Chapter 53: Tell Them to Have Mr. Pao Come in Person!
"I've heard about the matter. Let me think it over first before you reply to them," Lin Haoran said with a smile to Su Zhixue.
He had no intention of responding the moment the other side made its move. In his opinion, they should be the anxious party—not him.
"Understood, Mr. Lin. I'll get back to my other work then."
Su Zhixue nodded, then left the office.
With less than ten minutes remaining before the stock market opened, he also needed to prepare for the day's trading.
Ever since they had stopped accumulating Wharf Holdings shares, Lin Haoran's workload had become noticeably lighter.
Most of the time, he could now relax in his office reading books and enjoying the rare peace and quiet. Su Zhixue would periodically come in to update him on the market.
If any emergency arose, his employees would notify him immediately so he could respond without delay.
Today's stock market remained dominated by Wharf Holdings.
After two straight days of extensive media coverage and speculation over the weekend, the company's shares continued to be the hottest topic in the market.
At the opening bell, Wharf Holdings shares held firmly at HK$71 per share.
As trading progressed, enthusiastic investors piled in, encouraged by the media frenzy, while Pao Yue-kong's camp and the Jardine Matheson team continued their fierce bidding war.
By midday, before the lunch break, the stock price had surged to around HK$79 per share, with trading volume remaining exceptionally high and market sentiment reaching a fever pitch.
However, excessive excitement also brought chaos.
Countless retail investors, swept up in the frenzy, rushed to buy at ever-higher prices. Ironically, this speculative buying made it more difficult for both Pao Yue-kong's group and Jardine Matheson's team to continue accumulating shares.
The market generally expected Wharf Holdings to break through the HK$80 mark that day.
Unfortunately, that expectation never materialized.
After the afternoon session began, momentum behind the high-priced buy orders weakened.
At some point, Pao Yue-kong's group and Jardine Matheson appeared to reach an unspoken understanding, both simultaneously refusing to purchase shares offered above HK$75.
The effect on the market was immediate.
Wharf Holdings' share price quickly retreated before stabilizing at roughly HK$75 per share, disappointing many investors.
When the stock had climbed to its intraday high of HK$79, Lin Haoran briefly considered selling part of his holdings to lock in profits.
However, after a rational analysis, he quickly dismissed the idea.
Selling a small portion at HK$79 instead of around HK$70 would increase his profits, but not by a particularly meaningful amount.
More importantly, preserving his 1.4% stake was crucial to maintaining a strong bargaining position during future negotiations.
For that reason, Lin Haoran ultimately gave up the opportunity for short-term profit and chose to continue holding the shares.
Throughout the day, trading in Wharf Holdings remained as lively and active as it had been all of the previous week, making it the undisputed center of attention in Hong Kong's stock market.
In contrast, Qingzhou Yingni was remarkably quiet.
With both major camps trading cautiously, its share price barely moved and remained almost exactly where it had closed the previous week.
Today's trading volume was nearly identical to last Friday's.
Clearly, the market still had no idea that two powerful financial groups were quietly accumulating the stock behind the scenes.
One noteworthy development was the excellent performance of Su Zhixue's team.
Working together, the four-member team successfully accumulated 386,000 shares of Qingzhou Yingni today alone, accounting for roughly half of the stock's total trading volume.
That meant that, aside from ordinary retail investors, the contest between Lin Haoran's team and Li Ka-shing's team was essentially evenly matched, maintaining a delicate balance.
This was undoubtedly good news.
At the very least, it significantly slowed Li Ka-shing's pace of accumulation.
Based on the day's trading, however, Lin Haoran arrived at a new theory.
Perhaps Li Ka-shing had not devoted many personnel to trading Qingzhou Yingni for the time being.
Otherwise, given the experience and strength of Li Ka-shing's team, it would have been nearly impossible for Su Zhixue's group to seize half of the day's trading volume in such a short period.
The possibility suggested that Li Ka-shing's commitment to Qingzhou Yingni in this world might not be as intensive or aggressive as it had been in the world Lin Haoran remembered.
That realization provided him with valuable insight for adjusting his future strategies.
Lin Haoran quietly speculated that because he had begun planning more than a month in advance, he had already purchased a large quantity of Qingzhou Yingni shares from retail investors.
As the freely circulating shares gradually decreased, the number of sell orders naturally declined as well.
Faced with this situation, Li Ka-shing's team had likely realized that increasing their holdings rapidly without driving up acquisition costs had become virtually impossible.
The only remaining option was a prolonged battle.
As a result, they may have adjusted their strategy, temporarily reducing manpower devoted to Qingzhou Yingni while redirecting their traders toward other investment opportunities.
Of course, Lin Haoran knew these were merely educated guesses based on the information currently available.
Li Ka-shing was one of the giants of the business world.
The considerations behind his decisions were undoubtedly far more complicated than outsiders could easily comprehend.
Therefore, the only thing Lin Haoran could do was remain vigilant, closely monitor market developments, and be ready to adjust his plans whenever circumstances changed.
At the same time, he was determined to resolve the Wharf Holdings issue within the week.
His hope was to leverage Pao Yue-kong's influence to persuade Li Ka-shing to abandon his pursuit of Qingzhou Yingni.
If successful, it would eliminate his greatest concern once and for all.
After the stock market closed, Lin Haoran reviewed the day's trading reports that Su Zhixue had just submitted.
Time quietly passed until around 4:30 p.m., when Su Zhixue once again entered his office, looking noticeably urgent.
"Mr. Lin, the person in charge at the stock exchange called again because we still haven't given them an answer," Su Zhixue reported briskly.
"They're hoping we'll provide a clear response as soon as possible. They also mentioned that the Pao family is open regarding the selling price and is willing to negotiate further."
Hearing this, a satisfied smile spread across Lin Haoran's face.
The repeated reminders clearly revealed just how anxious and eager the Pao family had become.
They had obviously identified Lin Haoran and his team as a major source of shares—a truly valuable 'big fish' they had no intention of letting escape.
"Excellent," Lin Haoran said softly, his eyes gleaming with calculation.
"The Pao family's urgency has come at exactly the right time."
He paused before giving his instructions.
"Reply to the person in charge over there. Tell them to give you the Pao family's contact information."
"Then call the Bao family..."
"...and tell them that Mr. Pao Yue-kong must come personally if he wants to negotiate."
At this point, Lin Haoran realized there was no reason to continue delaying.
It was time to settle both the Wharf Holdings matter and the Qingzhou Yingni issue in one decisive move, clearing away the obstacles standing in his path.
Su Zhixue immediately nodded.
"I understand."
Without another word, he turned and left the office to carry out Lin Haoran's instructions.
(End of Chapter)
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