Chapter 91: No Humanity, Only Interests

"You… You…"

The former directors were so furious they stomped their feet, then slammed the door on their way out.

Li Yinhe wore a relaxed expression as he spat at their retreating backs.

Pah!

"I've had to put up with you lot for a long time!"

The reason the Li Group had developed so slowly was partly because these directors were constantly holding it back.

Elder Li had brought them onto the board with the intention of helping out his "brothers," but it didn't take long for them to betray him and side with the Lu Family.

And even after that, Elder Li still insisted that people were inherently good and that they had to trust in their brothers' conscience.

Now the results were in. What conscience?

There was only self-interest.

"Mr. Zhu, you're being far too generous. We can't let you take such a loss. Let's calculate the price per share and set a more reasonable range."

Zhu Qiyu smiled magnanimously. "There's no need. Just give me the shares they left behind. The price isn't worth discussing. All I need to know is that the Li Group is an outstanding company. That's enough."

Zhu Qiyu's words were met with a long silence from Li Yinhe.

'Now this is what you call a golden manager!'

Such vision, such boldness.

The shares these people had given up were originally worth just over two hundred million, but with Zhu Qiyu's purchase, their value had multiplied fivefold.

Think about it, five times!

Didn't that mean the Li Group's valuation had also multiplied by five?

More specifically, the net worth of Li Yinhe, Li Xue, and Elder Li had all just quintupled.

What else was there to say?

This was a huge win!

Li Yinhe's eyes were filled with excitement.

He grabbed Zhu Qiyu's hand and shook it again and again.

"Mr. Zhu, you truly are… one of a kind!"

Zhu Qiyu laughed heartily. "Many people say that. And everyone who has said it has gone on to succeed. I believe the same will be true for you!"

"Alright then! Xue'Er, Lao Chen, Old Zhou, let's hold a provisional board meeting and vote to have Mr. Zhu join the board of directors!"

Li Xue couldn't agree more. If Zhu Qiyu hadn't saved the day, the Li Group would have completely fallen apart today.

Not only had they avoided collapse, but her own net worth had multiplied fivefold because of it.

It was incredible just thinking about it.

Lao Chen and Old Zhou quickly chimed in with their agreement.

They were all deeply grateful to Zhu Qiyu.

But Zhu Qiyu hastily waved his hands. "Absolutely not. I don't know the first thing about the real estate industry. If I joined the board, wouldn't I just be giving uninformed commands? I'd end up ruining a great company like the Li Group!"

"I'm already endlessly grateful just to be able to ride your coattails and see my assets appreciate!"

Chen Quan said, "Mr. Zhu, you're being too modest. You've helped the company so much; a seat on the board is a small gesture. Even if you don't say a word and just send a proxy to raise their hand at votes, it would be a token of our appreciation!"

Zhu Qiyu shook his head so vigorously it seemed to leave afterimages, waving his hand resolutely. "Absolutely not. It goes against my investment principles. Please, don't say any more! Otherwise, I might have to reconsider this investment!"

'Reconsider? Does that mean the deal's off?'

Li Yinhe hurriedly said, "Since you insist, Mr. Zhu, I won't force the issue! But if you have any suggestions for the company, you must let us know. Don't hold back!"

Zhu Qiyu nodded. "Of course. But I'm sure that any suggestion a layman like me could have, your sharp eyes have already seen and dealt with."

Everyone burst into laughter, and the atmosphere became wonderfully harmonious and friendly.

Lu Baichuan and Lu Yi walked out, flanked by the former directors.

Employees stood on either side, their eyes filled with fear.

They had all heard that these major shareholders had pulled out in unison, leaving the company with so little cash on hand that it couldn't even make the loan payments the bank was demanding.

At this rate, the bank would probably file a lawsuit before the courthouse closed for the day.

Lu Yi's young secretary deserved most of the credit for this terrifying atmosphere.

She was the one who kept spreading news of the stock withdrawal, throwing the employees into a panic.

HR Director Sun had also fanned the flames, spreading rumors that they should resign immediately, or they wouldn't even get their N+2 severance pay.

As a result, a long line of employees scrambling to resign had formed at the HR department.

The employees lining this hallway were the very ones waiting to quit.

But what the employees didn't notice was that these former directors had ashen faces, their expressions hiding a deep, simmering rage.

'They had a major backer lined up and didn't even tell us.'

They brought him in only after they had sold their shares. After investing in the company for so many years, they had gotten nothing but a pittance in dividends. All that work had been for nothing.

If you factored in the gas money for driving to and from board meetings, plus the "labor fees" they deserved for zoning out during them, they had actually taken a loss.

'What a complete joke!'

Once outside, Lu Yi chattered on, complaining incessantly and stoking the fires of the directors' internal rage until it was uncontrollable.

"I can't! I can't take this bullshit!"

One of the former directors grit his teeth, his anger boiling over. He spun around and stormed back toward the Li Group's entrance.

A triumphant smile flashed in Lu Yi's eyes. 'How could I let you all get away so cleanly?'

'I have to make sure you leave with some lasting memories, too.'

With one person taking the lead, the other directors had the same idea.

'How could we possibly tolerate this? We can't!'

They all spun around and charged back. If they couldn't get their shares back, they'd at least scratch up Li Xue's pretty face.

"Lv Yicheng, what are you doing bringing people back here? You have no connection to this company anymore!" Captain Meng stood at the entrance with his security guards.

He also knew the company was on the verge of collapse, but he had anticipated that anything could happen on this final day, so he had been patrolling back and forth with his security team.

He just hadn't expected these directors to cause a scene at the company even after pulling their investments.

It was as if they wouldn't rest until they'd completely destroyed the company.

How could he possibly tolerate that?

"Get out of my way! You're just the Li Family's dog! What right do you have to stop me?" Lv Yicheng roared, then continued to charge forward.

'Let's see you try and stop me, Meng Gou!'

Captain Meng reached out an arm to block him, then gave him a firm shove outward.

"Lv Yicheng, you have one foot in the grave already. You should try to build some good karma!"

"How can there be someone like you in this world, who takes advantage of others and still plays the victim!"

Lv Yicheng thought, 'What the fuck do you know?'

He still tried to force his way in. Captain Meng took a step back and singled out two of his men.

"You two, escort him out!"

These two were the worst fighters and also the weakest on the security team, which would ensure they didn't injure these old bones.

Lv Yicheng struggled, cursing loudly, "None of you in the Li Family are any good! Using tricks against an old director like me! Is there no law?!"

The other directors rushed forward to support Lv Yicheng, desperately trying to push him forward.

They were determined to make a stand and salvage some of their pride right there.

Captain Meng couldn't watch any longer. "So you're determined to do this the hard way, are you?"

He strode over, plucked the former directors off Lv Yicheng one by one, and tossed them into a flowerbed.

The soil in the flowerbed was soft, so it was unlikely to hurt their old bones.

This sent the former directors into a sputtering rage.

"You dog of the Li Family! What's the use of being so loyal? Sooner or later, they'll cast you aside once you've served your purpose!"

Captain Meng snorted. "Even if I am a dog, it's still better than being heartless scoundrels like you!"

"As long as I'm on guard, don't even think about causing trouble!"

"I will guard this place properly on its last day!"

As the security guards moved forward to drive them away again, the former directors hastily departed.

After all that commotion, their backs ached and their legs were sore. All their pent-up resentment had transformed into a towering inferno of rage.

"Lao Lu, do you have a plan? Are we really just going to let the Li Family get away with being so smug?"

Lu Baichuan said coldly, "Look at you, so pathetic. So what if they have money? What damn good is money? Do they have a project?"

Lu Baichuan made a grand gesture, clenching his fist firmly in front of his chest. "In my hands, I have a massive, legendary project: City South Lot 6. I've already gotten verbal approval from Qiao Canhua. With this, why would we need to worry about a source of funding?"

"Whether we develop it ourselves or subcontract it to others, the profits will be enormous."

"Zhu Qiyu only invested because the construction industry is new and exciting to him. Once he understands how brutal this industry really is, he'll definitely pull his funding. The higher the Li Group climbs now, the harder they will fall in the future."

"For now, there's a more critical matter. The Li Group's CFO position is vacant. We must find a way to make sure the next one is our person."