"What did you say... He... He's here?" Liu Lu's voice trembled slightly, and her fingers gripping the broken wine glass turned white.
Secretary Chen's expression was grave. He leaned close to Liu Lu's ear again and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "President Sun... Sun's competitor is downstairs."
The noise of the celebration banquet seemed to be blocked out by a thin film, and Liu Lu could only feel a buzzing in her ears.
She never expected that at this moment when she and her team should be celebrating their victory, their biggest competitor would appear here.
Sun's rival, the president of a new business group, is a young but ruthless character, like a lurking viper, always delivering a fatal blow when people least expect it.
Liu Lu knew without even thinking that his purpose for coming was to kick someone when they were down.
Taking a deep breath, Liu Lu tried to calm herself down.
She slowly glanced at the celebrating employees around her, handed the broken wine glass to a waiter, and a cold smile curled at the corner of her lips.
"Since he's here, let him come up."
A few minutes later, Sun's competitor appeared at the entrance of the banquet hall.
He was dressed in a sharp suit, with a meaningful smile on his face, as if he had everything under control.
He walked straight up to Liu Lu, raised the champagne glass in his hand, and said with a hint of sarcasm, "President Liu, congratulations, you fought a brilliant victory."
Liu Lu gracefully accepted the new wine glass from the waiter, gently clinked glasses with him, but her eyes were as cold as ice.
"Mr. Sun, you flatter me. It was only a narrow victory."
"A narrow victory? Heh," Sun's competitor chuckled. "I heard that President Liu's group suffered a major blow because of this victory. Many projects have stalled due to funding issues, haven't they?"
Liu Lu's expression remained unchanged, but her heart sank.
Sun's competitors are incredibly well-informed!
She suppressed her unease and said calmly, "In business competition, there are gains and losses, it's normal."
“Mr. Liu is right,” Sun’s competitor said, his gaze falling on the wine glass in Liu Lu’s hand. “But this loss… is probably much greater than the gain, isn’t it?” He paused, then added, “I heard… things aren’t going so well with President Zhang.”
Liu Lu gripped the wine glass tightly, her knuckles turning white.
Damn it!
He even knew about the bank loan!
She raised her head, her gaze sharp, and looked directly into the eyes of Sun's competitor, saying each word clearly, "My affairs are none of your concern, Mr. Sun."
Sun's competitor smiled, said nothing more, turned and walked towards the crowd, starting to chat and laugh with Liu Lu's partners.
Liu Lu stood there, watching his back, a chill running from the soles of her feet straight to her heart.
The lively celebration banquet gradually blurred in her eyes, leaving only one thought swirling in her mind: she must find a new source of funding as soon as possible!
She turned and strode towards Secretary Chen… “Arrange it immediately, I need to see him…”
Liu Lu had no time to grieve, and even less time to hesitate.
After the celebration banquet, she immediately summoned Secretary Chen to begin devising a response strategy.
She knew full well that Sun's competitor's visit was not just a simple demonstration; he would definitely sabotage her from the shadows and prevent her from obtaining new funding.
“Contact all our partners; I want to visit them personally,” Liu Lu said firmly, with an undeniable air of authority.
Over the next few days, Liu Lu tirelessly traveled between various partners.
Leveraging her years of accumulated reputation and precise planning for future development, she successfully persuaded some partners to make advance payments by appealing to their emotions and reasoning.
While this funding wasn't enough to completely solve the problem, it temporarily alleviated the group's urgent needs and bought her valuable breathing room.
At the same time, Xiao Liubei also noticed her mother's fatigue and stress.
She felt sorry for her mother, but didn't know how to help.
After much thought, she decided to host a small family gathering for her mother at the company.
She made snacks and greeting cards by hand and invited several uncles and aunts from the company to celebrate with her mother.
The company was filled with a warm atmosphere on the day of the gathering.
The employees offered their blessings, and Liu Bei also presented her mother with a carefully prepared gift.
Looking at her daughter's innocent and cheerful smile, Liu Lu's tense nerves finally relaxed a little.
She held her daughter tightly in her arms, feeling this rare warmth and comfort.
However, this brief period of calm did not last long.
Just when Liu Lu thought she had temporarily stabilized the situation, an unexpected message arrived, shattering the hard-won peace once again.
Secretary Chen hurried into the office, her face grave, and said to Liu Lu, "President Liu, what about Sun's competitor..." She hesitated, as if she had something difficult to say.
Liu Lu's heart sank, a sense of foreboding washing over her. "What's wrong with him?"
Secretary Chen took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "He...he has begun to take action."
Liu Lu suddenly stood up, walked to the window, gazed into the distance, and a sharp glint flashed in her eyes.
"Alright, I'd like to see what tricks he has up his sleeve!"
Sun's competitors did indeed make their move.
His group began to dump products similar to those of Liu Lu's group at shockingly low prices.
Suddenly, the market was in turmoil, and many clients who had originally cooperated with Liu Lu's Group turned to Sun's competitors, resulting in a sharp drop in orders and further strain on Liu Lu's Group's cash flow.
When the news arrived, Liu Lu was in her office reviewing the latest market report.
Her brows furrowed, and a cold glint flashed in her eyes.
"He's trying to undermine our competitiveness and force us into a price war!"
Secretary Chen stood to the side, his face grave. "Mr. Liu, what do we do now?"
Liu Lu took a deep breath and slammed the report in her hand heavily on the table.
"Call an emergency meeting! Summon all senior executives immediately!"
The atmosphere in the meeting room was heavy.
The heads of various departments took turns analyzing the current situation, and an atmosphere of anxiety permeated the air.
"We must lower the price! Otherwise, we'll lose all our customers!" the marketing manager said anxiously.
"Lower prices? Our cash flow is already extremely tight. Lowering prices again will only hasten our demise!" the CFO immediately retorted.
"Then what do you suggest we do? Just wait to die?" The marketing manager was somewhat agitated.
As the argument in the meeting room grew increasingly heated, Liu Lu suddenly stood up and slammed her hand on the table.
"Enough!" She looked around at everyone, her eyes sharp.
“We can’t engage in a price war with him; that’s a trap!” She paused, then said firmly, “We need to find a different path and launch a new high-end product line!”
This proposal immediately drew criticism from many.
"High-end products? The market is flooded with low-priced products now; there's simply no market for high-end products!"
“Developing new high-end products requires a lot of funding and time, and we don’t have that right now.”
Liu Lu raised her hand to signal everyone to be quiet, her eyes sparkling with confidence.
“I know it’s difficult, but we have no choice! We can’t let him lead us by the nose; we must take the initiative!” she said firmly. “I believe that as long as our product is excellent enough, we will definitely win the market!”
With Liu Lu's persistence and encouragement, the entire group worked together, putting in extra hours to develop new products.
In just one month, the brand-new high-end product series made a stunning debut.
The unique creativity and excellent quality immediately attracted the attention of many high-end customers, and orders poured in.
Liu Lu Group not only successfully avoided a direct price war with Sun's competitors, but also opened up new markets and earned higher profits.
When the news reached Sun's competitor, he was enjoying a glass of red wine in his office.
Upon hearing his assistant's report, he paused slightly in his wine glass, a cold smile appearing on his lips.
"Oh? She actually has this trick up her sleeve..." He put down his wine glass, slowly stood up, walked to the window, and gazed into the distance, a sinister glint in his eyes.
"Looks like I need to add fuel to the fire..." He picked up the phone and dialed a number. "Hello, it's me..."
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