Those Years When I Was Forced to Top the Forbes List

Chapter 219 War Readiness

Before Chen Xuebing returned to Chongqing over the weekend, many things were already happening.

To be precise, it's a change.

Hefei authorities went from responding positively to remaining completely silent regarding BOE's financing.

BOE also followed the listed company announcement process very quietly, issuing an announcement titled "Non-Public Issuance of Shares Plan".

Target audience:

Hefei Xincheng and Changzheng Capital each issued 30188 million shares, totaling 16 billion yuan, with an issue price of 2.65 yuan.

Hefei Binhu Construction: 2653 million shares, 7030 million yuan, issue price: 2.65 yuan.

An additional person was added to the Hefei Binhu Construction team.

Meanwhile, BOE's stock price continued to rise, even experiencing a surge on Monday, February 27th, opening higher and closing with a 6.9% increase, reaching a price of 3.53 yuan.

This is yet another instance of extreme control over the Dragon and Tiger List.

Shanghai Orient Securities Zhaojiabang Branch, VIP Room.

Very quiet.

Xu Xiang sat behind his desk, tapping his fingers on the table as he made a phone call.

"Old Dai, I've already bought 3500 million shares. Now you should believe in my sincerity, right?"

There was a moment of hesitation on the other end.

"You, Chief Xu, have a large and powerful family, with 800 million yuan sitting in your accounts. You don't need to maintain the operation of the company, so you can just play around with it."

"My money is also tied up in several stocks, and you have a stake in them too! It takes time to get it out, right? Besides, if we don't join forces to drain the liquidity, how can this game continue? You've seen the Xinmin Evening News and the Youth Daily, haven't you? They raised 3.68 million yuan, and that kid deliberately slapped you in the face. Can you tolerate that?"

“Your game will lose money first, it’s not fun. As for the financing, I’ve already called Chairman Wu of Boshi, and the fund manager who helped him raise funds without authorization has been fired.”

Xu Xiang cursed under his breath, calling the old fox impervious to reason.

"I'm determined to get revenge, and I'm also determined to make a fortune. If you really don't come, I'll find someone else."

After all, it was Chief Xu who had made nearly ten times his initial investment over the years, and the other side was still somewhat tempted.

"Tell me, what do you want to do?"

Xu Xiang then smiled and said, "I told you to invest in BOE Technology because there's room for growth in this stock. They've already released their pre-sale announcement at 2.65 yuan. Based on this issuance price, 2.3 yuan is their margin call level. Once it's liquidated, CITIC Securities, as their third-party regulator, has the right to freeze and auction off their shares at a low price immediately. I have connections at CITIC Securities, so just prepare some money and wait to take over. We'll liquidate their margin call, get enough shares at a low price, and then drive the stock up."

"That's it? This is a listed company. They are the investors. You're causing trouble. Who do you think the company will side with? What if they buy back the shares when you drive the price down?"

“They don’t have the money to help with this. I’ve inquired about it. They built a factory a few years ago, and the loan from the Beijing banking syndicate hasn’t been repaid yet; it’s still being extended.”

"Even without money or inside information, you're just swatting flies with your eyes closed."

"Don't worry about that. There are no secrets that stay hidden forever. I've seen their shareholding structure. The senior management team holds very little. All 20 senior executives together only hold 10% of BOE's shares. They're all a bunch of poor people. I'll handle it. I'll cover the costs."

"Don't oversimplify things; he'll figure it out."

"So what if he notices? Once he's invested the money, he can't do anything about it. It's an open conspiracy!"

At this point, Dai Zhikang asked again:
"What do you want me to do?"

“You contribute 500 million, I contribute 500 million, let’s join forces to drain liquidity and drive the price down. In addition, once the margin call threshold is reached, CITIC will immediately freeze the shares and auction them off at a low price. You prepare the acquisition fee, and the acquisition price will not exceed 1.8 yuan. If the stock price rises, I will split the profits equally.”

"Hmm... let me think about it." Dai Zhikang pondered for a moment, then felt something was off: "Are you sure their margin call threshold is this high? They're still raising funds, how did you find that out?"

"Hehe, Lao Dai, I'm not as slow-witted as you. I only found out about this after they finished raising the money and left. One of my people was among the investors in this fundraising. I have a copy of the fundraising contract. Do you want it? I can send it to you to take a look."

Hearing this, Dai Zhikang was somewhat displeased: "Don't act impulsively!"

"Don't worry, I might act impulsively in this decision, but I would never do anything like this in trading... Didn't he say I couldn't handle large-scale trading? How dare a lousy institution that only manages money look down on me? I have my own funds, while he's using other people's money. If I want to infiltrate him, he's a sieve."

Xu Xiang finished speaking and laughed wildly.

Dai Zhikang, the pioneer of private equity in China and also the head of a struggling institution that manages money for others, was speechless at his emotional intelligence and hung up the phone.

……

The next day.

Chongqing, New York 46, Chairman's Office.

"Mr. Chen, you're really putting me in a difficult position. I used to be a state-owned enterprise cadre. I really can't accept money to go undercover for you."

"Alright, alright, then you can help me eliminate any future problems, okay?"

"That's no problem. But with so many people on our management team, how can I help you screen who took his money?"

I'll tell you when the time comes.

Chen Xuebing hung up the phone, turned his head, and looked at Xu Jin waiting on the sofa.

"Wang Dongsheng said that no new shareholders with a high shareholding ratio were found. They should have dispersed shareholdings. So, how much have you sold?"

“Around ten million.” Xu Jin took a deep breath and said, “Last time we made 3 million by shorting BOE and exited with 53 million. Although we entered the market in time after you signed the contract, the stock price rose a lot after the news came out. Our average entry price was not low, 2.91 yuan for 17 million shares, and now it has only risen to 3.53 yuan. Since you think they will definitely buy a lot of shares, why don’t we wait for them to push the price up a bit before selling? We can make a little more money.”

Chen Xuebing shook his head: "Don't even think about it. They know our shareholding situation inside and out. They won't keep pushing up the price so we can make money until we sell all 1700 million shares we have. Now is a time when everyone knows the truth. They will push up the price, we will sell at a high price and give them the shares. Then they will control the liquidity to fluctuate the stock price, accumulate a lot of shares, and then turn around and mess with us."

Xu Jin frowned: "Impossible, right? If they knew we knew, why would they let us make money for free?"

"Whether they know we do or not is uncertain. Driving up the stock price to accumulate shares isn't necessarily aimed at us. There are also those minority shareholders whose shares are being released from lock-up. The current price is already a bit high. We can hold on, but the minority shareholders might not. Once they've taken all the minority shareholders' shares, they'll let the stock price drop to accumulate shares at a lower price. Besides, they know our shareholding situation very well. Selling will put their minds at ease. Since they're now determined to buy at a high price, why not make ten million? After that money leaves the market, we can continue to make other investments. We're aiming for a scale of three hundred million. Next, when we raise funds, the data will look better."

In the two weeks following the Lunar New Year, the market fluctuated wildly, but Changzheng Capital was not idle. Based on Chen Xuebing's judgment of the upcoming bull market, they confidently bought low and sold high, resulting in several stocks surging and earning 30 million yuan. Of this, the 3 million yuan profit from the previous short position in BOE Technology and the 10 million yuan increase after re-entering BOE Technology accounted for 14 million yuan.

By cashing out this potentially volatile profit, they had 2.7 million yuan, with Chen Xuebing's share reaching 7300 million yuan.

With more funding, the snowball effect becomes easier and easier to roll.

Chen Xuebing was a little reluctant to distribute the dividends; he believed that keeping the money in his own hands would make him earn money faster and faster.

"For the next month, we need to focus on making money. We still need to keep an eye on BOE every day. If the price fluctuates to a low level, we should compete with them for shares. They need to accumulate shares, and the stock price will naturally come back up. We can profit from the difference."

Xu Jin smiled.

"I never thought that someone shorting us would become a tool for us to make money. But Chairman, if they take so many shares and dump them all at once, can we withstand it? What if they really get liquidated?"

“I’ll make the arrangements.” Chen Xuebing waved his hand. “I’ll have Lao Wu go to Beijing later to oversee the registration of the two funds. I’ll give Liu Zengcheng a paid leave. The newcomer, Lu Xiaochun, will only be responsible for fundraising for the TMT fund. In other words, for the next two months, or maybe three months, you will be the only one in charge of Changzheng Capital. For all information, contact me directly.”

Xu Jin hesitated for a moment: "You don't even trust them?"

“Xu Xiang has no bottom line. I genuinely believe in them, so I won’t give them a chance to be corrupted. This battle only needs one commander. Your trading team, starting today, will have their phones confiscated, be housed together, and sign confidentiality agreements. They will be strictly prohibited from contacting the outside world until this is over. They will be under military-style management. During this period, including you, you will receive triple pay.”

Xu Jin was jolted awake, as if he had returned to the time when he controlled the entire stock market at Delong.

"Don't worry! Half of the traders are veterans. They were trained under military-style management. I know what to do!"

March arrived in the blink of an eye, and the 1st was a Wednesday.

Beipei, Baiyangbei Old Street.

Chen Xuebing took a picture of the old house lazily bathed in sunlight, using an expensive DSLR with a long lens.

Such houses were common when he was a child. Children ran around on the road, and the elderly sat under the trees to cool off. If you arranged to play a brilliant game of chess, many self-proclaimed chess experts on the street would come out with their hands behind their backs to watch and offer their opinions, only to be met with a barrage of insults from the player.

However, those houses were all demolished and replaced with high-rise buildings, hospitals, light rail, and roads.

This place will be demolished soon too.

Dressed casually, Chen Xuebing felt the sunshine and smelled an alkaline, dusty odor, evoking a sense of familiarity and heartache as he revisited his homeland.

However, he is not here today to reminisce or feel moved.

Beside him, He Zhiya, chairman of Yufu Capital, was also carefully capturing this moment.

He Zhiya's equipment isn't as good as his, but he's a legitimate member of the China Photographers Association and a member of the Chongqing Historical and Cultural City Protection Committee.

Every weekend, he would search for these old buildings that were about to be demolished and capture some precious images.

It wasn't the weekend, but the weather was nice, so Chen Xuebing brought Lu Xiaochun along and asked him to come out to film while discussing work.

As a result, Lu Xiaochun couldn't keep up after walking a few blocks and stood under the shade of a tree behind her to rest with her hands on her hips.

He went out in a formal suit, and then realized for the first time that the heat in Chongqing had arrived so early. He finally understood why Chen Xuebing, a Chongqing native, didn't like wearing suits.

He Zhiya looked back at Lu Xiaochun, smiled, and stopped walking. He took out a few newspapers from his bag and spread them on the ground, gesturing for Chen Xuebing to sit down.

"Wow, Mr. He has brought quite a full set of equipment."

Chen Xuebing sat down with a smile.

He Zhiya waved his hand: "Southwest Securities has been restructured by us, and we do have control of it. You are a major client that Southwest Securities needs. Since you have come to me, I can assure you that there is absolutely no concern about leakage. You can rest assured. But to be honest, I can't make decisions on your other conditions. You have to go to Mayor Huang."

"It's mutually beneficial to cooperate, Mr. He. Why don't you go and ask for instructions and report it?"

Chen Xuebing picked up a pebble and threw it heavily against the opposite wall to express his dissatisfaction.

This old man was incredibly stubborn. I spent the whole afternoon with him, but he just wouldn't budge, not even picking up the money.

He Zhiya looked at Chen Xuebing's dissatisfied expression with a half-smile: "I'm giving you a way out, but you won't take it. Now that I'm going to help you, Mayor Huang will definitely chop me up."

"Heh, even without Butcher Zhang, I can still eat pork with hair on. Mr. He, just don't regret it."

Chen Xuebing patted his leg speechlessly, got up, and prepared to leave.

He Zhiya, however, was a patient man. He called out leisurely to his retreating figure, "Is Southwest Securities still coming or not?"

Chen Xuebing raised his hand and waved it: "I'm not coming."

Just then, his phone rang.

When I took it out, I saw it was Old Kan.

The phone is picked up.

Before he could speak, the other party hurriedly said, "I need to go to the Shanghai Economic Investigation Division now. If there are any reports or official publications about me in Hefei, please remove them as soon as possible."

Chen Xuebing was stunned for a moment and didn't say anything.

The voice on the other end cried out urgently, "Did you hear that?!"

"heard it."

The phone hung up as soon as I said it.

Chen Xuebing stood there blankly for a long time.

When he turned around again, Chen Xuebing's aura had softened by three points.

"Mr. He, could you help me make an appointment with Mayor Huang now?"

(End of this chapter)