In Hong Kong, we build a global business empire

So many things happened on the first day of 1982, which was truly unexpected for many Hong Kong citizens.

Fortunately, because it is New Year's Day, all four major stock exchanges in Hong Kong are closed.

Otherwise, it's unimaginable how much those stocks related to real estate and finance would fall when the market opened in the morning.

However, the press conference held at the Governor's Palace in the afternoon will likely cause a reversal in the market.

In the afternoon, the two major Hong Kong television stations broadcast the press conference at the Governor's House live, and many citizens watched it with bated breath.

When Governor Sir Michael Murray announced the HK$200 billion “Hong Kong Financial Stability, Property Recovery and Revitalization Fund” in a calm and powerful voice, a faint glimmer of hope rekindled in the eyes of countless citizens who were struggling under the weight of unemployment, mortgage defaults, and debt.

When Sir Michael Meryl Streep specifically mentioned on the television screen that Lam Ho-yin and his corporate alliance would invest more than HK$183 billion and take the lead in the fund's operation, the entire Hong Kong seemed to have been hit by a bombshell, instantly boiling over!
"183 billion! My goodness! Mr. Lin is really generous!"

"Well done! This is the responsibility of Hong Kong businessmen!"

"There's hope! My building is saved! Will the funds take over?"

"I only knew Lin Haoran as the richest man before, but I never expected that he would actually dare to take out real money to save the market at this critical moment!"

"Look at Lin Sheng, and then look at those British and American investors who only know how to withdraw their capital and run away! This is our own people!"

“I knew it! Mr. Lin is different from those foreigners! He bought Hongkong Land and Hong Kong Electric because he really wanted to build a business, not to make a quick buck!”

"With Lin Sheng taking the lead and the Governor's Office providing support, we might actually be able to pull through this time!"

On the streets and alleys, in tea restaurants, office buildings, and factory workshops, there was excited and enthusiastic discussion everywhere.

The long-standing pessimism, panic, and despair that had shrouded Hong Kong seemed to have been pierced by this powerful "money whirlwind," allowing long-lost sunshine and hope to seep in.

Ordinary citizens may not understand complex financial operations, but they understand a very basic principle: if someone is willing to put up astronomical sums of real money to take over and stabilize the market, it means that the market can still be saved, and their assets and their jobs may still have hope.

More importantly, Lin Haoran is Chinese, a native of Hong Kong. His rise to prominence is legendary, and he is a source of pride and a role model for countless Hong Kong people.

At a time when Hong Kong's economy was in its most precarious state, with foreign capital withdrawing en masse and traditional British banks shrinking to protect themselves, this young Chinese tycoon stepped forward with such decisiveness, single-handedly shouldering more than 90% of the "rescue" funds!
This sense of responsibility and boldness instantly propelled his personal reputation to unprecedented heights.

National sentiment, local identity, admiration for the strong, and expectations for personal gain—a mix of emotions made the name "Lin Haoran" a true "reassurance" and "hero" for Hong Kong on this day.

Those who initially held mixed feelings about Lin Haoran's acquisition of British-owned companies such as Hongkong Land and Hong Kong Electric, and even secretly accused him of "profiteering from the crisis," have now quietly changed their tune.

Under the halo of being a "market savior," previous acquisitions seem to be reinterpreted as "visionary planning" and "building strength to turn the tide today."

However, what they didn't know was that this revitalization fund wasn't targeting the real estate market for ordinary people, but rather properties in prime locations with higher value.

Hong Kong's real estate industry is simply beyond the reach of the HK$20 billion revival fund.

Unless he is willing to invest more money.

However, Lin Haoran would never take that step.

Because he knew there was no need for it.

In recent years, far too many real estate companies in Hong Kong have resorted to any means to expand, including taking out loans, raising funds at high interest rates, hoarding land, and speculating on unfinished properties, pushing leverage to its extreme.

The bubble in the entire market has accumulated to an alarming level.

This is a hole that cannot be filled with a few hundred billion yuan, nor is it a problem that can be solved simply by "taking over".

The plight of ordinary citizens burdened with heavy mortgages and watching housing prices plummet is rooted in the housing prices that have been wildly inflated over the past few years, far exceeding their actual income levels.

Even if the Renaissance Fund had the will, it would be powerless to support this huge and unsustainable pie. It would be like a bottomless pit, swallowing up all the funds and ultimately trapping itself in a quagmire.

Lin Haoran had a clear goal from the beginning: he did not want to save all living beings, but to accurately "pick up" those "pearls" with real long-term value that were ruthlessly sold off by panic and debt pressure in this unprecedented asset price collapse.

The real estate development fund targets prime locations in Central, Admiralty, and Tsim Sha Tsui, including land plots and high-quality commercial buildings. These assets were forced to liquidate due to excessive leverage or involvement in a chain of debt crises by their original owners.

These assets may be severely undervalued in the current market sentiment, but their scarce geographical locations, solid physical attributes, and long-term rental income potential determine that once the crisis is over, their value will surely make a triumphant return.

For ordinary citizens, the housing market can only wait for time, for the bubble to burst, for the economic cycle to recover naturally, and for a new supply-demand balance to emerge.

This process is destined to be painful and lengthy, but it is the inevitable growing pain of market self-regulation.

Therefore, these citizens were destined to have their hopes dashed.

Real estate companies that are destined to go bankrupt will go bankrupt or collapse, just like in another world, mercilessly crushed by the wheels of history.

Jianing Group, Yida Group, Jianian Real Estate, Taisheng Development...

These names, which once enjoyed immense success and soaring stock prices during the real estate boom, are now like candles flickering in the wind, teetering on the brink of collapse.

Their towering debts, complex guarantee chains, and seemingly vast but actually hollow assets proved incredibly vulnerable in the face of suddenly tightened credit and a continuously declining market.

The establishment of the recovery fund, for most of them, is not a lifeline, but may instead hasten their demise.

As the sun sets, darkness sweeps across Hong Kong.

Soon, darkness enveloped the entire city of Hong Kong.

However, the heated discussions among citizens did not stop.

They began to have a glimmer of hope for property prices in Hong Kong.

……

Meanwhile, as Hong Kong was shrouded in darkness, the United States, far away in the Western Hemisphere, was also welcoming the dawn.

9:00 AM New York time, Times Square, New York.

At this moment, Times Square is bustling with activity, attracting tourists from all over the world.

However, in a building less than 100 meters from the NASDAQ stock exchange, amidst the towering skyscrapers and steel forest, it was very quiet at this moment.

Although it was morning, only a few security guards were patrolling the building.

The reason is, of course, because today is New Year's Day.

As a statutory holiday in the United States, most people across the country have the day off.

However, at this moment, in an ordinary office on the 32nd floor of this building, Su Zhixue was holding a calculator in his left hand and a pen in his right, seriously calculating something.

Meanwhile, a report that was already more than half-written was already on the side.

On New Year's Day, all US stock markets were closed, so the employees of Huanyu Investment Company were naturally given a holiday.

Originally, Su Zhixue had planned to take his wife and children to the amusement park today to give himself a good vacation.

However, when he woke up in the morning, he saw the Forbes article about his boss, Lin Haoran.

For Su Zhixue, Lin Haoran was his benefactor. How could he tolerate being targeted by an American magazine company like this?

So he felt he should do something.

Early in the morning, after saying goodbye to his wife and children, he rushed back to his office to calculate the company's profits during this period.

Thanks to the arrangements made by their boss, Lin Haoran, during his time in the United States, Su Zhixue led his team to make early plans.

As the boss predicted, the US stock market did indeed plummet.

The last time he called his boss, Lin Haoran, to report on the situation of Huanyu Investment Company, it was Christmas. Before Christmas, according to real-time data, Huanyu Investment Company had already made a floating profit of $7.2 million by shorting US stocks during the decline!

Now, another week has passed.

US stocks continued to fall this week.

It's just that the decline wasn't as dramatic as before.

Nevertheless, Huanyu Investment Company's book profit has taken another big step forward!

The calculator eventually arrived at a figure: $10.4 billion!
Even Su Zhixue, who had followed Lin Haoran through many schemes, was full of praise upon seeing this data.

Of course, this wasn't the most profitable investment the boss had ever made, but he couldn't help but marvel at it every time.

God, you are truly amazing!

Each time, the boss seems to be like a god, possessing extraordinary insight and accurate judgment in the field of investment.

In comparison, what are those American financial tycoons?
During this period, Huanyu Investment Company operated through securities lending, leverage, complex financial instruments, and offshore structures, and sold the shares obtained through high-priced securities lending at almost the highest price.

As long as Huanyu Investment Company buys back the shares from the market and returns them to the major securities firms, it will have earned this substantial cash.

However, following his boss's wishes, Su Zhixue insisted on not taking the next step. As a result, a week later, the company's financial statements showed an additional $3.2 million in profit compared to the previous week, bringing the total to $10.4 billion.

He calculated it several more times, making sure it was based on yesterday's closing stock price. After Huanyu Investment Company confirmed that this was the amount of profit, he put the calculator aside and began to write a report seriously.

This is an English report that describes the entire investment process of Universal Investment Company.

He didn't put down his pen until half an hour later, satisfied.

He then checked the time on his watch: 10:28 a.m. New York time.

At this moment, it should be 10:28 PM in Hong Kong, and the boss should still be awake.

After some hesitation, he finally called his boss, Lin Haoran, who was in Hong Kong.

Lin Haoran, far away in Hong Kong, was already at his villa on Shi Xun Road, with Guo Xiaohan leaning against him. Guo Xiaohan had taken a ferry from Xiangshan back to Hong Kong that afternoon, so Lin Haoran had returned to his home on Shi Xun Road that evening.

Guo Xiaohan talked at length about what she had seen and heard in Hong Kong over the past few days, such as how she gained the cooperation of local government officials and the support of local disaster victims.

He spoke with a face full of pride.

Charity is a good thing, and Guo Xiaohan is doing this charity work entirely for Lin Haoran.

She wants to make the Lin Haoran Charitable Foundation a household name, so that all of Hong Kong and even the world will know that Lin Haoran is not only a business genius, but also a philanthropist with a heart full of love.

Lin Haoran listened with a smile, nodding occasionally, his eyes filled with approval and tenderness.

Guo Xiaohan's enthusiasm and drive are one of the reasons he admires her.

Lin Haoran knew that Guo Xiaohan was actually a business genius with great talent.

But for her own sake, she was willing to give up her business career and go to do charity work for Lin Haoran, which moved Lin Haoran deeply.

Just as Guo Xiaohan was getting into her story, the black, sleek mobile phone in the living room rang.

Lin Haoran raised his hand to signal, and Guo Xiaohan immediately fell silent and quietly nestled beside him.

"Hello?" Lin Haoran picked up the receiver.

"Boss, this is Su Zhixue." Su Zhixue sounded slightly excited on the other end of the phone. The background was unusually quiet, indicating that he was in his office. "I'm sorry to bother you so late."

"Zhixue, Happy New Year! What's up? Shouldn't you be on vacation with your wife right now?" Lin Haoran asked with a smile.

"Happy New Year, boss!"

Su Zhixue responded first, and then continued, "Boss, I decided to report to you immediately after reading the Forbes article about you today."

They're talking complete nonsense; they have no idea of ​​your true strength!

Lin Haoran's lips curled up almost imperceptibly as his gaze swept over the Forbes magazine that had been flown in from the United States on the coffee table.

Since Forbes has not yet launched in Hong Kong, the articles in various media outlets about Lin Haoran published by Forbes are simply reprints of Forbes articles.

"Oh? So you made a special trip back to the company just for this?"

“Yes, boss.” Su Zhixue’s voice carried a suppressed excitement. “I felt I had to respond with facts. I carefully calculated all our positions and unrealized profits in the US stock market during this downturn.”

On the other end of the phone, Lin Haoran remained calm, simply giving a soft "hmm" to signal him to continue.

Although Guo Xiaohan couldn't hear the specifics, she could sense the seriousness of the atmosphere, so she nestled closer to him quietly, even softening her breathing.

"As of yesterday's closing, based on market prices, our unrealized profit is..." Su Zhixue took a deep breath and announced the figure he had repeatedly calculated and confirmed to be correct, "It's $10.4 billion!"
Moreover, this only includes our profits from direct short selling in the US stock market.

Even Lin Haoran, who had already anticipated the general outcome, showed a faint glimmer of satisfaction in his deep eyes when he heard the exact number.

This pace is faster than he anticipated before leaving New York, and Su Zhixue and his team's execution is indeed outstanding.

This round of decline in US stocks seems to have come more rapidly and violently than I remember from my previous life. Perhaps it was the chain reaction triggered by my advance planning and those remarks that produced a subtle butterfly effect.

"Well done, Zhixue, thank you for your hard work and the team," Lin Haoran praised.

"It's all thanks to your precise planning, boss!" Su Zhixue said hurriedly, his admiration undiminished. "The strategy you devised before leaving New York was perfectly timed, hitting every market turning point. I was just following your plan."

He paused, then lowered his voice again, as if seeking instructions, "Boss, Forbes' move is aimed at suppressing Oriental Media Group. I think it is very necessary for you to retaliate, as this will cause huge damage to your reputation and the influence of Oriental Media Group."

Therefore, based on all the operations during this period and the current profit situation, I have written a detailed process report, which is entirely based on facts.

I believe we can selectively disclose key data and investment logic to authoritative media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal or the Financial Times.

Forbes is questioning you, right? We'll let our solid results speak for themselves!

Su Zhixue's proposal exuded a sharp edge.

In his view, this is not only a chance to vindicate the boss, but also the best opportunity for Huanyu Investment, a rising star in the global financial world, to make its name known.

Amidst the doubts, a resounding victory serves as an undeniable demonstration of strength—there is no more powerful rebuttal.

This short-selling strategy in the US stock market is just one of many moves by Huanyu Investment Company. In Su Zhixue's view, even if this strategy is made public, it will not reveal the true strength of Huanyu Investment Company!
After listening to Su Zhixue's impassioned proposal, Lin Haoran showed a calm smile on his face.

Su Zhixue was considerate of him, and he did not blame him.

After all, the other party is a subordinate with 100% loyalty to him, so it's normal for them to think of him in every way.

However, he had no such intention.

Global Investment Company is his trump card and an important part of his strategy in the United States and even globally, so he has never thought of revealing any of his plans.

Lin Haoran pondered for a moment and then smiled, "Zhixue, I understand your intentions and your keen insight. I appreciate your desire to prove myself with my achievements."

He changed the subject, with a calm and detached air: "However, we don't have to follow the path drawn by Forbes. If they question us, we should immediately show our cards to prove them wrong."

Doesn't this fall right into their rhythm?

Su Zhixue paused slightly on the other end of the phone: "Boss, what do you mean?"

"The strength of Huanyu Investment is our trump card that determines victory or defeat at critical moments, not a bargaining chip to deal with media questions. The unrealized profit of $10.4 billion is just a glimpse into our massive strategy."

The real battle is far from over. Proactively handing over this "report card" to the Wall Street Journal now may bring temporary amazement, but it could also expose us to the spotlight too early and make us the target of public criticism.

The sharks of Wall Street swarm when they smell blood. We have more important operations to conduct later, and we need a quiet environment.

"As for Forbes, don't worry, I already have a plan," Lin Haoran said solemnly.

Although he made those remarks at MIT while he was in the United States, he never said that he had any plans for this.

For him, it's better to keep a low profile when it comes to making money.

He was no longer willing to tolerate the repeated provocations from Forbes, the well-known American business magazine.

This time, he's going to make Forbes pay the real price for its arrogance and prejudice.

We must retaliate; we absolutely must retaliate.

So what about America's three major financial magazines?
What will become of the world's top business media in the future?

Upon hearing this, Su Zhixue said awkwardly, "I'm sorry, boss, I took it upon myself to make this decision. Since you've already made arrangements, I won't worry about it anymore."

Regarding Huanyu Investment, I will continue to follow your instructions, maintaining absolute silence to ensure all positions and subsequent operations are flawless.

Hearing Su Zhixue say this, Lin Haoran smiled with satisfaction.

He liked this about Su Zhixue: he could offer his own insights and quickly adjust his approach after understanding the overall situation, and then resolutely implement them.

These are the qualities a truly capable and competent person should possess.

“Zhixue, there’s no need to apologize. I greatly admire your loyalty and keen insight in thinking of me and the company’s reputation right away.”

Huanyu Investment's success today is inseparable from your and the efforts of the entire team.

However, the chessboard we face is vast, and sometimes, patience and waiting require more wisdom and composure than an immediate counterattack.

"Yes, boss, I understand." Su Zhixue's initial resentment and eagerness completely dissipated, replaced by a deeper respect for his boss.

"I will guard this side of New York and await your next instructions."

"Okay." Lin Haoran nodded, as if he could see Su Zhixue's calm expression through the telephone line.

He continued, "Enjoy your holiday at the start of the new year. There are still many tough battles to fight. You and your team need to stay in top form. Please give my regards to your wife and children."

"Thank you, boss! I also wish you and Ms. Guo a Happy New Year!" Su Zhixue said sincerely.

After hanging up the phone, Lin Haoran gently placed the mobile phone back in its original position.

The living room returned to silence, with only the faint sound of ship horns drifting from the distant Victoria Harbour.

Guo Xiaohan then leaned closer, asking with curiosity and a hint of admiration, "Brother Haoran, was that President Su calling? Is there some trouble in America? You seemed so serious when you were talking just now."

Lin Haoran reached out and pulled her into his arms, feeling her warmth and faint fragrance. The coldness he had exuded during their phone conversation about business competition dissipated considerably.

He smiled calmly and said, "It's not much trouble. It's just some flies buzzing around in the shadows, trying to annoy us. But they'll soon find out that disturbing the wrong people comes at a price."

Guo Xiaohan nodded as if she understood, but seeing Lin Haoran's confident expression, she felt completely at ease.

Her brother Haoran is omnipotent.

"Let's go, it's late. In the new year, let's do some things we haven't done yet." Lin Haoran suddenly stood up, picked her up by the waist, and strode towards the bedroom amidst Guo Xiaohan's exclamation.

"Ah! Brother Haoran!" Guo Xiaohan was caught off guard, her cheeks instantly flushed red, and she instinctively wrapped her arms around Lin Haoran's neck, burying her face in his firm chest, her heart pounding like a drum.

Lin Haoran looked down at the shy and radiant woman in his arms, his coldness replaced by burning tenderness.

In the turbulent world of business, amidst deceit and treachery, he temporarily put aside the scheming and media storms that raged in New York.

At this moment, all he wanted was to hold the woman in his arms, who had given him everything, and welcome the first day of the new year, a new beginning that belonged to them. (End of Chapter)