What's wrong with me being a rich man?

Chapter 464 Ghost (5k)

The detention and investigation of Ghosn was something almost no one expected.

His planned itinerary was to take an ANA Boeing 787 and land in Paris after a 14-hour flight. Since the plane was only equipped with an entertainment system, Ghosn made hurried arrangements for business with companies including Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi before boarding. Most importantly, he had also arranged a meeting with the Paris side in advance, just waiting to handle the business upon landing.

However, after a 14-hour flight without communication, Ghosn was indeed out of contact. The already confused Renault immediately lost his way, and the French political figures he had previously contacted stopped contacting him. This led to even more media attention.

The previous question was – what's wrong with Renault?
Now there's another question—what happened to Ghosn?
According to a statement released by the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office Special Investigation Department, this person is... guilty of tax evasion?
Why did they have to take action right when Renault was facing serious problems?
Immediately, doubts arose.

Soon, insiders revealed that the French side, Renault, and Nissan were completely unaware of the situation, and several officials in Tokyo were also deeply shocked. In other words, this was a "lone wolf" operation by the Special Investigation Department.

However, the Special Investigation Department has a complex history. Although it belongs to the District Prosecutors Office and is administratively managed by the Prosecutor's Office, it has a high degree of independence in case investigation. Its specific decisions are not subject to interference from higher-level departments, and it has always handled complex cases involving officials and business elites.

Ghosn is very complex, which makes him a good fit for the Special Investigations Department.

However, the Special Investigation Department's involvement has made everything more complicated.

The latest news that Yu Xing saw was that France had expressed strong dissatisfaction through diplomatic channels regarding Ghosn's sudden arrest, emphasizing Ghosn's French citizenship and demanding that Tokyo release all information.

"How are you feeling?" Liu Wanying, who was in Hong Kong, forwarded the news. Her concise question was very likely the instigator of the chain reaction.

“A power struggle within a multinational automotive alliance,” Yu Xing replied. “Nissan was on the verge of bankruptcy before, but now it’s back, so its mindset is definitely different. The French side also wants to further consolidate its control over the alliance. This was probably an inevitable conflict sooner or later, as for when it will happen…”

At this juncture of conflict, can Ghosn recreate his legendary escape?
Ghosn originally managed to escape Tokyo by hiding in a suitcase after his arrest. Does he still have that kind of opportunity now?
Yu Xing had noticed the two-vote bill passed in France this year, but he didn't take it seriously, treating it as routine information about the target. Now, the general trend remains unchanged, only Ghosn has been given a minor improvement.

Over the past 24 hours, a mountain peak struck Renault.

The next 24 hours could very well be the time when Ghosn's arrest caused Renault to explode on the spot.

Liu Wanying picked out seemingly ordinary topics to talk about: "Ghosn is in trouble, I wonder if Renault will be suspended from trading because of it."

Based on her previous consultations and research from various angles, companies in Europe that engage in emissions fraud typically do not experience trading suspensions. However, with the added variable of the company's leader being arrested, the situation becomes unpredictable.

"It's hard to say, but you're the big boss." Yu Xing's implication was clear: no matter what, Liu Wanying could decide what to do based on the situation.

He chatted for a while longer, then suddenly asked, "Any news from Volkswagen?"

Liu Wanying chuckled, "It's very quiet."

The crowd was very quiet, extremely quiet.

When Renault ran into trouble—first with emissions issues, then with its CEO being arrested—while other manufacturers might not issue specific statements, many executives expressed their surprise on Twitter and Facebook, which is undoubtedly a normal reaction.

However, the Volkswagen Group has maintained an extremely low profile.

This could certainly be considered archery target sketching, if there is no confirmed evidence of crossing the mountain peak.

The two masterminds ended their call.

Yu Xing was scrolling through the news in his office, thinking about Ghosn's situation, wondering if he had shouted "Ghosn is innocent" at the Tokyo airport.

Judging from the actions and reasons given by the Special Investigations Department, there has clearly always been opposition within Ghosn's Auto Union.

As of Friday morning China time, many overseas news reports were still analyzing the situation based on short-selling reports about the mountain peak, while others shifted their focus to predictions about the future of the Auto Union.

However, compared to the public opinion at the beginning of the attack, there are now public opinions that have already raised obvious questions about the mountain peak.

"Guoshanfeng did not disclose its testing process, and the discovery of the fraud was most likely through insider trading. This kind of market manipulation should be completely banned!"

This is an accusation that the mountain peak research process was illegal.

"Guoshanfeng is an extremely active short seller in the international financial market over the past few years. It has attacked the Chinese market, the US market, the Japanese market, and now the French market. Such an institution that disrupts financial order should be jointly investigated and shut down as soon as possible to protect the legitimate rights and interests of investors!"

This is a call for joint law enforcement by national agencies.

"The EU's current Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) is clearly unable to keep up with the increasing challenges in the financial market. No one is a saint when it comes to climbing mountains, and every time it appears, it is inevitably accompanied by the seizure of huge profits. However, it can still appear and even be sought after today, which is undoubtedly the fault of the regulatory authorities."

This is an attempt to eliminate the flow of funds through the mountain peaks at its source.

Compared to the public opinion in Europe and the United States, the Japanese media seemed somewhat gloating this time, and even brought up the praise they had given to the mountain peak before – the "empty-walled hermit".

"Although Over Peak has attacked Mitsubishi and now Renault, its accusations against five Renault models, including the Clio, Captur, and Megane, are supported by extremely clear data, which could very well be another regrettable confirmation of its short-selling prowess."

“Ghosn did help Nissan, but his dictatorial style is not commendable.”

"At this point, the Renault emissions scandal, which is also a product of his dictatorship, may just allow Guoshanfeng to maintain its 100% winning streak."

“Ghosn’s contributions need to be acknowledged, and no one denies that, but his mistakes must also be taken seriously. We believe that the Renault-Mitsubishi-Nissan Alliance has the ability to bounce back.”

Yu Xing browsed through the different media outlets, gaining a keen understanding of the underlying power struggles.

The Paris market opens at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, which is 3 p.m. on the Chinese market. Regardless of everyone's thoughts, we should know the outcome in five hours. The only variable is whether trading will be suspended.

Yu Xing awaited the Renault moment, shifting his main focus to news from France.

However, before Renault could make a move, Xu Xin arrived instead.

The other party was obviously using the pretext of visiting the Silicon Carbon Group, but Yu Xing knew what she was really up to. He just found it strange that President Xu always came to talk to him about these things. Could it be that she could actually find the right direction for suspicion?
Xu Xin had actually asked herself this question on her way to Lingang.

Why are you here again, chatting with Mr. Yu about short selling, when you have nothing better to do?
She found the right answer for herself.

Perhaps it was Mr. Yu's disapproval of short sellers like Guoshanfeng that provoked him, or perhaps it was because Mr. Yu is the most knowledgeable person about car companies around him. Now that Guoshanfeng is shorting car companies, of course he needs to consult professionals.

As for the mastermind behind the search for the mountain peak, she has given up.

Regardless of which regulatory agencies are responsible for this task, even if Xiong Xiaoge is indeed a suspect, so what? He himself has become a small short seller hoping to successfully short the stock.

Since its establishment last year, "Real Research" has not yet made a single order. After several studies and on-site investigations, Li Song has finally decided to focus his efforts on 360, which he had previously tried.

After all, Mr. Yu also said that 360 will still be impacted. The mobile era is different, and the competition in the industry has intensified this year.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Xu Xin also took a test ride on the "Jiuzhou" prototype vehicle.

Her trip was mainly for casual conversation, so naturally she talked about the project's progress: "What are the main problems that are causing this car to struggle so far?"

"The main performance characteristics are fine. The company is currently conducting extreme tests. If anything is difficult, it's not the frame components. Our material properties, the integrated die-cast rear floor, and so on, all contribute to good performance." Yu Xing pointed to his ear while driving. "We are working on optimizing the sound insulation inside the car, which requires quite a bit of detailed research."

"This car has double-layered laminated glass and sealing strips, but there are still problems. In the industry, it's called NVH performance, which includes noise, vibration, and acoustic roughness. Listen..."

Yu Xing switched to range extender mode and drove the vehicle at a low speed. Xu Xin listened carefully and indeed noticed a fairly obvious noise.

"The range extender has high output power at low speeds, which can cause relatively high noise," Yu Xing explained. "This issue is neither too big nor too small. The noise is not louder than that of a gasoline car engine, but different people can notice it during test drives."

Xu Xin asked curiously, "Why is that?"

Yu Xing laughed and said, "Because pure electric vehicles are indeed very quiet, once you get used to the quietness of pure electric vehicles, it becomes difficult to ignore the noise of the range extender in this situation. When the speed increases, it is mainly wind noise and tire noise, which is not noticeable."

Xu Xin suddenly realized, and after taking another moment to reflect, she commented, "Compared to other noises, this kind of noise doesn't seem so bad?"

"Yes, we are comparing our NVH with that of a BMW X5. Sound insulation is not just about stuffing cotton in, but new energy vehicles do have advantages. We hope to maximize these advantages and truly achieve a level of quietness comparable to that of luxury gasoline cars," Yu Xing said.

Xu Xin nodded slightly and continued to ask a few questions about the progress of the silicon carbon group.

Then, she casually smiled and said, "By the way, the automotive industry has been quite lively lately. There's new activity from Guoshanfeng shorting Renault."

Yu Xing nodded: "I know, it's a big deal in the automotive industry, Ghosn has been detained."

"I thought I'd see Renault's stock price plummet yesterday, but I didn't expect France to take a holiday for Labor Day," Xu Xin said.

Yu Xing smiled slightly: "Labor Day was won by foreign countries. It's International Labor Day. France is an old revolutionary base area."

Xu Xin touched the screen and adjusted her seat, her hands unconsciously busy, and asked, "What do you think about this? I wonder if Renault will be able to open normally today. I really didn't expect Ghosn to be arrested at this time, tsk."

“Ghosn, well, the Florange Act passed in France this year was the root of the problem for control. This time, with the addition of short selling at the peak, there are probably some internal factors involved, so they just launched it all at once.” Yu Xing pondered. “I don’t know if Renault will be able to open. I don’t have much of an opinion on this. The short selling report is so concise, it’s probably true. I estimate it will drop by more than 20 percent.”

Xu Xin wasn't surprised that President Yu mentioned the French law, as it had already been analyzed by many media outlets since yesterday. She was just surprised by the drop in the price that President Yu casually mentioned, and exclaimed in astonishment, "More than 20 percent? With such a huge emissions scandal and the Ghosn issue, you think it's only a drop of more than 20 percent?"

"I didn't do any detailed research, it's just a simple intuition." Yu Xing smiled, still explaining his "intuition," "President Xu, Renault is a French company, a European company, and a bunch of its supporting supply chain companies are all messing around with it. How are you expecting them to handle this? Who would want their company and the stock market to experience such a huge shock?"

Xu Xin was unconvinced: "Do you remember Vania? You've seen the short selling of Mountain Peak, every time it resulted in a rout of people. There's even a class-action lawsuit going on in Europe."

Yu Xing patiently explained, “Mr. Xu, it’s still the same local protectionist situation. The price is bound to fall, but class-action lawsuits and regulatory penalties won’t be the stones that desperately kill Renault. If the US regulatory authorities can take action, that would be an extra, more significant stone.”

Xu Xin thought for a while and consulted with professionals in the automotive industry: "The market should also have anticipated the actions of the US regulators, and it's not like it will only drop when the US takes action."

“No, the United States won’t do anything,” Yu Xing said with great certainty. “There’s absolutely no expectation of anything from the United States.”

Xu Xin was puzzled.

"Mr. Xu, this is a case of knowing the 'what' but not the 'why'," Yu Xing said with a smile, explaining to his junior colleague. "Renault's five diesel models are not sold in the United States at all. The automotive alliance under Ghosn has its own market divisions. Nissan handles the US market, and there may be some shared technologies, but Renault's cars are not sold there. How can the US regulators punish them?"

Xu Xin suddenly realized and said sincerely, "So that's how it is... I really didn't notice that. It was you who made the decision."

It needs to be done by professionals.

She had anticipated this ever since the attack on Renault by the mountain peak, constantly analyzing and drawing analogies from past cases of the mountain peak, and even discussing the US regulatory authorities with Li Song with certainty. As a result... she really learned a lot.

Yu Xing was very talkative: "Who are the main players in the US diesel car market? First is Volkswagen, which has an absolute advantage in passenger cars. Then there are Ford and Dodge, whose diesel pickup trucks are also there. BMW and Mercedes-Benz are also steadily expanding by leveraging their luxury SUV positioning. As for Nissan, which is in this alliance, it doesn't sell diesel cars at all in the US."

Xu Xin was quite pleased to have learned new knowledge about the situation: "I understand, I understand, President Yu, you really are an expert in the automotive industry. I didn't expect you to be so knowledgeable about gasoline cars and the diesel car market, in addition to new energy vehicles."

Yu Xing smiled and said, "It's just a business necessity."

This kind of knowledge means that... there is an expectation of regulatory action against counterfeit brands in the US market.

Yu Xing didn't mind chatting with President Xu, which greatly eased his anticipation for the Renault moment.

We didn't eat out for lunch, but instead ate in the cafeteria, which has gradually become a common practice for the Silicon Carbon Group in hosting guests.

Around 1 p.m., Yu Xing had just finished lunch and before he even had a chance to check the messages, Xu Xin had already surprised him by mentioning the latest developments.

At 7:00 a.m. Paris time on Tuesday, the Renault board of directors announced an emergency meeting to remove Ghosn from de facto management and appoint Chief Operating Officer Thierry Bolloré as acting CEO, while retaining his title of chairman.

Renault also specifically stated that this decision was not based on the belief that Ghosn was guilty, but rather on stabilizing company operations and preventing further turmoil.

Xu Xin had just finished reading the news and hadn't even figured out how things were going when she heard President Yu sigh.

Yu Xing sighed, "Ghosn is finished. Renault probably won't suspend trading."

Xu Xin asked intently, "President Yu, what do you mean?"

“Ghosn has been effectively abandoned. He’s a new official with the emissions scandal still unresolved, and his old boss is stuck in a foreign country, unable to even make a sound. If we don’t push the blame onto him now, when will we?” Yu Xing shook his head. “Ghosn is the perfect scapegoat.”

Xu Xin was stunned, and then couldn't help but admire President Yu's keen insight.

The stock was bound to fall sooner or later anyway, so the current decline is entirely Ghosn's fault.

Yu Xing thought about it again and said, "This is probably the last value Ghosn offered to Renault."

The decision made by the Renault board of directors was like pressing a button, and more substantial actions followed.

Half an hour later, the French Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGDC) conducted surprise inspections of three Renault factories, seizing computers and investigating diesel engine emissions data.

An hour later, two European institutions announced that they had reproduced the emissions data for the five models mentioned in the short-selling report by Shanfeng, which were indeed several times higher than the emissions results officially released by Renault.

Then came reports that the French judiciary would not launch a criminal investigation into Renault, which was undoubtedly a form of protection for domestic companies.

At 9:00 AM Paris time, Renault's stock price plummeted at the opening, breaking through 15% in just one hour, wiping out more than 28 billion euros in market value, once again proving the value of the move by the mountain peak.

The French stock market was affected, with the index falling. European automakers, especially those with diesel vehicle businesses, saw their stock prices fluctuate, and Renault's supply chain companies also suffered losses.

Funds sold off, peers were anxious, the media were excited, and shareholders were hurt.

At the same time, Volkswagen CEO Martin was watching Renault's stock price, his expression still not relaxed.

He smoked a cigarette, glancing at the latest media commentary, and felt a shiver run down his spine.

—"Following Mitsubishi's fraud, Guoshanfeng once again blew up Renault. This most mysterious short seller in the world is like a ghost, wandering in the automotive industry."

As Martin looked at the sentence, he felt as if a wandering ghost was actually present beside him.

A chill ran through him as he prayed that the specter had ended its bloody patrol of the automotive industry.

(End of this chapter)