Hong Kong variety show: I Am a Tycoon

Chapter 226 War of words
The moment Chan Ka-Chun walked out of the Chan family estate with ICAC officers, a group of reporters suddenly rushed out and started taking pictures of Chan Ka-Chun, Ban Nai-Shin, and others, with flashes going off everywhere.

Three or four media vans arrived, and TVB Jade reporters set up their cameras. Media outlets of all sizes in Hong Kong rushed to the scene to get firsthand information and footage.

"Sir Chan, what is your opinion on the accusation by Banana Daily that you are the underground emperor of Hong Kong?"

"Sir Chan, are the allegations made by the ICAC in its investigation of China Bus and Kowloon Motor Bus true?"

Chen Jiajun maintained a smile throughout the reporters' questions, without offering any response.
He was very clear that someone was orchestrating this whole thing, with the aim of stirring up public opinion and smearing him.

The purpose was to convict Chen Jiajun and then divide and dismantle the several groups under his control.

At this point, whatever he answers will lead him into the Tacitus Trap.

The Tacitus Trap refers to a statement made by the historian Tacitus when evaluating a Roman emperor: once an emperor becomes an object of hatred, both his good deeds and his bad deeds will arouse the same disgust in people.

Therefore, it is especially important to remain calm at this time, as only time and evidence can clear his name.

Not far away, ICAC Commissioner Pan Nai-shun, dressed in a suit and tie, stood with his hands on his hips, beaming with triumphant joy.

Chun, a leader of the Hung Hing triad, was taken away by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) to investigate footage related to Kowloon Motor Bus, and soon appeared on TVB and ATV.

At the same time, numerous ICAC officers, accompanied by a large number of plainclothes officers, stormed into Kowloon Motor Bus Group and China Bus Group, taking away Tang Wing-keung of Kowloon Motor Bus and Luk Yip-keung of China Bus, as well as a large number of account books, work logs and other materials from the two groups.

This news shocked the entire city of Hong Kong. As a result, the share prices of Kowloon Motor Bus and China Motor Bus plummeted, with countless investors selling off their shares in the two groups.

Immediately afterwards, Luk Yip-keung's father, Luk Wong-fat, and Sir Tang Shiu-kin, the founder of Kowloon Motor Bus, hurriedly tried to find out the news through various channels.

ICAC, interrogation room.

"Name."

"age."

"Date of birth".

"ID card."

The interrogation was conducted by ICAC officers Luk Chi-lim and Ma Yiu-cho. Outside the door, ICAC Special Commissioner Pan Nai-shun observed the situation inside the interrogation room through a one-way mirror.

"Sir Chan, according to intelligence, Mr. Tang Wing-keung, the General Manager and Director of KMB Group, had no prior experience as a manager in the bus industry, as did Mr. Luk Yip-keung of China Motor Corporation. Did you appoint these two as General Managers of the Group for the purpose of a money-for-power transaction?"

Lu Zhilian slowed his tone as much as possible and first asked a trivial question.

"Our board of directors includes directors specially appointed by the Hong Kong government, as well as independent directors hired from third parties. These are all professionals. Mr. Tang Wing-keung is representing the Guojun Group. Mr. Luk Yip-keung is representing the Asia Investment Group."

The appointment of these two individuals as general managers of the group was decided by a vote.

They did an excellent job during this time; even I have to applaud them.

Chen Jiajun took a puff of his cigar and replied.

"Okay, then I'd like to ask you, for the sake of both China Motor Corporation and Kowloon Motor Bus Corporation, the bus stops are all employed by Hung Hing Construction Group? Hung Hing Construction is controlled by you..."

Lu Zhilian wanted to continue.

Chen Jiajun interrupted him directly, "Stop. Hung Hing Construction Group is a professional company. Our construction workers are all certified. Also, the projects of China Motor Corporation and Kowloon Motor Bus have gone through the bidding process. You asked without understanding the facts. Are you out of your mind?"

"I knew you'd answer like that, Sir Chen. My next question is why both groups simultaneously purchased a little-known, newly established bus group, and in one go, they purchased a full 3000 double-decker buses, worth 30 billion. Tesla Motors is a subsidiary of Guojun Group. This clearly violates the principle of avoidance."

Mr. Chen, please explain.

Lu Zhilian's attitude was tough, and his voice grew louder and louder.

“Inspector Lu, it’s not about who shouts the loudest that makes you right. If you were my subordinate, I would make sure you don’t get promoted for five years. You’re not qualified to discuss this case. Let Ban Naixin in from outside.”

After speaking, Chen Jiajun looked at the one-way glass.

Just as Lu Zhilian was about to get up to ask Ban Naixin for instructions, Ban Naixin pushed open the door, walked in, and said with a smile, "There are so many bus groups in the world, why did these two groups choose to purchase a newly established bus company under the Guojun Group? Sir Chen, please answer this directly."

"First, the bus group can only purchase bus brands from Commonwealth countries. If you don't know this, you can look up the relevant regulations. Second, we have conducted countless tests on the Tesla T1 double-decker bus, and the test results are significantly better than double-decker bus brands from Commonwealth countries. It is even better than Mercedes-Benz from West Germany."

"This has proven to be true; over the past year, the traffic accident rate of KMB and China Motor Bus has decreased significantly."

"Secondly, before purchasing this bus, we consulted with the Director of Transport, Yan Dunli, and the former Governor of Hong Kong, Mak Lai-ho."

Our testing process also included the personal invitation of senior executives from both groups, as well as Yan Dunli and Mai Lihao.

“Ban Naixin, if you really have the guts, please bring Yan Dunli and Sir Michael Meryl Streep over for questioning.”

After Chen Jiajun finished speaking, he crossed his arms and gave a cold laugh.

"Hehe, don't try to intimidate me by mentioning the Director of Transport, Yan Dunli, and the former Governor, Sir Michael McLoughlin."

"It's normal that Yan Dunli and Sir Michael Mak don't understand technology. What I'm talking about now is the issue of why, as the de facto controller of Kowloon Motor Bus and China Motor Bus, these two groups only purchase the Tesla T1 double-decker bus model that you control. This involves a very serious issue of improper transfer of benefits." Ban Naixin smiled slightly, putting Yan Dunli and Sir Michael Mak aside.

“Mr. Ban Nai-xin, the purchase of Tesla double-decker buses T1 has been rigorously investigated by the purchasing departments of KMB Group and China Motor Corporation, and meets the requirements and standards of both groups. As a major shareholder, I only have the right to make suggestions, not to make the final decision.”

Chen Jiajun spoke eloquently.

It must be said that the breakthrough the ICAC found was indeed ingenious.

Foreigners have always regarded Hong Kong as their backyard. In the past two years, British industry has been sluggish, unemployment has soared, and inflation has been extremely severe. The fact that Hong Kong's China Bus and Kowloon Motor Bus Group haven't even purchased their brands has given the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) a breakthrough point to try and convict him.

But they don't even consider that the Tesla T1 double-decker bus was a product developed by Orn, and it was even more competitive than Mercedes-Benz in West Germany.

At the same time, in the two interrogation rooms next door, ICAC officers asked the same questions.

Lu Yeqiang and Deng Yongqiang were already very familiar with the relevant questions, and they gave answers that were similar to Chen Jiajun's, which were impeccable.

Ban Naixin asked sternly, "Sir Chen, on what grounds does your Tesla Group price the T1 double-decker bus at 1 million yuan? And you're purchasing a full 3,000 units, involving 3 billion yuan in funds. Not only did you use the development fund, but you also took out a loan from HSBC Group. There are serious issues of improper transfer of benefits involved."

Chen Jiajun smiled slightly and said disdainfully:
"Sir, please don't make things up without evidence."

"Even if you believe it's a transfer of benefits, then tell me, isn't HSBC, which provided loans to KMB Group and China Motor Corporation, also involved? Then go and invite Shen Bi here as well."

"Officer, you have no right to speak without investigation. Please make a horizontal and vertical comparison between the mainstream bus models on the market and our Tesla brand before you talk to me, okay?"

Ban Naixin stretched out his hand and shook his finger, saying, "Our ICAC will naturally send the Tesla double-decker bus to Europe for a performance test. Sir Chen, you don't need to worry about that."

"The second question is that, according to the information we have with the ICAC, the annual profit of KMB Group is only HK$3500 million, and that of China Motor Corporation is even lower. Based on the cash flow of these two groups, it would probably take about 40 years to repay this loan."

Sir Chan, I'm very curious how you managed to obtain such a large loan from HSBC, and an interest-free one at that. Please explain; this is probably the most intriguing question for all businesses in Hong Kong.

"If you knew how to run a bus group, you would be sitting in my position right now. As for how to repay the loan, that's an internal matter for our group, you don't need to worry about it. Besides, I really suggest you invite Shen Bi over and ask him why he lent us so much money?"

Chen Jiajun took a sip of tea and continued his verbal sparring with Ban Naixin.

"Sir Chen, don't try anything funny. We're talking about your problem now."

Ban Naixin banged heavily on the table.

"boom."

Chen Jiajun was too lazy to argue with Ban Naixin anymore, so he slammed his teacup on the table: "You're the ones who're playing tricks today, wasting my time!"

"Fuck your mother! You think you can convict me with some dubious nonsense? Ban Naixin, do you even have the right?"

"Ban Naixin, every organization, every department, and every position has its own rules of the game, whether they are overt or covert. The first step is to learn them. However, many people die before they even get to that point. Do you know why?"

Before Ban Naixin could answer, Chen Jiajun pointed at him with his index finger and said, "That's just being self-righteous."

"The second step is to find the loose ends in this game, learn how not to foul, and know how to play within the lines. Only in this way can one barely survive. Can a city exist without ICAC, or without entrepreneurs?"

"Please remember that your high salary is also contributed by our Guojun, Hongxing, and Tesla Group."

At this point, Chen Jiajun stood up, leaned slightly forward, and whispered, "Finally, Ban Naixin, you need to learn to protect yourself and not fall into someone's trap. Hehe."

That's when.

An ICAC officer pushed open the interrogation room door and shouted to Ban Nai-shun, "Chief, something terrible has happened."

"Can't you knock?"

Ban Naixin was already annoyed after being lectured by Chen Jiajun, and seeing that his subordinates didn't even knock on the door made him even angrier.

"Director, let's look at the news."

The ICAC commissioner was at a loss for words, so he simply turned on the TVB channel.

On the television, the TVB host announced, "Now, let's look at some exciting news."

"At a major international auto show, Tesla Group, an exhibitor from Hong Kong, announced that it has received orders from New Rapid Transit Corporation of Singapore, North American Golden Travel Corporation, and Formosa Bus Company for 2000 locally produced Tesla T1 double-decker buses. Meanwhile, Australia, South Africa, and other countries have introduced T1 double-decker buses from Tesla Group in Hong Kong for trial use. Now, please watch the on-site report."

The scene shifts to the Tesla Group's main conference room in Butterfly Bay, Tuen Mun, where Chairman Huang Bi'an, along with representatives from New Rapid Transit Group, North American Kam Lun Travel Group, and Formosa Bus Group, are signing contracts.

Hong Kong, as a free trade capital, attracts a large number of travelers from all over the world. In the past two years, what Hong Kong travelers and businessmen probably remember most vividly is the Tesla T1 double-decker buses that are everywhere.

Meanwhile, since its inception, Tesla Group has frequently participated in major international auto shows.

After some companies tried the vehicles, they were deeply impressed by their performance, safety, and comfort. Compared with similar models, these three companies purchased a total of 2000 double-decker buses from Tesla Group.

Meanwhile, some interested foreign bus companies have also introduced this double-decker bus for trial use.

(End of this chapter)