Chapter 531: The Pillar of Shame in the Capital World

"I...I'm speechless..."
Qin Han, Chairman of Jiangjin Group, and a group of executives stared wide-eyed at the plummeting stock price chart on the screen, their jaws agape, as if they'd seen a ghost.
"Are my eyes playing tricks on me? What the hell is this? Is there a data error?"
"Reporting to the Chairman, it's absolutely true. What you're seeing now is the real-time stock price of 'Fruit' Company."
The secretary's voice was barely audible, yet it struck everyone like a hammer blow.
Fruit!
That's Fruit!
The tech behemoth that ruled the world with its bite-bitten fruit icon!
The symbol that defined the smartphone, the one that drove countless believers to queue at 3 AM for pilgrimage!
With this unparalleled dominance, Fruit's stock price has skyrocketed over the years, defying even the atmosphere.
As the face of North American technology, its market capitalization ranks among the top in the world, reaching a staggering figure—three trillion US dollars!
"What a joke! How could such a behemoth's stock price be smashed like this?"
However, the facts are undeniable.
That once-mighty tech dragon has now had its spine broken, plummeting from the clouds, leaving it mangled and battered beyond recognition!
Admittedly, Apple's performance this year has been slightly weaker than last year, compounded by several inexplicable incidents in global shipping, and the repeated postponements of new product launches.
But so what? It's Apple!
Even if it were just stagnant, countless analysts would call it "accumulating strength during consolidation, poised to reach new heights."
But now, everyone's jaws have been shattered.
Fruit, the embodiment of an invincible myth, is being brutally humiliated and ground into the ground.
"Just...just because of that association?"
Qin Han muttered to himself, his gaze fixed blankly on another name on the screen—the "ESG Association," a subsidiary of Fang Huan Investment.
That association, concocted by Su Hao, had chosen Fruit, the fattest pig, as its first sacrificial lamb!
Judging by this, the ESG Association had practically brought out its ancestral Italian cannon, determined to destroy Fruit!
They mobilized thousands of people, like locusts swarming across the globe, spending weeks thoroughly searching Fruit's factories worldwide.
Finally, they released an assessment report that could be described as a "death sentence," giving Fruit an unprecedentedly low score.
In the report, they used the most scathing and cutting language to criticize Fruit from head to toe.
They vehemently criticized the fruit industry for its unchecked growth, treating consumer rights and the health of Mother Earth like disposable toilet paper—a disgrace to the financial world!
"But...but these kinds of assessment agencies that criticize fruit have existed before, haven't they? It's like scratching an itch, utterly useless!"
"Yes, Chairman, those agencies are like madmen shouting themselves hoarse in the square; they could shout for a hundred years and no one would listen," an executive explained.
"But this ESG association is on a completely different level! It's backed by Fanghuan Investment and Su Hao!
Every report they release, every single word, can be broadcast globally through Fanghuan's media matrix in a saturated, all-encompassing manner, instantly igniting nationwide public opinion!
Things like 'Picpic,' 'FaceWeb,' and they even went so far as to make a documentary, which is reportedly about to be released globally on Netflix!"
This is the real killer move.
A dimensional reduction attack!
No matter how insightful and eloquent a report is, if no one reads it, it's just a pile of waste paper.
Fanghuan Investment clearly understands this perfectly.
They directly injected the ESG association's report into every capillary of the internet like a virus!
They want netizens worldwide to see every word of Apple's "crimes," turning this trial into a nationwide spectacle.
And the consequence of this spectacle is sacrifice!
"The final result... is the stock price we see now."
The destructive power of the ESG Association's new weapon far exceeded everyone's imagination.
When Qin Han first heard that Fang Huan wanted to use this thing to target Apple, he was skeptical, thinking it was a pipe dream.
What a joke!
Trying to take down Apple with a single report?
That's like trying to poke an aircraft carrier with a toothpick!
But reality slapped him hard in the face.
The power of the media, or rather, the torrent of public opinion manipulated by capital, was terrifyingly powerful!
Apple, once hailed as the "Pride of North America," is now being shaped into the "Shame of North America" ​​at a visible speed!
It's as if overnight, it went from a national hero to a pariah.
"No wonder...no wonder Su Hao went to so much trouble to set up this association!"
"Yes, Chairman. To boost the association's reputation and establish its legitimacy, their first target was their own people—
those Chinese companies investing in Guyana! That was a brilliant move!"
Indeed, before unleashing their weapons on the fruit, the ESG Association first targeted its own people in Guyana, conducting a "live-fire exercise."
At the time, those Chinese companies that had invested heavily in Guyana were full of complaints, spouting scathing remarks.
Because the ESG Association's evaluation standards were outrageously stringent.
To meet the standards, companies had to invest astronomical sums in renovations—it was like being ripped out of their own flesh.
But dared they disobey?
That was Fang Huan Investment's "edict"!
The development rights in Guyana were granted with their approval; now that they were coming to "inspect the hygiene," could they dare say "no"?
So, a group of bigwigs could only swallow their anger, cursing and weeping as they rebuilt everything from the working environment to the surrounding infrastructure according to ESG standards, spending money to completely redo everything.
"Hiss... Such divine power, who dares disobey?" Qin Han gasped.
Now he completely understood how malicious Su Hao's intentions were in using fruit as the first sacrifice!
He wanted to make an example of someone—no, to make an example of someone powerful!
He wanted to declare to the world:
"See that? I can blast through even a steel fortress like Apple with a single shot. You little shrimps, do you want to be crushed to dust or kneel down and sing 'Conquer'? The choice is yours!"
The effect was nothing short of earth-shattering.
The dismal stock price of Apple on the screen was the loudest medal of honor!
"The problem now is... Fang Huan Investment... Su Hao, what exactly is he trying to do?" an executive said worriedly.
"You mean, we can't see where his ultimate goal is?"
"Yes. Does he want to completely destroy Apple, or just give it a little push, tighten its skin?
The current situation is completely unpredictable!"
If you were to ask who in the world least wants Apple to go bankrupt, Jiang Jin Group would definitely be in the top three.
On the surface, Jiang Jin and Apple are locked in a fierce battle in the mobile phone industry, mortal enemies.
But in reality, these two companies have a strange symbiotic relationship, like conjoined twins, neither can live without the other.