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"What? Turn the annual meeting into a concert?" Zhou Wen, the administrative director of Wang's Group, almost dropped her tablet. She adjusted her glasses to make sure she hadn't misread the email. "And they're inviting Wang Leehom and Jacky Cheung?"

In the conference room, the dozen or so members of the annual meeting preparation team looked at each other in bewilderment.

In previous years, even the most luxurious events only involved booking a five-star hotel and hiring a second- or third-tier singer to perform.

At most, they might invite a Korean girl group to show off their long legs and fool those hardcore otaku.

However, a single sentence from the chairman this year raised the bar to its absolute limit.

"The email is very clear." Chairman's assistant Lin Feng tapped the whiteboard. "Chairman Wang's requirements are: First, the venue must be able to accommodate at least 20,000 people; second, there must be at least four top-tier singers; third, employees are allowed to bring their immediate family members, but they must report in advance, since seating arrangements need to be made beforehand."

Xiao Zhang from the public relations department counted on his fingers: "Wang Leehom, Jacky Cheung, Eason Chan, Cyndi Wang... this lineup is enough for a New Year's Eve concert. The budget is at least..."

“There’s no budget limit.” Lin Feng interrupted her. “What Chairman Wang said was: ‘If you don’t spend the money, why save it for having kids?’”

The venue was completely silent, with only the hum of the air conditioner blasting air.

Zhou Wen took a deep breath: "Then... where should we choose the venue? Workers' Stadium or Bird's Nest?"

“None of that will work.” Lin Feng pulled up a floor plan. “Chairman Wang has already bought that 200-acre plot of land in the eastern suburbs at a low price to build temporary facilities. He says he’ll convert it into a resort for our Wang Group employees later.”

HR Director Lao Wang suddenly burst out laughing: "Our company's intranet is definitely going to crash soon—an employee bringing their family to a concert? If that gets out, the server will explode."

Just as he expected, the Wang Group's internal network crashed instantly after the announcement was released at noon.

While the IT department was urgently expanding server capacity, Xiao Li from the marketing department was being teased by the entire department.

"Brother Li! Didn't you say last time that you wanted to see Jacky Cheung for twenty years? You can bring your wife this time!" His colleague teased, patting him on the shoulder.

Xiao Li blushed as he submitted his application in the system, his fingers trembling slightly: "My wife is a huge fan of Jacky Cheung. If I can really go... it'll be worth it if I work overtime until I die this year."

"Don't talk nonsense! Even if you wanted to die, the chairman wouldn't allow it."

"Haha, finding such a wonderful boss, just thinking about it makes me feel happy."

Meanwhile, Suning was having a video call with an unexpected guest in his top-floor office.

"Eason, what's your decision?" Su Ning swirled his glass of red wine. "I'll sing three songs. You name your appearance fee."

On screen, Eason Chan scratched his head: "Mr. Wang, it's not about the money. I have a concert at the Hong Kong Coliseum next month, and rehearsals are very tight..."

"What a coincidence! No, it's not." Su Ning slapped his thigh. "I have a villa in Repulse Bay, Hong Kong, which is just sitting empty. You can stay there after rehearsals, saving you the trouble of traveling back and forth. By the way, I heard Mrs. Chen likes to collect wine? I have a few bottles of '82 Lafite in my cellar..."

Two hours later, Eason Chan's management company released a statement: The singer will perform at the Wong Group's annual meeting.

The news caused an uproar in Hong Kong media.

The same scene is playing out in different places.

When Wang Leehom received the invitation, he was in the recording studio. Upon hearing that "you can bring your entire band on stage, and use all your own equipment," he immediately changed his schedule. Cyndi Wang was moved by the offer to "hold a mini-concert for the children of employees after the event." Jacky Cheung's manager, upon hearing that Suning was planning to donate and build ten music classrooms, voluntarily lowered his appearance fee.

A week later, the construction site in the eastern suburbs worked day and night to build a temporary stadium that could accommodate 2.5 people.

The stage design was handled by the team that created the Olympic opening ceremony, and the sound equipment was flown in directly from the UK. It is said that the LED screen alone cost more than two thousand dollars.

On the eve of the annual meeting, Suning and his wife inspected the venue.

Liu Yifei, wearing ten-centimeter high heels, lightly stroked the sound mixing equipment on the main control panel: "Is the media all arranged?"

"Don't worry." Su Ning put his arm around her waist. "More than 200 media outlets will be broadcasting live. Doesn't Masclone always call us nouveau riche? This time, let him see what cultural soft power is."

Liu Yifei chuckled: "If you're going to invite a celebrity, then invite a celebrity. Why do I have to sing a song too?"

"The theme song of 'The Return of the Condor Heroes,' it's a nostalgia killer." Su Ning blinked. "Besides, you were someone who released records back then."

On the day of the annual meeting, employees began arriving with their families as early as 3 p.m.

A carnival area was specially set up outside the venue, where Michelin chefs made fresh snacks, the Disney team was in charge of the children's entertainment area, and there were even staff to help take care of the children, so that parents could enjoy the show with peace of mind.

"Mommy, isn't that Uncle Wang Leehom?" a little girl exclaimed, pointing into the distance.

Engineer Zhang from the R&D department quickly covered the child's mouth: "Sweetie, that's a life-size cardboard cutout..."

At 7 p.m., the venue was packed.

The lights suddenly dimmed, and a spotlight shone on the center of the stage.

To everyone's surprise, the first to appear was Suning himself.

"Dear colleagues and family members," he said, dressed in a casual suit without a tie, "last year I said I wanted to make Wang's a company that belongs to others, and today, on this occasion..."

He paused deliberately, "Is it good enough?"

The deafening roar of the crowd nearly lifted the roof off.

Su Ning smiled and waved: "Then I won't waste any more words, please welcome—Wang Leehom!"

The moment the prelude to "Descendants of the Dragon" began, more than 20,000 people stood up at the same time.

Old Li, sitting in the front row, was with his 60-year-old mother. The old lady was so excited that she kept wiping away tears: "Son! This is even more exciting than the Spring Festival Gala!"

"Mom, can you rest assured now? Our Wang Group is the best company in the world."

"Yes, do a good job! I'm sure your boss will treat you well."

After Wang Leehom finished his three songs, Eason Chan took over; followed by Cyndi Wang's Sweetheart Storm.

When the melody of Jacky Cheung's "Goodbye Kiss" began to play, the flashlights of cell phones throughout the venue sparkled like a galaxy.

The climax came during Liu Yifei's special performance.

When she, dressed in a white dress, sang "Lovers in the World" with Jacky Cheung, social media exploded.

Topics such as #Wang's Group Annual Meeting#, #Liu Yifei's Comeback#, and #Amazing Company# dominated the trending searches.

"This isn't an annual meeting, it's a nuclear weapon!" the CEO of a tech company lamented on his WeChat Moments. "Our HR just received thirty resignation letters, all of them wanting to apply for jobs at Wang's."

After the performance, while the employees left with autographed photos and souvenirs, Suning was having a private conversation with several special guests in the VIP room backstage.

"Brother Zhang, I heard you're preparing for a musical?" Su Ning poured tea for Jacky Cheung. "I've recently become quite interested in the cultural industry..."

Wang Leehom interjected, "If Chairman Su invests in music education, count me in."

“What a coincidence! I was just thinking of opening a music training center next to every Fish4S store.” A glint of light flashed in Suning’s eyes. “Automobiles and art, hard power plus soft culture, that’s the complete ecosystem.” The next day, the stock price of Wang’s Group, which was already listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, rose by 7% at the opening.

The financial channel analysis stated: "An annual meeting costing over 100 million yuan resulted in a market value increase of nearly 10 billion yuan. Is there any more cost-effective brand marketing strategy?"

In Masclone's office, a tablet computer was smashed to the ground.

"Nouveau riche! Show-off!" Masclone loosened his tie and yelled at his assistant, "Contact all our media partners! I want a feature on the extravagance and waste of our company's annual party! Also, investigate those celebrities' tax issues!"

The assistant asked cautiously, "Then... is that Lala Group's own annual party?"

The wild South African lad, Masclone, sneered, "Let's charter a cruise ship to Japan! We'll hire Ayumi Hamasaki and Hikaru Utada!"

As they left work that day, the employees of the Wang Group were still reminiscing about the previous night's revelry.

Xiao Yang, the receptionist, kept getting her phone vibrating; it was full of friends asking about job openings.

She looked up at the newly hung banner in the lobby—"Work is for a better life"—and suddenly realized that the chairman, who was always called a "nouveau riche," probably understood this principle better than anyone else.

……

At 3:17 a.m., the alarm sounded throughout the cybersecurity department of the Wang Group's public opinion monitoring system.

"It's exploded! Weibo, Douyin, Zhihu, Bilibili, all platforms simultaneously!" Duty officer Xiao Wang stared at the frantically jumping data stream on the screen, his fingers leaving afterimages on the keyboard. "The negative topic index jumped from the baseline of 20 to 900. This is definitely organized!"

On the large screen, eye-catching headlines kept refreshing:
A Look Inside the Speculative History of "Industrialist" Wang Duoyu: From Real Estate Profiteering to So-Called Manufacturing

The Dark Side of the Duoyu Youth Training Base: The Truth About the Occupation of Public Resources

Extravagance Behind Exorbitant Annual Party Fees: Exposing Wang Duoyu's "Weight Loss Insurance" Scam

New Energy Vehicles or a Capital Game? The Wang Group's "Patriotic" Image Collapses

The public relations director was woken up by an urgent phone call. When he arrived at the company, he found Suning already sitting in the conference room with seven or eight tablets in front of him, each displaying a different attack article.

"You've come at the perfect time." Su Ning looked up, her eyes showing no trace of sleepiness. "Take a look at this."

He pushed a freshly printed document towards him.

The PR director quickly glanced at the documents, his brow furrowing deeper and deeper: "These accusations are completely unfounded! Our real estate projects are being phased out in accordance with regulations, our youth training base receives 100,000 teenagers annually, and our weight-loss insurance product has been filed with the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission..."

"The problem is that netizens don't look at the facts," Su Ning sneered. "Masclone played this trick brilliantly, using the banner of patriotism and social responsibility to attack us."

General Counsel Chen Yan rushed in: "Chairman Wang, we've found out. These articles were originally published by twelve self-media accounts, all pointing to a shell company registered in the Cayman Islands."

He handed over an investigation report, which stated, "Through equity penetration, the ultimate beneficiary is related to the venture capital fund under Masclone."

Liu Yifei pushed open the door and entered, dressed in sportswear, clearly having just been woken up.

She glanced at the screen: "Masclone doesn't dare to do things openly, so he resorts to underhanded tactics?"

“Because he knows he can’t beat us in terms of products and technology.” Suning tapped the table. “Pass the word: a three-pronged counterattack. First, the legal department should immediately prepare the litigation materials; second, the public relations department should launch a transparency campaign; third, the technology department should investigate all the dirt on these self-media outlets.”

"Yes, Chairman Wang."

Three days later, the Beijing Internet Court accepted 28 defamation lawsuits filed by the Wang Group.

Even more noteworthy is that Wang's legal team applied for an "anonymous account real-name disclosure order," demanding that major social media platforms provide the real registration information of the first batch of 50 rumor-mongering accounts.

"This is a warning to others." In an interview with CCTV Finance, Professor Zhou Ming, a legal expert who participated in the compilation of the Civil Code and Suning's lawyer, stated bluntly, "The internet is not a lawless zone, and companies have the right to pursue legal responsibility for malicious defamation."

Meanwhile, the Wang Group's "transparency campaign" is in full swing.

The official account launched a 24-hour live stream of the factory, showing the intelligent production line operating smoothly; the youth training base released its annual operating report, showing that it has trained 37 national youth team members; the finance department even showed its tax records for the past five years - with a cumulative tax payment of more than 300 billion yuan.

The most ingenious move was the counterattack with "weight loss insurance".

Wang's official Weibo account posted a surveillance video: On the eve of last year's annual meeting, Suning was sweating profusely in the gym and lost 18 kilograms in three months.

The caption read: "The chairman personally experiencing the product—isn't that considered extravagance and debauchery?"

Public opinion began to show subtle changes.

A well-known financial blogger published a long article analyzing: "Upon closer inspection of those attack articles, they almost all avoid specific data and verifiable facts, relying entirely on emotional incitement."

This Weibo post received 100,000 reposts.

The turning point came on the seventh day.

An anonymous account suddenly released a secretly filmed video: Maskel was having a private conversation with the editor-in-chief of a self-media outlet at a private club, where he said, "Focus on his youth training program, accuse him of wasting public resources... The patriotic card works best..."

The video went viral like a nuclear bomb.

Netizens quickly discovered that the self-media account was the one that first broke the story of the "dark side of youth training bases".

The hashtag #Masclone'sInsidiousTactics# instantly became the number one trending topic.

"Did you arrange this video?" Liu Yifei asked during family dinner.

Su Ning served his wife a bowl of soup: "I just had the security department check the club's surveillance system. Coincidentally, they were using products from the security company we invested in."

The following day, the Internet Court ruled that platforms such as Weibo and Douyin should provide the true information of the first batch of 20 accounts that were spreading rumors.

Five of the accounts quickly deleted their posts and apologized, while the other fifteen were confirmed to be paid troll accounts operated by the same public relations firm.

"This is just the beginning," Suning announced at a press conference after winning the case. "Wang's Group will invest an additional 200 billion yuan in new energy vehicle research and development, and at the same time build new youth training bases in ten cities."

He paused, then flashed his signature sly smile. "By the way! We just submitted some materials to the tax authorities regarding tax avoidance by multinational corporations, and I believe the relevant departments will be interested."

Less than two hours after the press conference, financial media broke the news that three offshore companies under Masclone's control were suspected of using VIE structures to evade taxes, potentially amounting to billions of yuan.

That evening, at the celebration banquet for the senior executives of the Wang Group, the public relations director raised a glass of champagne and asked, "Chairman Wang, we won this media war, but won't we offend Masclone too much?"

Su Ning swirled his wine glass, his gaze sharp: "The business world is like a battlefield; he fired the first shot."

He took a sip of his drink. "Besides, you think this is the end? The real show is yet to come."

Outside the window, dark clouds filled the night sky, and a storm was brewing.

...(End of chapter)