Chapter 198: Taking a Desperate Gamble
"What happened, Aunt?" Cai Yu felt a bad premonition. He knew his aunt had a poor reputation, but he had chosen her for this job because, despite her promiscuous lifestyle, she was good at business—especially in finance and investment. Within the family, she ranked among the top ten.
Besides, if Cai Yu didn't want to be watched by the Securities Commission, he needed a reliable fund company to take over Yimao's stocks. After much thought, his aunt's Xinjin Fund seemed the safest choice. Plus, her unrecognized husband, Fan Changlong, was timid by nature and had a son with her. Cai Yu wasn't afraid he'd dare to seize Xinjin's shares.
"We've fallen into their trap," Cai Yanling said bitterly over the phone. "Xinjin Fund has been acquired by Lanchen Holdings."
"What?" Cai Yu's head spun; he nearly spat blood. "Didn't Fan Changlong hold twenty-five percent of the shares? Add the twenty percent from Holland's Lien Company—that's forty-five percent. There's no way those retail investors could've gathered fifty-one percent!"
"The problem lies with Lien Company. They secretly transferred their shares to Lanchen. Then Lanchen, through indirect control, merged with the third-largest shareholder, Leishun Company, gaining another ten percent—thirty-five in total. And worst of all, that bastard Fan Changlong…"
Cai Yanling hesitated before continuing, "He ran off abroad with Fan Dingding, and even transferred his shares to Lanchen. Now Lanchen Group holds fifty-five percent of Xinjin Fund and is in absolute control."
"No way!" Even with his composure, Cai Yu almost fainted upon hearing that. "Aunt, didn't I warn you again and again to be careful? Especially with Fan Changlong—he's greedy as hell. I should never have given him shares in the first place!"
"Sigh, it's too late now. What do we do?"
"What do we do?" Cai Yu was dumbfounded. You're asking me what to do? All our scheming and effort had two goals—and now Yang Fei is completely out of reach. That leaves only one fallback."
Control Yimao Group, or buy low and sell high.
But damn it, after all this, did we just make wedding clothes for someone else?
Now, he didn't even hold a single share of Yimao Group. What the hell had the past week been for? Six hundred million gone down the drain.
And now, inexplicably, only a little over three hundred million remained. A loss of more than two hundred million—two hundred million!
For the Cai family, that wasn't much, but the loss was still massive.
And that wasn't all—they had even lost Xinjin Fund in the process.
Cai Yu's grip on his phone tightened. Calm down. He had to calm down. If he collapsed now, everything would truly be for nothing. There had to be a way out.
"Aunt, don't panic. Tell me—why did Fan Changlong run?" Cai Yu couldn't believe that cowardly man dared to flee with nearly six hundred million.
The Cai family's power reached across the world—was he tired of living?
"That bastard caught wind that someone reported him and Feihe Fund to the Securities Commission for shorting Yimao through buy-sell manipulation. Then his past scandals with drugging two young actresses were dug up, videos and all. With both hitting at once, I don't know where he found the guts, but he just ran."
"But Aunt, for Fan Changlong to do that, he must've planned it! Didn't you notice anything?"
On the other end, Cai Yanling went silent. After a long pause, she said bitterly, "Some bastard hacked Fan Changlong's hard drive and sent our sex videos to the entire family... I was overwhelmed dealing with that. How could I pay attention to anything else?"
"Damn it!" Cai Yu slammed the phone down and roared like a tiger, his heart bleeding. "Damn you, Zhang Yang! I won't let you get away with this!"
It was clear someone had set him up—and there was no doubt who it was. It had to be that bastard Zhang Yang!
"Young Master Cai! What happened?" Du Yuheng, standing nearby, couldn't hear the phone conversation, but one look at Cai Yu's face told him enough. He'd taken a massive loss, and it had to be Zhang Yang's doing. Given Cai Yu's usual composure—able to stay calm even under thunderbolts—it was shocking to see him like this.
"Didn't you say you had people?" Cai Yu's eyes turned cold as he stared at Du Yuheng, speaking each word slowly.
"People? Of course I do, but if you're talking about going against Zhang Yang, I can't guarantee it'll work." Du Yuheng knew Zhang Yang's fists all too well. It was a pity that guy didn't compete in Sanda tournaments.
"No, not Zhang Yang. I want you to kidnap Yang Fei for me."
"Huh?" Du Yuheng scratched his head. "Didn't you glare at me earlier when I suggested it? Now you want to do it?"
Cai Yu truly despised this fool. Just do it—why talk so damn much?
But since he still needed him, Cai Yu suppressed his irritation and said calmly, "Times have changed. Since he's using underhanded means, we'll return the favor."
"Alright then, Young Master Cai, don't worry. I can't deal with Zhang Yang, but Yang Fei? She's delicate, defenseless, and smoking hot—easy pickings." Du Yuheng's eyes gleamed as he thought of Yang Fei's stunning face, fiery figure, and perfect legs. He swallowed hard, then grinned at Cai Yu. "But, uh, Young Master Cai, after you're done, maybe you could let me have a turn too? Heh... Yang Fei's just too damn beautiful."
Cai Yu rubbed his temple in irritation, wanting to slap him. The Du family really were a bunch of scum—no wonder they were nothing but local bullies in Southeast Province. Their downfall was inevitable.
Still, he kept a calm expression. After a moment, he said, "Fine. Considering how much money we've lost, all because of her, she's partly to blame. If she can't be mine, then so be it. Do whatever you want with her—I'll back you up."
"Thanks, Young Master Cai." Du Yuheng's eyes lit up. Finally, some fun ahead.
He figured Cai Yu must've given up on Yang Fei after that phone call. Whatever happened didn't matter. Since Cai Yu no longer cared, he'd make sure to enjoy her himself—and even if something went wrong, Cai Yu would share the blame.
With Cai Yu covering him, what was there to fear?
"I'll get ready right away." Excitement surged through Du Yuheng, his lust taking over. He could already imagine stripping Yang Fei naked and ravaging her.
With that, he rushed out immediately.
Watching his back disappear, Cai Yu smirked coldly. He walked to the massive floor-to-ceiling window, stared out at the scenery, then took out his phone and made a call.
"Du Yuheng plans to kidnap Yang Fei. Send someone to follow and report to me…" Yang Fei was driving her Z4 along the ring road. Ahead was the undersea tunnel. Once through, it wouldn't be far to her new home, Nuwa Residence.
She had lived there for quite some time now—from initial unease to quiet comfort.
She was someone who could adapt easily. Though she preferred solitude, watching others' liveliness sometimes brought her joy.
The phone on the seat rang again. She frowned. In recent days, she'd received countless harassing messages, all saying the same thing—become Du Yuheng's private tutor or girlfriend, or the Yimao Group her mother once worked for would become their possession.
Yang Fei couldn't fathom how someone could be so pathetic—using such disgusting methods to pursue a girl.
She had no impression of Du Yuheng whatsoever, much less interest. As for the five million Yimao shares—sure, she cared about them, but so what? She never intended to profit from them. She just wanted to keep them. Whether they were worth one yuan or a hundred million didn't matter to her.
So even if those stocks became worthless, she'd never trouble Zhang Yang over it.
Her phone kept ringing. Annoyed, Yang Fei thought for a moment, then turned it off.
As her car entered the tunnel, she soon noticed three black sedans appear behind her, surrounding her car in a triangle formation, blocking her lane.
As she drove on, the cars drew closer. One pulled in front, flashing its hazard lights while slowing down, while the other two boxed her in on both sides.
Yang Fei wasn't stupid. She quickly realized that not far after the tunnel, there were no cameras. If they were targeting her, they'd trap her where no footage could be captured.
It was too late. Instinctively, she reached for her phone. The villa was only a few kilometers away. Hopefully, he was home. The only named contact in her phone—besides her university—was Zhang Yang.
Just as her hand brushed the phone, the car on the left swerved toward her, and the one ahead slowed to a crawl, hazard lights still flashing.
Yang Fei slammed the brakes, trying to evade!
But the three cars seemed to anticipate it. They braked simultaneously, stopping so close that they boxed her Z4 completely.
"Miss Yang, we meet again!" The passenger window of the car on her left rolled down, revealing a face she vaguely remembered—handsome, even.
Yang Fei frowned. She really couldn't recall who he was. "Do I know you?"
The man paused, then grinned. "Don't know me? Haha, that's fine. You'll definitely get to know me soon enough."
As he spoke, his eyes filled with lewd delight, staring at Yang Fei hungrily.
The weather had warmed up today. Yang Fei wore a tight, sky-blue embroidered qipao with a black wool shawl. Her long, pale legs were bare, gleaming under the midday sun.
Her already full chest was accentuated by the qipao's tight waistline, forming two proud, trembling peaks that made one's breath catch.