"Mr. Lin..."
"Then how do you propose to clean up this mess?"
Su Dingsheng let out a helpless, self-deprecating laugh.
Dingsheng Real Estate, in its current state, was indeed a total mess.
It was practically a shell company.
All it had were projects, but no employees or capital.
It wouldn’t survive for long.
For Su Dingsheng, cleaning up the mess that was Dingsheng Real Estate was an urgent matter.
But for Lin Feng, there was no rush at all.
So, upon hearing Su Dingsheng’s question, Lin Feng unhurriedly took a sip of his coffee.
Only when Su Dingsheng was staring with desperate anticipation did Lin Feng finally, slowly, begin to speak:
"This matter isn’t difficult to resolve, if that’s what you want."
Su Dingsheng’s eyes lit up when he heard Lin Feng say this.
After all, while Su Dingsheng was saddled with quite a bit of debt, his largest single debt was the four hundred and eighty million he owed to Lin Feng.
Lin Feng looked up at Su Dingsheng and said, "My one hundred million, plus your four hundred and eighty million debt, for a total of five hundred and eighty million."
"To buy your Dingsheng Real Estate."
The moment Lin Feng’s words left his mouth, Su Dingsheng’s pupils constricted. He slammed his hand on the table and shot to his feet.
"Are you insane, you young punk?"
"Do you have any idea that my Dingsheng Real Estate is a company worth over three billion?"
"And you think you can just buy my company for a mere five hundred and eighty million?"
The coffee shop had an elegant atmosphere.
Su Dingsheng’s shouting quickly attracted the attention of a waiter outside the private room.
"Do you gentlemen require any service?" the waiter asked cautiously after knocking and entering.
Su Dingsheng had lost his composure, but Lin Feng had not.
Completely unaffected by Su Dingsheng, Lin Feng showed a faint smile and gently shook his head.
"We’re fine here. You don’t need to come in."
The waiter hesitated for a moment before turning to leave.
Originally, Su Dingsheng had been furious.
Of course he was indignant that Lin Feng wanted to acquire his life’s work for just a few hundred million.
That was why he had blurted out in anger.
He had immediately started shouting.
However, after the waiter’s unintentional interruption,
Su Dingsheng gradually came to his senses.
’Lin Feng’s debt is enormous.’
’If I don’t resolve this debt,’
’none of Dingsheng Real Estate’s projects can move forward, and even my own assets will be frozen.’
When you were in a tight spot, you had to bow your head.
So, after calming down, Su Dingsheng wasn’t as impulsive as before.
However, to make Su Dingsheng sell half a lifetime’s work for such a cheap price...
...was something Su Dingsheng himself was absolutely unwilling to do.
But now, the circumstances were forcing his hand.
So, Su Dingsheng hesitated for a moment, then sat down to negotiate properly with Lin Feng.
"President Lin, your price is not reasonable."
"Dingsheng Real Estate is my life’s work, one way or another. You want to take it for a mere five hundred million..."
"This is going too far. You’re bullying me."
Lin Feng laughed, calm and composed. "President Su, surely you don’t still think Dingsheng Real Estate is in its heyday?"
"Do you think the current Dingsheng Real Estate is still worth several billion?"
"To put it bluntly, Dingsheng Real Estate is nothing more than an empty shell right now."
"It can’t start a single project. Do you think it can still turn a profit?"
Lin Feng’s series of rhetorical questions left Su Dingsheng completely speechless.
Su Dingsheng could only mutter, "But five hundred million is really too low... and I don’t want to sell Dingsheng Real Estate!"
Lin Feng glanced at Huizi.
Having worked with Lin Feng for so long now,
Huizi had developed a certain rapport with him.
She knew Lin Feng couldn’t be bothered to continue talking to Su Dingsheng.
So, Huizi stepped in. "President Su, since we’re on this topic, I have to say something."
"Do you really think the current Dingsheng Real Estate has anything left that’s worth five hundred million to pay the breach of contract penalty?"
"Even the Joy City project, Dingsheng Real Estate’s only hope for a comeback..."
"...is just an unfinished disaster without any money."
"And all the other projects, big and small, require money to keep them afloat."
"President Su, you should think carefully. Don’t make the wrong choice."
Huizi’s words were like daggers, each one striking a nerve with Su Dingsheng.
Su Dingsheng opened his mouth to argue but found himself unable to say a word.
The lawyer at the side also took Huizi’s cue and spoke up directly:
"I’m afraid you might not be aware, President Su, but Dingsheng Real Estate has already been sued by multiple suppliers!"
Su Dingsheng’s head snapped up.
The staff in Dingsheng Real Estate’s legal department had been resigning one after another.
So, Su Dingsheng truly didn’t know about this.
Lin Feng’s side, however, had been keeping a close watch on news about Dingsheng Real Estate.
This lawyer was specifically in charge of tracking such information.
So, naturally, he was perfectly clear on the situation.
"What? They’ve sued too?"
The lawyer nodded. "Precisely. President Su, you didn’t think our company alone had the power to get all your assets frozen, did you?"
"It’s because Dingsheng Real Estate’s credibility is shot, and the multiple lawsuits led the court to suspect that Dingsheng Real Estate might be a flight risk."
The lawyer was all but saying outright that Su Dingsheng could forget about his dreams of making a comeback.
As the head of Dingsheng Real Estate, Su Dingsheng naturally knew how much money he owed.
He had a rough idea in his head.
So when he heard that almost all of his creditors were preparing to sue, his heart went cold.
’If this continues...’
’Dingsheng Real Estate will truly become a mess from which there’s no recovery.’
"I believe that if these cases really go to court, Dingsheng Real Estate... probably has no chance of winning,"
the lawyer said, deliberately hesitating.
Su Dingsheng knew this was the truth.
While Su Dingsheng was hesitating, Huizi spoke up. "You just need to get rid of this mess, and you’ll be free of debt."
"Our President Lin has the ability to repay the associated debts."
"In a way, this is actually a good thing for Dingsheng Real Estate."
"At the very least, Dingsheng Real Estate won’t disappear from the market. What do you think, President Su?"
Huizi gave a faint smile.
By now, Su Dingsheng’s forehead was beaded with sweat.
Of course, he couldn’t bear to sell his life’s work.
After all, Su Dingsheng was still planning to make a comeback with the Joy City project.
But if he insisted on clinging to the Joy City project now, he would never be able to let go of this mess...
Su Dingsheng felt as if he were trapped in a swamp, completely unable to pull himself free.
Lin Feng put down his coffee, growing impatient.
’The reason Dingsheng Real Estate ended up in this state definitely had a lot to do with Su Dingsheng’s indecisiveness.’
Lin Feng slowly took a report from Huizi.
"I know why you’re reluctant to let go, President Su."
"But sometimes, letting go is the best option. You don’t want to end up in a world of hurt."
Lin Feng pushed the report in front of Su Dingsheng.
Su Dingsheng took the report, puzzled.
The more he read, the more he sweated.
It was a spot-check inspection report for the small steel bars used in the Joy City project...
Because this project
had been entirely managed by his confidant, Li Cheng, Su Dingsheng only knew the broad strokes.
He wasn’t aware of the specific details.
That was why he broke out in a cold sweat upon seeing this inspection report.
’The small steel bars detailed in this inspection report...’
’...were materials for some of the amusement rides in Joy City...’
’That damned bastard, Li Cheng!’
’The supplier he chose actually cut corners and used shoddy materials just to save money!’
The inspection report made it crystal clear that these small steel bars were absolutely not up to standard.
Moreover, they posed a safety hazard!
As far as Su Dingsheng knew,
quite a few construction projects within Joy City used these small steel bars.
Now that Li Cheng had run off, the supplier certainly wouldn’t admit to anything.
’There would definitely be a lot of buck-passing and disputes...’
’And most importantly, once this inspection report came out,’
’it would be even more troublesome to get the Joy City project started.’
’And more expensive!’
This was the last straw that broke the camel’s back.
It completely crushed Su Dingsheng’s already faltering backbone.

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