Shipping was the industry where their Xie family first made their fortune. Moreover, the Xie family's shipping business had a renowned reputation. The docks and containers were on too large a scale to be cut off immediately without potentially damaging the foundation of the Xie Corporation.
Therefore, Xie Zhendong had no choice but to abandon the idea, continuing to use other sectors of the group to cover the losses from shipping.
Zhan Jiayi snapped back to reality and said to her secretary, "Immediately notify the public relations department to implement emergency measures and send legal letters directly to the websites that published and reposted the information."
"Understood," the secretary replied, hurrying to carry out the order.
Old Zhou's forehead was beaded with cold sweat. "Who could have done this? One crisis after another, this is clearly a deliberate targeting of us."
Zhan Jiayi tried to remain calm. "Old Zhou, the internal investigation cannot stop; it must continue. We must find this person and understand their true intentions."
"Understood. I hope we can overcome this crisis again," Old Zhou said, getting up and leaving first.
...
Qin Tianyi also noticed that the Xie Corporation was facing another problem. The Xie Corporation's stock price dropped significantly at the opening of the market that afternoon, with skilled traders taking advantage of the situation to purchase large quantities.
He repeatedly reviewed the balance sheet of the Xie Corporation that had been exposed online. It was truly astonishing.
If he hadn't seen this sheet, he wouldn't have known that the Xie Corporation's shipping division was already in debt by over six billion yuan, while its net assets were only nine hundred million yuan. This indicated a severe inability to cover its debts, making it no wonder panic had ensued.
With such a massive loophole in the Xie Corporation, it was remarkable how Xie Zhendong had managed to compensate and conceal it so well year after year.
However, he was unsure of the authenticity of this balance sheet. Could it be fabricated by someone intent on bringing down the Xie Corporation?
It was too early to make a judgment; all they could do was wait and see.
The mastermind hidden behind the scenes, having stirred up such a commotion, would naturally attract scrutiny regarding the truthfulness of their actions.
If it were false, the Xie Corporation should have quickly come forward to prove the rumors false and pursue legal action.
He could simply adopt a spectator's attitude. With the mastermind's grand move, the pace of acquiring the Xie Corporation would only accelerate.
...
Zhan Jiayi was busy until late at night before returning to the Xie family mansion. She had held numerous meetings with senior executives from various departments of the group, but no effective solutions had emerged.
As she entered the house, a servant heard the movement and came out to speak to her, wearing a robe. She gestured for the servant to be quiet, asking for nothing to be prepared for her, and instructed the servant not to disturb the elderly matriarch or Lian Ma.
She quietly went to Xie Zhendong's room and saw the doctor's instructions left by the bedside and Zhendong's daily condition report.
Zhendong's physical condition had shown a slight improvement. Currently, it appeared to be on the mend, though recovery was very slow.
The doctor attributed this to his age, as Zhendong was no longer in his prime and his recovery would not be as swift as that of a younger person.
Zhan Jiayi looked at Xie Zhendong on the sickbed, feeling utterly exhausted. Seeing that he was fast asleep, she softly said with a hint of sadness, "I've done my best, but I still don't know if I can save the Xie Corporation."
She was tired and leaned by the bedside, wishing for a moment of quiet rest. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her head.
She immediately opened her eyes and looked up. Xie Zhendong, who she hadn't realized had woken up, had his hand placed on her head.
Zhan Jiayi excitedly grasped Xie Zhendong's hand and said tearfully, "Zhendong, you, your hand can move?"
Xie Zhendong looked at her, turned his head slightly, and made an effort to raise it, nodding.
"Your neck can also move?" Zhan Jiayi exclaimed in surprise.
Xie Zhendong tried hard to speak, but he was still unable to express his thoughts in words, only managing to make "ah ah" sounds.
Zhan Jiayi thought of something and quickly took out a pen from her bag, trying to get him to hold it with his right hand.
He gripped the pen tightly, not letting it fall from his grasp.
Zhan Jiayi then quickly found a blank sheet of paper and said to him, "If you can't speak, you can try writing. Can you write?"
Xie Zhendong wanted to sit up but couldn't do it himself.
Zhan Jiayi then adjusted the bed upwards, allowing him to be in a semi-sitting position with the help of the bed's lifting function.
This made it easier for him to write. Holding the pen, he drew crookedly on the paper, unable to control the strength of his hand or the frequency of its trembling. After writing a few characters, he was too tired and let go.
The pen dropped onto the bed. Seeing that he had no more strength to write, Zhan Jiayi comforted him, "Don't rush. You did very well today. Rest first, and we can try again tomorrow. Even a little progress each day is good."
Xie Zhendong leaned back on the bed, letting out a weak "ah," his eyes open. He rolled his eyeballs, signaling her to look at the words on the paper.
Zhan Jiayi lowered the bed again, making him lie down comfortably, before looking at the words he had written.
The writing was very difficult to decipher. After a long time, she finally recognized it and said to him, "You wrote 'find investors... debt... claim... claim what?'"
The rest turned into wavy lines, and Zhan Jiayi couldn't figure out what he wanted to say after "claim."
Xie Zhendong seemed to have exhausted all his strength and had closed his eyes, unable to tell her what should come after "claim."
She could only ponder it herself. What did "find investors" mean?
Was Zhendong asking her to find someone to cooperate with to overcome this crisis?
If she found suitable investors, could the deficit in claims be filled? But where could she find investors with such strong financial backing to cover the more than five billion yuan deficit in the shipping business?
She couldn't immediately think of a group in Lancheng with such capabilities and willingness to help them.
Firstly, there were very few groups with over five billion yuan in liquid capital, and perhaps besides the Huangfu Group, there was no other.
However, Zhendong's divorce from Feng Rou had already offended the Huangfu family, and they would not help.
She was also even more unwilling to seek help from Feng Rou. Feng Rou must have hated her and Zhendong intensely, and besides humiliating her, would not truly help.
Thinking about it made her head ache. She could only wait and see if Zhendong could finish writing his unfinished words tomorrow before making further plans.
...
After understanding Xia Ming's recent situation, Zhang Yuyun summoned him to her office.
Previously, Xia Ming had been Zhao Jianhua's confidant and personal assistant. Among Zhao Jianhua's two assistants, Xia Ming was the most trusted.
Therefore, Zhao Jianhua would generally bring Xia Ming with him for both personal and official matters. Xia Ming, however, always avoided her in the group and would not discuss any of Zhao Jianhua's affairs with her.
She also had one or two such confidants in the group. To maintain the balance of power between her and Zhao Jianhua within the group, she had previously tacitly accepted Xia Ming's presence.
After Zhao Jianhua's incident, she had transferred Xia Ming to the administrative department to a sinecure, planning to dismiss him at a suitable opportunity.
She hadn't fired him immediately to prevent him from doing anything detrimental to the group at that time. Fortunately, keeping him had proven useful, as she hadn't expected him to be of any help.
"Manager Zhang, you sent for me?" Xia Ming had been feeling very uneasy recently, unsure if he could keep his job.
The group was now completely under Zhang Yuyun's control, and he felt he could be kicked out at any moment.