Chapter 107: Visiting an Important Person
Although Lin Haoran was eager to scoop up all the available Qingzhou Cement shares, he faced an awkward situation —
his available funds were insufficient.
Originally, he had HK$13 million at his disposal,
but recently, he had already spent HK$4.1 million purchasing about one million shares of Qingzhou Cement.
This reduced his cash reserves dramatically, leaving him with less than HK$9 million available.
Meanwhile, the market had almost 7 million shares listed for sale.
To buy them all would require at least HK$26 million —
a figure far beyond his current financial capacity.
If he used his remaining HK$9 million to buy as many shares as possible,
he could only cover about one-third of the available stock.
Once those shares were absorbed,
the remaining sellers would likely grow suspicious —
either withdrawing their listings or raising prices,
which would make future acquisitions more expensive and difficult.
Based on this careful analysis, Lin Haoran decided the wiser strategy was to hold back for now —
watch and wait for a better moment to strike.
Thus, he calmly turned to Su Zhixue and said:
"Understood, Zhixue. Go ahead with your tasks.
Continue closely monitoring the market.
I'll notify you immediately if I decide to take action."
"Yes, Mr. Lin, Mr. Chairman.
I'll step out now.
I'll report any developments promptly," Su Zhixue responded respectfully, then exited the office.
As for the Huafeng Cement Plant,
over the past few months, it had provided Lin Haoran with about HK$300,000 in income.
However, he had already withdrawn those funds to cover Huanyu Investment's daily operational expenses —
staff salaries, office costs, market research, etc.
In practice, Huafeng Cement's modest profits couldn't materially help him acquire more shares.
That small cash flow was a mere drop in the bucket compared to his ambitious goals.
At this moment, Lin Wanan's gaze fell onto the stock market data Lin Haoran was holding.
As a father, he immediately understood his son's ambitions —
to privatize Qingzhou Cement entirely.
He fully supported this.
After years of dealings with Qingzhou Cement,
he knew exactly the hidden value it held —
especially that prime waterfront plot in Hung Hom,
which would be worth a fortune once fully unlocked.
"Haoran,
look at the sell volume and the prices —
this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!
It would be a shame not to seize it," Lin Wanan sighed.
Lin Haoran smiled bitterly and replied:
"Yes, it's an amazing opportunity.
But the reality is cruel.
I simply don't have enough funds to grab it."
Of course, he could take out more loans.
But he already carried over HK$300 million in debt.
Adding more would only snowball his financial risk —
something he wasn't prepared to do right now.
"Haoran,
how much cash can you mobilize at the moment?"
Lin Wanan asked curiously.
"About HK$8–9 million," Lin Haoran answered honestly.
Hearing this, Lin Wanan smiled warmly, patted his son's shoulder, and confidently proposed:
"That's easy to fix.
We can use Wanan Group's name to buy the shares first.
Once you have enough cash later,
we'll transfer them internally.
Don't worry —
even though most of Wanan Group's money is tied up in the North Point real estate project,
coming up with HK$10–12 million to help you isn't a problem at all."
He continued:
"Wanan Group may be a listed company,
but it's essentially our family business.
We own absolute control.
Small shareholders can't interfere with our decisions.
So whatever you want to do —
just go ahead boldly."
Hearing this, Lin Haoran's eyes lit up with excitement.
"Dad,
you really woke me up with that idea!"
Despite being a major shareholder,
he had forgotten that he could use Wanan Group's structure to his advantage —
a reminder of his still-developing business instincts.
Indeed,
this wasn't just a way to solve his immediate funding shortfall.
It was a golden investment opportunity.
Even though global financial markets were being shaken by the looming oil crisis,
Hong Kong's stock market wasn't suffering catastrophic impacts.
Sooner or later, once the panic subsided,
share prices would rebound.
At that time,
finding such a large block of cheap Qingzhou Cement shares would be impossible.
Seizing this moment was crucial.
"Alright, Dad,
I'll start arranging everything immediately.
Please liaise with Director Dai Bin from the Group's Securities and Business Department to coordinate operations," Lin Haoran said eagerly.
"I will immediately inform Su Zhixue too, asking him to lead the team to coordinate with Minister Dai Bin.
We'll proceed in parallel, ensuring we can swiftly and efficiently take down all those listed shares," Lin Haoran said with a broad smile, full of confidence.
Lin Wanan nodded approvingly and said:
"Good. I'll go talk to Dai Bin about it right away.
Haoran, go ahead boldly — Dad fully supports you."
Soon, their meticulous plan was actively implemented by both Su Zhixue and Dai Bin.
Both teams worked closely together, carefully segmenting and planning their acquisition strategy for Qingzhou Cement shares.
To ensure efficiency and discretion, they crafted a detailed order of operations:
first, Su Zhixue's team would exhaust their available account funds to purchase shares.
Once depleted, Wanan Group would immediately step in to absorb the remaining supply.
Currently, Qingzhou Cement's stock market lacked active buyers,
so their coordinated action was like wolves descending upon prey — fast and ruthless.
This sequence of operations was executed so precisely that the original sellers barely had time to react
before their shares were quietly absorbed.
As the plan progressed smoothly,
Lin Haoran's controlling stake in Qingzhou Cement steadily increased,
bringing him one step closer to his ultimate goal of fully privatizing this British firm.
After meticulous execution,
Lin Haoran successfully acquired an additional 1.91 million shares of Qingzhou Cement,
raising his direct + Huanyu Investment Company's combined holdings to 58.2% —
making him the undisputed absolute controlling shareholder.
Meanwhile, Wanan Group, through their coordinated operation,
also acquired an additional 10.2% of shares, indirectly helping Lin Haoran preemptively lock down more stock.
At this point, Qingzhou Cement's shareholding structure had undergone a fundamental shift:
it was effectively a privately controlled company,
and Lin Haoran's control reached unprecedented heights.
However, although he scored a huge victory on the stock market,
Lin Haoran's cash flow had been completely stretched thin.
Almost all his liquid funds had been deployed,
leaving him temporarily unable to officially announce the company's privatization.
Yet, this didn't discourage him.
On the contrary, Lin Haoran was extremely confident about his next steps.
He had his own plans regarding the remaining small shareholders.
Now that Qingzhou Cement was effectively under the control of a young man in his twenties,
those minority shareholders were likely already contemplating an exit.
After all, no one wants to stay aboard a ship that offers limited future prospects.
Thus, Lin Haoran believed that,
as long as he offered them a reasonable buyout opportunity,
they would undoubtedly choose to cash out without hesitation.
These shareholders were seasoned veterans of the market;
they weren't foolish.
Seizing a good exit opportunity was, to them, the smartest move.
Despite his tight finances,
Lin Haoran remained calm and unhurried.
In his view, Qingzhou Cement's situation was already fundamentally secure.
Now, he just needed to sit back and wait for oil prices to rise steadily.
Over the next few months,
as global oil supply tightened,
international oil prices would inevitably soar.
Many oil companies would even face the awkward situation of having no oil to buy at all.
When that moment came,
his earlier stockpiling of oil would pay off handsomely.
There would be no shortage of buyers eager to approach him.
In the blink of an eye,
another new day arrived.
In the morning,
Lin Haoran first went to Qingzhou Cement to handle some work matters.
The company's current general manager, Burton, truly proved to be an outstanding management talent.
Lin Wanan, who had initially harbored doubts about Burton's abilities,
personally visited Qingzhou Cement for an in-depth inspection.
The result was gratifying:
under Burton's meticulous management,
the entire company operated in perfect order, full of vitality.
Moreover, now that Burton had become General Manager,
he no longer held back his network.
He quickly brought in several high-quality clients, especially from the Philippines.
By noon,
Lin Haoran returned to Wanan Group,
continuing his daily lessons in corporate management under his father's guidance.
Each day,
he could feel himself growing stronger and wiser.
Of course, Lin Haoran had already made up his mind:
he would not entirely replicate his father's hands-on management style.
While Lin Wanan's approach demonstrated great responsibility and dedication,
it also led to overexertion and reduced organizational efficiency.
Instead, Lin Haoran favored adopting more advanced Western management practices,
emphasizing team collaboration and professionalized operations.
In the future, once his father officially retired,
Lin Haoran planned to find a suitable professional manager for Wanan Group.
He himself would focus on overseeing strategy and maintaining control of the big picture.
Just like at Qingzhou Cement:
he entrusted the daily operations to Burton while ensuring key decisions remained under his grasp.
"Time's getting late, Haoran.
Let's set off — I've arranged for us to visit someone important today,"
Lin Wanan said softly as it neared six in the evening.
Yesterday, he had already hinted at today's agenda,
but kept the identity of the person they were visiting a mystery.
Though curious,
Lin Haoran had remained patient and did not press for answers.
Hearing his father's reminder,
Lin Haoran immediately stood up with a bright smile:
"Alright, Dad! I'm ready."
As they descended into the underground parking lot of Wanan Group's headquarters,
Lin Haoran finally asked:
"Dad, where exactly are we going?"
"Haha, we're heading to the Barker Road Villa District," Lin Wanan replied with a laugh.
Barker Road, like Deep Water Bay,
was a district where only the richest and most powerful resided.
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