Stellar Investment Company. Mainland Branch!
In the general manager’s office, Li Yi sat on a plush sofa, listening to Lan Xinyi report on the company’s operations.
After briefly outlining the branch’s recent operations, Lan Xinyi concluded, “Boss, that’s basically the situation here at the Mainland Branch. Although we’re still operating at a loss overall, each business segment is running fairly smoothly. Once we’ve officially completed the restructuring of those new brands, we’ll be able to turn a profit…”
Before Lan Xinyi could finish, Li Yi cleared his throat to interrupt her: “Xinyi, I’ve got the general picture, but there are a few points I need to bring to your attention!”
“Boss, please go ahead!” Lan Xinyi replied.
“First, don’t worry about the company’s losses. During the expansion phase of a new company, losses are inevitable.”
Li Yi continued, “Second, don’t rush to turn a profit. After we acquire or take a stake in those state-owned factories, we must first sort out all the relationships—especially regarding technical equipment upgrades and personnel management—before we start operations!”
“Finally, and most importantly, our company must strengthen communication and coordination with the government. All operations must strictly comply with laws and regulations—that’s the bottom line. Do you understand?”
Li Yi said all this because he was worried that Lan Xinyi and the others would bring the unsavory practices from Hong Kong Island over here.
You must understand that in Hong Kong, there’s hardly a single company that truly operates within the law. From government agencies at the top to triad organizations at the bottom, everything requires bribes to keep things running smoothly.
This was no big deal in Hong Kong—everyone did it—but if it were discovered here, the consequences would be severe.
Especially in the coming years, when the situation will be extremely tense—Li Yi certainly didn’t want to end up in prison trying to bail them out.
“Understood!”
Lan Xinyi continued, “You can rest assured about the situation here at the branch office. We’ll strictly follow the development plan you’ve laid out and move forward steadily. However, there’s a matter on Hong Kong Island that needs your immediate attention!”
“What’s the matter?” Li Yi asked immediately.
Lan Xinyi replied immediately, “Boss, a couple of days ago I received a telegram from the Hong Kong headquarters. The contracts for quite a few investors in Dahai Private Equity have recently expired, and headquarters is preparing to settle the principal and interest with the clients.”
“Since this includes substantial funds from you and Vice President Huang, and the amount involved is so large, it requires your personal approval.”
Li Yi nodded and said, “Alright, contact headquarters shortly and tell them to proceed exactly as outlined in the original contracts.”
“Yes!”
Lan Xinyi continued, “Also, regarding the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, they’re planning to hold a general membership meeting in December to discuss new member admissions and the chamber’s annual conference.”
“Chairman Li sent over a list of applicants yesterday—all those who applied for membership this year. I’d like you to take a look at it.”
No sooner had she finished speaking than Li Yi chuckled and said, “Let them discuss and decide these matters themselves. I don’t really know these people very well!”
“You should still take a look. From what I gathered, President Li is concerned that there might be people on this list who are at odds with our Starry Sky Company. If there are any, we should identify them in advance!”
With that, Lan Xinyi handed him a document.
Although Li Yi wasn’t particularly interested in such matters, since Lan Xinyi had already placed the list in front of him, it would be impolite not to look at it.
Immediately, Li Yi took the document and began to examine it carefully.
The document consisted of five pages, each with identical content and formatting. The first column listed names, the second and third columns indicated gender and age, the fourth column detailed positions within their respective companies or families, and the fifth column provided an assessment of personal assets.
Perhaps due to the nature of the telegram, the information wasn’t particularly detailed, but anyone familiar with Hong Kong’s business circles would know exactly who was being referred to.
“Lin Wenxiong, male, 48 years old, General Manager of Hong Kong Island Shengxiong Paper Co., Ltd., 300 million Hong Kong dollars!”
“Zhang Ping, female, 55 years old, President of Hong Kong Island Fook Kee Catering Investment Co., Ltd., HK$800 million!”
“Leung Fai, male, 44 years old, General Manager of Hong Kong Island Guanghui Apparel Co., Ltd., HK$600 million!”
“Cheng Qingsong, male, 47, General Manager of Hong Kong Island Jianing Group, HK$8 billion…”
Cheng Qingsong… 8 billion Hong Kong dollars?
Li Yi hadn’t originally noticed this person, but when he saw the note at the bottom stating his personal assets were 8 billion, he couldn’t help but be startled.
Back then, the assets of Hong Kong Island’s wealthy businessmen hadn’t skyrocketed as they did after the turn of the millennium; even the renowned billionaire Li Ka-shing, known as “Superman,” had assets of less than 10 billion at the time.
Therefore, this Mr. Cheng, with his 8 billion in assets, was undoubtedly among the most powerful elite of Hong Kong Island’s wealthiest, yet Li Yi had no recollection of him.
He thought about it for a while, but still couldn’t figure out who this big shot was.
Li Yi immediately turned to Lan Xinyi and asked, “Do you know what this Mr. Cheng Qingsong does for a living?”
Lan Xinyi replied immediately, “Boss, you’re talking about Mr. Cheng from Jianing Company, aren’t you? He’s the most legendary investor you’ve ever known in Hong Kong. He went from real estate consultant to a billionaire in just a few short years. Two years ago, he made a staggering 700 million Hong Kong dollars from a single real estate project.”
“What’s even more legendary is that after his company went public, its stock price skyrocketed by 250% in just a few months. It’s become the fastest-rising blue-chip company in Hong Kong in recent years, defying market trends, and is also one of the most highly regarded companies by major investment firms…”
Listening to Lan Xinyi’s introduction, Li Yi suddenly felt that Cheng Qingsong seemed strangely familiar.
Cheng Qingsong… Jianing Group… “Golden Finger”…
Damn it, isn’t this the “King of Scams” who single-handedly fleeced Hong Kong investors and took on the entire Hong Kong legal system?
“Wait a minute. You said this Jianing Company is the blue-chip firm most favored by major investment firms. Could it be that our Star Investment Company also holds shares in this company?” Li Yi asked in a low voice.
“That’s right. Our company currently holds 14% of Jianing’s publicly traded shares, worth around one billion Hong Kong dollars!”
Whoa!
Hearing this, Li Yi couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath.
Wow. Just moments ago, he’d been calling Cheng Qingsong a “scam king” and Jianing Group the biggest trap in this year’s Hong Kong stock market—yet he never imagined his own company would turn out to be the biggest sucker in that very trap.
With that in mind, Li Yi immediately said, “Xinyi, send a report to headquarters right away. Tell them to immediately sell off all the Jianing shares we hold!”
Lan Xinyi was taken aback for a moment, then asked for confirmation, “Boss, do you mean all of them?”
“Yes, not a single share. Liquidate the entire position!”
Li Yi then said sternly, “At the same time, have them conduct a thorough investigation to see if there are any other business dealings between our company and Jianing Group. If there are, immediately step up oversight to prevent major losses!”
“Yes, sir. I’ll get right on it!”
Although Lan Xinyi was filled with questions, she knew Li Yi’s temperament—at a time like this, there was simply no room for anyone to question his orders.
“Wait—issue another order to the Investment Department: have Pang Feiyan immediately begin short-selling Jianing Group, with full cooperation from all departments,” Li Yi said.
“Yes!”
After Lan Xinyi left the office, Li Yi breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Fortunately, he had come today; otherwise, those ten billion Hong Kong dollars might very well have gone down the drain.
Although in his previous life he hadn’t specifically looked into Cheng Qingsong or Jianing Group, the Hong Kong Jianing case had caused quite a stir, and he had picked up some information about it from the sidelines.
As expected, in mid-September, Jianing—a business behemoth with a market capitalization of 10 billion—would suddenly announce that the company was facing financial difficulties, after which its stock price would begin to plummet.
Just as investors were hoping that the company’s leader, Cheng Qingsong, would turn the tide, lead the company out of its predicament, and restore its former glory, Jianing Group’s stock was suspended from trading a mere three and a half months later, and the investments of hundreds of thousands of people—amounting to tens of billions of Hong Kong dollars—were simply wiped out.
What followed was a decades-long investigation and legal battle by the Hong Kong Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) against Cheng Qingsong.
Li Yi wasn’t interested in the fate of Cheng Qingsong or Jianing Company, but he certainly didn’t want to be the sucker who went down with the Jianing Group.
As for shorting Jianing, aside from killing two birds with one stone, the more important reason was that even if he didn’t act, Jianing Group’s market capitalization of tens of billions would turn into a bubble in a few months anyway.
Rather than letting that happen, he might as well pocket the profits himself—and who knows, he might even be able to help those ordinary people who were stuck holding the bag.
What Li Yi didn’t know, however, was that his order had triggered an unprecedented upheaval in Hong Kong’s business community…
……….