And, at the very least, more than twenty bosses who followed the trend and shorted Yaowang Group ended up bankrupt!
At this moment, many people stood there dumbfounded, angry yet helpless, filled with despair, completely unable to accept the situation.
A mere little Jiang family!
They had originally regarded them as nothing more than ants, something they could crush with a single slap.
Yet now, the Jiang family had staged a desperate counterattack, turning the tide with a single press conference, boldly unsheathing their sword!
They had routed the super-luxury team formed by the Three Great Families of Jinling, the Chen family of Yanjing, and the White Knight Fund of Hong Kong Island, leaving them scrambling, utterly defenseless, soundly beaten, and ultimately crushed in complete defeat.
Now, in their eyes, the Jiang family was no longer that weak and easily bullied small clan.
It was a primordial beast from the prehistoric era, capable of swallowing the sky and devouring the earth, while they themselves were just little white rabbits shivering beneath Yaowang Group’s feet.
And all of this was because of Jiang Tian!
It was precisely Jiang Tian’s return that changed everything!
Yet, even at this moment, they still couldn’t bring themselves to believe it—
Jiang Tian was not only a master of martial arts and an extraordinary practitioner of mystical techniques, but also a business prodigy, well-versed in commercial strategy, who had orchestrated a financial and public opinion battle with dazzling brilliance, one climax after another.
Looking back now, Jiang Tian’s every move was like a silent move on a chessboard, but his strategy was profoundly deep, ultimately exploding like a sudden clap of thunder on level ground, blasting them to utter ruin, not even bones left.
“Losses! Huge losses!”
“All my funds were bet on it!”
Many bosses also wept bitterly, wailing in anguish.
Men don’t easily shed tears, but faced with such a monumental loss, they simply couldn’t accept it. You could say the fruits of a lifetime of hard work and struggle had been destroyed overnight. For them, it was no different from falling from heaven into hell.
“Professor Fang, Boss Nie, what is the meaning of this? Did you not get to the bottom of Yaowang Group’s inside information?”
Some bosses even pointed at Fang Zhanbo, roaring furiously, their hatred so deep they practically wanted to tear him limb from limb and devour him raw.
Fang Zhanbo stood there in a daze, utterly lost and despondent, motionless, as if he didn’t hear these words.
He was very conservative, had invested very little, and mainly made money from commissions, so his losses weren’t severe.
But he understood that after this defeat, his reputation was ruined, and his future career was basically over.
Having lost so disastrously, with tens of billions in funds completely wiped out, what investor would ever dare to seek him out again?
“I’m sending you off, a thousand miles away…”
At that moment, Fang Zhanbo’s cellphone suddenly rang, making his whole body flinch violently in fright.
He picked up the phone, spoke only three sentences, and his face turned deathly pale once more.
“Our counterparty was the One-Eyed Fund from Wall Street. The trader was Chen Zhenming…”
Fang Zhanbo’s hand trembled violently, the phone slipping to the floor, and then he uttered these words in a soul-drained state.
“It was actually him!”
Xia Miao’s face was filled with shock and terror, as if he had lost his own parents, full of overwhelming hatred yet helplessly saying: “No wonder we lost…”
Yaowang Group’s press conference lasted from 8:30 to 9:30, ending in just one hour.
But a storm sweeping through Jinling was just brewing, ready to explode.
That very morning, one earth-shattering piece of news after another came out.
At 10:00 AM, Chen Xuewen, the Chen family member serving as Deputy Director of the Jinling branch of the Medical Products Administration, was placed under investigation by the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection for embezzlement, bribery, and seeking illegal profits for the family business.
At 11:00 AM, the Nie family’s Changhai Properties was investigated by the Jinling Economic Crime Investigation Bureau for tax evasion, serious disruption of market order, and unfair competition.
At 11:15 AM, Sun Lingyun, head of the Sun family, was put under residential surveillance by the Municipal Bureau for organizing illegal association activities.
The Xia family’s Jinpeng Securities was permanently banned from the market by the Provincial Securities Regulatory Bureau, which also sent a team to investigate, due to manipulating securities prices and insider trading.
…
Boldly unsheathing the sword, cutting down all the way!
Many officials closely connected to the Three Great Families, who had acted as their protective umbrellas, were investigated, arrested by prosecutors, or taken into custody by public security authorities directly.
This business war had a very wide reach.
It could be called the biggest, most shocking upheaval in Jinling’s business circle since the economic reforms began, shaking everyone to their core like an earthquake.
For three days straight, the stock prices of Ben Cao Group, Changhai Properties, Wangchao Real Estate, Tianwei Pharmaceutical, Jinpeng Securities, and many other related companies plummeted accordingly.
…
Three days later, in the evening, at the Nie family mansion.
In the study, Nie Changhai, Nie Mingyuan, Sun Lingyun, and Chen Donglin gathered to discuss countermeasures.
After Yaowang Group’s press conference, Fang Zhanbo, deeply sensing the situation was beyond saving and fearing control by the China Securities Regulatory Commission, had already fled to the United States overnight.
And the Yanjing-based Tianwei Group was also being maliciously shorted, its stock price plunging repeatedly. Chen Junbin suffered a heart attack, was rushed to Yanjing First Hospital, admitted to the ICU, and a critical condition notice had been issued.
The Jinling Three Great Families were now like trees falling and monkeys scattering, shrouded in gloom and despair.
The curtains in the room were drawn tightly, the lighting was dim, the ashtray was full of cigarette butts, and the air was acrid with smoke.
“I’ve already contacted friends in Yanjing. No one over there is willing to help!” Nie Changhai put down the antique telephone, shaking his head with a defeated expression.
“Hiss—!”
Everyone present drew a sharp breath, unable to believe it.
Nie Mingyuan frowned and asked: “Father, why is this? Jiang Tian’s influence is strong, but it shouldn’t extend much beyond the Lingnan region. Why would forces in Yanjing fear him?”
“Mingyuan, you’re mistaken. We were all mistaken!”
Nie Changhai’s face was ashen as he shook his head and sighed: “Jiang Tian is not just Master Jiang of Jiangbei, or Master Jiang of Lingnan. He is Jiang Taichu, the one who slew Lin Zhenyu, the leader of the Big Circle Gang, on the shores of Poyang Lake at last year’s Martial Arts Federation Conference!”
“Jiang Taichu… does he have another identity?” Chen Donglin asked.
“He is known as the number one Grandmaster below the Divine Realm in Chinese martial arts!”
Nie Changhai said solemnly: “Chinese martial arts are divided into four realms: Iron Body, Inner Strength, Transformation Realm, and Divine Realm. The Divine Realm is ethereal and unattainable, existing only in legends. Below it is the Transformation Realm, which allows one to be called a Grandmaster in the martial world!”
He sighed: “Transformation Realm Grandmasters are as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns, often numbering only a handful in an entire province. Take Xu Zhenlei from our Jinling—merely an ordinary Transformation Realm Grandmaster, yet even he makes the authorities wary and high-ranking local officials cautious. And Jiang Tian is the strongest among these Grandmasters in all of China, already able to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Ye Zhantian of the Dragon Group!”
“What! He is actually renowned alongside Ye Zhantian?”
At these words, cries of shock and horror filled the room. Everyone was stupefied, looking as despairing as if they had lost their own parents.
“So, we were actually opposing such a powerful figure!”
Chen Donglin’s scalp went numb, muttering to himself in a daze.
“Jiang Tian… Jiang Taichu…! This is a god-like figure!” Sun Lingyun felt his whole body go limp, barely able to stand steady.
“How is this possible!”
Nie Mingyuan flailed his arms, roaring like a madman: “I conducted a thorough investigation on Jiang Tian. He was exceedingly mediocre, a useless good-for-nothing to the extreme, so weak he couldn’t even truss a chicken. I can believe he had some fortuitous encounter and gained martial arts cultivation, but how could he possibly be the number one Grandmaster below the Divine Realm!”
Nie Mingyuan couldn’t accept it, couldn’t believe it. To him, it was like being struck by five thunderbolts.
Just then, a senior executive from Changhai Properties rushed in, urgently saying: “President Nie, everyone, bad news. The financial institutions that lent us securities have forcibly liquidated our positions! The equity everyone put up as collateral is no longer enough to cover the losses. We all have to bear huge external debts!”
“How much for my Chen family?” Chen Donglin asked, his voice trembling.
“5.3 billion Chinese yuan!” the executive sighed.
“That much…”
Chen Donglin clutched his chest in pain, his heart spasming severely, nearly collapsing to the ground.
His wealth of over ten billion had vanished into thin air, and on top of that, he was saddled with an enormous debt he could never repay in a lifetime.
“What about my Nie family?” Nie Changhai asked.
“8.3 billion Chinese yuan!” the executive replied with difficulty.
“Decades of foundation, destroyed by my hand! I might as well be dead!”
Nie Changhai lamented repeatedly, feeling dizzy. He held his head, swaying unsteadily, tears streaming down his face.
“Dad, don’t be too sad. Where there’s life, there’s hope!”
Nie Mingyuan cried out in alarm, quickly giving him his special medicine for high blood pressure.
“What about my Sun family?” Sun Lingyun asked, his face uneasy.
“6.2 billion Chinese yuan!” The executive’s face showed reluctance.
Sun Lingyun’s anger soared, and he charged towards the door, gritting his teeth in a furious shout: “This is all thanks to Jiang Tian! Today, I’m going to tear him to pieces!”
His son Sun Hao and his younger brother Sun Lingyu had both died at Jiang Tian’s hands, and now the Sun family had been utterly routed by Jiang Tian. He couldn’t swallow this rage.
“Stop!” Nie Changhai shouted angrily.
“Brother Changhai, if this man isn’t eliminated, our Jinling Three Great Families will surely perish!” Sun Lingyun ground his teeth.
“You are no match for him! Even several hundred brothers from the Qingyun Association attacking together would be useless!” Nie Changhai shook his head and sighed: “He is the strongest Grandmaster!”
“Then what can we do?” Sun Lingyun was full of unwillingness.
“Right now, we must hide our capabilities, bide our time, and endure humiliation!”
Nie Changhai took a deep breath, his thoughts gradually clarifying: “Tomorrow, I will go and apologize to him in person, begging him to spare us!”
“Will it help? His killing intent has already risen. This is nothing short of trying to borrow the tiger’s skin!” Nie Mingyuan said gravely.
“It’s just to buy time. Your aunt has urgently ended her seclusion and will return to Jinling in three days!”
Nie Changhai said solemnly: “When that time comes, we will carry the might of Wudang and sweep through the Jiang family. Who will dare to stop us?”
“Xue Man is finally coming back!”
Everyone, upon hearing this, felt their hearts settle, as if they had gained tremendous backing, their spirits invigorated.
“Mhm!”
Nie Changhai nodded as he sipped his tea, then a cold glint flashed in his eyes as he said gravely: “When the time comes, we will directly plunder the Jiang family openly, take Yaowang Group into our possession, and even the authorities won’t dare to provoke the Wudang backing my sister!”
…
The next day, Jiang Tian was sitting cross-legged in meditation within his villa.
Suddenly, Ye Ziwei walked in and said softly: “Jiang Tian, Nie Changhai has come to visit!”
“Let him in!”
Jiang Tian’s eyes slowly opened, revealing a sharp, cold light, and a mocking smile played at the corner of his mouth.
“Master Jiang!”
Nie Changhai walked straight in, sat down opposite Jiang Tian, put on the posture of a strong man, and said gravely: “I know you are the number one Grandmaster below the Divine Realm, and that you dominate Lingnan. By joining forces with Wall Street capital this time to crush the Nie family and the other two great families, this old man admits defeat wholeheartedly!”
Jiang Tian, barefoot and cross-legged, his peaceful face radiating a brilliant light, dressed in a spotless white robe, looked almost like an immortal.
“Hmm? You didn’t come to me just to say these pointless words, did you?”
Jiang Tian suddenly said with a face full of sarcasm.
