Suburbs. The Castle Estate!
At the very same time the core members of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce were meeting at the Li family estate, Gusta, Dolsen, and others were also gathered together, discussing a counterstrategy.
After being outmaneuvered by Li Yi at the shareholders’ meeting, Gusta was so furious he nearly spat blood—the situation had shifted far too quickly.
After all, just a few days earlier, he and his team had beaten those guys so badly they couldn’t even fight back.
But he never could have imagined that those yellow-skinned monkeys—who had seemed like a bunch of nobodies—would suddenly become such a tough nut to crack once that despicable bastard returned.
Today, he had not only lost face but had become the target of widespread ridicule in the media.
More importantly, he was now being forced into a corner by that bastard. One misstep, and not only would he lose all the money he’d made, but he might even lose his entire investment.
Left with no choice, he had to consult with Dolsen, the Jazz, and others on how to handle the situation.
From his seat at the head of the table, Gustaf said in a grim tone, “You all know the situation. Now that yellow-skinned monkey is injecting capital into the company as a major shareholder. What should we do?”
No sooner had he finished speaking than a middle-aged man at the lower end of the table stood up and said, “Boss, we absolutely cannot follow them in injecting capital!”
“Why?”
The middle-aged man replied immediately, “As Li has already stated, they plan to inject 10 billion Hong Kong dollars into that management company. Based on our shareholding ratio, to prevent our shares from being diluted, we’d need to inject at least 8 billion Hong Kong dollars!”
“But we currently have less than 7 billion Hong Kong dollars left. Not only is that insufficient, but even if we somehow scrape together that amount, we’ll have no funds left to respond if they make any further moves later on—unless…”
“Unless what?” asked Gus.
“Unless Master Dolsen and the League step in to help us secure sufficient funds, we absolutely cannot compete with them in a battle of deep pockets!”
Upon hearing this, Gus immediately turned his gaze toward Dolsen.
“Dawson, you heard what Simon said. What do you think?”
Dorson replied calmly, “If the family issues an order, we will certainly comply. But even if we’re willing to provide the funds, the money cannot be transferred directly from the accounts of any of our alliance companies to you—it must still go through the family’s secret funding channels!”
Hearing this, Gusta couldn’t help but furrow his brow. Using the family’s accounts was fundamentally different from handing the funds over directly.
The former constitutes a lending arrangement, with the family acting as the lender. Even if the funds ultimately go awry, the family would cover the losses.
The latter, however, was a partnership. If they lost money, it would simply be considered a failed investment, and the family wouldn’t get involved.
His nephew was as unreliable as ever; he clearly had no intention of helping him.
“Dorson, I need a reason!” Gusta said in a low voice.
“Because we previously signed a non-aggression pact with Star Company. According to the terms of the agreement, not only are we prohibited from actively attacking them, but we’re also forbidden from helping others attack companies affiliated with the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. If we violate this, we’ll have to hand over Huifeng Bank to them!”
Dawson continued, “Uncle Gustaf, you know how important Huifeng is. If we dare to openly help you, given Li Yi’s temperament, he’ll definitely force us to hand over Huifeng.”
“Hmph, Dorson, you’re one of the only two remaining candidates for clan leader in our Sassoon family. How can you let these yellow-skinned monkeys intimidate you?” said Gusta.
“Uncle Gusta, it’s not that we’re intimidated by them. It’s that this agreement was signed under the supervision of the Governor’s Office and the people of Hong Kong Island. If we dare to violate it and they have concrete evidence, not even the Governor’s Office can protect us!” Dolsen said calmly and confidently.
Gusta had looked into this matter before and knew that everything Dalson said was true. He immediately fell silent, the worry on his face deepening.
Just then, Dalson spoke again: “Uncle Gusta, if you’re short on funds, you can certainly ask the family for help. I’m sure the Patriarch will allocate more funds to you!”
But Gustaf shook his head and said, “No need. We will not be injecting capital into that company!”
Before coming here, he had made a solemn pledge to the clan leader and the elders—he had already put his foot down.
Asking for help now would be tantamount to admitting he had failed to complete the clan’s mission—it would be an admission of defeat.
Within the Sassoon family, failure to complete a mission comes with punishment.
Although the punishment wasn’t particularly severe, it was extremely humiliating—something the ever-proud Gustaf could never accept.
“If Uncle Gustav is unwilling to invest and unwilling to ask the family for help, then there’s only one path left!”
Dorson continued slowly, “So it seems Uncle Gustaf is prepared to cut his losses and exit?”
Gustav paused to reflect, then said, “Cutting my losses might not be a bad option, but the losses would be too great. However, we still have a chance before it comes to that!”
“What opportunity?”
“Take out that despicable bastard!” Gustav said with a grim look.
The moment those words were spoken, the entire conference room fell silent. Everyone lowered their heads in deep thought, lost in their own reflections.
Dawson couldn’t help but furrow his brow. In the past, he would have certainly supported Gustaf’s idea.
But ever since the incident where the mainland dispatched a massive naval fleet to disarm and seize the Hong Kong Island Coast Guard vessels, he had never again entertained any ill intentions toward Li Yi, Huang Lixing, and their associates.
First, he had seen from that incident just how much the mainland valued Li Yi; second, he had also come to realize through that incident exactly what the British Hong Kong government and the Governor’s Office were really like.
They were nothing more than a puppet government in name only—not even a paper tiger.
The mainland warships hadn’t even approached Hong Kong Island, and they were already so scared they nearly wet their pants.
How could he possibly expect a bunch of spineless cowards to dare to play hardball with Li Yi!
With that in mind, Dalson said with a grave expression, “I object. This is far too dangerous, and the consequences would be too severe—we simply cannot afford them!”
However, Gustave replied coldly, “Dawson, since when have you become such a coward? With an attitude like that, you can’t possibly hope to be the family heir. I suggest you give up competing with Haim!”
Dawson’s tone turned icy as well. He said in a deep voice, “You must understand that this is Hong Kong. There are no regular military forces stationed here. If you dare to use such methods against Li Yi, it’s tantamount to declaring war on that Red Empire. Doing so will not only ruin you, but it will also drag the family down…”
Before he could finish, Gusta cut him off: “Hmph, he’s just a yellow-skinned monkey. Even if I take out that Li Yi, what can they do? Do you really think they’d dare send troops over here?”
“Don’t forget, this is still British territory. If they send troops here, it would be a full-scale declaration of war against the British Empire. I don’t believe their country has the guts to do that.”
Seeing that Gustave was determined to take action against Li Yi, Dolsen knew that no amount of persuasion would change his mind.
He stopped trying to dissuade him and said solemnly, “In that case, neither I nor Uncle the Earl will get involved in this matter, and no one from the British-funded group is to get involved either. All that’s left is to wish you good luck!”
With that, Dalson immediately stood up and strode out of the conference room.
Seeing this, the Duke and the other members of the British Capital Group followed suit.
After all, Dolsen was now the one in charge of the British Capital Group; if he said they couldn’t participate, no one else dared to—to do otherwise would be an act of betrayal.
Moreover, the other members of the British Capital Group did not approve of Gusta’s actions; this was a complete breach of protocol.
If, in the future, anyone who lost a business battle simply had their opponent killed, the world would descend into utter chaos.
And just as they left, a series of loud, crackling explosions echoed through the conference room…
…….