When Jide opened the glass door of the top-floor office of Global Tax Policy, the CBD was still immersed in lavender mist at three in the morning. There were three unfinished reports spread out on his desk. The top one was marked "Transcontinental Energy Group Structural Reorganization Tax Risk Assessment V7.3". The corners were repeatedly folded and flattened by him, leaving a few light marks.
"Mr. Ji, supplementary data has just been sent from Xingzhou. The royalty payment path of the Southeast Asia branch last year is slightly different from what we verified last week." Assistant Lin Ye's voice came from the intercom, hoarse after staying up late. "The Legal Department said that if this part is classified as an 'unreasonable related transaction,' the group may have to pay an anti-avoidance increase of nearly 20 million euros."
Jide pinched his eyebrows and ran his fingertips across the "Permanent Establishment Judgment Disputes" circled in red pen in the report. He stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window. The light strip of traffic downstairs was like a crushed galaxy, reflecting a cold light in his eyes - the Xingzhou project was the one he had been eyeing for half a year. The client was an old European energy giant. Relying on the nested structure of more than 30 shell companies, he always wanted to make a fuss about royalties and move profits to low-tax areas.
