Chapter 163: News Spreads, Reactions from the Tycoons
Before 6 PM, reporters from more than a dozen mainstream media outlets in Hong Kong arrived at the headquarters of Hongkong Electric Holdings.
Hongkong Electric was a well-known British enterprise in Hong Kong, ranking among the top ten by market value among listed British companies.
Naturally, all the media outlets gave it considerable importance, each arriving on time.
Oriental Daily, South China Morning Post, Overseas Chinese Daily, Sing Tao Daily, TVB, Rediffusion Television, Radio Hong Kong — these were all the most famous media institutions in Hong Kong.
At 6 PM, Chen Shoulin, on behalf of Hongkong Electric Holdings, officially announced to the public the decisions made at the board meeting, immediately shocking all the reporters present.
In front of the journalists, Chen Shoulin solemnly declared that Mr. Lin Haoran now held 49.9% of Hongkong Electric's shares.
This move sent a clear signal to all forces coveting Hongkong Electric — including Land Holdings, Cheung Kong Holdings, and Carrian Group — effectively curbing their ambitions and rivalry.
Lin Haoran's appointment as chairman of Hongkong Electric was fundamentally different from Chen Shoulin's.
Chen Shoulin, even as chairman, was just a professional manager — a highly-paid employee, easily replaceable, subject to the board's approval for major decisions.
But Lin Haoran, owning nearly half of the company's shares, was the true owner.
In front of him, even the board would merely be symbolic.
Even if he managed the company poorly, no one could touch him — such was the power of control.
After the announcement, countless questions sprang into the minds of the journalists.
However, Lin Haoran only answered a few selected questions briefly before quickly leaving the scene — otherwise, he would have been bombarded with endless inquiries, many of which he had no intention of answering.
Lin Haoran was no stranger to the media.
When he had acquired Qingzhou Cement Company, it had caused quite a stir.
Later, when British shareholders reported him, leading to the company's privatization, the incident had been widely publicized.
And now, within such a short time, he had acquired another British firm —
but not just any firm.
If Qingzhou Cement Company was a mid-to-large-sized listed British enterprise,
then Hongkong Electric Holdings was a top-tier giant.
The gap between the two was enormous.
What the journalists most wanted to know was:
Where did Lin Haoran get his money?
The acquisition and privatization of Qingzhou Cement had been understandable — involving only two or three hundred million Hong Kong dollars.
But Hongkong Electric, with its market value exceeding two billion Hong Kong dollars,
meant acquiring 49.9% of the shares required at least one billion Hong Kong dollars!
However, Lin Haoran remained silent on the source of his funds, maintaining an air of mystery.
In fact, apart from the head of Citibank's Hong Kong branch and Su Zhixue, no one knew he had amassed vast wealth through gold futures trading.
Anyway, his funds were legitimate — he had no fear of investigation.
After the press conference, while newspapers would report the news the next morning and television stations needed time to edit footage,
Radio Hong Kong quickly broadcast the breaking news.
"Breaking news! Just now, Hongkong Electric Holdings officially announced a major personnel change.
Mr. Lin Haoran, the new chairman of Qingzhou Cement Company, has formally taken over as chairman of Hongkong Electric Holdings,
and it was simultaneously announced that he and his representatives hold 49.9% of the company's shares.
This marks the second major takeover of a historic British enterprise by a Chinese entrepreneur following the control change at Wheelock & Company.
During the subsequent press conference, Mr. Lin Haoran demonstrated visionary leadership combined with humility.
He stated his full support and respect for Mr. Chen Shoulin's years of dedicated service and excellence,
and announced that Mr. Chen would assume the role of executive director and general manager, continuing to contribute to Hongkong Electric's future.
Mr. Lin emphasized that this change aimed to further promote the integration of internationalization and localization, paving the way for an even brighter future..."
The news, broadcast by Radio Hong Kong, quickly spread across Hong Kong through car radios and home radios.
It was dinner time for most citizens, and the news immediately sparked widespread discussion.
Hongkong Electric wasn't as large as Hutchison Whampoa or Jardine Matheson, but it wasn't far behind.
It was firmly among Hong Kong's top British enterprises.
And now, it had been quietly taken over by Lin Haoran?
Previously, Lin Haoran's acquisition of Qingzhou Cement had already stirred huge public attention —
the first British-listed enterprise to be taken over by Chinese capital.
At the time, many had doubted Lin Haoran,
thinking he was too young and inexperienced,
leading to a collapse in Qingzhou Cement's stock price.
Few dared to continue holding shares.
Yet within such a short period,
he had acquired an even bigger British enterprise — and at a 49.9% stake!
Could such a person really be lacking in ability?
Clearly not.
If the Qingzhou Cement acquisition could be explained away by luck or elder support,
then the acquisition of Hongkong Electric Holdings could no longer be dismissed so easily.
Moreover, journalists had already investigated Lin Haoran's background at the time.
His father was merely the head of an ordinary listed company,
and could offer very limited support.
At this moment, public perception of Lin Haoran began to shift dramatically.
Youth didn't necessarily equate to incompetence.
As the news spread among Hong Kong citizens,
the city's major business figures — including Pao Yue-Kong, Simon Keswick, Percy Niblett, Bowers, and Li Jiacheng —
had already learned about it through their vast intelligence networks.
Thanks to their deep industry ties and extensive information channels,
they could always detect market trends and major events earlier than the average person.
In the office of Pao Yue-Kong at the headquarters of World-Wide Shipping Group in Prince's Building, Pao Yue-Kong set down the phone, his face full of astonishment.
"This Lin nephew is truly extraordinary," Pao Yue-Kong said to himself with some emotion.
To seize control of Wheelock & Co., Pao Yue-Kong had gone through immense hardship, spending tens of billions and enduring countless struggles, only managing to drive Land Holdings out and finally gain control of Wheelock.
Everyone knew that while Pao Yue-Kong had technically won the battle for Wheelock, it was really a pyrrhic victory.
Following the resumption of trading, Wheelock's stock price steadily declined, day after day.
The more it fell, the larger Pao Yue-Kong's paper losses became.
Although he had mentally prepared for early losses in order to transition his assets from maritime to land-based businesses, losing money was still painful.
And what about Lin Haoran's acquisition of Hongkong Electric Holdings?
It was achieved without any struggle, almost silently — usually a sign that the acquisition cost had been low due to the absence of competitors.
The stark contrast between Pao Yue-Kong's grueling battle for Wheelock and Lin Haoran's seamless acquisition of Hongkong Electric was glaring.
If previously Pao Yue-Kong had regarded Lin Haoran merely as a junior in the business world,
now he saw Lin Haoran as a peer — someone who stood atop Hong Kong's business world alongside him.
"Seems like the younger generation of the Pao family must get to know this Lin nephew well!"
In the office of Cheung Kong Holdings at Chinese Bank Building, Li Jiacheng sat, frowning slightly upon hearing the news.
Lin Haoran had acquired Hongkong Electric?
This news was completely unexpected.
Li Jiacheng had previously crossed paths with Lin Haoran due to Qingzhou Cement Company.
Back then, he had just secured a large sum from selling Wheelock shares and had set his sights on acquiring Qingzhou Cement — a prime British company.
Unexpectedly, a young and obscure competitor, Lin Haoran, had already laid the groundwork and even persuaded Pao Yue-Kong to ask him to withdraw.
Out of respect for Pao Yue-Kong and acknowledging Lin Haoran's advantageous position, Li Jiacheng had reluctantly abandoned the acquisition.
Instead, he focused on negotiating with Simon Keswick to take over Hutchison Whampoa.
In September of last year, after much effort and many private negotiations with Simon Keswick,
Li Jiacheng finally reached an agreement with HSBC to acquire its holdings in Hutchison Whampoa, becoming its largest shareholder.
However, simply being the largest shareholder wasn't enough to fully control Hutchison.
Moreover, Hutchison's businesses were entirely unfamiliar to Li Jiacheng; an abrupt leadership change might have harmed the company.
Therefore, to ensure a smooth transition, Li Jiacheng adopted a cautious strategy:
publicly maintaining harmony with Hutchison's management, avoiding open conflict,
while privately embedding his own team into the company and steadily increasing his stake.
Once he believed he held enough shares,
he planned to legally remove Hutchison's chairman and assume the position himself — thus achieving full control.
Thus, until that goal was achieved, Li Jiacheng's main focus remained on Hutchison, leaving him little room to pursue other opportunities.
Nonetheless, Li Jiacheng had long coveted Hongkong Electric.
Its vast prime land assets and stable, growing cash flows made it a virtual money-printing machine.
He had planned to collaborate with Hongkong Electric first and slowly erode its independence.
But now, before he even had the chance, Lin Haoran had already taken it.
Lin Haoran's 49.9% control over Hongkong Electric completely crushed Li Jiacheng's ambitions toward the company.
"Truly, the waves of the Yangtze River push the old waves ahead; each generation surpasses the last.
This Mr. Lin is no ordinary man," Li Jiacheng sighed.
Losing Hongkong Electric was undoubtedly a major regret.
Meanwhile, not far from Chinese Bank Building, at Jardine Matheson's headquarters,
Simon Keswick and Bowers sat together, quickly receiving the same news.
The plan to acquire Hongkong Electric was decided by Simon Keswick personally.
Yet it had barely begun before being forced to stop.
After confirming the situation with Chen Shoulin in the morning,
they immediately ordered Land Holdings to cease all share acquisitions —
there was no point in continuing.
Now, hearing this news, Simon Keswick felt somewhat relieved.
At least they hadn't wasted too much time or money on the failed attempt.
"Perhaps we should seriously consider Mr. Lin's suggestion," Bowers said carefully.
"It may be time to explore the feasibility of acquiring Hong Kong Telephone Company and China Light and Power."
"Agreed," Simon Keswick nodded.
"Now that the Hong Kong real estate market is booming,
this is our best chance to expand.
Land Holdings must accelerate its acquisitions.
Not just within Hong Kong — we should target high-quality overseas enterprises too.
The old conservative and steady strategies are no longer suitable."
The loss of Wheelock to Pao Yue-Kong had already shifted Jardine and Land Holdings' mentality.
They had become more aggressive, more impatient, and more opportunistic —
eager for a chance to clash again with Hong Kong's rising Chinese tycoons.
Unfortunately, they had missed the excellent opportunity that was Hongkong Electric.
Now, they could only redirect their ambitions elsewhere.
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