Year: I had a good time when I was young

Chapter 1055 Behind-the-scenes Deal
Thatcher knew that Chu Xiangqian's reputation in the jewelry field was much smaller than that of the world-renowned jewelry companies.

But when it comes to high-end jewelry, Chu Xiangqian is definitely among the top three.

Especially in the field of pearls, as far as Thatcher knows, at least half of the world's top pearls have come from his hands over the years.

So since Chu Xiangqian promised to get a red pearl that would be no worse than the one Charles used for his wedding in one or two years, Thatcher no longer doubted whether he could get it.

After thinking about it, Thatcher knew what it meant to have a give and take relationship.

Whispered, "Any interest in building a third luxury hotel in London?"

Chu Xiangqian nodded immediately. In the next few years, due to Thatcher's reforms, a large number of low-level people in Yingguo would be unemployed.

Coupled with the cuts in welfare, the lower classes will indeed have a hard time.

This is also the main reason why so many Yingguo people dislike or even hate her.

However, the economy has indeed continued to grow due to the privatization process, which has not only attracted local capital to increase investment.

There is also Magnesium Capital, which increased its investment after purchasing Yingguoguo Enterprise.

Also, Thatcher, like Reagan, tried her best to crack down on the power of trade unions.

Business operating costs were reduced, and there were several years of prosperity.

A more active and prosperous economy will naturally attract more foreign investors and tourists.

In Chu Xiangqian's eyes, building a hotel now is indeed a suitable time.

And as long as the hotel is in a good location, the appreciation of the real estate alone can make this investment very profitable.

Seeing Chu Xiangqian was interested, Thatcher smiled and said, "There is a 3-acre warehouse area over at Canary Wharf that is being auctioned.

If you want to buy it, you'd better prepare early."

Chu nodded forward, knowing what Thatcher meant.

Moreover, as long as the news is known in advance, Chu Xiangqian doesn't have to show up himself. He can just let Norton take the money and go to the people in the London Securities Office.

Three acres is approximately 3 square meters, which is equivalent to the size of 1.2 standard football fields.

The area is sufficient to build a hotel.

However, Chu Xiangqian does not intend to build just a hotel.

Canary Wharf at that time was not yet the most prosperous area.

But in the future this place will become one of London's financial circles, and it would be a bit of a waste to use 1.2 square meters of land simply to build a hotel.

Moreover, in the next few years, a large number of workers will be unemployed, labor costs will be reduced, and the cost of building buildings will be greatly compressed.

It would be better to build a commercial center that integrates hotels, shopping, offices and leisure.

Even a portion of the low-rise, old villa-type houses around here can be bought, or even an entire street can be converted into a small bar.

Anyway, the streets here are not long, so it won’t cost much.

Renting out the property at a low price to open a bar may not make much money, but it can attract more people.

As popularity increases in the future, real estate prices will naturally rise, not to mention that Canary Wharf has well-developed water transportation.

While it is still in the development stage, building a pub can also attract many middle-class people to buy houses.

Chu Xiangqian just thought about it for a moment, then smiled and said, “Dear Maggie, if I intend to invest $1 million to build Dog Island into a commercial district integrating finance, office, shopping, and leisure.

What preferential policies do you think the London Stock Exchange will give me?"

Thatcher had only casually revealed a project that she thought was good, as a reward for the pearl that Chu Xiangqian had promised.

But unexpectedly, this guy's appetite was much bigger than he thought.

In this case, of course, this achievement cannot be left to the City of London.

Not to mention, if Chu Xiangqian is optimistic about a project, then he would be a fool not to make money from it.

It took only a dozen seconds for Thatcher to say, "Stark, give me a month, and I will prepare a plan that we are both satisfied with."

As soon as Chu Xiangqian heard it, he knew that this person wanted to take advantage of him and make money with him.

But it doesn’t matter, I really can’t finish such a big plate by myself.

Chu Xiangqian had originally planned to bring in the shareholders of the Culture Oriental Hotel, and have them all contribute money, connections and relationships based on their existing shareholding ratios in the hotel.

Let’s do this project together.

Now Thatcher is willing to play along, even if it means just giving her agent 5% or even 10% of the shares, Chu Xiangqian is totally willing to do so.

When this woman gets ruthless, she can even be cruel to her allies and long-time supporters.

It really wasn't difficult for her to just get more land in Canary Wharf.

After all, the place is not dirty and messy at the moment, but just think about the dock and you will know that even if there are a lot of people, it has nothing to do with the prosperous business circle.

For most owners, if someone comes to develop the property, they will definitely welcome it with open arms.

And Chu Xiangqian will never forget how difficult Londoners are at times.

So Thatcher was willing to join, and her tough approach would save a lot of time and trouble.

Chu Xiangqian nodded, "One month is no problem, and I personally guarantee that I will invest at least 100 million.

Together with other shareholders of Mandarin Oriental Hotels, I believe the total investment amount should not be less than US$3 million.

As long as you can handle all the troubles, I will leave you 5% of the shares. "

The so-called dry shares are shares obtained without any capital contribution.

No voting rights, but rights to dividends.

But Thatcher was not willing to be just a shareholder without decision-making power.

If you invest $3 million, 5% is $1500 million.

If the project is completed, 3 million will become 6 million. Even within a few years, with Chu Xiangqian's fame and reputation, it is not impossible for the project to increase to 10 billion.

5% is 5 million, not to mention retirement benefits.

Several generations will have no problem with food and drink.

The most important thing is, as long as you have money, it will be much easier for your descendants to go into politics in the future.

So Thatcher said without hesitation, “I want 5% of the real shares, held in an offshore company.

Alternatively, don’t you hold a large proportion of shares in two banks in Hong Kong Island? Lend the money to my agent and we will invest in the same proportion.

I can give you the voting rights, but I want to sign an equal rights agreement with you."

Chu Xiangqian thought that this woman still had more than eight years left in power, and investing in her would be a sure win.

Even after a few years, her troubles will continue to grow.

But in order to protect her own wealth, the more troublesome the situation is, the more she will tend to make deals with other political forces to preserve her wealth.

Now comes the crucial moment for her opponents or successors in the fight for entry into Downing Street.

Protecting her property in exchange for the power and resources in her hands would be a very cost-effective deal.

And Chu Xiangqian is not someone so stupid as to spend that money.

It must be shared equally by all shareholders.

Based on Chu Xiangqian’s 30% stake in Oriental Culture and Margaret’s 10% stake.

1500 million is only 600 million US dollars.

So Chu Xiangqian only thought for a moment, then took the initiative to extend his hand and said with a smile, "Happy cooperation, Maggie."

Thatcher suppressed her ecstasy, even though her husband was also a successful businessman.

But compared with $1500 million, it seems completely inadequate.

When Thatcher left, no one noticed that Huang Diao'er was lying under her car.

There were more than a dozen sparrows in the sky, and a peregrine falcon followed her 24 hours a day. For a long time to come, whatever Thatcher said would reach Chu Xiangqian's ears.

In the next few days, Chu Xiangqian had nothing to do. During the day, he took Nata, Jingfu and Jinglin to watch horse racing, visit tourist attractions, and buy gifts for the women in the family.

He also took Jingfu and Jinglin to Downton Abbey for hunting.

As for Jingrong, Jingxing and Margaret, the two boys had already traveled all over London and had no interest in shopping or visiting tourist attractions.

Not only was he not at home all day, but I heard that he was also asked by Charles to be the best man and help with some wedding chores.

Margaret was naturally no exception and was asked by Elizabeth and Philip to give advice and help with the wedding preparations and other matters.

Every night when he returned home, Chu Xiangqian could hear from Margaret some secrets that outsiders had no way of knowing.

Just like this guy Charles, these few nights, he secretly met with his lover who would be entangled with him for decades in the future.

There is a saying that is really true, men are all mean.

What you can’t get is the best.

The more you can't get it, the more you will miss it.

From this point of view, Chu Xiangqian actually understands Charles very well.

But this did not affect anything. Chu Xiangqian took the opportunity to let Huang Diaoer temporarily leave Thatcher, who was resting at night.

Caught by a peregrine falcon, he flew to the place where Charles was having a tryst.

Then another peregrine falcon, with a miniature camera, took many photos of Charles and his lover.

Including the photos of his father meeting with his lovers over the years, Chu Xiangqian has at least three or four hundred photos in his hands.

If this gets exposed, it will definitely be a disaster.

Even destroy the entire royal family.

Of course, Chu Xiangqian would not do this unless it was absolutely necessary.

Even from the perspective of interests, he is still a staunch supporter of the royal family.

On the day of the formal wedding, Chu Xiangqian was dragged by Margaret into Buckingham Palace early in the morning.

As for the four brothers Jingrong, they were led by Jingxing to go directly to the church.

As soon as Philip saw him, his eyes lit up.

Ignoring Margaret's dissatisfaction, he pulled Chu forward to the window and whispered, "I heard from Norton and Cavendish Jr. that you plan to build a third hotel in London?"

Chu nodded, but did not rush to talk about the 3 million investment in Canary Wharf.

This guy has a bit of a big mouth, and a lot of the news actually comes from his lover.

To put it bluntly, he drank too much and liked to brag in front of women.

Especially in front of women they haven't gotten yet, men always can't help bragging about themselves.

Of course, Chu Xiangqian didn't need to go through so much trouble and could just use money to do it.

He doesn't even need to spend money. As long as he lets women know that he is one of the top five richest people in the world, most of them will come to him on their own.

Besides, although he is already middle-aged, he looks to be around thirty years old.

The more mature and handsome he looks, the more attractive he is to young girls.

Unfortunately, there are not many girls that Chu Xiangqian likes now, and there are actually very few beautiful girls that he can meet.

After all, Chu Xiangqian is well-known for not liking socializing.

He was extremely wary of some girls introduced by his friends and ignored them completely.

Otherwise, Chu Xiangqian must have more women than just Xue Jinglan and others.

Philips has more than thirty lovers who have attracted media attention.

There are definitely more of those who are not famous or who have been together for a short time.

But if there are too many women, it is actually very expensive.

Philips talked to him in private only because he had little spare money.

If you want to have fun outside, the expenses will naturally be high.

Although Philips has a high status, he does not actually control much wealth and assets.

If Chu Xiangqian hadn't taken him out to play over the years, Philips would be even more short of money.

But even though I had money, I eventually found that it was still not enough to spend.

Chu Xiangqian now spends at least 20 million US dollars every year on household expenses, pocket money and expenses for so many women and children in the family.

This is because Xue Jinglan and her friends stay in Hong Kong and Beijing all year round, so their expenses are naturally much lower than Margaret's.

Margaret's own bills last year amounted to more than £6 million.

Converted into US dollars, it is more than 1200 million.

And the jewelry that Chu Xiangqian gave away also didn't cost any money.

They are all treasures found in the past. Just picking a few pieces and giving them away is better than most of the jewels sold at auctions.

Otherwise, the cost will definitely increase by one or two times.

Fortunately, most of the expenses for himself, the women, and the family can be paid from the fund.

Every year, European and American charitable foundations donate 5% of their total assets.

Based on the funds held by Chu Xiangqian and Margaret, the value of the shares of many European and American companies controlled by them has unknowingly risen to more than 8 billion US dollars.

At 5% per year, that would mean a donation of $ million.

So Chu Xiangqian didn't care at all about Margaret's £6 million bill last year.

Of course, not all expenses can be reimbursed by the fund.

But at the same time as getting reimbursed, you can also get wages from the fund. By going in and out, you can actually make money.

The right to use this $400 million also became a powerful tool for Chu Xiangqian to make friends with many European and American dignitaries.

Donating millions to a fund today may seem like charity.

But in fact, this fund may be a charitable fund established by some powerful person.

Then the boss's family and personal expenses, as well as the salaries of family members listed in the fund, will all be included in the operating costs.

The operating costs can also be included in the 5% donation amount.

This is why some wealthy people like to hold parties at every opportunity.

Or buy a plane today and a yacht tomorrow.

After all, it's all the fund's money.

Moreover, the ownership of the aircraft, yachts, and supercars lies with the fund, but the right to use them lies with the fund owner.

The result of doing this is that the wealth held by wealthy people in Europe and the United States will continue to grow.

Although Philip also played this way, his plate was much smaller than Chu Xiangqian's.

The purpose of looking for Chu Xiangqian was simple: to make another fortune from iron ore and antiques.

Chu Xiangqian did not refuse. After so many years of cooperation, they had already formed a tacit understanding.

By selling iron ore, you are the one who makes the most money in the end.

As for antiques, they will be more stable than investing in gold in the next 20 to 30 years.

Moreover, Philips and his team are indeed powerful enough. After so many years of trading, there have been no accidents or troubles.

(End of this chapter)