In Hong Kong, we build a global business empire

Under normal circumstances, MacLehose always follows the established rules in his actions and is fair and just in handling many affairs in Hong Kong. He is highly recognized by the citizens of Hong Kong and is considered a relatively competent governor.

However, in situations like this that threaten Hong Kong's largest British-owned enterprise, the Governor's Office would often tend to protect British interests. The political and economic considerations behind this are complex.

As the Governor of Hong Kong, based on MacLehose's governing philosophy, he did not want to pay attention to the complicated competition between Bank of East Asia and Bank of Hong Kong.

But in this special land of Hong Kong, the political landscape and the economic lifeline are closely intertwined, and British-owned enterprises have long occupied a pivotal position. They are not only the economic pillar, but also an extension of the political influence under British colonial rule.

As the largest British bank in Hong Kong, the stability and development of Bank of Hong Kong are related to the interests of many British forces. Once turmoil occurs, it is very likely to trigger a series of chain reactions, impacting the political and economic order carefully constructed by Britain in Hong Kong.

MacLehault naturally knew that although he was the governor and seemed to have supreme power, he was actually constrained by many factors.

Britain's colonial policy towards Hong Kong had a strict framework and guidance, and safeguarding British interests was seen as an important part of consolidating colonial rule.

Faced with the increasingly fierce competition between Bank of East Asia and Bank of East Asia, which may even threaten the position of Bank of East Asia, he cannot deal with it only from the perspective of pure business rules.

Therefore, he now has to step forward, and even change his previous style of being relatively neutral and interfering as little as possible in the free competition of the market. He began to deeply intervene in the business competition between Huifeng Bank and Lin Haoran, and even took a tough attitude towards Lin Haoran.

As soon as Lin Haoran finished speaking, Mai Lihao and Shen Bi were surprised.

Is that all you ask?
They originally thought that even if Lin Haoran finally agreed, the conditions he proposed would be very unfavorable to Huifeng Bank.

After all, Lin Haoran is now a powerful figure. With his current assets, if he is really forced into a corner, Lin Haoran can withdraw his investment from Hong Kong and run to other places and still be very free and easy.

Moreover, both Mai Lihao and Shen Bi actually knew that Lin Haoran had already invested a lot of money in Japan, the United States and other places.

In other words, Lin Haoran already has huge assets overseas.

As the richest man in Hong Kong today, Lin Haoran controls companies such as the Hong Kong Land Development, Hong Kong Electric Group, China Gas, and Hong Kong Telephone. His influence on Hong Kong's business community is very great.

If he chooses to withdraw his investment because he is dissatisfied with Hong Kong's business environment, it will not only have a huge impact on Hong Kong's business community, but may also trigger a series of chain reactions.

As a free trade port, the stability and prosperity of Hong Kong's economic system depends to a large extent on the flow of international capital and the vigorous development of local enterprises.

Therefore, in fact, Mai Lihao did not want to offend Lin Haoran too much, and now he said harsh words only because he had no choice.

But they didn't expect that the second request Lin Haoran made was actually lowered so much?
Mai Lihao and Shen Bi looked at each other and saw surprise in each other's eyes.

Could it be that Lin Haoran just gave in because of Mai Lihao’s tough attitude?
Both of them obviously thought of this possibility and immediately revealed a barely perceptible smile.

The government's announcement that it would not intervene in the competition between the two parties was not a complicated matter for MacLehose; it was just a matter of official document.

As for Shen Bi, as long as Lin Haoran did not use their past evidence to stir up trouble overseas, he had no worries that Huifeng Bank would not be able to defeat the Bank of East Asia in normal business competition.

This is Hong Kong, and their Bank of China is the king of Hong Kong’s financial world!
But Mai Lihao still had doubts in his heart. Was there a deeper plan behind Lin Haoran lowering his requirements so easily?
At this moment, they had no idea what Lin Haoran was thinking.

On the way here, Lin Haoran knew that given the complicated relationship between the Governor's Office and British companies, especially Huifeng Bank, it was only a matter of time before the Governor's Office intervened.

Just like before, when there was business competition between him and Jardine Matheson, it was the Governor-General's Office that eventually intervened, forcing him to give up control of Jardine Matheson.

Therefore, he did not expect that the other party would agree to his requests.

There was no loss for Lin Haoran by agreeing to give up the threat of exposing his negative information.

Especially now that he is planning to short Huifeng Bank, he cannot let the share price of Huifeng Bank fall too much for the time being.

Otherwise, there would be no point for him to short Huifeng Bank.

In addition, from ancient times to the present, businessmen do not fight with officials. This is an eternal truth, especially in Hong Kong, a land under British colonial rule. The boundaries between politics and business are inherently blurred, and British-owned companies and the Governor's Office have close ties.

Therefore, Lin Haoran was not willing to offend Mai Lihao too much.

However, it would be a good opportunity to take this opportunity to make Mai Lihao promise not to interfere in the competition between him and Huifeng Bank.

After all, he was very confident about the next counterattack against Huifeng Bank.

Either one would cause Huifeng Bank to suffer heavy losses.

Once the Governor's Office issues an announcement stating that it will not interfere in their business competition, Lin Haoran will be able to let go and implement his plan with all his strength.

Seeing that neither Shen Bi nor Mai Lihao spoke, Lin Haoran smiled and said, "Why, Mr. Governor, is my request too much?"

Only then did Mai Lihao come to his senses.

After thinking for a while, he said, "Mr. Lin, thank you for making concessions for the sake of the overall situation. I can naturally agree to your request. On behalf of the Governor's Office, I can promise Mr. Lin that as long as the two of you do not violate laws and regulations in your business competition, the Governor's Office will not interfere in your competition.

However, I also hope that Mr. Lin can keep his promise and stop using those improper means overseas to suppress the Bank of China. This is a very immoral behavior that may destroy the business ecology of Hong Kong and will also plunge the entire business community into unrest and chaos. "

The reason why Huifeng Bank is so afraid of Lin Haoran's move is simply because they are now in the most critical stage of overseas expansion, and many core business layouts and acquisition strategy plans are in a sensitive period.

The evidence of Huifeng Bank's scandals that Lin Haoran possessed was enough to cause severe damage to Huifeng Bank's overseas development, and might even trigger an investigation by international regulators, causing its overseas expansion plans to be completely shelved.

They are naturally unwilling to be trapped in the small market of Hong Kong. Therefore, allowing Huifeng Bank to move out of Hong Kong and expand into broader overseas markets is Huifeng Bank’s most important strategic goal at present.

Today, Huifeng Bank is wary of Lin Haoran’s influence overseas.

They already knew that Lin Haoran had strong connections and business tentacles in the United States, Japan and other places.

Once Lin Haoran uses these overseas relationships to launch an offensive against Huifeng Bank, especially by making a fuss at key points in Huifeng Bank's overseas layout, Huifeng Bank will face countless troubles in its subsequent overseas expansion process.

But as long as Lin Haoran does not engage in any overseas activities, Shen Bi feels that Huifeng Bank will be able to maintain its leading position in future competitions.

This is Hong Kong after all. The influence and deterrence they have accumulated in Hong Kong over the past 100 years are much higher than Lin Haoran's.

Even if the Governor's Office promised not to interfere in their competition with Lin Haoran, Shen Bi felt that Huifeng Bank had a greater chance of winning.

Therefore, there is no need to cancel the "choose one of two" targeted strategy, and Lin Haoran can give up attacking Huifeng Bank in the form of negative publicity. This is already the best solution at the moment.

Shen Bi secretly felt lucky that he had the support of the governor. Otherwise, if only HSBC Bank came forward, they would probably have to promise the other party a lot of benefits.

"Okay, since the Governor has agreed, let's sign an agreement. Once the agreement is signed, I will immediately have people cancel overseas cooperation with local mainstream media and stop mentioning any negative news related to Huifeng Bank.

Of course, there is a premise here. If Huifeng Bank launches a propaganda war against Bank of East Asia, we will still take necessary measures to defend our own rights and interests. I hope that the Governor and Mr. Shen Bi can understand this. "Lin Haoran added.

"I don't have any problem." Shen Bi assured at the moment.

Next, now that a consensus has been reached, subsequent matters will be handled much more smoothly.

The three of them put pen to paper and signed a binding agreement.

The agreement clearly stipulated that the Governor's Office promised not to interfere in the normal commercial competition between Bank of East Asia and Bank of Hong Kong, and issued a formal announcement to the whole of Hong Kong the next day to make its position clear to all sectors of society.

At the same time, Lin Haoran needs to immediately issue an order to stop further exposure of the scandals of Huifeng Bank through mainstream media in Hong Kong and overseas.

On behalf of Huifeng Bank, Shen Bi also solemnly promised that he would not launch an attack on Bank of East Asia through propaganda warfare.

"Mr. Lin, since the agreement has been signed, you might as well call now. I don't want to see any negative reports about Huifeng Bank in tomorrow's newspaper."

Shen Bi's eyes were fixed on Lin Haoran, and there was a sense of urgency in his tone. Obviously, he was eager to see Lin Haoran fulfill his promise and eliminate the current unfavorable public opinion haze against Huifeng Bank.

"Mr. Lin, you can use the landline on my desk." Mai Lihao also raised his hand slightly to signal.

Lin Haoran nodded, and without delaying any time, he quickly walked to Mai Lihao's desk, picked up the Governor's office's exclusive phone, and called Cui Zilong.

As Lin Haoran's exclusive intelligence chief, Cui Zilong naturally has his own mobile phone now.

Therefore, even though Cui Zilong is most likely not in the office now, Lin Haoran can easily find him.

The call was quickly connected.

Lin Haoran succinctly stated his identity and intentions, and asked Cui Zilong to immediately terminate all negative exposure plans about Huifeng Bank, and to stop cooperation with both local and overseas media in Hong Kong immediately.

"Don't worry, boss. I'll arrange it right away! The final draft of Oriental Daily has also been revised!" Cui Zilong answered directly.

In fact, when Cui Zilong and Lin Haoran were planning the strategy to deal with Huifeng Bank, they had already taken into account that Governor Mai Lihao would intervene. Therefore, neither Lin Haoran nor Cui Zilong felt very surprised or unwilling.

The exposure of the black material was just an insignificant little strategy in their plan, but its actual impact was beyond their imagination.

They didn't expect that Huifeng Bank would have such a big reaction.

After Lin Haoran hung up the phone, he turned around, smiled at Mai Lihao and Shen Bi, and said, "You two, everything has been arranged. I believe you will see the results you want tomorrow."

Mai Lihao and Shen Bi looked at each other, their satisfaction evident in their eyes. Mai Lihao nodded slightly, and his tone softened: "Mr. Lin is really quick to act. I hope that both of you can abide by the agreement and jointly maintain the stability of Hong Kong's business environment. The dinner at the Governor's Mansion should be ready. Why don't we move to the restaurant and have dinner together?"

Lin Haoran shook his head and said, "Mr. Governor, due to the sudden change in the company's development strategy, I need to return to the company immediately to hold an emergency meeting to deploy the next business adjustments.

I really cannot stay here for long today. I hope the Governor will forgive me. When I have settled my affairs, I will come to your house in person to apologize to you and make up for this dinner."

In fact, he had no interest in staying here for dinner at the moment.

After all, the two people in front of him tonight were targeting him. Even if they appeared to be friendly on the surface, he would still feel uncomfortable while eating this meal.

He didn't have the time to pretend to please others, and he didn't like the Western food at the Governor's Mansion either. It would be better for him to go back and have a good meal.

Mai Lihao Mai Lihao saw that Lin Haoran was determined to leave, but he did not show any displeasure. He was just a little surprised, but quickly regained his composure.

After all, Mai Lihao was very clear that what he did today was actually very unkind.

However, as the British Governor-General stationed in Hong Kong, he had to first consider the ruling foundation and interests of the British Empire in Hong Kong.

In order to maintain the influence of the British financial power behind Huifeng Bank in Hong Kong, he had to make such a seemingly inhumane move.

Mai Lihao stood up, still with that perfect smile on his face, and said, "Since Mr. Lin has something important to do, I naturally can't force him to stay.

I just hope Mr. Lin will not bear a grudge because of what happened today. In the future, Hong Kong's business community will still need elite forces like you to jointly promote development. We may still have the possibility of working together on many matters."

Lin Haoran sneered in his heart, but his face remained calm. He bowed slightly and responded neither servilely nor arrogantly: "Mr. Governor, you are too kind. I always put the overall situation first and will not let a temporary matter affect my expectations for the development of Hong Kong's business community.

However, the company's affairs are urgent at the moment and we cannot delay any further. I hope the Governor will understand."

Mai Lihao nodded and personally sent Lin Haoran to the door.

Sitting in the back seat of the Rolls-Royce, Lin Haoran recalled the confrontation between him, Shen Bi, and Mai Lihao, with an imperceptible smile on his face.

Maybe Shen Bi thought he had completely compromised?

Little did they know that Huifeng Bank would face an even more severe storm in the future.

In the Governor's Mansion, Shen Bi and Bao John, who were about to have dinner with MacLehose, suddenly received a report from Huifeng Bank: Galaxy Securities, a subsidiary of the Hong Kong Land Group, was borrowing a large amount of Huifeng Bank shares in an attempt to short Huifeng Bank.

After receiving such information, neither Shen Bi nor Bao John would have the mood to stay in the Governor's Mansion for dinner.

So both of them had to say goodbye to Mai Lihao and left the Governor's Mansion in a hurry.

The Governor's Mansion prepared a sumptuous dinner, but no one was interested.

Mai Lihao looked at the gradually cooling delicacy, frowned slightly, and felt mixed emotions.

Time passed quickly and another night passed.

In the morning, many citizens who like to read newspapers go to various newsstands as usual and ask the newsstand owners for a copy of "Oriental Daily News".

Yesterday, the content published by Oriental Daily really shocked the whole of Hong Kong. Citizens were discussing the various "dark secrets" of Hui Feng Bank in the past, and were waiting to see whether there would be more shocking revelations in the follow-up.

Because, as the newspapers also wrote, there will be more negative news about Huifeng Bank reported every day.

Yesterday, the citizens were already filled with resentment towards Hui Feng Bank. Such an unscrupulous company actually became the overlord of Hong Kong's financial world.

They stood up for Hengsheng Bank and could not tolerate Huifeng Bank's arrogance. However, they also understood that their own power was as small as that of an ant. They could only gather in tea restaurants and street corner pavilions in groups of three or five, taking advantage of the wave of public opinion stirred up by newspaper revelations, and vent their dissatisfaction with Huifeng Bank in angry words with a Cantonese accent.

"The shady dealings are really blinding. Huifeng Bank always claims to be the industry leader, but secretly they are doing things that harm others and benefit themselves!"

"That's right. Hengsheng Bank was doing business honestly, but Huifeng Bank acquired it by unscrupulous means. Is there any fairness in this world?"

"The newspapers are reporting new news every day. I wonder how the Bank of China can survive. Once their reputation becomes bad, someone will naturally punish them!"

Yesterday, the streets and alleys of Hong Kong were very lively.

The 50 copies of Oriental Daily printed were sold out.

You know, under normal circumstances, only a few hundred thousand or a few hundred thousand copies are sold.

From the sales figures, we can tell what kind of storm the scandal of Hui Feng Bank revealed by Oriental Daily yesterday has caused in the hearts of Hong Kong citizens.

Therefore, everyone wants to know what kind of scandals about Huifeng Bank will be reported by Oriental Daily today?

Many citizens are looking forward to it.

So, this is why Oriental Daily was snapped up as usual early this morning.

However, to everyone's surprise, today's edition of Oriental Daily did not continue to expose the dark side of Huifeng Bank as in the last article. Instead, the front-page headline was actually an announcement from the Governor's Office.

The content of the announcement was very simple. The Governor's Office announced that as long as the commercial competition between the Bank of East Asia and the Bank of East Asia did not violate any laws or regulations, the Governor's Office would not interfere in any way between the two parties.

Apart from this announcement from the Governor's Office, where else are there any negative reports about Huifeng Bank?

After receiving the newspaper, many citizens were stunned at first, then looked disappointed, and muttered: "What's going on? Where is today's news?"

Some people did not give up and quickly flipped through the newspapers, trying to find even a trace of dirty tricks about Huifeng Bank in some corner, but in the end they found nothing.

"It must be that Huifeng Bank asked the Governor's Office to intervene, forcing the Oriental Daily to stop reporting on Huifeng Bank." A citizen frowned and speculated.

"It's really possible. The Bank is so powerful in Hong Kong, and the behavior of Oriental Daily News has had a great impact on the reputation of the Bank. If they continue to report like this every day, how can the Bank still have face? It's normal for the Governor's Office to step in to stop it." Another citizen echoed.

"After all, it's all about protecting the interests of British companies like Huifeng Bank. What do the voices of ordinary people mean to them?" A middle-aged man was indignant, and the newspaper in his hand was wrinkled.

"Well, that's right. After all, the sky of Hong Kong is still controlled by those foreigners and the forces they support." An old man nearby sighed helplessly, his eyes full of loneliness.

What does the behavior of Oriental Daily represent?
In everyone's opinion, this meant that the Oriental Daily had finally surrendered to the interference of the Governor's Office.

Someone called the customer service of Oriental Daily and the response they received was that due to force majeure, the relevant reporting had been suspended.

This response undoubtedly confirmed the citizens' speculation and made everyone feel more strongly about the injustice and oppression represented by Huifeng Bank and the forces behind it.

In a conference room at Huifeng Bank headquarters.

At this moment, an emergency meeting is being held here.

"Everyone, I have good news for you. The intelligence we have received shows that not only in Hong Kong, but also in Japan, the United States, and Europe, the mainstream media have stopped reporting on our Huifeng Bank." Shen Bi stood up and reported to the senior executives on the scene.

Suddenly, there was a burst of applause at the scene.

In their opinion, Huifeng Bank won again this time.

"In addition, there is one thing that we need to discuss. According to the latest information we have, Galaxy Securities, owned by Lin Haoran, is currently shorting our Huifeng Bank shares. How should we respond?" Shen Bi continued.

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a burst of discussion at the scene.

Short selling Huifeng Bank?
"Mr. Shen Bi, do they think that the share price of our Huifeng Bank will definitely plummet?" another senior executive raised the question.

"Based on the current situation of Huifeng Bank, the share price of Huifeng Bank has passed the bottom and will rebound next, so I don't believe that the share price of Huifeng Bank will plummet!" Shen Bi answered directly.

The businesses of companies such as Hong Kong Land Group have been transferred to Bank of East Asia, and their share prices have already fallen.

In this case, it means that their difficulties have been overcome.

At this time, will Huifeng Bank continue to fall sharply?

They don't believe it!
Unless, Lin Haoran's Bank of East Asia can seize a lot of market share from Huifeng Bank, but how is this possible?

In the conference room, discussions immediately broke out.

"Mr. Shen Bi, and everyone else, last night, with the help of the Governor's Office, we successfully forced Lin Haoran to stop reporting the scandal about our bank through the media. This is undoubtedly a positive signal, meaning that the biggest crisis we faced before has been resolved.

Lin Haoran attempted to short-sell Huifeng Bank, presumably because he believed that under the impact of negative media reports, the bank's stock price would continue to fall. However, the situation has now reversed, and their wishful thinking has completely failed.

In addition, according to reliable information, Galaxy Securities has borrowed a large number of our bank's stocks. Taking advantage of this good opportunity, I propose to immediately launch a market protection operation, using our own funds to repurchase shares on a large scale in the market, so as to raise the stock price and make Lin Haoran and others suffer heavy losses in this game.

At the same time, we can make full use of the opportunity that the Oriental Daily no longer follows up on the negative reports about our bank, and secretly arrange people to spread the news, claiming that Lin Haoran has been forced to admit defeat in this contest. In this way, market confidence will surely increase greatly, and the stock price is expected to rise further! "At this time, John Bao once again proposed a strategy. (End of this chapter)