Courir partout et jouer des rôles mineurs

Chapitre 130

A person from the advertising company who knew the inside story kindly whispered to her, "This is the actual controlling shareholder of Mocha Company. Yang Hai is just an employee..."

A thunderclap in the clear sky brought down countless bolts of lightning.

At this moment, Liu Xihua was channeling the spirit of a Qiong Yao heroine, shaking her head repeatedly and saying, "Impossible, impossible, impossible..." before being forcibly dragged away from the venue by several security guards.

Crisis

Winter has passed and spring has arrived, marking the beginning of another year. The plane landed at Kunming Airport. Before stepping out of the airport, Qiu Shanglin glanced back at the clock: 19:26.

Cheng Chong had been staying in Yunnan for over three months. He didn't hold up a sign; as agreed beforehand, he waited by his vehicle outside Exit 3. This was the drop-off area, where vehicles weren't allowed to linger. Taxis constantly arrived, dropped off passengers, and quickly drove away. He and his car had been there for ten minutes. Airport staff glanced at him, said nothing, and turned to go elsewhere. Many taxis were coming and going; he was blocking the exit, making it difficult for other cars to park. Some short-tempered drivers honked their horns deafeningly from afar, but upon closer inspection, they all fell silent, preferring to drive around him and his car.

Tourists coming and going couldn't help but take a curious look.

Shanglin walked out of Exit 3, and the time showed 19:35.

Once they were on the bus, it drove away smoothly. The staff member who had been trying to maintain order watched them leave, muttering in bewilderment, "Why is it a little girl?"

Luxury cars are not uncommon, and the driver is nothing special. What kept him and the taxi driver silent was the license plate on the back of the car.

Shang Lin rubbed his sore shoulders and casually asked, "Whose car is this?"

Cheng Chong replied, "They're in a hurry to see you, so give me this car."

Shang Lin was silent for a moment, then asked, "How is the situation?"

Cheng Chong smiled bitterly: "It's very disadvantageous for us. They incite the local villagers to cause trouble, and they go over to smash things every few days. The local government is passing the buck, and no one is willing to step forward to intervene—it seems they've already made arrangements."

He was very discouraged.

The flower cultivation base in Kunming is a major investment project of Bougainvillea Company in recent years, and it has gradually become a major source of income. One-third of Kunming's flowers are sold domestically, while the remaining two-thirds are exported overseas, with Japan and Europe each accounting for 50%.

Exported flowers face stringent requirements, with standardized and rigorous standards for quality, plant height, and trunk diameter. Since its inception, the bougainvillea company has continuously cultivated new and superior varieties, staying at the forefront of the market, and consequently commanding high prices. This batch of exported flowers was expensive and came in large quantities, far exceeding the domestic market's capacity. The other party, when they acted, ruthlessly and precisely crippled the company, leaving him constantly on the run.

Cheng Chong explained the situation quickly and somberly: "They've blocked the Japanese market. They're using the excuse that our flowers didn't pass quarantine and are refusing to fulfill the contract."

Shang Lin was surprised: "The quarantine failed? That's impossible. The company has always had very high requirements for quality."

Cheng Chong smiled wryly: "Japan has revised its import quarantine regulations. The new varieties of roses were already planted and produced before the Lunar New Year, so there simply wasn't enough time to adjust accordingly..."

She remained silent.

The timing wasn't right, so Cheng Chong can't be blamed.

"The Japanese market is huge, can they handle it?" Trying to swallow up the entire market share of Bougainvillea Company in Japan in a hurry is not a simple matter.

Cheng Chong gave another bitter smile. After more than three months of running around, he had grown gray hair from anxiety. In his twenties, he seemed to have aged ten years overnight: "They contacted the Vietnamese market..."

Shang Lin became increasingly suspicious: "Impossible!" she said decisively: "The Yunnan government cannot just stand by and watch them hand over their money-making channels to Vietnam."

“That’s what makes Xu Mi so terrifying…” Cheng Chong sighed. “She reached an agreement with the Vietnamese side, who would only be responsible for short-term flower supply. This batch of goods was successfully shipped, and they will cooperate to establish a flower planting and production base in Yunnan in the future.”

No one gets up early without a reason, and no one knows what kind of preferential terms Xu Mi offered to both sides.

Cheng Chong only regretted his carelessness. He had placed all his bets on the Kunming base; otherwise, he wouldn't have been forced into such a passive and humiliating situation.

She gritted her teeth and ordered, "Go to the hotel first."

Cheng Chong asked in surprise, "Why don't we meet with them first?"

Shang Lin smiled, unhurriedly: "Chaos arises from haste. What Xu Mi most wants to see is us in disarray, so she can take advantage of the situation. Do you think Yin Xunzong is a savior? In negotiations, the party that is most eager to ask for something always suffers. We can't give him the illusion that we are in a great hurry."

Cheng Chong hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.

But we are really anxious.

Shang Lin observed his expression and knew perfectly well: "Don't worry, the old master is still alive! Even if he passes away, there's still Yin Yeyao. Xu Mi won't amount to much." No matter how great the benefits she offered to the Yin family's collateral branches, they weren't idiots and could naturally see through her ambition.

Although Yin Yeyao is autocratic and dictatorial, he is still a member of the Yin family and has responsibilities to them, which he is willing to shoulder. Once he falls into Xu Mi's hands, she will discard him after using him and betray him. This woman is no pushover.

What does the power struggle within the Yin family have to do with Qiu Shanglin?

The story begins a year ago.

Yin Yeyao visited Qiu Shanglin, but returned to Guangzhou full of anger. No one knows what he and Old Master Yin discussed for an entire day in the study of the villa. After he left the villa, the old master went to the hospital and refused to see anyone.

At that time, Cheng Chong was preparing to expand the scale of Bougainvillea, but a loan was delayed. Shang Lin's funds were all invested in real estate and he couldn't withdraw them in the short term. Yin Yeyao approached Cheng Chong and offered to invest, which delighted Cheng Chong. Although he felt that given the scale of the group Yin Yeyao would inherit in the future, he shouldn't care about such a small business, he felt he had something to rely on because of his long-standing relationship with Shang Lin.

Nobody dislikes money getting bitten, right?

Lin Da left most of the company's affairs to him and rarely interfered. Cheng Chong accepted Yin Yeyao's funds with a smile, becoming the second largest shareholder after Shang Lin. Shang Lin learned of the news the day before the contract was signed and initially wanted to stop it, but then he thought of how generous Yin Yeyao had been in supporting his career over the years, and how she had never complained even after he had clearly rejected her. So he tacitly approved this seemingly sure-fire deal.

As a result, Yin Yeyao held a certain share in both Mocha Cat and Bougainvillea, and the two would occasionally meet for business. Changsheng was becoming increasingly important in the firm, and they were rarely seen, even two out of three days. In fact, the number of times they chatted was less than the number of times Yin Yeyao and Changsheng had chatted.

Six months ago, the old man's condition worsened, and at the same time, he announced that if Yin Yeyao married Qiu Shanglin, she would receive one-third of the old man's shares and inheritance. She would have the freedom to distribute the shares and inheritance as she saw fit.

Qiu Shanglin was taken aback, unable to understand why the usually shrewd old man had suddenly become confused and wanted to give the Yin family's shares to an outsider.

Soon, as members of the Yin family came to her door, she realized what was happening.

Xu Mi was the first to arrive.

She was very direct and got straight to the point: Qiu Shanglin and Yin Yeyao got married, sold their shares to her after the marriage, and then supported their divorce.

Shanglin found it unbelievable.

Surprisingly, there are mothers who, instead of wholeheartedly caring for their sons, persuade outsiders to commit marriage fraud.

Marriage, transferring shares, then divorce—what did she take marriage for?

Shang Lin declined, but Xu Mi kept raising her offer. She had to admit that she was actually a little tempted—Xu Mi's promise was enough to allow her to live a comfortable and carefree old age without having to struggle or work for the next two lifetimes.

However, Qiu Shanglin lacked money the most since childhood, but had no shortage of hardship.

In Xu Mi's opinion, she was very ungrateful.

Subsequently, people surnamed Yin kept coming to her door to discuss how to commit marriage fraud, how to compensate her, and what promises to make... She was both amused and exasperated, realizing that she had once again been targeted by the old fox of the Yin family.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see that the old fox was getting on in years and worried about his own imminent death, so he wanted to clear obstacles for his grandson while he was still alive. A third of the shares was tempting, and even knowing it was a trap set by the old fox to lure people out, no one cared much.

Yin Yeyao said, "Marry me. Even if you transfer your shares to anyone after the marriage, even if we divorce in three days, I will be willing and will not say a word."

Shang Lin was so moved that he wanted to slap him twice.

What kind of person do you take me for?

Yin Ye thought to himself, "It's precisely because I know you won't do that I'm confident and dare to devise this scheme with that old fox."

If you agree to marry me, it's a win-win situation for me. If you don't, you've still managed to bring those who have been secretly eyeing me into the open. As long as they're willing to make a move, I'm confident I can strike at their weak point.

The tug-of-war had dragged on for over six months when, three months ago, the old man's condition worsened. Xu Mi, having reached her limit, resolutely took action. She couldn't touch the Yin family, but surely she could touch the little Bougainvillea?

Xu Mi's methods were swift and powerful, leaving no room for maneuver. Shang Lin underestimated human nature, and even more so, the allure of power to Xu Mi, which is why he was caught off guard after she made her move.

She thought, "Am I supposed to sell myself to save the company? Damn it, I'm not Xi'er."

After taking a shower at the hotel, feeling refreshed, the car drove off to its destination again.

Cheng Chong asked, "What did Yin Yeyao say?"

Shanglin said helplessly, "Can't you see? He'd love for me to surrender."

Yin Yeyao feigned ignorance.

Cheng Chong was furious: "If I had known, I shouldn't have agreed to let him invest in the first place!"

Shang Lin laughed at his naiveté. If he didn't invest, would Xu Mi really not make a move?

Drug lord Yin Xunzong

Yin Xunzong lived in an inconspicuous alley, outwardly no different from the old residential houses that could be found all over Kunming. The clear oil on the paulownia wood door had not been renewed for many years, and it was mottled, revealing the original color and grain of the paulownia wood. The bronze handle was shiny and had been eroded by the years. Above it was a bronze lion with its head turned and glaring angrily. The eyes of the bronze lion had witnessed the vicissitudes of life and the changes of the world. It no longer had the fierce and majestic look of the past, but was looking at this rapidly changing world with a strong and vicissitude.

After crossing the threshold, Shang Lin was not in a hurry to go in. He stood in the passageway and looked at the unremarkable house.

In old Kunming, regardless of whether it was urban or rural, Han or minority, the houses were all built in roughly the same way. In modern parlance, they were called "affordable housing." They also had another name: "one-seal housing."

Similar to the courtyard houses in Beijing, the layout is slightly different. Kunming residences consist of a main house, side rooms, and a rear building, with tiled roofs and earthen walls. The floor plan and exterior are square, resembling the seal of an upright official in an old-style government office, hence the name "One Seal".

“Three rooms, two ears, eight feet tall,” Shanglin muttered as he looked around.

Suppressing his urgency, Cheng Chong asked, "Hmm?"

She chuckled, showing no sign of nervousness. "I said, this house is a typical three-room, two-wing, eight-foot-deep courtyard." Pointing ahead, she explained in detail, "Look, the floor plan is square. The main house has three rooms on two floors, and the two wings are wing rooms, forming a courtyard. In the middle is a small courtyard, and the porch, which is also called a 'reverse seat' in folk tradition, is eight feet deep, hence the name 'reverse eight feet.' The main gate we just came through faces the main house, positioned on the central axis opposite it. There should have been a wooden screen at the entrance, like the courtyard house I just bought in Beijing, made up of four movable partitions. Normally, it's closed, and you walk around it from both sides. Only during festivals and when welcoming guests, the screen is opened to let guests in, and the reverse seat, courtyard, and main hall combine to form a spacious area. The owner of this place is probably open-minded and doesn't like to be cut off, so he removed the partitions, not worried about outsiders peeping in. Cheng Chong, this person is either broad-minded or arrogant."

Cheng Chong wiped away a cold sweat and secretly watched the man who was greeting guests. The man smiled and was very patient, ignoring Qiu Shanglin's comments and opinions about the house and its owner.

Seeing his respectful and humble smile, Shang Lin was slightly surprised and said with a smile, "It seems that Mr. Yin is very broad-minded."