In this world, there are very few things money cannot solve.
Bribing a senior executive at HSBC who knew the details of Hutchison Whampoa's gold futures investment was certainly not one of those unsolvable things — it was only a matter of how much money it would cost.
It was just leaking a piece of information, not committing a crime. Done discreetly, there was no fear of HSBC suing, and likely no exposure at all. Thus, by Saturday evening, Niu BiJian had already obtained the truth.
"Shit! Damn it!"
Upon hearing the truth, Niu BiJian was furious, slamming the phone down.
"What do we do now? What do we do?"
He panicked. Jardine had committed 30% of the HK$400 million short — HK$120 million. Though HK$180 million had already been closed with HK$89 million profit, HK$220 million worth of shorts remained. If the truth — that Hutchison had profited — was revealed, the stock would soar. Those HK$220 million shorts could lose HK$200 million or more.
That meant Jardine's investment would not only fail to profit, but suffer heavy losses — at least tens of millions.
"Damn it, I should never have listened to them!" Niu cursed.
After calming slightly, he called Li JiaCheng, Feng JinXi, and Bob, arranging an urgent meeting.
Within half an hour, the four met in a hotel suite in Hong Kong.
Niu spoke bluntly: "I found out. Hutchison actually made money, not losses."
"As expected!" "Damn it!" "Shit!"
The others had suspected, but hearing confirmation left them bitterly disappointed and angry. Niu had promised details, but not good news. Their worst fears were now reality.
The truth was cruel. Just yesterday, their shorts were hugely profitable. Now they faced massive losses.
"Li JiaCheng, what's going on? Didn't you say Hutchison was long? How did it become short?" Bob demanded angrily. He had held 5% of Hutchison shares, expecting profit. Instead, he sold at low prices, then shorted — now facing losses on both sides.
"Fros, who managed Hutchison's trades, told me they were long gold futures," Li replied calmly. Though disappointed, he regained composure. "And Bob, you're a director. You should know better than me whether Hutchison was long or short."
"You—!" Bob fumed. People instinctively blame others, and Li's words enraged him further.
"Enough. This isn't the time to argue," Feng intervened. He turned to Niu: "Tell us the details. You must know the numbers."
"I do," Niu nodded. Bob listened intently.
"First, Li's investigation wasn't wrong. Hutchison initially went long — USD 150 million principal, five‑times leverage, USD 750 million long gold futures at USD 188/oz. Early last month, Lin BaoCheng closed those longs at USD 196/oz, earning about USD 32 million."
"Then Lin reversed, going short. Because he used his own people, only a few HSBC executives knew. At Hutchison, likely only Wei Li knew."
"What was the short position? At what price? Has it been closed?" Feng pressed.
"Still USD 750 million short, at USD 195.75/oz. Not closed. As of today, gold was USD 171.15/oz. He's made a fortune," Niu said heavily.
"And we will suffer," Li added. He quickly estimated: cost USD 195, current USD 171, a 12.3% drop. On USD 750 million, that's about USD 92 million profit. Plus the earlier USD 32 million, Lin had earned USD 120–130 million — nearly equal to his original USD 150 million principal.
"This is…" Feng muttered, stunned. At least HK$500 million profit. With Hutchison's pre‑Lin market cap around HK$2.7 billion, such profit could drive the stock far higher.
Though it was a one‑time investment profit, not recurring earnings, most investors wouldn't care. The stock would surge short‑term. And since their shorts were short‑term, that surge was fatal.
"We must discuss how to minimize our losses," Feng said. Hutchison's profit was too great. Once revealed, shorts had no chance. The stock would soar. He never intended to stubbornly fight the trend — cutting losses was vital.
"Agreed," Li said. Secretly, he felt relieved. Two days earlier, sensing risk, he had bought HK$15 million worth of Hutchison shares. Though small compared to his HK$80 million short, it would cushion losses.
Niu and Bob nodded.
The four discussed at length, devising strategies to minimize losses.