Chapter 103: Raiding the Home

Every word Su Bile spoke struck Frankel’s heart like a sledgehammer, drenching him in cold sweat.

In Su Bile’s eyes, whether outsiders saw it differently or not, Siemens had already lost if it failed to crush Shen Zhou outright in this clash.

Now, this war had become a messy quagmire—not only humiliating Su Bile, but also dragging down Siemens’ stock price, causing outsiders to question just how strong Siemens truly was.

“President Su Bile, I…”

Frankel tried to defend himself, but Su Bile lifted his head and glanced at him—a glance like a sword piercing through his psychological defenses, silencing every excuse he’d prepared.

“We still have a chance. Shen Zhou merely engaged in malicious competition, got lucky by securing a spokesperson like Ronaldo, and bundled its phones with electronic pets to achieve today’s sales!”

“Now, if Siemens lowers its prices, Shen Zhou must follow. Its entire sales strategy will collapse—we still have a chance!”

Frankel gritted his teeth. He felt that if he didn’t fight now, today would be his last day at Siemens. With Su Bile’s temperament, he’d be thrown out without mercy.

Listening to Frankel, Su Bile fell into thought. Whether to fire Frankel wasn’t his main concern—what mattered was who would clean up the mess if Frankel left. Could he, as Siemens’ president, really take the blame himself?!

The digital cordless phone business wasn’t Siemens’ most critical line, but Su Bile didn’t want it to fail. Siemens had poured significant resources and capital into this project from the start. More importantly, if it collapsed, it would damage Siemens’ stock price and Su Bile’s own authority within the company—this was the deadliest consequence.

“This is your final chance, Frankel. I’ll apply to the board for one more opportunity. Don’t let me down again, understood?!”

Su Bile’s tone was stern, plainly telling Frankel this was his last shot—if he still failed to give Siemens the upper hand, he’d be gone for good.

Media outlets were flooding the airwaves with news of Shen Zhou’s single-day sales breaking 100,000 units. Siemens, by contrast, received little attention—as if the verdict was already sealed: Siemens had lost to Shen Zhou.

“Notify all sales channels: Siemens digital cordless phones will be sold at a $15 discount across the board!”

Frankel, upon leaving Su Bile’s office, immediately summoned all heads of Siemens’ phone division.

To force him into a price war, Frankel felt Shen Zhou had become a formidable rival—but he believed the ultimate victor would still be Siemens. Once prices were equalized and the high sales commissions vanished, Frankel was certain Siemens’ sales would surpass Shen Zhou’s.

After defeating Shen Zhou in Europe, Frankel planned to push Siemens phones into the mainland market. Only by crushing Shen Zhou there again could he truly erase his shame.

“What if Shen Zhou also lowers its prices?!” asked the head of Siemens’ phone marketing department.

“Lower again!”

Frankel waved his hand. “No matter how much Shen Zhou cuts its price, Siemens’ phones must be one dollar cheaper. I’ve already spoken with President Su Bile—we can temporarily reduce or even sacrifice some profit, but we must crush Shen Zhou, drive it out of Europe, and make every company that dares challenge Siemens know: Europe belongs to Siemens!”

Frankel prepared for a final, desperate gamble: Siemens’ retail prices in Germany dropped from $150 to $135.

“Siemens phones slash prices across the board—the digital cordless phone war reignites!”

The Financial Times broke the news, instantly drawing massive attention from European media, then spreading like wildfire across American and Asian outlets.

“To compete with Shen Zhou, Siemens has initiated a price cut of 10%—the first time a Western company has led a price-promotion strategy against an Asian competitor!”

Phoenix Television, with its reporting team in Hong Kong, was the first to cover the story.

When Hong Kong viewers saw Siemens, cornered and desperate, launching the first price war, they erupted in shock. In the past, Hong Kong companies had always slashed prices to defend their market against Western giants—now, it was reversed. Siemens had taken the lead, leaving people feeling they’d witnessed something unprecedented.

This news struck far harder than the last time Dongling High-Tech defeated Microsoft in court. No Hong Kong company had ever pushed a Western giant to the brink like this—Siemens now looked like a cornered beast, ready to snap.

When mainland media began reporting that Siemens was entering a price war with Shen Zhou, the already boiling public opinion surged even higher.

Yet many also worried: if Siemens slashed prices, would it erase all the hard-won advantages Shen Zhou had built?

After all, Siemens’ strength far surpassed that of Shen Zhou’s parent company, Dongling High-Tech. Even the most optimistic observers knew this was fact. If Siemens truly went all-in, drowning Shen Zhou in a flood of cash, Shen Zhou would likely collapse under the weight of such overwhelming power—this gap in raw capability couldn’t be easily bridged.

“Shen Zhou has awakened a beast—and now it must face the moment when this ravenous predator hunts it down!”

A report by BBC journalist Pan En, who had questioned Li Dongling during a joint interview, was now being widely republished by mainland, Hong Kong, and Southeast Asian media.

“Shen Zhou currently holds a partial advantage, but neither Shen Zhou nor countless other mainland companies have ever seen what a furious Siemens looks like. Countless challengers have tried before—but Siemens still stands, while those opponents have vanished!”

“Shen Zhou has awakened a beast. The game is nearly over. Shen Zhou surprised me—but unfortunately, it chose the wrong opponent. I hope someone will still remember this brand, and this company, in the future!”

Pan En wrote this report with an air of having seen it all. The flood of mainland, Hong Kong, and Southeast Asian media coverage glorifying Shen Zhou had disgusted him. It was merely a company that had stumbled into a lucky advantage—and yet it was being hyped to godhood.

Now that Siemens was serious, Pan En, raised in Europe, was certain Siemens would crush Shen Zhou. He was merely predicting the outcome—facts would prove him right.

Pan En's report was widely republished; those who read it grew anxious once more about Shen Zhou. The news surrounding Shen Zhou had flipped and reversed so often: yesterday it was hailed as divine, today it seemed doomed. The constant barrage of unverifiable reports had turned the public into hooked fish, desperately craving the next twist.

“How much did Shen Zhou cut its price?!”

Frankel, in Siemens’ phone division, had asked the marketing head this question—how many times now?

The answer remained the same: “Shen Zhou hasn’t lowered prices. It’s still selling at original price.”

“Not lowered? How is that possible?”

Frankel frowned tightly. He’d thrown a heavy punch, waiting for Shen Zhou to counter—only to feel like he’d struck cotton, leaving him utterly frustrated.

“Is the information accurate? What about markets in Britain, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Belgium? Has Shen Zhou lowered prices anywhere?!”

The answer was still negative. Frankel paced his office in circles, then blurted, “Lower prices another five dollars tomorrow. I want to see how long Shen Zhou can hold out. If it doesn’t want the market, Siemens does!”

Frankel refused to believe Shen Zhou could keep its price unchanged forever. Since the price cut, Siemens’ sales had surged—already surpassing yesterday’s numbers. Clearly, the strategy was working.

“Siemens single-day sales break 44,000 units—price reduction clearly boosts sales!”

The next day, Konaris Data Consulting released its usual figures for European digital cordless phone sales. After the price cut, Siemens’ sales rose sharply, gaining ten thousand units in a single day.

Frankel studied the data purchased from Konaris Data Consulting—it matched Siemens’ internal figures closely. But what he truly watched wasn’t his own sales.

“Under pressure from Siemens’ price cut, Shen Zhou phone sales dropped over 3%, single-day sales falling below 100,000 units.”

When he saw Shen Zhou’s sales had dipped, Frankel couldn’t suppress a grin. Even if Siemens earned less, watching Shen Zhou’s sales fall brought him more joy than profit itself.

Frankel felt his strategy was correct. If he cut prices a few more times, he refused to believe Shen Zhou wouldn’t eventually follow.

After reviewing Shen Zhou’s sales figures, Frankel was about to set the documents aside—then noticed more data at the end. He opened it—and froze like a statue.

“Coolpad enters Europe—first-day sales exceed 10,000 units!”

“Simon Electronics, a mass-market phone brand priced at $99, becomes the most popular phone in multiple retail stores, with single-day sales exceeding 30,000 units!”

Seeing the names Coolpad and Simon, Frankel’s vision darkened. The documents slipped from his hands and scattered to the floor.

Sorry, I was at the hospital today accompanying family members for vaccinations—update delayed.

(End of Chapter)