Chapter 605 - The Disgusting Copycat
Sitting in his spacious office, Li Yede held onto the mouse and constantly clicked, playing a poker game. The greatest delight in Li Yede's office life was killing time with poker. He had excellent skills, and he had already reached the crown level in the game. After another win, he stood up and came to the couch to brew tea.
A man that looked to be in his thirties with short hair, an aquiline nose, and a pair of fierce eyes that flickered with slyness sat opposite him.
"Sorry to keep you waiting!" Li Yede proficiently brewed the tea and explained, "Black tea belongs to the category of fermented tea, and the taste is pretty heavy. Not many people can get used to it when they try it, but for some reason, recently I've been pretty fond of it since it has a pondering aftertaste."
"Only someone with enough experience could enjoy the taste of black tea." Wang Guofeng smiled.
After he took a sip, he praised, "Take me, for example, I can only taste the sweetness and fragrance. That means that I'm not experienced enough."
Waving his hand, Li Yede laughed, "Guofeng, you've become more humble after abandoning medicine and going into business."
"You're a senior in the business world, and I have always treated you as my role model." Wang Guofeng immediately smiled.
"In the business world, there's only early and latecomers. We don't have any saying of seniors and juniors in it. There are many people out there who are smarter, more innovative, and more proficient in management than me. I only made it so far because I was lucky." Li Yede smiled, waving his hand.
Shrugging his shoulders, Wang Guofeng looked at Li Yede with his clear pupils and sincerely replied, "Luck is also a form of talent. Luck will only side on those who are prepared, and I don't think that your luck is that simple. It requires high accomplishments and strength. This is something that ordinary people couldn't fathom or recreate, and this is also the reason that you're known by everyone in Huainan Province."
Li Yede was the wealthiest tycoon in Huainan Province. As for flattering, he had already gotten tired of it, but for some reason, he felt smug when he heard Wang Guofeng flattering him.
"I know the intention of your visit. Your intention of creating the Xinglin Charity Funds sounds pretty good to me, but as you know, I have my own charity foundation, not to mention that it also has shares in several fund organisations. This is also the reason why I'm hesitating to invest in your Xinglin Charity Funds. I might be rich, but there's a limit to my money, and I have to use it appropriately." Li Yede smiled.
The reason why Wang Guofeng looked for Li Yede was that he intended to establish a Xinglin Charity Funds with TCM as the foundation to create a TCM charity foundation. Putting it in a nutshell, he's mimicking the Qihuang Charity Funds.
He had been following up on the business politics, and this was the reason why he's copying Su Tao. Although he might not be the best, he would never drop out. Furthermore, there were also past cases of the first being replaced by the second.
"This year, the country has issued many policies that are beneficial to the development of TCM, and if it goes according to my expectations, the next few years will welcome a new era for TCM. Using TCM as the core for a charity foundation, regardless of politics or advantage, it's superior when compared to other charity funds." Wang Guofeng came prepared, which he patiently explained, "According to my knowledge, the several charity foundations under your control have already been targeted, and their operation might even be halted. If that's the case, then wouldn't you have fewer channels to avoid tax?"
Upon hearing those words, Li Yede's eyes lit up since Wang Guofeng was right. The reason why he had so many charity foundations was to avoid tax, and at the same time, he's trying to shift his assets overseas through some projects as his path of retreat. And right now, those charity foundations were facing a significant problem.
Just some time ago, someone with malicious intentions stole some secrets and was intending to sell them to his competitors. But fortunately, he found out about it in time and took them back. Otherwise, the consequences would be dire.
Then again, that person died a horrible death. Even his death was used by Li Yede to attack his competitor.
A crafty rabbit had three burrows! When one location was no longer safe and might be exposed, then he would be able to look for alternate paths.
Falling into silence, Li Yede pondered. But suddenly, his phone rang. Looking at the number, a smug expression appeared on his face as he answered, "Meimei? You've finally called me?"
Li Yede had been waiting for Qin Meimei's call since he had been using several means recently to try and force Qin Meimei to bow to him.
Although the two of them have already split up, he couldn't forget Qin Meimei. Furthermore, he didn't believe that Qin Meimei would be so cruel to cut clean with him.
This was the selfishness of people. When you possess something, you won't cherish it. But when you lose it, you will start to regret it and try to take it back.
In Li Yede's view, the Qihuang Charity Funds was a joke. It's just a tool that Qin Meimei was using to take revenge on him, albeit to overestimate her capability. In the end, it was as proven. All he had to do was use a little tactic to get Qin Meimei to surrender.
"You've got the wrong person. I'm Su Tao!" A clear voice resounded and Su Tao smiled. "I called you because I just want to inform you that persisting in evil only brings about self-destruction. Since the Qihuang Charity Funds is not doing anything illegal, I believe that the truth will come to light. At that time, be careful not to flip the boat and sink yourself."
"You!" Li Yede was nearly enraged by Su Tao, but he suddenly noticed that something was amiss. Not giving Su Tao any information to be used against him, Li Yede sneered, "I don't know what you're talking about, nor do I know you. Since you're not Meimei, then there's no need for me to converse with a stranger. I'm sorry, and goodbye!"
"Hold on!" Su Tao suddenly yelled and continued, "You must be feeling smug right now. But I have to tell you that you're too smart for your own good. He Yu had already given me something that consists of your secrets."
"Secrets? I have always done things upright, so don't try and use this sort of tactic to scare me." Li Yede was a veteran, after all, so how could he fall for such a simple trick?
"Let me advise you to remove that false news on the internet. Otherwise, you will be finished once I reveal it." Su Tao coldly replied before he hung up the phone.
When the call was hung up, Li Yede dazed off since he never expected that Su Tao would not call him to beg, but to threaten him. But due to the fact that Wang Guofeng was present, he maintained his composure, albeit feeling uneasy. He had already gotten someone to take the USB drive from He Yu, so how did Su Tao know about this secret? Then again, there's another possibility being that He Yu made a backup aside from that USB drive.
Although he didn't feel that there's a high possibility, he still felt somewhat uneasy.
"Regarding the Xinglin Charity Funds, please allow me to consider it. I have an upcoming meeting, so I won't be able to chat with you for long." Li Yede sounded his intention to send Wang Guofeng off.
Wang Guofeng was keen, and he had noticed that there's something wrong with Li Yede. Hence, he tactfully left the office.
After Wang Guofeng left, Li Yede immediately dialed a number and asked, "Are you certain that the matter was done cleanly?"
"Boss, there's no problem with it! I arranged the most capable person to deal with it, so I can guarantee that it's nicely done." A man replied with a strong Cantonese accent.
"You guys have to be cautious. I suspect that there might be a change to the situation!" Li Yede cautiously said.
"Alright. Even if something happens, we won't make things difficult for you." The man promised.
At this moment, Li Yede could feel his heart throbbing. For some reason, he could feel a pair of eyes staring at him, trying to get a clear glimpse of his dirty hands.
When Qin Meimei took the phone back and noticed that Su Tao did not make a recording, she bitterly smiled. "So, what's the purpose of your call?"
She evidently did not expect that Su Tao would call to threaten Li Yede. Then again, Su Tao had always been unexpecting.
"You'll know the purpose at a later date!" Su Tao smiled with confidence. Through the call, he was certain that Li Yede must be the mastermind to all these messes as well as the murder case.
As long as he has determined a target, it will be much easier for him to investigate.
However, Qin Meimei wasn't confident in Su Tao's speech and sighed, "You've angered Li Yede, and he will definitely go harsher on us. As for the upcoming press conference, why don't we…"
Waving his hand, Su Tao interrupted with a firm voice, "The press conference has to proceed as planned. At the same time, we will be changing our topic. It's not a press conference to clear our name, but an initiative press conference."
"Initiative?" Qin Meimei was baffled as she looked at Su Tao.
"That's right; why did the rumors rise? It's because there are tons of issues in the charity industry. We're not afraid of being slandered, but we must have a method to deal with it and confidence to change the industry, leading them to the right path of development at the same time." As Su Tao spoke, even he was touched by his own speech. He felt like a saint at this moment and continued with a smile, "So for the press conference, we will be raising the level. It's not for us but for the entire industry. We will host a prestigious press conference."
Looking at Su Tao, Qin Meimei was dumbfounded. It took her a long time to recover before she smiled. "You're truly a talent at coming up with ideas."
"Well, I can't help it. Let's change the topic of our press conference. Furthermore, I guarantee that Li Yede won't be interrupting our press conference later. Right now, he must be worried and thinks that we have something on him." Su Tao weakly sighed.
"What is it?" Qin Meimei was perplexed.
"Something that the heavens and earth knows, but not us." Su Tao smiled.
"This is the psychology of criminals. When they know that their secrets are exposed, they will be worried and afraid. Even if you don't know what the secret is, just don't let him find out about it. It's just like how thieves would run in an instant upon being discovered."
Then again, Su Tao wasn't afraid even if Li Yede gets someone to come and trash the press conference.