Water and Fire~Chapter 144.2: The Shining Man

 

Chapter 144.2: The Shining Man

That night, Ren Yan held Chu Qianmiao in his arms, sitting in the rocking chair, with Miaomiao in his arms. The two of them, their cat, quietly basked in the moonlight outside the window.

Chu Qianmiao asked Ren Yan, "Grandma will forget what happened tonight, right?"

Ren Yan reassured her, "Yes."

Chu Qianmiao stroked Miaomiao's chubby head. "But Tan Shen definitely won't forget. He'll definitely resent you even more. So, the battle between Henong and Hanhai will be tough."

She stroked Miaomiao's head, and Ren Yan stroked hers.

"Don't be afraid," he said. "I have you to help me."

On a weekday, Ren Yan began coaching Hanhai on how to respond to Henong's attack.

Soon, Hanhai Home Textiles held a board meeting, where all directors voted unanimously against Henong Shares' request to hold an extraordinary general meeting.

The financial news immediately followed this development, with reporters speculating that if Henong Shares insisted on removing the Hanhai Home Textiles directors and attempted to secure a board seat for itself, then according to regulations, if the board disagreed, they would have the right to propose to the Supervisory Board that an extraordinary general meeting be held.

As the reporters had speculated, Henong Shares soon submitted another request to the Hanhai Home Textiles Supervisory Board to convene an extraordinary general meeting.

Zhou Hanhai convened another meeting.

At the meeting, everyone discussed the purpose of Henong Shares' move.

"The Supervisory Board won't agree to this proposal," Zhao Zhenghuan said at the meeting. "So why is he going through all this trouble? Is he trying to disgust us?"

Chu Qianmiao wanted to tell him that, yes, given Tan Shen's behavior, it was possible he was deliberately trying to disgust people.

Ren Yan told Zhou Hanhai, "Mr. Zhou, I have a fairly good understanding of the mastermind behind this matter. If I'm not mistaken, after the Supervisory Board meeting, our confrontation with Henong will reach a fever pitch. So, before then, everyone should rest up."

Chu Qianmiao found it strange. From Henong's first bid for Hanhai until now, Hanhai has been on the defensive. But as she watched Ren Yan orchestrate his strategy, she felt that Hanhai could be led by this man and turn the tide at any moment.

Regardless of what others might think, she simply had such confidence in him.

Soon after, Hanhai Home Textiles convened another Supervisory Board meeting. Unsurprisingly, all the supervisors voted unanimously to reject Henong's request for an extraordinary general meeting.

The media continued to speculate about Henong's next move and whether they would still insist on holding an extraordinary general meeting.

During this period, Henong Holdings completed another takeover bid for Hanhai Home Textiles. Henong and its affiliates now hold a combined 21% stake in Hanhai Home Textiles, nearly eclipsing Mr. Zhou's position as Hanhai's largest shareholder.

The media was incredibly excited by this takeover bid. On the one hand, they were amazed at the financial strength of Yingji Capital, the company behind Henong Holdings, and on the other hand, they were curious about how Hanhai Home Textiles would react to this barbarian attack from Henong.

For a time, Henong's bid for Hanhai Home Textiles became a hot topic in the capital market.

Tan Shen took advantage of the situation and called Ren Yan. "So, you're so exhausted by the EGM, aren't you? You only just realized it was a delaying tactic." His voice was filled with pride. "Ren Yan, while you were busy vetoing the EGM, I was leading my men to buy up your Hanhai shares in the secondary market."

He concluded with a sinister tone, "Ren Yan, I told you I won't let you have it any easier than when Henong acquires Hanhai. When that happens, I'll turn Hanhai Home Textiles upside down. I'll make it impossible for you to stay there. Just like when you were at Litong, you'll be forced to leave in disgrace."

Ren Yan's voice was cold. "Okay, I'll wait for you."

Chu Qianmiao listened to the entire call from the beginning. She was a little worried. It turned out that Ren Yan had fallen for Tan Shen's delaying tactic.

The shareholders and management at Hanhai Home Textiles were already boiling like a pot of boiling water, and she was genuinely worried that Zhou Hanhai would unleash his stress and resentment on Ren Yan.

Ren Yan seemed to see through her concern and reassured her, "Mr. Zhou and I absolutely trust each other."

Despite this, Chu Qianmiao still held her breath when she heard Zhou Hanhai calling Ren Yan.

Zhou Hanhai's voice was heavy as he asked Ren Yan, "Mr. Ren, what do you think we should do now?"

Ren Yan remained calm and told Zhou Hanhai, "Mr. Zhou, it's time to suspend trading."

The next trading day, Hanhai Home Textiles applied for a trading halt due to major matters such as the company's restructuring and share issuance.

Ren Yan called Chu Qianmiao, who then asked Tang Jie and Wang Jun, and they all met non-stop at Hanhai Home Textiles to discuss the next steps.

During the meeting, someone in Hanhai Home Textiles' management questioned Ren Yan's indecision, saying that if the company had suspended trading earlier, it would have prevented Henong from increasing its holdings in Hanhai. This statement was immediately echoed by other managers, who argued that the two previous board and supervisory meetings had been a complete waste of time, giving Henong ample time to accumulate shares in the secondary market.

Chu Qianmiao thought her fears had finally come to pass.

She turned to look at Zhou Hanhai, hoping to detect any hint of emotion on his face. But his expression was sullen, revealing nothing but a heavy heart.

Chu Qianmiao decided to speak up for Ren Yan. "Leaders, I believe that all of Mr. Ren's arrangements have their reasons. Please be patient and listen to what Mr. Ren has to say, okay?"

The executive, still resentful, said unhappily, "Then Mr. Ren, please speak quickly! Don't delay any further. If you delay any longer, Hanhai will truly change hands. Not only us, but even Mr. Zhou will be out of a job."

Chu Qianmiao felt that such depressing remarks at this time would be extremely damaging to morale and tantamount to sowing discord.

She glanced up at Zhou Hanhai, who promptly spoke out, "Anyone who continues to speak negatively will be fired. Hanhai Home Textiles doesn't need such demoralized management." The meeting room suddenly became so quiet that a pin drop could be heard. Zhou Hanhai turned to Ren Yan and said, "Mr. Ren, please start."

His words were powerful, and Chu Qianmiao breathed a sigh of relief. Zhou Hanhai still trusted Ren Yan, which was good.

Ren Yan nodded and turned his gaze to Chu Qianmiao. "Henong currently holds 21% of the company's shares. If they continue to increase their holdings, their shares will surpass Mr. Zhou's, which would shake the morale of the team. That's why we've chosen to suspend trading now. Next, we'll conduct a private placement. Mr. Zhou, you'll subscribe to some of the shares, increasing your own stake while also diluting Henong's. Regarding the private placement, I'd like to trouble Ms. Chu from the brokerage firm, Mr. Tang from the accounting firm, and Lawyer Wang for assistance. We must expedite it."

Chu Qianmiao responded decisively, "No problem."

Zhao Zhenghuan asked Ren Yan, "Mr. Ren, why didn't we suspend trading and conduct the private placement sooner to dilute Henong's stake?"

He clearly expressed the question lingering among the other executives who felt Ren Yan's indecision was wasting time.

Ren Yan's eyes flickered across Chu Qianmiao's face.

Their eyes met, and Chu Qianmiao immediately understood why he was doing this.

She answered for Ren Yan, "Even if the previous trading suspension diluted Henong's shares, Henong's backer, Yingji Capital, was well-funded at the time. The initial capital it raised for Henong's stake still had plenty of room before its maturity date. Therefore, even after our private placement, Henong could still continue to increase its holdings."

She paused, then continued, "But now is different. At this stage of the stake acquisition, Yingji Capital's funds should be running low, and the initial capital raised for Henong is also gradually reaching repayment dates. In other words, now that Yingji Capital needs to find a way to repay its previous funds and raise new funds, the pressure is enormous. If we dilute its shares through a private placement at this time, it may not have the strength to continue increasing its holdings."

As she finished speaking, everyone in the conference room suddenly understood.

They gradually changed their tone, "Mr. Ren is indeed a man of foresight."

Tang Jie suddenly spoke up, "Mr. Ren, you just mentioned the proposal for a private placement. I calculated that Henong currently holds 21% of the shares. A shareholders' meeting requires approval by at least two-thirds of the shareholders present at the meeting. This means our shareholding must reach at least 42%. But currently, Mr. Zhou, Mr. Zhao, and the management team hold a combined 40%, a shortfall of 2%. Therefore, our proposal for a private placement is likely to fail."

The conference room erupted in an uproar at this unexpected possibility.

Even Zhou Hanhai couldn't sit still this time. He turned to Ren Yan and asked, "Mr. Ren, how do we resolve this?"

Chu Qianmiao looked at Ren Yan with a lingering breath.

Ren Yan said to Zhou Hanhai, "Mr. Zhou, I'd like to have two of my friends come in for a moment."

Zhou Hanhai nodded, though he didn't understand.

Ren Yan made a phone call and said, "Come in."

The next second, Chu Qianmiao saw Lei Zhenzi and Shao Yuan push open the conference room door and walk in.

She was slightly startled, but instantly understood everything.

Lei Zhenzi and Shao Yuan both worked for investment companies, had ample funds, and were well-placed to operate in the secondary market. So, Ren Yan must have contacted them because...

"Everyone, these two are my friends and new shareholders of Hanhai," Ren Yan said to the room. "When Henong requested an extraordinary shareholders' meeting, not only did they take advantage of the delaying tactic to buy up Hanhai shares in the secondary market, but I also had two friends of mine privately buy up Hanhai shares. Now, they each hold a 3% stake in Hanhai Home Textiles. So, our combined shareholding ratio has reached 46%. The additional share issuance proposal will be approved at the shareholders' meeting."

Chu Qianmiao looked at Ren Yan, her heart pounding against her chest.

She wondered how such a meticulously calculated man could exist. He'd thought of every step, leaving no detail untouched in his plan.

She heard the two executives who had previously challenged him apologize, "We're sorry, Mr. Ren. We were shortsighted and misjudged you. It turns out you were using the delaying tactic of the Box Farmers to delay them, too."

Chu Qianmiao suppressed her inner excitement and thought, her man truly shines. Now, it was her turn to bring him glory.