Chapter 5: Dealing with seven or eight at once is no problem at all

“Is there only 1.31 million HKD in the company account?” Lin Haoran asked, looking up.

One million of that had been left to him by his father, which meant the cement plant had only earned him 310,000 HKD over the past two months.

“Yes, Boss. When Chairman Lin handed over the Huafeng Cement Plant to you at the beginning of July, there was one million HKD in the account, and that money has remained there.”

“After deducting expenses for the month of July, the profit was 180,000 HKD. Our production and sales were normal that month, but last month, because many old customers stopped sourcing cement from us, our turnover dropped significantly, and the profit was only 130,000 HKD.”

“The financial data for these few days in September hasn't been tallied yet, so the financial report for August shows 1.31 million HKD in the company account.”

Ms. Lin, the head of finance, reported while organizing the documents in her hands.

Profit dropping directly from 180,000 to 130,000 in a month—that was a significant decline.

“Based on current trends, how much profit can we expect this month?” Lin Haoran continued to ask.

“Given the current situation, the profit this month will certainly not exceed 100,000 HKD; it should be between 50,000 and 100,000 HKD. Boss, this can’t go on. You need to find a solution quickly. Before you took over the company, our average monthly profit was around 200,000 HKD.”

Ms. Lin’s face was full of worry, but she was only in charge of the money and had no authority to intervene in other matters.

Lin Haoran nodded. He certainly knew why the Huafeng Cement Plant had fallen into such a state.

It wasn't that his management skills were lacking, but that Lin Haoning was working against him from the shadows.

Although he didn't know how Lin Haoning had managed to drive away Huafeng’s old customers, the truth would come to light sooner or later.

His dear elder brother was truly ruthless. To ensure he didn't have a shred of a chance in the succession race, he had gone as far as to ruin a cement plant that previously generated over 2 million HKD in annual profit.

At this rate, it seemed he wouldn't be satisfied until he completely destroyed Huafeng Cement Plant!

Lin Haoran deeply felt the cruelty of Lin Haoning.

“Ms. Lin, please transfer 1.2 million HKD to my account as soon as possible. I have a use for it. Leave the rest in the company as a reserve fund for now.”

Lin Haoran placed the financial report back on the desk and said to Ms. Lin.

“Very well, Boss. I’ll write up an expenditure voucher; please sign it.”

Ms. Lin didn't ask any questions. After all, the company belonged to Lin Haoran now; it was only natural for him to take money from it.

Lin Haoran checked the voucher, saw that everything was in order, and signed his name.

“I’m going back to the city for a while. Ms. Lin, please keep an eye on things here at the Huafeng Cement Plant for me, and call me if there are any issues.” Lin Haoran stood up, ready to leave.

Lin Haoran knew the background of this head of finance; she was a financial elite cultivated by his father, Lin Wan’an.

In this era, mobile phones didn't exist yet, but pagers were already popular among the upper class in Hong Kong. As a wealthy scion, Lin Haoran naturally had his own pager.

So, if Ms. Lin needed to contact him, he would know immediately.

“Don’t worry, Boss, I will keep an eye on things.”

After stepping out, Lin Haoran went straight down from the office building.

Upon reaching the ground floor, he saw Lin San directing the loading of trucks at the warehouse.

Lin Haoran walked over.

“Good morning, Boss.” Seeing Lin Haoran, Lin San and several employees greeted him one after another.

“Lin San, where are Lin Yi and the others?”

“Boss, Lin Yi and the others are all in the production workshop.”

“Go call Lin Yi, Lin Er, and Lin Si to the dormitory building. I have something for you all.”

“Understood, Boss. Please wait a moment.”

Lin Haoran didn't linger and headed straight for the dormitory area.

Having seen an opportunity to make money, he no longer wanted to stay here and wished to return to the city as soon as possible.

Staying in this backwater of Yuen Long was a complete waste of time.

No matter how much Lin Haoning sabotaged things, Huafeng Cement Plant would only lose a few tens of thousands.

But his return to downtown Hong Kong was for the sake of making big money.

Before long, he arrived outside the dormitory where the cousins Li Weiguo and Li Weidong lived.

Lin Haoran had taken these two around the area yesterday, which had left them incredibly excited.

The nearby border patrol officers all knew Lin Haoran, the young master of the Lin family, so even if they saw him, they wouldn't bother checking if he had illegal immigrants with him.

The dormitory door was open, and to Lin Haoran’s surprise, Li Weiguo and Li Weidong were actually doing push-ups.

“418, 419, 420, 421…” Li Weiguo counted as he worked out.

Both of them were very rhythmic and perfectly synchronized; they must have trained together often.

“Oh, Young Master, you’re here.” Li Weidong was the first to notice Lin Haoran and stopped his training.

Li Weiguo, who had been counting, also stopped and climbed up from the floor.

“I didn't interrupt your workout, did I?” Lin Haoran asked with a smile.

From their sturdy, well-defined muscle lines, Lin Haoran knew their combat prowess shouldn't be bad.

“No, Young Master. We were just doing some exercises to help with physical recovery,” Li Weiguo replied.

“It seems you’ve recovered quite well. That’s perfect. Today, I’ll take you to the city center. You’ll be able to get your Hong Kong ID cards then, so you won’t have to worry about anyone checking,” Lin Haoran said with satisfaction.

Since he was heading to the city center anyway, getting them official identities wouldn't take much time.

Excitement filled the faces of Li Weiguo and Li Weidong. They spoke almost simultaneously: “Thank you, Young Master!”

At this moment, Lin Haoran was surprised to find that the loyalty levels of both Li Weiguo and Li Weidong had increased to varying degrees.

Li Weiguo: [Loyalty: 84/100]

Li Weidong: [Loyalty: 89/100]

Clearly, showing care and kindness to subordinates was an effective way to increase their loyalty.

“By the way, you mentioned before that your martial arts skills are quite good. Just how strong are you?” Lin Haoran asked.

Li Weiguo scratched his head subconsciously and said confidently, “Young Master, even if five or six young, strong, ordinary men surrounded me, I could handle them with ease.”

“Hehe, actually, I’m a bit stronger than my big brother. Taking on seven or eight at once is no problem for me,” Li Weidong added, proudly patting his chest.

Li Weiguo didn't refute him, effectively conceding that his strength was inferior to Li Weidong’s.

Are they really that strong?

Lin Haoran was a bit skeptical.

Just then, Lin Yi and the others arrived.

A thought suddenly occurred to Lin Haoran. He mused that this was the perfect opportunity to let Lin Yi and the others experience just how remarkable these two brothers’ skills really were.

Lin Haoran was well aware of the strength of the four men, Lin Yi and his group.

Even though they were turncoats, one couldn't ignore the fact that their martial arts skills were quite formidable; handling three or five ordinary men was a breeze for them. Their strength was not to be underestimated.

This was also the reason why Lin’s father had tasked them with looking after Lin Haoran’s safety.