Rebirth 70: I am a Koi

The press conference was even more chaotic than I had imagined. The reporters were like sharks smelling blood, aggressive and almost poking their microphones into my face.

"Mr. Mu, how do you explain this fire accident? Is it related to the unfair competition you mentioned?"

"Mr. Bai, there are rumors that your planting base has broken its capital chain and is about to go bankrupt. Is this true?"

"Mr. Mu, do you still have the confidence to lead the planting base out of the predicament?"

Countless questions came at me like bombardments, my brain was buzzing, and I could hardly think. I took a deep breath, trying to keep myself calm, and was about to speak when Bai Hanchuan pulled me behind him.

His face was stern, his eyes swept around the reporters fiercely, and his voice was low and powerful: "Everyone, please be quiet! Regarding this fire, we have called the police, and I believe the police will investigate it thoroughly. As for other issues, I'm sorry that it is inconvenient to disclose them. Please wait patiently for the results."

His words were so powerful that the place suddenly fell silent. I looked at him gratefully and felt a little more at ease.

However, our opponents were clearly well prepared. The day after the press conference, major newspapers and media outlets published reports that were unfavorable to us, blaming the fire on our poor management. Some even reported that the medicinal flowers we planted had quality problems. For a time, the planting base was caught in a whirlpool of public opinion and its reputation plummeted.

"Damn it! How can they confuse right and wrong like this?!" Lin Xiao angrily slammed the newspaper on the table, his eyes red.

I was also filled with anger and powerlessness, but I knew that now was not the time to be angry. We had to find a way to resolve the crisis at hand.

"Xiao Xiao, how is the research and development of the new product progressing?" I looked at Lin Xiao, hoping to hear some good news.

"Oh, don't mention it. Funds are too tight. We can't afford to buy a lot of equipment, and..." Lin Xiao hesitated to speak, his face full of worry.

I understand her difficulties. Since the last fire, the capital chain of the planting base has become even tighter, almost to the point of exhaustion.

"Dong dong dong..."

There was a knock on the door and Lin Xiao quickly got up to open it.

"Hello, may I ask..."

"Excuse me, is Ms. Mu Jinli here?" An old but energetic voice came... "Hello, it's me." I looked at the person who came with some doubts. It was an energetic old man, dressed simply, but with extraordinary temperament, and holding a wicker basket in his hand.

"Hello, Ms. Mu. I'm here to help you." The old man smiled and introduced himself: "You can call me Mr. Zhou, and this is my student, Xiao Liu, an expert in botany." The young man behind Mr. Zhou smiled shyly and nodded at me.

Lin Xiao and I were both very surprised. Who could it be? Before I could ask in detail, Mr. Zhou took out some tools and medicines that I had never seen before from the basket. "This is the nutrient solution I specially prepared according to your soil and flower varieties. It can effectively improve the quality and yield of flowers." Mr. Zhou said while carefully explaining the tools and how to use them to us.

In the following days, Mr. Zhou and Xiao Liu stayed at the planting base and taught us planting techniques tirelessly. Their profound knowledge and rich experience benefited Lin Xiao and I a lot. "Jinli, Mr. Zhou and his team are really amazing! Look, this batch of flowers is growing much better than before!" Lin Xiao said excitedly, pointing at the flowers in the greenhouse.

I looked at the vibrant flowers in front of me, and a long-lost smile appeared on my face. Mr. Zhou and his students undoubtedly provided us with timely assistance and great help. However, I knew very well that this was only a temporary solution and not a fundamental solution.

The opponent's offensive became more and more fierce. They used the advantage of public opinion to spread rumors that the planting base was about to go bankrupt, causing suppliers to ask for early payment. "Mr. Mu, are we really going to go bankrupt?" "I have parents and children to take care of, I can't lose this job!" The employees were panicked, and some even began to secretly submit their resignations.

My heart seemed to be tightly grasped by an invisible hand, and I couldn't breathe. "Bang!" The office door was pushed open, and Bai Hanchuan walked in with a sullen face, holding a document in his hand. "They are too much! They actually took advantage of the situation and robbed me!" He threw the document hard on the table and said with gritted teeth.

I picked up the document, took a look at it, and my face turned pale. This document was an investment company's acquisition plan for our planting base, and the boss behind this company was our competitor... Every clause in the acquisition plan was like a sharp knife, stabbing me hard in the heart. The price offered was far lower than the actual value of the planting base, not to mention the effort and emotion we invested.

"They don't really want to acquire us, they just want to take the opportunity to swallow us up and steal our planting technology!" Bai Hanchuan clenched his fists tightly, and the blue veins on the back of his hands were clearly visible.

I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down. "We can't just sit there and wait for death. We have to find a way to fight back."

"How do we fight back? Now suppliers are demanding payment, employees are in a panic, and we no longer have any bargaining chips." Bai Hanchuan leaned weakly on the chair, his tone full of fatigue and despair.

I know what he said is true, but I am unwilling to give up just like that, and I am even more unwilling to hand over the planting base that I have worked so hard to build to others.

"We still have a chance, there must be a chance..." I murmured to myself, constantly recalling the experiences during this period in my mind, trying to find a glimmer of hope.

We decided to make a last-ditch effort and agreed to negotiate with the other party. At the negotiation table, the arrogant attitude and greedy faces of the other party's representatives made me and Bai Hanchuan more resolute in our judgment - what they wanted was not acquisition, but plunder.

"Mr. Mu, you know that the market conditions are not good right now. The price we offer is already the best we can do." The other representative said with a wry smile, a cunning gleam in his eyes.

"If this is what you call sincerity, then I think there is no need for us to continue talking." Bai Hanchuan stood up suddenly and said in a cold tone.

Just when the negotiations were about to break down, I noticed a document fell out of the other party's folder. I bent down to pick it up and flipped through it casually, but unexpectedly discovered an astonishing secret - in order to seize market share, the other party's company actually used banned drugs in the flower cultivation process!

My heart was shocked. This was a fatal loophole that was enough to completely defeat them!

I took a deep breath and calmly put the document back to its place. Then I raised my head and looked at the other representative with a meaningful smile on my face.

"It seems that there is still room for cooperation between us..."

Bai Hanchuan and I walked out of the negotiation building. The afterglow of the setting sun stretched our shadows out. I tightly held the document bag in my hand, feeling anxious. I knew that this was a big gamble, and it was all the hard work of Bai Hanchuan and me, and the future of the planting base.

As night fell, Bai Hanchuan and I stood in the office of the planting base, looking out the window at the night, feeling anxious. We knew that this was our last chance, and success or failure depended on it. I took out a document from the drawer and handed it to Bai Hanchuan, "I have already made the contact, just waiting..."

Bai Hanchuan took the document and read it carefully word by word under the dim light. His brows were sometimes furrowed and sometimes relaxed, obviously weighing something. After a while, he raised his head and looked at me firmly, "Are you sure you want to do this? This is a big risk."

I took a deep breath and said firmly, "Instead of sitting and waiting for death, we should give it a try. I believe that good will prevail over evil, and we will definitely win!"

Bai Hanchuan was silent for a moment, then nodded, stretched out his hand and took me into his arms, "Okay, let's try together! Even if we fail, at least we tried our best and we won't regret it."

I gently leaned my head on his shoulder, feeling his warm embrace, and my heart was filled with strength. I knew that no matter how difficult the road ahead was, I would fight side by side with him and never give up.

Outside the window, the night deepened, and a few stars twinkled faintly in the night sky. A gust of night wind blew, bringing a hint of coolness and blowing away some of the haze in our hearts.

Suddenly, a rapid knock on the door broke the silence of the night. My heart tightened, and an ominous premonition came to my mind.

"Come in!" Bai Hanchuan said in a deep voice.

The door of the office was pushed open, and Lin Xiao ran in in a panic, saying breathlessly: "Oh no, President Mu, President Bai, something happened..."