Chapter 140 - Loyalty Plummets
After finalizing the villa purchase, there was little else Lin Haoran needed to do; the paperwork would be handled entirely by Hongkong Land. The next day, after paying 4 million Hong Kong dollars for the property along with several tens of thousands in agency commissions and stamp duties, the villa was officially transferred under Lin Haoran's name. For the agency, this was probably the fastest and smoothest transaction they had ever completed.
Afterward, Lin Haoran brought Wan'an Group's best housing designer to the villa, instructing them to redesign it according to his ideas. Once the design met his satisfaction, a construction team would move in to renovate. The renovations would not involve major structural changes — just adjusting the layout slightly and updating the interior style. Completion would take about two months, which Lin Haoran found acceptable.
With the villa arrangements settled, Lin Haoran turned his attention back to business. Time quickly slipped into July. At Wan'an Group, there wasn't much activity. Aside from the two major projects — the North Point commercial tower and the Shangri-La Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui — the company was only handling minor construction projects, nothing that needed close attention.
In truth, the Group owned plenty of land. If Lin Haoran wanted, they could initiate new developments. But he had no such plans. He was stockpiling the land to sell it off by early 1981 — development was unnecessary. Meanwhile, Qingzhou Cement Company's performance improved month by month.
For instance, in June, local cement supply in Hong Kong surged by 20% compared to May, and demand in July was clearly rising even further. Overseas, cement supply grew an astonishing 40% within a month. However, there was a difference between the two markets: in Hong Kong, the surge was mainly due to existing clients increasing their project scales, while overseas, the growth came from continuously expanding into new markets and acquiring new clients.
This illustrated just how overheated Hong Kong's property sector had become — construction sites were everywhere, a clear sign of overdevelopment. Lin Haoran didn't mind; the more prosperous the real estate sector, the better it was for Qingzhou Cement. Higher demand naturally meant higher profits.
Even if a real estate crash struck two years later, it wouldn't hurt Qingzhou Cement much. By then, the company would have built strong overseas operations, reducing its dependence on Hong Kong. Plus, Hong Kong's real estate downturn would only last about two years before rebounding into another prolonged boom.
On July 8th, a Monday, Lin Haoran skipped his usual trip to Wan'an Group and instead went straight to Qingzhou Cement's offices. He wanted to deal with some pending approvals there before visiting Aimeigao Company in Kwun Tong. Since May, Aimeigao's orders had exploded.
The U.S., Canada, and even parts of Europe were experiencing a huge summer-driven surge in fan demand. Especially popular were Aimeigao's antique-style ceiling fans, which often sold out within days. U.S. distributors were now practically begging to place orders. In June, Aimeigao's orders doubled compared to May, and July was on track to double June's figures again.
Though Lin Haoran didn't visit Aimeigao often, Liu Luanxiong regularly updated him. Whenever Liu Luanxiong encountered problems beyond his connections, he turned to Lin Haoran for help. Thus, although Lin Haoran seemed uninvolved, he did contribute behind the scenes.
By 9 a.m., Lin Haoran was seated in his office at Qingzhou Tower. He reviewed a proposal from Burton: "Establish a new Qingzhou Cement plant in Johor, Malaysia, requiring an investment between 1 to 1.5 million U.S. dollars to meet growing demand in Malaysia and Singapore."
The plan also mentioned that the existing plant in Manila was insufficient, and transportation costs to Singapore and Malaysia were high. Building a new plant was urgent. Lin Haoran immediately signed off.
When business was booming, expanding made sense; otherwise, it would just waste resources. Shortly after signing, Burton knocked and entered. Lin Haoran handed him the approved proposal. "Boss, we have a senior management meeting in twenty minutes. Would you like to attend?" Burton asked.
"Sure, I'll sit in," Lin Haoran agreed. He had attended a few of these meetings before, usually as an observer, rarely offering opinions. He knew he wasn't a genius at corporate management — especially in the cement industry, where he only had basic knowledge. Thus, he preferred to let professionals handle operations.
Twenty minutes later, Lin Haoran and Burton entered the meeting room, already filled with over twenty senior executives. Upon seeing their young Chairman attend, the managers respectfully greeted him. Lin Haoran responded with a smile.
Looking around, Lin Haoran was quite satisfied with the current management structure. Roughly half the senior managers were new hires, recruited through external headhunting firms. Others were internal promotions. Of the 26 executives present, 15 were Chinese and 11 were foreigners. Talent, not ethnicity, mattered to Lin Haoran.
Scanning the room, he casually checked everyone's loyalty levels. Most were above 75%, with several over 80%. But one Western face caught his eye — sharply. His loyalty was shockingly low, only around 30%. Lin Haoran blinked, thinking he was mistaken, but no, it was real.
This man was the Chief Financial Officer — someone Lin Haoran remembered well. Previously a Deputy CFO, he had temporarily assumed the top role after the former CFO resigned. At that time, his loyalty had risen to 75%, and since financial talents were scarce, Lin Haoran had decided to keep him.
But now, after just a week without contact, his loyalty had plummeted to 34%. Something was definitely wrong. Lin Haoran knew loyalty could rise with increased belonging — or fall if someone betrayed the company.
This CFO had good credentials, strong academic background, and solid work experience. His career had been blocked for years only because the previous Chairman had favored his inner circle. After the company's upheaval, he had been promoted. Lin Haoran had once thought he could be trusted temporarily.
Clearly, he had been wrong. The CFO's loyalty drop indicated serious misconduct or betrayal. The CFO's role was too critical — without a trustworthy CFO, financial risks were inevitable. In fact, Lin Haoran remembered how the previous Chairman had been able to embezzle company funds precisely because of a compromised CFO.
As the senior management meeting continued, Lin Haoran was already pondering who should replace him. After a while, his eyes lit up. He had thought of the perfect candidate.
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