Started from Hong Kong Island

Chapter 185 [Crisis Spreads]

The Hang Seng Index fell from its peak of 9 points on the 1775th to 12 points on the 1712th. The Hang Seng Index is still falling, and of course the Hong Kong government also deserves part of the credit for this.

In just two days (the 10th and 11th were Sundays and the stock market was closed), the Hang Seng Index has fallen 65 points, and the decline seems to have just begun. This is the most terrifying thing.

Li Wendi knew that if things continued like this, it would only be a matter of time before the city would be affected. Fortunately, the proportion of real estate in Hong Kong's economy was not as high as in the past, and industrial development was also good. The fake stock incident would not affect the industry too much.

Those workers and ordinary people who do not participate in stock speculation can still survive.

"Boss, Changxin Real Estate and Zhongyu Real Estate have experienced a slight drop due to the 'fake stock incident', by 0.3 yuan and 0.4 yuan respectively. I'm worried that the decline will not stop in the future. Should we take any measures?" Zhang Wentao said with a serious expression.

Li Wendi immediately shook his head. "This is the overall situation, and it is difficult for us to remedy it. Now the company needs to ensure sufficient cash flow, some major projects have to be stopped, and the plan to sell off properties has begun to be suspended."

"Boss, are you worried that the situation will get worse?" Zhang Wentao asked. The boss has a long-term and precise vision. If the boss had not prepared in advance this time, Changxin Real Estate Company would have had a hard time escaping.

"I'm not worried. The fact is that the situation will definitely get bad. Many real estate companies will probably go bankrupt. We have sufficient funds and can acquire some high-quality companies or affordable properties." Li Wendi said in a deep voice. Although he had been looking forward to this crisis for a long time, he still underestimated its impact on listed companies.

If we can raise funds for rights issue, it seems easier to operate than during a crisis. After all, stock investors are crazy, or to put it bluntly, they are brainless.

Fund raising and share offering means that shareholders pay money to support the development and growth of listed companies. Of course, the stock price will rise, which seems to be beneficial to both parties. In fact, the company boss and shareholders are the biggest winners.

"Understood! Then I will collect the relevant company information immediately." Zhang Wentao is very smart and executes Li Wendi's orders strictly.

The fake stock incident of Hopewell Holdings gave the Hong Kong government an opportunity: to rectify the stock market and conduct a thorough investigation of stock exchanges, securities companies and listed companies.

Once this news was released, it caused an uproar, and many companies cursed the Hong Kong government for being shameless and took the opportunity to liquidate.

Unfortunately, faced with such government orders, companies can only accept them.

In fact, most of the companies that have complaints are secretly doing something fishy and are worried that the relevant departments of the Hong Kong government will find some clues and face court charges or even imprisonment.

Li Wendi's Changxin Real Estate Company and Zhongyu Real Estate Company were also investigated. Naturally, he was not afraid because the company had always been reasonable and legal, and no illegal activities had ever occurred.

It was soon discovered that Hopewell Industries had not committed any fraud and that the fake stocks were planned by a counterfeiting gang. Hopewell Industries was also one of the victims and is expected to be relisted in late March.

However, it will be difficult for Hopewell Holdings to return to its former glory as its reputation has been severely damaged. This cannot be restored by a single announcement from the Hong Kong government. Instead, it will take a long time to regain the trust of shareholders.

At this time, Hu Yingxiang, the boss of Hopewell Industrial Company, hated those counterfeiting gangs so much that they had turned his company into what it is today. He would never be able to vent his hatred even if he were cut into pieces.

Hopewell Holdings escaped the disaster, but Poly Construction Company was stuck in a quagmire. All the dirty deeds were uncovered one by one by the Hong Kong government departments. Paul Lee was arrested, and Poly Construction Company suddenly fell into great panic.

According to the speculation of the bigwigs in the industry, Li Baoluo has failed and there is no possibility of making a comeback.

The 900 million yuan that Hopewell Industrial Company invested in Poly Construction Company can be said to have come to nothing, with no money lost, and the blow to its reputation was even more severe.

Li Wendi asked Zhang Yan to act quickly and frequently contact architects, budgeters and other employees of Poly Construction Company, hoping to win them over and use them for his own purposes. Of course, there were also people who yearned for big companies and hoped to have a stable career.

Li Wendi understood these people's thoughts very well. After all, he was also an employee before. What about dedicating oneself to the company and not caring about personal gains and losses? That was pure bullshit. The only one who didn't care was the boss, because it was his own property.

In order to win over several important figures in Poly Construction Company, Li Wendi plans to take action personally.

A luxuriously decorated restaurant
Li Wendi and Zhang Yan attended the event together, facing two highly experienced architects from Poly Construction Company. "Mr. Hong, Mr. Xie, hello! I am a partner of Wenyan Decoration Engineering Co., Ltd., and my name is Li Wendi." Li Wendi extended his right hand to Hong Tingshan and Xie Changxing, with a smile on his face.

"Hello, Mr. Li!" The two of them made a brief introduction.

"Maybe Mr. Hong and Mr. Xie think we are a little unreliable when they see how young we are." Li Wendi glanced at Zhang Yan and continued, "Mr. Hong and Mr. Xie can go back and inquire about Changxin Real Estate Company and Zhonghua Entertainment Real Estate Company. Both companies are mine."

Seeing that the two still didn't quite believe it, Li Wendi stopped explaining. "Wenyan Decoration Engineering Company has a weak foundation. We only have one construction team and are still learning. However, with the financial support of Mr. Zhang Yan and I, there shouldn't be any big problems with development. At the same time, with the support of two listed companies, Changxin Real Estate and Zhongyu Real Estate, there will be no shortage of projects."

"After you come here, you will be old employees of the company. As long as the company is on the right track, you can both get 3% of the company's profit dividends. Mr. Zhang Yan and I have other companies. If you are capable, it is possible for you to manage the company's daily affairs."

Li Wendi kept painting big rosy pictures for the two of them, making Hong Tingshan and Xie Changxing eat their fill.

However, the two were still very cautious and did not agree to Li Wendi immediately. Instead, they said they would go back and think about it and give a reply within two days.

In fact, they wanted to go back and check the backgrounds of Li Wendi and Zhang Yan, as well as the strength of Wenyan Decoration Engineering Company. They must not fall into the trap again.

"Wendy, do we really have to give concessions to these two people? They are just workers." Zhang Yan said somewhat unwillingly.

Li Wendi smiled and said, "Really? You should be so short-sighted. Construction companies don't make the most money. Real estate companies are the biggest profit makers. It's just that we have our own construction company, so we can avoid future constraints."

"If you can't bear to part with the money, you can give them a portion of my dividends, and you can keep your dividends intact."

Of course Zhang Yan was unwilling to do such a thing. It was thanks to Li Wendi's support that he had achieved his current wealth and status. If he were to be separated from Li Wendi's care, he was worried that he would not be able to go far.

"Since you have agreed, let the company pay them the dividends. Anyway, I have made a lot of money in the past year or so." Zhang Yan said.

"Ayan, now is the time to make money." Li Wendi said with a smile, "Take your own funds and wait for my news. We brothers are going to do something big."

Late September

With the bankruptcy of Poly Construction Company, the company's employees were divided up by other companies. Huang Tingshan, Xie Changxing and others joined Wenyan Decoration Engineering Company.

The collapse of Hong Kong's fourth largest construction company was somewhat shocking, and it made many real estate companies smell something strange, which seemed to be a sign of an impending crisis.

The share prices of many listed real estate companies began to fall. The share prices of large companies did not fall much, but the resulting situation was very bad.

As stock prices began to fall in local cities, many real estate companies received debt collection calls from banks. These companies were forced to start selling their properties to recover funds.

The emergence of a large number of properties in urban areas will naturally lead to price pressure from peers. Those in urgent need will take the initiative to reduce prices, and thus urban areas have experienced their first large-scale decline, with a drop of more than 8%. Moreover, the situation is getting worse and worse, and there is a sign of the impending real estate crisis.

Changxin Real Estate Company also received a debt collection call from HSBC Bank, but Li Wendi asked HSBC Bank to check the deposits in the Changxin Real Estate Company's account. HSBC Bank promptly apologized and said that it had made a mistake and hoped that Changxin Real Estate Company could understand.

As a result, many real estate companies have fallen into the dilemma of being unable to repay their debts. As for using properties and land to repay debts, banks have to reduce the price by 20%, which is particularly ugly.

Some companies gave in, while others thought that they could sell the products at a 10% discount, so there was no need to give them a bargain at the bank, and thus began the long sales process.

Li Wendi certainly would not sell it at this time. Even though Zhang Yan kept nagging in his ear, he remained unmoved. Now is definitely not the low point.

(End of this chapter)