Chapter 536: The Massive Turmoil Triggered by Wanshang

September 10, 2015, Shenzhen.

The split of Wanshang can no longer be kept secret.

At eight in the morning, Fang Wenshan pushed open Li Yaozong's office door, his complexion darker than the sky outside. He placed the tablet on the desk, and the screen displayed headlines pushed by more than thirty media outlets.

"Wanshang's massive split: strategic adjustment or a broken funding chain?"

"Twenty subsidiaries becoming independent simultaneously—Is Li Yaozong about to flee?"

"Insiders reveal: internal conflicts at Wanshang have intensified, forcing a split."

"From aircraft carriers to fleets—what exactly has happened at Wanshang?"

Li Yaozong read them one by one.

After reading, he handed the tablet back to Fang Wenshan.

"Anything else?"

Fang Wenshan nodded.

"There's something even more striking."

He turned to the next page.

"Wanshang employees leak: year‑end bonuses slashed, morale in turmoil."

"Suppliers halt deliveries—Wanshang's cash flow in crisis?"

"Banks pulling loans? The truth behind Wanshang's split."

Li Yaozong stared at those headlines and was silent for a few seconds.

Then he smiled.

"Looks pretty much like the real story."

The Telephone rang.

It was Lin Jiawen.

"Director Li, the city called. The deputy mayor in charge of the economy wants to come by for a look."

Li Yaozong held the Telephone, saying nothing.

Lin Jiawen continued.

"They're worried whether Wanshang is truly in trouble. After all, it's Shenzhen's largest private enterprise; if it truly runs into trouble, the impact would be huge."

Li Yaozong gave a hum.

"When are they coming?"

"This afternoon, at three o'clock."

Li Yaozong glanced at the time.

Half past nine.

Five and a half hours left.

He hung up and looked at Fang Wenshan.

"Notify the core team; meeting at ten."

Fang Wenshan nodded.

Li Yaozong walked to the window.

Outside, Shenzhen's sky was a dull gray. In the distance, the outline of Fenghuang Mountain vanished in a thin mist, indistinct.

He recalled a sentence his father had said years ago.

"When a company grows big, it's no longer just your own affair."

Back then he didn't fully understand.

Now he understands.

At exactly ten o'clock, the meeting room was filled with people.

Chen Feng, Zhao Ming, He Xiao, Liu Yang, Zhou Ye, Wang Bo, Lin Jiawen, Fang Wenshan… all heads of core departments had arrived.

Li Yaozong got straight to the point.

"Everyone already knows the situation."

He looked at the people seated.

"The media are speculating, suppliers are waiting, banks are hesitating. Even the city officials can't sit still; they'll inspect this afternoon."

He paused.

"Now, what should we do?"

The meeting room fell silent for a few seconds.

Fang Wenshan spoke first.

"Director Li, I suggest we hold a press conference."

He looked at Li Yaozong.

"Explain clearly. The split is a strategic adjustment, not a broken funding chain. The twenty subsidiaries becoming independent isn't a flight—it's to let them move faster."

Li Yaozong nodded.

"Continue."

Fang Wenshan opened his notebook.

"First, clarify the reasons for the split: resource conflicts, low efficiency, constrained development. Being bundled together causes internal friction; separating leads to a win‑win."

"Second, define the group's strategy. Automobiles, smartphones, banking, R&D center, research institute—the five core businesses the group will handle itself. The rest, let the subsidiaries run on their own."

"Third, specify the holding relationship. Wanxiang Holding holds fifty‑one percent, with unified financial management. The group isn't neglecting it; it's managing in another way."

He closed the notebook.

If these three points are made clear, rumors will collapse on their own.

Wang Bo raised his hand.

Li Yaozong, I'll add a point.

Li Yaozong gestured for him to speak.

Wang Bo stood up and walked to the whiteboard.

He drew a diagram.

On top is a big circle labeled 'Wanxiang Group'. Below it are five medium circles connected: automobile, mobile phone, bank, R&D center, research institute. Further down are twenty small circles representing the spin-off subsidiaries.

This structure is called an aircraft carrier fleet.

He pointed to those small circles.

The carrier is the core, the fleet the periphery. The carrier sets direction, the fleet handles execution. The carrier provides firepower support, while each fleet ship fights on its own.

He looked at Li Yaozong.

Li Yaozong, this analogy is understandable to ordinary people.

Li Yaozong nodded.

Good.

He Xia raised his hand.

Li Yaozong, should we also split the automobile side?

Li Yaozong shook his head.

No split. Automobile, mobile phone, and bank are alike as core. Intelligent driving needs mobile phone chips; mobile phones need automobile batteries. These two must be bundled together.

He Xia nodded.

Liu Yang raised his hand.

What about the R&D center?

Li Yaozong looked at him.

The R&D center must not be split either. Graphene, lithography machines, six-axis machine tools—these are the lifelines of the future. They must be kept firmly in our own hands.

Liu Yang nodded.

Lin Jiawen raised his hand.

Li Yaozong, there are also concerns regarding the bank side.

Li Yaozong looked at him.

Speak.

Lin Jiawen paused.

Outside rumors say the bank is calling in loans. Although our capital chain is fine, if the news gets out, depositors will feel uneasy.

He looked at Li Yaozong.

At the press conference, I need to step forward and say a few words to reassure depositors.

Li Yaozong nodded.

Okay.

Fang Wenshan raised his hand again.

Li Yaozong, what's the time for the press conference?

Li Yaozong thought for a moment.

Tomorrow morning at ten.

He looked at Fang Wenshan.

Notify all media. Those who can come, come; those who can't, watch the livestream.

Fang Wenshan nodded.

Li Yaozong looked around the room.

Any other questions?

No one spoke.

He stood up.

Then it's settled. This afternoon we'll first deal with the city; tomorrow morning we'll hold the press conference.

At three in the afternoon, the vice mayor arrived.

Surname Zhou, in charge of economics, in his early fifties, wearing rimless glasses, speaking slowly and deliberately, but with sharp eyes.

Li Yaozong greeted him in the lobby.

Mayor Zhou, welcome.

Vice Mayor Zhou shook his hand.

Li Yaozong, sorry to disturb you.

The elevator went up to the thirty-eighth floor and entered the meeting room.

Vice Mayor Zhou sat down and got straight to the point.

Li Yaozong, I came today not to cause trouble.

He looked at Li Yaozong.

Wanshang is Shenzhen's flagship. A flagship must not fall.

Li Yaozong nodded.

Mayor Zhou, rest assured, Wanshang won't fall.

Vice Mayor Zhou looked at him.

What's going on with that split?

Li Yaozong explained the aircraft carrier fleet analogy.

Vice Mayor Zhou listened, then fell silent for a few seconds.

Then he laughed.

This analogy is good. The aircraft carrier fleet: independent operations on the periphery, centralized command at the core.

He looked at Li Yaozong.

But outsiders don't understand this. They only see the split and only hear rumors.

Li Yaozong nodded.

So tomorrow morning, Wanxiang will hold a press conference to clarify.

Vice Mayor Zhou nodded.

Alright. Do you need the city's support?

Li Yaozong thought for a moment.

Not for now. But if any company asks, I hope the city can say a few words for us.

Vice Mayor Zhou stood up.

That's no problem.

He extended his hand.

General Manager Li, do well with Wanxiang. Shenzhen needs you.

Li Yaozong shook his hand.

Thank you, Mayor Zhou.

After seeing off Vice Mayor Zhou, Li Yaozong returned to his office.

Fang Wenshan was already waiting for him.

General Manager Li, the press conference preparations are almost done.

He placed the schedule on the table.

Tomorrow at 10 a. m., in the multipurpose hall on the third floor of Wanxiang Tower. Three hundred media outlets have signed up, Phoenix Chat will livestream, and expected viewership is over five million.

Li Yaozong looked at the schedule.

Fang Wenshan continued the briefing.

You'll speak first for fifteen minutes. Then Lin Jiawen will speak for five minutes to explain the bank situation. Finally, we'll reserve thirty minutes for Q&A.

Li Yaozong nodded.

Who will host the Q&A session?

Fang Wenshan pointed to himself.

I'll handle it. I'll screen the questions in advance—won't answer sensitive ones, and if I can't answer, I'll smooth things over.

Li Yaozong looked at him.

Can you do it?

Fang Wenshan smiled.

After fifteen years following you, I can still handle this scene.

At seven in the evening, Li Yaozong sat alone in his office.

Outside the window, Shenzhen's night was deep. In the distance, the lights of the South Mountain Research and Development Center were blazing, and in that six‑story old building, countless people were working overtime.

In the underground workshop, the lithography machine was still being debugged, and in the new materials lab, those young people were still researching graphene.

He recalled what Vice Mayor Zhou had said today.

"Wanxiang is Shenzhen's emblem. An emblem must not fall."

"Yeah, it must not fall."

"But an emblem isn't just something hung up for people to see."

"An emblem is borne on the shoulder, moving forward step by step."

He stood up and walked to the window.

He stood there for a long time.

Then he turned around and walked back to his desk.

He opened his computer and began reading the script for tomorrow's press conference.

Outside the window, the city's lights shone as bright as dawn.

The next morning at 9:50 a. m., in the multipurpose hall on the third floor of Wanxiang Tower.

Three hundred media outlets and over five hundred reporters filled the hall to capacity, with people standing in the aisles and more in the back holding cameras.

On the big screen was the Wanxiang Group logo.

Below it read:

"Wanxiang Group Strategic Adjustment Press Conference"

At 9:58 a. m., the lights dimmed.

At 10:00 a. m., Li Yaozong stepped onto the stage.

He stood at center stage, gazing at the eyes below.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the press, welcome to Wanxiang's press conference."

He paused.

"Over the past two days, there have been many rumors about Wanxiang's spin‑off—claims of a broken capital chain, of intensified internal conflict, and of fleeing."

The audience listened in silence.

Today, I'll speak clearly.

He pressed the remote, and an image appeared on the big screen.

Aircraft carrier fleet.

Wanshang isn't splitting up; it's transforming. From an overloaded aircraft carrier, it's becoming a nimble fleet.

He pointed to the small circles on the chart.

Twenty subsidiaries are going independent—not that we're abandoning them. It's to let each run faster.

He then pointed to the several large circles in the middle.

Automobiles, phones, banks, R&D centers, research institutes—the five core businesses are kept by the group. These are Wanshang's lifelines; we won't yield an inch.

Someone in the audience raised a hand.

Li Yaozong gestured to Fang Wenshan.

Fang Wenshan passed the microphone over.

The reporter stood up.

Mr. Li, twenty subsidiaries are independent—how does the group still control them?

Li Yaozong looked at him.

Wanxiang Holding owns fifty-one percent, with unified financial management. They set their own development direction, but major investments are decided by the group. This is delegating authority without abdicating responsibility.

The reporter sat down.

Someone else raised a hand.

Mr. Li, someone says your capital chain is broken—is that true?

Li Yaozong looked toward Lin Jiawen.

Lin Jiawen stood up and walked to the front of the stage.

Wanshang Bank's deposits last month were 370 billion, loans 230 billion. The loan-to-deposit ratio is 62%, far below the regulatory red line. Whether the capital chain is broken—let the data decide.

The reporter blinked.

Then sat down.

Someone else raised a hand.

Mr. Li, after the spin-off, will employee benefits be affected?

Li Yaozong shook his head.

No. Wanshang's residential community will keep being built, the Wanshang Scholars Program will keep recruiting, and the five insurances and one fund will keep being paid. Employees' benefits follow them to whichever subsidiary.

The reporter followed up.

What about retirees?

Li Yaozong looked at him.

Retirees remain under the group's care. Regardless of the split, Wanshang provides elder care.

The press conference lasted one and a half hours.

Li Yaozong answered twenty-seven questions.

The last question was asked by a young reporter.

Mr. Li, are you confident about Wanshang's future?

Li Yaozong fell silent for a few seconds.

Then he laughed.

My father is ninety-three, and his hair is still black. He told me, as long as a person is alive, things get done.

He looked at the audience.

Wanshang's people are still here, and things get done.

Applause broke out.

After the press conference, Fang Wenshan sent the public opinion monitoring report to Li Yaozong's office.

Mr. Li, the winds have shifted.

Li Yaozong took it and looked.

Positive comments rose from 23% before the press conference to 67%.

Negative comments fell from 41% to 12%.

The headlines of "capital chain broken," "internal conflict," and "running away" were replaced by "aircraft carrier fleet," "strategic transformation," and "five core businesses."

He closed the report.

Good.

Fang Wenshan looked at him.

Mr. Li, why aren't you excited?

Li Yaozong shook his head.

What's there to be excited about? This is just the beginning.

He stood up and walked to the window.

We need to keep an eye on the twenty subsidiaries, hold onto the five core businesses, mass-produce graphene, catch up on lithography machines, and iterate on intelligent driving.

He paused.

There's still plenty to do.

Fang Wenshan nodded.

Then I'll get back to work.