Homo Sapiens

May 1, 2020.

The Sapphire slowly docked at Xiangjiang's Victoria Harbor.

Meanwhile.

As the delivery deadline loomed, Donghua Group still hadn't identified the cause of the equipment's malfunctions. As a result, the equipment repeatedly failed to pass inspection.

In fact, by this point, outside agencies and investors had basically concluded that Donghua Group would be unable to deliver on time.

The final delivery deadline in the contract was June 12th, only 41 days away. After subtracting the fixed 25-day shipping time and roughly 10 days for disassembly and packing, that left only six days.

The equipment still hadn't passed inspection. How could they possibly guarantee it would pass within the mere six days remaining?

And that was under the most ideal circumstances.

After all, shipping by sea from Hai Zhou Port to Manila Port took 20 to 25 days even in good weather. If they encountered storms, delays would be unavoidable.

As for air freight, tens of thousands of tons of large-scale equipment simply couldn't be transported by air. Some of the components wouldn't even fit inside a plane's cargo hold.

Therefore, the major speculative investment firms immediately determined that Donghua Group's default was a foregone conclusion.

Donghua Group's stock price on the Xiangjiang exchange had plummeted to a disastrous low of just 1.32 yuan per share.

...

Li Qingye had already, under the identity of Andre, quietly purchased a villa in Xiangjiang.

In the hilltop villa, he leaned against the railing, gazing silently out over all of Victoria Bay.

"Boss, here is today's report," Phil said, handing over an earpiece.

Li Qingye inserted the earpiece, and important reports from the various divisions immediately appeared before his eyes. Among them, he noted that the shares of Donghua Group stock held by the Internal Affairs Department's Finance Office had now reached 42.3%—basically the maximum possible.

He rubbed his temples and input his instructions into the earpiece's memory.

The harbor at sunset, with golden light glittering on the waves, was an intoxicating sight.

"Sir, your juice." Sangjibada Laiyal placed a glass of freshly squeezed juice beside him.

Li Qingye gazed at the crimson sunset, his eyes calm and profound. His low voice drifted away on the sea breeze:

"I'm so looking forward to our next meeting..."

...

「Modu.」

Inside the Donghua Group headquarters, the atmosphere was oppressive.

Wu Heguang, Kong Zhao Lin, Wu Xinlan, and the others sat in the conference room, their faces grim.

Over the past few days, Wu Heguang's pleas for help to Du Shuping and others had been utterly useless. In fact, they only intensified the treacherous undercurrents within the company.

"Uncle, I have failed you!" Kong Zhao Lin apologized dejectedly, his head bowed.

Wu Heguang shook his head. "This isn't your fault. No one could have expected the equipment to have so many problems. My own rush for quick profits is what caused today's losses."

"Uncle, even though the compensation is as high as 594 million US Dollars, the company can raise the funds by streamlining some of our divisions," Wu Xinlan quickly reassured him.

But Wu Heguang knew the situation was far from optimistic.

Because Donghua Group's cash flow chain had already snapped.

Kailuo Company had withheld a portion of their due payment.

On top of that, Donghua Group had previously taken out 6.2 billion Hua Yuan in bank loans to expand its business. About 1.3 billion of that was due this June, and the banks were already demanding repayment. Applying for new loans was out of the question.

Furthermore, Donghua Group also owed money to its upstream parts and raw material suppliers. Many suppliers were now refusing to accept the group's commercial paper, demanding cash payment to continue their supply of parts and materials.

The pressure from all sides caused Donghua Group's already tight cash flow to snap completely.

The current capital shortfall had reached approximately 6.2 billion Hua Yuan.

Even selling off assets to cover the emergency would take time.

Wu Heguang mentally took stock of Donghua Group's current assets.

These included five subsidiaries: Donghua Chemical, Donghua Chemical Equipment, Donghua Machine Tools, Donghua Real Estate, and Donghua Investment.

Among them, Donghua Real Estate owned the headquarters building in Modu, as well as office buildings and commercial residential properties in other locations. These were all assets that could be sold.

The problem was, who could come up with 6.2 billion Hua Yuan all at once to buy these assets?

Worse still, Donghua Group's capital shortfall was constantly expanding.

Wu Heguang knew the banks would most likely refuse to lend any more money to Donghua Group. To safely weather this crisis, they had to raise around 8 billion Hua Yuan before the end of the year.

The figure made Wu Heguang despair.

Unless he was willing to sell the chemical plant, the equipment factory, the machine tool factory, and the headquarters building at a steep discount, there was no way to raise 8 billion Hua Yuan within six months. But if he sold off those core assets, what would be the difference between that and Donghua Group going bankrupt?

Just as Wu Heguang was agonizing over the decision,

He was suddenly overcome by a wave of dizziness and collapsed onto the conference table.

"Uncle!"

"Uncle!"

"Quick, get the medics!"

"Just call an ambulance!"

Terrified, Kong Zhao Lin, Wu Xinlan, and the others scrambled into a panic.

Two paramedics arrived and quickly began examining and performing emergency treatment on Wu Heguang.

A short while later, the ambulance arrived.

「Outside the emergency room of Modu Hospital.」

Kong Zhao Lin and Wu Xinlan were waiting anxiously when the doors suddenly opened. A doctor addressed them, "Are you the patient's family? He is no longer in critical condition..."

"Whew... that's wonderful." Wu Xinlan breathed a sigh of relief.

But the doctor delivered some grim news. "However... you should prepare yourselves. Due to a cerebral hemorrhage, it's possible the patient will enter a vegetative state."

The smile on Wu Xinlan's face instantly vanished. "How could this happen? Doctor, is there no treatment?"

The doctor shook his head. "I'm sorry. The surgery to remove the clotted blood from his cerebral cortex is extremely risky, given the patient's age. I recommend conservative treatment and hoping his body can recover on its own."

After the doctor left.

Gao Ming, the head of Donghua Investment, suggested in a low voice, "Vice President Kong, Miss Wu, I have a doctor friend in Xiangjiang who specializes in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular medicine. He's successfully treated many patients in vegetative states. Why don't we send the Chairman to Xiangjiang to see what he can do?"

"Well..." Wu Xinlan hesitated.

But Kong Zhao Lin quickly made up his mind. Donghua Group needed Wu Heguang.

If they lost Wu Heguang at this critical moment, Kong Zhao Lin and Wu Xinlan would not be able to keep the other executives in line. After all, he himself was largely responsible for this crisis.

"Let's do this! Xinlan, you and Manager Gao take Uncle to Xiangjiang for treatment. I'll stay here and stabilize the company."

A knowing look flickered in Wu Xinlan's eyes. She knew Kong Zhao Lin was trying to use this as an opportunity to seize power by sending her, the primary heir, away.

'But on second thought...' Wu Xinlan sighed to herself. 'What's the use of me staying now? To fight with Kong Zhao Lin for power and influence? Isn't Donghua Group collapsing fast enough as it is?'

Donghua Group needed stability right now. She knew that if the company went bankrupt, neither she nor Kong Zhao Lin would gain a thing.

"Alright. I'll also speak to the others and tell them to cooperate with your work as much as possible, Cousin."

Kong Zhao Lin also gave his assurance. "Don't worry, Xinlan. Our top priority is getting through this crisis. We can sort everything else out later."

Gao Ming, standing to the side, looked as if his mind was a million miles away. Inwardly, however, he sneered, 'Later? There is no "later" for you. Heh heh. Don't blame me. If you must blame someone, blame yourselves for provoking a person you never should have crossed.'

Having reached a compromise, Wu Xinlan followed Gao Ming to handle the hospital discharge procedures and arrange for a private jet to transport Wu Heguang to Xiangjiang for treatment.