March 14th, Thursday.

Fuhui Capital.

Li Shi, Xue Zhebin, Yao Bo from Golden Peak Group, Zhou Muyan from Tianhua Studio, and several other investors from Jingzhou were chatting casually over tea.

“Mr. Li, are you sure Mr. Pei will definitely seek our help? The war between the Anti-Tenda Alliance and Tenda Group has already begun, and Tenda Group has started to counterattack, but Mr. Pei still shows no sign of reaching out to us?”

“And that Chuji Plan has completely stalled. We just donated some money, but there’s been no sign of any deeper cooperation with Tenda…”

These people were all staunch supporters of Tenda Group and participants in the Chuji Plan.

When they first encountered the Chuji Plan, they all thought it was a simple charitable initiative. But Li Shi’s incisive analysis convinced them that the Chuji Plan was far more than just a simple charity project—it was actually an ally screening program!

All companies that participated in the Chuji Plan would become allies of Tenda Group, becoming trustworthy comrades of Mr. Pei.

As Tenda Group battled the Anti-Tenda Alliance, they believed they would surely be summoned by Mr. Pei to conquer territory alongside him, seizing market share from those companies and igniting a prairie fire!

However, in the blink of an eye, nearly two weeks had passed.

It seemed… nothing had happened at all!

Previously, they had consoled themselves, saying the battle hadn’t yet begun, it was still in the preparation phase, which was why Mr. Pei hadn’t summoned them.

But now, the war between the Anti-Tenda Alliance and Tenda Group had clearly begun. Residential Group, Shengyun Express, Stayhome Delivery, Haoxiang Fitness, and other companies had already targeted Tenda’s industries, while Tenda had launched a public opinion counterattack through its “Department Heads Speak” column.

Next would inevitably be a bloody money-burning war.

Yet even at this critical moment, Tenda Group still showed no intention of summoning them?

It seemed… Mr. Pei planned to rely solely on Tenda’s own strength to fight this battle?

This didn’t align with Mr. Li’s initial analysis!

Faced with everyone’s questions, Li Shi felt somewhat insecure.

Something wasn’t right. His interpretation of Mr. Pei’s intentions shouldn’t have been mistaken.

One thing was certain: the Chuji Plan, being such a highly confidential initiative, was definitely not as simple as it appeared on the surface.

So why hadn’t Mr. Pei summoned them yet?

There could be two reasons: first, the timing wasn’t right, and Mr. Pei wanted them to appear as a surprise force, catching the opposition off guard; second, Mr. Pei had changed his mind and wanted to handle everything himself.

But regardless, the current situation was unexpected for Li Shi, leaving him somewhat at a loss.

If his judgment was wrong, where would he put his face?

How would he lead the team in the future?

So, Li Shi instinctively felt a bit flustered.

However, at that moment, everyone’s phones suddenly chimed with a “ding ding” sound.

Li Shi was startled: “A mass message?”

He hurriedly took out his phone and saw it was indeed a mass text notification: inviting them to Tenda for a meeting tomorrow morning to discuss something extremely important!

Of course, considering that some people might not be in Jingzhou, the text also mentioned that if they couldn’t make it, they could contact a designated person to arrange alternative communication.

Soon after, the Chuji Plan contact person also sent a message to Li Shi, confirming that the text was genuine and not someone impersonating Tenda.

Li Shi’s eyes lit up: “It’s here!”

Indeed, he knew his guess wasn’t wrong. Mr. Pei was indeed going to summon them!

As for why he hadn’t summoned them earlier? Perhaps the timing wasn’t right, or Tenda had some internal matters to deal with, causing a delay.

In any case, his judgment wasn’t wrong!

Li Shi couldn’t help but stand tall, filled with pride that “no one understands Mr. Pei better than I do.”

The investor who had questioned him earlier now looked ashamed, once again convinced by Mr. Li’s insight into worldly affairs.

What was he thinking? How could he doubt Mr. Li’s grasp of Mr. Pei’s intentions over such a small matter?

How foolish!

Yao Bo said, “It looks like it’s exactly as Mr. Li predicted—this is a mobilization meeting called by Mr. Pei for all Tenda-related enterprises! I wonder what kind of tasks Mr. Pei will give us? I’m so excited!”

In the realm of business warfare, Mr. Pei was invincible, universally acknowledged as a god of war.

Mr. Pei’s strategic planning and leadership abilities had impressed countless people.

Although Li Shi and others had previously benefited from Tenda many times, they had never directly participated in the campaigns or been under Mr. Pei’s direct leadership—they had only been on the periphery, collecting defeated enemies and establishing some minor military achievements.

But now, it was as if they were joining the regular army, officially entering Tenda’s organization and accepting Mr. Pei’s direct command!

This was obviously an extremely exciting prospect!

Of course, they didn’t want to become Tenda Group’s vassals, nor did they want to be cannon fodder. They simply wanted to experience Mr. Pei’s artistic command up close.

Besides, previously they could only clean up the peripheral battlefields and collect some scattered defeated troops, eating leftovers. It was incomparable to now, directly joining the organization and facing the enemy head-on!

Everyone was elated, eagerly anticipating the inspiring moment when Mr. Pei would take the stage and rally the troops at the oath-taking ceremony!

……

……

March 15th, Friday morning.

Li Shi and the others arrived punctually at the Tenda meeting venue.

The venue wasn’t large, but security was tight.

Security personnel dressed in black suits tightly sealed all entrances to the venue. There were no recording or photography devices on site, creating a solemn atmosphere of impending battle.

After entering the venue, Li Shi found his seat according to the information provided: in the front row, fairly close to the center.

Clearly, this was because Li Shi had made significant contributions to Tenda Group and was a trusted partner of Mr. Pei, which earned him such an important position.

Additionally, Li Shi also saw some familiar faces, like Qiao Liang, Ruan Guangjian, Lin Chang, and others.

Obviously, the seating arrangements considered two factors: first, companies and individuals who had long-term cooperative relationships with Tenda and had established deep friendships; second, companies and individuals who had made important contributions to the Chuji Plan.

Someone like Li Shi, who satisfied both criteria, naturally occupied the most important position—he could be considered Mr. Pei’s closest comrade and partner.

In another area, the heads of various Tenda departments were gathered, representing the highest combat power of the entire Tenda organization.

This meeting was truly a gathering of heroes.

Li Shi couldn’t help but sigh that the Anti-Tenda Alliance was indeed coming on strong, forcing even Mr. Pei to take it seriously.

In the past, Tenda had faced some crises, such as when Dayak Group, Finger Company, and Longyu Group launched a money-burning war that once put Mr. Pei in the awkward position of having to sell buildings for cash flow. But even then, Mr. Pei had never troubled others, always managing to overcome difficulties with his own clever strategies.

But now it was different.

Although Dayak Group was large, it had no direct business dealings with Tenda and was far overseas, beyond reach.

This time, the Anti-Tenda Alliance consisted of domestic giant companies backed by multiple capital activities. They had direct competitive relationships with Tenda’s various businesses and were much more determined than Dayak Group had been.

Under such pressure, ordinary companies would have surrendered long ago.

In fact, ordinary companies wouldn’t even qualify to have these large companies form an alliance to suppress them.

It was already remarkable that Mr. Pei could withstand this pressure and mobilize all companies closely related to Tenda to help him overcome this difficult situation.

Previously, Mr. Pei had selflessly helped them. Now it was their turn to help Mr. Pei!

Li Shi made a silent resolution.

The others shared Li Shi’s mindset, waiting for Mr. Pei to take the stage, rally the troops, and then everyone would respond in unison, rushing out to smash the Anti-Tenda Alliance to pieces!

Soon, most of the empty seats were filled.

Clearly, everyone took this very seriously, having put aside their work to attend.

The few people who truly couldn’t make it because they were too far away would likely communicate directly with the staff and event organizers.

Everyone was anticipating Mr. Pei’s appearance.

However, to everyone’s surprise, the person who took the stage wasn’t Mr. Pei, but Meng Chang.

Li Shi was stunned: “Huh? Where’s Mr. Pei?”

He was puzzled. By all rights, for such an important meeting, Mr. Pei should have taken the stage to say a few words, shouldn’t he?

But not only had Mr. Pei not taken the stage, he hadn’t even appeared at the venue!

This was quite odd.

It wasn’t that other department heads couldn’t speak—after all, each Tenda department head was capable of handling matters independently. But the key issue was… something felt off.

For such a crucial oath-taking ceremony, Mr. Pei’s absence would dampen their side’s morale and fighting spirit, wouldn’t it?

Meng Chang came to the stage and, looking at the sea of people below, took a deep breath.

Normally, such a speech occasion would have been like a fish in water for him.

When he founded Cold Noodle Girl, he first persuaded investors, then ordinary customers, and through sheer talk, he had built up the Cold Noodle Girl brand.

But now, seeing the dense crowd, he suddenly felt nervous.

Thinking about it carefully, he realized that although he had previously spoken confidently on stage, that was pure bluffing, purely for those willing to take the bait.

Because it was bluffing, he didn’t need to take responsibility. Those who believed him did so deeply, and those who didn’t wouldn’t bother exposing him on the spot.

So, Meng Chang had felt no pressure at all back then.

But now it was different.

What he was about to do was something very meaningful, representing the collective will of Mr. Pei and all Tenda department heads.

He couldn’t afford to say a single wrong word!