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Chapter 816 A major upheaval at the top of Citibank: A brutal beating of a drowning dog!
Upon hearing this, Lin Haoran nodded and said, "I already know. Mr. Walter just told me."

“I’m not worried about Miller. The so-called evidence he has is all fabricated by me. He’s destined to suffer a big setback this time,” John Reed sneered. “But that’s not what I’m worried about right now.”

John Reed paused for a moment before continuing, "Lin, I had been convinced by you that the US stock market would definitely experience a downturn, but today all the economic experts and bigwigs are opposing your views, which has forced me to rethink."

Foresight Capital is still in its early stages and hasn't actually invested any funds yet. It's not too late for me to stop investing now.

At this point, John Reed sighed.

Originally, he was very insistent on his own opinion.

However, after numerous media reports last night and this morning, highlighting the doubts raised by many experts about Lin Haoran, John Reed's confidence did indeed waver.

Lin Haoran's words made perfect sense, so much so that they convinced him.

But reality dealt him a heavy blow, and the whole of America was laughing at Lin Haoran's prediction.

John Reed was a decisive man, but his resolve inevitably wavered when faced with opposition from the entire Wall Street community.

The main reason is that he can't afford to gamble.

Lin Haoran watched John's conflicted expression and suddenly chuckled, "John, do you remember the first time we worked together?"

John paused for a moment, his thoughts drifting back to more than two years ago: "Back then, very few people foresaw that gold would surge."

"And the result?" Lin Haoran asked, raising an eyebrow.

“You were right,” John recalled. “I led Foresight Capital to follow your investments and eventually made a fortune.”

"Now that you yourself are an economic bigwig, you should have your own ideas, but you would rather believe the words of other industry leaders than a partner who once helped you create miracles?"
To be honest, even though all American experts now believe that the US will soon enter a bull market, I still firmly believe in my previous judgment.

Because the data doesn't lie, and I've seen far too many warning signs.

Lin Haoran stood up, walked to the window, and pointed to the street below: "Look at these hurried crowds. How many of them truly understand the essence of the market? Most of them are just going with the flow."

John walked up to him, still hesitant: "But Lin, even Chairman Walter doesn't agree with your judgment. He's been in the banking industry for decades and has a wealth of experience."

Lin Haoran interrupted him, saying, "Experience can sometimes be a burden. Past successes often lead to fixed mindsets. Mr. Walter is indeed experienced, but precisely because of this, he is more likely to be bound by traditional analytical frameworks."

John, I understand your concerns. You're under a lot of pressure right now. The market's reaction to the policies implemented under Reaganomics will take some time to unfold. You have plenty of time to consider this carefully; there's no need to rush.

Lin Haoran stood up, a meaningful smile playing on his lips: "Now, let's focus on what's in front of us. There's a drowning dog waiting for us to beat up in the conference room this afternoon."

Lin Haoran knew that it was normal for the other party to waver when faced with the fact that the entire market was not optimistic about his remarks.

After all, the amount of money invested by Foresight Capital is not a small sum.

If losses are incurred, all the achievements John Reed has made could be lost.

So it wasn't that John Reed didn't believe him; it was just that the pressure from the other party was too great.

As the head of Foresight Capital, John must be responsible for every investment decision.

He had said everything he needed to say; whether John Reed ultimately chose to believe his judgment was up to the other party.

Before we knew it, it was exactly 2 p.m.

The boardroom on the top floor of Citibank's headquarters building.

The heavy mahogany doors were tightly shut, isolating the area from all the noise and commotion of the outside world.

Around the oval conference table, a dozen executive directors who control the pulse of Citibank and even global finance were already seated. Many directors were whispering among themselves, trying to find out the purpose of this board meeting.

The last time a board meeting was held was when Lin Haoran officially became an executive director of Citibank.

They only hold these kinds of meetings once every one or two months, or even longer.

But now, not long has passed.

Soon, they learned some inside information from Miller and other directors who knew the details.

Chairman Walter Riston sat in the main seat, his expression calm. His gaze swept over everyone present, finally pausing slightly on Lin Haoran and John Reed's faces, with a hint of barely perceptible disappointment.

Lin Haoran sat in the back seat, and Li Guowei sat next to him.

John Reed, sitting to Riston's left in a prominent position, had his eyelids slightly lowered as he stared at the coffee cup in front of him, as if the dark brown liquid held some cosmic mystery, completely ignoring the various questioning, worried, and gloating glances directed at him from the side.

As for Richard Miller, he sat directly opposite John Reed, facing him from a distance.

He wore a custom-made dark blue suit today, his tie was perfectly tied, and his face radiated a confident air of certainty, even revealing a hint of barely suppressed excitement.

In front of him was a thick stack of documents.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I apologize for calling this emergency meeting when everyone is so busy," Walter Riston cleared his throat, breaking the silence.

Suddenly, everyone fell silent.

"The reason, as some of you probably already know, is that Miller has made some important discoveries concerning the company's vital interests and risk management, and believes that they must be submitted to the board of directors for review immediately. Miller, please begin."

"Thank you, Chairman." Miller stood up, first giving Riston a slight nod, then his gaze swept across the room, lingering for a moment on John Reed and Lin Haoran, a faint, cold smile playing on his lips.

"Distinguished board members, I stand here today with a heavy heart, because something extremely dangerous may be happening within Citibank, something that could even tarnish our century-old reputation!" Miller's voice was loud, with a theatrical somber tone.

The opening remarks were so serious that the board members couldn't help but exchange glances and sit up straight.

Miller was pleased with the result, and he continued, "As we all know, our core values ​​at Citibank are prudence, prudence, and professionalism."

However, I have recently obtained evidence suggesting that one of our trusted colleagues, John Reed, Vice President of Citigroup and Chairman of Foresight Capital, may be deviating from this principle and undertaking an extremely risky and irresponsible gamble!

He directly named John Reed, and a low murmur rippled through the conference room.

All eyes immediately focused on John Reed, whose eyelids remained lowered, but he seemed to be in deep meditation, showing no reaction.

Lin Haoran even picked up his teacup, gently blew away the foam, and took a small sip.

Miller took in everyone's reactions and felt even more smug.

He picked up some photocopied documents and gestured to his assistant to distribute them to the executive directors.

"These are some of the transaction records from Foresight Capital's trading department over the past two weeks." These documents contain a complex list of transactions involving stocks of several large technology companies and industrial giants, all of which were "sell" or "put options," with amounts ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars.

"As you can see, although these transactions are not large in amount, they are highly consistent in direction—shorting! Moreover, these transactions all occurred shortly after Mr. Lin Haoran from Hong Kong made his, well, 'unique' theory of the decline of US stocks at the board meeting."

He deliberately emphasized the word "unique," which was full of sarcasm.

“What does this prove?” a director who had a decent relationship with John Reed frowned. “Forward Capital itself is a subsidiary that engages in diversified investments, so it’s normal for it to do some hedging or directional trading.”

“Normal?” Miller seemed to have anticipated this question. He put down the document and picked up another one. “If it’s just normal market operations, I certainly wouldn’t make a fuss about it, but please take a look at this.”

Miller replaced the documents in his hand with the cover of an internal research report, the title of which was "Feasibility Analysis Report on Aggressive Short Selling Strategies Based on Potential Risks of Reaganomics," and the confidentiality level was marked as "Top Secret."

"This is a confidential report leaked from within Foresight Capital!" Miller raised his voice. "It details a short-selling plan of up to two hundred million US dollars based on Mr. Lin Haoran's theory!"

The initial investment is 100 million, with an additional 100 million to be added depending on the situation! The report even quoted Mr. Lin's original words from the board meeting as the core logic supporting this statement!

This caused an even bigger commotion in the conference room.

Two hundred million dollars is not a small amount, even for Citigroup, especially when it comes to a strategy that is scorned by almost all experts.

"Absurd!" An elderly board member with gray hair couldn't help but slam his hand on the table. "John, are you crazy? Based on just a few words from Mr. Lin, you're going to risk two hundred million dollars?"
Do you really want to lose all the reputation and achievements you've built up at Foresight Capital over the years in one fell swoop?

“Yes, John, this is so irrational!”

"The market is clearly rising, so going short on a large scale at this time is simply going against the trend!"

"We need an explanation!"

A barrage of criticisms came one after another, surging towards John Reed like a tidal wave.

Even Walter Riston frowned, looking at John Reed: "John, how do you explain these transactions and reports?" John Reed finally raised his head, his face still expressionless, only glancing at Miller before saying to Riston: "Chairman, it seems Director Miller still has a lot of 'evidence' to present. Why rush him? Let him finish his performance."

His voice was calm and even slightly encouraging, which made Miller's heart skip a beat, but the die was cast and he had no choice but to proceed.

He suppressed his unease and sneered, "Fine, since Mr. Reed wants to see more, I'll grant your wish!"

He produced a third piece of "evidence," which he considered the most fatal—several extremely realistic forged transaction confirmations and fund transfer instructions, some even bearing a forged signature of John Reed and the official seal watermark of Foresight Capital.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is the most crucial evidence!" Miller's voice trembled with excitement. "These documents show that the initial $100 million has already entered several offshore accounts through complex channels and has begun large-scale investment!"

He pointed to several key data points on the document and continued, "Look here, and here too. The short-selling targets, leverage ratios, and entry times all match the intelligence we had previously gathered!"
This is no longer a plan, but a real, ongoing risk exposure! If the market continues to rise, these positions will face huge losses, enough to severely damage Foresight Capital and even affect Citigroup's overall performance!

He took a deep breath and put on a pained expression: "Mr. John Reed, I simply cannot understand why you would so readily trust the judgment of a young man who has only recently joined Citibank, putting the company's assets at such great risk!"
This is not just a misjudgment, this is dereliction of duty! It is an extreme act of irresponsibility towards Citibank and all its shareholders!

He turned to Riston and all the directors and spoke passionately: "Chairman, fellow directors, I believe that for the benefit of Citigroup, we must take immediate action!"

Freeze Foresight Capital's relevant transaction permissions, reassess Mr. John Reed's decision-making ability, and hold him accountable!
At the same time, I strongly recommend that the board of directors reassess Mr. Lin Haoran's qualifications as an executive director, as his dangerous remarks are leading us astray!

Miller's accusations were like a bombshell, causing a huge uproar in the conference room.

The board members whispered among themselves, their faces filled with shock, anger, and disbelief.

Almost everyone believed that the evidence was conclusive and that John Reed was doomed this time.

Even Walter Riston's eyes turned completely cold as he looked at the "ironclad evidence" in his hands, and his last glimmer of hope for John Reed seemed to have vanished.

“John, what do you have to say now? If you can’t provide a reasonable explanation for this evidence, then…” Riston’s voice was sterner than ever before, even addressing him by his first name.

Just then, Lin Haoran, who had been silent all along, suddenly chuckled softly.

Although it was very soft, it sounded exceptionally clear and jarring in the quiet and tense conference room.

Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to him.

Miller, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, glared at Lin Haoran: "Mr. Lin, do you think this is funny? Your absurd prediction is about to bring huge losses to Citibank!"

Lin Haoran ignored him and instead looked at John Reed, nodding slightly.

John Reed finally stood up slowly. He straightened his suit and tie, and for the first time, an expression appeared on his face. It was neither fear nor anger, but a cold smile with pity and mockery.

"Are you finished? Director Miller, your one-man show was, well, very engaging, and the script was quite brilliant." John Reed's voice wasn't loud, but it reached everyone's ears clearly.

"What do you mean?!" Miller's expression changed.

“What I mean is,” John Reed walked over to Miller, his gaze sweeping over the “evidence,” his tone full of disdain, “this so-called ‘ironclad evidence’ that you’ve painstakingly collected is nothing but a pile of meticulously fabricated garbage!”

"what?!"

"Forged?"

The meeting room erupted in commotion once again.

"Nonsense!" Miller's face turned red with anger. "These transaction records, internal reports, and funding instructions are all in black and white, crystal clear! You can't deny it!"

"Denial?" John Reed scoffed. "Do I need to deny a plan that never existed?"

John Reed turned away from Miller and towards Walter Riston and the board members, continuing calmly, "Chairman, fellow directors, please allow me to show you some of the real situation."

As he spoke, he took out a large stack of documents from his briefcase and had his assistant distribute them to each executive director.

“First, regarding these ‘real transaction records’ presented by the Miller directors,” John Reed pointed to another, more detailed set of transaction records, “this is the real transaction record of Foresight Capital over the past two weeks.”

As you can clearly see, we did conduct some market operations, but the total amount was only $185 million. The purpose was to test market liquidity and verify certain technical indicators, and it had absolutely nothing to do with the so-called '$200 million short-selling plan.'

He emphasized several key data points: "More importantly, in these transactions, there were both selling and buying operations, and there was no such thing as 'short selling with a highly consistent direction' as Miller described."

What Director Miller presented to everyone was a carefully selected and manipulated record.

Several knowledgeable directors carefully compared the two records and began to nod slowly.

John Reid pointed to another report with an almost identical cover but completely different content and continued, "As for this so-called 'highly confidential' report, this is the draft report that was circulating internally at Foresight Capital."

The version held by Miller's board of directors contained altered key data and distorted conclusions. While we did discuss market risks, we never formulated any formal short-selling plan amounting to $100 million or even $200 million.

Miller's face turned pale, and he tried to argue, "This, this only proves that you prepared different versions! This does not prove that my evidence is forged!"

John Reed chuckled coldly, holding the last piece of 'fatal evidence'—the funding instructions and transaction confirmation—in his hand: "Oh? Is that so? Then please take a look at this."

He pointed to the account number on the document: "This 'CITI-IA-788X' account is an old number that we at Citibank stopped using and canceled three years ago. How could an account that has been canceled for three years receive $100 million and conduct transactions?"

He then pointed to the watermark on the official seal: "This watermark texture is an old anti-counterfeiting technology that we used two years ago. Since last year, all official documents have adopted a brand new and more complex anti-counterfeiting watermark."

With each flaw John Reed pointed out, Miller's face grew paler, and the directors' eyes grew colder.

"Using a closed account, outdated signature algorithms, and obsolete company seals to forge a $100 million funding instruction? Director Miller, is this what you call 'clear and unambiguous in black and white'? Your professionalism is truly eye-opening!" John Reed surveyed the room, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

"I...I don't know these details. These documents were provided to me by someone else..." Miller was sweating profusely and tried to explain incoherently.

"Don't know?" Lin Haoran, who had been sitting quietly, finally spoke, his voice icy. "Then, Mr. Miller, you should know this, shouldn't you?"

He took the delicate voice recorder from the inside pocket of his suit and gently placed it on the table.

"Should I play a video showing how you 'sincerely' bribed my special assistant, Mr. Li Guowei, with a five million dollar check?"

Five million dollars?

"buy?"

A collective gasp filled the conference room.

When Lin Haoran took out the recording pen, Miller's face turned even paler.

Walter Riston stood up abruptly, his face ashen: "Mr. Lin, please play the recording!"

Lin Haoran pressed the play button.

"...Here is a bearer check for $500 million. This is just the beginning. As long as you, Mr. Li, are willing to cooperate, there will be more benefits to come..."

Miller's slightly distorted but still clearly audible voice echoed in the quiet conference room.

The recording clearly reproduces the conversation at the Carlton Club that night, how Miller tried to lure Li Guowei with a large sum of money, how he implied that John Reed was making dangerous investments, and how he asked Li Guowei to monitor Lin Haoran and pass on "intelligence".

The phrase "This is just the beginning," in particular, carried a blatant promise of bribery and sent chills down the spines of all the directors.

After the recording finished playing, the conference room fell into a suffocating silence that lasted for half a minute.

Everyone was speechless with shock at this despicable tactic and astonishing reversal.

John Reed broke the silence at the opportune moment, his voice like a cold blade, aimed directly at Miller, who was slumped in his seat: "Now the truth is out, Director Miller."

From the moment you tried to bribe Mr. Li to target me, you fell into a carefully prepared trap. All the information you received about the '200 million short-selling plan' was deliberately given to you by us.

All the 'evidence' you presented was a counterfeit tailored specifically for you. Everything you did was nothing more than a clumsy farce you staged under our guidance.

The goal is to make you tear off your facade of "acting in Citibank's best interests" in front of the board, revealing your true colors of framing colleagues and vying for power!

He walked up to Miller, whose face was ashen, and said, word by word, "You, Richard Miller, who bribed executives, fabricated evidence, and framed colleagues, are the real black sheep who damaged Citibank's reputation, undermined internal unity, and resorted to any means for personal gain!"

With a thud, Richard Miller could no longer hold on and slid off the chair, collapsing to the ground with vacant eyes and trembling lips, unable to utter a single word.

He's done.

His career and his reputation on Wall Street collapsed completely at that moment.

Walter Ryston's chest heaved violently, his voice trembling with extreme anger: "Richard Miller! You have disappointed me greatly! You have disappointed the entire Citigroup board!"
In accordance with Citibank's Code of Conduct for Directors, I, in my capacity as Chairman, hereby announce the immediate suspension of all your duties as Executive Director!
The board will establish a special investigation committee to thoroughly investigate this matter! During the investigation, you are prohibited from participating in any board affairs! Now, please leave immediately!

(End of this chapter)