Water and Fire~Chapter 120.3: He Must Fall

 

Chapter 120.3: He Must Fall

At the end of this year, Litong Securities' continuous supervision period for Hanhai Home Textiles will expire. From the more than a year of preparation for the IPO, plus the two-plus years of continuous supervision after the IPO, a total of over four years, Zhou Hanhai specially invited Ren Yan to dinner the day before the end of the year to thank him for his dedicated work and supervision of Hanhai Home Textiles.

Zhou Hanhai also invited Chu Qianmiao and Qin Qianyu. Qin Qianyu had gone back home with his wife to celebrate New Year's Day, so it was Ren Yan who ultimately brought Chu Qianmiao to the appointment.

Zhou Hanhai was delighted upon seeing Ren Yan. "Of all the people I've met in recent years, the one I admire most is President Ren," he told Chu Qianmiao, not concealing his admiration for Ren Yan. Chu Qianmiao felt a tinge of pride. She secretly gloated that such an outstanding man was her man.

During the meal, Zhou Hanhai lamented that the company's performance had been poor over the past two years, with declining results. If this continued, it was likely to result in losses. He also told Chu Qianmiao, "Most of our current revenue comes from e-commerce. Speaking of which, I have to thank Qianmiao very much. No, you're President Chu now. It was you who suggested to me back then that the internet be the future and that I should increase our e-commerce operations and development."

Chu Qianmiao even said she wasn't worthy of the honor.

Towards the end of the dinner, Ren Yan offered Zhou Hanhai some reassurance. "Mr. Zhou, don't worry too much. If the company's performance doesn't improve next year, we can consider other operational options, such as acquiring a company with promising prospects."

Taking this reassurance, Zhou Hanhai relaxed his tense self. "I knew you were my lucky star, Mr. Ren. As long as you're around, all my difficulties can be easily overcome."

After dinner, Ren Yan drove Chu Qianmiao home.

When the car arrived downstairs, Ren Yan pulled Chu Qianmiao in for a kiss. As they were kissing, Chu Qianmiao's phone rang. It was her parents, inviting her to a video call.

Ren Yan turned on the car lights. Chu Qianmiao answered the call.

Ms. Chu's parents called out "Miaomiao baby" affectionately through the phone screen. They asked if Miaomiao baby would be home for New Year's Day, and also asked if Miaomiao baby would be coming home.

Chu Qianmiao told her parents, "We're both busy right now. Not only are we busy with work, but we're also renovating our house, so we need to keep an eye on it. Besides, the New Year's Day holiday is short, so we won't be going back." After a pause, she said excitedly, "Mom and Dad, I'll bring you two over to live here when my house is finished."

Ms. Chu looked disapproving. "Beijing is so crowded, so crowded, and so expensive. We don't want to go there."

Chu Qianmiao laughed. Eight out of ten people working hard in Beijing have parents who say the same thing: Beijing is crowded, noisy, and expensive. But when chatting with outsiders, they can't help but proudly tell them that their children are here, settled down there for work and life. When they say, "That's the capital, and it's not easy to settle down there; it takes some skill." "Your children are amazing!" they say, feeling incredibly proud.

So, when they say they don't want to come, it's simply because they don't want to burden their children.

Chu Qianmiao looked at her parents on the screen, her heart warming.

"It's okay, just come. I'll buy you a car when you come, so you won't have to squeeze your daughter. I earn a lot of money now. When you come, I'll give you some pocket money. You can buy whatever you want."

Mother and Father Chu beamed with joy.

Ren Yan watched Chu Qianmiao interact with her parents. Even in the small space, the air seemed to grow warm and joyful.

It was truly a glimpse into the everyday world.

In the video, Chu's mother suddenly said, "Miaomiao, I was chatting with Miaoyu yesterday, and I don't know if she let it slip that you're dating."

Chu Qianmiao glanced quickly at Ren Yan, then turned back to her parents, a little shyly saying, "Yes, I am."

Mother Chu looked incredulous. "Why do I feel like you're fooling me and your dad? Did you discuss this with Miaoyu and lie to us about you dating so I don't have to arrange a blind date for you? Miaomiao, I'm telling you, lying is bad. Children who lie should be thrown into the river. You can't lie to me. If you have a partner, you have one. If not, be honest so I can get your aunts and sisters-in-law to set you up on a blind date."

Chu Qianmiao's brows twisted into knots as she caught sight of Ren Yan. She quickly said, "Mom, I really have a boyfriend." She thought for a moment and told Chu's mother, "Oh, you can ask my godmother. The last time she and my godfather came to Beijing, they had dinner with me and another guy. That guy is my boyfriend."

Chu's mother said, "But your godmother and godfather came back and said that was your boss."

Chu Qianmiao said, "I got him."

Chu's mother said, "I still don't believe it." Chu's father chimed in, "Yeah, yeah, you're just avoiding blind dates."

Chu Qianmiao was about to collapse. "Wait a minute."

She pulled Ren Yan over and brought him into the frame.

"Mom, Dad, come here. Let me introduce you to my boyfriend."

She then said to Ren Yan, "Mom, Dad, come on, say hello."

Ren Yan called out "Uncle, Mom, Hurry, say hello."

There was a hint of trepidation and nervousness in his voice that only he recognized. This emotion was completely unfamiliar to him; it felt like he hadn't felt nervous in his entire life.

Mother Chu's eyes lit up as she looked at Ren Yan. "Hello, young man!" After a pause, she sighed again and said to Chu Qianmiao, "No, Miaomiao, you didn't just grab a colleague to bully me and your dad, did you?"

Ren Yan couldn't help but curl his lips as he looked at this simple and lovely couple.

Chu Qianmiao, driven to the brink of defeat by Mother Chu's pressure, held up her phone and said, "Okay, Mom, just force me to do something immoral in public. Watch me!"

She turned around and kissed Ren Yan hard on the face.

Ren Yan was stunned by her kiss, but then his eyes filled with affection.

When Chu Qianmiao watched the video again, her parents were so excited they'd forgotten who their daughter was, where she was, or what she was doing. Their focus was solely on Ren Yan. "Hey, young man, when can you come visit us? I'll make you a pot of braised pork. It's delicious and goes really well with rice."

Until the video ended, Chu Qianmiao's presence was practically nonexistent.

After the video ended, Chu Qianmiao asked Ren Yan with a melancholy expression, "You're not saying I'm an adopted child, are you? Why don't they see me when they see you?"

Ren Yan patted her head, amused.

"Nonsense."

How could that be? She had such a warm family and such loving parents, and with them, he felt a long-lost warmth.

After the New Year, Chu Qianmiao heard that the company He Yihui and his team had previously abandoned was about to go public.

Chu Qianmiao found the company's pre-IPO prospectus and read it. She discovered that the company's accounts receivable, which were significantly higher than those of other companies in the same industry, had disappeared. They had indeed eliminated this issue. But this also exposed other problems: despite the company's accounts receivable disappearing, its overall profits had increased instead of decreased.

This was extremely problematic. The company's actual profits were limited, and they hadn't continued to falsify accounts receivable, yet their profits had increased. This suggests that the company had resorted to other methods to commit financial fraud, and even more than before.

Chu Qianmiao began compiling her report. She had previously taken photos of the fraudulent documents for unbiased comparison on the project. She printed them out. In her report, she detailed the company's previous financial fraud methods, its actual profits, and its current profits, thereby arguing that the company was fraudulent.

She concluded that the company must have engaged in even more egregious financial fraud.

She reported the materials she had compiled.

The report quickly yielded feedback: the review of this problematic company was suspended. The reason was that the signing sponsor representative, signing lawyer, signing accountant, and other intermediary personnel were suspected of violating laws and regulations. The regulatory authorities suspended the review and launched a further investigation.

Chu Qianmiao thought that Qiao Zhixin's actions in this project would never go unchecked. Assisting in the falsification of financial documents and data, and suspected bribery—if the government investigated these matters, it would not just result in the revocation of his lawyer's license; he might even face certain criminal penalties.

As for the securities firm and accountant, their investigation was not unjust. All those who do not follow the right path should receive the punishment they deserve. This is a fair measure for those who follow the right path.

Chu Qianmiao ate an extra bowl of dinner. As she ate, she wondered what else she could do to make Qiao Zhixin's downfall even more conclusive.

Author, Ren Yan has something to say! Today is another day my girl shines!