fictionpage Chapter 533: My secrets have been exposed
Chapter 533: My secrets have been exposed
In mid-May, the Federal Reserve announced a 05 percentage point interest rate hike (the federal funds rate had reached 65%). This news further dampened market confidence, and by late May, the Nasdaq had fallen to 3114 points, a drop of 378 points from its peak.
The Nasdaq suffered a major setback, which also dragged down Hong Kong technology stocks.
Li Dashao's Yingke Digital was not spared either. Moreover, some media outlets received a tip that Yingke Digital actually has no substantial business, only a blueprint for Cyberport, and doesn't even have any revenue. The anonymous materials sent to various media outlets were quite comprehensive, ranging from photos of the current state of the barren land to Yingke's current financial statements.
The media naturally wouldn't let this go, with both major and minor newspapers publishing reports. In no time, Yingke Digital became a pariah, and its stock price plummeted, forcing it to apply for a temporary suspension of trading.
Young Master Li was currently on a yacht, surrounded by beautiful women, but his brows were still tightly furrowed.
The Cyberport project was actually just a smokescreen. In the beginning, the plan was to use the name of digital semiconductor technology to acquire that piece of land that was practically given away for free.
You should know that land is very valuable in Hong Kong.
Therefore, in order to acquire this large piece of land, a Cyberport project was proposed to cater to the Hong Kong government's vision. It was positioned as a comprehensive project integrating technology enterprise incubation, office and residence, and the project also promised to attract international technology giants to settle in.
My real plan is to focus on real estate development, and incidentally build a technology business incubator to silence any dissent.
Technology incubation? Forget it! Nothing beats the profits from real estate.
So after acquiring the land in 98, it was never developed. Instead, the company used the booming Internet concept to hype it up, causing the listed company's stock price to increase several times. In a short time, the company not only became famous but also made a fortune.
Just then, he learned that Da Dong Company wanted to divest its overseas assets and cash out. Such an opportunity was truly a once-in-a-lifetime chance, which made him think about it. He then contacted several banks, and the initial results were quite good, with most of them promising to provide financing.
Unexpectedly, just two days later, several major banks reneged on their promises, refusing to disclose the specific reasons, only stating that the risk assessment had not been passed. The most ridiculous thing is that the major banks all gave the same explanation.
Young Master Li understood that someone must be targeting him behind the scenes, otherwise things wouldn't be like this. However, strangely enough, he couldn't find out exactly who was targeting him. The bank presidents all kept quiet about it, refusing to reveal a single word, and would only use the excuse that the risk control hadn't been passed to brush it off.
Now there's no need to guess. To have the presidents of several major banks listen to him so readily, it must have been done by someone with immense power.
When people are down on their luck, even drinking cold water can cause them to choke.
In March of this year, the Nasdaq index turned downwards after just surpassing 5000 points, dragging down Hong Kong tech stocks as well. The stocks of the companies under my name plummeted, making the acquisition even less hopeful.
As the saying goes, misfortunes never come singly. Unexpectedly, someone revealed that his Cyberport project had not been touched in the past two years, and even bluntly pointed out that he was ostensibly working on Cyberport, but in reality, he planned to develop real estate.
I will definitely retaliate, but this time the trouble is much bigger. The stock price has plummeted, causing the company's assets to shrink. It seems that the original plan to develop the Cyberport real estate project will fall through again. The Hong Kong government has also started to inquire, asking when the Cyberport project will start.
Construction begins? Are you kidding me? That Cyberport project was specifically designed to acquire that land. If we actually implement that plan, how can we possibly make any money?
Besides, look at how badly tech stocks have fallen these days.
However, not starting work indefinitely is not an option, and things have reached a stalemate for now.
Feeling upset, I decided to take a break at sea on my newly purchased yacht.
At this moment, Young Master Li's entourage walked up to him with a satellite phone.
"Young Master, someone is looking for you!"
With a head full of problems, Young Master Li asked somewhat impatiently, "Bingo? (Who is that?)"
The attendant replied, "It's Cao Charlie from the Da Dao Group."
Young Master Li was taken aback. He naturally knew about Charlie Cao. This man had a very legendary background. Many years ago, he was just a struggling lawyer who specialized in taking divorce cases from lower-class citizens that didn't bring much profit.
No one knows what stroke of luck he had, but he suddenly became the chairman of the Dadao Group. Now the group not only holds a large amount of assets, but its business also covers real estate, clothing retail and financial investment. The assets he controls can rank among the top five in Hong Kong.
Some suspect that this person is a puppet pushed to the forefront by a powerful figure who wishes to remain anonymous, but there has been no accurate information on this matter, and everyone is just speculating.
Nowadays, Hong Kong's wealthy can often see this person in famous social venues in Hong Kong. He is also a regular in tabloids, just like me. However, I look down on this person, so I have never had any dealings with him.
How did he find out he had a satellite phone?
Also, why did he contact me at this particular time?
In an instant, Young Master Li's mind started working at lightning speed.
However, he still took the satellite phone from his attendant and answered the call first.
"Hello, Mr. Cao!"
Charlie Cao's voice came through the phone: "Young Master Li, I have a business deal I'd like to discuss with you. Would you be interested?"
Young Master Li, unsure of Cao Charlie's intentions, cautiously resorted to delaying tactics: "Chairman Cao, I'm truly sorry, but it's not possible today. I've gone out to sea. How about in a few days?"
Seeing Li Shao's attitude, Cao Charlie bluntly revealed his true intentions: "Hehe! I heard that Li Shao is planning to take over the telecommunications company from Da Dong and is looking for banks to raise funds, is that right?"
Upon hearing this, Young Master Li immediately stood up. He suspected that Charlie Cao was the mastermind behind his misdeeds.
However, he remained calm and said, "How did Chairman Cao find out? I didn't expect such a small matter to alarm a big shot like you."
"Young Master Li, you visited more than twenty banks in Hong Kong in three days. Many people know about this."
Young Master Li cursed inwardly, "Damn it! What the hell was this confidentiality agreement?!"
However, he still asked, "Does Chairman Cao perhaps also want a piece of the pie?"
"Hehe, if I wanted to get the telecommunications, why would I call you? I could just go talk to Da Dong directly. I'm only doing this because we're both from Hong Kong, and I genuinely want to help you out. I have plenty of cash flow here. How about we talk?"
Upon hearing that Cao Charlie had the funds he needed, Young Master Li immediately had another idea. However, in order not to let Cao Charlie see his eagerness, he smiled and said, "How about this? I'll arrange a time to meet with Chairman Cao tomorrow to talk about it."
Charlie Cao readily agreed: "Sure, there's a horse race at Happy Valley tomorrow, and one of my horses is in it. Why don't we meet at the racecourse? I've heard that Young Master Li is quite knowledgeable about horse racing, so we can discuss horse racing strategies together."
"Okay! See you at the horse race!"