Chapter 120: The Conditions for Reaching a Deal
“I'm sorry, but I'm completely uninterested in your proposal. As far as I'm concerned, HK$5 per share is far beyond my acceptable price. Before coming here, I already learned that the stock market is flooded with sell orders for Qingzhou Yingni shares. Many are listed below HK$4, and some are even at HK$3.5 or HK$3.4. If I wanted to buy, I'd purchase those shares first. There's no need for me to buy from you,” Lin Haoran said bluntly.
The market price is only a little over HK$3—what gives you the right to ask for HK$5?
Faced with Lin Haoran's direct rebuttal, the shareholders did not appear overly angry. They had long expected that price negotiations would not go smoothly.
“Then, Mr. Lin, what price do you consider reasonable?” Henry asked on behalf of the shareholders, preparing to adjust their strategy based on Lin Haoran's response.
“At the moment, there are more than one million Qingzhou Yingni shares listed for sale at HK$3.5 alone, and no one is buying them.
Given the current market conditions, I propose acquiring your shares at HK$3.5 per share. I think that's a very reasonable price.
Don't be so quick to get angry. Considering how sluggish the secondary market is, I believe you'll have a hard time finding any buyer besides me.
Of course, if you think this price is unacceptable, we can simply maintain the status quo and continue working together as colleagues to promote the development of Qingzhou Yingni,” Lin Haoran said, sounding as though he had no interest whatsoever in privatizing the company.
Then he changed the subject and began painting a grand vision for the company's future.
“I have great confidence in Qingzhou Yingni's future. Our cement products have been extremely well received by the market, and demand exceeds supply.
Therefore, over the next three years, I plan to invest twenty to thirty million Hong Kong dollars to build more cement plants. Just imagine it—from the New Territories to Yuen Long, then Tuen Mun, and Hong Kong Island, our cement factories will be everywhere.
This will not only greatly increase our production capacity and market share, but also bring unprecedented profit growth to the company. I've already asked General Manager Burton to prepare a detailed investment proposal, and once it's finished, I'll share this exciting plan with everyone.”
Such an absurdly naive investment plan would definitely disgust them.
The key point was that Lin Haoran's control over Qingzhou Yingni was now substantial. If he really adopted an aggressive strategy, those shareholders would have little ability to stop him.
Lin Haoran's thinking was simple: make them miserable and see whether they still wanted to remain shareholders of Qingzhou Yingni.
As soon as he said this, everyone was stunned and exchanged uneasy glances.
They guessed that Lin Haoran was probably just trying to intimidate them. No matter how foolish he was, he couldn't really keep building more and more cement plants. Everyone knew the market would eventually become saturated, and even if he wanted to do it, General Manager Burton would surely persuade him otherwise.
Even so, Lin Haoran's words still sent a chill through them, prompting them to think more seriously about selling their shares. After all, dancing with a controlling shareholder who might gamble with the company's future was simply too risky.
What's more, Lin Haoran wasn't wrong. On the secondary market, there were huge numbers of Qingzhou Yingni shares listed below HK$4, accounting for nearly half of all sell orders.
Even so, the shareholders were clearly unwilling to accept such a low price as HK$3.5 per share. The contest between the two sides had only just begun.
“Mr. Lin, we really can't accept the price you've proposed. How about we each take a step back and use HK$4.5 per share as the basis for the transaction? That's already a very sincere offer, even lower than your average acquisition cost earlier. We believe it's a win-win solution,” Henry sincerely proposed.
“In that case, let's put the discussion about privatization aside for now. Personally, I'm not enthusiastic about pushing for privatization immediately. Since I've already become chairman of Qingzhou Yingni, my priority should be improving the company's management rather than rushing to change its ownership structure. I believe steady development is the key.
Speaking of development, I actually have many ideas for Qingzhou Yingni's future. I'm sure these plans will inspire everyone. Although I haven't been coming to the company very often lately, I've already come up with several major development strategies. Give me some time, and I swear I'll turn Qingzhou Yingni into a benchmark enterprise in Hong Kong and even across the industry!” Lin Haoran passionately described the company's future.
His meaning was obvious—he had absolutely no interest in HK$4.5 per share.
At that moment, another British shareholder spoke up.
“Mr. Henry, I think HK$4 per share is more reasonable. The market is what it is—we have to be realistic.”
“Exactly. Although giving up another fifty cents means taking a bigger loss, in the long run, being able to sell our shares smoothly is what matters most.”
“I agree with Mr. Henry. HK$4.5 is already the greatest concession we can make.”
“That's right. It's obvious Mr. Lin isn't interested in HK$4.5. There's no point insisting. Our goal today is clear—we want to reach a deal both sides can accept.”
The shareholders all voiced their opinions, and the atmosphere in the conference room gradually became subtle and tense.
Lin Haoran watched coldly, clearly noticing that divisions had begun to emerge among them.
He remained calm and waited to see what would happen.
“Mr. Lin, we need a little time to discuss things among ourselves. Could you give us ten minutes?” Henry, the largest shareholder among them, politely requested.
“Of course. Please go ahead,” Lin Haoran replied calmly, already feeling that victory was within reach.
He already knew these shareholders were eager to sell their Qingzhou Yingni shares. As long as the price was right, reaching a deal was only a matter of time.
So he stood up, left the conference room, walked into the corridor, and eventually returned to his office.
Through the large glass window, he looked down at the bustling factory below.
Although the newly acquired and renovated cement plant on Luzon Island had effectively eased the pressure on the Hung Hom Cement Plant in supplying the Philippine market, the Hung Hom plant still bore the responsibility of supplying cement to Hong Kong and Macau, with daily demand remaining extremely high.
It was obvious that infrastructure was a very profitable business.
Ten minutes later, Lin Haoran calmly walked back into the conference room.
Everyone was very quiet now. It was obvious they had reached a unified decision.
“Mr. Lin, we've discussed it. We agree to HK$4 per share,” Henry announced on behalf of everyone.
“Uh, Mr. Henry, are you mistaken? I never said I would buy your shares at HK$4 per share,” Lin Haoran said, shaking his head.
Indeed, from beginning to end, he had never said he wanted to acquire their shares at HK$4. They had simply assumed he had accepted that price.
In reality, he did accept it. Mentioning HK$3.5 had merely been a bargaining tactic. HK$4 was actually his target price, and at that level, it was already an excellent deal.
But he had other conditions.
At HK$4 per share, these people would still suffer painful losses. Yesterday they had refused to sell at HK$5, yet today they were voluntarily offering them at HK$4.
Back then, former chairman Harold Centurion had been forced to sell his shares at this price in order to keep the old financial secrets hidden.
Now these people had actually dared to report him behind his back. This was Lin Haoran's way of getting even.
“If I can't even sell at HK$4, then I might as well keep my shares. I really want to get rid of them, but I still have my bottom line.”
“Exactly. HK$4 is already a very sincere price.”
They hadn't expected Lin Haoran to be so difficult.
Originally, they had thought he was just an arrogant young man. As long as everyone took turns persuading him, he would surely agree to the deal.
Instead, he toyed with them as if they were monkeys, refusing to budge no matter what they said.
Just as the atmosphere was about to reach a deadlock, Lin Haoran suddenly changed his tone.
“However, HK$4 per share isn't entirely out of the question. I do have enough funds to acquire all the shares held by everyone here.
But before that, I have one condition. As long as you agree to it, I'll buy every one of your shares at HK$4 per share.”
The moment he said this, hope returned to the shareholders' eyes, and they all turned to look at him.
“Mr. Lin, please tell us your condition. As long as it's within our ability, we'll do everything we can,” Henry said first, with the other shareholders nodding in agreement as they waited for him to continue.
“My condition is actually very simple. As you all know, during my previous media interview, I clearly stated that I currently do not have the capability to privatize Qingzhou Yingni.
Therefore, if I suddenly buy all of your shares now and launch a delisting and privatization process, it will undoubtedly attract outside suspicion. It could even be misunderstood as stock market manipulation, exposing me to legal risks involving false trading. That's absolutely not a situation I want to see,” Lin Haoran said frankly, explaining his concerns and conditions.
He continued, “Originally, this whole incident in the stock market wasn't caused by me. It was triggered by the report submitted by the five of you, which set off a chain reaction. Although I wasn't involved, I publicly stated that, due to funding limitations, I wasn't considering privatization for the time being. If I act now, it would obviously contradict my earlier statement and give regulators something to use against me.
So my condition is that you must help me resolve this potential public relations and legal problem. As long as you help me solve this issue, allowing the shares to be transferred smoothly while preventing unnecessary misunderstandings or accusations against me and the company, then I'm not opposed to moving forward with the company's privatization ahead of schedule.”
Lin Haoran's condition was simple: help me solve this problem so I can complete the transaction without worry, and then our deal can go through.
“Mr. Lin, I didn't expect you to be so cautious. We failed to consider this carefully. It really could cause you trouble. But don't worry—we can help you resolve it,” Henry said immediately.
This matter was indeed easy to solve—but Lin Haoran couldn't be the one to do it. It had to be handled collectively by these shareholders.
As long as there was evidence proving that Lin Haoran's sudden decision to pursue privatization again was entirely unexpected and caused by external factors, then it naturally couldn't be interpreted as market manipulation on his part.
(End of Chapter)
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