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

In the early morning of City A, the sun shines through the glass curtain walls of high-rise buildings, casting mottled light and shadows. In front of Huaya Bank, a black Maybach slowly stops. Gu Jinyan gets out first, walks around to the other side, and opens the door for Su Li.

Su Li was wearing a neat black business suit today, with her hair tied up high. Her delicate makeup could not hide the fatigue between her brows. But she still straightened her back and walked into the bank side by side with Gu Jinyan, with firmness and confidence in every step.

However, reality gave them a blow. After a detailed data review and risk assessment, the bank's credit manager regretfully informed them that the loan application could not be approved due to the recent decline in Gu's Group's credit rating.

"We understand your company's difficulties, but banks also have to be responsible for depositors..." Before the credit manager finished speaking, he was interrupted by Gu Jinyan calmly: "We will improve the company's financial situation as soon as possible, thank you."

Walking out of the bank, Su Li squinted her eyes slightly in the dazzling sunlight. Gu Jinyan held her hand, and the warmth of his palm gave her a hint of strength. "Don't worry, we have other ways."

In the following week, they visited several investment institutions non-stop, trying to seek private investment. However, the industry giants seemed to have anticipated their actions and released news in advance, deliberately discrediting Gu's Group's transformation plan. For a time, investors took a wait-and-see attitude towards the prospects of Gu's company, and several companies that were originally interested also backed out.

With a bang, Gu Jinyan slammed a document on the desk, his face livid. Su Li knew that this was the last investment letter of intent that their hopes had failed to come true. The office was dead silent, and only the sound of the clock on the wall could be heard, as if it was ringing the final alarm bell...

"Boss Gu, Boss Su, the CFO is here." The secretary's voice broke the silence. The CFO walked into the office with a serious look on his face, holding a document in his hand. "I have a plan that may solve the current financial difficulties..." The CFO pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and said in a heavy tone, "The current working capital on the company's books is only enough to last for one month. I suggest launching an emergency plan to cut costs across the board."

He unfolded the document in his hand and pointed at the data on it and analyzed it one by one: "First, cutting 15% of non-core department employees can save..."

"No!" Gu Jinyan stood up suddenly and interrupted him, "Layoffs are the worst option. I will never agree to it unless it is a last resort!"

Su Li also nodded in agreement: "Layoffs will seriously undermine employee morale and affect the stability of the company. Besides..."

"There is also R&D investment," the CFO said with difficulty. "The R&D expenses for new projects are like a bottomless pit. I suggest suspending part of it..."

"Even worse!" This time, before Gu Jinyan could speak, the technical expert stood up excitedly, "The new project is the key to the company's transformation. Suspending research and development is equivalent to cutting off our own retreat!"

The atmosphere in the conference room suddenly became tense, and everyone frowned, realizing that the company was on the edge of a cliff.

At this moment, the technical expert's cell phone on the table suddenly rang. He answered the call and his face turned pale instantly.

"What did you say?!" The technical expert stood up suddenly, his tone full of disbelief, "Our core technology... is infringing?!"

This sentence was like thunder, exploding in the conference room, and everyone's eyes were focused on him. The technical expert took a deep breath and said in a trembling voice: "I just received a lawyer's letter. A technology company sued us for infringing their patent rights and demanded a huge amount of compensation..."

Before he finished speaking, the door of the conference room was pushed open again, and a market analyst rushed in with a panicked look on his face, saying in a hurried tone: "Mr. Gu, it's bad. Our competitors suddenly announced a price cut, and our market share is being rapidly eroded..."

The successive blows made Gu Jinyan and Su Li feel unprecedented pressure. They seemed to be a small boat in a storm, and could be swallowed by the huge waves at any time.

Gu Jinyan took a deep breath and tried to keep himself calm. He looked at Su Li and said firmly: "We..."

"We must raise funds as soon as possible," Gu Jin said in a steady tone, but he could not hide the fatigue in his eyes, "otherwise the company will not last more than a month."

Su Li clenched her hands tightly, trying to control her inner anxiety. She understood that what Gu Jinyan said was true, and the most urgent task was to find a way to solve the financial difficulties.

"How about selling some of the company's assets?" Su Li suggested, "We can consider selling some non-core subsidiaries to recover some funds."

Gu Jinyan pondered for a moment and nodded, "That's a solution. I'll ask the finance department to evaluate which subsidiaries can be sold."

However, things were much worse than they imagined. Market analysts' reports showed that the marketing effect of the emerging business was not ideal, and Gujia's new products were almost unpopular in the market.

"How could this happen?" Su Li looked at the data in the report with a frown on her face. "We did so much market research in the early stages and invested a lot of publicity resources. Why..."

"The market is changing rapidly, and we still underestimated the strength of our competitors." Gu Jinyan said in a low voice. He understood that this meant that the company's transformation plan had suffered a major setback.

The continuous bad news weighed on Su Li and Gu Jinyan's hearts like a huge rock, making them breathless. The pressure within the company was increasing, and shareholders were asking Gu Jinyan to come up with a solution. The employees were also panicking, worried that the company would go bankrupt.

"Mr. Gu, what should we do now?" The CFO's voice was trembling. The company's financial situation was on the verge of collapse.

Gu Jinyan remained silent, he clenched his fists, his eyes were firm and resolute. He knew that he could not fall down, he was the helmsman of Gu's company, he had to lead the company through the difficulties.

"Notify all executives to hold an emergency meeting at 8 p.m." Gu Jinyan's voice was deep and powerful. "We must prepare for the worst."

As night fell, the lights in the top floor conference room of the Gu Family Company Building were on. Gu Jinyan and Su Li stood side by side in front of the French window, overlooking the bustling city night scene outside the window. The tall buildings in the distance were brightly lit, as if laughing at their predicament.

"Are we really going to that step?" Su Li's voice trembled a little. She knew what Gu Jinyan meant by "worst case scenario".

Gu Jinyan did not answer, but held her hand tightly. They all knew that in order to save the Gu family company, they had no choice.

The night wind blew, bringing a hint of coolness and blowing away the noise of the city. Su Li and Gu Jinyan stood on the rooftop of the company building, looking at the bustling city night scene, their hearts filled with despair and helplessness. There was a constant stream of traffic and interweaving of lights and shadows, just like their state of mind at the moment, confused and at a loss.

"Are you really going to give up?" Su Li's voice was very soft, so soft that it seemed like it could be blown away by a gust of wind. She knew how much pressure Gu Jinyan was under, and she also knew what "worst case scenario" meant. It was not just giving up the company, but also giving up Gu Jinyan's dream and hard work.

Gu Jinyan didn't say anything, but held Su Li's hand tighter, as if to pass all his strength to her. His deep eyes reflected the neon lights of the city, but he could not see a trace of light, only a heavy feeling that could not be dissolved.

"Actually, there is another person who may be able to help us." Su Li's voice trembled slightly, as if he had grasped the last straw.

"Who?" Gu Jinyan turned his head suddenly, a glimmer of hope burning in his eyes.

Su Li took a deep breath and slowly uttered a name: "Lu Jingchen."

Lu Jingchen, a new upstart in the financial world, is low-key but ruthless. He has built his own business empire in just a few years. More importantly, he is Gu Jinyan's long-time friend and Su Li's...brother.

Hearing this name, Gu Jinyan's face instantly darkened. He knew the relationship between Su Li and Lu Jingchen, and also knew that Lu Jingchen had extraordinary feelings for Su Li. He never wanted to speak to Lu Jingchen unless it was absolutely necessary.

"Lili, are you sure?" Gu Jinyan's voice was low and hoarse, with a barely perceptible hint of bitterness.

Su Li understood Gu Jinyan's concerns, but she also knew that now was not the time to worry about these things. The company was in danger and they had no way out.

"I will convince him." Su Li's eyes were firm and resolute, as if she had made some important decision.

The next morning, Su Li came to Lu Jingchen's company alone. Standing in front of the magnificent building, she took a deep breath and called Lu Jingchen...

"Lili?" Lu Jingchen's voice on the other end of the phone was filled with a hint of surprise and joy.

"Brother, I need your help..."

At the same time, a technical expert from Gu's R&D department was packing up the things on his desk. His eyes were full of struggle and reluctance, but he finally picked up a document and put it in his briefcase. In the corner of the document bag, there was a gold-plated logo, which was Gu's strongest competitor - "Shengshi Group".

He took one last look at the familiar office, picked up his briefcase, and left without looking back...