The Red Era: Living in Seclusion in a Siheyuan as a Boss

Chapter 636: On the Eve of Return!!!

On August 14, Ma Zhong passed the Luohu Port and boarded a flight to Yanjing directly from the Special Administrative Region.

That evening, in a private room at the Chinese restaurant of the Peninsula Hotel in Kowloon, Hong Kong;
As the chairman of "Liu's Overseas Investment Group", Liu Shudong hosted a banquet at the group's five-star hotel for one of the business leaders from Country T, Mr. Ma Wubei, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Country T Xiangri Group.

Mr. Ma’s Xiangri Group is a well-known large enterprise in Country T.

If you go to Country T and drive a short distance from the old Bangkok Airport back to downtown Bangkok on the avenue, you will find a 55-story and a 45-story modern building. Both are properties under the Suncity Group, which shows the wealth of Mr. Ma Wubei and his group.

During this dinner, Liu Shudong and Ma Wubei talked about neither the friendship of old friends nor the business affairs of their long-term cooperation, but Hong Kong and the future.

Because in another year, Hong Kong, which was forcibly leased away by Country Y with its powerful ships and guns, will return to the embrace of the motherland, and the historical moment for people to avenge their previous shame is about to come.

As an outstanding Chinese representative who also has patriotic feelings and is deeply rooted in the motherland, Mr. Ma was filled with joy and raised a toast to celebrate with Liu Shudong!
However, Mr. Ma was obviously a little doubtful at this time.

At that time, Liu Shudong and Ma Wubei had known each other since the late 1980s.

In recent years, with the help of the "Liu family", Ma Wubei has invested heavily in the country.

"Xiangri Group" has established nearly ten Sino-foreign joint ventures through cooperative investment in various provinces in the mainland, several of which have developed rapidly and achieved considerable results.

As Hong Kong's return to China is drawing closer, some unwilling overseas groups have been criticizing Hong Kong and the return in various ways, resulting in a large number of European and American operating institutions in Hong Kong withdrawing their investments there.

These organizations with complex backgrounds use some news media, newspapers and magazines in Hong Kong and use all channels and opportunities to disrupt... like a flood or a beast.

Some of them were unaware of the truth and, due to this, withdrew their investments and immigrated to the United States, Canada and Europe. Among them were many of Ma Zhongbei's friends.

As the day of return approaches, Ma Zhongbei feels mixed emotions, which is why he looks so solemn at this moment.

Ma Zhongbei knew the power of the "Liu Family" in the country, which was why he invited Liu Shudong to have a drink.

After three drinks, Ma Zhongbei asked Liu Shudong in a heavy tone: "Mr. Liu, there are all kinds of rumors.

What is most worrying is that there is a rumor that Party Y is not willing to completely hand over the governance of Hong Kong and is said to be taking over for a period of time. What do you think is the truth? "

Liu Shudong hesitated for a moment, then quickly replied, "Mr. Ma, you don't have to worry about this. The news media has repeatedly stressed and made its position clear... There is nothing to discuss. We will unwaveringly take it back completely on July 1997, 7."

Ma Zhongbei nodded after hearing this: "I don't believe it either. We have been waiting for 150 years and we will never give up easily."

After a while, Ma Zhongbei asked again: "The Siam Daily of Country T once reported that after Hong Kong's return, people who became Hong Kongers became Chinese citizens, and were no longer called foreign businessmen. Then, wouldn't the preferential policies for foreign-invested enterprises that our nearly ten companies have enjoyed be cancelled?
“Is it credible that in the future, Sino-foreign joint ventures will no longer include companies invested by Hong Kong people?
“Is there a large-scale withdrawal of Hong Kong capital from the mainland now?”

Liu Shudong responded to this question: "Mr. Ma, you don't need to worry about this issue! Think about it, the statement in the joint statement that there will be no change for 50 years is almost known to everyone."

“Although ‘the horse keeps running, the dance keeps dancing’ is just six words, it is a vivid interpretation of firm determination! How can we change the nature of a foreign-invested enterprise that has already been determined?!”

"These rumors are just from people who are not happy with our rapid economic development and cannot bear to see us become stronger, so they are just spreading bad news and rumors."

"Not only have I seen through these tricks, I have also discussed these issues with relevant people in various ways and forms, and the conclusions I have reached are affirmative and beyond doubt!"

With Liu Shudong, who had a strong background, giving a firm answer, Ma Zhongbei let out a long breath.

When they raised their glasses again, Ma Zhongbei, with a very determined look in his eyes, said in a resolute voice: "I have been troubled by various opinions in the past few months. Since I know the mainland very well and everyone knows that I have invested a lot in the country, they all asked if there will be any changes in the future?

"Will the policies and regulations of Xiaguo's reform and opening up change?"

"In a word, will the sky change?"

"After discussing this with my brother, I suddenly understand!" Ma Zhongbei clapped his hands excitedly, "Not only will I not withdraw my investment, I will also take advantage of this situation to increase investment. I will also tell my business colleagues in Country T to invest with confidence and develop business in China. In the rise and development of our motherland, it is better to identify business opportunities early and develop early!"

He became happier as he spoke: "Come on! Brother, let's drink three glasses..."

Liu Shudong understood very well what people like Ma Zhongbei were worried about, and that this was not an isolated phenomenon.

On the eve of the return, many Hong Kong people chose to emigrate out of fear of the consequences.

Apart from anything else, many employees of "Liu Overseas" want to resign and immigrate overseas with their families.

In response to this phenomenon, Liu Shudong can also deliberately convene group meetings to do ideological work.

"You have the opportunity to be first-class citizens, but you choose to be second-class citizens. I think you are really crazy!"

Liu Shudong once heard the company's senior employee Bao Xianchengcheng comment on those employees who desperately wanted to emigrate.

When Bao Xiancheng said these words, his face was full of disappointment.

Liu Shudong heard that Bao Xiancheng's mother came all the way from Yanjing to Hong Kong to escape the war when she was young.

In those early years, Hong Kong people had a very low status in Hong Kong and could almost be regarded as second-class citizens.

The Governor of Hong Kong is entirely appointed by Country Y, and the people of Hong Kong have neither the opportunity nor the right to participate in any voting or election.

All the previous governors of Hong Kong were white-skinned, high-nosed people from country Y, and had never seen a Chinese face.

Even in the judicial system, senior positions are almost all held by Y countrymen, while Hong Kong people can only take second place under Y countrymen.

Therefore, old Hong Kong people like Bao Xiancheng have a deep attachment to their motherland. They yearn to live an upright life and no longer be regarded as "second-class citizens."

Time flies. With the passage of years, many older generation Hong Kong people have gradually grown old, and some have even passed away.

However, among the new generation, many people do not care much about this status of second-class citizens, and even think that only by integrating into the West can they be higher. This is really ridiculous.

Therefore, in the film and television works in the years before Hong Kong's return, it was common to see that after a couple broke up, the woman chose to study abroad or immigrate with her parents.

This plot actually reflects the real situation of Hong Kong society at that time.

Liu Shudong did a good job in ideological work at the employee meeting of "Liu's Overseas".

Most of the employees who wanted to immigrate followed Liu Shudong's advice and did not choose to immigrate.

Those employees who did not listen to the advice and were determined to immigrate overseas regretted their decision after just a few years.

On the one hand, the people who stayed in Hong Kong lived and worked in peace and contentment, leading a peaceful life;
On the other hand, those Hong Kong people who racked their brains to immigrate abroad started a completely different life.

Less than a decade after returning to Hong Kong, the global financial crisis hit again.

Later, after news of Country Y's bankruptcy broke out, street strikes, demonstrations and protests frequently occurred in the country.

These actions made it impossible for many stores to operate normally. What's worse, some Y people took the opportunity to experience the pleasure of "zero-yuan shopping".

Many Hong Kong people who immigrated to Country Y are confused and don't know how long the turmoil will last, making it increasingly difficult to find employment and start a business.

Therefore, many people began to think about returning to Hong Kong.

Some people posted online that "every day in Country Y makes people doubt life."

Some people even complained online that they were afraid to go out or go to the streets.

Because of this turbulent situation, the locals of Country Y began to target immigrants... and Asians naturally became one of the main targets of their "zero-dollar shopping".

A large-scale strike broke out in Country Y, with railway workers and cleaners becoming the main force of the strike.

Due to frequent strikes by cleaners, the streets of Country Y are littered with garbage.

As a result, a surprising scene was captured by netizens: Hong Kong people who immigrated to Country Y actually started working as garbage pickers.

A Hong Kong netizen joked online: "It's really touching! Those "yellow ribbons" who immigrated to Country Y should be grateful to the cleaners, because it is they who gave them the opportunity to pick up garbage."

"Alas, in just these three short years, many talented people in Hong Kong have disappeared.

"Now, after encountering a lot of problems living abroad, I realize how good it is to live in Hong Kong..."

All of a sudden, the "return flow" has become a hot topic in this corner of Hong Kong.

In recent years, many Hong Kong people who immigrated overseas later regretted their decision and returned to Hong Kong.

But this is all for later.

In contrast, Liu Shudong was happy to see those Y-investors withdraw from Hong Kong.

After the negotiations and signing of the contract, Hong Kong's future finally became clear.

A large number of Y-funded companies began to withdraw from Hong Kong, and old foreign companies such as Jardine Matheson and Wheelock sold off their assets in Hong Kong. Even some small number of H-funded companies chose to emigrate or invest abroad.

In order to stabilize Hong Kong's economy and boost market confidence, Liu Shudong made a surprising decision at the time;
As the second largest shareholder of "Global Shipping" Group, Bao Yugang, with the strong support of Liu Shudong, took the risk of spending 24.5 billion Hong Kong dollars to acquire Wheelock.

Wheelock was once one of the four major trading companies in Hong Kong and was also the biggest competitor of "World Wide Shipping".

Since the 80s, the global shipping industry has been in crisis.

Bao Yugang had seen the problem long ago and started to take on debt in the 70s, investing in Hong Kong real estate. He successfully transformed himself with the help of "Liu Overseas" at the time.

However, Wheelock made a wrong judgment and frantically purchased ships before the shipping crisis broke out, which led to a huge debt.

Some people think that it is irrational for Global Shipping to acquire Wheelock for HK$25.4 billion.

Because not long ago, Bao Yugang was under great pressure due to a shortage of funds for the acquisition of Hutchison Whampoa.

However, Pao Yue-Kong was not worried about this acquisition because he had "Liu Overseas Investment" behind him.

It was because of the successful acquisition of "Wharf Holdings" that Liu Shudong and Pao Yue-kong became the leading figures of Hong Kong's H-business.

At that time, in terms of influence and strength, Liu Shudong was far superior to Huo Da Lao, Li Jiacheng and others.

In other words, these people are also watching Liu Shudong and Bao Yugang.

So Bao Yugang finally decided to acquire Wheelock again, which was not entirely based on commercial considerations.

This acquisition of Liu Shudong, Bao Yugang and others was entirely based on patriotic considerations.

However, everything was destined, and Liu Shudong and Bao Yugang eventually achieved great success.

The acquisition price seemed high at the time, but many listed companies under Wheelock were also included in "Liu Overseas Investment" and the Pao family.

These companies later developed very successfully, and Wheelock transformed from a shipping company into a real estate company, becoming one of the largest real estate companies in Hong Kong.

This acquisition alone later made "Liu's Overseas Investment" and the Bao family earn tens of billions.

In addition to Bao Yugang, the other "Superman Li" of the "Iron Triangle" is not much behind.

In Li Jiacheng's business career, the acquisition of Hutchison Whampoa is undoubtedly his most dazzling achievement.

This merger not only left a significant mark in the history of Chinese business, but also helped Li Jiacheng ascend to the throne of the richest Chinese businessman.

Hutchison Whampoa, a giant formed by the merger of Hutchison Whampoa and Whampoa Dockyard, can be traced back to 1860 and 1843, representing the commercial and industrial traditions of Hong Kong respectively.

Under the control of the Claude family, Hutchison Whampoa underwent several reorganizations and acquisitions, and gradually became a leader in Hong Kong's business community.

The Whampoa Dockyard, with its outstanding maintenance and construction capabilities, is firmly established as one of the three largest shipyards in Hong Kong.

However, as the Claude family overexpanded, Hutchison Whampoa fell into financial difficulties.

In order to replenish capital, that year, Hutchison Whampoa exchanged one-third of its equity for a capital injection of HK$1.5 million from HSBC.

Two years later, HSBC reorganized Hutchison Whampoa Limited into Hutchison Whampoa Limited, which laid a solid foundation for Li Jiacheng's subsequent acquisitions.

In this acquisition battle, Liu Shudong, chairman of "Liu Overseas", became Li Jiacheng's solid backing.

At that time, Liu Shudong praised Li Jiacheng highly.

"Liu Overseas" first dealt with HSBC, the major shareholder of "Hutchison Whampoa", through a series of secret transactions.

This undoubtedly gave Li Jiacheng a reassurance and added more confidence to his acquisition journey.

Time flies. More than two years have passed since the acquisition battle of "Hutchison Whampoa".

Beneath the apparent calmness of the market, a major business change seems to be about to take place.

Li Jiacheng became a key figure in this transformation, and the acquisition of Hutchison Whampoa became an important milestone in his business career.

Later, "Asia Pacific Bank" under "Liu's Overseas Investment" provided Li Jiacheng with sufficient "ammunition" by providing loans at low interest rates.

With this strong support, Li Jiacheng accelerated the pace of acquiring Hutchison.

Unlike the last time he acquired Wharf Holdings when news leaked, he attached great importance to the confidentiality of this acquisition.

Without the outside world knowing anything, he started negotiations with some small shareholders to acquire Hutchison shares, and continued to use the method of dispersing accounts to quietly acquire shares on the market.

In the following period, Li Jiacheng showed his tenacity and courage of "holding on to the green mountains and not letting go" and launched a fierce acquisition offensive against Y-invested Hutchison Whampoa.

He continued to buy Hutchison Whampoa shares on the stock market, determined to take it into his pocket.

Liu Shudong, chairman of "Liu's Overseas Investment", had frequent contact with Jiacheng, and the tacit understanding and cooperation between them gradually deepened.

Liu Shudong deeply admires Li Jiacheng's business talent and foresight.

At the same time, Liu Shudong's active cooperation also added more support to Li Jiacheng's acquisition journey.

In the end, Li Jiacheng successfully acquired Hutchison Whampoa in a "snake swallowing an elephant" way.

This move not only freed him from the restrictions of local H-funded real estate developers, but also made him an investor with international vision and diversified strategic investment capabilities.

Li Jiacheng said excitedly afterwards: "I caught a big eagle!" This reflects his joy and pride in becoming a shareholder of Y Capital Group.

Of course, it was not only Li Jiacheng who benefited from the event; "Liu's Overseas Investment" also reaped a lot of benefits.

Li Jiacheng "returned the favor" by converting part of the debt of "Asia Pacific Bank" into shares of "Hutchison Whampoa", thus making "Liu Overseas Investment" the second largest shareholder of "Hutchison Whampoa".

Everyone is happy!

At the beginning, the meeting between Li Jiacheng and Liu Shudong was held on the top floor of the Chinese Bank at the Cheung Kong headquarters. The two men confirmed the acquisition while drinking at the banquet.

At this time, Hutchison Whampoa had already got on the right track. The negotiation process between the two parties was very confidential and efficient, and the acquisition details were finally finalized in a very short time.

At 4 p.m. one day in September of that year, the HSBC board of directors held an emergency meeting to discuss the sale of Hutchison Whampoa shares to Li Ka-shing.

Interestingly, the directors of two major British banks, Jardine Matheson and Swire, were absent from the meeting for some reason, which brought a turning point to Li Jiacheng's acquisition plan.

Otherwise, these two Y-capital bosses might not easily vote for Li Jiacheng, and HSBC would have found it difficult to complete the deal so smoothly.

The transaction was not discussed with Hutchison Whampoa management in advance and was only notified to CEO Weeley after the meeting.

Thus, Hutchison’s management was unwittingly betrayed by their compatriot HSBC.

To be precise, he was betrayed by his compatriot Shen Bi.

The embarrassment and anger can be imagined.

Later, faced with strong protests from Y investors, HSBC had no choice but to play the ostrich.

There is no way. HSBC is also selfish. They gave too much to "Liu Overseas Investment".

Another thing is that Li Jiacheng's acquisition conditions are also extremely favorable. He only needs to pay 20% of the total sales price as a deposit, and the remaining balance can be paid later.

Y Capital later confirmed that the deposit was loaned to Li Jiacheng by Asia Pacific Bank.

In addition, the selling price of 7.1 million yuan is also quite cheap, only yuan per share.

Hutchison Whampoa's then CEO, Welch, believed that each share of Hutchison Whampoa was worth at least HK$14.4.

Therefore, Li Jiacheng actually purchased Hutchison Whampoa at a 50% discount.

At the same time, he also received loan support from the Asia Pacific Bank.

The reason why Liu Shudong helped Li Jiacheng was that he owed him a favor in the previous battle of "Kowloon Wharf";
More importantly, he also foresaw that Li Jiacheng would become extraordinary and occupy an important position in Hong Kong's business community in the future.

Such people, like Bao Yugang, are very worthy of Liu Shudong's great effort to make close friends with.

(End of this chapter)