped for joy. "Now those bastards won't dare cause trouble again!"
"Xiangyang, when will our account be unfrozen?" Production supervisor Lao Liu asked with concern.
"It should be soon," Li Xiangyang thought for a moment. "Once the special task force gets involved, the bank will have to re-examine the case. Things should be back to normal in a couple of days."
Sure enough, the bank notified the factory three days later that the account was unfrozen, and the factory's cash flow returned to normal.
At the same time, the provincial newspaper also published a report on Guo Ming on its front page.
The report detailed the various misdeeds of Huanan Investment, from impersonation and threats to sending people to break into their homes late at night, using every possible means.
Li Xiangyang's experience is just one example; the report also revealed similar practices of Huanan Investment throughout the province.
"Now the whole province knows the true face of South China Investment." Wang Ergou held the newspaper, his face full of satisfaction.
Li Xiangyang remained calm: "The report has been published, but the matter isn't over yet. The forces behind South China Investment are not simple; they won't give up so easily."
Sure enough, that afternoon, lawyers from South China Investment came to Li Xiangyang's door, demanding that he clarify the report, claiming that the report was untrue and damaged the company's reputation.
"Inaccurate?" Li Xiangyang sneered. "Those people from last night are still at the law enforcement station; their statements have been recorded. You say it's inaccurate?"
The lawyer was speechless.
“Factory Manager Li,” the lawyer said, his tone shifting, “South China Investment is willing to acquire your factory for 20 million, which is a very fair price.”
"Twenty million?" Li Xiangyang shook his head. "Even if you gave me two hundred million, I wouldn't sell."
"So what do you want?" The lawyer's face darkened.
“It’s very simple,” Li Xiangyang stood up, “make Huanan Investment cease all actions targeting me and my factory, and obediently await the investigation results from the special task force.”
After the lawyer left, Wang Ergou said worriedly, "Xiangyang, what if they resort to desperate measures?"
"No," Li Xiangyang said confidently. "The public is watching closely, and the special task force is keeping an eye on things; they wouldn't dare to act rashly."
The next few days seemed calm on the surface, but Li Xiangyang knew this was just the calm before the storm.
Although the investors from South China Investment no longer openly caused trouble, they continued to engage in underhanded tactics.
First, several of the factory's long-term clients suddenly requested a review of the cooperation agreement, citing that they had heard the factory was experiencing "some trouble."
Li Xiangyang knew that South China Investment was definitely behind this, but he didn't rush to explain. Instead, he took the initiative to contact these clients and frankly explained the situation.
“Mr. Zhang, I know you’re worried about the risks of cooperating,” Li Xiangyang said to a long-time client on the phone. “But as you’ve seen the reports, we are the victims, not the perpetrators. The special task force has intervened in the investigation, and I believe we’ll have results soon.”
Most customers expressed their understanding and support after hearing Li Xiangyang's explanation.
However, a few clients were intimidated by the power of South China Investment and chose to suspend cooperation.
"The loss isn't significant," Chen calculated. "It probably affected about ten percent of the orders."
Li Xiangyang nodded: "This was expected. But it's good, it lets us see clearly who our true friends are and who are opportunists."
That being said, the situation in the following days was even more serious than Li Xiangyang had anticipated.
In one day, Li Xiangyang received five cancellation calls.
"What do they mean by this?" Wang Ergou's face turned red with anger. "They usually beg us to supply them, but now they're backing out as soon as something goes wrong?"
"It's only natural," Li Xiangyang said with a wry smile. "When it comes to business, nobody wants to cause trouble."
Accountant Chen, holding the order list, looked grim: "Xiangyang, this can't go on. The canceled orders are all from major clients, affecting at least 30% of our business."
To make matters worse, the news spread quickly. Even customers who were initially hesitant began to waver.
Production supervisor Lao Liu was also anxious: "Xiangyang, should we give the workers a holiday first? The wage costs are too high."
“No,” Li Xiangyang shook his head firmly. “Stopping production would be tantamount to admitting we have problems. Besides, the workers are all from the same village; we can’t let them suffer along with us.”
"What can we do? If this continues, the factory's working capital won't last long," Wang Ergou said worriedly.
Li Xiangyang pondered for a moment: "Let's hold on for now. I believe they'll be finished soon."