Chapter 1 Tense Preparations

The entire conference hall was a hive of activity, everyone busily preparing for the work ahead. They would be here for at least five to ten days, with at least twenty people glued to their computers around the clock. Meals would be brought in by designated personnel.

Excitement mingled with a hint of tension in the air. Every move they made here would trigger a storm outside.

Nie Yan sat with his father and mother on chairs in a corner.

Dozens of companies had sent representatives to the hall, but three groups stood out. The Xie family of Zhengrong Consortium, the Liu family of Longyue Consortium, and the emerging giant, Tianxia Group. Zhengrong and Longyue were well-established, while Tianxia was undoubtedly the new kid on the block. But the most eye-catching of them all was Nie Yan. Leader of the Niu Ren Tribe,狂贼涅炎 Kuang Ze Nie Yan (Mad Thief Nie Yan), and someone specially cared for by Tianwang Organization leader Mo Yuntian—these titles alone were enough to make Nie Yan a shining star. What surprised everyone even more was the rumor that their parents had already arranged the marriage. The Nie family only had one son, so the family fortune would naturally go to Nie Yan. Once married, he would control 100% of Tianxia Group's shares, 12% of Zhengrong Consortium's, and 28% of Longyue Consortium's. And that was just the situation now. When the reins of power were handed over in Zhengrong and Longyue, Nie Yan's influence would be even greater. If they succeeded in swallowing Century Consortium this time, it was almost unimaginable. They could feel a super behemoth rising, with Nie Yan at the helm.

Many company executives approached the Nie family, trying to curry favor with Nie Yan. He stood up and exchanged polite greetings. It was always better to have a friend than an enemy, and he wouldn't turn anyone away.

Xie Jun, the leader of this operation, adopted a serious expression, supervising everyone's work. The usually gentle Xie Jun now exuded an aura of authority.

He checked the time. It was almost time. The entire hall fell silent; you could hear a pin drop. Especially the traders in front of the computers, each of them staring intently at the screen. After five major reforms, the Chinese capital market had introduced short-selling mechanisms. After hundreds of years of evolution, the market had become increasingly perfect and mature, one of the most important capital markets in the world.

"How are the preparations?" Xie Jun asked, looking around at the people in front of the computers.

"Everything is ready."

"Are the three major shareholders of Century Consortium willing to sell?" Xie Jun glanced at the senior executives of Zhengrong and Longyue Consortia beside him.

"They haven't agreed directly. Those guys are weathervanes. If Century Consortium runs into trouble, they'll probably defect. If Cao Xu can hold on, it might be difficult to get them to help us." An old man in a cloth suit said. Although short and thin, he was full of energy. Everyone present recognized him—the legendary Liu Hongzhe, leader of Longyue Consortium and Xie Yao's maternal grandfather.

"Let's begin. Release the news online first! Then start shorting the stock!" Xie Jun said in a deep voice, issuing his first command. Although it was just a simple sentence, everyone in the hall felt their breath catch in their throats.

Finally, it was starting. A storm was about to break outside.

Moments after Xie Jun gave the order, financial websites began posting Century Consortium's financial scandals: high-level corruption, false performance reports, and so on. If Century Consortium hadn't done these things, Xie Jun and the others, as the spreaders of the rumors, would be punished by law. But if it were true? That was another matter entirely!

After Xie Jun and the others released the news, the regulatory authorities began a comprehensive investigation of Century Consortium. Of course, this was the result of Zhengrong Consortium, Longyue Consortium, and Tianxia Group's lobbying; otherwise, they wouldn't have immediately investigated Century Consortium after the financial scandals were released.

In addition to the investigation, a flood of negative news unfavorable to Century Consortium poured out: Century Consortium's fourth-quarter projected revenue was down more than 80%, with losses of 1.7 billion. Century Consortium was completely withdrawing from the virtual industry, which accounted for about 35% of its profits. This area had completely shrunk, and large amounts of investment could not be recovered.

The news immediately triggered panic in the market. With large amounts of capital deliberately shorting, Century Consortium's stock plummeted.

Century Consortium's stock price was knocked down 12% in an instant. A sum of money entered, trying to stop the decline, but it was quickly swallowed up.

After all, it was a joint effort by several major consortia. Once they made a move, any resistance was directly dismantled. Cao Xu had originally had plenty of cash flow, but after the failed investment in Belief, he was also strapped for cash. He had even sold some of his shares to raise funds. A year ago, his controlling stake in Century Consortium had fallen to around 30%, already close to the danger zone, but he had no money to buy back shares.

As a holding group with a market value of more than 500 billion, a 12% drop in share price meant that more than 60 billion in market value evaporated in an instant.

It was a terrible disaster, but the disaster had only just begun.

Century Building was also brightly lit tonight. This building, over six hundred meters high, had stood in Huadong City for decades. The once unreachable building seemed a little faded after so many years.

The conference hall at the top of the building, like the Record Hotel, was bustling with activity.

Cao Xu sat in his office chair, his eyes closed to rest. The once spirited Cao Xu now looked a little lonely.

"Chairman, are you alright? I've brought your medicine." A secretary of about twenty-three or twenty-four years old said from the side. Cao Xu had suffered a sudden heart attack earlier, scaring everyone.

"Put it there." Cao Xu waved his hand weakly, too lazy to even glance at the beautiful secretary.

He understood that everything had only just begun. In the next few days, the other side would definitely launch an even more intense offensive. He had called several old friends, but they could see that Cao Xu's enemies were not simple, and none of them were willing to help him. The fickleness of human relationships was evident. But he understood that those friends only had interests, not friendship, with him. It was already a kindness that they weren't kicking him when he was down.

The next day, an even more frenzied decline began. When shareholders woke up in the morning, they found that Century Consortium's stock had plummeted. Seeing the financial news on various websites, they began to frantically sell their shares. The blue-chip stock that had once created a myth had suddenly become a terrifying demon in their eyes, and they only felt at ease after they confirmed they had thrown it away.

Century Consortium's share price had shrunk by another 32% compared to its peak, and then began to fluctuate up and down. Some people saw that Century Consortium's share price had fallen so sharply and had the idea of buying in. After all, Century Consortium still had strength. Although it had withdrawn from the virtual industry, its profits in other areas were not to be underestimated. The main reason for the poor performance was the investment failure during this period.

On the third day, Century Consortium's stock price fell another 11%, and it looked like it would continue.

The battle between the two sides was extremely fierce, and every fluctuation tested the psychological quality of both sides. After three days of consecutive declines, most people holding Century Consortium's shares were psychologically fragile. Zhengrong Consortium, Longyue Consortium, and Tianxia Group would definitely not let go of this good opportunity and would continue to attack Century Consortium.

On the fourth day, there was another big drop. The psychological impact of four consecutive days was unimaginable. Many people painfully sold their heavily shrinking shares at a loss.

On the fifth day, Century Consortium's share price had plummeted nearly 75% compared to its peak.

Xie Jun and the others hadn't slept for several days in a row. They solved their meals and sleep in the conference hall. The rest of the time, they were glued to their computers. Under their fierce attack, Century Consortium's share price had fallen by a full 75%. They still maintained a relentless posture on the outside.

"What do you think now?" Xie Jun looked at Liu Hongzhe and the others.

Liu Hongzhe nodded, and the others didn't express any objections.

Xie Jun finally began to absorb Century Consortium's stock, making small moves to avoid being noticed. In addition to absorbing a large amount, they also persuaded several major shareholders of Century Consortium to buy stocks from them at a price 50% higher than the market price. They were filled with regret. They didn't expect the attacks from Zhengrong Consortium, Longyue Consortium, and Tianxia Group to be so fierce. It was estimated that it would be difficult for Century Consortium to eliminate the impact for a long time. If they had known, they would have sold at a high position. Selling to Zhengrong Consortium, Longyue Consortium, and Tianxia Group was also a good way to get out of trouble, because the prices offered by the three major consortia were quite good. If they didn't sell, these three consortia might have other tricks up their sleeves, and the situation would be even worse.

Over a period of ten days, the three major consortia acquired nearly 22% of Century Consortium's shares, and also bought 25% of the shares from several major shareholders of Century Consortium. Century Consortium had completely changed hands.

After signing the agreement with several major shareholders of Century Consortium, the entire conference hall was filled with cheers. Those major shareholders selling their shares, Cao Xu had the right of first refusal, but the funds he could mobilize were extremely limited, so he could only watch helplessly as 25% of the equity fell into the hands of Zhengrong Consortium, Longyue Consortium, and Tianxia Group.

From this moment on, Zhengrong Consortium, Longyue Consortium, and Tianxia Group could demand that Cao Xu resign as chairman and formally take over the management of Century Consortium. Century Consortium had certain complementarities with their major consortia. Once united, the future development was certain.

Knowing this news, Nie Yan was also very excited. From this moment on, the big stone that had been weighing on him, Century Consortium, was finally completely crushed by him.

"Report, Chairman, just received news that Cao Xu sold 30% of Century Consortium's equity to Guangyao Consortium and then disappeared." An employee in a black suit came over in a hurry.

"Disappeared?" Everyone was stunned.

Hearing this news, a sense of inexplicable coldness rose in Nie Yan's heart.