Chapter 38: The Game Has Become Interesting

Time passed in the blink of an eye, and October 6th arrived quietly, marking three days since he had purchased the office.

The office had already been relocated to the new premises, and the improved environment clearly brought a better mood to the team. Since the move, Lin Haoran had simply made this place his permanent residence, opting not to return to the Deep Water Bay villa. While he had grown accustomed to the tranquility of Deep Water Bay, he found a unique charm and great comfort in occasionally enjoying the bustling brilliance of Victoria Harbour.

Furthermore, he had registered a company name: Universal Investment Co., Ltd.

Two days ago, his third sister learned he was in Central and personally came to visit him, forcefully handing him a cheque for two million. Although the amount was slightly less than his second sister’s gift, he knew that every cent carried her deep love and expectations. His heart was filled with gratitude, yet also a touch of helplessness; he could only accept this heavy kindness and keep it etched in his heart.

Stock market fluctuations were like the rolling tides, but amidst this unpredictable market, Lin Haoran and his team appeared exceptionally steady. Especially since Dai Shi joined, the team’s collaborative efficiency and decision-making capabilities had improved significantly. Whenever the melodious bell rang to close the market, it not only signaled the end of a day’s trading but also bore witness to every bit of progress and achievement made by Lin’s team.

However, Lin Haoran’s mood at this moment was unusually grave.

At the close of the market on Wednesday, he had keenly sensed a quiet surge in the trading volume of Green Island Cement. Initially, he assumed it was merely typical market volatility, as such phenomena were frequent. Yet, after three consecutive days of careful observation and analysis, he saw the situation clearly: another strategist had set their sights on the same prize, and that person was, in all likelihood, the business tycoon Li Jiacheng.

Even Su Zhixue and Dai Shi, two veteran traders who had weathered many storms in the stock market, reached the same conclusion after an in-depth discussion—someone else was indeed targeting Green Island Cement.

Fortunately, thanks to Lin Haoran’s meticulous layout and aggressive accumulation of low-priced shares over the past month, the supply of cheap chips available on the market had been greatly reduced. This undoubtedly built a solid line of defense for his side, giving them a slight edge in this invisible contest.

For the past two days, Lin Haoran had been closely monitoring his opponent’s movements. He could keenly sense that despite the other party's immense financial strength, they were quite restrained in their speed of absorbing Green Island Cement shares. It seemed they were in a probing phase, or perhaps they were deliberately avoiding driving the share price up too quickly. This was perfectly consistent with the steady style of the Li Jiacheng team, who excelled at laying plans in the shadows, conducting long-term, low-profile acquisitions to ensure the success of their takeover bids.

Taking the Wharf Holdings acquisition as an example, Li Jiacheng’s team had demonstrated profound patience and strategy, silently absorbing nearly 20% of the shares before Jardine Matheson was finally alerted. It was a testament to their seasoned caution, a level of "calculated cunning" that was truly breathtaking.

In his memories of his past life, Li Jiacheng had used his sharp market insight to quickly acquire 25% of Green Island Cement, a company that was not highly regarded at the time. However, in this parallel world, the situation was vastly different. Clearly, it would be difficult for Li Jiacheng to repeat that feat this year, for one simple reason: Lin Haoran had laid his plans more than a month in advance, quietly accumulating a significant amount of Green Island Cement stock.

This meant it had become an almost impossible mission for Li Jiacheng to acquire a large number of shares rapidly and quietly through the secondary market. Unless they were willing to take extreme measures and buy at high prices regardless of cost, it would contradict Li Jiacheng’s consistent principles of steady, calculated investment. Thus, this change created an advantageous opportunity for Lin Haoran.

On the surface, it appeared Li Jiacheng was planning in the dark, thinking no one knew of his actions. In reality, through his knowledge of Li Jiacheng’s history and his own decisive actions, Lin Haoran had already seized the initiative, causing Li Jiacheng to fall into a passive position without even realizing it. In this stock market battle, Lin Haoran was the one holding the initiative.

Facing the reality that Li Jiacheng had entered the fray, Lin Haoran sat in his office, his brows furrowed in deep thought. He knew his opponent was too powerful—so powerful that even if his father were to intervene, there would be no guarantee of victory. He had to act with extreme caution.

To better grasp the situation, Lin Haoran turned to review the data report Su Zhixue had just submitted. The report detailed their current holdings in Green Island Cement: as of now, they held 8.654 million shares, accounting for 17.3% of the company's total stock. To acquire these shares, they had invested 43.96 million Hong Kong dollars, with an average cost of approximately 5.08 Hong Kong dollars per share.

Lin Haoran calculated silently that if not for the intervention of a third party, which had made the acquisition more difficult, they could have easily surpassed the 18% threshold. But now, the situation had become complex, and he had to readjust his strategy.

"Since Li Jiacheng has entered the game, things have become much more interesting," Lin Haoran muttered to himself. He began to ponder how to break through in this market game, aiming to maximize his own interests while preventing himself from being outmaneuvered by such a formidable opponent.

Meanwhile, the trading of Wharf Holdings was proceeding exceptionally smoothly. The company had successfully acquired 957,000 shares with a total investment of 25.07 million Hong Kong dollars. Thanks to the early low-price accumulation, the average cost per share was only around 26.2 Hong Kong dollars, which was acceptable.

However, behind this brilliance lay significant financial pressure. According to statistics, in just over a month, Lin Haoran’s total investment in the stock market had reached 69.03 million Hong Kong dollars, excluding other team expenses. Of his original principal of 81 million Hong Kong dollars, 950,000 had been used to purchase the office, and with the massive market investments, his account balance had plummeted to 11.02 million Hong Kong dollars.

Fortunately, Lin Haoran had also received a generous five million Hong Kong dollars from his two sisters, bringing his available funds to approximately 16 million Hong Kong dollars. Although this figure sounded substantial, it was still stretched thin in the current complex market environment, especially regarding the battle for control of Green Island Cement.

Even more severe was the fact that Lin Haoran knew a more powerful opponent was lurking in the shadows, forcing him to plan the use of every cent with greater caution. Even if he invested all his remaining funds into Green Island Cement, it would not guarantee a victory, as the opponent's strength and strategy were not to be underestimated.

Faced with such a predicament, Lin Haoran had to re-examine his strategy and seek a more efficient, risk-controlled way to bolster his influence over Green Island Cement while ensuring his overall interests in the market remained intact. After long and careful deliberation, Lin Haoran finally made up his mind.