"Given our relationship with your grandmother, we'll definitely help you if you need anything."

"He already found out everything for you before you came."

Seeing his wife expose him once again, the judge gave her an annoyed look and thought, "Fine, I can't maintain this elder's demeanor today."

"Cough cough."

The judge sat up straight, took a sip of tea, and then began to speak seriously: "Alright, no need for further words. I have already inquired for you. This time, it was people from Kyoto who issued a document requiring the Zhou Group to suspend production for rectification."

"Anything more specific is beyond my ability to inquire about."

"Many people sensed danger from this and knew that Kyoto was going to take action against you, which is why they refused to see you."

"It's completely impossible for you to try to use connections with the leadership in Luzhou now."

The judge clicked his tongue and then added, "It's not entirely impossible. It's definitely not going to work at the city level, but—unless you can find a leader at the provincial level to strongly support you."

"Perhaps the Zhou Group still has a chance to come back to life!"

"Unfortunately, everyone who has climbed to such a high position will try to avoid harm and seek their own interests. No one is willing to risk offending Kyoto to help you."

Moreover, this person's position cannot be too low; they must be influential.

Even if the judge didn't say it, Zhou Yi would certainly understand this.

After hearing the judge's words, Zhou Yi felt more confident.

He did recently come into contact with a high-ranking leader, and it was indeed at the provincial level...

Most importantly, those who can live in such places are definitely very influential.

What the judge considered extremely difficult, Zhou Yi believed, might not be entirely impossible.

Zhou Yi didn't immediately reveal his thoughts. He simply asked calmly, "Besides this, what other connections do I have?"

"Please teach me, what other ways can I save the Zhou Group?"

Since the judge guessed that he was coming, he must have already come up with a solution for him.

Zhou Yi promised the processing plant that it would resume operations within half a month.

He was determined to try whatever method was available.

He's not afraid that the solution won't work; he's afraid that he won't even be able to think of a solution, then it's really all over!

Hearing Zhou Yi's humbly seeking advice, the judge paused for a moment before continuing, "Then you can only take the media route!"

"As you know, the power of the media is very strong now. The more people speak out for you, the more likely the higher-ups will not ignore it."

"Furthermore, based on my investigation, there was no official notification from Kyoto, so I can only guess that the person who issued the document was just a leader in Kyoto."

"As long as this matter is not a direct official document issued by Kyoto, it is not a 100% dead end."

"Therefore, the bigger the trouble the Zhou Group causes, the greater your chances of getting out of this mess."

After the judge finished speaking, he fell silent and shut his mouth.

He knew perfectly well that both of the paths he had suggested were extremely unlikely.

The former doesn't have such a strong relationship!

The latter, the media is a double-edged sword. If used well, it can lead to a phoenix-like rebirth, but 98 percent of people will be swallowed up by the internet.

After all, the internet has never been able to be controlled.

Furthermore, two days have passed, and the online rumors targeting the Zhou Group have not only not subsided, but have intensified.

At this point, the judge added two more points: "There's one more thing I need to tell you: the authorities have always been resistant to the internet."

"So even if your reputation improves in the media, and a lot of people appeal on your behalf and leave messages under official posts."

"It is also possible that we will get an official cold shoulder."

"They definitely won't do anything to you; they'll handle things officially. But just like that, you can only follow the rules and obediently wait for work to start in three months!"

As Zhou Yi listened to the judge's words, his heart sank into despair.

We cannot start construction three months later!

This transformation has already consumed a lot of Zhou Group's resources, including a large investment in advertising, product development, and contract signing for processing plants.

If the suspension lasts for three months, Zhou's funds will definitely run into serious problems.

That would force us to reduce staff, which would then trigger a chain reaction, followed by banks pressing for repayment, and widespread panic within the company...

"Three months! The person hiding behind this is truly insidious and vicious!"

"At this critical moment of transformation, a three-month production halt is enough to expose the Zhou Group to enormous risks, and could even lead to bankruptcy if it is not handled carefully!"

Zhou Yi muttered to himself, having made up his mind after the judge's suggestion.

Let's pursue both paths simultaneously!

The woman looked at him with concern and asked, "Oh, Xiaoyi, who did you offend?"

"The other side actually went to such great lengths to target you."

Zhou Yi shook his head and pursed his lips: "I don't know."

The judge opened his mouth as if to say something but then stopped, seemingly wanting to tell Zhou Yi something, but also afraid that if Zhou Yi knew too much, it wouldn't be good for him.

The judge and the woman of the house were both close friends of the grandmother, and they knew about what happened back then.

However, they had promised their grandmother that they would never let Zhou Yi know about these things, because sometimes, the more you know, the more dangerous it becomes.

"Thank you, Uncle and Aunt. If you hadn't reminded me, I wouldn't know what was going on."

Zhou Yi stood up to say goodbye: "It's getting late, I'll take my leave now!"

The woman of the house hurriedly stood up: "You left so early?"

"Oh...right, your company matters are important, then you should go back quickly."

When the judge saw Zhou Yi stand up, he also stood up and escorted Zhou Yi to the door, saying, "Zhou Yi, don't worry too much about this. Just do your best."

"I'm still trying to find connections for you."

Zhou Yi nodded, thanked the judge again for his help, then got into the car and drove back to Luzhou.

This time, he didn't have a driver; he drove himself.

The bodyguards were secretly following him at a distance, and Zhou Yi wondered if the person behind it would take advantage of him leaving Luzhou.

But even after he returned to the Zhou family villa, the person behind the scenes still hadn't appeared.

Zhou Yi thought to himself, either the person behind the scenes is confident that as long as they bring down the Zhou Group, they can succeed.

Or perhaps the person behind the scenes is also wary of Zhou Yi's secret bodyguards, and they are brewing a bigger conspiracy, which is why they didn't simply and brutally kill him as they did before.

Upon returning to the villa, Zhou Yi immediately went to his room and called the dean to inquire about the situation of the leader from last time.

Three or four days have passed; they should have gathered all the medicinal herbs by now.

If the patient takes the medication on time, it should start to take effect.