Started from Hong Kong Island

Chapter 299 297 [Old Fox]

In fact, this deal can be done, but if Li Wendi makes the decision, it will be unfair to Zhang Yan, because Li Wendi will give some benefits to Yuanhe Newspaper. But if it is Zhang Yan, things will be much easier. Li Wendi can even ask Zhang Yan to handle the matter impartially without considering his relationships.

Luckin Coffee is busy acquiring Yongchangsheng Real Estate. It is also a good thing to sell a batch of properties to recover funds. The funds in the account do not need to be too tight, and there is also the ability to deal with emergencies.

As soon as He Yongjian left the Changxin Real Estate office, Li Wendi turned around and called Zhang Yan, told him the whole story and asked him to think about it.

Zhang Yan has always been loyal, and he would not suffer any loss, so he agreed.

However, Li Wendi advised him to ask for an appropriate premium and not to treat Luckin Coffee unfairly, even though Yuanhe Newspaper had a close relationship with him.

Zhang Yan said, "It's just a small amount of money, not worth mentioning. If the He family can introduce me to a girlfriend, I can make a better living."

When Li Wendi heard this, he sneered and said that Zhang Yan was only interested in beauty and was not a qualified businessman.

In fact, they both knew that this was unlikely. The He family didn't even look down on Li Wendi at the beginning, let alone Zhang Yan now. Perhaps Zhang Yan, who would become one of the richest men in Hong Kong in the future, would have this opportunity, but no one knew when.

After talking about this, Zhang Yan talked about the acquisition resistance encountered in the stock market and asked Li Wendi for his opinion.

Li Wendi has always been sensitive to the stock market and immediately smelled something different.

After hanging up the phone, Li Wendi thought about it again and again and finally went to Sun Hung Kai Properties.

"Mr. Hu, help me check the situation of Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company, and pay special attention to whether there are any accounts secretly purchasing stocks and how many accounts have absorbed them." Li Wendi gave the order as soon as he came up.

Hu Jinyan realized the urgency of the matter and immediately turned around to do it.

Having been in the securities industry for many years, Hu Jinyan has his own set of methods to judge the situation of secret purchases.

Just before the market closed, Hu Jinyan showed up and reported, "Mr. Li, according to your investigation, it seems that there are multiple accounts absorbing Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company's shares. These accounts are from two securities companies."

Li Wendi knew that Zhang Yan had only asked one securities company to help buy up stocks, so who were running so many securities companies?
"Can you find out who is behind this?" Li Wendi asked without giving up. He knew it would be difficult to find out.

Hu Jinyan said, "It is possible, but it will take a lot of effort. I don't think it is very meaningful because it cannot be stopped. When the time comes to grab the shares, this person will definitely reveal his identity."

What Hu Jinyan said makes sense. So what if we know who it is? Can we convince this person not to acquire the company?

Li Wendi felt that it was done by an enemy and there was no possibility of reconciliation.

"Do you want me to go and grab the shares?" Hu Jinyan asked.

Li Wendi shook his head. The three parties' scramble for shares would only cause the stock price to rise rapidly, which would be disadvantageous to no one, unless Zhang Yan acquired similar shares.

"Mr. Hu, can you help me collect some information about the shareholders of Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company? I think I will need to talk to these shareholders later." Li Wendi said.

"Okay! Mr. Li, are you asking other companies to acquire Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company?" Hu Jinyan couldn't help but ask.

"Mr. Hu, you misunderstood. It was not me who acquired the property, but a friend. I was worried that something might happen to him, so I was just paying a little attention to it." Li Wendi waved his hand and said with a smile.

"So that's it! I was wrong." Hu Jinyan's tone weakened.

After an acquisition war, the securities company will charge a lot of handling fees, and the person in charge can get a proportional commission, so Hu Jinyan is so concerned about this matter.

Li Wendi immediately informed Zhang Yan of the matter and asked him to pay attention to the opponent's actions and speed up the acquisition of Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company's shares.

The beginning of April

He Zefeng's birthday party was held as scheduled, and Li Wendi received an invitation from the He family.

Li Wendi thought about the choice of birthday gift for a long time and asked He Qijun for her opinion, but He Qijun said that she could give the birthday gift because in the eyes of the He family, they were already a couple and there was no need to buy additional gifts. Besides, He Zefeng was not short of these gifts.

Li Wendi refused. According to Chinese etiquette, if they were not married, they were not considered a couple. He was worried that someone would laugh at him, so he had to give another birthday gift, and it had to be a "high-end" one.

So, He Qijun talked about He Zefeng's preferences. Literati and poets all like antiques and calligraphy and paintings more, and He Zefeng especially likes calligraphy and paintings by famous officials of the Song Dynasty and court antiques.

With a direction, Li Wendi naturally found it easy to get things done. He sent a number of staff to collect calligraphy and paintings as well as antiques from famous officials during the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty for him.

Antique calligraphy and paintings of this era are not as crazy as they were in the 21st century. A piece of blue and white porcelain could be sold for tens of millions, but now only a few hundred thousand are enough.

He Zefeng's birthday party was held in the He family villa. The guests were all relatives and friends of the He family, and no one else would receive an invitation.

Due to Li Wendi's crazy acquisitions this year, the scale of his business has expanded many times. As a result, many people have taken the initiative to make friends with Li Wendi, the upstart in the business world, hoping to have the opportunity to cooperate with him.

"Mr. Li is the most outstanding upstart in Hong Kong. No one can surpass him!"

"Yes! I didn't expect Qijun to find a boyfriend like Li Sheng. The He family is going to move up a level."

Li Wendi responded modestly to these flattering words. He did not forget that this was the He family's territory and he was not the protagonist today, so after a few words of greeting, he began to hide.

Study room in He's villa
After listening to Mr. He's lecture, all the members of the He family evacuated the study in an orderly manner.

This is He Zefeng's habit. Whenever the He family members gather together, he usually gives a speech.

"Qijun, please stay for a moment. I have something to say to you." He Zefeng suddenly asked He Qijun to stay.

The others were also stunned, and then walked out of the study normally.

"Grandpa, do you have any instructions?" He Qijun asked as he sat next to He Zefeng.

"What can grandpa tell you? You are all grown up and have your own ideas. Filial piety people like Yongjian want to take Yuanhe Newspaper public and ignore my opinions." He Zefeng laughed at himself, seeming a little sad.

Hearing this, He Qijun was silent for a moment, and then said, "If you don't like it, I can discuss it with Brother Jian. This matter also requires Wendy's help. As long as you don't want it, I can always find a way to prevent Yuanhe Newspaper from going public."

"Forget it." He Zefeng patted the back of He Qijun's hand and said with a smile, "Children and grandchildren have their own blessings. Let them do it. Anyway, I can't take care of it for long. The He family will be their world in the future."

"I'm worried about you. What did Li Wendi say about that incident?"

"He didn't say anything, but just let me join the board of directors of Changxin Real Estate Company and China Gas Company, so I continued to pursue the matter." He Qijun looked unhappy.

"Are you satisfied with being the director of two companies? These companies are all Li Wendi's assets. What can be given to you can naturally be taken back. However, there are some things that Li Wendi cannot jump out of. Do you know what they are?" He Zefeng looked at He Qijun and said.

He Qijun shook her head, "I don't know!"

"One is the shares, the other is family." He Zefeng became serious again, "One is fear, the other is emotional bond, both are indispensable. With these two things, you may feel more at ease."

"Luckily, Li Wendi intervened. Otherwise, I would have misjudged the Liu family. Liu Zhifei and his son are not good people. They actually disregarded our friendship and attacked the Qinian Newspaper. Although Li Wendi was born a gangster, he still has some friendship and principles."

"Do you want me to improve the relationship between Aunt Guo and Xiaonan so that I can control Wendy?" He Qijun asked.

"Well! Being a good daughter-in-law is not an easy thing. You need to be careful and not put all your attention on your career." He Zefeng continued to explain, "As for the shares, don't take them from Li Wendi. You can use the funds of the Qinian Newspaper to slowly purchase them and put them under your own name. You don't need all the shares of the company. Choose the important ones, such as China Gas Company and Wharf Holdings."

"Yes, I understand." He Qijun nodded.

The conversation between the grandfather and grandson lasted for an hour. After He Qijun left, He Zefeng took a short nap alone and did not show up until the evening. Li Wendi was also a little uncomfortable at the banquet. He was pulled aside by He Zhongyi and scolded for a while. Although there were no swear words, every word was hurtful, which made Li Wendi embarrassed. What was even more uncomfortable was that he could not talk back, nor could he leave, so he could only listen with gritted teeth.

He was not able to escape until He Qijun appeared.

He Qijun even made fun of Li Wendi and said that she would not help her if it happened again.

Li Wendi knew there would definitely be a next time, because men are lustful by nature, how could they not pick up girls.

He Qijun also told Li Wendi about the conversation in the study about the listing of Yuanhe Newspaper and asked for his opinion.

"We have to listen to the old man, but we don't have to listen to everything he says." Li Wendi saw that He Qijun's face was not right, and said seriously, "Every era has some changes. The listing of Yuanhe Newspaper has both advantages and disadvantages, and it is of great significance to the development of the He family."

"I guess the old man is worried that Yuanhe Newspaper is no longer just a newspaper. He is worried that the He family will lose sight of the main goal and abandon their original newspaper duties to enter the real estate and financial industries. This may put the He family in a storm, making them restless and even becoming the outcasts of the times."

The human heart is never satisfied. Even though He Yongjian is honest and prudent in his work, he would probably be unable to sit still once faced with huge benefits, because a man's ambition to succeed is a strange thing.

He Qijun fell into deep thought. Li Wendi’s words were very consistent with He Zefeng’s personality. Maybe it was really like that.

On the way back, He Qijun kept thinking about what Li Wendi said.

Li Wendi saw that she had been struggling for so long, so he smiled and said, "Don't worry, with the Qinian Newspaper, the He family is still the He family. What your grandfather is worried about will not happen for the time being, so why bother about it."

Even though Li Wendi did not support the He family, as long as Li Wendi was the banner and He Qijun was Mrs. Li, the status of the He family would only rise, even if Yuanhe Newspaper was facing the risk of liquidation and bankruptcy.

He Qijun understood what Li Wendi meant. Li Wendi was the backer of the Qinian Newspaper, which meant that as long as the relationship between the Li and He families existed, there would be no danger.

So He Qijun relaxed her brows and leaned her head on Li Wendi's shoulder. It always makes people feel safe to have someone to lean on.

Regarding the acquisition of Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company, Dasheng Real Estate Company and Luckin Real Estate Company were both secretly absorbing it and were acting very cautiously. Even if there were conflicts, they wanted to give in to each other, and they seemed to have a tacit understanding.

Therefore, the stock price has increased, but not very obviously. In addition, Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company is a small company, and investors did not pay much attention to it. However, the senior management of Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company discovered some clues.

Zhang Qihong, the largest shareholder and chairman of Yongchangsheng Real Estate, became worried. Two forces were trying to acquire his company. It was too late now. However, there was still a glimmer of hope. That was if the two forces fought, he would reap the benefits.

But he didn't want to wait for God's favor, so he set his sights on other board shareholders, hoping to get more than 10% of the shares from them.

At the same time, the transaction between Yuanhe Newspaper and Luckin Coffee was completed, and He Yongjian entered the "shell selection" stage. Due to the limited funds of Yuanhe Newspaper, He Yongjian planned to choose a low-quality listed company to reduce the pressure of early acquisition.

Li Wendi did not point out He Yongguan directly, but explained to He Qijun the shortcomings of a low-quality company. There was indeed little pressure in the early stages, but asset restructuring in the later stages required strong financial resources. Otherwise, the debt problem of the new company could not be solved, and Yuanhe Newspaper would be dragged into this pit.

He Qijun, who had handled acquisitions before, naturally understood the ins and outs of the matter, so she went straight to He Yongjian and explained things to him.

He Zefeng is an old fox. He is not preventing He Yongjian from listing Yuanhe Newspaper, but he hopes to get the attention of He Qijun and get Li Wendi's help. Otherwise, He Yongjian would not be interested in the properties of Luckin Coffee.

This is a chain trap, and the ultimate target is Li Wendi. Moreover, He Zefeng doesn't even need to say anything, things will go smoothly.

Li Wendi smiled and recalled a saying of an ancient soldier: "The worst people in the world are those red-turbaned people (scholars)". It was not until this moment that he understood He Zefeng's tactics.

"As expected of an old hand in the business world, you have eaten more salt than I have eaten rice (used to describe one's rich life experience)!" Li Wendi sighed while sitting on a chair.

He Zefeng has a very accurate grasp of human nature. Of course, Li Wendi doesn't care. After all, it is his wife's family, and it is his duty to help.

What was beyond Li Wendi's expectation was that Dasheng Real Estate Company suddenly announced the acquisition of Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company. Although Changxin Real Estate Company had already taken over, it did not hold many shares, so Luckin Real Estate seemed to be at a disadvantage.

"There are only two options now. One is to raise the stock price and cash out. The other is to discuss with the major shareholders of Yongchangsheng Real Estate on how to take over Yongchangsheng." Li Wendi said in a deep voice to Zhang Yan.

No matter which option you choose, there will be a gap.

Zhang Yan was still hesitant. He was unwilling to choose the former, and he did not want to suffer such a huge loss if he chose the latter.

Li Wendi knows that hesitation is the biggest mistake, because opportunities are fleeting, and every choice has its advantages and disadvantages. If there is a little time difference, the result may be very different.

"You must make a choice before the end of get off work today. It doesn't matter which one." There was a hint of warning in Li Wendi's tone.

"I want to choose the second one, but Luckin Coffee doesn't have that much money and can't compete with Dasheng Real Estate." Zhang Yan said a little disappointed, but his eyes were full of hope. It was obvious that he wanted Li Wendi to spend a lot of money to help.

"If you don't have money, I can lend you 1000 million, but this money comes at a price." Li Wendi said seriously.

Zhang Yan's heart skipped a beat, because Li Wendi was too serious, and it didn't seem like a good thing. "What's the price?"

"Don't worry, it's not illegal or criminal, and you can choose not to do it." Li Wendi smiled faintly, as if teasing Zhang Yan.

"Okay, then let's meet with the major shareholder of Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company right away. If Dasheng Real Estate Company takes action first, we will be in even greater trouble." Zhang Yan began to get anxious. He really needed Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company to fill the gaps of Luckin Real Estate Company.

"Okay, you initiate the acquisition first to prevent shareholders from running to Dasheng Real Estate Company." Li Wendi said with a smile.

Zhang Yan hurriedly left Changxin Real Estate Company and returned to Luckin Coffee to prepare for the acquisition and press conference, hoping to get it done tonight.

Li Wendi stayed in the office with a gloomy face. Dasheng Real Estate Company was really great that they could even find out about such an acquisition case.

It is not scary for Luckin Coffee to lose Yongchangsheng Real Estate because there will always be alternatives. However, some of the acquisitions he envisions have no alternatives, so Dasheng Real Estate has become a potential threat to him and must be suppressed or even eliminated directly.

Of course, the possibility of eliminating Dasheng Real Estate Company is very low. After all, Ma Jincan is not a small figure who has just started out, and the company's strength is not small.

"I can only look for another opportunity later." Li Wendi sighed.

Ma Jincan was indeed experienced. He found Zhang Qihong, the major shareholder of Yongchangsheng Real Estate Company, before Luckin Coffee Real Estate Company to discuss the share transfer.

Seeing that Luckin Coffee did not keep up, Ma Jincan became a little lax and did not want to pay too high a price for the acquisition, so he was only willing to pay a 2% premium.

Zhang Qihong knew that there was another acquiring company, so he was naturally unwilling to sell at a low price, and the negotiations ended in an unpleasant manner.

Li Wendi withdrew 1000 million from his personal funds to pay for the acquisition.

Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Central
Zhang Yan met with Zhang Qihong here. Li Wendi did not show up this time. According to Li Wendi, he would negotiate on his own, and if no agreement could be reached, he would raise the stock price and sell the stocks.

"Hello, Mr. Zhang! I am Zhang Yan from Luckin Real Estate."

"Hello too!" Zhang Qihong is a middle-aged man in his prime. "Mr. Zhang, let's be direct. Dasheng Real Estate Company is offering a 3% premium. I don't have anything to sell. How much premium are you willing to pay?"

Zhang Yan's negotiation experience was not as rich as Li Wendi's, but he knew that Zhang Qihong was bluffing, so he said, "Luckin Real Estate can only offer a 3% premium. I only need Mr. Zhang's 20% of the shares. Mr. Zhang can keep the rest. Or I can raise the stock price and let Mr. Zhang make a fortune in the stock market."

"What makes you think you can raise the stock price? Luckin Coffee is not as strong as Dasheng Real Estate." Zhang Qihong sneered.

Zhang Yan thought for a moment and responded, "I think if I cash out and leave, Mr. Zhang will suffer the most. On the contrary, only if Mr. Zhang trusts me can he gain the greatest benefit. What do you think? Mr. Zhang!"

"Besides, the whole of Hong Kong knows about my relationship with Mr. Li Wendi. It's not a big problem to raise the stock price. What's more important is that I can also raise the stock price with my own ability."

After a series of struggles, Zhang Qihong finally chose to believe Zhang Yan. After all, the conditions offered by Zhang Yan were much higher than those offered by Dasheng Real Estate.

(End of this chapter)