Hong Kong 1980: The Savage Era

Chapter 111 [Li Yude's Family]

Seeing Lin Luoqi's thoughtful look, Luo Qihong exaggerated and said, "Jide Real Estate Company can be sold. If Yiren Real Estate Company cannot be obtained, it can also be sold, right?"

Lin Luoqi looked at Luo Qihong in surprise, his expression was quite complicated, with excitement and worry.
It seems that Lin Luoqi also thought of this method, but he was afraid of Lin Zuhui's majesty and did not dare to take any action.

Luo Qihong smiled and said, "Jide Real Estate Company was originally managed by Lin Luoxun and Lin Luoshi. Now that you have sold it, don't these two brothers want to sell your Yiren Real Estate Company?"

Lin Luoqi hesitated for half a minute and responded, "I'm worried that my brother and the others can't do it well. If they mess it up, I will suffer a huge loss."

Luo Qihong grinned. He just said it casually to create some conflicts for the Lin family and to perfunctorily deal with Lin Luoqi. As for how to choose, that was Lin Luoqi's business.

On behalf of his father Lin Zuhui, Lin Luoqi invited Luo Qihong to attend tomorrow's dinner and chat about the affairs of the Hong Kong Electric Company.

Luo Qihong wanted to refuse, but Lin Luoqi kept persuading him.

On this day, Hong Kong Land Development announced the acquisition of Hong Kong Electric Company: one new share of Hong Kong Land Development would be exchanged for one share of Hong Kong Electric Company, or for cash, at a 2% premium.

The next morning, major newspapers published huge acquisition advertisements from the Hong Kong Land Company, causing quite a stir.

This is a common tactic used by the Jardine Matheson Group. It has been used on the Dairy Farm and the Wharf Holdings. Now it is being used on the Electric Light Company again. There is nothing new about it.

But it is still very practical. A new share of Hong Kong Land Development is more valuable than a share of Hong Kong Electric Company, and it is easy to sell on the stock market, which is equivalent to directly giving more cash, so it is very attractive.

Of course, Hong Kong stock investors have encountered many company acquisitions and subconsciously believe that there will be another wave of bids, so they are not in a hurry to go to the Huoduoli company.

So, in just one morning, the share price of the Electric Light Company rose to the acquisition price announced by the Landmark Company, and it was still trending upward.

Luo Qihong looked at the light bulb and 6.36 yuan (stock price) written on the white paper with a dull look in his eyes, and he was obviously deep in thought.

The price of 6.36 yuan per share was somewhat beyond Luo Qihong's expectations. Now he was thinking: Can Connor withstand the attack of the Jardine Matheson Group? If Connor secretly escapes, the current stock price will definitely not be maintained. If Connor does not run away, at what price is it most appropriate to sell the stock?

After struggling for nearly two hours, Luo Qihong decided to take a risk. Such a good opportunity should not be wasted.

Sure enough, in the afternoon, Rothschild & Sons, the company commissioned by the Connor family, announced that the Connor family company had joined the acquisition of the electric light company and offered 7.4 yuan per share.

This price was not very attractive because when the stock market opened in the afternoon, the share price of the electric light company had risen to 6.6 yuan, which was only a 1% premium. How could it satisfy investors?

This move also made Luo Qihong see the weakness of the Connor family and the gap between them and the Bao family, so he suppressed his greed and called Zhang Taotao to start selling small shares slowly.

As for the shares of the electric light company held by Zhaoan Real Estate Company, Luo Qihong could only make arrangements later.

As Luo Qihong expected, by the afternoon closing, the stock price of the electric light company had risen to 7.2 yuan.

Zhang Taotao reported the selling situation: after 2 hours of selling, a total of 257 million shares were sold, with an average price of 6.91 yuan, and funds of 1740.35 million yuan were recovered.

Luo Qihong asked Zhang Taotao to sell at a price above 7 yuan tomorrow and try to sell 1 million shares. Zhang Taotao naturally agreed and said he would do his best.

Luo Qihong suppressed his excitement. If the average selling price was 7 yuan, he would be able to make a personal profit of more than 1 million yuan. He was inexplicably confident about the next plan.
The environment and decoration here are somewhat similar to those of a Western restaurant. The furnishings are quite simple and tidy, giving people a sense of comfort.

Led by the waiter, Luo Qihong came to the private room. The moment he opened the door, he saw six people inside: Lin Zuhui (whose photo he had seen), Xu Jiawen, Lin Luoqi, Li Bingjun, and a man and a woman he had never seen before.

Based on the atmosphere in the box and the ages of the man and woman, Luo Qihong guessed that the man was Li Bingjun's father and the woman was her mother.

Is this a blind date that is meant to be seduced?
Luo Qihong was wondering in his heart, otherwise how could Li Bingjun's family and Xu Jiawen appear.

He didn't like this kind of "surprise", and Lin Luoqi didn't even tell him in advance, so he felt quite resentful.

However, since they had already entered the box, it was unlikely that they could back out, so Luo Qihong stepped forward and greeted them with a polite smile.

"Mr. Luo, we have probably never met before. How do you recognize me?" Lin Zuhui asked with a faint smile.

"Mr. Lin, please call me Ah Hong. You are the elders. Luo Qi and I are classmates and friends." Luo Qihong laughed. "There is a family photo in Luo Qihong's wallet. I have seen it, so I recognize Mr. Lin."

"So that's how it is. Since I called you Ah Hong, you can just call me Uncle Lin." Lin Zuhui glanced at Lin Luoqi, and introduced Li Bingjun's family to Luo Qihong, but he did not mention the purpose of the Li family's presence.

Li Bingjun's father is named Li Yude. He has a scholarly air different from Lin Zuhui. He does not look like a businessman, but more like a cultured person. His mother is Cheng Nan, who simply nodded gently when introducing Lin Zuhui.

The first impression they had on each other seemed to be good. Coupled with Luo Qihong's academic qualifications, achievements, good looks, and his humble behavior just now, there was no abnormal expression on the faces of the Li family members.

"I heard that you, Hong, are also in the real estate business. What do you think of the recent performance of the real estate industry?" Li Yude asked Luo Qihong, his eyes revealing little emotion.

"Uncle Li, to be honest, I have only been in the real estate industry for less than a year, and some of my views are completely immature. If I say them out loud, Uncle Lin, Aunt Xu, and you and Aunt Cheng might laugh at me. Why don't you ask Uncle Lin, a veteran in the industry?" Luo Qihong said without leaving a single hole.

Naturally, he would not care too much about etiquette when dealing with people of the same generation. The word "elder" carries too much weight, and more importantly, they have not yet gotten to the point of losing face for each other.

"Ah Hong, we have already talked about this before you came, and you are the only one who hasn't expressed your opinion yet." Lin Zuhui smiled faintly.

"I don't quite understand it, but I feel that the real estate market is too prosperous and some problems will arise sooner or later. Many experts and legislators in the newspapers are calling on the Hong Kong government to take action to curb the excessive real estate market. I think the Hong Kong government can't bear it and perhaps relevant measures will be introduced." Luo Qihong said.

Hearing this, Lin Zuhui smiled and said, "The wool always comes from the sheep! The Hong Kong government has made a lot of money by selling official land. Now if it rashly cuts off an arm, the Hong Kong government will probably feel bad financially."

The Hong Kong government needs to auction government land to subsidize its finances. The more prosperous the land market is, the more beneficial it is to the Hong Kong government. Even if the Hong Kong government responds to the suggestions of those legislators, it will not put in much effort and will only pretend to comply.

However, in Luo Qihong's view, as an "old veteran", Lin Zuhui is certainly not afraid, but the Li family is a newcomer and these measures still have a great influence, so Luo Qihong focuses on speaking out about the Hong Kong government's policies.

Luo Qihong didn't want to argue about anything. It would not be good for him if Lin Zuhui won. On the contrary, if Lin Zuhui lost, Li Yude might get into trouble if he followed the advice.

Everyone chatted casually for a while, and then Lin Zuhui turned the topic to Luo Qihong, "Ah Hong, what do you think about the acquisition of the electric light company by the Landmark Company? I heard that you bought a lot of shares in the electric light company."

(End of this chapter)