Chapter 10: I Call the Shots Here in Hong Kong

According to the standard 5% interest rate, if he only takes out the loan for one year, he will need to repay 52.5 million Hong Kong dollars at the end of that year. Adding the 500,000 Hong Kong dollars for the "tea fee" means he has to pay an extra 3 million Hong Kong dollars beyond the principal. This is by no means a small sum. The original Huafeng Cement Factory only nets about 2 million Hong Kong dollars in pure profit annually. But Lin Haoran did not mind. A few million Hong Kong dollars is nothing—if he can successfully profit through Kowloon Warehouse, it won’t be just a few percentage points of profit, but rather a return exceeding double the principal.

From the start, Lin Haoran knew this negotiation would not go smoothly, so he came well prepared. He believed that with the terms he proposed, Yang Changdao would definitely agree.

“Haoran, give me some time to think this over,” Yang Changdao said, slowly drawing a cigarette from his pack and lighting it in the office. Surrounded by swirling smoke, he fell into deep thought.

Seeing this, Lin Haoran already sensed that Yang Changdao was wavering. “Uncle Yang, please take your time. I completely understand and am willing to wait,” Lin Haoran nodded in response.

After a long while, Yang Changdao’s cigarette had burned to ash, yet he remained lost in thought, brows furrowed, unaware of the burning sensation on his fingertip until the sudden sting jolted him awake. Hastily, he extinguished the cigarette butt.

Taking a deep breath as if making a momentous decision, Yang Changdao looked directly at Lin Haoran and said seriously, “The 500,000 Hong Kong dollars must be paid in cash. As for the 50 million loan you mentioned, the term can only be one year, with an annual interest rate set at 5%. We both understand there are significant risks involved, so we cannot offer any discounts on the interest.”

“No problem at all. Once the deal is done, I can secretly hand over the 500,000 ‘tea fee’ to Uncle Yang without causing you any trouble!” Lin Haoran finally smiled.

Greed is indeed a human weakness hard to completely overcome, and clearly, President Yang was no exception. His objective had been achieved.

A one-year term was nothing to him. What he needed now was startup capital. After one year, he would have more funds to operate with and might even have become the heir to the Wan’an Group. By then, if he wanted another loan, it wouldn’t be just Yu Min Finance Company—numerous banks and corporations would compete to lend to him.

At present, he was still an obscure young man, living under the shadow of his father Lin Wan’an’s influence in the business world. He needed this year to gradually build his own influence and grow rapidly in the fiercely competitive Hong Kong business environment of the 70s and 80s, a place brimming with opportunities.

As this loan experience demonstrated, without leveraging his father’s deep industry influence and his own relentless efforts and persuasion, securing a 50 million loan would have been nearly impossible.

“By the way, Uncle Yang, I have an awkward personal request. Regarding this loan, I hope you won’t tell my father, at least not within this year. After that, whether you tell him or not is up to you,” Lin Haoran said earnestly after some thought.

“Why?”

From their previous conversations, Yang Changdao had already sensed Lin Haoran’s exceptional qualities—his grand ambitions and remarkable talents that could well lead to extraordinary achievements. Thus, he was willing to listen.

Lin Haoran took a deep breath and said slowly, “Uncle Yang, I know my father has high expectations. He doesn’t want me growing under his protection; he wants me to stand on my own and prove myself with my own strength. This loan is to raise funds to acquire a publicly listed company I’ve long had my eye on. I want to accomplish this on my own to prove it to my father and myself. I have my development plan. After a year, I will definitely repay the money owed to your company. I hope you can keep this secret and give me the chance to prove myself.”

In truth, Lin Haoran did not want his father to know because if Lin Wan’an found out, there would be no chance of getting the loan. Settling for just developing the Huafeng Cement Factory was not Lin Haoran’s style. Even if he didn’t win the Wan’an Group inheritance, relying solely on the cement factory would allow him a comfortable life. But such comfort was not what he sought. Lin Haoran yearned for higher peaks and broader horizons; he harbored ambitions that refused to settle for mediocrity.

“Alright, I agree,” Yang Changdao said indifferently. This matter made no difference to him—helping to keep it secret caused no loss.

“By the way, Uncle Yang, how long will it take for the funds to be released?” Lin Haoran asked.

“About a week. After I submit the materials for review, there will be an investigation. A week should be about right,” Yang Changdao replied.

“Can you guarantee this loan will be approved?” Although Yang Changdao had agreed, Lin Haoran was still a bit worried. Time was of the essence; he needed the funds quickly.

“Don’t worry, the investigation team here in Hong Kong are all my people. I’m basically in charge. I’ll draft the contract first, and then we can sign it,” Yang Changdao assured him. Since he had agreed, he would make sure everything went smoothly.

The subsequent process became much smoother. Lin Haoran submitted all the necessary documents to Yang Changdao, and once both sides formally signed the contract, all that remained was to wait for the funds to arrive.

“Uncle Yang, that’s all for today. I’ll go wait for your good news. I’m ready with the 500,000 cash anytime!” Lin Haoran shook hands with Yang Changdao before leaving.

“Good. I’ll notify you as soon as there’s a result,” Yang Changdao nodded. He had to get busy preparing for this big deal.

Stepping out of the office, Lin Haoran finally breathed a sigh of relief—he was very satisfied with the outcome.

In the nearby lounge, brothers Li Weiguo and Li Weidong sat tensely on the sofa, their eyes frequently dropping to the coffee table, as if it was their sole focus at the moment. Surrounded by the unfamiliar environment, both were unusually cautious, reluctant to make any move that might disrupt the fragile calm and delicate balance of the unknown.

Seeing Lin Haoran emerge, they finally exhaled and quickly stood up.