Chapter 17: The First Day’s Victories

At Wan An Group, there was indeed a think tank, but it served his father, Lin Wan’an. Lin Haoran could also call upon them, yet he knew that the moment he entrusted these people with any task, they would swiftly report everything back to his father. This was not something Lin Haoran wished to see. Therefore, matters of intelligence gathering had to be handled personally—he would investigate as much as he could by himself. His demands were not high, as his focus was very targeted, revolving solely around the stocks of Qingzhou Yingni and Kowloon Warehouse.

That day, Su Zhixue was busy discreetly acquiring shares of Qingzhou Yingni, while Lin Haoran dashed between the stock exchange hall and the Wan An Group building. Although he could not yet mobilize Wan An Group’s personnel, he could utilize their resources and data to gain a more detailed understanding of Qingzhou Yingni and Kowloon Warehouse—resources that must not be wasted.

Time quickly passed to four o’clock in the afternoon, the closing time of the Hong Kong Securities Exchange. As the closing bell rang, Lin Haoran emerged from the trading hall, heading back to his office to review Su Zhixue’s achievements for the day.

Upon entering, he saw Su Zhixue with his left hand on a calculator and his right hand writing notes. Hearing the door open, Su Zhixue looked up and said, “Mr. Lin, please wait a moment. I’m just tallying the data.” Lin Haoran nodded calmly, showing no hurry.

After a short while, Su Zhixue paused his work. “Mr. Lin, good day. I’m here to report today’s trading overview. My main strategy was to control several stock accounts under my management and adopt a probing buying approach, focusing on capturing opportunities to purchase shares priced at 4.9 Hong Kong dollars or below. Through phased and intermittent purchases, I successfully acquired a total of 106,700 shares, costing approximately 510,000 Hong Kong dollars in total.

“By dispersing the trades, I effectively avoided causing significant market fluctuations, maintaining market stability. Tomorrow, I will continue to assess and explore the stock’s price ceiling. Combining my practical market experience, I will formulate a more precise operational plan and accelerate the pace of acquisition.

“My goal is to spend all the funds in your account tomorrow, converting them entirely into Qingzhou Yingni shares. Rest assured, I will continuously monitor market dynamics and flexibly adjust strategies to ensure every operation aligns with your requirements.

“Here are the records of each transaction for your review.” As Su Zhixue reported, he handed over his notebook to Lin Haoran, who nodded and accepted it.

From the trading data, the stock acquisition today was modest, mainly exploratory. Yet, Lin Haoran recognized Su Zhixue’s evident caution and strategic approach. He traded in small batches and amounts, avoiding direct market shocks, so that the 500,000 Hong Kong dollars invested felt like nothing more than a pebble gently tossed into the market, barely causing a ripple.

This method not only demonstrated Su Zhixue’s profound understanding of the stock market but also his steadiness and composure as a professional investor. Hiring this subordinate had indeed been a wise decision.

However, Lin Haoran realized he faced a critical issue: a shortage of funds. According to Yang Changdao at Yumin Finance, it would normally take about a week for the funds to arrive. Since today was only the second day, it meant waiting another five days before the 50 million Hong Kong dollar loan would be credited. Meanwhile, he had only injected 1.5 million Hong Kong dollars into the stock account.

According to Su Zhixue, it was highly likely that the remaining one million would be spent by tomorrow. Unfortunately, the certificates from Huafeng Cement Factory were currently pledged at Yumin Finance, ruling out the possibility of re-pledging.

Fortunately, it was already Thursday, and the weekend was approaching. The Hong Kong Securities Exchange was closed during weekends, so this would not impact him much. If Yumin Finance could credit the funds by Monday, there would be no problem. But since Yang Changdao mentioned it would take a week, the earliest would be after Tuesday next week.

It seemed he would have to call Yang Changdao tonight to expedite the process. Lin Haoran was unwilling to wait, knowing time was of the essence.

He could afford to be patient with Kowloon Warehouse, as its stock price, having fallen to the bottom he knew, would require at least two or three weeks or more to recover. But Qingzhou Yingni’s shares had to be acquired as soon as possible. Otherwise, the Cheung Kong Group might suddenly intervene.

Compared to Cheung Kong Group, his funds were insignificant. Once they stepped in, and if he held only a small portion of Qingzhou Yingni shares, it would mark the failure of his endeavor there.

Qingzhou Yingni was such a high-quality enterprise, one that could develop in close partnership with Wan An Group in the future. He was not willing to give up so easily.

At present, he could not yet acquire giants like Kowloon Warehouse or Hutchison Whampoa. But Qingzhou Yingni remained very much within reach. Once he earned a sum through Kowloon Warehouse, the repayment for the loan would be secured, and he would still retain a major shareholder stake in Qingzhou Yingni.

Therefore, he needed to find a way to secure additional funds now. Lin Haoran did not want this Qingzhou Yingni project to fail—it was the first project he had acted upon since his arrival in this time. Qingzhou Yingni was crucial to his future plans and could not be missed. If he could not even manage Qingzhou Yingni, how could he face the likes of Hutchison Whampoa or Jardine Matheson in the future?

“Zhixue, you’ve worked hard today. Write me an IOU, and I’ll go with you to get 200,000 Hong Kong dollars for you,” Lin Haoran said with a smile. He knew Su Zhixue had been eagerly awaiting this.

After depositing 1.5 million Hong Kong dollars into the stock account, he had only about 300,000 left on hand. This sum was insignificant in the grand scheme, so lending 200,000 to Su Zhixue would have no real impact.

“Boss, I’ve already gathered a few tens of thousands. If you lend me another 130,000, that’ll be enough,” Su Zhixue replied, waving his hands.

“Don’t worry. I won’t charge you interest or add any extra burden. I know some of the money you raised is borrowed from others, and borrowed money must be repaid sooner or later. You should prioritize repaying those debts, especially since you have living expenses. Follow me, work hard, and I’ll make sure you earn 200,000 Hong Kong dollars soon. I never treat loyal subordinates unfairly. How much you earn next depends on your performance. If you do well, besides the monthly 5,000 Hong Kong dollar salary, I’ll give you bonuses.

“So just borrow 200,000 for now. Work hard. The days ahead will get better. Believe me, this world has light beyond the darkness!” Lin Haoran patted Su Zhixue on the shoulder, leaving no room for refusal.

Su Zhixue was deeply moved. His eyes reddened slightly as he whispered firmly, “Mr. Lin, please rest assured—I will give my all and never disappoint your hopes and trust!”

At that moment, if loyalty had a gauge beyond 100%, his would surely have risen.

Half an hour later, Su Zhixue received the 200,000 Hong Kong dollars he needed.