Chapter 476

At ten in the morning, the chairman of the board of the Liji Group, wearing a not-so-thick but very warm cotton coat, drove out of his house.

Today was the day of the court hearing, but he wasn’t very worried about it. After all, for the corporate group, the worst-case scenario was to pay a compensation of $4,000,000.

He knew that recently someone had been shorting the corporate group’s stock. He, the board of directors, and the shareholders had all discussed this issue. Everyone believed that these people would not become a problem for the company.

The reason was simple: this was not the first time the Liji Group had done this. They had done it many times before.

Although the stock price would indeed decline due to their issues with business ethics, it would immediately rise again after the annual report came out.

The capital market, in the end, is all about a company’s profitability, not its moral issues.

If a company’s success or failure was judged solely by its business ethics, then the entire Federation would be full of poor people.

This was just a small accident. As long as they could drag out the lawsuit, the stock would not only not fall, but might even rise.

Because through their practical actions, they had expressed their core message to the shareholders and investors—don’t even think about taking a single penny from their pockets.

So he didn’t care about this matter at all. Yesterday he had made an appointment with an old friend to go fishing in the suburbs today.

He liked fishing.

He liked the game of wits between him and the fish under the calm water surface when he was looking at it. When he finally pulled up the fishing rod and watched the fish swing its body limply in the air, the sense of satisfaction was even more satisfying than sleeping with a female celebrity.

He loved the sport of fishing far more than others.

So when someone invited him, he immediately came out.

He drove his beloved pickup truck, carrying his fishing gear worth several thousand dollars, and arrived at a river on the edge of the city.

At this time, the water surface had already begun to freeze. To fish, you first had to drill a hole in the ice.

Winter fishing is actually very interesting, especially since the fish at the bottom of the water in winter are particularly fat. This makes it easier for anglers to break their past records.

Either in length or in weight.

A total of three people came. The other two were old friends of his, and they had also gone fishing together before.

They even had a house by the river, which was built specifically for fishing.

So the happiness of the rich is something that many people cannot feel. Just for the convenience of fishing, they had spent more than a hundred thousand to build this house.

After fishing, they could change into a new set of clothes here, then deal with the fish they had caught, and also have a drink and eat something good.

This was a kind of pleasure.

The three of them changed into their winter fishing clothes and came to the ice with smiles. They used a special drilling machine to drill several holes in the ice, and finally broke them to form a single piece.

This was an irregular hole with a diameter of about three to four meters. After the water surged up, it dropped a little. The three of them set up their custom-made comfortable chairs, also placed a brazier and a few windscreens, and began to fish.

There was pre-ground coffee on the brazier, constantly bubbling inside.

There was also some food next to the brazier, fruit and the like. The skin gradually shrank, and after a while, it would become very hot and delicious.

“The media has been all about your company these few days. Why is the impact so big this time?”

The chairman of the board kneaded the bait, put the hook into the hole in the ice. “Some people are shorting the corporate group’s stock. It’s highly likely they did it. It’s nothing more than wanting to make a profit by taking advantage of this kind of thing.”

“The hyenas of Detran Street are everywhere, it’s not strange.”

Detran Street was a famous financial street in New Golden City. On both sides of the road and in the surrounding area, more than 70% of the Federation’s financial companies were gathered.

A large number of foundations were also here, forming a special financial industry atmosphere.

Some said that Detran Street was the place with the strongest financial atmosphere in the Federation and even the world. The streets were full of financial practitioners whose income was calculated in seconds.

They joked that if someone dropped a dollar on the streets of Detran Street, it would still be there after twenty-four hours.

Because no one would bend down to pick it up. Just the process of bending down and picking it up might cause people to lose many times more income than that.

This was actually a very exaggerated statement, but people in the Federation and even outside the Federation believed these things.

They just believed that everyone on Detran Street was picking up money, picking up money from the financial capital market, but they ignored the essence of the financial game.

To obtain more benefits, there are some people here who specialize in using legal loopholes to make a profit. These people are the hyenas of Detran Street.

Once they find their prey, they will create contradictions and conflicts, and use the power of media public opinion to make a fortune.

Although they sometimes fail, overall, there are still many who make money, because people will not pay attention to those who do not make money.

The other companion in a red hat showed a slightly schadenfreude expression. When he spoke, he would also spray out white mist, covering some of his face. “Sounds terrible. Being targeted by these hyenas, they will definitely bite a piece of flesh off you.”

The chairman of the board shook his head, his expression very calm. “No, from those stupid investors.”

He emphasized his tone a little. “For us, we don’t make money through the financial market. What allows us to make a profit are those real industries. And as long as our profits reach the target this year, the environment they create can’t affect the recovery and rise of the stock price at all.”

“We are very confident in this aspect.”

Another friend, wearing a fur hat, asked again, “Is that $4,000,000 real?”

“Come on, I’m just here to enjoy fishing.” The chairman of the board complained, but still explained.

“We suspect that this is the result of them setting a trap for us, so we have been appealing. Our luck is not bad. The Supreme Court has accepted this appeal.”

“Alright, let’s not discuss these things that affect our mood. Let’s just enjoy fishing.”

They were using the best bait, fishing in the section of the river with the most fish in winter. This itself was a kind of cheating.

The number of fish under the water was clearly increasing, and they also began to lift their rods frequently.

Every time they reeled in, it was an expectation full of surprises. Maybe they could get a super big fish that would break their career record.

At noon, the three of them ate something in the house by the river and then took a nap.

After all, they were old. After sleeping until about 3:30, they got up again and continued to fish.

They would not leave until five o’clock. This way, the morning and afternoon added up to at least four hours, which was enough for them to have their fill.

In the afternoon, the chairman of the board’s luck was not bad. He caught several big fish in a row. Although it didn’t break his record, it also made him feel excited.

Seeing that the sky was gradually turning dark, today’s fishing should be almost over.

Just at this moment, the float on the water surface suddenly sank violently. He lifted the rod with the momentum.

The moment the fishing line tightened, he felt that this was a fucking big fish.

He was completely focused on the water, constantly wrestling with the prey in the water.

This was a very interesting process, and also a process of gaming.

The older a person gets, the more they like to game.

From a distance, two cars came. The cars stopped by their cars, and some people got out of them.

The chairman of the board just glanced at them and then refocused his energy on the wrestling with the prey under the water.

He was completely focused, without any relaxation. He had a strong feeling and confidence that this would be the biggest fish he had ever encountered in his life.

There was a voice in his heart telling him that he must catch this fish. It would become his honor.

Lance got out of the car, wearing thick clothes. The two old men glanced at them and then looked away.

They stood around the chairman of the board, as if watching him fight with the water splash in the water.

Perhaps influenced by the onlookers, he became even more excited. Both his spirit and physical strength reached the peak he could achieve at this stage in an instant.

After more than ten minutes of wrestling, the turbulent current under the ice hole finally disappeared a lot. The chairman of the board, panting slightly, began to quickly reel in his rod and said, “Get the net ready. I feel like I’m going to break the record.”

The man in the red hat stood up, holding a net and standing by the water. Before long, a big guy floated up.

“Quick,” he shouted.

The man in the red hat quickly scooped up the fish. The net, which was not small, actually couldn’t hold it.

Then it was thrown onto the ice. Everyone, including Lance, couldn’t help but exclaim in their hearts, so fucking big.

The smile on the chairman’s face could no longer be hidden. He couldn’t help but laugh out loud. Only those who love fishing know how happy he was at this moment.

“I’m going to make it into a specimen and put it in my villa,” he said as he walked towards the fish, taking out a measuring tape from his pocket. He had to measure it.

“It really broke the record,” his face was full of excitement and pride, but soon he also felt a little uncomfortable.

Because of the long period of exertion just now, he was now a little exhausted, and at the same time, his whole body was sweaty, sticky and very uncomfortable.

He glanced at the sky and then said, “Let’s call it a day. And it looks like you guys have other things to do.”

He thought these people were here to find his two friends, but the man in the red hat said, “They’re here to find you.”

The chairman, who was in the process of stringing the fish, was taken aback for a moment. He turned around and looked at the young people, none of whom he knew. “I don’t know you.”

Then his gaze turned to the man in the red hat, with some resentment.

Anyone who is introduced to so many strangers without their consent will definitely be uncomfortable, especially in such a private setting.

Although this was a public area, their entertainment now was very private. They had not invited others, so he felt that they should not be doing this kind of socializing in such a private setting, at a private time.

But since the other party had come, and he was not feeling very comfortable, he could only show a little courtesy.

“I’m all sweaty. Let’s go to the house. It’s warm over there, and there are drinks. I can also change my clothes.”

“We’ll talk about whatever it is later.”

As he spoke, he bent down and was about to deal with the fish again when a pair of legs walked up to him.

He slowly raised his head, his gaze moving up the pair of legs to the young man’s face. This was very impolite.

Because when he bent down, the other party walked over, as if he were bowing to the other party. He had no good expression on his face, just looking at this young man who had disturbed him.

“My name is Lance, Lance White.”

The young man extended his hand. The chairman of the board was taken aback for a moment. He seemed to have heard this name somewhere.

As long as it was a name he had heard, then this young man was definitely not someone without fame.

After all, the classes were different. You couldn’t expect the president to have heard of an ordinary person’s name. The ones that could be “familiar to the ear” of the president were definitely characters of his class, or slightly worse, but the gap would not be so obvious.

Out of politeness, he extended his hand and shook Lance’s. “Have we met?”

He was a little unsure. Lance said with a smile, “We haven’t met. This is our first time meeting.”

The chairman of the board was even more confused. “I don’t know where I’ve heard your name. Sorry, what do you do?”

Only when you are strong will you not care about others’ thoughts, nor will you consider whether you have offended others.

He was asking Lance to introduce himself. Lance still had that simple and clean smile, which made the chairman of the board have a slightly good impression of him.

A person who loves to laugh will not be so annoying, unless the smile on this person’s face is too fucking fake, and it’s the kind that can be seen through.

Neither of them had let go of their hands. Lance continued, “I’m from Golden Port. This might make you think of something.”

The chairman of the board’s eyes were dazed for a few seconds, and then an expression of disbelief appeared. He turned his head to look at his two friends, wanting to shake his hand free, but his hand was tightly held by Lance.

“Let go of me.”

“Call the police, quick, call the police.”

He wanted to run away in a panic. He even used his other hand to try to pry Lance’s fingers open, but he couldn’t break them open no matter how hard he tried.

Lance’s hand was like a pair of pliers, clamping his wrist until it hurt.

He looked back at his two old friends beside him. “Go and get someone.”

“Fuck!”

But he quickly turned back, because he saw his two old friends standing by, smoking, not moving at all, and the look in their eyes was completely different from when they were fishing just now.

No matter how slow his reaction was, he realized that something was wrong.

He looked at these two old friends in disbelief. They had known each other for more than forty years, and there had been no conflict. Their relationship had always been good.

If the relationship was not good, they would not have come out to fish so often.

These two were not on a different social level from him. Their reputation, influence, were all similar.

He really couldn’t figure out why they were like this.

The chairman of the board’s struggle was weakening, and he was even a little bit giving up.

He looked at Lance and forced himself to calm down. “What are you planning to do?”

“Kill me?”

“Who gave you the guts?”

When he asked these questions, his heart was actually beating violently, because he knew that since the other party had come, they must have made full preparations.

Lance shook his head. “Who it is, is actually not important anymore. Anyway, you will never know.”

The chairman of the board swallowed. “Is it just a matter of $4,000,000? Is it worth it?”

His speech was rapid. “I can give you $4,000,000… no, $6,000,000, along with your losses last time.”

“This matter ends here.”

“I won’t cause you any trouble. It’s all our fault.”

“I can also publicly apologize to you. I will have them withdraw the lawsuit. This is our problem.”

Lance’s eyes, looking at him, showed no sign of being moved. He knew he was already old, and he knew that his future might only be ten years or so.

But the more it was at this time, the more he was afraid of death.

Because he had too many things, these things made him unable to let go of everything he had and leave this world.

The expression on his face could no longer be controlled, and it became panicked.

Lance shook his head. “It’s not just a matter of money anymore.” He tilted his head. Two young men grabbed his arms and clothes from behind him.

Lance let go of his hand, and he, because someone had kicked him in the back of the knee, knelt directly on the ice.

He let out a painful cry. His knee, worn out from a lifetime, was already at its limit. That knock clearly caused a problem.

His two friends turned and left the ice, standing further away.

Lance nodded slightly. Hiram directly pressed his head under the cold water surface.

In an instant, the bone-chilling cold water made him struggle violently, but he was no match for two strong young men.

He had inhaled a large amount of cold water in his panic. This cold water stimulated the contraction of his blood vessels, making his feeling of suffocation even stronger.

He couldn’t break free. The movement also accelerated the consumption of oxygen. His desire for “breathing” became stronger and stronger.

Even though he knew that at this moment he couldn’t breathe, in the end, he couldn’t hold it in.

After a few violent convulsions, he had no more reaction. Lance did not let them let go of him, but waited for a while longer. After confirming that he was completely “gone,” he had the two of them push him into the ice hole.

The entire riverbank was frozen. To “fall into the water” at this time, even if you were alive, in the end, you would only be suffocated to death.

After doing all this, they quickly returned to the shore. Lance shook hands with the two old men. “The rest is up to you. Remember to make yourselves look a mess.”

“Do you need my help?”

The two old men quickly shook their heads. “No need, Mr. Lance, we can do it ourselves.”

Lance smiled and shook hands with them separately. “Then we’ll be leaving first.”

The old man in the red hat said softly after letting go of his hand, “Please give our best regards to the senator.”

Lance nodded. “I will.”

Then they got into the car and quickly left.

The two old men were silent for a moment, and then began to drench themselves with the river water. They glanced at the long fish, put it back on the hook, and threw it into the river along with the fishing rod.

Half an hour later, two police cars and two rescue vehicles arrived at the scene…

(End of chapter)

The novel has already been fully translated up to the last updated chapter. You can access it on my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/caleredhair