The richest man started taking advantage of loopholes after joining Alibaba.

Hangzhou, Alibaba Xixi Campus.

Building 1, 7th floor.

This is the highest power vacuum within the group—the partners' meeting room.

10:00 AM.

The blinds in the conference room were drawn tightly shut, shutting out the bright spring sunshine outside.

The indoor lighting was stark white, and the air conditioning was blasting, making one's scalp tingle.

Two groups of people were sitting at opposite ends of the long conference table.

On the left is Lin Che.

He had just changed into a clean shirt and even shaved his beard, looking energetic and like a model employee who had just been recognized.

On the right is Li Mo.

He was wearing that wrinkled suit that he hadn't changed in days, his eyes were sunken, and his expression was sinister, like a trapped beast driven to the brink of despair.

Sitting in the middle, presiding over the meeting, was COO Lao Xiao.

There were two documents in front of him.

One document is the "ironclad evidence of corruption" submitted by Li Mo.

One of them was a "strategic agreement" presented by Lin Che.

"cough."

Old Xiao cleared his throat, breaking the deathly silence.

He didn't look at Li Mo, but instead looked down at the thermos in his hand, as if the goji berries inside were more interesting than the case involving a billion dollars.

"Regarding the investigation report submitted by the Integrity and Compliance Department concerning Comrade Lin Che of the Wireless Business Unit."

Lao Xiao's voice was steady and even, with a kind of official tone unique to large factories.

"After an overnight investigation by the group's senior management, the results are as follows."

Li Mo suddenly raised his head.

His hands gripped the armrests of the chair so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

He is waiting.

We await that just verdict.

When Lao Xiao announced that Lin Che was a traitor, a parasite, and rotten flesh that had to be removed.

"The related businesses of the 'Weiguang Group' led by Comrade Lin Che..."

Old Xiao paused for a moment, then turned to the next page.

"This is a top-secret strategic deployment by the group to cope with the complex international capital environment."

"boom--"

Li Mo felt like a thunderbolt had exploded in his head.

Top Secret Strategy?

Is that project—which uses shell companies to launder money, uses fake invoices to embezzle budgets, and operates in the basement to generate gray-market transactions—a top-secret strategy?

"All fund transfers are under the group's financial supervision."

"All related transactions are internally accounted for under the VIE structure."

Old Xiao raised his head, his gaze sweeping across the entire room before finally settling on Li Mo's face.

"Therefore, the allegations of 'embezzlement' and 'transfer of benefits' are unfounded."

Dead silence.

Absolute silence.

Only the hum of the projector fan seemed like a merciless mockery.

Li Mo's mouth dropped open.

He looked at Lao Xiao, then at Lin Che, who had a calm expression on his face.

A huge sense of absurdity welled up inside me.

It took him six months, risking his career and using every trick in the book, to uncover the truth.

At that moment, a casual remark turned into a joke.

"impossible!"

Li Mo suddenly stood up, knocking the chair to the ground with a loud bang.

He grabbed the stack of transfer records on the table and slammed them onto the surface.

"Old Xiao! Look at this! This is the money that has flowed into offshore accounts over the past few months! A full eighty million US dollars!"

"If it's a company strategy, why go through underground banks?"

"If it's a legitimate business, why use a thug like Wang Defa as the legal representative?"

"You're lying! You're protecting criminals!"

Li Mo roared, spitting as he spoke, his saliva landing on the smooth mahogany table.

His eyes were so red they looked like they were about to bleed.

This was his last act of defiance, and also the last vestige of dignity for a compliance officer.

Old Xiao's face darkened.

He didn't answer Li Mo's question, but instead coldly asked in return:

"Li Mo".

"Did you file a complaint with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)?"

Li Mo's roar abruptly stopped.

He stood frozen in place, as if someone had grabbed him by the neck.

"I......"

"I'm doing this for the company! If I don't report it, the company will be finished once Muddy Waters finds out!"

"For the company?"

Lin Che, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke.

He picked up the teacup in front of him and gently blew away the foam.

The movements were elegant and composed.

"Mr. Li."

Lin Che put down his teacup, his eyes filled with a kind of pity for someone looking at a fool.

"You mean by 'for the company's sake' is just handing a knife to the Americans so they can stab us in the back?"

Do you know what an SEC subpoena means?

"This means the IPO might be halted. It means the hard work of tens of thousands of people over the past few years might go down the drain."

Lin Che stood up and straightened his collar.

He walked around the conference table and stood in front of Li Mo.

Every step felt like stepping on Li Mo's heartbeat.

"Mr. Li, you are a good person."

Lin Che's voice was very soft, and only the two of them could hear it.

"You've found everything to be correct. The data is right, the transaction records are right, and you even got the details of how I laundered money right."

Li Mo stared wide-eyed at the young man who was so close to him.

He's admitting it!

This bastard is admitting to the crime!

"but."

Lin Che leaned close to Li Mo's ear, a cruel smile curving his lips.

"You've got one thing wrong."

"You think this is a legal issue?"

"Actually, this is a political issue."

"When my interests are tied to Alibaba's interests."

Lin Che pointed to the ceiling above his head.

"I am the rule."

"And you, you're just an ignorant... outsider."

Li Mo trembled all over.

outsider.

He worked at Alibaba for ten years.

In his efforts to combat corruption, he offended countless people and was even threatened and intimidated.

He always thought of himself as the gatekeeper of this company and the defender of its values.

But now.

The young man who had just emptied the company of a billion yuan told him: You are the outsider.

That's enough.

Old Xiao tapped the table impatiently.

"Li Mo, given that you disclosed company secrets to overseas organizations without authorization, which is a serious violation of Alibaba's 'Red Line'."

"Effective immediately, you are relieved of your post as head of the Integrity and Compliance Department."

"We reserve the right to pursue legal action."

"Now, please leave."

This strike completely severed Li Mo's path to survival.

Not only did he lose the lawsuit, he also lost his career.

He was fired by Alibaba and also charged with "leaking confidential information".

In this industry, Li Mo is socially dead.

Li Mo looked at Lao Xiao's indifferent face.

She glanced again at Lin Che's ambiguous smile.

He laughed suddenly.

"Hahaha......"

The laughter was dry and harsh, like that of a night owl.

"it is good."

Li Mo nodded, smiling as he backed away.

"What a top-secret strategy!"

"What a political problem."

"Lin Che, you've won."

"But I'll be watching you from hell."

"Look at your towering edifice, how did it all collapse!"

Li Mo turned around and staggered out of the conference room.

His back was hunched, like a dog with a broken spine.

The moment the door closed.

The meeting room fell silent again.

The air seemed to still carry the bloody smell of shattered idealism.

"call......"

Old Xiao let out a long breath, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

He picked up a handkerchief and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

What he just witnessed was far too thrilling, even for a seasoned veteran like him.

They turn black into white and glorify criminals as heroes.

This requires an extremely thick skin and an extremely black heart.

"Lin Che."

Old Xiao looked at Lin Che with a complicated expression.

There was admiration, apprehension, and even a hint of fear.

"It was only because Mr. Ma valued your talent and it was at a crucial moment in the roadshow that he protected you."

"That VIE agreement..."

Old Xiao lowered his voice, "You'd better do it more convincingly next time."

"Don't worry, Mr. Xiao."

Lin Che sat back in his chair, reverting to his humble P7 demeanor.

"Once is enough for this kind of thing."

"From now on, we will be a regular army."

"That's good."

Old Xiao nodded, as if he had remembered something.

"By the way, although the crisis has been resolved, Mr. Ma has a new instruction."

"What instructions?"

Lin Che's heart skipped a beat.

The real drama is about to begin.

Now that Weiguang Group has been identified as "Alibaba's shadow subsidiary," the next step is to discuss how to turn this "shadow" into a "real entity."

"Mr. Ma said."

Old Xiao looked at Lin Che with a shrewdness typical of businessmen.

"Since micro-group buying is a 'strategic deployment' for the company, we can't let it remain outside the company forever."

"The Finance Department recommends that the acquisition process be formally initiated."

"Integrate 100% of your Weiguang Group into the Alibaba system."

Acquisition.

This is Mr. Ma's plan.

Since we can't catch you, we'll buy you.

Turn your company into my department, and your people into my employees.

At that time, no matter how great you are, Lin Che, you'll just be a high-level employee.

All the profits and all the traffic ultimately belong to Alibaba.

Lin Che smiled.

He had anticipated this.

This is an open conspiracy.

Jack Ma is using golden handcuffs to completely lock him onto Alibaba's chariot.

"Mr. Xiao."

Lin Che leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping lightly on the table.

"Acquisitions are a good thing."

"I also really want to contribute all my efforts to the company."

"but."

Lin Che changed the subject.

Even between brothers, accounts should be kept clear.

"The current valuation of Weiguang Group..."

He stretched out one hand, spreading his five fingers.

"Five hundred million US dollars?" Old Xiao frowned. "That price is a bit high, but it's not unnecessarily negotiable..."

"No."

Lin Che shook his head.

"It's five billion."

"Renminbi (RMB)".

"What?!"

Old Xiao almost threw the thermos he was holding.

"Fifty billion? Why don't you just rob someone?!"

"Didn't Sequoia just value you at a billion?"

"That was the previous price."

Lin Che stood up, walked to the window, and opened the blinds.

Sunlight streamed in instantly, illuminating his ambitious face.

"Mr. Xiao, have you forgotten?"

"Just yesterday, the SEC launched an investigation because of Li Mo's whistleblower report."

"If we acquire it now at a low price, the SEC will consider it as destroying evidence and a transfer of benefits from one hand to the other."

"The only option is to acquire it at a 'fairly high market price'."

"Only then can we prove that this is a truly valuable independent company, and not a shell company for money laundering."

Lin Che turned around and stood with his back to the light.

His figure cast a long shadow on the conference table.

"so."

"To prove Ali's innocence."

"To prove Mr. Ma's judgment."

"Alibaba must spend this money."

"Moreover, it should be spent in a grand and spectacular way, in a way that makes the whole world feel it's worth it."

Old Xiao opened his mouth, unable to speak for a long time.

He looked at Lin Che.

At that moment, he finally understood what Li Mo had said before he left.

hell.

Lin Che is the demon who crawled out of hell and tried to drag heaven down with him.

"you......"

Old Xiao pointed at Lin Che, his finger trembling.

"You're extorting the company."

"No, Mr. Xiao."

Lin Che smiled slightly, his smile as bright as the spring sunshine.

"I'm doing this for the company's good."

"after all."

"We're all in the same boat now."