Chapter 123: Fully Independent, Complete Control
After Lin Haoran announced the privatization of Qingzhou Yingni Company, the news stayed hot for several days before gradually fading from public attention.
By January, very few people were still paying attention to Qingzhou Yingni.
Seeing this, media reporters naturally reduced their coverage of the company until it disappeared from the news altogether.
This was perfectly normal. Not to mention a mid-sized company like Qingzhou Yingni—even the ongoing battle for Wharf Holdings wouldn't attract daily attention unless something critical happened that sparked widespread discussion.
After entrusting the privatization work to Wardley Company, the process indeed progressed extremely smoothly.
In just one week, thousands of shareholders had gone to Wardley Company to sell their shares.
The shares they sold amounted to more than eight million shares of Qingzhou Yingni.
However, as time passed, the number of shares Wardley Company acquired gradually declined.
There was no helping it. After all, not everyone was willing to sell at HK$4 per share.
At the same time, privatization itself was a lengthy process and difficult to complete in a short period.
Moreover, a company did not need to acquire 100% of its shares for privatization to be considered successful.
Indeed, requiring acceptance from holders of 100% of the shares is practically impossible in reality, since there will always be shareholders unwilling to sell for various reasons, or special situations such as lost share certificates.
However, that does not mean privatization cannot be achieved.
According to Hong Kong's Takeovers Code, the offeror (usually the major shareholder or management seeking to privatize the company) must obtain valid acceptances from a sufficient proportion of disinterested shareholders, typically more than 90%.
Once that threshold is reached, the offeror may exercise the right of compulsory acquisition (the "squeeze-out" right), forcing the purchase of the remaining shares held by minority shareholders who did not accept the offer, thereby completing the privatization.
As for shareholders who refuse to sell under any circumstances, they may choose to sell at any time in the future, but they will then have to do so under the procedures applicable after privatization.
As things stood for Lin Haoran, he already controlled enough shares to almost exercise the compulsory acquisition right.
However, he was in no hurry to take that step for two reasons. First, part of his shares were still held by Wan'an Group as collateral, and he planned to redeem them later without rushing to use loans. In any case, Wan'an Group belonged to him, so those shares weren't going anywhere.
Second, Qingzhou Yingni was already operating as though it had been privatized. The board of directors had been dissolved, and Lin Haoran effectively held absolute control over the company, no different from being its sole owner. Furthermore, since the company had been delisted, it no longer needed to publish operating announcements such as financial reports.
Since that was the case, he simply let Wardley Company continue handling the work.
During this period, Lin Haoran's life was busy yet fulfilling.
Not only did he study corporate management under his father, Lin Wan'an, at Wan'an Group, gaining a deep understanding of company operations,
but he also frequently visited Qingzhou Yingni to inspect its latest developments, participate in and approve major corporate decisions, and ensure the company continued moving forward steadily.
At the same time, he kept a close eye on the progress of the privatization through Victory Securities.
In addition, he made time to visit Aimeigao in Kwun Tong to learn about its operations and provide the team with necessary support and assistance.
On weekends, if Guan Jiahui's father, Guan Shan, happened to be away on business, leaving her alone in Hong Kong, Lin Haoran would have the chance to spend wonderful moments with her and enjoy those rare happy times together.
It was also worth mentioning that his father, Lin Wan'an, had entered semi-retirement and was gradually handing over the group's management authority to Lin Haoran.
Lin Wan'an now only needed to spend half a day at the company each day, and sometimes even directed things remotely from home, allowing his son to adapt more quickly to leading Wan'an Group.
After several months of training, he knew his son had become capable of standing on his own, so he could soon confidently entrust the group's heavy responsibilities to him.
As Lin Haoran took over those responsibilities, he also kept a close watch on developments in the international market.
In particular, he carefully read the latest newspaper reports on international oil prices every day.
US$19.86 per barrel, US$19.91 per barrel, US$19.97 per barrel, US$19.94 per barrel, US$19.99 per barrel, US$20.03 per barrel...
Oil prices continued climbing. Although there were occasional fluctuations, the overall trend remained upward.
By January, the collapse of the Pahlavi dynasty had become inevitable, and Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi's control over Iran had nearly disintegrated.
On January 16, 1979, shocking news spread across the world: the Shah and the Empress had fled Iran. The event immediately triggered nationwide celebrations, and symbols of the Pahlavi dynasty were destroyed within hours, instantly reshaping Iran's political landscape.
However, just as everyone expected Iran to quickly resume oil exports under its new government,
the new administration faced the daunting task of consolidating its rule and taking over such a vast country.
As a result, despite the change in government, Iran's oil exports remained suspended, further intensifying tensions in the international oil market.
Oil prices therefore continued to rise, climbing from US$20.78 per barrel at the beginning of January to US$21.31 per barrel by the end of the month, and even higher.
Those hoping oil prices would fall again were likely to be disappointed.
Relying on memories from his previous life, Lin Haoran naturally knew that even after Iran resumed oil exports in March, prices would be extremely unlikely to return to their previous levels.
By then, the oil giants had already tasted the benefits of high oil prices. They would not easily give up those profits and might even work together to push prices even higher.
Therefore, Lin Haoran judged that oil prices would continue rising in the future, perhaps even at an accelerating pace.
Naturally, this was good news for him. Since he held a considerable amount of oil, the higher the price, the better.
In the short term, the outbreak of the oil crisis had a relatively mild impact on Hong Kong's economy.
After more than a month of careful observation, Hong Kong investors found that this oil crisis differed from the one in 1973 and appeared to have only a limited impact on the stock market.
Many stocks, after experiencing temporary declines in trading volume and prices, quickly rebounded, bringing renewed vitality to Hong Kong's stock market and restoring its former bustle.
As the festive atmosphere of the Lunar New Year gradually faded, time quietly entered February.
On February 15, Wan'an Group officially released an important announcement regarding major changes to its internal leadership.
Effective immediately, Mr. Lin Wan'an would step down as Chairman of the Board of Wan'an Group, with his son Lin Haoran succeeding him, while Mr. Lin Wan'an would retain the honorary title of Honorary Chairman of the Board.
This change marked the formal transfer of Wan'an Group—the enterprise Lin Wan'an had built with a lifetime of effort—into Lin Haoran's hands.
At this moment, Lin Haoran had truly become the owner of two major enterprises, and the responsibilities on his shoulders had grown even heavier.
After the Wan'an Group board meeting concluded successfully, Lin Wan'an was filled with emotion.
From now on, he could enjoy retirement with greater peace of mind, entrusting the company's future entirely to Lin Haoran, who had proven himself capable of standing on his own.
For Lin Wan'an, this was undoubtedly the highest recognition of and trust in his son's abilities.
"Haoran, from today onward, Wan'an Group is yours. This is the life's work I've poured my heart into. I hope you'll lead it to an even more brilliant future." Returning to the chairman's office filled with memories, Lin Wan'an's eyes were full of reluctance and expectation.
"Dad, please don't worry. I'll do everything I can to take Wan'an Group to even greater heights and live up to your expectations!" Lin Haoran replied firmly.
For him, managing Wan'an Group was not a difficult task.
Although the group's scale was not among the largest in Hong Kong's real estate industry, its solid foundation was unmatched.
It carried no debt—a rarity that might even be unique in Hong Kong's entire property sector.
"I've watched your performance over the past few months. That's exactly why I feel comfortable handing the group over to you completely." Looking around every corner of the office, Lin Wan'an felt a mixture of emotions. "I've been busy for most of my life. Suddenly putting down the burden of being chairman feels a little strange."
"Dad, if you ever get bored at home, just come by. A son inheriting his father's business is only natural. If I run into problems, I'll still come to you for advice. Your business wisdom will always be my example to learn from," Lin Haoran said with a smile.
"That's right. I may be old, but I'm not so old that I can't get around. I can always come back whenever I want. It's just that when people get older, they tend to become nostalgic." Lin Wan'an also laughed at his son's thoughtful words.
Over the past few months, under his father's careful guidance, Lin Haoran had not only gained a deep understanding of corporate management but had also gradually built close relationships with Wan'an Group's middle and senior managers, gaining a comprehensive understanding of their abilities.
Now that power was firmly in his hands and the chairman's position had been completely transferred to him, he suddenly discovered that he could finally see the loyalty ratings of Wan'an Group's employees.
Most of the group's senior executives had fought alongside Lin Wan'an for many years, so Lin Haoran found that the loyalty of the entire senior management team was astonishingly high.
For example, Yang Mingyi, the general manager of Wan'an Group, had a loyalty rating as high as 91.
That level of loyalty was extraordinarily high.
Lin Haoran had previously reviewed Yang Mingyi's résumé.
Yang Mingyi, now 49 years old, held a master's degree from Harvard Business School in the United States. He had joined Wan'an Group 18 years earlier, starting as an accounting supervisor before being promoted by Lin Wan'an to general manager five years ago.
Although Lin Haoran did not fully understand why Yang Mingyi was so loyal, he believed there must be a deep bond and shared history of struggle between him and Lin Wan'an.
Whether it was Lin Wan'an's appreciation and support of Yang Mingyi's talents or the mutual understanding and trust they had built through years of working together, it was enough to make Yang Mingyi wholeheartedly devoted to Wan'an Group.
Lin Haoran had no intention of learning the details of their story because there was no need.
He only needed to know one thing: Yang Mingyi was someone he could trust.
After Lin Wan'an left, Lin Haoran called Yang Mingyi into his office.
"Boss, did you need something from me?" Yang Mingyi asked respectfully after entering.
At this point, every member of Wan'an Group's senior management admired Lin Haoran.
The reason was simple: not only had he acquired the British-owned Qingzhou Yingni, but he had also completely privatized the company.
It wasn't just Wan'an Group's executives—even throughout Hong Kong, many people admired Lin Haoran.
Moreover, the group's senior management all knew that when he first launched the acquisition of Qingzhou Yingni, even the former chairman, Lin Wan'an, had known nothing about it. After finding out, he had only provided limited assistance. In other words, Lin Haoran had seized the chairman's position of Qingzhou Yingni entirely through his own abilities.
"General Manager Yang, have a seat first. No need to stand," Lin Haoran said with a smile.
Yang Mingyi nodded and sat down opposite him.
"General Manager Yang, I think Wan'an Group's growth has been too slow in the past. What unique insights or suggestions do you have on how we can accelerate the group's development?" Lin Haoran asked, getting straight to the point.
(End of Chapter)
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