Tuesday, April 6!
As always, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange was bustling with activity!
Although massive amounts of capital were currently flowing out of the stock market, it was the funds of large corporations and wealthy tycoons that were fleeing—ordinary citizens still had to get by as best they could.
And since the stock market is one of the few places where ordinary people can get rich overnight, it’s naturally the place where they flock the most.
Apart from that, the places Hong Kong residents love most are casinos and the Jockey Club!
In VIP Room 9, Dolsen and the others had all arrived. The group was sitting around the sofa, sipping coffee and chatting.
“Dawson, are we really going to cash out and leave today? Shouldn’t we wait a little longer?”
Henry asked in a subdued tone as he stirred his coffee cup.
After all, Huifeng is now a major shareholder of Hang Seng. According to their original plan, this sell-off would not only liquidate all 15% of their tradable shares but also dispose of a large portion of their non-tradable shares.
If Star Company was willing to take them over, they would even have to completely withdraw from Hang Seng.
Although all of this was for the greater good, it still left him feeling extremely dissatisfied.
Dawson replied calmly, “If this were earlier, we could indeed wait a little longer. But now, with massive capital fleeing Hong Kong, Hang Seng’s stock price has no room left to rise.”
“Unless we keep pushing the price up ourselves, but that would infinitely increase the risk of getting stuck with a loss. Are you sure you want to wait?”
Henry shook his head. “Never mind. You’re right—Hang Seng’s stock price really has no room to rise.”
Dawson nodded, then added, “I’ve chosen to exit the market at this point not only because the stock has peaked, but more importantly, because better opportunities are waiting for us!”
“Are you talking about London?”
“Yes, the stock market in London is booming right now—this is a great opportunity for us.”
Dawson continued, “With our family’s investment channels over there, as long as we put the money in, profits are absolutely guaranteed!”
Smith suddenly interjected, “Mr. Dolsen, you wish to transfer funds to the London market, but the person at Starry Sky may not let us have our way!”
“Are you worried they might take this opportunity to launch an attack on the Alliance’s companies?”
“Yes, I think that’s highly likely…”
Before Smith could finish, Dolsen shook his head with a smile and said confidently, “No, they won’t make a move!”
“Why?”
“Because we now share a common interest!” Dolsen declared, his words striking a chord.
“Common interests?”
At those words, everyone in the room was stunned.
Both sides were so enraged they’d do anything to wipe the other out—where on earth could there be a common interest?
Dawson paused briefly, then said, “Although I detest that guy named Li Yi, there’s no denying that he’s a top-tier investor!”
“And as an excellent investor, he wouldn’t fail to see the opportunities in London. If I’m not mistaken, they’ve already started investing in the London market. In that sense, I believe we do have a common interest!”
Upon hearing Dolsen’s analysis, everyone present fell into deep thought.
They were all merchants, and naturally understood merchants best.
Among merchants, there are no permanent friends or enemies—only permanent interests.
Now that both sides shared the goal of going to London to make a fortune, there was naturally a possibility of temporarily setting aside their disputes—it all depended on how each side chose to act.
The Earl, who had remained silent until then, suddenly spoke up: “Dawson, what do you intend to do?”
“I plan to go see that guy myself after today’s banbanhaobang and negotiate a deal with him!” Dolsen said calmly.
“Are you sure you can persuade that despicable fellow?” Henry asked.
Dawson replied confidently, “He has no reason to refuse…”
Just then, a series of crisp “ding” sounds rang out from outside—the opening bell had sounded.
At that moment, Dolsen’s expression changed, and he said in a deep voice, “All right, it’s time to close the net. Smith, proceed with the original plan!”
“Yes…”
……..
The trading floor!
As the opening bell rang, the eyes of all the investors and retail traders kept turning toward the two tightly closed doors of the VIP rooms.
“Click!”
The door to VIP Room 9 on the left opened first. Led by Smith, more than a dozen traders in suits filed out one after another and walked toward this side.
Then, under everyone’s watchful eyes, they placed the first order of the day: a bid for 20,000 lots of Hang Seng free-float shares at HK$25.50 per share.
Seeing this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
The offer price was HK$0.50 higher than yesterday’s closing price—a modest increase, but a positive trend.
As long as this side was still willing to push the price up, the stock price had room to rise further, and immediately, some people followed suit.
However, just then, the door to the VIP lounge on the right also opened. Led by a slightly plump woman, several young men in suits walked toward the trading floor.
Immediately, under everyone’s watchful eyes, they placed the first order of the day: selling 100,000 lots of Hang Seng shares at HK$24 per share!
To everyone’s surprise, Star Investment was dumping Hang Seng shares at a low price—and they were selling 100,000 lots at once, at just HK$24 per share.
This sent many into a panic—it seemed Star Investment was ready to throw in the towel!
Investors were immediately reminded of Li Yi’s market-crashing move from a few days earlier. In an instant, Hang Seng’s share price—which had been edging slightly higher—was crushed the moment it began to rise.
After that, it was like a deflated balloon, sliding all the way down…
In VIP Room 9, when Dolsen and the others learned that Star Investment had dumped shares at a low price before they could act, they were instantly stunned.
His original plan was to first stabilize—or even boost—the stock price in public, then quietly offload his shares.
He never expected that guy to drop all pretense and start dumping shares at a low price right off the bat—that’s just unethical.
To prevent Star Investment from successfully cashing out, Dolsen immediately ordered Smith and the others to halt their purchases of Hang Seng shares and, following Star Investment’s lead, dump their own Hang Seng shares at a low price.
Moreover, to ensure he got out first, Dolsen demanded that Smith undercut Star Investment’s listed price by 1 Hong Kong dollar, no matter what they offered!
Then, as everyone watched in stunned silence, Star Investment and the British-owned group launched into a frantic race to the exit.
“If you bid 24 HKD per share, I’ll dare to bid 23 HKD!”
If you dare to bid 23, I’ll go to 22…
And so, in just a few short hours, Hang Seng shares—which had been on an eight-day winning streak—plummeted overnight, closing at just HK$17 per share by the morning trading break.
This price was back to where it had been before the two sides began their battle for control, yet even so, neither side had managed to sell many of their shares.
After all, very few investors have the capacity to absorb the shares held by these two major forces. Even if someone did have the financial resources, no one would enter the market at this point—it’s far too risky!
In other words, so far, both sides have emerged battered and bruised from this battle for control.
After all, the money invested earlier was real, and with the stock price now plummeting, all of that money was lost!
The retail investors who jumped on the bandwagon have also suffered losses; some of the greedy ones now find it too late to bail out!
However, just as everyone was wondering if the share price had bottomed out at HK$17, Starry Company made another move, driving the price down to HK$16 per share.
On the other side, the British-owned group paused for a while before finally gritting their teeth and setting the price at HK$15.
At 3:00 p.m., Star Company adjusted its bid again, driving the price of Hang Seng shares down to HK$15.
But this time, the British-owned group did not follow suit, and the two sides were locked in a stalemate!
Meanwhile, in VIP Room No. 1, Li Yi received a report from Pang Feiyan and realized that this price was nearly at the limit of what those foreigners could bear.
Immediately, he had someone notify Li Futiao and the others that it was time to act.
Soon after, the Hong Kong stock market witnessed the most thrilling, counter-intuitive drama of the year…
………