After divorce, I can hear the voice of the future

Chapter 735 Hengtai Enters the Scene
"Mr. Xu, I've got everything sorted out on my end. I even managed to acquire the shares held by Sun Hung Kai Properties and Henderson Land Development for you. What's the situation on your end?"

Lu Liang was in his office when he called Xu Jiayin.

He watched the surveillance video downstairs. Guo Bingsheng and Li Jiajie both declined to be interviewed by reporters and left safely in a car under the escort of security personnel.

Whether it's selling New World's stake or repurchasing its own group's shares, drafting contracts takes time.

They signed a letter of intent for cooperation and are now back at their respective homes preparing the contracts. They have arranged to hold a press conference at 5 p.m., at which time they will also announce Lu Liang's takeover of Chinese Estates Holdings.

Hong Kong stocks only have a one-hour midday break, and forty minutes have passed so far, with twenty minutes left before the market reopens.

Lu Liang wanted to know what was going on with Lao Xu, as he didn't want to drag things out for too long and waste time.

"That old guy has been wary of me all along," Xu Jiayin sighed.

In just one morning, they spent only about 1 billion yuan, and the acquired shares accounted for less than 1% of the circulating shares.

There were too many people scrambling to buy shares, including not only Lu Liang, but also Zheng Jiachun, and even more speculators who were detached from the market.

He asked, "How many do you have in total right now?"

Lu Liang inquired and learned: "1.2% was collected this morning. Including what happened before and what happened today, the total is 25.26%."

"If we add the 0.85% that Hengtai acquired this morning, the total is 26.11%."

Old Xu said in a deep voice, "We can't wait any longer. The Zheng family already held 38.25%, and now it should be over 40%."

"So what do you plan to do?" Lu Liang asked.

If the difficulty level of acquiring Chinese Estates Holdings is 1, then the difficulty level of acquiring New World Development is at least 7.

Since last year, when the Li family of Cheung Kong sold off some of their assets in mainland China and Hong Kong and moved to the UK, the Cheng family has become the most powerful family in Hong Kong.

With Chow Tai Fook on one hand and New World Development on the other, they not only have abundant funds at their disposal, but also demonstrate a strong sense of preparedness, holding more than 33.4% of the shares in both groups for a long time.

Unlike the Liu, Guo, and Li families, who each hold less than 30% of the shares in their own groups, they are worried that Lu Liang will launch an acquisition from the secondary market.

"I'll make some preparations and head to Hong Kong this afternoon." Old Xu squinted, intending to change his plans and force his way into the board of directors of New World, to confront the Zheng family head-on.

Lu Liang pondered for a moment, knowing this was the fastest and most convenient method, and asked, "Is there anything I can help you with?"

“The local real estate groups will definitely get involved, and even HSBC might get involved. You might need to help bear this pressure,” Xu Jiayin said.

Although he may not want to admit it, in the capital market, this real estate tycoon is far less capable than Lu Liang.

Once Hengtai Group steps out from behind the scenes and into the limelight, they will face pressure from public opinion and various forces.

In terms of public opinion, Xu Jiayin can still hold her own; all she gets is being called an ingrate and treacherous wretch.

But he was struggling to withstand the pressure from all sides.

Since Lu Liang's main business is not real estate, he does not have a potential or direct competitive relationship with the local real estate groups.

But Hengtai Group is different. It had wanted to enter the Hong Kong real estate market before, and even took a different approach by establishing Hengtai Health, intending to use it as a medium to enter the Hong Kong market.

Those in the same industry are the real enemies. For example, the Lei, He, Huo, and Wu families, who are currently maintaining neutrality, might suddenly intervene to stop it.

"No problem." Lu Liang agreed readily. He also wanted to test whether his reputation was effective.

If he can't even assist Hengtai in acquiring New World Development, then his so-called dominance is a joke, and it also shows that these local wealthy families still need education.

Although Hengtai is currently penniless, it is inevitable that they will have to advance funds for them to increase their bargaining power.

But once the acquisition of New World Development is completed, it's not too late to slowly squeeze out the profits later.

Matters on the mainland should be resolved on the mainland, and matters in Hong Kong should be resolved in Hong Kong. Lu Liang will absolutely not allow Hengtai to associate with them until Hengtai repays their kindness and funds.

The Hong Kong stock market opened at 1 p.m.

Chinese Estates Holdings, Sun Hung Kai Properties, and Henderson Land Development all experienced a sharp drop in prices upon their opening.

Capital rushed out, and the average increase of 49% fell to 23.8% before the decline was barely halted.

However, compared to the sharp drop in the three companies, New World Development went its own way, with its share price breaking through the HK$60 mark and its market value reaching HK$1632 billion.

"Seeing you guys make money hurts me more than when I lose money."

"The Zheng family is tough enough. So what if Lu Liang? They don't care about him."

"Go, go, go! Zheng family, let's rebuild the glory of our family! It's our duty!"

New World's shareholders have become the brightest stars in the entire Hong Kong stock market, with a gain of 78.25% so far today.

Although they say they support the Zheng family, it's just out of sympathy for the weak, because only when the acquiring party and the acquired party are evenly matched can retail investors profit.

If it's like those three companies...
How can they make money? It's just that as time goes by, the number of shares available for trading in New World Development's market becomes less and less.

Those with weak resolve had already sold off their shares. Of the remaining circulating shares, a small number are held by individual investors, while the majority are held by other institutions or groups.

"Ah Zheng does have some ability after all."

When the major wealthy families learned of this, they were filled with mixed emotions. Not long ago, they had ridiculed the Zheng family for their overly conservative strategy.

As a prominent family that has stood tall in Hong Kong for many years, who would dare to lay a finger on them? Holding so many shares would be a waste; it would be better to convert them into corresponding funds and make money from money.

In retrospect, holding 33.4% of the shares long-term is still very necessary, at least to avoid hostile takeovers.

Even if someone tries to take over hostilely, no matter how much money the other party has, they have the ability to defend themselves.

Each company tacitly agreed to quietly increase its shareholdings, and the Hang Seng Index quietly returned to 25000 points, signaling the imminent arrival of a true bull market.

At 2:30 p.m., Hengtai Group, a Hong Kong-listed company in the real estate sector, suddenly rose to prominence.

Today, the stock had already surged 7.83% due to the hype surrounding equity brokerage, but with the release of an announcement, a super bullish candlestick pattern emerged.

Hengtai Group has officially launched an acquisition of New World Development (in Hong Kong)...

"Holy crap, Xu Jiayin was involved too?"

"I knew it. Why would Hengtai entrust Tianxing Private Equity to act as its agent for equity without any reason?"

"Brother, since you're so smart, you should have bought Hengtai stock, right?"

"...If we don't say that, we can still chat. I bought Chinese Estates at a high price."

The announcement not only shocked the Hong Kong stock market, but also silenced the various families involved.

Lu Liang was already suffocating them, and now another mainland real estate tycoon has arrived.

Moreover, unlike Lu Liang, whose main business has always been finance, they don't face much competition.

However, Hengtai's main business has always been real estate.

They had always wanted to enter the Hong Kong real estate market, but were blocked by them.

Now that Lu Liang is in charge, Hengtai is acquiring New World Development, which will inevitably lead to their entry into the Hong Kong market.

Should they stop them or not?

When Guo Bingsheng learned of the news while Guo and Li were drafting the contract, he sighed, "Actually, we should have helped Ah Zheng."

He decided to retract his previous statement. Lu Liang was simply a wolf in sheep's clothing, allowing Hengtai to enter Hong Kong, clearly intending to sever their roots.

"Is there any point in saying this now?" Li Jiajie said with a self-deprecating laugh.

Although the contract has not yet been signed and there is still a chance to back out, if they dare to back out at the last minute, given Lu Liang's character, he will definitely eliminate them completely.

The two exchanged a glance and decided to give up on thinking about it.

Since they are at least the second batch to join Lu Liang's ranks, Xu Jiayin should show them some leniency.

Meanwhile, Evian Hill is also Xu Jiayin's first stop upon arriving in Hong Kong.

"Xiao Xu, aren't you going to pretend anymore?"

Zheng Jiachun squinted; he had guessed this was possible, so he had been on guard.

To his surprise, Xu Jiayin actually dared to visit Yiyun Manor.

"I can't keep up the act anymore," Xu Jiayin chuckled.

"Then why did you come here?" Zheng Jiachun asked.

"May I pay my respects to Mr. Zheng?"

Xu Jiayin's attitude was sincere, and Zheng Jiachun remained silent. Zheng Qilong then scolded, "How dare you bow to my grandfather?"

"Qilong, don't be so presumptuous." Zheng Jiachun scolded, glanced at Xu Jiayin, and said in a deep voice, "Go."

"Thank you." With permission, Xu Jiayin went to the ancestral hall next door and set out the fruit she had brought.

He lit three incense sticks, knelt on the prayer mat in front of the table, and said softly, "Mr. Zheng, Hengtai needs to develop, and Hengtai's development needs the Hong Kong market. I will always remember your kindness."

After Xu Jiayin finished the ritual, Zheng Jiachun said coldly, "What's the point of repenting now that it's already done?"

“It means something to me.” Xu Jiayin ignored the Zheng family’s sarcasm and left Yiyun Villa for the city.

(End of this chapter)