The Tyrant Billionaire

"The $20 million loan from Wells Fargo will be handled by Sandy Will. The funds from Manhattan Bank might be delayed by a few days, but that’s okay. In the meantime, President Sanders, please ensure that the bank operates normally. If anyone comes to withdraw funds, make sure to pay them in full as long as their documents are legitimate."

"I will also have the newspapers publish an announcement informing the public that HSBC has been acquired by two of the most powerful American banks. With such strong financial backing, handling tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars won’t be an issue. This level of support will fully protect HSBC’s credibility."

Victor was a master at reassuring people, casually mentioning amounts like hundreds of millions without a care.

Hearing this, Sanders finally felt a weight lift off his shoulders.

They discussed a few more details before parting to handle their respective tasks. This matter couldn’t be delayed; the sooner it was resolved, the better.

That evening,

A local Hong Kong evening newspaper published the news that HSBC had been acquired by Manhattan Bank and Wells Fargo, two highly powerful American institutions. The Sassoon family, the former majority shareholders, had sold all their shares.

Manhattan Bank had assets exceeding $3 billion.

Wells Fargo had over $2 billion.

Both were far larger than HSBC. With the involvement of these two banks, HSBC’s financial issues were likely to be resolved soon.

When people read the news, they were skeptical but hopeful, thinking, "If this is true, we might finally be able to get our hard earned money back."

The next morning,

The Global Times published HSBC’s official announcement. Only after reading this did people believe the news from the evening papers.

The announcement stated:

HSBC has changed its majority shareholder. Wells Fargo now holds a 34% stake, and Mr. Jon Hardy, chairman of the Hardy Group, has become the new chairman of HSBC.

Manhattan Bank, part of the Rockefeller financial group, has acquired a 20% stake, making it the second largest shareholder.

Both Wells Fargo and Manhattan Bank are part of American super conglomerates, with deep financial reserves and an excellent reputation as global banking enterprises.

HSBC will officially resume operations at 10 AM today, handling all regular business, including large withdrawals and deposits, bill acceptance, and guaranteeing the completion of all legitimate transactions.

At the same time, HSBC promises to maintain honesty and integrity, ensuring the safety of all customers’ assets.

Seeing this report in the Global Times, many people began to believe it.

Outside HSBC, A large crowd had gathered once again today, probably three to five thousand people. However, unlike before, when the crowd was angry and shouting for their money back, today they simply waited around the entrance, anticipating the bank’s reopening. The newspapers had said payouts would start today, so many had arrived early to withdraw their money.

With so many people, the crowd inevitably became chaotic and crowded, and the whole scene was noisy and disorganized.

Police and bank staff tried to maintain order, urging people to line up, but no one listened. Everyone wanted to get to the front and get their money as soon as possible.

In such a situation, even the police had little control.

Victor stood at a distance, observing the chaos in front of the bank, and realized this couldn’t continue. He turned to the triad leader, who was standing next to him, and asked, "Mr. Bruce Lee, do you have any ideas to get these people to line up?"

Bruce Lee glanced at the crowd, beckoned a few people over, and gave them some instructions.

Three young gangsters swaggered over, took a look at the crowded scene, and started pushing their way through. They were strong and quickly made their way into the crowd.

"Move aside, make way!" one of the young men rudely pushed an older woman to the ground. Frail and thin, the woman was too scared to resist those Kung Fu gangster and quickly moved out of the way. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

A bank employee tried to intervene.

"Hey, what are you doing? Get back in line," the employee said.

One of the young men sneered and said, "Line up? I’m a customer here to withdraw my money, and you’re making us stand here in the sun? What kind of logic is that? Hurry up and open the doors; I want my money. Is HSBC just stringing us along, wasting our time?"

"Yeah, yeah, open up already! What are you waiting for? Who says the bank has to open at 10 AM?" another young man shouted.

"Does HSBC even have money? Look, everyone, HSBC is out of money and playing games with us again!" the third one began stirring up the crowd, trying to incite trouble.

Some people in the crowd exchanged angry glances at the young men. A group stepped forward and surrounded the three troublemakers.

"Dang!"

A fist slammed into the eye socket of the young man who was shoving everyone around him, giving him a black eye. Immediately, the group of men began punching and kicking the trio.

Even though the three were skilled in Kung Fu, they couldn’t withstand so many people ganging up on them.

"You bastard! We’re all waiting in line, and you think you can cut in? Let’s see how good your Kung Fu is" one of the men yelled as punches flew.

"Dang, dang, dang!"

Another round of punches.

"Trying to act tough around here, huh? I’ve never seen you before. How impressive you must think you are!" another man shouted as he kicked them hard.

Thud, thud, thud!

More violent kicks followed.

The three young men were beaten badly, crying and wailing, but no one stepped in to help.

Even the police just stood by, watching the spectacle.

After the beating, the three were left with bloody faces, before the police took them back to thier leader Bruce Lee.

Finally, The crowd settled down.

The crowd finally started to line up obediently.

At 10 a.m, the doors finally opened.