PFC Chapter 609 More Evidence
Chapter 609 More Evidence
"Manager Zhao," Li Xiangyang put down the agreement, his tone suddenly turning cold, "is your head office Tianhua Industrial?"
Zhao Ming's smile froze instantly, the pen nib leaving a trail of ink on the document. He remained silent for a few seconds, then suddenly stood up: "Director Li, what do you mean by that? Our Oriental Trading is an independent legal entity..."
"An independent legal entity?" Li Xiangyang stood up as well, slamming the Oriental Trade business card on the table. "Then why did the factories you 'helped' end up as assets of Tianhua Industry? Why is the Hong Kong businessman acquisition case that Master Sun mentioned exactly the same as your methods?"
The air in the conference room suddenly froze. Zhao Ming's eyes shifted from panic to malice: "It seems you've investigated quite a bit. Director Li, I advise you not to meddle in other people's business; some things are very complicated."
“You have to wade through deep waters.” Li Xiangyang looked him straight in the eye. “Today you either explain Tianhua Industry’s tricks, or we’ll hand over these contracts and recordings to the industry and commerce department and let them investigate whether the source of your ‘fast track’ funds is legal.”
Zhao Ming's Adam's apple bobbed, and he suddenly sneered: "Industrial and Commercial Bureau? Do you know how much tax revenue Tianhua Industry generates for the local area every year? Let me tell you the truth," he leaned closer to Li Xiangyang, his voice threatening, "someone saw Ma Laosan taking pictures suspiciously outside the hotel yesterday. You'd better not go looking for trouble."
These words sent a chill down Li Xiangyang's spine; Tianhua Industry was indeed on high alert. Just then, Wang Ergou's phone vibrated; it was a message from Ma Laosan: "I've spotted Tianhua Industry's CFO's car in the underground parking garage."
Li Xiangyang's mind raced, and he suddenly changed his tone, pulling out a forged "factory building assessment report" from his briefcase: "Manager Zhao, since we've come this far, we won't beat around the bush. Actually, Mr. Zhang's factory building is valued at more than 500 million. What we want to discuss is 'joint venture investment.' If you help us connect with Tianhua Industry, you'll definitely get a share of the profits if it works out."
Zhao Ming's eyes lit up instantly, greed overriding his wariness: "Oh? Director Li has come to his senses? You should have said so earlier. To be honest, Tianhua Industry has indeed been looking for high-quality assets locally recently, as long as you're willing to give up more than 60% of your shares..."
He launched into a long explanation of the "cooperation model," from asset valuation to management appointments and removals, even revealing how Tianhua Industry transferred funds through its overseas shell company. Li Xiangyang feigned agreement while subtly gesturing for Wang Ergou to move the recording pen closer.
Meanwhile, in the underground parking garage, Ma Laosan and two of his brothers hid behind the fire escape, using a telephoto lens to aim at the black Mercedes. When the window rolled down, he captured a photo of a middle-aged man wearing gold-rimmed glasses in the passenger seat, looking down at a stack of documents with the words "Tianhua Industrial - Mergers and Acquisitions Department" prominently printed on the cover.
"Boss," the guy next to him handed over the binoculars, "look at that file folder, it looks like a bank statement fell out."
Ma Laosan took the binoculars and saw the wind blowing the edges of the papers, vaguely revealing the words "Hong Kong HSBC Bank," "Oriental Trading Co., Ltd.", and "Funds transferred 5000 million." His heart raced, and he immediately pointed the lens at the document bag, pressing the shutter button repeatedly.
Just then, Zhao Ming's phone rang. He answered it, his expression changing drastically: "What? The CFO's car was photographed? Find out who did it immediately!"
He hung up the phone and glared fiercely at Li Xiangyang: "It was you guys!"
Knowing he couldn't linger, Li Xiangyang gave Wang Ergou a wink. The two of them simultaneously grabbed the recorder and documents from the table and flung open the conference room door. Zhao Ming roared as he chased after them, and hurried footsteps echoed down the corridor.
"Run to the fire escape!" Li Xiangyang shouted to the timber boss. The three rushed into the stairwell, and just as they reached the fifteenth floor, they heard the security guards shouting from downstairs. Wang Ergou reacted quickly, pulling an iron bar from a fire hydrant and smashing it against the emergency light, plunging the stairwell into darkness instantly.
In the chaos, Li Xiangyang grabbed his phone and messaged Ma Laosan: "We've been exposed, retreat immediately!"
As they escaped through the hotel's side door, Ma Laosan's van happened to be parked at the intersection. The four jumped in, the tires screeching as they sped away. In the rearview mirror, several men in suits emerged from the Hyatt Hotel's main entrance, pointing and gesturing at their vehicle.
"I got the photos!" Ma Laosan handed the camera to Li Xiangyang. "The financial director and bank statements, though incomplete, show the financial transactions between Dongfang Trading and Tianhua Industry!"
"Now that we have the evidence, what's the next step?" the timber merchant asked, still shaken.
Looking at the street scene flashing past the window, Li Xiangyang's eyes flashed with determination: "Go to Director Chen's Hongda Machinery Factory. At this morning's meeting, more bosses should have brought 'evidence'. Isn't Tianhua Industry trying to use money to break into the market? We'll use their 'ledgers' to tighten this net even further."
In the conference room of Hongda Machinery Factory, the air was thick with smoke, like a boiling iron pot. Seven or eight business owners sat around a long table, which was covered with contracts, business cards, and whistleblower materials. Factory Director Chen Jianguo pushed a "Technical Cooperation Agreement" with a gold-embossed cover in front of Li Xiangyang. Next to the signature of "Southern Technology Research Institute" on the cover, there was a blurry photocopy of a Hong Kong business license.
“Look at this.” Chen Jianguo pointed to the “technology confidentiality clause” in the agreement. “They asked us to hand over the core parameters of gear processing to the ‘research institute,’ but the Hong Kong company listed on the agreement has no research and development qualifications. It’s like an empty shell.”
Mr. Wang, who runs a food processing business, took out his phone and showed the chat history: "Yesterday I received a call from Hong Kong. The caller claimed to be from the Asia-Pacific Investment Department of Tianhua Industrial, saying that they wanted to inject 30 million into my business, but on the condition that they send a financial director to me—isn't this just trying to sideline me?"
Li Xiangyang placed the Hyatt Hotel's voice recorder in the center of the table and pressed play. Zhao Ming's threatening voice rang out: "...Tianhua Industry's funds were all transferred in through overseas shell companies; the HSBC account in Hong Kong was just one of them..."
The conference room erupted in an uproar. Mr. Liu, who ran a building materials business, slammed his fist on the table: "No wonder! I rejected 'Northern Commerce' for cooperation last month, and the tax bureau came to audit my accounts the very next day. They must have been behind this!"
"Quiet!" Ma Laosan slammed a stack of developed photos on the table. "This is the car of Tianhua Industrial's CFO, and here's a Hong Kong HSBC bank statement in his hand. 5000 million yuan went from Hong Kong to Oriental Trading, and then flowed into the acquired factory under the guise of a 'loan'—this is their money laundering and M&A scheme!"