Chapter 22: Becoming a Major Shareholder

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On Sunday, Lin Haoran finally received the good news he had been eagerly awaiting.

Fifty million Hong Kong dollars had arrived in his account!

Seeing that string of numbers in his bank account, Lin Haoran was overwhelmed with excitement. The joy surging through him nearly burst from his chest.

He had never imagined that he would one day possess such an enormous sum of money—even if the funds were borrowed.

Now that the money had arrived, Lin Haoran kept his word. He withdrew five hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars in cash from the bank and placed it in a briefcase.

In addition, he successfully transferred ten million Hong Kong dollars from his main account into the linked account designated for stock investments.

A short while later, he arrived at a private room in a restaurant with the five hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars in hand.

This was the place he and Yang Changdao had arranged to meet at short notice.

“Uncle Yang, please take a look. The entire five hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars is here.” Smiling, Lin Haoran gently handed the briefcase to Yang Changdao.

“Haha, Haoran, I have always trusted your credibility. There is no need to count it.” Yang Changdao took the briefcase, unzipped it, and glanced inside. A satisfied smile immediately spread across his face.

“Uncle Yang, I have some personal matters to attend to, so I’m afraid I can’t stay long.” There was a hint of apology in Lin Haoran’s voice. Clearly, he had no desire to become too deeply involved in a personal relationship with Yang Changdao.

“Oh? Is that so? Haoran, I specifically prepared a table full of good dishes. I was hoping we could have lunch together and talk properly.” Yang Changdao sounded somewhat disappointed.

“Thank you sincerely for your hospitality, but unfortunately, my father has already arranged to meet me and is waiting. I only made time to come here to deliver the money. Now that everything has been settled, I won’t impose on you any longer. Please enjoy your lunch.” Lin Haoran declined the invitation with a sincere yet resolute attitude.

“In that case, I won’t insist on keeping you. Take care on the way, nephew. I won’t see you out.” Yang Changdao nodded understandingly. He did not take Lin Haoran’s attitude to heart; after all, their relationship was based primarily on mutual interests.

And so, their brief meeting ended in a manner that was polite, yet faintly distant.

In this transaction, both sides tacitly sought to maximize their own interests.

After leaving the unremarkable restaurant, Lin Haoran felt exceptionally lighthearted. He walked briskly toward the Mercedes parked by the roadside and reached it in just a few steps.

The car door opened with a click. He slipped into the driver’s seat, started the engine, and slowly drove away, merging into the busy stream of city traffic.

Before long, Monday arrived quietly. The ringing of the stock exchange bell once again announced the beginning of a new round of trading.

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Lin Haoran was invigorated, welcoming with confidence the battlefield that belonged to him.

“Zhixue, there is now more than enough money in the stock account. From today onward, you can put your professional abilities to full use without any worries and show everyone what you can do. Keep it up—I believe you will seize every opportunity!” Before Su Zhixue officially began work, Lin Haoran patted him on the shoulder and encouraged him.

“Director Lin, rest assured. I will give it everything I have!” Su Zhixue replied solemnly.

Before work began, Lin Haoran learned some reassuring news from Su Zhixue: over the previous weekend, Su Zhixue had successfully arranged surgery for his son. The operation had been scheduled for Saturday of that week, and doctors had assessed the risk as extremely low. In fact, the sooner it was performed, the more beneficial it would be for the child’s recovery.

This good news undoubtedly lifted a heavy burden from Su Zhixue’s heart, allowing him to throw himself into the new week’s work with even greater enthusiasm.

Now that his son’s illness had been properly arranged for and was no longer a source of constant worry, Lin Haoran could sense the relief and happiness radiating from Su Zhixue from within.

While Su Zhixue was methodically acquiring shares of Green Island Cement, Lin Haoran was not idle either. He continued monitoring the price of Kowloon Wharf.

Before long, the market once again reached its closing time.

As expected, drawing on the experience he had gained from the trial trades of the previous two days and supported by the ample funds now available, Su Zhixue handled his operations in the stock market with far greater ease. The speed at which he acquired shares increased significantly.

Confronted with the heightened volatility across the market that day, he displayed keen insight and decisive judgment, increasing the scale of his transactions at the appropriate moment.

By the end of the day, Lin Haoran’s stock account had gained 548,200 shares of Green Island Cement, at a total cost of 2.66 million Hong Kong dollars. Although the average transaction price had risen slightly compared with before, the overall trading strategy was hardly affected.

At the same time, trading volume in many other stocks had also increased. Although activity in Green Island Cement had risen somewhat, it did not attract excessive attention from the market and remained relatively discreet and steady.

The day’s results were outstanding.

Adding the 307,900 shares he already held, Lin Haoran now controlled a total of 856,100 shares of Green Island Cement.

Yet the company’s total number of issued shares was only fifty million.

Lin Haoran’s immediate goal was to secretly become Green Island Cement’s largest shareholder.

After that, he would decide how many more shares to acquire based on the actual situation.

Over the next dozen or so days, Lin Haoran and Su Zhixue divided the work between them.

Lin Haoran was mainly responsible for observing developments concerning Kowloon Wharf.

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Su Zhixue, meanwhile, was responsible for acquiring shares of Green Island Cement.

Before long, September 29 arrived.

The weekend was only one day away.

When the bell rang in the trading hall next door, the two men in the office both knew that the day’s trading had ended.

As usual, Su Zhixue began compiling the day’s figures after the market closed.

“Boss, I have some thrilling news to report! Thanks to our tireless efforts, you have successfully risen to become Green Island Cement’s largest shareholder. We now hold 12.9 percent of the company’s shares, officially surpassing the previous largest shareholder. Even more noteworthy is that during this recent period of intensive and highly efficient operations, we also accumulated 387,900 shares of Kowloon Wharf, at an average transaction price of 23.05 Hong Kong dollars per share.” Setting down his pen, Su Zhixue delivered the report excitedly.

Since the previous week, Lin Haoran had keenly sensed that Kowloon Wharf’s share price had reached a bottom and would find it difficult to fall much further. He inferred that Jardine Matheson, Y. K. Pao, and other forces had already begun quietly accumulating shares behind the scenes.

With this in mind, when Kowloon Wharf’s share price fluctuated around 21 Hong Kong dollars, Lin Haoran displayed extraordinary decisiveness and immediately instructed Su Zhixue to act, seizing this rare buying opportunity.

During the following week, an additional telephone was installed in the office. Lin Haoran personally joined the operation, becoming Su Zhixue’s capable assistant as the two fought side by side.

Since Su Zhixue now had to handle the acquisition of two stocks simultaneously, Lin Haoran’s participation provided him with a powerful boost, ensuring that their operations proceeded more efficiently and smoothly. Through their close coordination, the work advanced in an orderly fashion, producing impressive results.

For the past month, they had monitored Green Island Cement’s trading activity every day. Judging from the volume of transactions, Li Ka-shing’s side had still made no move against Green Island Cement. This had given Lin Haoran an enormous opportunity.

Now, he had finally become the largest shareholder. It had not been easy.

Previously, the British shareholder who held the largest stake in Green Island Cement had owned only 12.6 percent. Lin Haoran now controlled 12.9 percent—a result that was certainly worth celebrating.

“Zhixue, you’ve worked hard! This month, in addition to your regular salary of five thousand Hong Kong dollars, I’ve decided to give you another five thousand as a bonus in recognition of your diligence and outstanding performance. Keep it up. I believe your efforts will bring even greater achievements, and in the future I will certainly prepare an even more generous reward for you!” Lin Haoran said with a satisfied smile.

Once they had profited from Kowloon Wharf in the future, Lin Haoran would undoubtedly give Su Zhixue another bonus as well. But that was a matter for later.

“Boss, thank you very much for your recognition and encouragement. It means a great deal to me.” Su Zhixue’s face was filled with excitement, but he soon regained some composure. “Then, regarding Green Island Cement, should we continue acquiring shares?”

Lin Haoran smiled faintly. “Of course we must continue. The current 12.9 percent is a good figure, but it is still far from enough. My goal is to secure an even greater controlling stake!”

His words rang out with force and certainty.