What's wrong with me being a rich man?

Chapter 619 Minor Thunderclap (4k)

The power struggle between Silicon Carbon Group and its two major suppliers, Bosch and Wibac, is unknown to the outside world.

On the surface, the issue is that the supplier has production capacity problems, and on the surface, the Beijing-based institutions are also trying to clarify past issues. Both sides have sufficient reasons, and so on. The final result is that the silicon carbon group received a notification from the supplier that it will make every effort to prioritize ensuring stability on their side.

Yu Xing believes this is the best possible outcome under the current circumstances.

With their flight to Hong Kong not far off, the public relations department of Lingang Dual Carbon Silicon worked together to plan a press conference, but they all felt it was quite tricky. The exposure of the boss's empty shell identity had a huge impact, and there were both Chinese and foreign media gathering there. They didn't know what unexpected situations might arise.

It's not entirely the fault of the silicon carbon public relations department. Simply put, even if the silicon carbon public relations department is top-notch in China, it's bound to be a headache when faced with a world-class event.

After attending two meetings, Yu Xing noticed everyone's worried expressions and decided to focus on the key points: "We don't need to worry too much about short selling of Guoshanfeng. The main focus should be on responding to legal issues such as market manipulation. We don't need to think about creating any image. Guoshanfeng doesn't need any image, and I don't need any image under these circumstances either."

“President Yu, we still need to pay attention to our public image, as it is also related to our products,” Lin Yuheng from the public relations department of the Silicon Carbon Group offered a different opinion.

"Legal issues should ultimately be resolved by the law; that's the business of lawyers and legal professionals." Yu Xing took a sip of tea. "Short selling isn't anything mysterious or rare. There's a lot of short selling abroad, but it's relatively rare in China. People aren't used to such a big short seller emerging, but once they get used to it, it's nothing."

Lin Yuheng felt that the idea needed to be considered, but the boss was rather stubborn in this regard.

After much deliberation, he only hoped that this press conference would be conducted in a conventional manner, without any major achievements or failures; that would be the best outcome given the current situation.

The press conference on the 9th was actually mainly the prospectus release conference of Silicon Carbon Group, but the outside world has given it a different name, generally referring to it as the "Peak-Climbing Press Conference" or the "Short Seller King's Meeting".

Lin Yuheng returned to his office with a worried expression after the meeting, feeling that this year's New Year was not going to be easy.

He thought for a while and then saw the "gathering of heroes" on the No. 8 live broadcast. He couldn't help but sigh. He wondered what kind of trouble the four car companies, including Tieniu and Qidian, would cause in a couple of days. The company needed to have a contingency plan.

Lin Yuheng considered the situation, casually clicked on the products of his brother company, and watched some short videos.

Because of this preference over the past month, his account has become quite active, and every now and then it's filled with short selling, mountain peaks, silicon carbon, Mr. Yu and other related topics. Soon, he's been browsing new content again.

A user nicknamed "King of Short Sellers" posted a video expressing his firm belief in Mr. Yu's professionalism in short selling and his judgment of projects. Therefore, he borrowed 5 yuan worth of LeEco shares from a brokerage firm, intending to make a small profit.

Lin Yuheng was indeed quite curious. When he opened the comments section, he saw that many other people had similar curiosity.

"Why choose LeEco? Isn't there Jinma Shares among the listed companies?"

The user "King of Short Sellers" replied: "Jinma cannot be shorted, it is not among the 388 stocks available for margin trading on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange."

"With only 5 yuan, LeEco is still relatively resilient. Even if it drops a bit, you won't get much out of it."

User "Following the King of Short Sellers": "There's no other way. I only have a little over 3,000 shares of LeEco in short selling balance. I'll try it out first. If Mr. Yu doesn't have a positive outlook on foreign companies in the future, I can spend more money to do it. Short selling is convenient for foreign companies."

Lin Yuheng sighed. This short-selling king's fan even used "Ashamed" as background music. He was really keeping a close eye on the boss. To be honest, the boss was relatively low-key, but this fan was attracting a lot of negative attention... Shouldn't this situation be compared with that of other companies?
He felt his head start to hurt again.

Yu Xing himself hadn't seen or expected that there were people shorting the stock recently, because for the general public, there was almost no room for profit in shorting Jinma and LeEco.

Before leaving, he reconsidered his work arrangements in Lingang, focusing on several key tasks, when he suddenly received an offer of contact from Proton Motors of Malaysia.

Harriet, the vice president of Proton, once visited Lingang and discussed business cooperation with Yu Xing regarding Lotus sports cars, ultimately reaching an agreement on the sale of a small number of shares.

Harriet's phone call clearly conveyed the message: "Mr. Yu, I didn't expect you to be the king of short selling. Since you're the king of short selling, you must have the money to buy a Lotus sports car, so there's no need to pretend anymore."

Proton is having a tough time right now, and its Lotus sports car brand is in even worse shape. It hasn't launched a new model since 2008 and has fallen into serious decline.

The previous cooperation agreement between the two parties involved a 20% stake in Lotus Group plus a 15% stake in Lotus Engineering, along with a clause allowing the acquisition of an additional 20% stake in Lotus Group over a five-year period.

Now, just two years later, Proton is looking to sell cars again to make money.

“Short selling is just a hobby, and I don’t make much money from it,” Yu Xing told Harriet. He wasn’t too opposed to the sale, but he didn’t want to appear wealthy. “Let’s wait another two years and see. Silicon carbon is about to be listed. Once we’ve stabilized the market, even if you don’t call me, I will definitely call you.”

Harriet sighed, "Mr. Yu, there's no need to say such things. The king of short selling doesn't make money. I really should record what you said."

“The king of short selling doesn’t make as much money as you think; he also has to deal with lawsuits,” Yu Xing laughed. “But the Silicon Carbon Group did quite well last year. Let’s see how they handle the subsidy reduction this year. Perhaps you can come and take a look at us at the end of the year.”

Harriet knew about Silicon Carbon Group's amazing performance in the Chinese market last year, but he didn't think it could go public, and he also felt that it was still quite dependent on subsidies. Hearing this, he could only accept the invitation first, and then talk about Proton's sincerity in selling Lotus.

Proton's last proposed partnership involved a maximum of 40% equity, but this time they are willing to relinquish 51% controlling stake.

According to Harriet, a complete sale is not ruled out in the foreseeable future.

Yu Xing felt that Lotus sports cars could serve as a supplement to the brand image and also allowed for more capital investment opportunities overseas. Therefore, he maintained communication with Harriet and finally set a specific time to meet in the middle of the year.

The king of short sellers has been exposed. Regardless of whether the silicon carbon group goes public or not, it may be able to move faster, both in the development of multiple car models and in capital operations.

January 8th, a Thursday, was the day Yu Xing quietly flew to Hong Kong, and also the day that Business Review and CBN conducted live interviews with the founders of four automotive projects.

That noon, the equipment in the venue was being tested one after another, and reporters from two media outlets were also going over their lines and showing their question drafts to the four founders.

Iron Bull Ying Jianren, Singularity Shen Haiyin, Future Lu Qun, Wandering Knight Huang Xiuyuan.

Although they are the founders of four companies, their achievements vary. Ying Jianren holds a listed company, and Zotye under his company has been manufacturing and selling cars for many years, so his aura is naturally different.

Shen Haiyin, Lu Qun, and Huang Xiuyuan seemed quite nervous about this interview. After receiving the questions, they continued to exchange and discuss them. Ying Jianren, on the other hand, glanced at the questions and put them aside, frequently taking out his phone to handle official business.

As a former internet professional with entrepreneurial and executive experience, Shen Haiyin was the most composed of the three. He felt he was well-prepared and was also keen to cultivate relationships with industry veterans.

"Mr. Ying, Jinma's stock price surged today." Shen Haiyin leaned over to Ying Jianren and offered him a cigarette, mentioning the move by Jinma Group. "I was thinking of buying some Jinma stock yesterday, but unfortunately I missed it."

Jinma Group announced its share repurchase plan today, which is seen as a response to pessimistic sentiments from the outside world.

On platforms like Weibo, Weishi, and Douyin that are following this issue, some people commented that Jinma Shares' stock buyback is meant to crush short sellers.

Although Jinma did not engage in short selling, such remarks may have been intended to undermine the psychological impact on short sellers.

Ying Jianren said with a smile, "I still have a lot of confidence in Jinma. New energy is now in its boom year. Zotye needs to start to work hard this year. If carbon silicon can achieve such results, Zotye should be able to do even better."

He shook his head: "No matter what, Yu Xing still deserves credit. He opened everyone's eyes to mid-to-high-end cars. If silicon carbide can be made, then everyone can make it."

Shen Haiyin immediately nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes, President Ying, new energy vehicles can achieve a leapfrog development. My decision to establish Singulato Motors was also based on considerations of the domestic industry environment and market competition. Singulato also aims to carve out a path by focusing on the mid-to-high-end market."

Upon hearing this, Ying Jianren glanced at Shen Haiyin for two seconds and said indifferently, "Not just anyone can do mid-to-high-end work. Mr. Shen, you're new to the industry, so you must be down-to-earth."

Shen Haiyin was speechless at such an old-fashioned remark. He wanted to refute it, but considering that everyone was on the same side today, he could only force out a slightly stiff smile: "Yes, yes, President Ying, I need to learn more from Zotye."

He said that, but in his heart he spat, "What a piece of trash! You deserve to be looked down upon by the King of Short Sellers!"

At least the three of us are just pessimistic about the future, but for a listed company like Zotye to be disliked by the king of short sellers, what kind of situation is that? It's probably some kind of business fraud!

Although both were not favored by President Yu, their situations were different!

Ying Jianren noticed Shen Haiyin's slightly unnatural expression, but didn't seem to care much. He simply said, "President Shen, don't mind me. I'm a bit blunt, well, you could call it a bit sharp, haha."

Upon hearing this, Shen Haiyin's expression became even more unnatural. "Pah! You're probably a fake. Do you even deserve to be as sharp as President Yu?"

He was unwilling to flatter anyone any longer, so after a brief chat, he returned to the ranks of entrepreneurs.

At 2 p.m., live broadcasts from the two major media outlets started simultaneously on different short video platforms, while staff members were collecting questions from viewers in preparation for real-time interaction.

Two reporters sat on the left, and four founders sat on the right.

Liao Qiong from Business Review opened the interview with the following remarks: "Hello everyone, this is the interview session between Business Review and CBN. Today we have invited four founders of companies in the automotive industry."

She reached out and introduced the identities of the four people one by one, and the four people waved to the camera.

Because it was associated with the popularity of the "King of Short Sellers," because it was related to the topic of "anti-Yu," and because it also had the influence of a tech giant, the popularity of the live stream quickly rose.

"This year marks the beginning of the new energy vehicle era in China, and this is inseparable from the early pioneering efforts of manufacturers such as Zotye Auto." Liao Qiong quickly got to the point, "President Ying, what are your thoughts on the new energy development strategy?"

Ying Jianren naturally spoke eloquently about this issue of self-aggrandizement.

After Mr. Ying finished speaking, Liao Qiong smiled and asked a small question: "I've heard that there are some doubts in the market about Zotye's foray into new energy vehicles?"

"Haha, there are indeed doubts." Ying Jianren readily admitted, his eyes flashing as he said with a smile, "Undoubtedly, the one with the most doubts is Mr. Yu of Carbon Silicon, who is also known as the King of Short Selling. He does short selling, as everyone knows."

The chat in the live stream was clearly getting heated, with many people spamming "King of Short Sellers" or "Big Short Seller".

Ying Jianren continued, "Silicon carbon seized the opportunity to make progress in the new energy sector, which made Mr. Yu quite proud. Although he has only been working in silicon carbon for a few years, his short-selling nature makes him very good at evaluating his peers. Not only me, but also Mr. Shen of Qidian, Mr. Lu of Qiantu, and Mr. Huang of Youxia are all like that."

"Sitting here today, I really want to take this opportunity to get an explanation from Mr. Yu regarding his treatment of me..."

The cell phone ringtone suddenly rang.

Ying Jianren was about to apologize when his secretary rushed over in a hurry, before he could hang up the phone. He then heard her report in a low voice.

"One of our distributors is being interviewed and exposing the subsidy fraud!"

Ying Jianren opened his mouth, stunned, and said, "What?"

The secretary repeated it in a low, quick voice.

Ying Jianren tried hard to control his expression, reached out to answer the phone again, and heard even worse news.

A research report on Tieniu Group is circulating widely in the market, and as its own distributors come forward to reveal the subsidy situation, Jinma Shares' stock price has plummeted.

Ying Jianren's Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily, a chill running through him. After a moment of bewilderment, he stood up and apologized, "I'm sorry, something came up at the company. I'll do the interview another day."

An unexpected situation occurred during the live interview, and the chat room was already flooded with comments as the news spread across the internet.

The screen was filled with the words "King of Short Sellers," interspersed with the phrase "Soul-Severing Blade."

While still sitting in front of the camera, Shim Hae-in quickly learned the origin of the sudden situation and immediately concluded that it was the work of the "King of Short Sellers".

He watched Ying Jianren leave in a hurry and thought to himself, "Pah! You're a listed company, how can you be compared to us?"

My company isn't publicly listed, so I'm barefoot and proud!
Shen Haiyin glanced at the still bewildered media, and then took the opportunity to look at the plummeting stock price of the Golden Horse Awards. For some reason, he felt a sense of satisfaction. Hmm, our dispute with President Yu is a matter of ideology, while his fabrication is a matter of right and wrong!

(End of this chapter)