Chapter 629: Calculating Each Other

Upon hearing Charles Rothschild say this, Xia Yu smiled and nodded, and asked in return, 'Mr. Charles, then I wonder at what price you plan to sell?'

'Mr. Xia, according to the current trend, the price of the future Land Group will continue to rise,'

Charles Rothschild said to Xia Yu, who nodded in agreement.

As long as there was competition for the acquisition of shares in the Land Group and as long as Xia Yu and the others kept buying, the share price of the Land Group would continue to rise.

Seeing Xia Yu nod in agreement, Charles Locher continued, 'That's why the hidden value must be taken into account. You can't let us lose out. As long as you pay a 50% premium, we can transfer all of our shares to you.'

As soon as Charles Locher finished speaking, Xia Yu's resolute voice followed: 'No way. You're ripping off an innocent person. If that's the price, then I don't think we need to talk today. You might as well keep the shares of Hongkong Land.'

Wang Qi, sitting next to Xia Yu, also added coldly, 'Mr Charles, you have misjudged the situation. Most of the shares in Hongkong Land are now in Chinese hands. As long as we join forces with Bao Yugang and Huo Yingdong, the battle for Hongkong Land will come to an end and the share price will stop rising!'

'And the 8.5% of shares you have will only get you a seat on the board of directors, which will have no impact on us.'

Xia Yu drank some tea expressionlessly and said in a quiet voice, 'Mr Charles, the share price of Hongkong Land no longer means anything. You should know that the shares of Hongkong Land are concentrated in the hands of a very small number of people.'

'But you are right, and we will not let you suffer. The share price today has risen by about 8% compared to yesterday's. I will buy the shares you hold at today's share price. That is our bottom line!'

'In one day, you have made a profit of nearly 50 million Hong Kong dollars, so you should be satisfied!'

Charles Rothschild shook his head and refused, 'Mr Xia, your price is too low. We also acquired it at a high premium, but in order to celebrate our meeting today, I can appropriately lower the price, with a minimum premium of 45%...'

'...'

Next, the two sides bargained, and all four people got involved, trading sharp words with each other, and the negotiations were very intense.

Although Rothschild & Sons held the shares that Xia Yu wanted, and appeared to be in the driving seat, Xia Yu's side was now the largest shareholder, and was in the same boat as Huo Yingdong and Bao Yugang, which was the biggest threat to Rothschild & Sons.

The prospect of a rise in the share price of Hongkong Land that they had assumed was nothing more than someone continuing to compete to drive up the share price.

However, if Xia Yu, Bao Yugang and Huo Yingdong all stopped buying shares, it would be left to them to buy all the shares, and it would be difficult to drive up the share price.

Besides, they were just saying this in Xia Yu's presence, so how could they really go ahead and acquire the Land Group?

If they angered Xia Yu and the others, and recklessly let the group go to the dogs, the share price would fall, and it was possible that they would all lose their positions. After all, they had used ten times leverage to acquire the shares.

If they lost their money and failed to complete the family's task, they would have offended Xia Yu.

It was precisely because of these concerns that Charles Rothschild and his son did not adopt a very firm tone during the negotiations.

So after a lot of negotiation, the bottom lines of both sides kept getting closer and closer.

Finally!

Charles Rothschild said with emotion, 'Mr Xia, a 22% premium is not out of the question, but we have additional conditions. If you agree, we can sign the contract today.'

Xia Yu's heart trembled, and he thought to himself, "Finally it's here.'

Without changing his expression, he made a gesture of listening attentively and said, "Please go on!'

Charles Locher did not speak immediately, but instead talked about topics unrelated to the negotiations, asking Xia Yu, 'Mr Xia, you should not be unfamiliar with our company, right?'

Xia Yu nodded and said lightly, "Well, I have some understanding.'

Charles Locher continued, "Not to brag, but corporate mergers and acquisitions consulting is our company's gold medal business. We are very good at the whole process, from acquisition to integration, as well as strategic positioning advice. Even HSBC is no match for us.'

'As you may not know, I went to the mainland some time ago. The mainland's railway system reform hired our company as a special consultant to guide them throughout the process.'

Xia Yu continued to nod, but this time he didn't speak. Charles Rothschild said all this very clearly. Corporate mergers and acquisitions rely heavily on connections and professional teams. The Rothschild family is top notch in both of these areas.

HSBC is also able to obtain many corporate mergers and acquisitions business orders thanks to the special nature of the bank, which owns the majority of Hong Kong companies' equity.

However, from a professional perspective, HSBC is no match for Rothschild & Sons Ltd.

And in some ways, HSBC is no match at all.

Not to mention the deterrent effect alone, the Rothschild family is definitely a greater deterrent to the Keswick family than HSBC.

Moreover, Xia Yu is sure that the Rothschild family definitely holds a portion of HSBC Holdings' shares, although how much is unclear. However, the Rothschild family can fully utilise HSBC's connections and influence.

'Mr Xia, my conditions, although they can be considered conditions, are also beneficial to you. It can be said to be a win-win situation,'

said Charles Rothschild. If Xia Yu still couldn't guess what the conditions were after this, he should just take a piece of tofu and hit his head against it.

With a heavy heart, Charles Rothschild finally stated the conditions: 'I hope to become a strategic partnership with you. In the future, if your company has any needs in terms of mergers and acquisitions, you can hand over the business to us, and our company will do its best to help you complete it.'

After saying this, Charles Lochir looked at Xia Yu with burning eyes, expecting his reply.

Xia Yu crossed his arms and rested his elbows on the table, leaning forward, and said solemnly, 'Mr. Charles, I can only agree to part of your conditions.'

'No one can predict the future. Your company has a lot of influence in Xiangjiang, but that doesn't mean it has top-level influence in the world. I can't just hand over all my M&A business to you. That would be irresponsible of me.'

'At most, I will give you priority. Especially in Hong Kong, if there is a need for mergers and acquisitions, I will contact you first. As long as you can meet my requirements, the business is yours.'

'For example, if we reach a cooperation now, then I will entrust your company to help me acquire the remaining stake in the Henderson Land Group owned by the Keswick family.'

'This is my bottom line!'

At the end of the conversation, Xia Yu and Charles Rothschild's gaze was full of determination.

After a long while, Charles Rothschild withdrew his gaze and said with a smile, 'It was my inconsideration. Your request is more reasonable. Let's do it as you say.'

'Then, happy cooperation!'

'Happy cooperation!'

Xia Yu got up and shook hands with Charles Rothschild, who also got up, and the two men said in succession.

After that, they discussed the details on the spot, while Sean Rothschild and Wang Qi took the room phone to inform the staff to prepare the materials.

It was not until after six o'clock that the two sides signed the contract and agreed to complete the transaction the next day.

Seeing that it was getting late, Xia Yu directly arranged for the hotel to prepare a sumptuous dinner and treated the Lochills father and son with great hospitality.

It was not until around nine o'clock in the evening that the Lochills father and son left.

After they left, Xia Yu, who had seemed a little dazed, suddenly came to his senses and a sneer appeared at the corner of his mouth.

The Rothschilds had tricked him, but he pretended not to notice. Although the contract had been signed, Xia Yu would never hand over all his acquisitions to them.

In other words, he would use them selectively. The Rothschilds wanted to interfere with and even infiltrate his company, but they were just thinking too much.

If Xia Yu's company went public in the future, Rothschild & Sons Ltd. would definitely become the underwriter based on their friendship, and they would obtain a portion of the shares.

But Xia Yu, who had already taken precautions, was not stupid. In the future, we'll just have to wait and see who has the better tactics!

Moreover, Charles Rothschild was right: cooperating with them would indeed be very beneficial to him.

Xia Yu now had the ability to protect himself, and using the Rothschild family could accelerate his rise. As for the risks involved, they would vary from person to person, but Xia Yu was confident that he could deal with them!

As the saying goes, when the enemy fires a sugar-coated cannonball, just eat the sugar coating and fire the cannonball back.

Let's see what happens!