A pile of ruins!
These seemingly light words fell into Mr.
White’s ears, making his heart tremble.
Of course he knew what the other party’s words meant—the war would destroy everything.
And everything in North Borneo had already been destroyed, including the extremely expensive port—according to military orders, the company destroyed many facilities, including the port.
Rebuilding all this after the war ends would require money.
“Let alone that Britain wouldn’t, and the US wouldn’t allow Britain to have colonies.
Just taking North Borneo as an example, the war has almost destroyed everything there.
Even if the company takes back North Borneo after the war, what it faces is just a devastated ruin.
The destroyed port and cities all need to be rebuilt, but the question is, do you have that money?”
Blowing out a puff of smoke, Li Yi’an looked at White in front of him and said straightforwardly:
“You don’t, the company doesn’t either.
When the time comes, what will be your choice?
It’s nothing more than handing everything over to the government.
Um…
after you have paid debt interest for a few years!
Mr.
White, this is the only thing you can get—paying huge debt interest, and then returning the company to the government, because this is your only choice.”
Li Yi’an didn’t even give him a chance to breathe, but took advantage of his unsettled state of mind to continue:
“Otherwise, you not only have to bear huge bond interest payments, but you also have to find ways to rebuild.
But sir, would you invest in a piece of land that is destined to be lost?”
This was the most fatal blow!
As a major shareholder of the only company in the British Empire that owned a colony, White had always maintained close contact with the Colonial Office.
Just a few months ago at a banquet, he personally heard the Secretary of State for the Colonies say—it is very difficult for the British Empire to keep its colonies.
This was a well-known fact.
Even for India, the British Empire promised it self-government after the war.
Self-government!
For the North Borneo Company, this was undoubtedly disastrous.
Without official help, the company would find it hard to continue operating.
And was there any possibility of the government helping them?
Compared to North Borneo, the government would definitely be more willing to rebuild Singapore.
“This…”
White took a puff of his cigarette, and said with a guilty conscience:
“But sir, as everyone knows, the company owns everything there.
“Wait until the time comes, whether the British Empire will let the colonies self-govern or not is another matter.
Moreover, how long can your assets last?”
While speaking, Li Yi’an said directly:
“Your dividend in 1940 was 35,000 pounds.
This was the last dividend you received, but over 99% of this dividend went to pay personal income tax.
In ’41, North Borneo fell.
Over the past three years, you didn’t receive a penny in dividends.
Instead, every year you needed to pay 29,000 pounds in company bond interest.
In the past three years, you have paid almost a hundred thousand pounds in interest.
Mr.
White, eating away your fortune like this, how long can you hold on?”
“Sir, the war will end.”
Pondering, White said, “After the war ends, I will still have a chance…”
“What if the war lasts for another four or five years?
You know, even now, there is no sign of it ending!”
One sentence turned White’s face extremely pale.
Even the fingers holding the cigarette couldn’t help but tremble slightly.
How long will the war last?
Nobody knows.
It could be four years, it could be five years, who knows?
The German army is so powerful, their submarines are still constantly sinking merchant ships.
Newspapers even worry that next month, Britain will fall into famine because the speed at which merchant ships are sunk far exceeds the speed at which they are built.
This war is completely different from the last one.
This time, Germany is more powerful, and what about Britain?
Weaker, so weak that they are even powerless to resist the German invasion and can only rely on the Americans.
And the Americans harbor bad intentions; they try every means to force Britain to abandon its colonies.
Does Britain have a choice?
No!
Why didn’t Li Yi’an listen to Ian Thorpe, the King’s Counsel, and wait until next year to acquire the North Borneo Company?
To put it bluntly, it’s because of the information gap.
In 1943, no one could guess when the Axis powers would be defeated, but by 1944, the whole world saw that the defeat of the Axis powers was already showing.
Whether the stock price of the North Borneo Company will drop by next year, Li Yi’an wasn’t clear, but one thing was certain: these shareholders would definitely harbor illusions.
They would definitely fantasize about restoring their past glory, and then this illusion would completely shatter in ’45, that is, when the war ended.
If possible, Li Yi’an would of course wait until ’45.
After all, by then, everyone would be clear that North Borneo couldn’t be kept.
But by then, there might not be enough time.
He needed to “return” to North Borneo at the very first moment the war ended, which involved a series of subsequent works. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
“But in these four or five years, you need to pay over a hundred thousand pounds in debt interest.
The only question is, can you afford it?”
Li Yi’an said lightly.
Afterward, he took a puff of his cigarette and contentedly blew a smoke ring.
“When you can no longer afford the debt interest, the creditors will sue.
The court will auction your property according to the law to repay the debt interest.
Mr.
White, when that time comes, you will become penniless and lose everything, including this house!”
The man’s words stung Mr.
White’s heart deeply like thorns.
This British old man in his sixties knew very well that what the other party said was the truth.
In fact, this was also what he worried about, and what the other major shareholders worried about.
What they worried about most was exactly that if the war continued, the huge debt interest would eventually cause them to lose everything.
“Alright, sir, I admit what you said is the truth.
If you are willing, one shilling per share…”
Before he could finish speaking, he saw a look full of sarcasm on the other party’s face, as if mocking his naivety.
“Mr.
White,”
Taking a puff of his cigarette, Li Yi’an stood up.
“If that’s the case, we have no need to talk further.
We both know very well that the stocks of the North Borneo Company are simply completely worthless!”
With that said, he turned around and was about to leave.
Seeing this, Mr.
White hurriedly said:
“Mr.
Li, what price do you think is suitable?”
“Transfer the shares to me free of charge, the debt interest will be borne by me, and in the future, I will pay you a pension of 2,000 pounds every year.”
Li Yi’an straightforwardly proposed his conditions.
He never even thought about taking out money!
With that said, he put his business card on the table and told him:
“Mr.
White, I will be leaving London in the next few days.
Please make a decision as soon as possible!”
After saying that, he left, leaving only a completely flustered White…