Chapter 268 Let Your Assets Double!
Just as Su Zhixue had said, Huanyu Investment would still need at least two more months to reach a 30% stake in Hongkong Land, so Lin Haoran wasn't in a hurry to take control.
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, more than a week had passed. It was now July 17, 1980.
That afternoon, around 3 p.m., Lin Haoran appeared in the arrival lounge at Kai Tak International Airport.
Liu Luanxiong had gone to the United States a week earlier and was returning today.
During his trip to the U.S., Liu had discovered a fact that left him somewhat shaken.
After visiting several appliance stores, he realized that fan sales in America had declined to varying degrees.
Although the drop wasn't drastic, someone as astute as Liu could already sense the looming future trend of the fan industry.
Moreover, feedback from Mexico and Canada showed similar signs of decline compared to the previous year.
This made Liu very anxious.
Even though Lin Haoran had already warned him that the North American fan market would eventually saturate, witnessing it firsthand still made it difficult for Liu to accept.
After all, Amega had created unimaginable wealth for him in just two years.
A little more than two years ago, when he had left his family business, Liu couldn't even scrape together a few thousand Hong Kong dollars.
He had to borrow tens of thousands from his father-in-law to co-found Amega Fan Factory with a partner.
After Lin Haoran's investment, Amega quickly entered a period of rapid growth.
Now, Liu was already accustomed to massive order volumes.
Although Amega's orders had surged last month, much of it had been dealers aggressively stocking inventory.
As actual sales began to fall short of expectations, dealers naturally started cutting their orders.
This was why Liu had gone to the U.S. last week to investigate.
After verifying the situation, he called Lin Haoran from abroad, sounding very disheartened.
Lin Haoran hadn't tried to persuade him too much—he just got the flight information and decided to pick him up personally.
In Lin's mind, it was the perfect time to push for Amega's IPO.
Earlier, when Amega's orders were booming, Liu might have resisted the idea of going public.
But now, seeing signs of market saturation, it would be much easier to persuade him.
At 3:43 p.m., sitting in the arrival hall, Lin Haoran spotted Liu Luanxiong pulling a suitcase toward him.
Liu hadn't brought any bodyguards—he believed that, as a mostly unknown factory owner, he wasn't at risk.
Besides, he wasn't yet a celebrity.
He had even traveled alone to the U.S., leaving his wife behind.
Of course, Lin Haoran didn't know whether Liu had indulged in any "local customs" while overseas.
Knowing Liu, it wouldn't be surprising.
"Hey, Haoran!
You actually came to pick me up?" Liu said in surprise.
After all, although they were partners, their statuses were worlds apart.
Without Lin's investment, Liu doubted he'd even have the chance to talk to someone like Lin Haoran—even as a billionaire.
Since 1978, Hong Kong's number of billionaires had exploded, fueled by the real estate and stock market booms.
"Of course I came.
Isn't it normal?" Lin Haoran laughed.
Liu felt genuinely touched.
"Come on, let's head back to the office.
Not a good place to talk here," Lin Haoran said, looking at the bustling crowd around them.
Even though Liu Luanxiong was now a billionaire, he had chosen to live modestly inside Amega's factory building, sharing a three-bedroom apartment with his wife and newborn son to better manage the business.
He was very dedicated.
Kai Tak Airport was only about two kilometers from Amega's factory in Kwun Tong.
Thus, after only a few minutes' drive in Lin Haoran's Rolls-Royce, they arrived.
Sitting inside the luxurious car, Liu admired the interior but didn't feel the need to own such a car yet.
He preferred staying low-key for now.
Once back at the factory, they returned to Liu's office.
"Not going up to see your wife and kid first? They're just upstairs," Lin Haoran teased.
"No rush—they're not going anywhere," Liu shrugged.
"So, how was the U.S. trip?" Lin Haoran asked, crossing his legs comfortably.
They hadn't discussed much over the phone—Lin had preferred to wait until they could talk face-to-face.
"I have a lot of thoughts.
I can clearly see that the golden era for fans is ending, just like you said before.
Although we'll still make money, the crazy profits of the past two years are unsustainable.
You were right!" Liu said, a little bitterly.
Last year, Lin Haoran had warned him that Amega's boom period would last only a little more than a year.
At the time, Liu hadn't fully believed it.
But after seeing the declining orders firsthand, he now completely accepted Lin's foresight.
"By next year, there's no doubt orders will plummet.
You have to be mentally prepared," Lin Haoran said.
"The North American fan demand surge was due largely to the oil crisis.
Now, everyone who needed a fan has bought one—and fans last for years.
The saturation is inevitable.
Moreover, the U.S. and Canada aren't particularly hot climates.
I anticipated all this when I first invested.
Thanks to the North American and European demand spikes, Amega has made over HK$300 million in profits annually for two years.
But soon, profits will crash—maybe down to HK$10–20 million a year, or even less.
It's painful but normal.
Manufacturing can't stay super-profitable forever," Lin explained.
Hearing this, Liu nodded heavily.
He knew Lin was right—but it was still painful to accept.
He had gotten used to the idea of making tens of millions every month.
If that suddenly dropped by ten times, it would be devastating.
He realized he might need to shift to another industry eventually.
Yet, he wasn't sure what else he could do.
Real estate was an obvious option—his land investments from last year had already doubled in value.
"Haoran, if the fan business really declines, should I shift all my investments into real estate?" Liu asked sincerely.
Among all his acquaintances, only Lin Haoran was a true heavyweight.
His father had only been an ordinary factory owner.
To Liu, Lin Haoran's rapid rise to power showed extraordinary foresight and ability.
"No doubt, fan manufacturing is small-scale.
And you now have considerable financial power.
You could easily shift industries if needed.
Real estate is an option, but I suggest you wait.
Nothing keeps rising forever.
When the property market cools, that's the time to jump in.
For now, don't rush to abandon Amega.
In fact, Amega's real potential hasn't been tapped yet.
Handled properly, your assets could easily double," Lin Haoran said mysteriously.
"Double?
How is that even possible?" Liu said, incredulous.
After all, with his current investments, Liu's net worth had already passed HK$300 million.
By year-end, factoring in property appreciation and business profits, he could easily hit HK$500 million.
Doubling that to HK$1 billion?
It sounded insane—almost unimaginable to him.
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