People in the Republic of China era began to rise from industry.

They persuaded Wu Rongsheng, a leading figure in the textile industry.

The remaining people are much simpler.

Without Lin Yi even having to suggest it, Wu Rongsheng offered to help with the contacting and lobbying.

Besides those in Shanghai who had originally opposed him, he also sent telegrams to several industry leaders in Tianjin's Landao and Hanyang districts, inviting them to discuss important matters together.

The two of them managed to appease the opposition in a day and a half.

Even Yu Xingmin, who was initially ignored but eventually heard the news, visited Wu Rongsheng that very night and asserted that he supported Wu Rongsheng's appointment as the association's president.

Meanwhile, lawyer Theo's investigation and evidence gathering are progressing very smoothly.

As a renowned lawyer on Wall Street, Theo's influence should not be underestimated.

It also brought the arrogance of imperialism to its extreme.

With the letter of assistance issued by the U.S. Consulate General in Shanghai, they obtained the several official documents from the Ministry of Industry regarding the seizure of ore from Fenghua Metallurgical Plant with almost no effort.

He did his own calculations and, in addition to demanding the return of the seized ore from the Ministry of Industry, he also sought three million yuan in legal tender in compensation for the various losses caused to Fenghua Metallurgical Plant.

"Smith, that was very well done."

Lin Yi glanced at the documents he brought, first offering a compliment, then said, "Increase the claim amount to five million."

"Mr. Lin, isn't this a bit too much?"

Theo was somewhat surprised: "This exceeds the legal limit."

His three million was calculated meticulously.

In addition to the various expenses incurred during the period when the metallurgical plant was shut down, as well as the value of the daily output, the total amount was over 700,000.

The remaining amount is three times the compensation.

This is the highest compensation standard he can find from the existing legal basis.

The amount is indeed not large.

But there's nothing we can do about it, since the actual losses are too small.

He may be a litigious man, but the reason he wins repeatedly in court is because of irrefutable, real data.

"The Industrial Department will not go to court. Even if we get compensation in the end, it will only be settled out of court."

"Therefore, this has nothing to do with the law, and naturally no standard will be set for compensation."

The two countries have different national conditions.

According to Lin Yi's prediction, there are only two possible outcomes once this lawsuit is submitted to the court.

One option is for Nanjing to simply ignore the situation and pretend it never happened.

Another reason is fear of the US, leaving them no choice but to comply.

Choosing an out-of-court settlement preserves face.

In the first scenario, he is prepared to continue harassing them.

If it's the second scenario, he'd be happy to receive an extra two million.

The amount of money wasn't much, but the thrill of revenge was always intoxicating.

"I understand."

Theo laughed: "Mr. Lin, I'll take care of it."

……

Lawyers are known for their efficiency; Theo amended the complaint and submitted it to the old county court that same afternoon.

In this kind of case, the court in the old county town neither dared to refuse nor dared to accept it.

I chose to report it directly.

Finally, on the third day, it appeared on the desk of Kong Yongzhi, the Minister of Industry.

“I received this complaint last night and had someone investigate it in the concession.”

"The news came this morning that Fengyun Metallurgical Plant is now indeed controlled by a US investment company."

"This American investment company is called Fengyun Investment Corporation."

Kong Yongzhi, who was still reading the complaint, frowned, looked up and said, "Fengyun? Isn't it the same sound as Fengyun, except for the tone?"

The capable secretary nodded: "That's true."

Kong Yongzhi understood, and a surge of anger shot from the bottom of his heart to his head.

That's outrageous! They're just passing the buck, and they're even trying to fool people with such a perfunctory attitude!

He stood up angrily and paced around twice with his hands behind his back.

He paused, but didn't curse.

After all, he came from a family with a strong scholarly tradition, so he rarely used such vulgar language.

"joke!"

"Hmph! Just because they're American doesn't mean they're a real American company!"

"Call the U.S. embassy and explain the situation to them."

"Fengyun Investment Company was registered fraudulently, with the sole purpose of tax evasion."

"They not only evade taxes from China, but also taxes from the United States."

“This is a serious crime. If they need it, we can take responsibility for arresting the mastermind and handing them over!”

He has seen the world.

Traveled to many countries.

They have also been engaged in foreign trade for many years.

He was very familiar with the US tax procedures.

This kid surnamed Lin is desperate and will try anything, thinking that by putting on an American mask he can get away with anything.

That's pure wishful thinking.

They were initially hesitant and didn't dare to deal with him directly.

He actually handed over his own weakness to me; he's practically asking for trouble!

Hearing this, the secretary hesitated for a moment before bracing himself and saying, "Minister, I have already made the call."

"The U.S. embassy said they had received a request for help from Fengyun Investment, asking them to protect the interests of U.S. companies."

Kong Yongzhi's cold smile faltered: "What do you mean?"

"Well... Fengyun Investment should be a real registered company, at least there should be some financial transactions."

The secretary explained, "Otherwise, they probably wouldn't have dared to ask the US embassy for help."

"The embassy will stand up for them and will definitely conduct background checks."

Kong Yongzhi's eyes widened, and he remained silent, staring blankly.

A moment later, he turned around and went back behind his desk, picked up the indictment and started looking at it again.

The secretary's words were merely speculation.

But Kong Yongzhi knew the truth in his heart.

That's probably the truth.

The guy surnamed Lin was desperate and came up with this underhanded trick of transferring money from one hand to the other, manipulating the accounts and paying a tax or two.

Even though this amount of money is considerable, it's still better than the loss he would have suffered from losing Fenghua Metallurgical Plant.

I flipped through the pages while thinking about these things.

Kong Yongzhi quickly saw the amount of the claim.

A string of Arabic numerals, plus two commas.

At first, he thought he had misread it and added an extra zero. He counted twice more before finally confirming that he hadn't misread it at first glance.

Damn, they actually want the Ministry of Industry to compensate them for a loss of five million!

His large face immediately darkened.

After taking a couple of deep breaths, Confucius's 75th-generation descendant slammed his fist on the table and cursed, "Damn it, utterly shameless!"

"Five million? Why doesn't he just rob someone?!"

It was rare to see Kong Yongzhi so enraged, and the secretary dared not speak.

I just silently thought to myself: Isn't this just robbery?

After a while of shouting and cursing, Kong Yongzhi didn't back down.

What's wrong with the American company?

I even have a company in the US!

Do they really think that by putting on an American facade, they can get American protection?

childish!

Let alone a Chinese person, even an American without power or influence wouldn't be protected by the US government with such a large force!

Thinking bitterly, Kong Yongzhi ordered, "Send this complaint back to Shanghai and tell them that the grounds for this complaint are invalid and the court refuses to accept it."

"Yes."

The secretary quickly agreed.

As for where this reason doesn't hold true, we can just come up with any excuse later, because it's not important anyway.

The key to this matter lies in the attitude of the US embassy...