1977: The beginning of the blind date with the daughter of the king

Chapter 676 Completely baffled!
Inside the Governor's residence, after hanging up the phone, MacLehose frowned slightly.

"Bruno, it seems that Standard Chartered is not his target."

“Ron just called and said he rejected Standard Chartered’s offer to sell a small stake.”

Although the Hong Kong Island Police Special Branch was unwilling to conduct a thorough investigation into Bao Zeyang, it did not completely sever the Governor's respect, since Murray MacLehose had only stepped down and would return to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and would most likely enter the Senate.

So the political department did give Bao Zeyang some information, such as that he was very close to Standard Chartered Bank.

This is why Standard Chartered Bank was aware of Downing Street's strategy.

MacLehose wanted to see if Li Changhe was really targeting Standard Chartered Bank, and whether his so-called interests in the UK were actually Standard Chartered Bank.

The results now indicate that Li Changhe is not very interested in Standard Chartered Bank.

"Sir, could it be that he deliberately didn't buy it? There's a Chinese saying, 'to lure someone in,' is that similar to Victor using this tactic?"

Bruno asked hesitantly.

"No, if he really wanted to acquire Standard Chartered Bank, even a small share would be useful. After all, Standard Chartered Bank's shareholding is very dispersed. If he acquires it slowly, he will eventually gain control."

"So there's no reason for him to refuse, unless he doesn't have such an urgent need for Standard Chartered?"

"I'm puzzled," said Mak Lai-ho at this moment.

He is not a businessman, but he understands some economic models.

To be honest, Li Changhe's actions puzzled him greatly.

Although he thwarted Li Changhe's acquisition, he didn't completely ruin the deal. He didn't prohibit Standard Chartered from selling, so Ron also brought Li Changhe some information about the sale of shares by minority shareholders.

Moreover, Standard Chartered is a listed company, and it still holds shares in the stock market. If these shares are combined with acquisitions in the stock market, it is not entirely impossible for Standard Chartered to gain control.

The other party refused, which left MacLehose somewhat puzzled.

"It seems that Standard Chartered is not as important to him as we thought, and the conditions he offered us were not from Standard Chartered."

MacLehose shook his head and said helplessly.

"Sir, should we talk to him again?"

Bruno was also speechless. Why didn't Victor just say what he wanted instead of making them guess?

"It's too late. I'm about to leave office. Let Youde think about the rest!"

Mai Lihao sighed. It was already April, and he was about to leave. Even if he talked to Li Changhe, he probably wouldn't get anything out of them.

After all, someone who is about to leave office has little deterrent effect.

The old Chinese saying, "When people leave, the tea grows cold," actually makes a lot of sense.

While MacLehose and Bruno were puzzled by Li Changhe's choice, Li Changhe was giving instructions to Ella in his office.

"Get Wendy here for me!"

Wendy, the head of the offshore gambling ship finance company, later helped Li Changhe purchase luxury cars, yachts and private jets in Europe. Now she is considered one of Li Changhe's core subordinates.

After all, there are many people who understand finance, but people who understand finance, law, and the ways of the world are quite rare.

"Yes, boss!"

After Ella left, Li Changhe sat there, tapping his fingers lightly on the table as he pondered.

Why not accept the small shares Ron offered?
Firstly, Li Changhe wasn't in a hurry. He knew how much of a shock Britain's defeat would cause to Hong Kong after the Sino-British negotiations, and it would be strange if Standard Chartered's shareholders weren't uneasy at that time.

After all, their core business is now in Asia, and Africa is secondary.

It will be easier to talk about it then.

However, this was only a secondary reason. The most crucial reason was that Li Changhe didn't want to spend money. It was almost April 1982. In September, Thatcher would visit China, and after that fall, the Hong Kong stock and property markets would plummet, while the Hong Kong dollar would continue to appreciate against the US dollar.

Under these circumstances, Li Changhe would naturally want to keep the money in hand to prepare for this wave of wealth surge.

At this point, buying a controlling stake in Standard Chartered would be one thing, but to acquire a small, non-controlling stake would be foolish for Li Changhe to do so.

Unfortunately, this logic was something that MacLehose and his team could never have guessed.

After all, they could not have foreseen the impending halving of Hong Kong's property market.

Soon, Wendy rushed over and arrived at Li Changhe's office.

"Boss, you wanted to see me!"

"Wendy, I have a task for you."

At this moment, Li Changhe spoke seriously to Wendy.

"Boss, please speak!"

"Help me find some real estate agencies in prime areas like Kowloon, Central, and Victoria Peak, the kind with a big reputation or a large scale, and have them provide me with a real estate report for Hong Kong Island."

"I'm planning to buy some houses depending on the situation!"

"You're buying a house?"

Wendy was somewhat shocked after hearing this.

Now everyone knows that Bao Zeyang is the biggest landowner on Hong Kong Island. He controls Jardine Matheson and owns the most prime and central plot of land in Central, Hong Kong Island. How can such a big landowner buy a house?

"Yes, of course, it's not for personal use, but for investment. I have a feeling that there might be a drop in property prices on Hong Kong Island, so I plan to use some funds to buy at the bottom."

“I believe those who work in real estate agencies are the most qualified to speak on where the potential of these plots of land on Hong Kong Island lies. Go and compile their data and give me a list of Hong Kong Island real estate information.”

"By the way, I'll still need these people in the future, so I'll try to build good relationships with them. When it's time to buy at rock-bottom prices, I'll need their help."

"Also, handle this matter on your own outside, don't use my name, understand? I don't want this to become common knowledge in Hong Kong."

"Because that would inevitably attract followers to buy at the bottom, increasing the difficulty of our acquisition."

At this moment, Li Changhe gave Wendy instructions.

Wendy understood Li Changhe's intention and immediately nodded respectfully: "Understood, boss, I'll do it right away."

After Wendy left, Li Changhe called Ella in.

"Ella, contact the Greater China Mutual Aid Association in the United States and have Leila Chen bring a group of people to Hong Kong Island immediately. Tell them I have work to arrange for them to do."

"Okay, boss, I'll contact them right away."

Ella's advantage is that she doesn't ask many questions and handles Li Changhe's instructions cleanly and efficiently.

In the afternoon, in Los Angeles, Chen Lei stretched as she was about to leave work, planning to go on a date with her new boyfriend for a romantic candlelight dinner.

However, at that moment, the phone on the table rang.

Curious, Chen Lei answered the phone. After hearing Ella's instructions on the other end, Chen Lei said seriously, "Please tell the boss that I will bring people to Hong Kong Island tomorrow afternoon."

Immediately after hanging up the phone, Chen Lei shouted loudly outside: "Angela, immediately notify everyone in the team that there will be a meeting in ten minutes."

The boss finally gave her instructions. At a time like this, she couldn't care less about dates.

No man is more important than the boss!

(End of this chapter)