Chapter 65: The Fake Investor Unmasked

They knew this matter was an opportunity for them. If they didn’t seize it, it would be lost forever.

However, whether they could actually grasp this opportunity became a different question.

Judging by the current situation, it seemed Bai Ningbing would not easily allow these people to become a part of the venture. After all, the profits in this industry were very substantial. If those with ulterior motives wanted to get a piece of the pie, they had to pass her assessment. If they failed, they would be sent right back to where they came from.

“I want to take a stake in the livestream e-commerce project. I saw the announcement outside saying you’re raising funds. I think this sector is very suitable for long-term development. Please, give us a chance!”

Lin Guanqi was naturally very happy to hear that someone was willing to invest. Just as she was about to accept, she was interrupted by Bai Ningbing, who sensed a conspiracy.

“Don’t accept it yet,” Bai Ningbing said. “I don’t think he’s here to invest. Tell me, which rival company did you come from to steal our secrets?”

The man clearly hadn’t expected her to say that, and he was momentarily struck dumb.

‘Did I expose myself somewhere? Impossible.’

‘I hid it perfectly.’

He had come here purely to infiltrate under the guise of investing, and he hadn’t let his true thoughts show on his face at all. How on earth did this person see through him? Was it the intuition of a business veteran? Or had she realized it long ago and was waiting here for him to take the bait?

However, while the woman in front of him was difficult to deceive, the woman next to her was very easy to fool. She was practically just a vase. She had almost agreed just now, but he hadn’t expected someone to jump in halfway and ruin it.

“I didn’t! You must be mistaken. How could I do such a thing? I simply think highly of this project and want to invest. You can’t block my path to wealth. Isn’t that a bit unfair to us investors?”

Lin Guanqi was instantly swayed by his words. She felt the same way, so she even spoke up to help him when he said that. Bai Ningbing felt a wave of frustration at her partner’s lack of discernment.

She hadn’t seen through such an obvious scam. If someone were truly here to invest, would they come without even bringing any data or documents? He was only talking, but he hadn’t taken any actual action, which meant he wasn’t genuinely interested in the investment mechanism.

This guy could only deceive an inexperienced young woman like her. In front of a true business mogul, there was no way anyone would believe those words. It was blatantly obvious that he was lying. The deception was practically written on his face; who would believe him?

Lin Guanqi asked, “Why are you stopping him? I think he’s sincerely here to invest. He doesn’t seem like a sinister or cunning person. Bai Ningbing, you aren’t trying to break my capital chain, are you?”

Bai Ningbing was momentarily speechless. She let out a sigh, truly not expecting her sweetheart to be so dim-witted. The man might as well have written “I’m a liar” on his forehead. Why hadn’t she realized it yet? But regardless, since she was her precious one, Bai Ningbing would naturally pamper her. Whatever happened, she would have to handle it herself to ensure the girl wasn’t cheated.

“You still have a chance to confess. If I find out myself, I guarantee that every company involved behind you will be uprooted.”

As soon as these words were spoken, the man clearly became flustered. If she really did that, the company behind him would kill him.

He grew timid in an instant. He debated whether he should confess, but things had already progressed to this point. He was only one nod of trust away from success. Was he really going to give up?

No, he didn’t want to give up. He wanted to take one last gamble. Perhaps he could successfully bluff his way through? It wasn’t impossible. After all, there was only one smart person here. As long as he bypassed the clever one, he could succeed.

Consequently, he addressed his words to the person next to Bai Ningbing, which was Lin Guanqi. “Don’t listen to her nonsense. I am sincerely here to invest. After discussions among several of us, we decided to invest 5 million in this project. We truly have no ulterior motives. We simply want to earn a little money from this project because we know that the projects you create are basically all booming. You have to let us have a piece of this livestream e-commerce pie, right?”

At first listen, his words seemed to have no issues. Everything he said was filled with a desire to make money, and there were no strange statements. For a moment, she actually believed him again. However, as he continued with increasingly ridiculous claims, her belief wavered.

“Furthermore, the future development potential of livestream e-commerce is immense. Once the traffic is built up, we can just bring in the goods and sell them. We can generate a lot of sales revenue. Everyone wants a piece of a project like this, so why can’t we participate?”

At the start, Lin Guanqi really did believe he was a sincere investor. But when she thought about his later words, they didn’t sound like the actual prospects of livestream e-commerce at all. The first thing that had to be established in livestreaming was trust. Only with trust could goods be sold. If you didn’t have trust, the goods you stockpiled wouldn’t sell at all. Therefore, after hearing this, her first reaction was that this person was unsuitable. She now believed that he was here to steal secrets. No wonder Bai Ningbing had hindered her in every way; she simply didn’t want her to be exposed to such risks.

“Fine, you don’t need to keep making things up,” Lin Guanqi said. “I can see that you aren’t sincere. To put it bluntly, you just want to create a rift between us so you can sneak in and steal secrets, right? I’m telling you, countless people who tried what you’re doing have already ended up in military court.”

“I’ve said so much to you because I hope you’ll confess on your own. If you were sincerely here to invest, I would welcome you warmly. But if you’re here with bad intentions, then I’m sorry, I’ll need to send you to court. After all, you are endangering our interests.”

Hearing this, the man instantly lost his nerve. Even the woman he thought was just a vase already knew his purpose. ‘Is there really a need to keep pretending?’ But if he didn’t, the company behind him wouldn’t let him off either. He was now caught in a dilemma—either confess or go to court. Neither option was what he wanted. What should he do?