Alexander sat in his office, frowning as he mulled over the dilemma of working with Marching Ant Company. Now that the agreement with his family had taken effect, he was caught between two mounting pressures.
The first came from within the Roche family itself.
Many relatives had their eyes on the investment bank division and wouldn't lift a finger to help him. On the contrary, some might resort to underhanded tactics to sabotage him. Without cooperation from the other branches of the family, he couldn't easily access their companies' capital.
The second challenge came from the outside world.
His alliance with Marching Ant Company had drawn heavy resistance. Worse, their entire investment strategy had leaked—giving their competitors an early heads-up. Now, hostile forces were watching him like hawks.
With one misstep, he could lose everything.
Even if he managed to survive the siege from rival firms and continue business as usual, it was nearly impossible to increase the bank's profits by 25% in just a year and a half. Without that growth, he'd still be forced to step down.
So, he'd been forced to bet everything on a high-risk, high-reward strategy—Marching Ants.
That company was a miracle in itself, full of endless potential. If he could ride its rise, that 25% growth wasn't just a pipe dream—it was within reach.
But that didn't make it any easier to stomach the fact that his future now hinged on someone else.
When he first proposed a partnership, he'd known obstacles would come. But he'd believed he could overcome them. What he hadn't expected was for the bank's investment plan to leak so early. That had thrown everything into disarray.
Now that all his chips were on Marching Ant Company, his biggest worry was simple: would they even cooperate with him?
Zhao Min had once turned down their telecom partnership offer. If the next proposal wasn't tempting enough, she might refuse again—and if that happened, he was finished.
Just as he was mulling over next steps, his mobile assistant chimed.
"Sir, Zhao Min is calling."
Alexander's eyes lit up.
He smiled and quickly picked up the call.
"Mr. Alexander, hello. I hope I'm not disturbing your morning?" came Zhao Min's calm voice.
"Not at all, Miss Zhao," Alexander replied warmly. "I just finished breakfast and was heading to the company. In fact, I was thinking about how I might continue our collaboration."
"There's an opportunity now," Zhao Min said smoothly. "Our company is preparing to launch a new product. Would you be interested?"
"Yes—of course!" Alexander responded without hesitation, thrilled by the unexpected invitation.
He'd been racking his brain for a way to propose new cooperation—only for Zhao Min to call him first. It was a rare stroke of luck.
"I'll be flying to China today," Zhao Min continued. "We can meet tomorrow."
"I'm looking forward to it. Let's have dinner."
"One thing," Alexander asked quickly. "Could you give me a little information in advance? I'd like to prepare ahead of time."
"Pharmaceuticals," Zhao Min said, keeping it brief.
Alexander's eyes lit up.
The pharmaceutical and healthcare industry was famously lucrative—margins could reach 300% on certain products.
Major disease treatments, anesthetics, antibiotics, and even over-the-counter blockbusters like aspirin and Viagra were all dominated by massive global pharmaceutical firms.
Roche had long planned to break into the pharma space, but they had yet to find a promising entry point. The older pharmaceutical giants were well-established, and squeezing in was almost impossible.
Alexander had only ever associated Marching Ant Company with cutting-edge tech. He had no idea they were dabbling in medicine.
If the ants truly had a new pharmaceutical breakthrough, this could be the golden ticket—the exact breakthrough he needed to meet his profit targets.
"Miss Zhao… may I ask what kind of medicine?" he probed.
"You'll find out when you arrive," Zhao Min replied with a faint, mysterious smile in her voice. "You won't be disappointed."
"I can't wait," Alexander said sincerely. "See you tomorrow."
"See you."
As the call ended, Alexander stood up, energized.
"Boss, do you have any instructions?" his assistant asked as she entered, clipboard in hand.
"Reschedule everything this week. Book me a ticket to China today—as soon as possible."
"Yes, sir."
The assistant, Alice, didn't need to ask where or why. She'd seen Alexander's recent string of moves. It was obvious: he was betting everything on his alliance with Marching Ant Company.
Just as she was about to leave, Alexander stopped her.
"Alice—one more thing. Find out if Marching Ant Company owns any pharmaceutical firms. I want a report before I board. The more detail, the better. And keep it discreet—don't tell anyone what it's for."
"Understood," Alice nodded seriously.
After the last investment leak, Alexander was clearly being extra cautious. If word got out prematurely, it could trigger another wave of corporate attacks.
Alice immediately set to work.
As a global consulting and investment bank, Roche maintained a network of elite information firms. These agencies constantly monitored global markets for early signs of disruption and opportunity.
Just an hour later, Alice returned with a neatly compiled dossier and placed it on Alexander's desk.
"This is the information you requested, sir."
Alexander's eyes flickered with surprise as he flipped through the file.
"They do have a pharmaceutical company?"
It had never shown up in their public-facing materials. In his mind, Marching Ants had always been a pure tech company. He'd never even considered the possibility.
Until Zhao Min's call, he wouldn't have thought to look.
"Yes," Alice confirmed. "About a year ago, they acquired Lanhong Pharmaceutical and Jianghe Company, then merged and restructured them into Jianghe Pharmaceutical. It was the first wholly owned subsidiary under the newly formed Marching Ant Investment Group."
"There was some public coverage of the acquisitions," she continued, "but at the time, everyone's attention was on Marching Ant's battle with several mobile phone giants. The pharma buyout didn't cause much buzz."
"The two companies were quite ordinary—nothing remarkable before the acquisition. I checked their old records. Generic drug manufacturers, basic R&D, limited innovation. Their profiles were average at best."
Alexander absorbed this with growing interest.
So Marching Ants had quietly laid the groundwork for a pharmaceutical division a year ago—and no one had noticed. It was the first company to be folded into their investment group. That was no coincidence.
"Is the flight booked?" he asked, already eager to get moving.
"Yes. Departure is 1:30 PM this afternoon."