Darkstone Code-Chapter 945 - 943: Someone Is Stabbing in the Back
In the evening, Lynch came out of the bathroom.
Nelly, feeling somewhat fatigued, got up from the bed and used a towel to wipe the droplets of water off Lynch’s body.
Looking at himself in the mirror, Lynch was quite satisfied with his current appearance.
A handsome face, a slender physique, abundant physical strength and energy.
He felt that even if he didn’t sleep for three days and nights, it wouldn’t threaten his life.
Nelly draped a brand-new robe over Lynch’s shoulders, and Lynch turned around, smiling as he gently touched her face, "If you’re tired, go ahead and sleep. I still have some matters to attend to."
Nelly nodded, and, moving her somewhat sore legs, she entered the bathroom and slowly sat in the bathtub.
The bubbling and warm water washed over her weary body; she felt that at this moment, she could finally enjoy a moment of peace.
It’s easier than before.
The first time, the second time, she felt very restrained when she was with Lynch.
Although she is young, she is not a wild girl like Penny, who was born into a nice family background, granting her the capital for being reckless.
Not all madness is the same; some madness is destined for downfall, while some madness makes life more complete.
She thought she would resist the current situation, but when Lynch stood beside the bed and asked her to turn around, she unexpectedly felt a hint of anticipation.
This damned... joy.
She tightly hugged her young body, slowly immersing herself into the bathtub; the water bubbles churned up by the pump rushed against her face, instinctively making her unable to breathe.
She slowly sank down, her whole body submerged in the water, her hair floating and scattering with the current.
She felt she should get up, but she didn’t do so.
The strong desire to breathe in air began to dominate her rationality, the physiological fear was making her actions uncontrollable.
At the last moment, she sat up from the bathtub with a splash.
Water flowed down her hair, covering her face, as she breathed heavily, gasping awkwardly.
Every gasp expelled the water from her mouth, oxygen refilled her lungs, and she slowly lay back down with her eyes half-closed.
The surroundings didn’t feel as tense as before, she began to relax, started to enjoy the aftertaste of rebirth.
In the study, Lynch sat on a chair he had hardly used, the house’s decor was very elaborate; it was a villa under Little Fox’s name.
However, he didn’t live here, it was coincidentally available for Lynch to use today.
The shelves were filled with books, many of which hadn’t been opened; here functioned more as a display room than as a study.
"... I will be returning to Bupen the day after tomorrow or the following day; more specific matters can be discussed at that time."
Lynch was speaking with Every Moment’s legal affairs manager; after taking over Every Moment, many legal matters required refinement, such as those who had already become shareholders through hostile takeovers.
These people hadn’t completely given up the opportunity, two hostile acquirers plus the shares held by Rongsheng Gold Bank, perhaps some small shareholders might still side with them; they could obtain the crucial vote, meaning more than thirty-three point three percent of the shares.
If they got the crucial vote, even if their acquisition wasn’t successful, it wouldn’t be a failure.
They could attend board meetings and propose various motions at shareholder meetings; even if Lynch vetoed them all, they would still need to go through the necessary processes.
It’s essential to understand that capital should never be underestimated, as to capitalists, there’s no absolute disadvantage.
If those hostile acquirers were competitors of Every Moment—Lynch had just about figured out their identities; they were all competitors of Every Moment.
Previously they wanted to acquire or split Every Moment, relying on Every Moment’s current decline, but after Lynch took over, their strategy changed.
Now they could completely fill the board and shareholder meetings with trash, making it impossible for Every Moment’s normal operations to proceed.
This is very common; any project initiated by a large company requires a voting resolution, and as long as they hold the crucial vote, they can keep voting against it.
This could stall the launch of any new projects by Every Moment from now on; of course, there’s a way to change the status quo, which is Lynch using his controlling power to issue new shares.
This will push the conflict into a heated phase, with everyone starting the most ruthless financial competition.
Issuing new shares, according to the current equity subscription, first round of issuance, second round of issuance, third round of issuance... until one party can’t keep up, only then can the winner and loser be determined.
This could require spending tens of millions or even billions on continually issuing new shares; it might seem like it doesn’t serve much purpose?
No, it does. The newly issued shares would trap Lynch’s funds in the company, and until the very last moment, his and Every Moment’s funds would be stuck.
One can’t arbitrarily buy or sell shares, and regardless of what project is proposed, it would face opposition.
This involves too many various issues, including many legal issues. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚
"Mr. Lynch, yesterday someone sent us a legal letter demanding that we fulfill our supply obligations according to the contract..."
Lynch frowned upon hearing this, "You didn’t inform me about this yesterday."
"I thought I could solve it well, Mr. Lynch, but I actually failed," the head of the legal department spoke candidly about this issue without disguising his true thoughts.
Lynch wiped his face, "Is there anything special about it?"
Previously, Lynch had been working in this area, communicating with local distributors and channel partners. Because the company’s major shareholders had changed, the subsequent structural adjustments of the company could potentially affect shipment documentation.
If shipments cannot be made as per the contract, I hope those channel partners and distributors can understand.
Of course, Every Moment will also provide certain compensation, such as once the supply is resumed, they will offer some products for free either all at once or in several batches, and will also give some price concessions.
The majority of channel partners approve of this proposal, as it’s difficult for distributors and manufacturers to get into conflicts, and once that happens, it’s a lose-lose situation.
Moreover, Every Moment is a highly popular product, making it unlikely for stockpile issues to occur, which is why mere rumors of a supply cutoff have already strained the entire supply-chain relations.
Everyone wants to have some stock on hand, and they even begin considering hoarding goods to wait for an opportunity to raise prices.
The legal department and operations both believe that channel partners and sales terminals are unlikely to get into conflicts, but the outcome seems to differ somewhat.
"What are their demands?"
"There are two points: first, they demand compensation according to the signed contract, specifically 200% of the purchase price for the remaining unsupplied goods, and second, they demand the cancellation of the constraints of the sales contract on both parties."
Compensation and relinquishing various rights, they are biting very hard on this.
"Mr. Lynch, I must remind you, they must have hired a very professional lawyer. Their goals are simple and efficient, and if we lose in litigation, it means more people will follow their example."
Compensation is actually a minor issue; the real trouble lies in the rights concerning both parties in the sales contract.
The Federation is quite strict about monopolies, but capitalists still try by any means to exploit loopholes to achieve monopoly possibilities, for instance, Every Moment requires all suppliers to place the counters displaying Every Moment goods at the entrance as the first counter.
They place Every Moment products at the second or third counter but do not require stores to sell only Every Moment’s products.
However, everyone entering the store sees Every Moment first, while other tobacco products are placed further away.
This approach gives Every Moment a significant advantage in competition. Later, some tobacco companies jointly sued Every Moment for violating the Federation’s Unfair Competition Act and Every Moment lost.
This is expected; how could multinational companies legally overpower local enterprises?
Nevertheless, Every Moment’s hired legal team was quite powerful, finding a new way to resolve this issue by no longer stipulating how counters must be arranged.
But they reward stores that still arrange counters in the same manner. The reward is given under the pretext of store cleanliness, never mentioning the real reason.
Thus, although Every Moment lost, sales terminals continue to operate as before.
Other tobacco companies tried many methods, including subsidies, making competition extraordinarily fierce at sales terminals.
Until now, Every Moment still maintains a considerable advantage.
But if all the rights are terminated, it means the layout of sales terminals might change.
Lynch immediately smelled a scent of conspiracy, "Someone from other tobacco companies is involved."
"I’m glad you think so, Mr. Lynch, so what shall we do next?"
Lynch did not immediately come up with a good solution, "I need to think about it, we’ll talk later."
As he was about to hang up, the Minister of Legal Affairs added, "Don’t hang up just yet, Mr. Lynch, there’s something else..."
"Currently, people all over are quickly buying into Every Moment’s tobacco products. The production department informed me today that at our current rate, our raw materials might not last until June."
"At most, around May, we will be depleted. In other words, next month we’ll face a situation where we have no products to sell, which could trigger a series of chain reactions, just giving you a heads-up."
Every Moment is facing a big problem; a temporary supply cutoff causes a completely different impression than a long-term supply cutoff.
The former could possibly be due to untimely redirection, while the latter truly means no products are being sent, and rumors of Every Moment’s bankruptcy could even surface.
Lynch took a deep breath, "Alright, I understand. Are there any other bad news?"
"No, Mr. Lynch, have a pleasant evening."
"Pleasant your mother!"
"Sorry, what did you just say?"
"Did I say something?"
"..."
