Chapter 205 Intelligence from Jardines Matheson
After finishing the business regarding the gun permits, Lin Haoran and Han Yili didn't have much else to talk about.
After a few more polite exchanges, Lin Haoran bid farewell and left Police Headquarters.
As Lin Haoran's Rolls-Royce was leaving Arsenal Street in Wan Chai, a tense high-level meeting was underway at Jardines Matheson's headquarters near Central.
The failure of the acquisition had forced them to convene and discuss how to handle their holdings in China Gas Company.
Jardines Matheson and Hongkong Land together controlled 40.7% of the shares, but without securing controlling rights, continuing to hold them made little sense.
Keeping the shares wouldn't incur a loss, but it would tie up a substantial amount of capital.
For them, holding onto these shares meant very low future returns—essentially a waste of resources.
Thus, the key was to find a way to exit China Gas cleanly and refocus on other listed companies or real estate investments.
Nobby Jamieson looked around the conference table and said, "Gentlemen, the acquisition has failed. Let's discuss what we should do next."
The room fell silent. The executives exchanged glances, each pondering a solution.
After a moment, a senior finance manager spoke first: "Mr. Jamieson, I believe we should quickly find a suitable buyer to offload our China Gas shares. That way, we can recover our capital and avoid it being tied up long-term."
"Finding a suitable buyer won't be easy," another executive said. "China Gas is now firmly under Lin Haoran's control. No one will pay hundreds of millions just to hold non-controlling shares for dividends.
Besides, it's not just Jardines Matheson that needs to offload shares—Hongkong Land does too.
Both companies together have 40.7% to sell. Without control, those shares become a heavy burden.
Unless we sell at a steep discount, finding a buyer is almost impossible.
Anyone willing to invest that much would rather put the money into booming real estate markets."
Jamieson scanned the room, frustrated.
"If anyone can find a buyer who'll take our shares at a reasonable price, I'll personally promote and reward you!" he said sternly.
No one dared meet his gaze.
They all knew it was practically impossible to find such a buyer—let alone at a price that wouldn't involve heavy losses.
"Honestly, I opposed acquiring China Gas from the beginning," another senior manager said. "The real estate sector is booming. Property prices are doubling every year. Why bother with China Gas? Now look where we are—no acquisition, capital stuck."
"You're only complaining now? What's the point? Right now, we need solutions, not finger-pointing. Acquiring China Gas made sense; it's a high-quality asset. We just didn't expect to fail," another manager retorted.
As the argument heated up, a younger executive cautiously raised another point: "Gentlemen, perhaps we shouldn't rush to sell. Although we lost control, China Gas remains a valuable company. We could retain our shares and try to influence corporate decisions to secure future profits."
"Young man, you're too naive," an older executive sneered. "If we hold the shares, we'll be trapped. With no control and frozen funds, it's a losing situation."
At this moment, Buffett stood up and said, "Everyone, I suggest we start approaching investment institutions and wealthy individuals.
We don't have to sell all the shares at once. We can sell parts privately and parts gradually on the stock market.
If worst comes to worst, we should try convincing Mr. Lin Haoran to buy our stake.
From his past moves—privatizing Cheung Chau Cement and Wan An Group—it's clear he prefers full control of his businesses.
Young businessmen often think owning 100% is the best way to maximize profit."
Buffett was not just Hongkong Land's General Manager; he was also a senior executive at Jardines Matheson.
Since today's matter involved both companies, he had strong influence here.
"Let Jardine Fleming Securities handle it," another board member suggested. "They have the ability and resources to gradually offload shares through the market. It might take months, maybe a year, but we can recover the capital slowly."
Another vice president agreed: "Exactly. Finding an outside buyer willing to pay a good price is unrealistic. Better to let the market work for us. Jardine Fleming Securities has been very successful in recent trading operations.
Even if China Gas shares fell today, the overall market remains bullish. Prices will recover naturally."
...
The room became a battleground of opinions.
But notably, no one suggested simply holding the shares long-term.
Jardines Matheson had never been satisfied playing second fiddle in any company.
Lin Haoran's commanding shareholding had killed their hopes of controlling China Gas, so their only thought now was how to exit.
Jamieson listened to everyone, his mind full of conflicting thoughts.
Every option had pros and cons. The decision would not be easy.
"Let's summarize: we have two options.
First, find a suitable external buyer.
Second, offload gradually through the stock market.
Let's vote," Jamieson said, cutting off the debate.
The result came quickly: out of 23 participants, 8 voted to find buyers, 15 voted to sell gradually through the market.
Clearly, the majority favored a slow market exit.
Everyone still trusted Jardine Fleming Securities' trading skills.
While the China Gas acquisition had failed, the blame did not fall on the securities team.
They had performed admirably, nearly hitting their 15% acquisition target.
"The decision is made. We'll authorize Jardine Fleming Securities to handle the matter.
Mark, this task is yours.
Everyone, remember—strict confidentiality.
If news leaks, our plan could fail," Jamieson announced gravely.
"Understood, Mr. Jamieson. I'll do everything in my power," Mark replied solemnly.
Thus, the tense meeting concluded.
What Jamieson didn't know was that barely hours after the meeting, the information had already leaked to Oriental Press Group's General Manager Cui Zilong.
That night, as Cui Zilong was resting at home, his phone rang.
"Cui, I have important intelligence about Jardines Matheson. Want to hear it?" came a low voice.
It was one of the insiders Cui had painstakingly cultivated inside Jardines Matheson, following Lin Haoran's orders to build a wide-reaching intelligence network among major firms like Jardines, Hongkong Land, Wheelock, HSBC, and Global Shipping.
After all, given Lin Haoran's stature, insider information from competitors was critical.
This insider, an aging mid-level executive, knew his career prospects were limited and had decided to earn extra money.
"Oh? What's it about? What's your price?" Cui Zilong asked casually.
"China Gas Company. HK$100,000. Non-negotiable," the insider replied firmly.
Though he was a Jardines Matheson executive earning a decent salary, HK$100,000 was still a significant bonus.
China Gas Company?
Cui Zilong instantly sat up straight.
He knew how important China Gas was to Lin Haoran.
Today, Oriental Daily's editorial team had written multiple major articles about Lin Haoran's takeover of China Gas and Jardines Matheson's humiliation—set to be published tomorrow.
China Gas Company and Oriental Press were now sister companies.
"I'm interested, but HK$100,000 is a lot. It must be worth it," Cui Zilong said cautiously.
"Don't worry. It's absolutely worth it. I'm thinking long-term—not just a one-time deal.
If I betray Jardines Matheson for a mere HK$100,000, it wouldn't be worth it.
But for a long-term partnership with you—now that's different," the insider said sincerely.
Cui Zilong weighed his options.
It was unlikely the insider would risk his career for a quick buck.
"Deal! Tell me everything. I'll pay you cash—no paper trail," Cui Zilong said decisively.
Thus, another critical piece of information flowed into Lin Haoran's growing intelligence empire.
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