Chapter 15 — Tears in the Frost

In a private office on the top floor of the Hằng Phát building, Tống Khả Di stood in front of a large glass board, which was filled with Việt Thịnh's shareholder chart, with red lines connecting the names of small shareholders to the shell companies she silently set up during her two years living abroad. She took a sip of wine, her cold eyes swept over each name, her lips curled up into an unhappy smile.

Her personal assistant, a young man named Lam, knocked on the door and walked in, holding a thin report. "Ma'am, we just received news from an internal source. It seems that Việt Thịnh's side has begun to suspect the connection between shell companies and Hằng Phát."

Khả Di turned around, her eyes shining with a cold light. "Who reported this news?"

"One of the small shareholders we approached before, he said that someone from Việt Thịnh came to ask about recent share transactions," Lam replied, his voice careful.

Khả Di put the wine glass on the table, her fingers lightly tapped on the glass, her mind racing with calculations. Three years ago, her plan failed because of an unexpected move that she did not foresee - a quick marriage between Bách Việt and an unknown secretary. She spent three years abroad, not to forget that failure, but to build a financial empire strong enough, sophisticated enough, so that this time no unexpected moves could stand in her way.

"If they are already starting to have doubts, we need to speed up the process," she said, her voice decisive. "I have no intention of waiting another three years to finish something that should have been done a long time ago."

*

Khả Di's plan is not simply to collect shares publicly on the market — that will immediately attract the attention of Việt Thịnh and regulators. Instead, she spent months individually approaching individual shareholders holding Việt Thịnh shares, those who tended to be dissatisfied with the current dividend policy or were in urgent need of cash for personal reasons, convincing them to resell their shares through intermediary companies not named Hằng Phát.

Bit by bit, she has quietly amassed nearly twelve percent of Việt Thịnh shares, a number that is not enough to gain control but is enough to create a significant voice in shareholder meetings, especially if she can attract more support from a few current board members.

Phùng Nhược My is the next target in her plan. As the group's third largest shareholder, holding eight percent of the shares, Ms. My has long had hidden dissatisfaction with Bách Việt's somewhat conservative management style, believing that the group is missing out on many opportunities to expand more boldly into the international market.

One evening, at a discreet luxury restaurant, Khả Di privately met Phùng Nhược My, bringing with her an attractive investment cooperation proposal for a personal project of Ms. My outside Việt Thịnh - a huge profit enough to make anyone consider it.

"I just need your support for a few of Hằng Phát's proposals in the upcoming shareholder meetings," Khả Di spoke, her voice gentle but convincing. "Nothing complicated, just vote in favor of the investment cooperation plans that I will propose, considering it a win-win cooperation."

Phùng Nhược My took a sip of wine, her eyes clearly showing consideration. "I need to think more. Anyway, Việt Thịnh is still a place that has brought me a stable source of income for many years."

"Of course, you should think carefully." Khả Di smiled and pushed a thin file of documents towards Mrs. My. "But I believe she will make a wise decision. The market always favors those who know how to seize opportunities at the right time."

*

Meanwhile, at Việt Thịnh, Bách Việt and Thư Nhã began a silent investigation into unusual share trading activities. Thư Nhã, with experience and meticulousness accumulated over many years as an executive secretary, has created a separate tracking system, comparing the list of shareholders with recent transfer transactions recorded at the stock exchange.

"I discovered at least seven share transfer transactions in the past three months, all through newly established companies with no clear operating history." She reported to Bách Việt while working late one evening at her apartment, the laptop screen displaying a complex diagram she had painstakingly built. "If viewed individually, each transaction seemed legal and unremarkable. But when placed side by side, I realized that all of these companies had the same business registration address, or a common legal representative who had appeared in the records of an overseas investment fund that I found through a public database."

Bách Việt looked intently at the diagram, his face gradually becoming serious. "Do you think it's all related to Hằng Phát?"

"I can't say for sure, but the possibility is very high," Thư Nhã replied. "If that's true, it means Khả Di has been quietly gathering shares for a long time, possibly even before she officially returned to the country, through pre-arranged intermediaries."

"We need more concrete evidence before we can act," Bách Việt said, gently rubbing his chin in thought. "If we only rely on speculation, we will not have enough basis to present to the board of directors, and Khả Di will certainly deny any connection if questioned without solid evidence." Thư Nhã nodded, her eyes determined. "I will continue to collect more information. I still have a few old relationships in the shareholder relations department that can help verify more about the small shareholders who have recently sold shares, to see if they have been approached by anyone related to Hằng Phát."

*

The next day, Đinh Bội Quyên came to Thư Nhã with disturbing news. "I just heard the news, one of the small shareholders who sold his shares last week said that a luxurious woman personally met him to convince him to resell his shares at a higher price than the market," Bội Quyên said, her voice low and full of worry. "His description matches Song Khả Di's appearance."

"So she's acting directly, not just through an intermediary," Thư Nhã said, her heart beat faster because of worry. "Thank you for letting me know, Bội Quyên. Can you help me with something? If you hear any more information about shareholders being approached, please notify me immediately."

"Of course." Bội Quyên nodded, then looked at her friend with worried eyes mixed with curiosity. "Thư Nhã, are you in big trouble? I have a feeling this is not as simple as a normal business competition."

Thư Nhã looked at her friend, after a moment of hesitation, she decided not to hide it any longer. "That's right, Bội Quyên. This is a much more complicated war than you think, and I need your help to protect not only Việt Thịnh, but also my family."

Bội Quyên squeezed her friend's hand, her eyes determined. "No matter what happens, I'm always on your side. Just tell me what I need to do."

"In the immediate future, I need you to pay attention to see if any other shareholders have received similar approaches, especially those with close relationships with Ms. Phùng Nhược My," Thư Nhã said, her voice had regained the usual sharpness of someone used to analyzing complex situations. "If we can create a complete map of who was approached, when, and at what price, that would be important evidence of an organized campaign, not random individual transactions." Bội Quyên nodded and scribbled a few lines in the small notebook she always carried with her. "I'll pay attention right away. Just let me take care of collecting information from shareholders, you focus on the financial analysis, and together we'll piece together the overall picture."

Outside, the city is still bustling with daily life, but underneath that peaceful surface, a silent war is gradually escalating, with increasingly bolder moves from Tống Khả Di, and a new alliance is gradually being strengthened between Thư Nhã, Bách Việt, and trusted friends ready to stand by their side in the coming storm, a storm that none of them can predict the true severity.