Within just a few days, Luochuan was abuzz with undercurrents.
It was as if a storm was brewing, with the wind sweeping through the tower, heralding its arrival.
Even the ordinary citizens of Luochuan could sense something unusual in the air.
Tianxu Group, one of Luochuan's leading enterprises, was being investigated.
Various inspections followed, and Tianxu Group's affiliated businesses all suffered repercussions of varying degrees.
All of Tianxu Group's assets were under scrutiny by the relevant departments.
It was said that there were safety issues, with sub-standard raw materials being used and even instances of expired products being sold after their shelf lives were altered.
Some industry-wide unspoken rules were now being brought into the open.
Panic spread like wildfire.
Many businesses connected to Tianxu Group feared they would be the next to face a surprise inspection.
While all this seemed normal, it was also highly abnormal.
Rumors circulated that the Jiangbei Wang Group was the target, and Tianxu's predicament was merely incidental, like catching a rabbit while clearing weeds.
Others went as far as to claim that Tianxu Group had offended someone they shouldn't have.
Zhou Guoping, a special commentator on the economic section of Luochuan's local media, published an article in the latest issue of the newspaper, pointing out that from an economic standpoint, the turmoil surrounding Tianxu Group and the sluggishness of Ningyue Group would lead investors to lower their confidence in Luochuan's economic development, and adopt a cautious attitude towards Luochuan's economic situation.
Indeed, the consecutive problems of two major leading enterprises in a region would have a significant impact on Luochuan's overall GDP.
However, strangely, Tianxu Group maintained a remarkable degree of restraint during this turmoil.
Up until now, they had not held any press conferences for crisis public relations.
Considering that Tianxu Group was a local powerhouse in Luochuan, it was peculiar that this powerhouse dared not utter a single word.
This left everyone baffled, with speculation running rife, and no one understanding Tianxu Group's intentions.
Even less was known about who the mastermind behind all this truly was.
"Director Liu, perhaps we should endure a little longer?"
"Endure? Until when do you expect me to endure? What, haven't you made contact on your end? That woman is pushing her luck, trying to walk all over me."
Liu Wen slammed his hand on the table, causing the lid of the white porcelain teacup to rattle onto the surface.
"Director Liu, they said they would give us an answer today, so there shouldn't be any problem, it's just..."
Huang Shan glanced at Liu Wen, hesitating.
"You're leaving half your sentence hanging, what, are you planning to bury that half with you? Spit it out if you have something to say."
It wasn't that Liu Wen was impatient; he knew precisely who was targeting him.
The series of moves from the Jiangbei Wang Group had truly hurt him.
In such a short period, Liu Wen's assets had shrunk by fifty percent. The board of directors was extremely displeased with him; if he didn't hold the majority of the group's shares, the board would have turned against him.
It was precisely when he was in a state of utter distress that Huang Shan was being cryptic, so who could he blame but himself for being angry?
"Director Liu, please don't rush. They're asking for a steep price. Initially, they demanded ten billion, and after two days of negotiation, I managed to get it down to seven billion."
"Seven billion! Aren't you a thief? That's more exorbitant than those Gu Masters!"
The last time, those Gu Masters only asked for one hundred million, and now, just for a few assassins, they wanted seven hundred million. What was the difference between this and robbery?
Huang Shan wiped the sweat from his brow and quickly said,
"Director Liu, this time, because the target is Wang Yuyan, the prominent head of the Wang Group, the risk is very high, which is why they are demanding such a high price."
Upon hearing this, Liu Wen frowned, pondering for a moment before decisively making up his mind.
"Damn it, we'll go all out. Seven billion it is!"
If they couldn't get rid of Wang Yuyan and her associates now, he might lose tens or hundreds of billions. Seven billion, even if it was a major financial blow, Liu Wen had to accept it.
In other words, if they could achieve a permanent solution, he wouldn't even begrudge ten billion.
Since it was a gamble, they might as well bet big.