Chapter 58: President Bai’s Tragedy

  In front of a luxurious bronze mirror, Bai Wensheng adjusted the red tie on his chest worth over twenty thousand yuan, a smug smile curling his lips. Expensive things really were different—after rolling around in bed with two women all night, not a wrinkle on it. Even better, it could double as a hand-binding tool. Truly a must-have for home, travel, and all forms of complex bed exercise.

  He turned around, smacked each of the two seductive women on their snow-white asses a few times, snapped his fingers, and smiled with satisfaction. “I’m off. Once today’s contract is signed, I’ll come back and reward each of you with a car.”

  “Ah, thank you, President Bai!” The two women beamed with delight. One of them, pretending to be shy, asked sweetly, “President Bai, what contract are you signing today that makes you so happy? Why not tell us so we can share your joy?”

  Hearing that, Bai Wensheng raised a finger to his thick lips and smiled smugly. “No, no, baby, it’s a secret. I’ll tell you when I’m back.”

  Lately, everything had been going his way. First, Henggu Fund—one of the top ten domestic investment groups—had increased its holdings in Bai Pharmaceuticals by twenty percent, providing crucial financial support for market expansion. Then, an even more exciting piece of news arrived.

  Bai Pharmaceuticals had signed a preliminary cooperation agreement with the recently hyped-up “Dragonborn” Project Research Team. Bai Pharmaceuticals would have exclusive rights to market and sell the first-generation product, Nanxing One, for the South China region. Even with just that, Bai Pharmaceuticals was set to soar—a barnyard chicken turning into a phoenix.

  As soon as news of the preliminary agreement hit the media, Bai Pharmaceuticals’ stock had skyrocketed. With Henggu Fund’s investment, the company’s market value had already doubled. Bai Group had become one of the hottest stocks on the market.

  So yes, “riding high on the spring breeze” suited him perfectly.

  Of course, not everything was smooth sailing—like his useless son, who had been causing endless trouble recently and nearly stirred up a disaster a few days ago.

  A kidnapped police officer from the “Dragonborn” Project Research Team had confessed that Bai Liangfeng was the mastermind behind the kidnapping. Fortunately, Bai Wensheng had pulled strings, begged everyone he could, and spent millions to smooth things over. He had originally planned to bring his son out to see the world, but now decided it was better for him to lay low for a while.

  Still, a blessing in disguise—finally, the official signing day had come. The “Dragonborn” Project had already gained UICC recognition, meaning this thing was truly legitimate.

  Once the official signing happened and the media picked it up, Bai Pharmaceuticals’ stock hitting the daily limit every day would be no surprise.

  The halo of a Fortune 500 company—no, a Global 500 company—was already waving at him.

  Stepping out of his villa, a Mercedes-Benz waited outside. He straightened his shoulders, patted his bulging belly, wheezed a little, and climbed into the executive seat. With an inspired wave, he said, “Let’s go!”

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  To mark the occasion, the signing ceremony was held in the city government auditorium, presided over by Zhao Guoqing, Vice Governor of Southeast Province and Party Secretary of Meining City. That alone showed how important the event was.

  As for the companies involved—besides Bai Pharmaceuticals, there was Henghe Pharmaceuticals representing the North China region, the veteran state-owned Yuncao Group for the West China region, and Meiling Pharmaceuticals for the East China region, backed by the country’s largest real estate developer. These three companies were all top-100 enterprises in China. Standing among them made Bai Wensheng feel deeply proud; even his posture seemed straighter as he walked.

  In addition, many famous cancer hospitals across the nation had come to attend—not as distributors, but as the first clinical users of the mass-produced products.

  For these hospitals, it was a prime opportunity to boost their reputations.

  Bai Wensheng enthusiastically greeted everyone he knew. Events like this were perfect for networking and expanding business, and as a successful businessman, he wouldn’t miss the chance.

  At exactly nine o’clock, with half an hour until the signing began, the beautiful hostesses started distributing seat cards and guiding guests to their places.

  Bai Wensheng once again adjusted his red tie, feeling nervous excitement as he prepared to step onto the red-carpeted stage. As a signing company representative, he was entitled to it.

  Before the hostess arrived, a familiar—and utterly detested—figure appeared: Feng Tianlin, CEO of Xingyun Pharmaceuticals. They had been college classmates and lifelong rivals. They’d loved the same woman—Feng won her. After graduation, one returned to his family’s business, the other joined the state-owned Xingyun Pharma. The two had fought viciously in the pharmaceutical industry, but Bai Pharmaceuticals eventually triumphed, crushing the now-privatized Xingyun Pharma into near ruin.

  Xingyun was now in decline, its stock labeled ST (meaning it had posted losses for two consecutive years). Henggu Fund, which had invested in Bai Pharmaceuticals, recently proposed acquiring Xingyun through Bai Group, but Feng Tianlin had flatly rejected the offer.

  Of course, Bai Wensheng wasn’t angry—he preferred it that way. With Bai’s current power and Henggu Fund’s backing, they could easily launch a hostile takeover and devour Xingyun.

  Xingyun should be drowning in misery right now. Bai Wensheng hadn’t expected to see Feng Tianlin here, and judging by his calm, confident face, he didn’t look like a man beaten. Was he here to try his luck?

  The event hadn’t begun yet. Bai Wensheng smiled, adjusted his red tie again, and walked over proudly, pretending surprise. “Well, well, isn’t this President Feng? What brings you here today—are you signing with Meining University Medical School too?”

  Beside Feng Tianlin stood a tall, handsome young man and a woman in sunglasses, wrapped up like a secret agent but with a killer figure. Were those his kids?

  Feng Tianlin looked slightly surprised to see Bai Wensheng but didn’t answer right away. Instead, he turned to the young man. “Miss, Engineer Zhang, this is President Bai Wensheng, CEO of Bai Pharmaceuticals.”

  The young man looked up, smiled faintly—and that smile made Bai Wensheng uncomfortable. It looked... mocking.

  And the young man seemed oddly familiar. He felt like he’d seen him somewhere before.

  “President Feng, I heard some big investor’s eyeing your wreck of a company. What is it, barnyard chicken turning into a phoenix? You sound more confident lately.” Bai Wensheng said, irritation bubbling at Feng’s calmness.

  “Heh, President Bai, don’t be like that. I’m just here for the fun of it. By the way, what brings you here?”

  “Guess!” Bai Wensheng grinned smugly. Right now, he could afford to look down on Xingyun and Feng Tianlin. Once the signing was done, the hostile takeover would begin—and then it wouldn’t just be looking down; he’d kick the man straight out of the game.

  Feng frowned. “Don’t tell me you’re just here for fun too?”

  “Sorry, I’m not like you, running around begging others for scraps. Let me be honest—I’m here for something big. Haha, you’ll see for yourself from the audience soon enough. No need for me to say more. Haha, enjoy your stroll.”

  Just then, a beautiful hostess hurried over, carrying a golden seat card, her eyes scanning the three of them.

  Here it comes! Bai Wensheng grinned triumphantly, straightened his suit collar, puffed out his chest, and said, “Excuse me, I’ll go ahead.”

  The hostess came closer, completely ignoring Bai Wensheng. She bowed respectfully to Feng Tianlin and spoke in a soft, graceful voice. “Oh, pardon me—are you President Feng?”

  Bai Wensheng froze. He was sure he hadn’t misheard—she said ‘President Feng,’ not ‘President Bai.’

  Feng Tianlin nodded. “That’s me.”

  “President Feng, here’s your seat card. You’re seated beside Secretary Zhao. Please hold on to it; the signing ceremony is about to begin.” The hostess handed him the card respectfully, then led the way.

  Bai Wensheng turned to stone. Beside Secretary Zhao? What kind of VIP treatment was that? He could only watch as Feng Tianlin, walking on the plush red carpet, was guided to the stage like a guest of honor.

  “What the hell?” He loosened his shirt collar—why did this damn shirt feel so tight? Don’t tell me it’s fake.

  “Let’s get acquainted.” The young man beside Feng smiled and walked over to stand next to Bai Wensheng, looking toward the stage. “Zhang Yang.”

  Bai Wensheng was still stunned but subconsciously turned his head, coming back to his senses. “...You... you said your name is Zhang Yang?”

  Zhang Yang shrugged, nodded, and said, “Yeah. Bai Liangfeng’s classmate. The real deal.”