Chapter 192: Chapter 117: Unexpected
When Yan Fei found out that the township had forcibly taken back the land from the Food Processing Factory, he couldn’t help but sneer inwardly. He had long known about the previous Food Factory owner’s bribery of the township officials, and he realized that they would reclaim the land under the influence of that small group. That’s why he had prepared in advance, acquiring a new Food Processing Factory in the Jinshan Development Zone under Suzhou in Lin Province and was always ready to start producing Weight Loss Cookies there.
What Yan Fei didn’t expect was for the township to choose this particular moment, without any warning, to abruptly take back the land use rights. This turn of events made him see a fact clearly. The kidnapping of Lu Pingping was definitely not as simple as it seemed on the surface; it involved a wide range and could be described as a case of “pull one hair and move the whole body.”
Yan Fei had thought it was just a small group of people who hadn’t caught the Weight Loss Cookies gravy train harassing him, but now it seemed that their actions were likely just a small part of a larger, more sinister conspiracy.
Facing the sudden shutdown of the factory due to this unexpected incident, and without Lu Pingping there to take command, a sense of panic began to spread within the Company. However, Yan Fei immediately stood out, presented the contingency plan, and directed everyone to follow it. It was because of him standing at the forefront that everyone calmed down and started handling the relevant work in an orderly fashion. Yan Fei’s ability to command such authority despite often being absent from the Company and not dealing with company affairs was also due to Lu Pingping’s deliberate efforts to maintain his authority within the Company. The image of an all-capable company boss had long since been ingrained in everyone’s hearts.
In response to the factory shutdown, Yan Fei told the workers of the Food Processing Factory to take a holiday and return home, then wait for further notice from the Company. On the other hand, he had not arranged for the Food Factory in the Jinshan Development Zone to officially start producing Weight Loss Cookies. He was still waiting; he wanted the mastermind behind the scenes to come forward voluntarily, after which he would catch everything in one go, eliminating future troubles once and for all.
As for the Weight Loss Cookies agents who had paid but didn’t receive their goods, those who chose compensation were to be paid promptly, but they would then be added directly to the Blacklist and cut off from future cooperation. For consumers, relying on the current stock was sufficient for the time being and was not a major issue. Once the stock was depleted, Lu Pingping’s situation would surely be resolved, and by then, the new Food Factory would have started producing Weight Loss Cookies.
In Shanghai, the Municipal Government held a full-day meeting to discuss Yan Fei’s plea for help. Despite the heated arguments during the meeting, no immediate conclusion was reached. It was said that the leaders at the meeting were divided into two factions, one believing they should help Dream Technology through this difficult time, considering the significant contributions Dream Technology had made to China’s development. Yet another faction believed that the government should not interfere too much in enterprise affairs; these matters should be resolved by the enterprises themselves. Moreover, the nation had already dispatched elite forces to investigate the case, and they were confident that the case would be solved soon and the victim rescued.
Not only that, but the opposing faction also believed that the 3 billion US Dollars in cash was of a special nature, akin to bowing to the KB operatives. It’s known that no government organization in the world has openly bowed to KB operatives before. If they chose to support Yan Fei this time, it would mean that the Chinese Government was bowing to the KB Organization. And if they bowed this time, there might be more kidnapping cases in the future. What then would the Government do? Therefore, setting this precedent was absolutely unacceptable and would be akin to abetting tyranny.
Meanwhile, there was no good news from several banks in Shanghai; not even one was willing to help Yan Fei, all refusing Dream Technology’s loan requests on the grounds of difficult capital turnover. Fortunately, Yan Fei had not taken loans from banks before; otherwise, in the midst of this crisis, coupled with the forced shutdown of the Food Factory and the inability to produce Weight Loss Cookies, it might lead to a situation where banks demand repayment, resulting in the ruin of Dream Technology.
Yan Fei had also not received any intelligence about Lu Pingping’s kidnapping; even the Auxiliary Brain found no trace on the Internet. Without locating Lu Pingping, Yan Fei was unable to use Martial Force to rescue her. Thus, he could only strive to raise money for the ransom, but it seemed as if a huge force was sabotaging his efforts, making all his attempts to raise funds futile. Although he had converted the entire 1.5 billion RMB in the company’s account into US Dollars, the amount was only 250 million US Dollars, which was still far from the kidnappers’ demand of 3 billion US Dollars.
Dream Technology was definitely worth 3 billion US Dollars; even if the Food Factory was temporarily shut down, it couldn’t affect Dream Technology’s valuation. However, at this critical juncture, no one was willing to assist Dream Technology—not even the VC Companies that had previously been willing to invest now chose to stay far away. These actions greatly disheartened Yan Fei. In his anxiousness, Yan Fei was about to contact loansharks to borrow money.
Just as Yan Fei was overwhelmed with worry for Lu Pingping’s safety, juggling the Company’s mess, and preparing to contact loansharks, a group of people suddenly arrived at his Company. Leading this group was a middle-aged man with a severe expression and cold demeanor. The Security stopped them from entering due to the lack of an appointment, while they tried to force their way in. With one side trying to enter and the other trying to block them, a quarrel ensued outside the Company.