“Boss, we've found that Huanxiang Computer is currently seeking financing everywhere. It seems their cash flow is indeed in trouble!” This was the message placed on Boss Huang's desk at the end of 2016.
“That's within expectations!” Boss Huang's expression was exceptionally calm. It wasn't that Boss Huang had foreseen Huanxiang Computer's fate long ago, but rather that Boss Huang had been secretly monitoring Huanxiang Computer's various situations.
Although he hadn't obtained much core intelligence, based on the financial reports Huanxiang Computer disclosed quarterly, as well as personnel and organizational changes within the company, Boss Huang had already guessed that Huanxiang Computer's cash flow was on the verge of collapse.
For a large enterprise, a cash flow collapse is almost devastating. No matter how vast the enterprise, once its cash flow encounters problems, the entire entity can collapse in an instant.
And now, Huanxiang Computer had clearly fallen into such a desperate situation.
“How much money does Lenovo Computer want to raise?” Boss Huang squinted and asked. “According to news from several of our friends, Lenovo Computer’s current offer to the outside world is 3 billion US dollars for a 20% stake.”
“I recall that Huanxiang Computer's total market value is just over 100 billion Hong Kong dollars, which converts to about 13 billion US dollars. For 3 billion US dollars to secure a 20% stake, does Huanxiang Computer believe its true market value can reach 15 billion US dollars?” Boss Huang chuckled with a grin.
“Yes, that's just Huanxiang Computer's asking price. There will definitely be room for negotiation. If we really go to negotiate with Huanxiang Computer, we should be able to drive the price down significantly!” Hu Jing replied.
“Alright, you find someone to talk to Yang Yuan and gauge his bottom line!” Boss Huang said.
“Boss, you're not actually planning to help Huanxiang Computer overcome its difficulties, are you?” Hu Jing stared at Huang He in surprise. Hu Jing was very aware of the grievances between her man and Huanxiang Computer, which was why she was so astonished.
“I’m not thinking of helping him overcome his difficulties; I just want to buy it!” Boss Huang chuckled. “Have you forgotten, it’s the Teacher’s 80th birthday in a few years.”
“I’ve always wondered what gift to give him, but I know Huanxiang Computer is a lifelong pain for him. So, I might as well buy Huanxiang Computer and give it to him as a birthday gift!”
“…” Hu Jing was speechless. Buying a listed company to give as a gift to one's teacher was probably something only her man would do.
“But it’s still two years until Chief Engineer Ni’s 80th birthday. Aren’t you rushing things a bit by wanting to buy it now?” Hu Jing said.
“You can’t say that. Firstly, elders don't celebrate full-year birthdays. They say it's the 80th birthday, but it's actually celebrated at 79, so we only have one year!”
“Secondly, I’m afraid if we delay any further, Huanxiang Computer might just go bankrupt on its own.”
“Wouldn’t that be even better? Huanxiang Computer, which has already gone bankrupt, could probably be bought for nothing!” Hu Jing rolled her eyes.
“How could I give the Teacher a bankrupt company?” Huang He said irritably. “Besides, if Huanxiang Computer goes bankrupt, it will make the Teacher even more upset. He never wished for Huanxiang Computer to go bankrupt; rather, he hoped Huanxiang Computer would do better and better. Unfortunately, these people are just leading Huanxiang Computer step by step into the abyss of bankruptcy.”
“Isn’t that because of your meddling? If you hadn't messed with them, how would they have ended up like this!” Hu Jing said.
“That’s where you’re wrong. A company is never ruined by outsiders; they only die from the mistakes of their own people!” Huang He said indifferently. “Believe it or not, even if I didn't exist in this world, Huanxiang Computer would still struggle to last ten years!”
Huang He's words might sound incredible, but they were indeed the truth. Although another world's Huanxiang Computer seemed to be doing quite well until 2023, its stock price was constantly falling because the PC market itself was continuously shrinking.
Due to a large amount of office demand shifting from computers to mobile phones, many people no longer needed to buy computers; a smartphone was enough for them.
As for individual users who needed to use computers, they preferred to purchase various computer components online and assemble them themselves. Who would still buy the overpriced and poorly configured Huanxiang Computer?
Therefore, by 2023, Huanxiang Computer's core business had almost entirely shifted to large-scale procurement and some overseas markets. However, at the same time, Huanxiang Computer still owed suppliers over a hundred billion in payments for goods, which had not been paid.
In short, the PC market would continue to shrink in the future, and a large number of self-assembled machines would quickly replace users who bought branded computers.
Huanxiang Computer would become even more reliant on those procurement markets. But there was a problem: with the exposure of the actions of the daughter of a former chairman of Huanxiang Computer, that chairman had been utterly disgraced, and the network of contacts he had painstakingly built over the years had been completely shattered.
Simultaneously, with the increasing transparency of various tenders, the market that Huanxiang Computer relied on for survival would gradually disappear, so Huanxiang Computer's collapse was only a matter of time.
In fact, it could be seen from some financial reports that Huanxiang Computer had applied for many subsidiaries, and the main businesses of these companies were real estate or cryptocurrency, etc. It was evident that Huanxiang Computer itself was aware of its future and was desperately trying to save itself through such means. As for the outcome, only heaven knew.
“I still don't think now is the best time to acquire Huanxiang Computer!” Hu Jing said.
“I know, just have someone go and talk,” Boss Huang insisted. Hu Jing didn't say anything more and proceeded to make arrangements according to Boss Huang’s orders.
A day later, when a distraught Yang Yuan learned from an intermediary that Jiangnan Group was interested in investing in Huanxiang Computer, he was completely bewildered.
He never would have imagined that Jiangnan Group would be interested in them. Weren't they trying to destroy him?
But then, he thought about it again and felt it was rather logical.
Who in the world would really go to such lengths over domestic and international pricing differences for a company unrelated to them? The only possibility was that the other party had set their sights on him and wanted to devour him.
The best way to do that, naturally, was to first ruin his reputation, crush his market, and make his stock price collapse, thus allowing them to swallow him up at a relatively low price.
As for why Jiangnan Group would take an interest in him, Yang Yuan had also figured it out. It must be because they coveted the international market that Huanxiang Computer held.
After all, about 30% of the global assembled computer market was held by Huanxiang Computer. Jiangnan Group's most urgent desire at the moment was to promote its own Lingyun operating system.
Therefore, if they could buy him, Jiangnan Group could fully utilize Huanxiang Computer to aggressively promote the Lingyun system and ultimately occupy the personal computer market completely, just as they had occupied the terminal market.
Yes, it had to be like this.
At this moment, Yang Yuan felt as if the world before him had suddenly become clear. Many questions that he couldn't understand before were now answered.
So, after understanding these issues, what should he do?
Should he sell the shares he held to Jiangnan Group?
Yang Yuan thought for a long time and concluded that the answer was obvious: he could sell shares, as this would be of great benefit to Huanxiang Computer.
Firstly, the funds Jiangnan Group used for the acquisition could directly alleviate Huanxiang Computer's cash flow difficulties, effectively saving Huanxiang Computer.
Secondly, just the fact that the world's richest man was investing in Huanxiang Computer would immediately cause all the banks chasing him for debts to resume their smiling demeanor.
Thirdly, Huanxiang Computer's stock price would immediately soar by at least ten percentage points. After all, would the world's richest man take an interest in Huanxiang Computer without any basis?
He must have discovered Huanxiang Computer's value to make such a decision.
Therefore, many people would definitely follow suit and buy Huanxiang Computer's stock.
Finally, if Huanxiang Computer could truly rely on Jiangnan Group, it could grasp the core technology of the five-进制 computer system, while at the same time holding a large number of channels for the binary computer system. With these two combined, Huanxiang Computer would be making a fortune.
So, even though such a thing made Yang Yuan himself feel disgusted, he was still willing to sell shares.
However, Yang Yuan also set several bottom lines for himself that could not be crossed.
The first point was that he could sell at most 20% of the shares, absolutely no more. Any more, and with Huang He's assertiveness, he would surely seize control of Huanxiang Computer.
The second point was that he must hold firm to the price and not budge. Now that Jiangnan Group wanted Huanxiang Computer, the price must be set according to his terms.
The third point was that Huang He must promise to give Huanxiang Computer special treatment and care, selling products to Huanxiang Computer at a relatively lower price.
The fourth point was that Jiangnan Group must cooperate with Huanxiang Computer to clarify its reputation. Originally, Yang Yuan had wanted Boss Huang to apologize for his previous remarks, but upon reflection, he felt this request was impossible, so he only asked Jiangnan Group to cooperate in clarifying its reputation.
The fifth and final point was that Jiangnan Group must not interfere with the normal operations of Huanxiang Computer. Yang Yuan felt he could reluctantly give a few executive positions to Jiangnan Group, and Huanxiang Computer could also actively cooperate with Jiangnan Group on some tasks, but it absolutely could not force him to do any work.
At the same time, his own position must be firmly held, directly written into the contract, making it impossible for Jiangnan Group to interfere with Huanxiang Computer in any way.
These were Yang Yuan's bottom lines, and he decided to negotiate based on them.