Wang Zhanting looked at his nephew with a bit of sympathy. Xiao Lin's intelligence lay not in what he did, but in knowing how to use people to accomplish things. Preparing everything overnight wasn't something one person could do.

How did he deploy it? Wang Zhanting suddenly wanted to know. He had always kept his eyes on him, and the recurring negative news proved enough that Xiao Lin had no opportunity to design in secret. Just dealing with the assassination attempts and petty tricks set by Fatty Wang was already difficult to manage, and according to reports from those monitoring in secret, Xiao Lin had no suspicious activities beyond meeting a few fixed people at a few fixed locations.

There were only a few people from within the Wang Family left at the meeting table; the senior executives who had left were from peripheral areas, so naturally, there was no need for those with different surnames to stay and wade in muddy waters, especially since it's possible the other party had already bought them out with a high price.

"Everyone here is family, and I would like to hear the uncles' opinions. Now is the time to fight against external enemies, and I hope all of you will extend a helping hand. Let's reasonably repel them, what do you think?"

Haha, starting to ask for money from one's own people now! The compensation for 'inone' cannot be avoided, and it is difficult to sustain the entire group with the remaining funds. Without reducing expenses and laying off staff, personnel costs represent a significant figure.

"Dear nephew, these are tough times; I think we should first trim the staff a bit, shut down some unnecessary departments, pause ongoing projects, and also find a security company to help recover the outstanding debts. These are urgent matters."

Wang Hanwen, as a collateral branch of the Wang Family, held fifteen percent of the shares, so his words carried some weight.

"Wouldn't that be admitting that our Wang Family is incompetent?" Fatty Wang's face fell immediately upon hearing about layoffs. The Wang Family holds a prestigious position in Yanjing, and for him to undertake such actions, he couldn't bear to lose face.

"I think we should first suppress the issue with 'inone' in the social media. We can't let those journalists keep writing nonsense in the newspapers, tarnishing our name, right? We also need to pull up the low points in the stock market."

Wang Hanlin, the second uncle of Fatty Wang, was perhaps his closest ally, and from his perspective, if the Wang Family couldn't hold its ground, he'd be the first to suffer. He had privately bought a considerable amount of Wang Family stocks, which now were as good as waste paper.

"Are journalists that easy to deal with?" Fatty Wang sat back in his chair, and in the meeting room of less than five people, he easily saw Wang Zhanting sitting in the corner.

"Uncle Three, why are you sitting there?" He called out to Wang Zhanting, gesturing for him to sit closer.

"No, thanks, you know my principle; I've never been keen on commercial affairs. I'll just listen." Wang Zhanting politely waved his hand.

"Are there still banks willing to give us loans?"

"All the banks have already called, urging us to quickly repay previous loans; otherwise, they will assess and acquire the Wang Family's fixed assets through court." The only non-Wang financial director present was still in his position, not because he didn't want to leave, but because he couldn't.

"What?" Fatty Wang suddenly felt dizzy, helplessly slouching on the chair's backrest.

Wang Zhanting looked at the nearly concluded situation, set down his teacup, and walked over to Fatty Wang. "Now, it might just be your enemies who can save you."

"Uncle Three!" Fatty Wang suddenly clutched Wang Zhanting's hand, kneeling before him.

"You are also a pillar of the Wang Family, you can't watch the Wang Family fall like this. You could use your influence in the municipal committee to help the Wang Family through this difficult time."

Inwardly, Wang Zhanting sneered, pulling up Fatty Wang. "I've asked you more than once, were those things your doing? How did you answer me?" Fatty Wang hadn't expected Wang Zhanting to bring this up; he was only thinking about how to maintain the Wang Family's capital chain for the time being.

"Uncle Three, I really didn't do some of those things!"

Slap! A crisp sound, and a red mark appeared on Fatty Wang's face.

"Are you still not planning to tell the truth?" Wang Zhanting felt disappointed in the successor he had been keen to promote. "How many eyes were watching the things you did? Do you think Xiao Lin is someone you can easily manipulate like a soft persimmon? He didn't confront you directly because he had already figured you out completely. Don't you understand? You thought knowing a few people in the underworld would make it easy to get rid of him? Look around, who is still alive?"

Fatty Wang was left speechless; he had underestimated Xiao Lin. Even when Xiao Mu had proactively revealed his family background, he still hadn't taken Xiao Lin seriously.

"I should have guessed long ago that Xiao Lin was from the Xiao Family. How could you be so clueless? Do you know who the Xiao Family is? Yet you dared to mess with them." When Wang Zhanting learned Xiao Lin's true identity from Secretary Luo, he felt a regret even he couldn't express. Only he knew the depth of his remorse.

"I just found out too." Regarding the Xiao Family, he had only heard of them, a family above the municipal committee that never engaged in governmental or commercial affairs, with all their influence abroad and rarely involving themselves in domestic matters, hence the general ignorance of their existence.

"Knowing all this, you still made such a mess? I can't believe you were so naive! Fortunately, you didn't kill Xiao Lin, or the Wang Family would truly be finished, and we'd all have to go down with you. You are truly unfilial to the Wang Family."

Wang Zhanting's every word struck to the heart, each filled with both blood and tears, making everyone present fearful of Xiao Lin.

"Could you not focus on your career? Everything I created for you wasn't for you to play with power, was it? You attacked the Xia Family, don't you know what Xia Xue is to Xiao Lin?" Wang Zhanting wanted to slap Fatty Wang again, but his raised hand stopped midway in the air. "You should step down from your position in the Wang Family. Figure out how to resolve this yourself. From today on, I will publicly announce that you are not a member of the Wang Family to ensure the family isn't further dragged down by you."

Wang Zhanting's words immediately drew a lot of criticism, with Wang Hanlin's reaction being the most intense. "Third Brother, you can't say that. What would Big Brother think? And we haven't even found a suitable person for replacement; it's just that our big nephew got a bit hot-headed. What man wouldn't get angry seeing his woman taken by another man?"

Wang Zhanting shook his head helplessly at Wang Hanlin. "It's not that I want to bring him down, but the entire Yanjing wants him down."

This statement wasn't an exaggeration. Wang Zhanting was also at a loss, facing the dilemma of choosing between saving the Wang Family or its leader. The day Hua Muyun gave him a clear hint, nothing more than he hadn't heard it clearly at the time. If he could reverse time, if he had voiced that saving the Wang Family was the priority, perhaps the family wouldn't be plunging to such a low point now.

Xiao Lin's tactics were superior, but without the Hua Family and others meddling, such a stir wouldn't have occurred.

"What if we think of other methods to see if we can stabilize the situation first?" Wang Hanwen chimed in, casting a gaze at the other two Wang Family members, who nodded in agreement. "Arguing is meaningless now; whether replacing someone or anything else, we must first stand firm without the Wang Family falling."

"Alright, then you suggest a way to solve this." Wang Zhanting knew these two stood by Fatty Wang, so he was content not to intervene. "Stocks? Loans? The capital chain? Tell me how to resolve these?"

Every issue revolved around money. In truth, people are opportunistic, especially banks. Once they sense the slightest ripple that might affect their interests, everything becomes a problem, with debt collectors right behind you, eager to claim all your assets.

He had seen their methods before; those are the true vampires. A multimillion-dollar antique becomes a fake worth a few hundred thousand in their appraiser's hands, and there's nothing you can do about it if you can't pay them back. There's plenty of intrigue in this.

"Let's try to find a few old friends and see if we can gather some working capital to repay part of the bank's debt. Also, let's reach out to the Chen Family and the Sun Family to see if they can help by taking over some projects, transferring some funds out." Wang Hanwen rubbed his forehead. He didn't want to resort to asking favors like this, but now, he had no choice but to swallow his pride; at this critical juncture, even dignity can be dispensed with. Once the storm passes, the Wang Family can start again from scratch and shouldn't fall.

"If you all think this is a good idea, I have no objection." Wang Zhanting shrugged. He did not oppose, as it might not be a bad idea after all. From the perspective of the Wang Family elders, there's nothing wrong with it, though he glanced at Fatty Wang, the real culprit, who might not think the same.

While everyone was worried about the aftermath, Fatty Wang uncharacteristically remained silent. He sat there quietly, and no one knew what he was thinking. A faint smile spread across his serene face, causing Wang Zhanting's heart to skip a beat.

Having watched him grow up, Wang Zhanting knew exactly what he was planning. Was he still thinking of continuing the fight? He shook his head repeatedly. "I won't be involved in this matter anymore. You can do whatever you want; I won't interfere. If you take my suggestion, there will be a new replacement next month. If you think my proposal is bad, then there's nothing I can do about it. The current issue isn't about finding someone to help, but finding the cause within ourselves, understand?" Wang Zhanting advised Fatty Wang with a hint of meaning. "I advise you not to harbor any thoughts of revenge. The Wang Family cannot afford to lose, and neither can you." (To be continued. If you like this work, you're welcome to vote for it on Qidian (qidian.com) with recommendation or monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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