"Then let’s conduct a targeted stock issuance.”

Lu Liang, who had remained silent, suddenly spoke, becoming the focus of the entire room and attracting everyone’s attention.

He smiled slightly and looked up at Zheng Jiachun, saying, “After all, continuing to argue won’t lead to any results. Mr. Zheng, what do you think?”

A veto power can only reject decisions,

It’s not a consent right that allows one to act independently.

Zheng Jiachun can veto Old Xu’s proposal, and likewise, his proposal can also be vetoed by others.

Even as the chairman, in a joint stock company, especially a listed one, it’s never solely someone’s dictatorial rule.

Even if shareholders don’t join the board, they can impeach or veto the board’s decision through a shareholders’ meeting.

The board is the group’s management, but shareholders are the true holders of the group; most of the time, shareholders simply don’t dare to offend the board.

Because shareholders don’t possess the power in their hands, they’re merely nominal owners of the group.

The relationship between both parties is not one of hierarchy, but more like that of an ancient court to its people. A few people can’t stir waves, but with enough numbers, they can change the regime at any moment.

Zheng Jiachun squinted slightly, not questioning Zhou Simin like he did with Old Xu about the capacity in which Lu Liang spoke.

Some tactics of feigning ignorance assert authority once, but twice is deliberately finding fault.

In modern business warfare, what counts is wit, not bloodshed, emphasizing fighting without breaking.

Zheng Jiachun glanced at Qi Yaonian with the corner of his eye, as they suspected, Lu Liang wanted to initiate a showdown in the secondary market.

Qi Yaonian asked steadily, “Mr. Lu, do you suggest a non-public targeted issuance, or a public one?”

Targeted stock issuance can be public or non-public. For non-public, only 35 institutions will be authorized to subscribe.

If public, it will be open to the entire market.

Anyone with money can participate, just like subscribing to new shares.

It’s actually a method for corporate financing, but it also applies to anti-takeover cases.

Because stocks don’t appear out of thin air; they are carved out through dilution strategies.

If 10% of the shares are issued in a targeted manner, Zheng Family’s holdings will reduce from 49.12% to 44.208%.

Similarly, Hengtai’s current 40.21% holdings would reduce to 36.189%.

The additional 10% would be directly thrown into the secondary market.

"Mr. Zheng, what do you think?”

Lu Liang looked at Zheng Jiachun, still with a smile on his face.

Recently, the public opinion in Xiangjiang is oddly directed, intending to paint him as an invading Demon King, while Old Xu is seen as a rogue traitor.

The two are portrayed as partners in crime.

The force behind this wave is undoubtedly the Zheng Family, indicating they had anticipated the poison pill strategy wouldn’t be smoothly implemented.

If judging by this, then a public targeted issuance is a must.

Because it can use the sympathy of retail investors, treating them as cannon fodder, thereby draining Lu Liang’s funds.

Even though HSBC has money, far more than Tianxing, having money doesn’t mean being foolish; when it’s time to trick scapegoats, scapegoats must be tricked.

"Mr. Lu’s proposal is good, then let’s conduct a public targeted issuance of 30% of the shares.”

Zheng Jiachun frowned deeply, displeased at having his intentions seen through, but had no choice but to follow the logic.

They hold 49.12% of the shares; even after a 30% dilution, they still hold 34.384%, reaching a relatively controlling stake, while Hengtai will only have 28.147% left.

And once the issuance choice is made, the free-floating shares in the market will also increase from just over seven to over thirty-seven percent.

With many shareholders, there will be opportunists joining the fray, making the acquisition costs higher.

At that time, Zheng Family’s shares reaching 50.1% can thoroughly smash Hengtai’s ambitious plans.

The targeted issuance is essentially similar to the poison pill strategy but cannot impose restrictions on the acquiring party.

This approach easily hurts oneself as well as others, because Hengtai Group also has the possibility to reach 50.1% for absolute control.

If not for the price HSBC can’t refuse, Zheng Jiachun absolutely wouldn’t agree to take such a big risk.

"Chairman Zheng, we should consider it carefully, and issuing 30%? That’s too much,” He Jiafan’s complexion changed slightly.

Once agreeing to the targeted issuance, while Standard Chartered’s support is important, it’s not as crucial as before.

They still wanted to have double standards, demand sky-high prices, and settle for cash, but now neither side involves them in the game?

"Mr. Lu, what do you think?”

Qi Yaonian squinted his eyes, looking at Lu Liang with aggressive intent.

As events have unfolded, Hengtai’s acquisition of New World is no longer just Xu Jiayin’s matter, but also Lu Liang’s.

Stopping New World from being acquired by Hengtai is not only the Zheng Family’s concern, but also HSBC’s matter.

Lu Liang wishes to assert authority and gain a foothold in Xiangjiang.

HSBC also needs to demonstrate its power to ensure its status remains unaffected.

Lu Liang can call allies, can mobilize several times more funds than currently available, but HSBC was the central bank in Xiangjiang during the colonial era, and even now is one of only three financial institutions with currency issuance rights in Xiangjiang.

Others may fear Lu Liang’s financial deluge, but they do not; it’s still uncertain whose hand will prevail in a real fight.

Lu Liang said with a smile, “Since Mr. Qi feels confident, we have no objections.”

HSBC’s deep intervention was beyond his expectations, but now that the arrow is pulled, he can’t back down.

The battle for New World largely determines Tianxing Financial Group’s future status in the Xiangjiang market.

Xiangjiang is too small,

So small that it can only support one industry leader.

"Let’s all vote then; those in favor of the targeted issuance, please raise your hand.”

As Qi Yaonian finished speaking, Zheng Jiachun raised his hand in response, Lu Liang nodded in agreement, and Zhou Simin also raised his hand to approve.

As the parties reached an agreement, Standard Chartered Bank’s stance became irrelevant, and the proposal was nearly unanimously approved.

The group then discussed the matter of targeted share issuance, and an hour and a half of meeting time quickly passed.

New World applied to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange for a temporary suspension of trading, announcing the targeted issuance of 30% of its shares.

"Has the Zheng Family gone mad? Competing financially with Lu Liang is like a birthday star eating arsenic, wishing for a longer life?”

Once the announcement was made, public opinion was in an uproar, and onlookers had to wonder if there was a mole within the Zheng Family.

Until someone leaked the details of the meeting, HSBC decided to fully support the Zheng Family in defending New World.

With this news, in private betting, the odds of Hengtai gaining control of New World soared, directly spiking to 1.98 to 1.

The intention behind HSBC’s involvement was clear to everyone.

This battle will determine who the next era’s leaders will be, so HSBC is bound to go all out.

As the saying goes, the people do not fight with officials; Tianxing’s Lu Liang and Hengtai’s Xu Jiayin are the people, while HSBC is the official.

If it weren’t for the Bank of China, HSBC would be the pinnacle of Xiangjiang’s financial industry, especially with its reserves of hundreds of billions of US Dollars.

"In fact, acquiring Huazhi should have been enough, but they insisted on stirring up trouble by helping Hengtai acquire New World, and now they’ve provoked the big boss.”

"Hengtai acquiring New World is difficult but not impossible; with patience, they could eventually succeed. Lu Liang was just too eager for quick success.”

"Lu Liang’s thinking is still stuck in the financial market, but one must realize that the financial market and the capital market, though related, play by entirely different rules.”

Whether on the mainland, in Xiangjiang, or internationally, there are voices predicting failure.

After all, the Zheng Family has home-field advantage and now also has the financial backing of HSBC, like 800,000 against 600,000, making it hard to see how the Zheng Family could lose.

"By the way, does anyone know how retail investors are supposed to subscribe to the targeted issuance of new shares?”

The second round of stock grab is about to break out, and this news undoubtedly gives onlookers a chance to get a piece of the action.

Everyone is digging deeper, not ashamed to ask questions, hoping to make a big gain in the battle between Tianxing and HSBC.

Soon, New World publicly released the financing plan for the targeted issuance of new shares.

The targeted issuance is 750 million shares, accounting for 30% of the total share capital, with each share subscribed at a price of 55.75 yuan.

The subscription starts on Friday, and the results will be announced on Monday.

Once the news came out, the market was in a frenzy.

Whether in official or public institutions, long lines formed in front of major lending institutions.

As of the moment the subscription announcement was released, New World’s stock price was 88.2 yuan, with a market value of 207.2 billion Hong Kong Dollars.

Therefore, as long as the subscription is successful, regardless of future developments, a guaranteed minimum return of 60.15% is assured.

Typically, new stock issuances only see a 30% premium, and some junk stocks might not even have that.

An old company listed for over twenty years, yet its targeted issuance of shares is even more profitable than new stocks.

This drives investors in the market crazy, as a large number of qualified retail investors from the mainland rush in a frenzy to the Shenzhen Port.

After the meeting, Xu Jiayin followed Lu Liang back to the office in Phase 2 of the Plaza Building.

Once they were alone, he let down his guard, a look of melancholy on his face: “Mr. Lu, it seems we’ve overplayed our hand.”

It should be noted that New World, even before going through rounds of speculation, was worth at most 70 billion Hong Kong Dollars.

Although Hengtai was financially tight, with Lu Liang’s assistance, it was a small challenge at best.

However, since HSBC got involved, the whole affair has spiraled out of control like an unleashed wild horse.

With a market value of 129.5 billion, targeting the issuance of 30% of shares, New World’s latest market value is 207.2 billion Hong Kong Dollars.

Real estate companies with over three times the high premium are nothing but a mess, even if completely acquired.

The costs and returns are severely disproportionate, at least for Hengtai.

"Mr. Xu, feeling scared?”

Lu Liang smiled, standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, holding a thermos cup and overlooking Victoria Harbor.

Among buildings imposing enough to send shivers down one’s spine, the blue harbor appeared extraordinarily beautiful.

He certainly understood that as things had evolved to this point, the costs and returns were already disproportionate, but only relatively.

Tianxing’s entry into the Xiangjiang market meant there would inevitably be a battle with HSBC, and the war just came sooner.

One can’t help but marvel at the wonders of fate, as Lu Liang originally planned to target HSBC, only for the Zheng Family to intervene, redirecting his focus.

In the end, it all circled back to confronting HSBC.

The higher you climb, the smaller the circle becomes, indeed.

"How could it be?” Xu Jiayin appeared displeased, slowly moving to Lu Liang’s side: “Risk life to accompany the gentleman.”

Like someone aboard a pirate ship, complaining now would only earn Lu Liang’s scorn and serve no purpose.

Since one has come this far, one might as well find peace in it,

It’s not just a mindset, but a state of mind.

"I’ve heard that HSBC has long reserved cash flow of 100 billion US Dollars, how do you plan to deal with that?”

Xu Jiayin hinted tentatively; after all, he loved to be in the spotlight and couldn’t possibly worry about matters escalating.

He was worried about losing.

Because everyone knows,

New World is simply not worth 207.2 billion.

If they win, it could be called a strategic loss, a display of bravado.

If they lose, that would be a real loss.

At that point, Lu Liang would be severely weakened, having to keep a low profile, and Hengtai’s crash would be almost certain.

"The Ant Group turned 3 billion into 300 billion through ABS (Asset-Backed Securities).”

Suddenly talking about Ant Group, Lu Liang said to himself: “If Tianxing also uses ABS, how much funding could be leveraged?”