Chapter Three: The Cheapest Entrance

At midnight, a blank line appeared on the second bill. Lin did not write immediately. “The cheapest entrance” might mean Mountain & Sea, or a distressed supplier. Each bill worked once. A wrong company would cost him a day. He called Su. “Lanting has a $4.8 million short-term loan due next week,” she said. “Cape City Bank holds it. The bank is small and selling distressed assets.” “Buying equity means negotiating with Gu. Buying his debt means negotiating with the bank.” “You finally sound like a finance dropout. But which company will you write?” Lin wrote the bank's legal name. PUBLIC MARKET VALUE: $62,000,000. TRUE EQUITY VALUE: $89,000,000. SPECIAL ASSET: SOUND SECURED DEBT, MISCLASSIFIED. DISCOUNTED SALE WINDOW: 36 HOURS.