Chen Yan was even more curious than He Mengxue about what exactly Zhang Yonghao's purpose was today.

So, when he noticed that Zhang Yonghao's expression was off, he turned on his "Internal Headphones," which allowed him to intercept quite a few clues and pieces of information.

As it turned out, although Zhang Yonghao was currently worth a considerable amount, he didn't have much cash on hand since it was still the startup phase of his business.

Moreover, because Chen Yan had repeatedly "smashed" him with cash, Zhang Yonghao was holding a grudge and wanted to earn more money. He planned to buy back some shares of the company to increase his influence there.

Therefore, he set his sights on Chen Yan.

He had heard from the financial director and others that Chen Yan had stirred up the financial circles in Hong Kong and had the reputation of being the "Eastern Buffett."

Which made him think of collaborating with Chen Yan.

But even though he wanted to collaborate, he didn't have the funds.

Therefore, he considered leveraging his own shares, which were the most valuable assets he owned. If he took them to the bank as collateral or used them as security with someone else, he could easily take out a loan of more than ten billion yuan.

He wanted to use this sum to get involved in Chen Yan's business.

After hearing these thoughts through the "Internal Headphones," Chen Yan roughly guessed how the "Strong Buy Card" had taken effect this time.

Most likely, it involved persuading Zhang Yonghao to mortgage his shares and take out a loan, then follow Chen Yan in stock trading, and cause him to lose all that money.

In this way, Zhang Yonghao's shares would end up in Chen Yan's hands.

However, Chen Yan felt that the unpredictable part was: How could Zhang Yonghao possibly trust him and really go stock trading with him?

After all, they had been enemies not long ago.

Did Zhang Yonghao dare to engage in a business worth tens of billions with him?

Putting himself in Zhang Yonghao's place, Chen Yan knew he certainly wouldn't have the nerve to take such a major risk.

Secondly, even if Zhang Yonghao ended up losing money and his shares were sold off, Chen Yan couldn't guarantee that these shares would end up in his hands.

After all, if Zhang Yonghao's shares were pledged to the bank or a third party, whether they ended up directly in their hands or were auctioned off, the chances of Chen Yan getting them directly were slim.

And, having just caused Zhang Yonghao to lose all his money, would Zhang Yonghao agree to sell his shares to him?

What's more...

While probing Zhang Yonghao's inner thoughts, Chen Yan also learned something surprising: While he was plotting against Zhang Yonghao's shares, Zhang Yonghao was also thinking of ousting him.

It had to be said, both men seemed to think alike; neither could sleep soundly with the other beneath the same roof.

At this point, it was merely business—Chen Yan wasn't angry.

It all came down to one's own abilities.

However, what made Chen Yan furious was that Zhang Yonghao had hooked up with Zhao Qingtian again.

Chen Yan felt that this guy was truly an ungrateful cur. He wondered what kind of love potion the Zhao Family had fed him, making him so obsessed with Zhao Qingtian.

No matter the state of the company, he was keen to seek refuge with Zhao Qingtian.

This reaffirmed Chen Yan's determination to oust him.

With that in mind, Chen Yan picked out some topics he could discuss and chatted with He Mengxue for a bit.

Even though Chen Yan didn't divulge many details and keys, the information he did share shocked He Mengxue immensely.

After getting out of the car, she couldn't help but exclaim to Chen Yan, "Zhang Yonghao actually wants to trade stocks with you?"

"Isn't he afraid that you'll purposely make him lose money?"

Chen Yan shrugged, "Mother hen."

Perhaps the He family really had a business fund, as He Mengxue showed a lot of interest in the matter. Back in the hotel room, she eagerly discussed it with Chen Yan.

Chen Yan chatted with her half-heartedly.

In reality, his heart had already flown to Lu Man.

He hadn't contacted Lu Man for a whole day and was curious about how she was doing.

Just as he was thinking this, suddenly, his phone buzzed twice.

Chen Yan picked it up and saw that speaking of Cao Cao, Cao Cao appeared—Lu Man had actually sent him a message.

[Chen Yan. I'm leaving. I have an interview this afternoon and then I'll be busy.]

[Since the schedule is arranged by the organizers and there are too many people around, it's not convenient for me to come out. So, I won't be coming to accompany you.]

[However, you'd better be on your best behavior while you're here. If I hear about you flirting with other girls…]

[Then I'll cut it off, cut off!]

At the end of the WeChat message, she even added a scissor emoji, which made Chen Yan feel a chill down below.

He glanced at the enthusiastic He Mengxue, then sent Lu Man a message, [Don't worry. I'm on my best behavior. I definitely won't flirt with any girls.]

Hmm... if a girl flirts with me, that's not my business.

Perhaps sensing Chen Yan's distraction, He Mengxue pouted and asked, "What are you doing? Why aren't you chatting with me anymore?"

Chen Yan put away his phone and coughed, "It's nothing. I just thought of some things I need to arrange."

"You just wait here for a while, and try to guess Zhang Yonghao's real intentions."

Hearing that Chen Yan had serious business to attend to, He Mengxue stopped her playful behavior and didn't interrupt anymore.

...

Meanwhile, in the private room of the restaurant that Chen Yan had left, Zhang Yonghao was chatting with Vice President Wang and the finance director.

He said, "Today, I probed Chen Yan a bit, and he admitted that he really did make a lot of money in Hong Kong."

At this point, he turned to Vice President Wang, "Lao Wang, have you collected the old newspapers and information from Hong Kong that you mentioned?"

Vice President Wang nodded. He took out his phone, opened the WeChat history, then showed them a picture, "This was specially collected by a friend of mine in Hong Kong."

"Indeed, information about Chen Yan was blocked by all the media in Hong Kong, supposedly by the hands of the He family on Qin Island."

"However, before the blockade, Hong Kong actually buzzed with the news."

"So, a careful inquiry still yields information."

Zhang Yonghao took the phone and began to peruse it meticulously.

The images were of yellowed newspapers and screenshots of outdated websites.

All of them used front-page headlines to tell the story of how Chen Yan made his name in the Hong Kong financial circles.

Seeing Zhang Yonghao engrossed, Vice President Wang explained, "Additionally, my friend is also somewhat involved in the financial circles. I asked him to help make inquiries."

"Although Chen Yan's information no longer circulates among the public, his legend continues to thrive in the financial circles."

"His account in the Hong Kong futures market ends in 88, and he won several bets on Tuesdays. Therefore, he's referred to inside the circle as 'Black Double Eight.'"

"Every time this account moves, the returns are around tenfold. He has never known defeat."

"So everyone in the financial circles knows that once he buys, you can follow suit."

"It is said that the funds in this account are now at least forty to fifty billion yuan."

Hearing Vice President Wang's description, Zhang Yonghao gasped and exclaimed in surprise, "That much? All in cash?"

Vice President Wang nodded earnestly.

Zhang Yonghao said, "No wonder he was confident enough to digest all of our financing. And he dared to invest in the microblogging platform."

"If I had that much money, I would dare as well."

Vice President Wang nodded again.

After listening to all the information, Zhang Yonghao pondered for a while and then made up his mind, "Alright. If that's the case, then let's go for broke with him!"

"Let Chen Yan help us make a fortune!"

Upon hearing this, the finance director asked, "But why would Chen Yan want to help us?"

Zhang Yonghao stroked his chin and said, "What if I said that, after the deal is done, I'm willing to sell him 5% of the shares? What do you think, would he accept that?"

The finance director and Vice President Wang exchanged looks, then hesitated a bit, "He might... probably be willing, I guess?"

Zhang Yonghao continued, "What if I directly pledge my shares to him?"

"What do you think, would he accept?"

The finance director and Vice President Wang were surprised, "Pledge to him? That's not okay."

Zhang Yonghao looked at them, "Why not?"

Vice President Wang quickly said, "That way, he will definitely do everything he can to make us lose money so that he can easily get the shares."

Zhang Yonghao smiled and replied, "What if, my pledging condition is that he must commit twice as much capital as us for the same operation..."

Vice President Wang and the finance director rapidly calculated the ratio and value.

If three people together pledge 20% of the shares, that's roughly 40 billion yuan.

And Chen Yan would have to put up 80 billion to gamble with them.

That is to say, Chen Yan needs to prepare at least 120 billion in cash to carry out this bet.

Based on Chen Yan's current net worth and the bank's collateral ratio, it's almost like Chen Yan would have to pledge about half of his own company's shares.

If they lost everything, Chen Yan would lose all that money and the shares.

He would be paying 120 billion for a 20% stake—more than triple the price.

No one would make such a deal.

After all, with such a high premium, he could directly acquire the shares from several owners.

So...

If Chen Yan were to play, he would definitely choose a safe bet to earn 5% of the shares.

Realizing this, the finance director nodded vigorously, "Such a binding agreement, if realized, would certainly hold no issues!"

"Only... would Chen Yan really go for it?"

Zhang Yonghao smiled and said, "If he's as magical as they say in Hong Kong, why wouldn't he take a surefire bet on 5% of the shares?"

"He's always looking to increase his influence in the company. With another 5% of the shares, his stake would once again near the 50% mark."

After listening to Zhang Yonghao, the finance director furrowed his brows and asked, "In that case, what will we do?"

Vice President Wang, who had been silent until now, suddenly clapped his hands excitedly, "Brilliant!"

"We're about to cooperate with the Zhao Family."

"Once we bring in the Zhao Family's shares, we can directly dilute Chen Yan's stake. So, even if he buys 5%, we can dilute it! His share will actually decrease instead of increase!"

Seeing that Vice President Wang had figured out his plan, Zhang Yonghao smiled with satisfaction.

Hearing Vice President Wang's words, the finance director was dumbfounded.

He muttered to himself, "This strategy is too cunning... er... too ingenious!"

With such a complex scheme, each individual's net worth would exceed a hundred million, and Zhang Yonghao's might even be five or six hundred million.

While the company would receive an injection of funds from the Zhao Family, alleviating operational pressures.

Only Chen Yan would have labored for nothing for the trio, and his shares would even be diluted.

Even if it went to court, they would encounter obstruction from the Zhao Family and face delays.

And the longer it drags on, the more his shares would be diluted. It's like a cascade of bad luck—disaster upon disaster arriving at his doorstep!

Then the three of them discussed the details of the plan again until they were satisfied and left the restaurant.

So, the next day at noon, Chen Yan received this "quote" riddled with layers of traps...

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