coobybook Chapter 190 Undercurrent
Chapter 190 Undercurrent
The lights in the office were on, but the Financial Director Liu Mingyuan was not sitting at his desk. Instead, he was standing by the window with his back to the door. He was talking to someone on the phone, his voice low and anxious.
"How is it going... Yes, we can't delay it any longer... I know it's very risky, but there's no way out now... Don't worry, I will handle it cleanly..."
Liu Mingyuan's voice stopped abruptly because he felt someone behind him. He turned around suddenly and saw Xiang Yu and Yan Jin standing at the door. His face turned pale instantly, and his cell phone slipped from his hand and fell on the carpet with a dull sound.
"You...what are you doing..." Liu Mingyuan stammered, his eyes flickering, not daring to look directly at Xiang Yu.
"We are asking you, who are you talking to?" Yan Jin's tone was cold, and his sharp eyes seemed to be able to see through everything.
Liu Mingyuan picked up the phone in a panic and explained incoherently: "Nothing...nothing, it's...a friend, yes, a friend called."
"Friend?" Xiang Yu walked forward and bent down to pick up the document that had fallen on the ground. "It seems that you haven't had time to destroy this quarterly financial report yet?"
Liu Mingyuan's face became even uglier. He certainly knew what the report meant. It clearly recorded a huge amount of funds flowing into the company, and this was the secret he had carefully covered up.
"I..." Liu Mingyuan was speechless, but unable to refute.
"It seems that the pests within the company are more serious than we thought." Yan Jin looked at him coldly, with a hint of disappointment and anger in his tone.
At the same time, veteran journalist Lin received an anonymous email in his mailbox. The content of the email was very simple, with only one sentence: "Do you want to know the secrets of the Xiang Group? Please check the attachment."
Reporter Lin clicked on the attachment and saw a detailed financial statement and several photos. In the photos, Liu Mingyuan met privately with a mysterious man in a restaurant, looking intimate, and seemed to be conducting some kind of transaction.
Reporter Lin has been in the news industry for many years and is used to such revelations. But he keenly felt that this matter was not simple and there might be a huge conspiracy behind it. He decided to dig deeper and make the truth public.
The next morning, Lawyer Ma received a call from Xiang Yu. On the other end of the phone, Xiang Yu's voice was low and serious: "Old Ma, I need you to come to the company immediately. There is something important to deal with."
Lawyer Ma rushed to the company and walked straight into Xiang Yu's office without any time for greeting. The atmosphere in the office was solemn, Xiang Yu and Yan Jin looked serious, while Liu Mingyuan sat aside, silent and frighteningly pale.
"Old Ma, take a look at this." Xiang Yu handed a document to Lawyer Ma, "This is the company's financial statements for the past two years. I suspect someone is falsifying the accounts and transferring the company's assets."
Lawyer Ma is a well-known lawyer in the industry for economic cases, with rich experience and sharp eyes. He carefully read the report, his brows furrowed more and more. After a while, he raised his head and asked in a deep voice: "Who made this report?"
"It's Director Liu." Yan Jin said in a cold tone, staring at Liu Mingyuan sharply.
Liu Mingyuan's body trembled slightly, but he didn't dare to look up and meet his gaze.
"The problems in the financial statements are very serious," Lawyer Ma slammed the financial statements on the table. "The amount is huge, and the method is covert. If you are not a professional, it is difficult to find the trick. I suspect that this may involve the transfer of interests among the company's senior management."
Hearing the word "senior management", Xiang Yu and Yan Jin's faces turned even uglier. They understood that this matter was no longer just a financial issue, but related to the fate of the entire company.
At the same time, PR manager Qian was also struggling to control public opinion. He received news that some media had begun to pay attention to the incident and were trying to contact Xiang Yu and Yan Jin for interviews.
"We must not let them succeed!" PR Qian made a prompt decision. "Immediately contact all relevant media outlets and block the news! At the same time, prepare a PR draft and give a unified statement to the public, saying that the company is conducting an internal financial audit and everything is normal."
Qian PR knows that in this era of information explosion, the power of public opinion cannot be underestimated. Once the news is leaked, it will cause immeasurable damage to the company's image and stock price.
However, the truth will eventually come to light. Just when Qian Gonglin thought everything was under control, an explosive piece of news suddenly appeared on the headlines of major media outlets: "Shocking! Xiang Group is embroiled in a financial scandal, suspected high-level corruption!"
As soon as the news came out, public opinion was in an uproar...
The atmosphere in the family meeting room was suffocating. After reading the news report, Elder Sun slammed the teacup in his hand on the table and stared at Xiang Yu and Yan Jin angrily, "Tell me! What is going on?!"
Elder Sun's roar echoed in the conference room. Xiang Yu and Yan Jin sat quietly with gloomy faces. In front of them, the broken pieces of the teacup and the tea were mixed together, making a mess, just like the situation of Xiang's Group at the moment.
"I reminded you at the beginning that the business world is like a battlefield. You must always be vigilant! Now, such a big mess has occurred. The company's reputation has been ruined, and the stock price has plummeted. What do you say we should do?!" Elder Sun was so angry that his face turned blue, and his finger trembled slightly as he pointed at the news headline.
"Uncle Sun, please calm down first. We will investigate this matter thoroughly and give you and the company an explanation." Xiang Yu's tone was steady, but there was a hint of fatigue in his eyes.
Yan Jin didn't say anything, but handed a document to Elder Sun, "This is the company's recent cooperation projects and business records with competitors. I suspect..."
"What do you doubt? Speak!" Elder Sun knocked on the table impatiently.
"I suspect that someone is colluding with the outside world to deliberately falsify the accounts and transfer assets. Their purpose is to strike at the Xiang family and take the opportunity to annex us!" Yan Jin said in a firm tone, his eyes sharp.
"You mean, this might be a conspiracy of a competitor?" Elder Sun frowned and took the document and read it carefully.
"That's right!" Yan Jin pointed at one of the places and said, "Look, this company called 'Hongtu' has had many business dealings with us in the past six months, and their person in charge is Liu Mingyuan's former boss..."
"You mean, Liu Mingyuan is a traitor who was bribed by Hongtu and deliberately created a financial crisis?" Elder Sun suddenly realized, slammed the document shut, and a fierce look flashed in his eyes.
"It's just a suspicion at the moment, and further evidence is needed." Yan Jin analyzed calmly, "I have asked Lawyer Ma to investigate Hongtu's financial situation and the financial transactions between them and Liu Mingyuan. I believe there will be results soon."
"Okay! This matter will be handed over to you with full responsibility. You must find out the truth as soon as possible and give justice to the Xiang family!" Elder Sun slammed the table heavily, his tone leaving no room for doubt.
Yan Jin nodded, a gleam of determination flashing in her eyes. She knew that this battle had just begun...
It was late at night, and Yan Jin's office was still brightly lit. She sat in front of her computer, carefully looking through the information in her hands, trying to find more clues. Suddenly, the phone rang, breaking the silence in the office.
"Hey?"
"Mr. Yan, it's me, Lawyer Ma." Lawyer Ma's low voice came from the other end of the phone, "I have found some clues. You'd better come to my office now. Some things can't be explained clearly over the phone..."
Yan Jin's heart suddenly sank, and an ominous premonition came to her mind. She grabbed her coat and walked out of the office quickly, leaving only a cold command echoing in the air:
"Notify the heads of all departments to hold an emergency meeting at 8 a.m. tomorrow!"
It was already late at night when Yan Jin arrived at Lawyer Ma's office. Lawyer Ma handed her a document, his eyes behind the glasses showing solemnity: "Boss Yan, take a look at this."
The document contained the results of Ma's overnight investigation. There was a large amount of money flowing between Hongtu Company and Liu Mingyuan, and the source of the money was suspicious, most likely obtained through illegal means. In addition, Ma also found that Hongtu Company had recently been buying up Xiang's stocks, and its intentions were self-evident.
"It seems that our opponents are even more ruthless than we imagined." Yan Jin put down the document with a cold tone.
"As for Mr. Xiang..." Lawyer Ma hesitated to speak.
"I'll talk to him." Yan Jin understood his concerns. This matter involved a lot of people and could backfire if he wasn't careful.
After returning to the company, Yan Jin went straight to Xiang Yu's office. Xiang Yu was smoking by the window, and his profile looked particularly cold in the smoke.
"Are you still asleep?" Yan Jin walked up to him and asked softly.
Xiang Yu turned around and put out the cigarette in his hand into the ashtray: "How can I sleep when the matter is not resolved yet?"
Yan Jin told him the results of Lawyer Ma's investigation. After listening to it, Xiang Yu's face became even gloomier.
"It seems that we have underestimated their ambitions." Xiang Yu said in a deep voice, "Since they want to play, we will play with them to the end!"
A clean government storm led by Xiang Yu quickly unfolded within the Xiang Group. All personnel suspected of corruption were suspended for investigation, and Liu Mingyuan was also handed over to the judicial authorities. At the same time, the Xiang Group made public statements on major media platforms, expressing its determination to investigate thoroughly and sincerely apologizing to the affected partners and investors.
Xiang Yu's vigorous and resolute style and the company's open and transparent handling of the situation won recognition from all walks of life. The stock price of Xiang Group also gradually recovered, and the crisis was temporarily under control.
However, Xiang Yu and Yan Jin both knew that this was just the calm before the storm. The real challenge was still to come.
"Hongtu Company has been making frequent moves recently. They won't give up." Yan Jin looked at the market analysis report in his hand with a frown.
"I know." Xiang Yu's fingers tapped lightly on the table. "I have received news that they are preparing to launch a price war against us to seize market share."
Yan Jin raised her head, a trace of worry flashing in her eyes: "Price war? Are they going to fight to the death?"
Xiang Yu sneered: "If they want to play, we will accompany them to the end. Notify the heads of each department to hold an emergency meeting at 8 o'clock tomorrow morning..."