Empire of Shadows

Bad news kept coming one after another. The president shut himself in his office; he needed more help now.

As the CEO of Liji Group, he also knew many people, including senators.

This was Gold State, the heart of federal politics. Once a company reached a certain size, it would inevitably come into contact with these people.

The transfer of benefits never stopped. Politics and capital were like hostile yet mutually integrated monsters, with you inside me and me inside you, capable of being enemies or relatives.

He stood in front of the window, holding the phone in his hand, the other hand making huge gestures, which better expressed the emotional changes in his heart.

"I need some help. The media is too crazy now. They don't care what price they have to pay for spreading rumors and are splashing dirty water on us."

"I want to use your connections…"

Before he could finish speaking, the gentleman's voice came from the receiver, interrupting him.

"Alright!"

"Haven't you realized what the problem is?"

The senator's words stunned the president for a moment. He then fell silent, "We are unwilling to pay four million."

He thought that was it, but the senator gave him a negative answer, "No, that's not the reason. You forgot that this is Gold State."

"This is the core of the Federation, where countless wealth myths and financial miracles have been staged. You have forgotten these."

"Or rather, do you think these have nothing to do with you?"

"Wake up, a miracle is happening, you understand what I mean!"

The president stood in front of the window and suddenly stood still. His eyes were on the streets of the city, on the surrounding tall buildings.

New Gold City was indeed very beautiful and wealthy, and large in scale, but it had one disadvantage compared to Gold Harbor City.

That was that there were too many high-rise buildings here, so many that sometimes when people looked up in the city center, they would feel suffocated!

A deep sense of suffocation lingered around people, with high-speed rail forests covering the sky everywhere.

Even on the upper floors, there would be buildings taller than yours, making it impossible to have the pleasure of seeing the entire city at a glance.

You could only see layers of "giant objects" blocking the view, blocking the direction.

In fact, Liji Group had encountered a "miracle" once, a cutting miracle!

Some small agricultural product companies suddenly filed lawsuits against them, and then this behemoth was torn into pieces under the tearing of the "Anti-Monopoly Law."

They had to split themselves into several companies and let others buy shares. They were unwilling to do so, and they tried to resist.

They created another miracle, surviving well after being dismembered by the judiciary and those capitals.

So much so that he didn't realize that the third "miracle" was happening to Liji Group!

He said somewhat bitterly, "Someone is going to deal with us!"

The senator grunted, which was still out of consideration for the fact that he had received a lot of benefits from Liji Group in the past; otherwise, he would not even be willing to say these words.

"I inquired a little, and the Cleveland group may be related to this matter."

Everything will leave traces, especially things that require mobilizing a lot of social and political resources, which will definitely leave obvious traces.

But why didn't anyone jump out to accuse them or stop them?

In fact, the reason is very simple, because it's not worth doing so.

Most of the time, before doing this kind of thing, everyone will do their research, figure out "who will I offend if I do this", and after careful consideration, they will decide whether to do it or not.

The senator who was talking to the president had been accepting benefits from Liji Group for many years, but Liji Group was not the only company that gave him benefits.

There were many such companies in the Federation, including Bailide and Nongda, which were Liji Group's competitors.

Berman of Bailide Group had contacted him before and talked about this matter, mentioning that this was not a merger, but an equity adjustment for everyone's better development.

His interests would not be reduced by a penny, and the market would be more balanced.

Now that he was able to say these words to the president, it was already out of consideration for their many years of "cooperative relationship."

If it weren't for the fact that he might be retiring soon, he would not have said these things at all.

Just like the other members of the Agriculture Committee, they all knew it well, but they all pretended not to know.

The president's mood was very low, and his voice became a little hoarse, "Is there no way at all?"

The senator didn't make a sound first, but he could imagine that the other party must be shaking his head at this time.

"If the method you are talking about refers to using political power to intervene, then I can only say, it is very difficult."

"The Cleveland group is now showing a clear upward trend, and…"

The voice in the receiver suddenly stopped, as if unwilling to continue speaking, "In short, it is unlikely that you hope I, or others, will provide you with help."

"You can find a way to save yourself. No one will stop you yourself. In fact, if you think about it carefully, isn't this the kind of thing we see most often?"

"Because of a small problem, it has leveraged a huge capital change. This is the Federation, my friend!"

"I haven't been feeling well these days, don't call me again."

Then there was a busy tone in the receiver, and then it ended.

The president lit a cigarette. His head was very itchy. He scratched it hard, and it hurt a little, probably scratching his scalp.

He smoked, looked at the depressing scenery outside the window, and suddenly cursed a lot of swear words with a red face and a stiff neck.

Feeding him tens of thousands every year, and now telling him not to call, and what is even more infuriating is that others don't even say anything!

These people didn't have this face when they took the company's money!

But soon he became very颓然 again. Sometimes knowing the truth is not necessarily a good thing.

When he didn't know the truth, he still wanted to change the situation, but after knowing the truth, it seemed that he had lost the motivation to change the situation.

After all, what he was facing was a group of monsters combined with politics and capital…

At this time, a feeling of annoyance and regret grew in his heart for the first time. If it hadn't been for the sake of earning more money from Lance's order, there wouldn't have been these things that followed.

If they hadn't been unwilling to accept this extortion contract and had paid the four million happily, then… there wouldn't have been the subsequent things.

But there is never a regret medicine in this world. Who could have imagined that an inconspicuous little character in Gold Harbor City could eventually leverage such a great power?

For Lance, it may have just been some conditions that were met by chance, but for Liji Group, this was a disaster.

He must save himself!

He called the shareholders one by one, told them about the terrible situation now, and his thoughts.

At first, those shareholders couldn't understand him and clamored to sell their shares, but after he explained the current situation, the shareholders finally fell silent.

Truth and facts are the things that can shut people up the most!

Now everyone is singing down on Liji Group. The shares in the hands of shareholders can't be sold, or the price is very low.

Not to mention the circulating shares, the entire trading market is selling more and buying less, otherwise why would the stock price keep falling?

More importantly, Liji Group is not really failing. It is not encountering any problems in its operations, but is being jointly sniped.

After it recovers, and people see its profitability and real financial situation, it will get better soon!

Speaking with profits in the world of capital, they are not afraid of this!

So the current situation is that they all know that Liji Group is okay, but the problem is that the attack is too fierce, and there is a real threat that they can't resist.

Those who hurt them know better than they do how innocent they are this time!

But capital behavior is capital behavior, and they will not discuss whether you are innocent or not. They will only talk about whether you have the profits, wealth, or other things they want.

The president spent a lot of effort and negotiated with some shareholders to form an advantageous situation, capable of controlling the situation of the shareholders' meeting.

Then he took the initiative to contact some people who could still come up with money at this time. He needed money and some help.

He can save himself!

At night, several independent investors, obviously drunk, received the president in a relatively safe and private room.

Liji Group has not had a good time recently, but for these independent investors, there is no such thing as a good or bad time.

Every day is a life of luxury, wine, money, and sex, which fill their lives.

This is their life, their all.

From the first second the president entered the room, these people's playful or mocking eyes stayed on him.

He looked extremely embarrassed now. His hair, which had always been meticulous, looked a little disheveled. In fact, if you look closely, it was not too bad.

The collar and tie were not carefully placed in the right position, very scribbled, as if he hadn't looked in the mirror before going out.

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He was very flustered, which was the feeling he gave others at this moment.

"Now is non-working time.", An independent investor leaned on the sofa, holding a cup of coffee in his hand, sipping it in small sips, "We interrupted our activities and squeezed out some time for you."

"I hope what you will bring us next can make our doing this worth the price."

Drinking too much alcohol affects the brain. A little coffee with honey can alleviate some of the drunkenness, but some people say it doesn't work.

The room was warm, so there was no need to dress too warmly, but everyone maintained a basic level of decorum and appearance, looking much better than the President.

The President pursed his lips. "I'm very sorry to meet with you so late, but I'm currently facing a very troublesome situation."

"I need your help."

The independent investor sitting in the center chuckled twice, "Ninety-eight percent of the people in this world need help, but we can't possibly help everyone who needs it."

"As we said last time, the risk is high, and you must pay a profit commensurate with the risk we bear, otherwise we won't be able to reach an agreement."

The President was silent for a few seconds. "Okay."

He and the assistants of these people had already talked privately to get a sense of things.

These independent investors wanted to sign a bet agreement with him. They would take out a sum of money to purchase shares in the Liji Group, and also provide some political assistance from the sidelines.

If the company's stock market value could return to its previous level by January 15th, then these independent investors would liquidate their positions and leave.

This deal would bring them a large and generous return, potentially doubling their capital.

But if the stock of Liji Group fails to return to its previous price by January 15th, then Liji Group must repurchase these shares in full at their agreed-upon price, which is significantly higher.

In other words, the demand of these independent investors was "guaranteed profit without loss," and they also wanted Liji Group to owe them a favor.

Many people say that there is no such thing as a guaranteed profit without loss in this world, but sometimes that statement is not necessarily so correct, such as at this moment.

To ensure that the independent investors can achieve a guaranteed profit without loss, Liji Group needs to pledge a portion of its assets to them or place them with the bank as a guarantee for the safety of this capital.

This way, even if they don't make money, they won't lose too much.

These conditions are actually very harsh, but now everyone is pessimistic about Liji Group. The Bailide and Nongda groups have also begun to exert their strength, and Liji Group has reached the third critical turning point in its history.

If the company is really going to fall, then he will give up. After all, struggling won't necessarily save him; it may even make him die faster!

But the current situation is that they want to take away the gold brick in his arms without spending any money, which is impossible!

Not only can't he give the gold brick to those people, but he also has to protect it, because once he loses it, whether it's his work, his life, or himself, everything will be over.

The success of Liji Group in recent years has made the board of directors and senior management very optimistic about the company's future prospects, and of course, the reality is indeed the case.

At the same time, in order to ensure his position in the company, the President has converted more than 60% of his assets into company stock.

Now that the stock price has plummeted, it is not only a disaster for the company, but also a disaster for him.

The Federation is a highly capitalized and financialized country. For the lower-level people, the feeling may not be too deep, but for the upper-middle class of society, their feelings about these things are particularly clear.

The simplest example is that the President's net worth is mostly company stock, as well as some real estate or other non-monetary assets, but he also has the desire and impulse to consume.

High society is a high-consumption environment.

When everyone is driving cars worth tens of thousands of dollars, and you're driving a car worth a few hundred dollars, others will think there's a problem with your finances.

Most of the time, people buy, wear, and use luxury goods not for themselves, but to show them off to others.

It's like a person who goes to discuss business on a bicycle and a person who goes to discuss business in a luxury car; their success rates are definitely different.

So he will mortgage his assets to the bank in exchange for loans for normal consumption.

If nothing unexpected happens, then everything is fine.

The bank is willing to lend him money, not only to obtain stable interest, but also as a kind of personal favor.

But once something unexpected happens, the bank will definitely try to recover the debt from him in order to avoid risk!

If he mortgages the company's stock, assuming that the stock originally worth 10 million is now only worth 3 million, the bank will urge him to repay the loan as soon as possible.

Selling all the stock is not enough; he has to sell other assets to fill this gap. As long as the stock price is cut in half, he will go bankrupt!

If he mortgages real estate or other assets, then after the bank takes away these assets, he will eventually only have some worthless stock in his hands.

Moreover, these stocks may be protected by the company's equity protection clauses and cannot be sold to others casually, but only to people within the company.

Even if all the conditions are met and it can be sold, who would take over?

So this is a very bad vicious circle.

The President also has a lot of loans in the bank. People's desires are endless. The Vice President was still thinking about borrowing money to buy a yacht some time ago, so wouldn't the President have already borrowed money to buy a yacht?

Everyone knows the importance of capital. Capitalists will tell you to borrow as much as possible when you can borrow.

This is also why the middle class and some upper-class families in the Federation go bankrupt quickly once they lose their jobs.

So whether it's for the company or for himself, he must resolve these troublesome matters as soon as possible.

The most influential person among the independent investors looked at his embarrassed and disheveled appearance, maintaining a smile throughout. "Can you represent the entire company?"

"Mr. President, we are not talking about a small deal. Not just anyone can take out this kind of money."

"If you can't come up with it, and the company doesn't agree, our willingness to invest is meaningless."

The President swallowed a mouthful of saliva. "I have already talked to the major shareholders before coming. There is no problem with the board of directors. As long as you nod, we can sign the agreement tomorrow morning in the name of the company."

Several independent investors discussed in low voices for a while, then nodded. "Then, see you tomorrow morning."

The next morning, in the company's conference room, the President, the Vice Chairman of the Board, and several major shareholders jointly signed this bet agreement and selectively disclosed it to the public.

"Well-known private equity funds and well-known independent investors believe that the situation of Liji Group is not bad. They have taken out a considerable portion of their own funds to save this stock, and they also firmly believe that its future will be better..."

No one knows what the President and Liji Group paid for this. People only know that the stock seems to have stopped falling.

The small increase made everyone breathe a sigh of relief, including the President. He also breathed a sigh of relief.

He urged the various departments to issue the year-end financial report as soon as possible. He needed the financial report to show the company's situation to society.

Not only did their operations not have any problems, but they also exceeded this year's profit target. They are a high-quality company and also a high-quality stock!