Chapter 113 - Targeted by British Shareholders
Hong Kong, Mong Kok, Kadoorie Hill Villa District.
The buildings on Kadoorie Hill were mainly luxurious mansions. To the west stood the prestigious Diocesan Boys' School, and at the southeastern foot of the hill was the headquarters of China Light and Power, founded by the Kadoorie family.
The streets of Kadoorie Hill were surrounded by lush trees, appearing especially tranquil and full of charm.
Here, over half a century of memories and stories were preserved. Every corner exuded a rich historical atmosphere, and most of the residents were British expatriates and their descendants.
Among them, Harry Centurion, the former chairman of Qingzhou Cement Company's board of directors, lived in one of the villas in the Kadoorie Hill district.
At this moment, in the backyard of Harry Centurion's villa, several men with Western faces were gathered.
If Lin Haoran happened to be here, he would undoubtedly be surprised to see that all five British shareholders of Qingzhou Cement Company — who were usually rarely seen together — had gathered at Harry Centurion's villa.
Since Lin Haoran had taken up the position of chairman of Qingzhou Cement Company, these British shareholders often met to discuss.
The more they discussed, the more pessimistic they felt about the future of Qingzhou Cement Company under the leadership of this young Chinese man.
What they found most intolerable was that after Lin Haoran's appointment, the company's stock price had only risen for a few days before quickly plunging, eventually dropping as low as 3.4 Hong Kong dollars per share — the lowest point ever.
The plummeting stock price of Qingzhou Cement Company made their hearts bleed.
Unintentionally, it made them desperately want to exit the "big pit" that was Qingzhou Cement Company.
However, clearly, at the current share price, selling would be too bitter a pill to swallow.
Holding onto the shares didn't seem much better either.
They felt that Qingzhou Cement Company had no future under Lin Haoran's leadership.
They simply did not believe a young man in his twenties could manage the company well.
Previously, when Harry Centurion was managing Qingzhou Cement Company, at least there were dividends every year.
Moreover, Harry Centurion used to secretly give each of them personal kickbacks.
Those dividends, combined with the "extra" payments, made holding shares in Qingzhou Cement Company quite comfortable.
But now, with the controlling shareholder changed to a young Chinese man, how could they trust Lin Haoran's ability to manage the company?
Later, they found out that during the entire month of November, Lin Haoran had barely visited Qingzhou Cement Company — meaning that after gaining control, he was practically neglecting management altogether.
Facing such a controlling shareholder, their confidence plummeted.
Thus, the five of them often gathered to discuss countermeasures.
Ultimately, they agreed that they should sell off their Qingzhou Cement Company shares as soon as possible.
Otherwise, when the company's annual report was released, they would likely be looking at heavy losses.
If that happened, not only would they receive no dividends, but their shares would become even less valuable.
However, selling at the current market price was something they were extremely reluctant to do.
After discussing, they decided to approach their old leader, Harry Centurion, hoping to get some help or advice from him.
After understanding the needs of his former colleagues, Harry Centurion smiled bitterly and said,
"Gentlemen, I no longer have any relationship with Qingzhou Cement Company.
To be honest with you, I am liquidating all my assets in Hong Kong.
Everything that can be sold is already listed, including the very villa we are standing in now — it has been put up for resale through Land Holdings' second-hand property stores.
By the end of this month at the latest, I will bid farewell to Hong Kong and return to my hometown.
So, seeking help from me is useless!"
In truth, Harry Centurion genuinely wanted nothing more to do with Qingzhou Cement Company because he knew that Lin Haoran had leverage against him.
He simply wished to stay as far away from Lin Haoran as possible.
"Mr. Centurion, for the sake of us all being British, please help us.
You're a veteran in the business world, far more experienced than we are. You must have some way!" pleaded one shareholder.
"Yes, if there had been any other way, we wouldn't have come to you like this," said another.
"We've worked together for so many years. We're old friends. Please help us out of old friendship!" another added.
...
The five shareholders spoke one after another.
They knew well that Harry Centurion was cunning enough to have some kind of plan.
Harry Centurion looked at this scene with a helpless, bitter smile.
He truly didn't want to get involved, but these people kept pestering him.
In fact, over the past few days, these shareholders had been constantly calling him, but he had always replied that he couldn't help.
Unexpectedly, today they had united and come personally to visit.
Given the many years they had worked together, he couldn't simply shut the door on them, thus resulting in the current scene in the backyard.
"There might be a way," Harry Centurion finally said, "but only if you agree to one condition:
you must swear on the Bible that you will not reveal today's conversation to anyone.
Only then will I share my solution with you."
The British, being predominantly Christian, held the Bible in high reverence;
there was nothing more binding than swearing an oath on it.
The five men looked at each other, hesitating.
They truly did not want to swear so solemnly — after all, this was no joking matter.
"If you don't agree, then I'm sorry.
I won't discuss this any further.
This matter has little to do with me anymore, and frankly, I want nothing more than to leave Hong Kong quickly and enjoy my retirement back home," Harry Centurion said bluntly.
At that moment, one shareholder spoke up:
"Mr. Centurion, I am willing to swear."
With the first taking the lead, others soon followed.
Eventually, all five agreed to Harry Centurion's condition.
After all, they reasoned that the oath merely prevented them from revealing that Harry Centurion was their source — hardly a difficult burden to bear.
Thus, Harry Centurion fetched a Bible from his house and had them each swear one by one.
Once all had sworn, he finally relaxed.
"Your goal," Harry Centurion said with a smile, "is simply to prevent Qingzhou Cement Company's stock from staying too low, so that you can exit more profitably.
My solution is straightforward:
When Lin Haoran took over as chairman of Qingzhou Cement Company, he already held 40.1% of the company's shares.
Shortly afterward, his father Lin Wanan purchased another 12.6% from me.
This means that the Lin family now controls over 50% of Qingzhou Cement Company's shares."
"According to the Takeovers and Mergers Code, when any party surpasses the 50% ownership threshold, they trigger an obligation for a full takeover offer to treat all shareholders fairly."
"Right now, if you unite and formally lodge a complaint with the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, I believe that under the impartial leadership of Mr. Mike Smith, the chairman of the Takeovers and Mergers Panel, justice will be served."
"At that point, even if Lin Haoran has no intention of privatizing Qingzhou Cement Company, the situation will likely force him to consider it.
And once Lin Haoran is compelled to negotiate share purchases with you, the stock price will naturally have room to rise — which would benefit all of you."
Public companies have strict acquisition thresholds:
once any individual or entity exceeds 50% ownership, a full takeover offer must be made to ensure fair treatment of all shareholders.
Ignoring this rule risks public censure and even serious legal consequences.
In truth, Harry Centurion's strategy was subtle and shrewd.
Given the colonial government's special attitude toward British capital, Harry Centurion knew that the authorities would naturally lean in favor of the British shareholders.
Thus, when the shareholders lodged a collective protest with the Securities and Futures Commission, they would very likely receive official support or attention.
Most likely, under regulatory pressure, Lin Haoran would be forced to launch a privatization bid for Qingzhou Cement Company.
Such a move would certainly drive up the company's share price, at least lifting it out of the current slump.
Violating the "fair treatment" principle under the takeover code carried serious risks —
this was why many family-run companies spread ownership across different family members rather than concentrating shares in one hand.
For example, in Wan'an Group, although Lin Wanan controlled 49.99% of the shares and Lin's mother held another 10%, making over 50% combined, they avoided triggering mandatory takeover rules by splitting ownership.
Thus, unless someone specifically challenged them, no issues would arise.
However, what neither Harry Centurion nor the shareholders knew was that Lin Haoran had already long planned to privatize Qingzhou Cement Company.
Thus, even if they tried to use takeover regulations to pressure Lin Haoran, their efforts would ultimately be futile — because Lin Haoran's privatization plan was already underway.
Their strategy aimed to force Lin Haoran to announce a privatization plan, hoping to boost the stock price and increase their asset value.
But whether this would succeed would depend entirely on how Lin Haoran chose to respond.
In their view, whether it was the youthful Lin Haoran or the cautious Lin Wanan, facing such pressure, they would struggle to find a quick solution.
It was precisely this uncertainty that gave them a glimmer of optimism:
they believed that with enough pressure, the share price of Qingzhou Cement Company would inevitably rise, allowing them to sell off their shares profitably.
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