Chapter 8: The Opponent's Conspiracy 8.1 Hostile takeover

The night was as dark as ink, and the stifling heat before the storm enveloped the entire city. Lin Mo stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows on the top floor of Xinghai Group, unconsciously rubbing his fingers against the cool glass. From the 27th floor, he had a panoramic view of the CBD's neon lights, but at this moment, those flickering dots resembled countless pairs of prying eyes, lurking in the darkness, waiting for their chance to strike.

On the desk, the anonymous document was illuminated in a ghostly white by the desk lamp. The eye-catching title read: "Analysis Report on Abnormal Changes in Xinghai Group's Equity." Closing his eyes, he replayed the data charts in his mind: Within three months, the overseas institution "Global Capital" had Xinghai's outstanding shares like ants moving their nest, through hundreds of shell accounts, with their shareholding silently approaching 20%. What chilled him even more was that three long-term shareholders, with whom they had collaborated for a decade, had sold their shares within the same week, and the transaction chains all led to an offshore company in the Caribbean.

"Mr. Lin, I've found out," Chen Feng, his assistant, said as he pushed open the door, with beads of sweat on his forehead. His usually steady voice trembled unusually, "The actual controller of Global Capital... is Zhao Tianye."

Lin Mo's pupils contracted sharply. Zhao Tianye—the name reminded him of the new energy bidding event half a year ago. At that time, the other party, dressed in a silver-gray tailored suit, had leaned back in the VIP seat, raising his glass to him with a half-smile, as if already certain of victory. However, in the end, Xinghai snatched the deal from the Zhao family with a 0.3% pricing advantage, turning their nearly ten-billion-dollar layout into a laughingstock. When the bidding results were announced, Zhao Tianye crushed his champagne glass, and shards of glass mixed with blood dripped onto the carpet, like a series of crimson ellipses.

"It's him," Lin Mo sneered, his fingertips tracing heavily over the equity structure diagram in the report. "Notify the Finance and Legal Departments for an emergency meeting in half an hour. Also, have the PR team keep a close eye on the media, especially outlets like 'Financial Frontier' and 'Business Observer'."

Chen Feng nodded and turned to leave, but hesitated. Under the warm yellow light, the muscles on the side of his face twitched slightly, as if words were stuck in his throat.

The next morning, before the electronic bell signaling the opening of the stock market had even sounded, Xinghai's share price plummeted like an avalanche. Tens of thousands of anonymous accounts placed massive sell orders simultaneously, instantly creating a cliff-like gap in the candlestick chart. Lin Mo stared at the screen, watching the numbers in the market capitalization evaporation column jumply: 300 million, 500 million, 800 million...

"Mr. Lin! 'Financial Frontier' just published a headline!" The PR director burst into the conference room, holding a tablet with a shocking headline: "Xinghai Group Suspected of Financial Fraud? Exclusive Expose on Related-Party Transaction Scandal!" The accompanying image was a tampered screenshot of the balance sheet, with a forged electronic signature of Lin Mo in the bottom right corner.

The veterans on the board were in an uproar.

"We must immediately initiate a poison pill plan! Issue new shares to dilute their equity!" Vice Chairman Zhou Zhenbang slammed the table, his graying beard trembling with anger. This veteran, who had fought alongside Lin Mo's father to build the company, was now red in the face. "Zhao Tianye is like a jackal; if he smells blood, he'll tear off a piece of flesh!"

"It's too late," Lin Mo's voice was like a bucket of ice water. He stood up and walked to the whiteboard, where the tip of his marker swiftly drew three intersecting red lines. "Over the past three months, the Zhao family has taken control of three core suppliers—Hongda Precision, Xinke Materials, and Changhe Logistics—through shadow companies." The marker stabbed forcefully at the words "Changhe Logistics". "Our production line inventory can only last for two weeks. Once they cut off the supply of parts..."

The conference room fell silent. Everyone understood what this meant: Xinghai's most profitable smart home appliance business would be completely paralyzed, and Zhao Tianye could wait until the share price hit rock bottom to swoop in as a savior and buy at the bottom.

Suddenly, Lin Mo's phone vibrated.

A text message from an unknown number popped up: "I hear the sunset from the top floor of Xinghai is beautiful. Unfortunately, after tomorrow, it'll probably be me sitting there enjoying a cup of coffee. Guess which will break first, your production line or your backbone? —Zhao Tianye"

The crimson evening glow poured in through the glass curtain wall, making the text message look like a blood-written letter. Lin Mo gripped his phone tightly, his knuckles cracking. A memory suddenly flashed through his mind—when he was sixteen, he had crouched in a leaky attic in the urban village, watching helplessly as loan sharks smashed his mother's sewing machine into scrap iron. That icy sense of powerlessness was now creeping up his spine, inch by inch.

"Mr. Lin..." Chen Feng hesitated as he handed over a document with the cover reading "Draft Emergency Plan". When Lin Mo reached out to take it, he noticed that the other's fingers were trembling slightly.

The clouds outside the window finally collapsed. The rain pounded against the glass, blurring the city's outline into fuzzy patches of color. Lin Mo turned to look at the intersecting red lines on the whiteboard and suddenly chuckled. The laughter sent shivers down everyone's spine.

"Since Mr. Zhao wants to play the M&A game..." He grabbed the marker and drew a blood-red cross over the names of the three suppliers. "We'll give him an even bigger chessboard."