I followed the waiter to the door of the private room. Without even having time to knock, I pushed the door open and walked straight in, then sat down directly opposite Fangyuan. I got straight to the point and asked, “Tell me quickly—what’s the current situation with Zhuomei?”
Fangyuan, with a serious expression, said to me, “After Mi Zong’s last trip back from the U.S. for your birthday, he had a negotiation with Mi Zhongde. They probably revealed everything to each other completely, but ultimately failed to reach an agreement, so…”
“So, Mi Zhongde is planning to make his move at the critical moment of Zhuomei’s IPO?”
Fangyuan sighed deeply and said, “Actually, this was something we expected, just earlier than anticipated…”
“What methods is he planning to use to sabotage Zhuomei’s IPO?”
“It’s still unclear for now, but he’s likely going to create a public relations crisis deliberately, thus damaging Zhuomei’s brand image. We all know that once a brand’s image is damaged, the possibility of a successful IPO becomes almost zero!”
I immediately replied angrily, “Has he gone mad? This will only result in mutual destruction and ruin Zhuomei!”
“Mi Zong has challenged the bottom line he could endure. The current situation has already developed to the point where he and Mi Zong can no longer coexist at Zhuomei. Therefore, choosing mutual destruction is his final strategy. As long as Mi Zong is completely defeated, even if Zhuomei becomes ruins, there will still be opportunities for rebirth. At that time, he will still be Zhuomei’s top leader. I believe he’s already preparing for Zhuomei’s reconstruction!”
“Has it really come to this point?”
Fangyuan nodded and confirmed, “Yes, this is the concept of rising after falling in business warfare. It’s also Mi Zhongde’s last resort. After all, Mi Zong has Weiran’s support behind him. He can’t find leverage in terms of capital and equity, so he can only choose this worst possible approach.”
I calmed myself down and quickly analyzed Zhuomei’s current situation. At this point, Mi Zhongde should already be at his wits’ end. After all, the other shareholders of Zhuomei support the IPO, and the largest investor also stands behind Mi Cai. The leverage he has left to use is decreasing rapidly. It’s understandable that, cornered on all sides, he would choose this mutually damaging approach. Moreover, previously, he had also plotted the withdrawal of Zhuomei’s first-line brand as a way to sanction Mi Cai. This indeed fits his personality—he is an ambitious man without a doubt.
Finally, I asked Fangyuan, “Where did you get this information from? Is it reliable?”
Fangyuan remained silent…
I immediately understood and asked, “Did you learn this from Mi Lan?”
Fangyuan nodded and said, “This is also why I chose to tell you this information instead of directly informing Mi Zong. However, Mi Lan and I really have no emotional entanglements anymore. She only hopes I can assist her in this matter of creating a brand crisis.”
“She trusts you a lot, yet you told me this.”
“People always have to make choices. I don’t want to betray Mi Zong’s kindness and your brotherhood. From my personal perspective, I also don’t want to see Zhuomei getting hurt due to internal conflicts at the top. So, you should quickly warn Mi Zong to prepare defenses. Once the group’s image is damaged, the possibility of a successful IPO will almost disappear!”
I nodded gravely. If the information Fangyuan provided was true, Mi Cai must prepare countermeasures in advance. However, the key issue was that right now, it was unclear exactly what kind of brand crisis Mi Zhongde would create, leaving them no choice but to adopt a passive defense strategy.
As night deepened, Fangyuan and I finally ended our conversation. He was preparing to leave the private room first when I called him back: “Wait.”
“Anything else?”
“Previously, I was always worried you might do something to harm Zhuomei and Mi Cai. Now it seems I didn’t trust you enough. I want to apologize to you.”
Fangyuan gently patted my shoulder, “After being brothers for so many years, this is the first time you’ve apologized to me. Actually, there’s no need for that. After all, human nature is inherently flawed, and mistakes in judgment are inevitable.”
I nodded.
Fangyuan smiled again and said, “I hope this time Zhuomei can successfully go public, and that you and Mi Cai can finally get married. That’s the scene I most want to see in the future.”
“I want that too…” I said, instinctively taking out a cigarette from the pack, lighting it, taking a deep puff, and sighing inwardly: “This path ahead is probably going to be full of twists and turns!”
After Fangyuan left, I remained sitting in the private room, finishing the cigarette, then dialed Mi Cai’s number. It took a little while before she answered, sounding surprised as she asked, “Zhaoyang, why are you suddenly calling me?”
I got straight to the point, “Your uncle might soon create a brand crisis for Zhuomei to prevent its IPO.”
“Where did you hear this information?”
“Fangyuan told me. He probably learned about it through some channels… Right now, I’m really concerned about how you’ll respond to this. Are you going to return to China?”
Mi Cai remained silent for a moment before replying, “Actually, I’ve heard about this too… But I suspect this is just a smoke screen. Their purpose might be to lure me back to China, thus giving them opportunities here in the U.S. We’re already at the most critical stage of the IPO.”
I immediately admired Mi Cai’s meticulous thinking, because indeed, there was such a possibility. Mi Lan might have intentionally leaked this information to Fangyuan under the pretense of seeking his help, which then reached me through Fangyuan, ultimately influencing Mi Cai’s judgment.
I sighed, “If it’s really like that, then Mi Zhongde is truly cunning. But we can’t rule out the possibility that this information is genuine!”
“I will authorize Chen Jingming to handle this matter. He is someone trustworthy.”
“Isn’t that a bit too risky?”
Mi Cai disagreed, “If this information is indeed true, what we need most is a highly capable PR team to efficiently resolve the PR crisis. Whether it’s me or Chen Jingming organizing this PR team doesn’t make much difference.”
“What about the ability of your company’s PR department? Are they reliable?”
“No, in recent years, Zhuomei hasn’t experienced any major PR incidents, so the company’s PR department doesn’t have much practical experience. Moreover, this department has always been controlled by my uncle, so we must cooperate with external PR companies.” Pausing briefly, Mi Cai asked me, “You used to work in the planning department at Poly, so you must have dealt with PR companies quite often. Do you have any good PR companies to recommend?”
Instinctively, I thought of Jian Wei, because her father, Jian Boyu, is an authority in the advertising and PR industries, possessing a vast amount of PR resources.
After weighing it carefully, I finally said to Mi Cai, “I suggest you collaborate with Jian Wei on this matter. Her father holds great prestige in the advertising and PR industries. With the resources he controls, assembling a professional and efficient PR team won’t be difficult for her!”
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