This program wasn’t just broadcast live on television; it was also re-streamed online. By midnight that night, the views had exceeded four million, making it the most explosive episode of the show by far.
“Actually, the most critical issue is the financial fraud and profit interception by Jiang Qingfeng and the former management team.”
That same evening, a professor from a well-known business school, who holds a prominent reputation in the financial world, spoke out in the media with righteous indignation:
“This is essentially robbing money from the shareholders. It’s no longer just a moral issue; it’s suspected of market manipulation and illegal transfers of benefits, which are criminal offenses! I call on regulatory authorities to step in, investigate, crack down hard, and make an example of them!”
The next day, the Chen Family Herbal Group announced new products and a new strategy.
Almost all of these new products directly competed with those of the Pharmaceutical King Group, but their prices were only half of what the Pharmaceutical King Group charged.
Chen Donglin, the chairman of Herbal Pharmaceuticals, declared:
“From the factory to the pharmacy, the price of medicine gets marked up layer by layer by herbal traders. This time, the Herbal Group is declaring war on high drug prices. We’re opening our own chain of pharmacies directly to sell common medications at fair, affordable prices!”
As soon as the news broke, public opinion erupted. Countless self-media outlets, netizens, and paid online commenters voiced their opinions across various platforms.
“The Pharmaceutical King Group’s products are the same as the Herbal Group’s, but their prices are so much higher. How heartless!”
“The Pharmaceutical King Group is a heartless company, raking in huge profits. The Herbal Group is the real conscientious business!”
“Such a heartless company should be eliminated by the market. Don’t ever buy their stock!”
Meanwhile, in the capital markets, panic was spreading, and the atmosphere was bleak. Rumors that the Pharmaceutical King Group was finished grew louder and louder.
“This is bad. Why is the Pharmaceutical King Group getting so much hate this time? It’s probably going to drop again today!” Some shareholders were so scared they broke out in a cold sweat.
“As soon as the market opens, I’m selling immediately! Oh man, I’ve already lost enough for a whole apartment!”
“Fang Zhanbo is the controller of the White Knight Fund, not some independent scholar. His research report is clearly aimed at the Pharmaceutical King Group. He’s definitely going to short it heavily!”
“Professor Fang has never lost a battle in the capital markets. His research reports are highly authoritative. The Pharmaceutical King Group is definitely doomed this time!”
“Xia Miao is no pushover either. His private equity fund has no telling how many big players behind it. Just look at the stock trend of the Pharmaceutical King Group—large amounts of money are frantically dumping shares every single day!”
“The Pharmaceutical King Group can’t hold on any longer. Run! This is even worse than buying PetroChina stock. You’ll be trapped for at least ten years!”
For a while, the internet was flooded with these kinds of comments.
“Sigh, the Pharmaceutical King Group has been around for decades. How did it end up in such a tragic state?”
“The tide has turned against it. It’s obvious that a lot of capital from Hong Kong and Jinling is shorting it.”
What drove all the shareholders crazy was that when the market opened at 9:30, the Pharmaceutical King Group’s stock went straight to a daily trading halt limit down.
After half an hour, the halt lifted, and the stock rose two points, but that only lasted half an hour before it hit the lower limit again and got locked in.
Shareholders were left with tears but no way to cry. It was over. They were trapped and couldn’t sell even if they wanted to. It was even worse than PetroChina.
…
“How strange. Why is there some capital absorbing shares? Hasn’t the hype been enough?”
That day after the market closed, inside the trading room on the 12th floor of the Golf Hotel.
Professor Fang leaned lazily back in his leather swivel chair, sipping rich Blue Mountain coffee and staring at the large LCD screen covering the wall. He muttered to himself.
“The trading volume seems to be only a hundred million or so. It’s probably just a few big retail investors. How foolish—buying in at a time like this. Are they asking to be killed?”
Beside him, Xia Miao said dismissively.
“Keep driving the price down tomorrow. Release some more heavy ammunition.”
Professor Fang stood up, his gaze cold and fierce.
The next day, Yanjing Tianwei Pharmaceuticals held a press conference and sent a letter to the Lingnan Drug Administration, claiming that Jiang Changgeng of the Pharmaceutical King Group was suspected of plagiarizing eight of Tianwei Pharmaceuticals’ traditional Chinese medicine patents, including “Dangshen Black Chicken Pill” and “Angong Niuhuang Pill,” and demanded that production cease.
Tianwei Pharmaceuticals is one of the top three traditional Chinese medicine companies in China. The Chen family has a long and distinguished history—its founder was a imperial physician during the Qing Dynasty.
The current head of Tianwei Pharmaceuticals, Chen Junbin, is over eighty years old. He was once a member of the Red Wall Imperial Medical Academy and is vice chairman of the China Association of Chinese Medicine and Pharmacology. He holds great prestige in the world of traditional Chinese medicine, and in terms of seniority and academic standing, he outranks Jiang Changgeng.
“Jiang Changgeng was once my student. Thirty years ago, I went to Jinling to conduct training sessions, and at that time, he served as my teaching assistant.”
On the television screen, in the live broadcast of a financial program, Chen Junbin appeared with a full head of white hair and a long white beard, embodying the air of an old scholar:
“He admired me greatly. In his spare time, he enjoyed discussing medical skills and pharmaceutical knowledge with me.”
“I really liked and appreciated this young brother—this younger generation member dedicated to promoting traditional Chinese medicine. So, I shared these eight herbal formulas that I had developed with him. Back then, everyone’s awareness of intellectual property rights was still very weak. I didn’t think much of it.”
“But who would have guessed that a few years later, Jiang Changgeng would patent these formulas.”
“So, that means Jiang Changgeng is actually your junior in terms of seniority!”
The host shook his head regretfully. “If that’s the case, then Jiang Changgeng has effectively plagiarized from you. What a pity. Honestly, Old Jiang has quite a reputation in academic circles, and he’s not lacking in knowledge. I never thought he would do something like this!”
A guest nearby sneered, “Why is that impossible? The Pharmaceutical King Group sells its drugs at such high prices—it’s utterly unscrupulous. When the leadership is crooked, those below will follow. You could say that the Pharmaceutical King Group is fundamentally a company without any sense of social responsibility.”
The host smiled and said, “Elder Chen, many viewers have been calling in right now to condemn the Pharmaceutical King Group’s plagiarism. What do you think about that?”
“I don’t know if Changgeng can see this program, but I still want to say something to him!”
Chen Junbin’s voice was deep, tinged with regret and sorrow. “If everyone only wants to plagiarize, refuses to do research and development, and disregards intellectual property, then how can we ever revitalize traditional Chinese medicine? Who will bother with scientific research or the development of new drugs?”
“I think, Elder Chen, you should pursue legal action against the Pharmaceutical King Group!” suggested a guest from the legal field.
Chen Junbin then chuckled and said, “Perhaps he didn’t think that far ahead back then… We both wanted to promote traditional Chinese medicine. I understand that developing new drugs is indeed very difficult, and I can empathize with the sense of desperation. However, Tianwei Pharmaceuticals will still reserve the right to take legal action. As long as they stop producing those drugs, I won’t pursue it further.”
“Haha, Elder Chen, you are truly magnanimous! And Professor Fang, what’s your opinion?” The host turned to Fang Zhanbo, who was sitting to the side.
Fang Zhanbo furrowed his brow and said, “Personally, I detest this kind of behavior deeply. We can say that protecting intellectual property in China still has a long way to go—it simply can’t compare to the United States. But since Elder Chen is willing to let them off the hook out of tolerance, I suppose that’s fine. However, if the situation changes and they still don’t stop their infringement, then resorting to legal action will be necessary. Actually, I have many friends in the legal world, and I believe the Pharmaceutical King Group wouldn’t be able to withstand our legal team. They’re bound to lose this lawsuit. That said, the reason I invited Elder Chen to do this program is that, in my independent research on the mainland Chinese pharmaceutical industry, I’ve seen a lot of chaos. Personally, I show no mercy to behavior that infringes on the legitimate interests of other companies or harms consumers and shareholders…”
“Some media outlets have questioned the truth of Jiang Changgeng’s plagiarism. I’d like to ask this: can Jiang Changgeng’s academic level compare with Elder Chen’s? To put it bluntly, he’s nothing more than Elder Chen’s disciple! How could Elder Chen plagiarize him? It must be Jiang Changgeng plagiarizing Elder Chen!”
“With the Qingtian Laboratory being led by the unlearned and incompetent Jiang Tian and a third-rate scholar like Huang Zhihui, who has barely published any papers, you can just imagine the R&D capability of the Pharmaceutical King Group.”
…
Inside the trading room, if Ye Ziwei, Jiang Lin, and Jiang Banxia hadn’t heard Jiang Tian mention the media war the other side might wage beforehand, they probably would have passed out from sheer anger.
It was clearly Chen Junbin who had stolen the old man’s patents, yet he put on an act of “If you stop production, I’ll let you off the hook.” It was absolutely infuriating!
And Fang Zhanbo’s words were clearly a threat, a declaration that if you don’t stop production, our White Knight legal team will fight you to the end.
This wasn’t theft anymore—it was outright robbery!
To an outsider, this interview was a fatal blow to the already tottering Pharmaceutical King Group.
It not only attacked Jiang Changgeng and the Pharmaceutical King Group but also further cemented Chen Junbin’s image as a magnanimous and tolerant scholar.
After the live broadcast, newspapers and magazines followed suit, and then a swarm of financial media personalities again voiced their support for Chen Junbin and Tianwei Group, condemning the Pharmaceutical King Group and Jiang Changgeng in both word and print.
Wu Bo, a well-known financial media personality and author of the “Great Breakthrough” book series, stated:
“Such magnanimity and tolerance appearing in a grand master of traditional Chinese medicine is also a reflection of the thriving and flourishing state of the field. I believe that as the Chinese pharmaceutical industry advances together in this united and harmonious atmosphere, it will surely create new glories!”
Liu Zhong, an economics professor at Shui Mu University, known in the media for his sharp tongue and nicknamed the “Financial Heavy Artillery,” expressed a different view:
“If tolerance and magnanimity are applied to the protection of intellectual property, then those companies dedicated to innovation and research would have gone under long ago. If the facts are true, then legal responsibility must be strictly pursued. How else can you make an example of someone for the sake of industry development unless you make them suffer? The Pharmaceutical King Group and Jiang Changgeng are outcasts of the industry. Do Chen Junbin and Tianwei Pharmaceuticals represent the whole industry? Don’t be generous with other people’s goodwill!”
Others suggested, “We shouldn’t just listen to Chen Junbin’s side of the story. Shouldn’t we also interview Jiang Changgeng?”
But as soon as this was said, countless attacks came down on the speaker, drowning them out with insults.
“Haha, how ridiculous. Who is Chen Junbin? He’s a Red Wall imperial physician, the vice chairman of the China Association of Chinese Medicine and Pharmacology. By seniority, Jiang Changgeng is his student, who once served as his teaching assistant!”
“Exactly. Tianwei Pharmaceuticals is one of the top three companies nationwide. Its research strength is ten thousand times greater than the Pharmaceutical King Group’s. How could Tianwei possibly plagiarize them? It has to be the Pharmaceutical King Group doing the plagiarizing!”
“That old bastard Jiang Changgeng should just die to apologize to the world!”
For a time, as the program spread, all kinds of discussions raged, all agreeing that Jiang Changgeng and the Pharmaceutical King Group had plagiarized patents and were the black sheep of the Chinese pharmaceutical industry.
That evening, at a private club, Nie Mingyuan hosted a very secret gathering.
The scale of this gathering was in no way inferior to the high-level meetings at the Bajiao Club.
Basically, everyone in attendance was either a wealthy tycoon or a young elite worth at least a hundred million, or even a billion.
Since they had already drawn their swords and gone for the head, it was time to pass along some messages, publicize their achievements, and leave the Jiang family even more isolated.
