After the substitution marriage, I became the CEO's white moonlight

The air was filled with a tense atmosphere, like the calm before a storm. Gu Jinyan's office, which was usually well-organized, was now filled with a sense of oppression as if a storm was about to come. The assistant's panicked voice was still echoing in his ears, like a bomb that had been dropped, straining everyone's nerves to the extreme.

"How could this happen? There wasn't any sign before..." the marketing director muttered to himself, his tone full of disbelief.

"It's meaningless to say this now." The CFO pushed his glasses up, his eyes flashing with shrewdness behind the lenses. "The most urgent task is to find an alternative supplier, otherwise..."

He didn't finish his words, but everyone present understood what he meant. The disruption of the raw material supply chain meant that the entire production line would be at risk of paralysis, which would undoubtedly be a disaster for the Gu Group.

"I have contacted several other suppliers, but either their existing production capacity cannot meet our needs, or the delivery time cannot be guaranteed." The purchasing manager was sweating profusely, and his tone revealed a deep sense of powerlessness.

Gu Jinyan sat at the head of the conference table, his face solemn, his deep eyes as sharp as a hawk, scanning everyone present. He knew that the current situation had reached a point where there was no time to lose, and he had to come up with a response plan as soon as possible.

"Jin Yan, we can also try to contact the government department and seek their help." Su Li sat next to Gu Jinyan and said softly, trying to share some of the pressure for him.

Gu Jinyan nodded slightly. Su Li's suggestion reminded him that the government has been encouraging and supporting the development of national enterprises. Perhaps they can provide some help.

"I will go to the government department in person." Gu Jinyan said firmly, with an unquestionable majesty, "Others continue to think of ways to solve the raw material supply problem as soon as possible!"

"Yes!" Everyone answered in unison, with a solemn expression on everyone's face.

At the same time, competitors also heard the news and took action. They were like sharks that smelled blood, greedily eyeing the fat piece of meat of Gu Group.

"Mr. Gu, our boss wants to talk to you about the supply of raw materials." The representative of the rival company handed a document to Gu Jinyan with a sly smile.

Gu Jinyan took the document, glanced through it quickly, and his face suddenly darkened. On the surface, the document offered help, but in fact, it contained a trap. The other party put forward a series of harsh conditions, trying to take advantage of the situation and force the Gu Group to submit.

"Go back and tell your boss," Gu Jinyan threw the document back on the table, his tone cold, "I, Gu Jinyan, will not accept such humiliating conditions even if I go bankrupt!"

However, what Gu Jinyan didn't know was that a bigger crisis was still to come. His cell phone on the table suddenly vibrated, and the name of "Overseas Branch Manager" flashed on the screen.

"Hello?" Gu Jinyan answered the phone, his brows slightly frowned, and an ominous premonition came to his mind.

On the other end of the phone, the overseas branch manager's voice was full of panic and evasion: "Mr. Gu, something bad has happened..." "Hello? What happened? Tell me clearly!" Gu Jinyan suppressed his anger and asked sternly.

After a long pause on the other end of the line, the panicked voice of the manager of the overseas branch came: "Mr. Gu, it's like this... We have also encountered problems with the supply of raw materials. Many suppliers have suddenly stopped supplying, and now the factory has..."

"What?!" Gu Jinyan stood up suddenly, his face livid, his anger almost bursting out of his chest, "How could this happen? Why was there no news at all before?!"

The manager of the overseas branch became even more panicked: "I...we didn't know about it before, and the supplier didn't notify us in advance..."

"What's the current situation at the factory? Is there any emergency plan?" Gu Jinyan suppressed his anger and tried to calm himself down.

"This..." The overseas branch manager's voice became smaller and smaller, as if he was deliberately avoiding Gu Jinyan's question. "I have contacted the local government department, and they said they will coordinate and resolve it as soon as possible..."

"Coordinate and resolve the issue? When will the coordination end? Do we have to wait until the factory stops production and closes down?!" Gu Jinyan couldn't help himself any longer and yelled into the phone.

He took a deep breath, tried to calm down, and said in a cold voice: "I will book a ticket now, you arrange someone to pick me up at the airport immediately, I want to handle it myself!"

After hanging up the phone, Gu Jinyan slammed the phone heavily on the table, making a dull sound. He never thought that at this critical moment, the overseas branch would also have problems, and judging from the tone of the manager, the situation seemed to be worse than that in China.

"What's wrong? Is there something wrong with the overseas branch?" Su Li noticed that something was wrong with Gu Jinyan and asked with concern.

Gu Jinyan nodded weakly and briefly explained the situation of the overseas branch. After listening to it, Su Li couldn't help but frowned. She knew that this crisis was more serious than they had imagined.

"Don't worry, we'll solve it together." Su Li held Gu Jinyan's hand and comforted him softly, "I believe we can get through this difficult time."

Gu Jinyan held Su Li's hand with his backhand. Her determination and support gave him great strength. He took a deep breath, and his eyes gradually became firm.

"Don't worry, I will definitely protect you and the Gu Group!"

……

At the same time, the atmosphere at the Gu Group's branch office far overseas was far less tense than at the domestic headquarters.

"Manager, do we really have to do what Mr. Gu said? The conditions proposed by those suppliers..." the assistant asked cautiously.

The manager of the overseas branch sat behind his desk, his face not panicked at all, but instead showed a sly smile: "What are you afraid of? Gu's Group is a big company, they won't care about this little loss, we just need to do what the suppliers ask, and then..."

He lowered his voice and whispered a few words into the assistant's ear. After the assistant heard it, a look of shock appeared on his face: "This... This is not good, right?"

"What's wrong with that? I want to get it back bit by bit, what the Gu Group owes me!" A trace of resentment flashed in the eyes of the overseas branch manager. "Don't worry, as long as we do it cleanly and neatly, President Gu won't suspect us."

In sharp contrast to overseas branches, employees at domestic factories, upon learning of the difficulties faced by the company, have spontaneously worked overtime in an attempt to alleviate the pressure of raw material shortages by improving production efficiency.

"Everyone, work harder! If we produce one more product, the company will suffer one less loss!"

"Mr. Gu and Ms. Su have worked so hard for the company. We can't let them down!"

Under the leadership of the human resources manager and local employee representatives, the entire factory is like a high-speed machine, and everyone is working hard for the future of the company.

Can all these efforts help the Gu Group overcome this difficulty?

"Prepare the private plane. I want to leave right away!" Gu Jinyan said firmly. Su Li stood beside him without hesitation, "I'll go with you."

Amid the roar of the private jet engine, Gu Jinyan and Su Li landed at a foreign airport, exhausted. As soon as he got off the plane, Gu Jinyan went straight to the negotiation location agreed with the supplier.

This was a tough tug-of-war. The supplier's representative was tough and raised the price by more than double. Gu Jinyan calmly dealt with him, analyzed the pros and cons, and appealed to his emotions and reason, but he still could not sway the other party at all.

"Mr. Gu, we understand your company's current situation, but in the business world, profit comes first. You also know that there are not many suppliers willing to take over now, and we are also taking risks..." The supplier representative's tone was neither salty nor bland, but it revealed an unquestionable determination.

The negotiations reached a deadlock, and Su Li's heart began to tighten. She knew that if the raw material problem could not be solved as soon as possible, the production line of the overseas branch would be paralyzed, and the reputation of the entire company would be severely damaged.

"Mr. Gu, please give us some time and we will give you an answer as soon as possible." Su Li said softly, pulling Gu Jinyan aside.

"What else is there to discuss? They are clearly taking advantage of the situation!" Gu Jinyan frowned, his tone filled with suppressed anger.

"I know, but now is not the time to act on impulse." Su Li held Gu Jinyan's hand, her palm warm and firm, "Behind this supplier, there is a larger multinational group. We can start with them."

Su Li's idea is to persuade this multinational group to put pressure on suppliers to resume supplying Gu Group. This is a risky move, but it is also the only hope.

After Su Li's efforts, they finally contacted the head of the multinational group. After a heated debate, Su Li used the reputation of Gu's Group and the prospect of future cooperation as bargaining chips, and finally moved the other party. With the intervention of the multinational group, the supplier's attitude finally softened and agreed to temporarily increase the supply of some raw materials.

When the news came, Gu Jinyan and Su Li both breathed a sigh of relief, but they knew in their hearts that this was only a temporary relief of the crisis and greater challenges were still to come.

Back home, Gu's Group's capital chain problems became increasingly prominent. The bank's loan approval was delayed, and the supplier's payment terms were getting shorter and shorter. The company's cash flow was already at risk.

"Layoffs..." Gu Jinyan's voice was low and hoarse, as if it was squeezed out from the depths of his throat.

Su Li understood what this meant. Layoffs meant that many employees would lose their jobs and their livelihoods. However, in the face of the cruel reality, they seemed to have no choice.

"Knock, knock, knock..." There was a gentle knock on the office door, and the HR manager walked in with a document in his hand. "Boss Gu, this is..."

He hesitated to speak, with obvious anxiety and hesitation on his face. Gu Jinyan took the document, opened it, and his face instantly became more gloomy.

"I understand. You can leave first." He waved his hand, signaling the HR manager to leave.

Su Li's heart sank suddenly, and an ominous premonition came to her mind, "What's wrong? What happened?"

Gu Jinyan didn't say anything, but handed the document to Su Li. Su Li took the document, glanced through it quickly, and her face turned pale.

"How could this happen..." She muttered to herself, and the document slipped from her hands and fell to the ground.

Gu Jinyan bent down to pick up the document and held it tightly in his hand, his knuckles turning white from excessive force. His eyes fell on the window, and the tall buildings in the distance looked particularly cold in the afterglow of the setting sun.

"It seems that we still underestimated our opponents..." he whispered, with a hint of bitterness and helplessness in his tone.

The office was completely silent, with only the ticking sound of the clock on the wall, as if reminding them that time was passing by, and they had no way to retreat...

Su Li picked up the document on the ground, and her heart trembled at its contents. This document was not a layoff plan, but... a joint letter from employees requesting Gu Group to resolve the crisis as soon as possible. They were willing to accept a pay cut, or even work without pay, just to keep this hard-earned job.

"How could they..." Su Li's eyes were red. Many of these employees were old employees of the company. They had dedicated their youth and sweat to Gu's, but now they had to face such a dilemma.

Gu Jinyan gently put his arm around Su Li's shoulders, his voice low and firm, "This is their choice, we must respect their choice."

He knew that this crisis was no longer just a problem in the company's operations, but also a test of people's hearts.

The news spread quickly, and the company was filled with tension and anxiety. Employees gathered in groups of three or five, whispering about the company's future, their faces full of worry and confusion.

“I heard that the bank rejected our loan application?”

"The supplier is also asking for payment, what should I do?"

“Are we really going to lose our jobs?”

All kinds of rumors spread within the company, like a virus, eroding everyone's heart.

Gu Jinyan and Su Li understood that they had to make a decision as soon as possible, otherwise, what awaited them would be an abyss of no return.

Late at night, Gu Jinyan's study was still brightly lit. He sat at his desk, flipping through the company's recent financial statements, his brows furrowed, and the pen in his hand left traces of varying depths on the paper.

Su Li came in with a cup of hot milk and gently placed it on the table. "Haven't you rested yet? There will always be a way to solve the problem. Don't work too hard."

Gu Jinyan raised his head and looked at Su Li's tired face, his heart filled with guilt and heartache. This sudden crisis also put Su Li under tremendous pressure.

"I'm fine, but..." He hesitated to speak. Countless thoughts flashed through his mind, but he still couldn't find a way out of the dilemma.

"Just what?" Su Li asked. She knew that Gu Jinyan must be hiding something from her.

Gu Jinyan was silent for a moment, and finally decided to tell Su Li the truth, "I plan to... sell the overseas branch."

"What?!" Su Li exclaimed. The overseas branch is the Gu Group's hard work over the years and is also the top priority for future development. How can it be sold so easily?

"I know this is hard to accept, but this is the only option at the moment." Gu Jinyan's tone was filled with helplessness and bitterness, "Only in this way can we raise enough funds to solve the company's urgent needs."

Su Li understood that what Gu Jinyan said was right, but her heart was still filled with reluctance and worry.

"Really... is there no other way?" Su Li's voice trembled a little. She was unwilling to give up like this, and she couldn't bear to see Gu Jinyan's years of hard work go to waste.

Gu Jinyan was about to speak when he was interrupted by a hurried knock on the door. "Mr. Gu, Ms. Su, there is a man who claims to be Mr. Wang from the Lin Group and wants to see you."

Lin Group? Su Li and Gu Jinyan looked at each other, with a hint of doubt in their eyes. Could it be...