Chapter 71: Youth is the Best Disguise

Lin Haoran had always maintained a very cautious approach to his stock investment strategy. He accumulated shares of Green Island Cement through multiple accounts to ensure that his holdings would not be easily investigated by outsiders.

Unless he voluntarily disclosed the information, others would find it nearly impossible to accurately determine the exact amount of Green Island Cement shares he actually held.

Faced with the probing questions from Célestin Centurion, Lin Haoran did not need to give it much thought. Instead, he answered directly: "Mr. Centurion, I currently hold 13.7% of Green Island Cement's shares. With my available capital, acquiring 15% is entirely within my reach.

As for my purpose, I am still young and have no intention of competing with you for the position of chairman of the board at the moment. However, I hope to become the vice chairman of Green Island Cement's board of directors, which will allow me to gain more business experience. Given my status as the current largest shareholder, I presume taking on this role should not be a problem, right?"

With that, to strengthen his persuasiveness, he specifically handed a copy of the 13.7% stock certificate to Célestin Centurion for inspection.

At Hang Seng Bank, he had pledged a total of 17% of Green Island Cement shares across two loans, meaning these 13.7% of shares were indeed all he could readily present at the moment.

Of course, if he needed to, he could temporarily borrow the stock certificates back from Hang Seng Bank, but there was no need for that.

After all, at this moment, he had no intention of directly taking over Green Island Cement just yet; his first step was to enter the company's board of directors.

Having spent over a decade at Green Island Cement, Célestin Centurion was deeply entrenched.

If Lin Haoran were to take over Green Island Cement, his goal would be to completely uproot Célestin Centurion’s faction and his lingering influence within the company, rather than allowing him to remain as the second-largest shareholder.

Such an unpredictable old fox was better driven away; keeping him would only plant more uncertain hidden dangers for the future of Green Island Cement.

"13.7%? As far as I know, trading in Green Island Cement's stock has been unusually active lately. The trading volume over the past month and more has far exceeded 30%," Célestin Centurion continued in a probing tone.

His words revealed a sharp insight into market dynamics, making it clear that he was fully aware of the violent fluctuations in Green Island Cement's stock during this period.

"Mr. Centurion, a dozen days ago, another faction suddenly appeared in the competition to acquire Green Island Cement shares, causing the stock price to climb continuously. From its original price of less than five Hong Kong dollars per share to what it is now, it has risen quite a bit. At the time, I assumed you were increasing your holdings. How is that? Wasn't that person you?" Lin Haoran said, feigning surprise.

A dozen days ago was precisely when Li Ka-shing’s team began acquiring Green Island Cement shares. From that point on, the trading volume of the stock had indeed surged significantly.

Of this, Célestin Centurion was naturally well aware.

"Someone else has their eyes on Green Island Cement?" Célestin Centurion was momentarily startled.

To dispel Célestin Centurion's suspicions, Lin Haoran continued, "Mr. Centurion, you must not be aware of my background, are you? I am the youngest son of Lin Wan'an from the Wan'an Group."

Hearing this, Célestin Centurion did indeed dismiss his suspicions regarding Lin Haoran, but another doubt immediately arose in their place.

He was quite familiar with the Wan'an Group. Although the company primarily focused on real estate, its listed market capitalization was inferior to that of Green Island Cement.

Before Lin Wan'an founded the Huafeng Cement Factory, the Wan'an Group had actually been one of Green Island Cement's clients.

After all, as the largest cement manufacturer in Hong Kong, it naturally served as a supplier to numerous real estate developers.

The two had once been business partners, so Célestin Centurion naturally possessed some understanding of the Wan'an Group.

Precisely because of this understanding, another thought occurred to him: Lin Haoran’s purchase of Green Island Cement shares must have been instigated by Lin Wan'an.

Otherwise, given Lin Haoran's young age, how could he possibly pull out such a massive sum of capital to absorb Green Island Cement shares?

The 13.7% stock certificates were placed right before his eyes—that was a fact. According to Lin Haoran, he could acquire 15% of the shares; even calculated at five Hong Kong dollars per share, that amounted to 37.5 million Hong Kong dollars.

If Lin Wan'an wished to raise this sum of money, he should have been able to do so.

In other words, the real person behind the shares held by Lin Haoran was very likely Lin Wan'an himself.

At this moment, the other rival in the stock acquisition mentioned by Lin Haoran was no longer Célestin Centurion's primary concern.

Compared to Lin Wan'an, he much preferred the actual shareholder to be a young man like Lin Haoran.

If Lin Wan'an harbor illicit designs on Green Island Cement, that would be perilous indeed.

"Mr. Lin, why didn't your father come in person instead of sending you?" Célestin Centurion asked.

"My father? I acquired these shares in secret on my own; this is my private property. Why would my father need to come?" Lin Haoran said with a smile, having grasped Célestin Centurion's misgivings.

"Your own private property? Impossible! Given the strength of the Wan'an Group, raising tens of millions of Hong Kong dollars is completely feasible, but you—how could you possibly manage it?" Célestin Centurion flatly refused to believe it.

"Mr. Centurion, if you were to carefully investigate the Wan'an Group's recent activities, you would know that the company is currently raising funds to build a real estate project in North Point and has simply no spare capacity for anything else. Furthermore, as many people probably know, my father has historically disliked taking out bank loans.

Mr. Centurion might not be aware, but I graduated from the London Business School in the UK just over three months ago. In June, the World Cup was held in Argentina, and by repeatedly guessing the match results correctly, I unexpectedly amassed several million pounds in wealth.

Upon returning to Hong Kong, I had no intention of telling my father about this. Instead, I began studying local enterprises and discovered that Green Island Cement possessed tremendous potential. That is how I formed the intention to invest in the company and become a shareholder.

This is entirely my own money. Although Lin Wan'an is my father, finances between father and son remain separate—not to mention we are talking about tens of millions of Hong Kong dollars, which is no small amount."

How to alleviate Célestin Centurion’s concerns was not a difficult task for Lin Haoran.

In this era, British betting was much more mature than in the United States. Winning several million pounds unexpectedly during the World Cup was entirely plausible, and converting several million pounds into Hong Kong dollars yielded precisely tens of millions.

Additionally, the fact that the Wan'an Group was currently pouring all its fundraising efforts into the North Point project was also true—a matter that could easily be verified with a little effort.

At this point, Célestin Centurion began to lean toward believing Lin Haoran's story.

He would investigate the matter later; if it turned out to be true, he could rest easy regarding Lin Haoran.

Having unexpectedly won a few million pounds at Lin Haoran's age, he certainly lacked the financial muscle to continue aggressively increasing his stake in Green Island Cement.

After all, making money was never that easy.

Even if he truly secured 15% of the shares, Célestin Centurion would not take him lightly, though he would still harbor greater concerns if those shares ultimately fell into Lin Wan'an's hands.

Right now, his attention shifted entirely to another potential threat.

The realization that another faction, just like Lin Haoran, was heavily accumulating Green Island Cement stock in the open market filled him with deep anxiety and forced him to heighten his vigilance against unforeseen developments.

"Why is it that no one paid attention to Green Island Cement's stock for so long, and now, suddenly, two factions appear out of nowhere?" Célestin Centurion muttered to himself inwardly, though he kept his thoughts to himself.

"Mr. Lin, in principle, I support your ascension to the position of vice chairman of Green Island Cement. However, this requires a vote by the board of directors, as it will naturally necessitate the resignation of the current vice chairman. But please rest assured, Mr. Lin, I will cast my vote in your favor. I simply love dealing with young talents!" Célestin Centurion said solemnly.

At this moment, his worries regarding Lin Haoran were temporarily laid to rest, but his concerns about the other potential threat persisted.

Therefore, he decided to win Lin Haoran over.

Once this young man was pulled onto his side, combined with the support of the other corporate shareholders, he would no longer need to worry about that unknown faction.

"That being the case, I feel all the more reassured. With Mr. Centurion's staunch support, I am confident I can smoothly become the vice chairman of Green Island Cement," Lin Haoran said, his face beaming with excited smiles.

Looking at Lin Haoran's young and energetic face, Célestin Centurion thought to himself, "He is still young indeed; the position of vice chairman is enough to satisfy him completely."

Lin Haoran's reaction deeply pleased Célestin Centurion, a satisfied smile naturally spreading across his face.

If Lin Haoran remained like this, he would pose no genuine threat to his status.

Even if his shareholding slightly exceeded his own, so what? With the backing of the other British-affiliated shareholders, Lin Haoran's slight majority posed zero threat to his position.

Even if Lin Wan'an were personally pulling the strings—though that would cause him greater worry—he was far from defenseless. On the contrary, because this was his home turf, the advantage lay squarely with his side!

After all, he believed his roots within Green Island Cement ran too deep to be easily shaken.

Observing Célestin Centurion's expression, Lin Haoran knew that his initial plan to infiltrate the board of directors of Green Island Cement had essentially succeeded.

Lin Haoran's current youth served as his finest disguise, effortlessly lowering people's guards and winning their trust.

First, he would join the board of directors of Green Island Cement, gradually understand the company's operations, secretly examine the profit records of recent years, and quietly continue to accumulate shares. Once his shareholding reached 40%, Célestin Centurion would no longer be able to pose any threat to him, and taking control of Green Island Cement would naturally become a logical conclusion.

"Mr. Centurion, when shall we convene the board meeting, then?" Lin Haoran asked, displaying an eager impatience.

Seeing Lin Haoran's reaction, Célestin Centurion felt even more secure.

"A board meeting requires at least one day's advance notice to give all members sufficient time to prepare. Please rest assured, Mr. Lin, I will call each board member later today, and as early as tomorrow, we can hold the board meeting!" Célestin Centurion said with a smile.

"In that case, I will have to trouble you, Mr. Centurion," Lin Haoran nodded and said.

"Very well, once the time is finalized, I will give you a call, Mr. Lin!" Célestin Centurion added.