Era: I was a farmer at the foot of Yaoling Mountain

Chapter 489 The Cicada Sheds Its Shell: An Impossible Mission

The next day.

After having breakfast, Fang Wei went to the office for a while before driving to the hardware factory.

Today, the industrial park has hundreds of lock-related companies, and there are many supporting companies in the surrounding counties and cities, forming a huge industrial chain.

Hardware factories are definitely among the best in the industry.

Whenever Fan Zhipeng thinks about the entrepreneurial journey of the factory, a strong sense of pride wells up in his heart. It's just a pity that he is not the owner of the company. Although the income is considerable, he always feels that he is losing out.

If this were his own company, Mr. Fan would have been a multi-millionaire or even a billionaire long ago.

Looking around, some of these companies in the same industry are just putting on a show; the so-called collective enterprise is nothing but a facade, while in essence they are genuine private enterprises.

Some companies, on the other hand, contract out to individuals, using more flexible methods to bring large sums of money home.

But Fan Zhipeng could only watch helplessly. There was a powerful superior unit above him, Yaoling Agriculture, and more importantly, there was an even more powerful figure, Secretary Fang.

He felt a mixture of gratitude and fear towards Fang Wei. His gratitude was obvious; without everyone's support along the way, Fan Zhipeng would still be working in the fields.

The reason for his fear was that he had other ideas, which is why he was constantly worried about gains and losses.

"Manager Fan, Party Secretary Fang is here."

Fan Zhipeng was lost in thought in his office when one of his trusted confidants hurriedly knocked on the door and came in.

"The Party Secretary is here? Quickly, come with me to greet him."

Upon hearing Fang Wei's name, Fan Zhipeng immediately stood up.

Then he rushed out of the office and ran downstairs as if nothing had happened.

"Old Fan, no need to be so formal. I just came here to take a look around."

Fang Wei parked his car at the factory, and before he could even enter the office building, Fan Zhipeng and the entire management team came out to greet him.

But it doesn't give a good impression because it seems too deliberate and fake.

"Of course, it wouldn't be right for us to just sit here and not move after you've come."

Fan Zhipeng remained as respectful as ever. Fang Wei said nothing and then walked into the office building.

After listening to Fan Zhipeng's work report in the conference room, Fang Wei then toured various departments and finally went to the production workshop. He chatted with the workers on the production line for quite a while, leaving Fan Zhipeng standing there in the cold.

noon.

Fang Wei refused to be accompanied and went to the staff canteen to eat, taking advantage of the break time to listen to everyone's opinions.

After chatting with everyone for a while, he could clearly sense that everyone was speaking very cautiously.

He glanced back at Fan Zhipeng, who was eating at a table some distance away, and couldn't help but scoff inwardly. The other man had run the factory quite well; the management didn't dare speak up, and neither did the ordinary workers.

This actually shows that there is indeed a problem with the hardware factory.

"Old Fan, starting tomorrow, the company will be conducting routine audits of you. You need to cooperate fully."

Before Fang Wei arrived, he had planned to have an open and honest talk with Fan Zhipeng, but after arriving, he discovered that it seemed the entire management team of the hardware factory had problems.

It has no evidence, just an intuition. And its intuition is often very accurate.

After dinner, Fang Wei went to sit in Fan Zhipeng's office for a while. Fan Zhipeng rambled on and on, saying nothing but nonsense.

Fang Wei then announced a temporary audit on behalf of the company and left the hardware factory.

Fan Zhipeng watched Fang Wei's car drive away from downstairs until it was completely out of sight before returning to his office with a gloomy expression.

The next day.

The company dispatched auditors to the hardware factory to conduct a comprehensive audit of the factory's operations.

As a result, no major problems were found; there were only a few trivial matters that were not worth including in the audit report.

But this was only one card on the surface; Fang Wei had already guessed that the audit wouldn't uncover anything wrong. In addition, he had a hidden card: he secretly sent people to investigate from the outside.

"Secretary Fang, Manager Fan, and the factory's management personnel secretly established a lock company. This company was registered under the name of a township enterprise in another county, but in essence, it was their private enterprise."

Over the years, they have gained control of most of the key positions in the hardware factory, and ordinary employees dare not speak out. They are doing it cleverly, slowly transferring the sales network and orders to the new company; it seems they intend to hollow out the hardware factory.

Investigating something isn't actually that difficult.

Within the entire lock industry, companies cooperate, compete, and even become bitter enemies.

Although Fan Zhipeng had only just begun plotting something shady, many people in the industry knew about it, but they wouldn't proactively tell Yaoling Agriculture. However, if people from Yaoling Agriculture came to them to inquire about the situation, they wouldn't cover for Fan Zhipeng and his associates.

"Damn it! This is practically trying to kill the hardware factory! Secretary, we can't tolerate this anymore, let's call the police first."

Cai Tong was also in Fang Wei's office when he listened to the situation report.

He couldn't sit still any longer when such a big problem arose in one of the company's subsidiaries, and rushed over overnight. "Well done! A few of you go to the finance department to collect your bonuses later; I'll have spoken to them in advance."

Fang Wei turned to look at Cai Tong, who immediately realized she shouldn't have said that.

He quickly shut up, realizing that he wasn't in a good mood today and should restrain himself.

When only Fang Wei and Cai Tong remained in the office, Fang Wei said, "President Cai, immediately arrange for personnel to take over the hardware factory, and notify the people we have placed in the hardware factory's finance department to freeze the funds in the account immediately, and stop all shipments."

"Okay, I'll take care of it right away."

The key financial position in the hardware factory is definitely filled by someone appointed by the company.

Fan Zhipeng didn't intend to directly embezzle the company's cash; he planned to use a clever maneuver to support the company he controlled. This method was more covert, and by the time it was discovered, the hardware factory would likely be beyond saving.

Therefore, Fang Wei decided to take swift and decisive action to take full control of the hardware factory.

Cai Tong got up and left his office immediately to arrange related matters. He would personally lead the team for this takeover.

For the next two days, Fan Zhipeng felt uneasy. Although there were several audits every year, and Secretary Fang would occasionally come to the factory to work, he just felt something was wrong.

night.

He convened a meeting with his confidants, demanding that they complete the "golden cicada shedding its shell" plan as soon as possible, and relocate all the hardware factory's business to the new factory.

"Manager Fan, the new factory is not fully equipped yet. It would be inappropriate to rush to relocate our business now."

His subordinates objected, saying that their preliminary preparations were not yet complete, and even the production line had not been set up yet. Such a gathering would only cause trouble.

They pooled together some money and paid a deposit for the equipment. The major manufacturers only agreed to ship the goods because of Yaoling Agriculture.

If they rush into migrating their business now and things get exposed, equipment manufacturers might not support them anymore.

"Even if it's inappropriate, we have to carry it out! I've been feeling anxious these past few days. If we don't hurry, we might not even have another chance to take a chance."

Fan Zhipeng was very intimidated by Fang Wei. The current situation was awkward, as his group was not prepared and he didn't know how to handle the situation should things change.

The problem lies with his overconfidence. He always believed that his plan to escape undetected would not be leaked and that he had ample time to complete it.

But now, he no longer has that composure he once had.

"Okay, let's hurry up and complete the preliminary preparations as soon as possible."

Those present also realized the seriousness of the problem and were prepared to do everything they could to urge the manufacturer to ship the goods as soon as possible. No matter what, they wanted to get the production line set up first, and everything else would be fine.

Unfortunately, Fang Wei wouldn't give them any more chances.

The next day.

Cai Tong arrived at the hardware factory with the company's board resolution and replacements for key positions.

They moved into all departments without hesitation, then held a general meeting of all employees, announcing that Yaoling Agricultural Group Company had taken over the entire factory. The original management personnel were suspended from their duties and are under investigation by the company.

Fan Zhipeng watched this scene but did not step forward to stop it.

In reality, he couldn't stop it even if he wanted to. The hardware factory (lock company) was just a secondary unit under Yaoling Agriculture, and from any perspective, it should obey orders.

If extreme measures are taken, it may provoke the intervention of law enforcement agencies.

Fang Wei arrived late, after Cai Tong had taken control of the situation.

"Old Fan, why are you doing this to yourself?"

When Fang Wei met Fan Zhipeng, she did not blame him, but simply said something in a very calm tone.

"I'm not reconciled! Look at the general managers of these lock companies, aren't they all more successful than me? I have the ability to make more money, so why should I hang myself on one tree?"

Fan Zhipeng knew this matter couldn't be resolved peacefully, so he stopped pretending and let out a series of cold laughs.

"Old Fan, there's one thing you still don't understand: it's not that the hardware factory can't do without you, but that the hardware factory has provided you with a stage to showcase your talents."

Do you know why so many companies have outsourced their operations? It's because most of these companies are unable to pay wages and their products are unsaleable, so they're desperate and looking for capable contractors to take over their businesses in hopes of reviving them.

"And what's the situation with the hardware factory? General Manager Zhang led his team to Xiangshan to build a factory, leaving you with a valuable asset. How can you assume that the company's success is entirely your doing?"

Fang Wei stood by the window and briefly reviewed the development history of the hardware factory.

It's not that Fan Zhipeng is particularly capable, but rather that the factory had a good foundation and was supported by Yaoling Agriculture, which is why it was able to grow and become stronger.

Unfortunately, Fan Zhipeng was blinded by his own desires and always felt that the company had wronged him.

After Fang Wei finished speaking, Fan Zhipeng had nothing more to say and silently awaited the company's decision.

Fang Wei didn't want to talk to him anymore. She turned around, glanced at him, and left the office. A little while later, Cai Tong came with his men to announce that Fan Zhipeng had been removed from his position as manager of the hardware factory and dismissed from his post.

(End of this chapter)