Chapter 119: Take the opportunity to fleece this batch of suckers
Recently, due to the market turmoil triggered by fluctuations in global oil prices, stock market trading volume had dropped significantly, and investors generally adopted a cautious attitude, reluctant to make moves.
However, when an investment opportunity touted as “guaranteed profit with no risk” quietly appeared, people’s vigilance instantly collapsed, and they threw themselves into it without hesitation.
Little did they expect that this seemingly foolproof opportunity was actually a huge trap.
After obtaining the necessary materials, TVB reporters and reporters from Oriental Daily left the Securities Commission office building in high spirits.
That evening, taking advantage of the buzz, TVB quickly aired the edited footage during its news broadcast.
Although the segment was short, it was concise and covered all the key points.
For example, it included a detailed interview with Lin Haoran, as well as an interview with the Securities Commission chairman, Max.
Only then did everyone finally learn who had orchestrated this farce.
For a time, the names of five British men were thrust into the spotlight, becoming the targets of furious condemnation from investors. Their actions sparked widespread anger and dissatisfaction.
“Eat shit, you damn foreign devil!”
“You’re helping those foreign bastards? May your whole family be cursed!”
“Foreign devil, damn you! I’ll smash your mouth!”
“You bastard! If I ever see you, I’ll break your legs!”
...
The sounds of angry curses echoed throughout every corner of Hong Kong.
The next morning, with the publication of Oriental Daily, investors were finally able to get the most detailed explanation of the incident.
Compared with fleeting television reports, newspapers had the advantage of detailed content that could be reread, accompanied by photos and illustrations.
Lin Haoran’s share transfer contract was displayed prominently, clearly revealing the high cost behind his acquisition and the helplessness that forced him to sell part of his holdings. With both documents and images, it was highly convincing.
At the same time, the whistleblower letter disclosed by the Securities Commission X chairman was also published, completely exposing the true masterminds behind the turmoil and giving the public a much clearer understanding of the entire affair.
Everyone now knew they had misunderstood Lin Haoran. The incident was not his fault at all.
It was all because of those damned foreign devils.
Discussions filled the streets and alleys of Hong Kong.
The stock exchange in particular was packed with investors who had fallen into the trap, all talking about the matter.
However, talking was useless. After all, they could hardly go after those foreigners, because the consequences were beyond what they could bear.
At this moment, both Lin Haoran and Securities Commission chairman Max breathed a sigh of relief, as neither wanted to become the target of public condemnation.
Moreover, Lin Haoran’s voluntary reduction of his shareholding left the Securities Commission with no reason to continue putting pressure on him.
After the stock exchange opened, the sell orders for Qingzhou Yingni not only failed to decrease but continued to increase.
As for trading volume, there was very little.
Those with substantial capital or large consortiums had no interest in a company that was already under someone else’s control. Even if they entered, they could not compete for control, so there was no point.
Furthermore, this was the early stage of the oil crisis, and everyone believed a bear market might be coming, making them even less willing to commit large sums of money.
Retail investors with modest means were even more afraid to buy, given the countless rumors circulating in the market.
Most of those rumors painted a bleak picture of Qingzhou Yingni’s future.
Buying under such circumstances was practically courting death.
As a result, Qingzhou Yingni’s stock found itself in an extremely awkward position.
Lin Haoran had already instructed Su Zhixue to keep a close watch on Qingzhou Yingni’s stock. If there were any large-scale purchases, he was to report them immediately.
Now that he controlled 49.9% of Qingzhou Yingni’s shares, he was not worried about losing control.
Still, if someone began accumulating a large number of shares, he would certainly have to pay attention.
At ten o’clock that morning, Lin Haoran appeared in Qingzhou Yingni’s conference room.
Besides him, there were five foreign shareholders and three Chinese shareholders.
All of them had their eyes fixed on Lin Haoran.
“Mr. Henry, I’m very curious. Why did you report me? I was perfectly fine holding those shares, but because of your report, I had no choice but to reduce my holdings, and I was even scolded by investors.
If I hadn’t happened to see Mr. Max’s interview in Oriental Daily, I would still be in the dark today, unaware that the people who reported me were the five of you. As far as I know, I’ve never had any grudge against any of you, so I truly can’t understand your actions.”
Before anyone else could speak, Lin Haoran launched the attack.
As he spoke, he raised the copy of Oriental Daily in his hand. Printed prominently on it was a photograph of the whistleblower letter, clearly bearing the signatures of all five British shareholders.
The five British shareholders looked at one another, seemingly searching for a suitable explanation.
But obviously, this was not easy to explain.
Just as Lin Haoran had said, he had never had any conflict with them. Their actions had been nothing more than picking a fight for no reason.
More importantly, they had never discussed the matter with him beforehand.
As for the three Chinese shareholders, they secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, they had not participated. They had only learned about the matter after the five British shareholders approached them.
“Mr. Lin, please allow us to express our apologies. Our reason for taking this action was that we hoped to promote the privatization of Qingzhou Yingni.
Since you held a large number of the company’s shares, we mistakenly assumed you shared the same intention. We hoped this move would encourage you to consider purchasing our shares so that we could achieve that goal together.”
In the end, it was Mr. Henry who stepped forward to explain their motives.
However, the explanation sounded weak and unconvincing.
In truth, Lin Haoran had never intended to dwell on the issue. Bringing it up was merely a way to put them on the back foot.
“Very well, I won’t pursue that matter any further. Mr. Henry, and everyone here, may I ask why you called this meeting?” Lin Haoran asked bluntly.
“Mr. Lin, I saw in the newspaper that you intend to privatize Qingzhou Yingni in the future. That’s perfect. If you’re willing, we can sell all our shares to you,” one Chinese shareholder said.
“Mr. Lin, if you succeed, you’ll not only make history as the first Chinese entrepreneur to privatize a British-funded listed company, but you’ll also leave a remarkable mark on Hong Kong’s business world and become famous,” another Chinese shareholder said with a smile.
Mr. Henry followed up by expressing his full support.
“After discussing it, we unanimously agreed that if Mr. Lin is willing, we will support you without reservation. Every shareholder present here will stand firmly behind you.”
“That’s right. With the stock price so low now, this is the best possible opportunity to privatize the company. If you miss it, the cost of privatizing Qingzhou Yingni in the future could be much higher,” another British shareholder added.
“Controlling 100% of the shares means you’ll enjoy all of the company’s dividends without having to share profits with other shareholders. Given Qingzhou Yingni’s potential and future prospects, this is undoubtedly an extremely worthwhile investment. The benefits of privatization will be numerous and difficult to measure,” said a Chinese shareholder seated at the far end of the table.
...
The eight shareholders took turns trying to persuade Lin Haoran, as though they were administering a carefully prepared potion designed to cloud his judgment.
After wave upon wave of persuasion, Lin Haoran finally realized that the true purpose of the meeting was not to discuss the company’s future, but that these shareholders were eager to unload their shares onto him.
That suited him perfectly, because he had already been thinking about how to acquire those shares at an even lower price.
Now the shareholders had come to him of their own accord. It was simply a heaven-sent opportunity!
“Heaven is really helping me,” Lin Haoran thought to himself. “These shareholders are clearly desperate to get out. Since that’s the case, why not take this chance to fleece this batch of suckers?”
“Everyone, you’ve probably all seen the news. I already told the reporters the truth. Right now, I simply don’t have the financial strength to privatize Qingzhou Yingni. Privatizing the company would require me to come up with over a hundred million dollars.
So for now, I’ll just remain the controlling shareholder. I believe that with my business acumen, Qingzhou Yingni will earn a great deal of money in the future. Once I’ve accumulated enough capital, I’ll privatize the company then,” Lin Haoran said helplessly.
Of course, he had no intention of agreeing so easily.
“But if Qingzhou Yingni’s annual profits become very high in the future, its share price will also soar. At that point, privatizing the company will become extremely difficult.
Don’t you already have a considerable amount of capital? It would be easy for you to buy all the shares held by everyone here.
Once you’ve acquired our shares, you can announce the privatization. Without us shareholders standing in your way, the process will become much easier.
Besides, after buying our shares, acquiring the remaining shares on the market won’t be difficult either. You can finance it through loans. Given your capabilities, Mr. Lin, and Qingzhou Yingni’s potential, I believe the company’s profits will repay those loans in no time,” Henry continued temptingly.
“That does sound like a good proposal,” Lin Haoran nodded slightly, as though he had truly been persuaded.
He looked around at the shareholders. Smiles had appeared on every face, clearly pleased with his reaction.
“So then, what price are you hoping for regarding your shares?” Lin Haoran deliberately threw the question back to them, though he had already made up his mind.
Everyone looked at one another with smiles. Once he was interested, everything would be easy.
Henry smiled and said, “Mr. Lin, we’ve already discussed this together. We believe that HK$5 per share is a fair and reasonable price. Together, everyone present holds 24.1% of the company’s total shares, and we’re all willing to transfer them to you at that price.”
Deep down, they hoped to sell at HK$6 per share or even higher, but reason told them such expectations were unrealistic under current market conditions.
After weighing everything carefully, they concluded that selling at HK$5 per share would already be an excellent outcome.
After all, as shareholders of Qingzhou Yingni, their original acquisition costs had not been high. Being able to cash out at this price would already yield substantial profits.
However, there was no way Lin Haoran would let them have their wish.
He was determined to fleece this batch of suckers.
(End of Chapter)
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