Chapter 138 - Buying a Villa
Around nine o'clock in the morning, Lin Haoran arrived at Wan'an Group Tower. Not long after, Lin Haoning also arrived, and he came alone, without any assistants or entourage. The employees of Wan'an Group were surprised to see the elder brother of their new Chairman — the former heir apparent to the company. They wondered what business he had here. In truth, when Lin Haoran officially took over as Chairman, most employees had already guessed that there had been a struggle between the two brothers for control of Wan'an Group, with Lin Haoran ultimately emerging victorious.
In the Chairman's office, Lin Haoran stood up with a smile and said, "Big Brother, have a seat." Lin Haoning nodded, glancing around the office. Everything looked much the same as before. Yet all of it no longer had anything to do with him. His focus was now on running Wan Feng Fan Factory, where he was making steady progress. With monthly profits now reaching hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong dollars, he felt hopeful about the future. With hard work, he believed he could build a successful enterprise of his own.
Thus, Lin Haoning harbored no resentment toward Lin Haoran — rather, he was grateful. If Lin Haoran hadn't told him about the North American fan market, he might still be struggling in the Middle East. "Haoran, here are the Wan'an Group share certificates. I've brought them all with me," Lin Haoning said, handing over the documents. "Good. I've already had the legal advisors prepare the contracts. Take a look. If there's no problem, let's sign them now," Lin Haoran said, handing over two copies.
Lin Haoning quickly scanned the contract and signed his name without hesitation. Even though this was a transaction worth over ten million Hong Kong dollars, business was business — even between brothers. "Big Brother, I'll arrange the payment for you later today," Lin Haoran said while signing. "Alright. I'll head back now. The fan factory is busy, so I won't stay," Lin Haoning replied simply. "Take care, Big Brother. Come by for tea when you have time," Lin Haoran said politely.
Though they were brothers, there wasn't much more to discuss. After finalizing the share transfer with Lin Haoning, Lin Haoran visited the Huanyu Investment office. Under Su Zhixue's management, the operations team was quietly absorbing shares of both Wan'an Group and Hongkong Electric.
Acquiring Wan'an Group shares was easy — there were plenty of sell orders and few buy orders. However, absorbing Hongkong Electric shares was more challenging. Although Hongkong Electric had no strong family ownership blocking acquisitions, it was a blue-chip stock with stable dividends and strong performance, attracting constant investor interest. Trading volumes were high, especially now that Hong Kong was in a bull market. However, the heavy trading volume actually helped Huanyu Investment hide their operations, unlike Wan'an Group, where any surge in buying would be obvious.
After securing Lin Haoning's 10% stake and the 16% held by six other shareholders, Lin Haoran now controlled 76% of Wan'an Group. A few more moves in the open market would push him past 90%, enabling a clean and easy privatization — much simpler than with Qingzhou Cement. He planned to absorb more shares quietly before making any official moves.
Observing the market, it was clear investors were skeptical about Lin Haoran's leadership. Despite the overall bullish trend, no one showed much interest in Wan'an Group's stock. People thought his victory at Qingzhou Cement was mostly luck and backed by his father. His oil and gold investments were known only to a few insiders at Citibank, so the market had no idea.
After a brief stay at Huanyu Investment, Lin Haoran left — because shareholders were arriving. Lin Wanan had arranged for the four shareholders who agreed to sell at market price to come in and sign their agreements first. The two demanding a 10% premium would be handled later. The transactions went smoothly. The shareholders handed over their certificates; Lin Haoran handed over the payments. In the morning, he closed deals with four shareholders; in the afternoon, with two more.
That day alone, Lin Haoran acquired an additional 26% of Wan'an Group, spending 45 million Hong Kong dollars. Meanwhile, Huanyu Investment was steadily buying Hongkong Electric shares, although it would take time to build a controlling stake. For now, the goal with Hongkong Electric was simple: accumulate as many shares as possible quietly.
Privatizing Wan'an Group, however, was straightforward. With Huanyu Investment managing the acquisitions and Wardley Company eventually handling the final steps, it would be a smooth process with minimal cost. Over the following days, Lin Haoran kept his attention on three main areas: monitoring international gold prices, overseeing share acquisitions of Wan'an Group and Hongkong Electric, and handling major strategic approvals at both Wan'an Group and Qingzhou Cement.
On weekends, when Guan Shan was away from Hong Kong, Guan Jiahui would seek him out. During those times, Lin Haoran would stay at his apartment in Heng Fung Building. However, Lin Haoran also realized it was time to buy a villa of his own. It wasn't convenient to always stay at Deep Water Bay, especially at night when travel could be unsafe. He had plenty of cash now. Occasional visits to his parents were enough.
Real estate prices in Hong Kong were still relatively low. Even two years later, when the property bubble would burst, prices would fall only about 60% from their peak — but today's prices were still far from the 1981 peak. Thus, it was a good time to buy. Hence why he had encouraged Wan'an Group to borrow and invest heavily in land.
Most importantly, Hong Kong villas were not yet expensive by his standards. Remote villas could be bought for tens of thousands of Hong Kong dollars; even in prime areas like Repulse Bay or Deep Water Bay, a villa could be had for just over two million. Villas on the Clear Water Bay Peninsula were even cheaper — just over a million. But Lin Haoran wasn't interested in any of those. He wanted a villa in Mid-Levels or on The Peak, where many influential Westerners lived and where security was the best in Hong Kong.
Spending a few million out of his billions wouldn't even scratch the surface of his fortune. Having made up his mind, Lin Haoran immediately took action. Leaving Wan'an Group Tower, he instructed Li Weiguo to drive him to a major real estate agency affiliated with Hongkong Land.
Mid-Levels and The Peak had few new properties; buying second-hand was the only option. Lin Haoran didn't mind. He could always renovate. Wan'an Group had a professional construction team — he could redesign the house however he wished. Hongkong Land was Hong Kong's biggest and oldest real estate firm, and its second-hand property listings were extensive and trustworthy.
The agency's shop in Central was large, over 200 square meters, located right in the heart of the city where rent was exorbitantly high. "Good morning, sir. I'm Sales Manager Hu Yuhang. May I have your name? Are you here to buy or sell property?" a sales agent asked enthusiastically as they entered. Lin Haoran was accompanied by two bodyguards — clearly not ordinary customers.
"My surname is Lin. I'm here to buy. Do you have a more private place to talk?" Lin Haoran asked, glancing around the busy showroom. "Of course, Mr. Lin. Please follow me to our private consultation room," the agent said, leading them to a quiet area. Soon, they were seated with hot tea served.
"Bring me your listings for Mid-Levels and The Peak. I'll browse first and ask if I have any questions," Lin Haoran said. The sales agent's excitement was palpable — clearly a major client. "Of course, Mr. Lin. I'll prepare them right away," he said, hurrying out of the room.
A few minutes later, he returned carrying a thick stack of property brochures. "Mr. Lin, here's everything we have for Mid-Levels and The Peak. Please take your time. Feel free to ask if you have any questions." Lin Haoran nodded and began flipping through the materials.
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