Darkstone Code-Chapter 902 - 900: Rat Run

Thirsty...

Hungry!

Numb from the pain.

Lime, tied to the chair, had both arms beginning to swell slightly. After being immobile for so long, he could barely feel them.

Perhaps it was his good luck, or perhaps some will was giving him a chance to live, but he began to repeatedly clench and unclench his fists.

The pressure changes in his palms prompted the blood to surge, and as it flowed, both arms suddenly experienced a... terrifying pain, like being scalded with boiling water!

He wasn’t sure if this was normal, but he knew he had to keep doing it.

He was just a bit thirsty, wanting a drink of water.

Licking his chapped lips, he struggled to raise his head and looked around the pitch-black room, questioning if he would die here.

He never thought he’d see such a day, dying in this dark room over a legitimate job.

"Is the road of my life at its final stretch?"

There was no cinematic recap of life’s important moments, only a sinking consciousness, as if about to fall asleep.

His thoughts began to slow, and even the pain in his arms lessened, with all the discomfort in his body seemingly fading at that moment, aligning with his desire to "sleep."

As long as he fell asleep, everything would be fine.

Just then, the lights in the room suddenly came on, and Lime was somewhat astonished. Had he entered the Celestial Kingdom?

As he lifted his head again, he saw the very person he least wanted to see.

"I don’t care how much money you want or what you want, save this man!"

The president of Every Moment made several calls to Lynch and even sought people to meet with Lynch, but unfortunately, none of them were successful.

When he was wealthy, even if he farted, someone would praise him for farting with great strength, claiming his health was excellent.

Now, faced with the challenge from the capital giants, without even having spoken, some people covered their mouths and noses and quickly turned their backs on him, leaving.

Cold?

Warm?

Only helplessness.

The problem now is even more severe than some time ago. His brother told him that if he lost control of Every Moment, he should be prepared to be hunted by assassins for the rest of his life.

The core of a warlord’s foundation is wealth and weapons. Apart from the portion shared with shareholders, Every Moment’s profits are all invested here.

If anyone investigated, they would surely know Every Moment is the largest client next to the Military, without exception.

Every year they purchase millions, even tens of millions worth of supplies and munitions, transporting them to Mariluo. These arms become the core strength supporting one faction’s stable rule.

Without Every Moment, the president’s brother, that great warlord of Mariluo, would have to end the current situation.

Without the income from wealth, he can no longer continue the tacit standoff with other major warlords.

Without potential or sustainable development, he must take the lead in launching an unpredictable war, rather than calmly observing the situation’s changes until Mariluo has the foundation for unification before waging war.

The president has been forced into a corner. He can’t even gather the funds to fight off those malicious acquirers.

Whether it’s the "Poison Plan" or the clause repurchase, the core is all about burning money. If the company doesn’t buy back the stock from shareholders, those shares will end up in the hands of those acquirers.

This was inevitable. No one can stop others from making money, and according to the Federation’s Financial Management Commission and financial laws, once hostile takeover starts, it can’t be easily halted.

This too is destined to be a brutal battle, yet they truly don’t have any money left.

What’s more exasperating is that the bank not only didn’t offer any help but hit him in the kidney, crippling him.

The bank converted its previous loans into investment shares—this is something banks love to do.

When they lend money to large companies, there will be related clauses. They have the right to choose between having the borrowing company repay the loan and interest or exchange it for equivalent shares when the debt matures.

Of course, such clauses usually appear when the bank is in a strong position.

When Every Moment first came to the Federation, they were in a weak position. The bank lent them a large sum, and they indeed needed some prominent local financial forces to become part of them. Hence, such a choice was made.

The bank has been enjoying dividends for so many years, having earned back more than a few times the money they originally lent, with interest.

The manager responsible for this case has been raking in bonuses, allowed to purchase shares and become a shareholder of the bank.

It was expected everyone could continue harmoniously, but unexpectedly, the bank activated the clause at this moment.

They demanded Every Moment quickly repay the funds and interest from previous loans, handing them a deadline. If they couldn’t get that money, they would transfer their shares to anyone they deemed fit.

This is despicable extortion. They are even calculating compound interest on that sum, which has now grown to an astonishing figure.

When things are good, everyone says it’s good.

When things go bad, everyone turns their backs. This change forces the CEO to rein in his wild side.

The only person who can save him now is Mr. Lynch. At least, that’s what those who can offer him advice believe.

Compared to other consortia or banks, Lynch has just brought in tens of millions in funding, and with his own liquid assets, he can easily gather over a hundred million in cash at any time.

This money is enough to rescue Every Moment, and forming a partnership with Lynch can also help them recover the points they lost on the pirate issue.

He needs someone who can help him contact Lynch, and this Lime in front of him is clearly a good choice.

"You must cure him!" The CEO couldn’t help but grab a doctor by the collar and say.

The doctor didn’t mind at all, as long as the money was in place. Even if his hair was pulled, he wouldn’t have any objections.

Next, the treatment team used their professional skills to show everyone why quality medical care is inevitably expensive.

More than two hours of treatment cost the CEO over a hundred thousand, which included two injections of special medicine worth thousands and some equipment usage fees. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

After more than two hours, Lime woke up.

His memory still lingered on the moment the room suddenly lit up, and he had forgotten the scene where he saw the CEO’s face.

In fact, he had already lost consciousness by then, so those things wouldn’t remain in his memory.

"What happened to me?"

Lime was a bit confused, "Was I injured?"

How to answer?

The CEO immediately thought of a response, "You fainted. I brought you to the hospital, and they said you were just a bit dehydrated."

Lime licked his lips; indeed, there were a lot of dead skin cells. He bit and peeled off a small piece with his teeth, feeling an inexplicable sense of satisfaction.

After a moment of silence, he asked, "So am I free now?"

The CEO nodded, "Of course. I deeply apologize for the misunderstanding between us before."

"I’ve already investigated thoroughly. This matter has nothing to do with you or Mr. Lynch. It’s our mistake."

Expecting himself to be angry, Lime was surprisingly not as intolerable as he imagined after hearing the CEO’s words.

He even managed to show a smile, "Good to get it cleared up."

It’s not good at all, the CEO proactively stepped closer, "I must apologize for my recklessness. I will compensate you with one-thousandth of the shares..."

One-thousandth of the shares, such generosity left Lime a bit surprised.

While many people were still fixated on the "percentage" concept, the big consortia had already refined their shares down to thousandths and even ten-thousandths.

For instance, the Duncan Clan has their shares in ten-thousandths because they are so wealthy and have so many family members. When averaged out, each person gets a few thousandths or ten-thousandths.

Big companies are the same, like the Federation’s six major airlines. Each bank has tens of thousands of shareholders, and they’ve already refined it down to one ten-thousandth!

Based on Every Moment’s market value, one-thousandth is also worth a million.

More importantly, he can continue to obtain dividends each year based on this one-thousandth of shares and sell them to repay debts when necessary.

As long as Every Moment doesn’t collapse, it’s like they’re supporting him.

If getting a beating could bring so many benefits, Lime suddenly thought it wasn’t such a bad thing.

"Then I thank you for your generosity, Mr. CEO."

The CEO smiled, "I want to apologize to Mr. Lynch in person. Could you perhaps introduce us?"

... A little while later, Lime’s call came through.

He introduced himself. He had called Lynch before, and the maid knew him.

Lynch, with a slightly playful expression, entered the study to take the call.

"I thought you were kidnapped. While pondering why they hadn’t asked me for ransom yet, you called me," Lynch joked. He knew where Lime had gone and how he got there; it was just a little joke.

After all, no one likes to think they’re living under someone else’s "surveillance," even if it isn’t.

Lime chuckled a few times. He didn’t seem in too bad of a mood, "There were some things that even I didn’t understand what happened. Now, the only thing I’m sure of is that I broke a leg, but I also got more than a million."

"Sounds good. If a leg can fetch a million, from tomorrow we won’t need to import those beef cattle from abroad anymore."

This statement had two meanings, but Lime only grasped one, or perhaps none at all.

Finally, after a moment of silence, he said, "Boss, the CEO of Every Moment wants to meet with you."