Chapter 121 - The Dispute Comes to an End
After the shareholders' meeting concluded, as expected, Henry and the other eight shareholders immediately got busy handling the matter for Lin Haoran.
First, they went together to see the Chairman of the Securities and Futures Commission, Mike Smith, and jointly submitted an explanation letter clarifying the situation.
Next, the five British shareholders took even more aggressive actions.
They directly contacted several influential media reporters, openly accepting interviews and stating that their report against Lin Haoran was entirely intended to pressure him into considering the privatization of the company.
According to their statements, after internal discussions, Lin Haoran had now finally shown interest in privatization.
The five British shareholders, in order to sell their shares, completely disregarded the potential damage to their own reputations.
They believed that most of the people they had tricked were Chinese investors, and being British, they still thought themselves superior.
Moreover, their report was technically grounded — at the time, Lin Haoran's holdings had indeed exceeded 50%, and by a significant margin.
Thus, even if they openly admitted that their intention was to force Lin Haoran's hand, legally, there was nothing that could be done against them.
Originally, the reporters had intended to interview these five British shareholders after speaking with Mike Smith, since they were the real originators of the entire chaos.
However, previous attempts to reach them had been unsuccessful.
Unexpectedly, this time, the five shareholders proactively united and agreed to be interviewed.
This matter began to ferment once again, sparking widespread discussions among the public.
Lin Haoran, reading the newspapers at home, felt very satisfied seeing these articles.
Sure enough, these foreigners were quite "helpful" — once they agreed to help him solve the problem, they immediately took action.
"Haoran, your caution was very wise.
A careless move could have resulted in the Securities and Futures Commission accusing you of market manipulation — even leading to imprisonment.
But now that they've stepped up to explain everything, you've been completely cleared.
You handled this beautifully.
I can rest assured handing Wan'an Group over to you," Lin Wanan praised as he read the newspaper while having breakfast with his son.
"In the end, it was all just an accident.
I never imagined these people would report me," Lin Haoran said with some emotion.
Qingzhou Cement Company, although valued at over 200 million, was not a particularly prominent British enterprise compared to giants like Jardine Matheson, Swire Pacific, or Wheelock & Co.
Normally, it attracted little attention.
Had it not been for the shareholders' report, the Securities and Futures Commission might never have cared.
At that time, Hong Kong's securities laws were still far from mature —
otherwise, a small place like Hong Kong wouldn't have had four separate stock exchanges coexisting.
The privatization trigger rules under the mergers and acquisitions code were often just symbolic.
Many listed family enterprises privately held more than 50% of shares to prevent hostile takeovers by large consortiums.
Before the mid-1970s, Hong Kong's securities and commodities markets were essentially unregulated.
Only after the 1973–74 market crash did the government start intervening, creating the core regulations for securities and futures industries.
However, because time was still short, those laws were hastily modeled after Western ones and remained highly imperfect.
"Haoran, do you really plan to privatize Qingzhou Cement Company?" Lin Wanan asked, still somewhat incredulous.
Seeing his son become the controlling shareholder of Qingzhou Cement was already an incredible feat.
Later, as his son kept acquiring more shares, pushing ownership past 50%, Lin Wanan had assumed it was merely to prevent others from targeting the company.
He had already learned that even Cheung Kong Holdings had once eyed Qingzhou Cement Company.
For Lin Haoran to seize control from such a major Chinese conglomerate —
even Lin Wanan found it unbelievable.
"Of course.
If the opportunity arises, I will absolutely privatize Qingzhou Cement.
Uncle Guo from Kerry Properties had to pay a heavy price and form alliances just to secure a few plots of land in Tsim Sha Tsui East.
Imagine how valuable land is there!"
"And Qingzhou Cement's site isn't far from those new developments.
Although it's zoned as industrial land, it's located in a prime area where industrial usage is becoming inappropriate — ruining the city's appearance."
"Plus, Qingzhou Cement has often been the target of citizen complaints.
Relocating the cement plant is inevitable.
Once I top up the land value and apply to rezone it for commercial use, the government will welcome it!" Lin Haoran explained with a smile.
"If you truly have the ability, of course, I'll support you.
But if funds are insufficient, don't force it.
Loans might temporarily solve a problem, but if you can't repay, everything collapses," Lin Wanan cautioned cautiously.
"Don't worry, Dad.
I'll only do things I'm confident about," Lin Haoran reassured him, without explaining further.
There were many things he was still keeping from Lin Wanan.
When the time came, he would let his father learn naturally.
Some things were just too complicated to explain.
If Lin Wanan knew that Lin Haoran had already borrowed more than 300 million Hong Kong dollars from Yumin Finance Company,
he would likely regret ever handing over Wan'an Group's future.
"Beep, beep, beep," came the buzzing sound of Lin Haoran's pager.
"Dad, I need to make a call," Lin Haoran said, putting down his newspaper.
"Go ahead," Lin Wanan said, waving him off.
The call was from Qingzhou Cement's General Manager, Burton.
"Boss, many reporters have come to the company.
No matter how much we try, they refuse to leave," Burton said, clearly helpless.
Lin Haoran could easily guess why the reporters were there —
because of today's newspaper reports about the British shareholders' public statement.
"Tell them I'll be there in half an hour," Lin Haoran replied.
After hanging up, he said goodbye to his parents and hurried to Hung Hom.
This was perfect —
he needed to leverage these interviews to make a public statement.
Half an hour later, Lin Haoran's car pulled into Qingzhou Building's private parking lot.
His arrival immediately attracted the attention of the many waiting reporters.
Dozens of people swarmed around him, clamoring for interviews.
"Everyone, what do you want to know?" Lin Haoran asked directly, standing at the scene.
However, with so many shouting at once, it was chaotic.
"Let's do it this way," Lin Haoran said.
"I'll point to someone, and they can ask. Otherwise, it's impossible to answer anyone."
The scene gradually quieted.
First, he pointed to a reporter from the Oriental Daily.
"Mr. Lin, is it true you now intend to privatize Qingzhou Cement Company?" the reporter asked — the question on everyone's mind.
"I originally had no such plan," Lin Haoran replied.
"But yesterday, all the company's board shareholders invited me to discuss the matter.
They offered to sell me their shares at a very attractive price."
"The price was so appealing that I was almost tempted to acquire them at all costs."
"However, I previously declared that I had no intention of privatizing the company.
If I bought the shares now, it would push my ownership past 50% again — raising suspicions of market manipulation."
"Therefore, unless the Securities and Futures Commission officially approves the privatization,
I will not proceed.
Please believe me — selling shares earlier was out of necessity, not manipulation," Lin Haoran said firmly.
He deliberately passed the responsibility onto the Securities and Futures Commission.
Given the scale of the scandal, the Commission would have to respond.
"Reporter from Ming Pao: Mr. Lin, what is your opinion about the British shareholders' report against you?"
"I have nothing much to say.
After all, they caught me red-handed.
Personally, I prefer to act discreetly."
"Reporter from Sing Tao Daily: Mr. Lin, if you plan to privatize, where will your funding come from?"
"I certainly don't have that much cash.
If I move forward, I would have to rely on loans," Lin Haoran answered calmly.
After answering a few more questions, Lin Haoran, protected by his bodyguards, quickly left the scene.
The reporters didn't pursue him —
they had already gotten the main points they needed.
Next, they all rushed to the Securities and Futures Commission to interview Mike Smith.
Upon learning of the situation, Mike Smith didn't answer immediately.
Although he was chairman, such matters needed formal meetings —
he couldn't decide alone.
Thus, Mike Smith told the reporters:
"We will hold an internal meeting.
Afterward, the Commission will issue an official response."
Two hours later, the Securities and Futures Commission publicly released a statement:
"Mr. Lin Haoran, under legal and regulatory compliance, may proceed with the privatization of Qingzhou Cement Company.
To protect all shareholders, the privatization offer price must not be lower than 4 Hong Kong dollars per share."
With that, the Commission's decision formally concluded the entire controversy.
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 20 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Albino1