Chapter 239: This Must Be Counterattacked!
"There are suspects," Chen Shoulin said, somewhat hesitantly, "but I can't be sure." After all, it was merely his guess. If he acted rashly and got it wrong, it would be like hitting the wrong target.
"Mr. Chen, feel free to speak. Whether it's true or not, I'll investigate thoroughly before making any decision," Lin Haoran said with a calm smile.
"Alright, then I'll speak frankly," Chen Shoulin said. "I suspect the culprit behind this is Jardine Matheson's subsidiary, Jardine Electrical City. They currently have eight chain stores across Hong Kong, five of which are on Hong Kong Island. Our Foreshine Electrical Company has been performing very well, especially in water heaters — no other company in Hong Kong sells more units than us.
Because of that, we're the largest appliance retailer in Hong Kong by market share. Jardine Electrical City has always had big ambitions. Last year, they only had three stores. In less than a year, they opened another five. But reportedly, their sales weren't good — stagnant, barely breaking even. Recently, however, ever since the incident with the couple's electrocution, I noticed Jardine Electrical City's foot traffic has risen sharply. Their sales must have surged.
Taking all these factors into account, I strongly suspect that they're behind this attack on us — using this fabricated incident to tarnish our reputation."
"Mr. Chen, do you have detailed records about Foreshine Electrical?" Lin Haoran asked.
He knew Hongkong Electric had many subsidiaries, but he hadn't paid much attention to their individual operations.
"Yes, Boss. I'll get them for you," Chen Shoulin said, going to the bookshelf and pulling out a file folder.
"This is a full report on Foreshine Electrical from its founding to the present," he said, confirming it before handing it over.
Lin Haoran flipped it open and began to read.
Foreshine Electrical was founded in 1975, about five or six years ago. It had a unique advantage that other pure retail chains lacked — access to Hongkong Electric's payment centers as sales outlets. On Hong Kong Island alone, Foreshine Electrical had 21 outlets, covering nearly all prime areas — Central, Causeway Bay, Wan Chai, North Point, Sheung Wan, Kennedy Town, Aberdeen, Stanley, Chai Wan. They had also expanded into Kowloon, setting up standalone stores in Tsim Sha Tsui, Mong Kok, Sham Shui Po, Kwun Tong.
With this network, every customer who came to pay their electricity bill would see displays of electrical appliances, particularly water heaters. This made Foreshine Electrical's water heaters the most sold in Hong Kong.
Moreover, because the sales role was combined with payment center clerks, labor costs were minimized. Sales staff earned commissions on appliance sales, boosting their income.
From its inception, Foreshine Electrical thrived.
Initially, they only sold electric water heaters, but gradually expanded into electric fans, induction cookers, ovens, and more.
Today, Foreshine Electrical had become Hong Kong's largest and most trusted home appliance brand, dominating the market.
Thus, it was no surprise that Jardine Electrical City wanted a piece of the pie. If they competed fairly, Lin Haoran wouldn't mind. But trying to destroy Foreshine's reputation to boost their own sales? That could not be tolerated.
Before retaliating, however, Lin Haoran needed clear evidence.
If it truly was Jardine Electrical City behind the scenes, he would hit back hard.
If no lessons were taught, such tactics would only become more frequent.
Closing the folder, Lin Haoran set it gently on the table and looked at Chen Shoulin.
"Mr. Chen, regardless of who's behind this, we can't let Foreshine's reputation continue to slide. What's your plan?" he asked.
"If my suspicions are correct, then the other side is using a classic smear campaign — a tactic British companies are notorious for. Over the years, many Chinese businesses have been destroyed by such methods.
When Hongkong Electric was a British company, they didn't dare target us. But now that we're a Chinese-owned group under your leadership, their attitude has changed.
I suspect Jardines' top brass — including Nobby Clarke — knew about this scheme. Against them, the police and even prosecutors will likely turn a blind eye. We can't rely on legal avenues to solve this quickly.
Our best strategy is a public relations battle.
We need to use major media to expose the truth.
We may not be able to sue Jardine Electrical City directly, but we can sue Hong Kong Times.
Even if the lawsuit drags out for a year or two and we never see compensation, the point is to make noise — big noise — to clear our name.
We have to drag this into the spotlight because if we let it fester, the damage to our brand will grow."
Chen Shoulin paused, then added, "Thankfully, they only corrupted Hong Kong Times, not a giant like Oriental Daily. Otherwise, we'd be in even deeper trouble."
Lin Haoran nodded thoughtfully.
Hong Kong's media landscape was chaotic; tabloid-style sensationalism was rampant.
This was exactly why he had secretly acquired Oriental Daily — the city's best-selling newspaper — several months ago.
Surprisingly, no one had noticed the ownership change.
Even within Oriental Press itself, few employees knew.
Externally, people still thought the Ma family owned it.
Even insiders like Chen Shoulin didn't know Lin Haoran was now the true boss.
But Lin Haoran didn't care. As long as the senior management obeyed him, that was enough.
"Mr. Chen, let me tell you something," Lin Haoran said mysteriously.
"Oh? What is it, Boss?" Chen Shoulin asked eagerly.
"In fact, I own Oriental Daily now. If you want media support, just tell me. I'll have the general manager of Oriental Press fully back you up," Lin Haoran said, smiling.
"What? Oriental Daily belongs to you?" Chen Shoulin exclaimed, utterly shocked.
After all, Oriental Daily had always been seen as an untouchable fortress.
Many had tried to buy it, but the Ma family had refused every offer.
Who would have guessed that Lin Haoran had quietly taken it over?
"Yes. It's been several months already. I just never announced it," Lin Haoran said calmly.
"No need to make it public. You just need to know."
"This is fantastic! With Oriental Daily's support, counterattacking will be much easier!" Chen Shoulin said excitedly.
Compared to Hong Kong Times, Oriental Daily's reach was overwhelming — several times larger.
"I'll instruct Oriental Press to start investigating. If Jardine Matheson is behind this, we'll ruin Jardine Electrical City's reputation. Let's make sure they never recover!" Lin Haoran said coldly.
After all, Hongkong Electric was now a shareholder in Hongkong Land — they were supposed to be partners.
If Jardines dared to pull such dirty tricks, they deserved to be destroyed.
It was entirely possible they sought revenge for the humiliation of losing the battle over Hong Kong and China Gas earlier.
Back then, Jardines had declared victory prematurely — only to be publicly humiliated when Lin Haoran's camp won.
Clearly, this latest attack might be an act of revenge.
But everything still had to await confirmation from Cui Zilong's investigation.
Until then, it was just speculation — albeit very plausible speculation.
Get 30% off on my Patreon and enjoy early access to new chapters.
You can also purchase the next 100 chapters of the novel directly from my Patreon page.
Hurry up! The promotion ends on February 2, 2026.
Read 30 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Albino1