Chapter 930: Investigating Jianing Company!

After leaving the Jiang family’s old mansion, Li Yi felt a slight heaviness in his heart; the documents in the file folder felt like hot potatoes in his hands.

He knew full well that this so-called “consultant” position had absolutely nothing to do with his drunken state from the night before.

Li Yi wasn’t much of a drinker, but he was confident in his composure when he drank.

Even if he had a few too many, he wouldn’t ramble on endlessly like a typical drunkard, nor would he act out—instead, he’d simply go to sleep quietly.

If anyone could wake him up, he’d consider it a loss.

So, in this matter, he was definitely set up.

Or perhaps this was the result of Old Master Jiang and Old Chen working together to make it happen.

Getting drunk was just an excuse; even if he hadn’t gotten drunk last night, those documents would still have been delivered to him on time this morning.

It’s just a different excuse—but that doesn’t change the outcome.

As for the reasons why Old Chen and Old Jiang were so determined to secure an official position for him, Li Yi could guess a little. One wanted to make a name for himself, while the other sought an additional layer of identity protection.

Although he wasn’t entirely keen on the idea, Li Yi knew that at his current level, it was only a matter of time.

Even if these two elders hadn’t brought it up, the higher-ups wouldn’t let a super-rich tycoon like him remain outside the system—who knows, he might just up and leave the country one day and never come back.

Since things had come to this, he had no choice but to accept it!

Once they got in the car, Zhang Ziqiang immediately asked, “Brother Yi, where are we going now?”

“Home… Never mind, let’s go to the office first!”

It was Thursday; Jiang Xue and the kids would surely be at school by now. Going home would be pointless, so he might as well check in at the office.

“Right…”

Soon, the car arrived at the branch office, and Li Yi headed straight for Lan Xinyi’s office.

In the general manager’s office, Lan Xinyi stood up as soon as she saw Li Yi push the door open and said with a smile, “Boss, you’re here! I was just about to call you!”

“Oh, what a coincidence!”

Then Li Yi asked, “What did you need me for?”

Lan Xinyi replied immediately, “We’ve received another update from headquarters. We started shorting Jianing Group yesterday, and today they announced that their cash flow has hit a snag. The market has been open for less than an hour, and Jianing’s stock has already dropped 8%!”

“Huh, they announced cash flow problems that fast?” Li Yi asked, somewhat surprised.

As far as he knew, Jianing was supposed to announce its cash flow difficulties in mid-September—logically, it should have taken at least another week.

He hadn’t expected them to come clean so soon; it seemed they’d been caught off guard by his sudden decision to liquidate his entire position in the company’s stock yesterday.

“Jianing has indeed announced that the company is facing problems. Mr. Cheng even publicly stated that the cash flow difficulties stem partly from the stock market crash over the past two years, and partly because he’s offended someone!”

Lan Xinyi continued, “Although he didn’t name names, the finger was clearly pointed at you, Boss!”

Li Yi furrowed his brow and asked, “What’s the reaction from investors and the general public?”

Lan Xinyi replied immediately, “It’s hard to tell for now, but according to Feiyan, many people are attributing Jianing Group’s difficulties and the drop in its stock price to our company. Some are even openly claiming that you’re deliberately trying to undermine Cheng Qingsong and Jianing Group!”

“If this continues, public sentiment toward our company will inevitably decline. That’s why Feiyan is asking for your guidance—should we step forward to clarify the situation…”

Before she could finish, Li Yi said coldly, “Clarification alone won’t suffice. Immediately file a police report citing damage to my and the company’s reputation, and request that the police open an investigation into this matter.”

“Open an investigation?”

Lan Xinyi paused for a moment, then said, “Isn’t that a bit unnecessary?”

Lan Xinyi had seen far too many of these baseless rumors; after all, the streets of Hong Kong were flooded with all sorts of unscrupulous tabloids.

One could even say it had become a normal part of life for the people of Hong Kong.

Apart from Li Yi, which of Hong Kong’s wealthy celebrities hadn’t been the target of rumors and slander? People usually just put up with it and let it pass.

“No, it’s absolutely necessary. We must act quickly and make a big splash—but most importantly, we need to conduct a thorough investigation into Jianing Company!”

Li Yi was well aware of what lay behind Jianing’s broken cash flow, and he understood that Cheng Qingsong was merely a front man pushed to the forefront to take the fall.

Now that the backers have already drained Jianing Group dry, they’re figuring out how to self-destruct and shift the blame.

Normally, this wouldn’t have much to do with him, Li Yi, but since those “clever” people were trying to pin the blame on him, he couldn’t stand for it.

That’s right—the people at Jianing Group were trying to make him, Li Yi, take the fall. They wanted the people of Hong Kong to believe that he, Li Yi, had been undermining Jianing Group both openly and covertly, so that when Jianing Group eventually went bankrupt, he would be the one blamed.

If their scheme succeeded, and Jianing Group actually went bankrupt in a few months—leaving hundreds of thousands of investors with nothing but losses—those desperate to vent their anger would turn their wrath on Star Investment, and on him, Li Yi.

Although Li Yi wasn’t afraid of any of this, he certainly wasn’t willing to take the fall for someone else!

Moreover, for an investment firm, those investors are all potential clients.

If the company’s public image were damaged, it would hinder future fundraising efforts.

But no one would believe their company’s own explanation of the situation; it would be far more convincing to have the police step in.

More importantly, Li Yi wanted the police to use this opportunity to investigate Jianing Group in advance. While clearing his name, it would be best if they uncovered all the company’s dirty secrets.

After all, in his previous life, Jianing Group’s stock trading was suspended in January 1983, and it was only September 1982 now—Cheng Qingsong and the backers behind him might not have had their scheme fully prepared yet.

In short, the sooner the police get involved, the better. Who knows, they might even be able to save some of the investors’ money.

“Yes, boss. I’ll have Manager Li handle this right away!” Lan Xinyi said.

Although she didn’t understand why the boss was so insistent on calling the police, she knew that Li Yi wasn’t the type to stir up trouble for no reason.

Take yesterday’s incident, for example: he suddenly liquidated all his shares in Jianing Group. It seemed like a whim, but it turned out he was actually safeguarding the company’s assets.

“Hmm, have Yunbao personally follow up on this matter and mobilize all of the Li family’s connections to put pressure on the Governor’s Office and the police!” Li Yi instructed again.

“Yes!”

“Anything else?” Li Yi asked again.

“Yes. Headquarters expects to settle dividend payments to investors and shareholders in November, and Vice President Huang would like you to preside over the proceedings!” Lan Xinyi said.

Li Yi thought for a moment and said, “I can’t confirm that just yet. If I have time by then, I’ll definitely be there!”

“Alright, I’ll let Vice President Huang know!”

“Hmm, by the way, Xinyi, there’s one more matter I need you to handle!” Li Yi said.

“What is it? Please tell me.”

“I plan to set aside some funds to establish a charitable foundation dedicated to providing public assistance in the areas of cultural education, regional poverty alleviation, and social welfare. Please contact the relevant departments to find out what requirements are needed to establish this charitable foundation!” Li Yi said.

“Alright, but first, please tell me how much you plan to contribute and who will manage it,” Lan Xinyi said.

“The funds are tentatively set at 100 million yuan. Initially, the focus will be on improving local educational conditions and providing scholarships. My wife, Jiang Xue, will serve as the foundation’s manager for now,” Li Yi said.

“Understood. I’ll get in touch with the local government departments right away!” Lan Xinyi said.

“Alright…”

……….