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

Chapter 684 The World's Largest Port!

Li Changhe had expected that after he told Gong Xue about this, she would either change her expression drastically or appear on the verge of tears.

To Li Changhe's surprise, Gong Xue simply rolled her eyes at him.

"Sister Linlin guessed right, you definitely have other women over there."

Li Changhe was somewhat bewildered by Gong Xue's answer.

"Your sister Linlin guessed it?"

Li Changhe asked suspiciously at this moment.

This girl isn't bluffing, is she?

"Of course, Sister Linlin said that with your desires, it would be strange if you could suppress them outside."

"But you're someone who does great things and has such a great reputation outside, it would be abnormal if you didn't have a woman by your side."

"Why do you think Sister Linlin agreed to let me go to Hong Kong Island? Isn't it because she's worried you'll find someone else outside?"

Gong Xue said irritably.

Li Changhe smiled and said, "That's the logic."

"My current identity in Hong Kong is that of a well-known single young master, so there are plenty of wealthy families in Hong Kong who want to arrange a marriage with the Bao family and make me their son-in-law."

"The family over there tried every means to arrange for their daughter to meet me, so I used them as a shield, and you could say I kept a canary in a cage."

"The main thing is that the girl had seen me before and knew that I was from the mainland. At the time, for the sake of secrecy, the Bao family found her and misled her. Later, by some twist of fate, they used her as a shield."

"So she knows you're using her as a shield?"

Gong Xue asked hesitantly at this moment.

Li Changhe shook his head: "I just told her that my marriage is not my own decision, and I definitely can't marry her, but I can satisfy her in other ways."

“Girls over there are different from those in China. Many of them value money and material things more, so they haven’t caused any trouble in the last two years.”

“Once you go there and the news of your marriage to me spreads, a lot of people will definitely hype up her identity.”

"I'm telling you this so you can be mentally prepared, so you won't find out later and then be upset by yourself."

“What right do I have to be angry? Actually, Linlin and I have thought about it. For your safety outside, this is nothing.”

"What Sister Linlin means is that as long as you don't change your mind and don't bring them into your home, she will turn a blind eye."

"As for me, I am even less qualified."

Gong Xue understood perfectly well that she herself was not actually the legal wife; she was only using Li Changhe's fake overseas identity for convenience.

"But are you sure that if we get married, she won't expose your identity?"

Gong Xue then asked with concern.

She wasn't worried about the news, but she was worried that if the woman made a scene, she might expose Li Changhe's identity again.
"No, I've already hinted to her that your status in mainland China is unusual, and she understands."

"Furthermore, Hong Kong Island is different from the mainland. A few years ago, the Qing Dynasty law was still in effect there, which allowed wealthy people to take concubines. So although it has now changed to a monogamous system, the acceptance of these things in society is actually quite high."

The people born in the 1980s and 1990s hear most about the romantic relationships between wealthy men and female celebrities. It's not just that these female celebrities love money; more importantly, many of them have the idea of ​​becoming a concubine for a wealthy man or being kept by him.

It's not just female celebrities themselves; many of their parents share this idea, supporting their daughters to be kept as kept women.

Essentially, it is a remnant of the concubinage culture in Hong Kong. Those born in the 1940s and 1950s, having grown up surrounded by it, actually have a high degree of acceptance and approval for this kind of thing.

"That puts my mind at ease. Anyway, I don't want to have anything to do with her in the future. Just make sure she doesn't bully me."

Gong Xue said in a low voice at this moment.

Although she loved Li Changhe deeply, she sometimes felt lost when he went to Hong Kong Island alone with her.

"Don't worry, I won't let you be bullied over there. Besides, if you go there, you'll be Bao Zeyang's legal wife."

“You’re not all alone. In name, Bao Zeyang has several aunts and sisters, especially Uncle Bao Yugang, who approves of you.”

“They are from Ninghai and have lived in Shanghai for a long time. You naturally get along with them in terms of language and lifestyle.”

"So once you get there, you'll definitely be recognized as their official wife, and as long as they support you, no one will dare to bully you, even if I'm not in Hong Kong."

"Besides, you won't need to stay in Hong Kong Island all the time. You can find an opportunity to continue living in the mainland, which will also give me a reason to return to the mainland."

"In a few years, it won't matter if I live on the mainland permanently."

Li Changhe then spoke softly to Gong Xue.

"Well, I listen to you!"

Gong Xue nestled gently against Li Changhe, behaving docilely.

Since my heart is completely tied to him, what else can I do but listen to his arrangements?

After spending two days in Shanghai, Li Changhe quietly returned to Hong Kong Island.

Upon returning to Hong Kong Island, Li Changhe immediately went to Bao Yugang's home.

"You little rascal, you've finally decided to come back. The Governor's House has sent you several invitations already. The new Governor, Edward Youde, has arrived. Aren't you going to meet him?"

Inside the Bao family's villa, Bao Yugang looked at Li Changhe who had returned and couldn't help but smile as he spoke.

Youde took office in May, but Zhu Lin was in confinement after giving birth at that time, so Li Changhe didn't bother with him and let A Hu and the others find an excuse to refuse.

However, now that he's back, dealings with the Governor of Hong Kong are still unavoidable.

"We definitely need to meet, we'll just find a formal occasion."

"But this person is not easy to fool, I need to make some preparations first."

Li Changhe then spoke seriously.

Unlike Murray MacLehose, Edward Youde was not only a senior British diplomat, but also had deep ties with China and the United States.

He served as the secretary of the British Chargé d'affaires in Beijing for many years. After the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, he also served as the British Ambassador to China. He also worked at the United Nations in New York for several years.

This is a very capable diplomat, especially familiar with the situation on the mainland.

Therefore, before Li Changhe returned, Liao Lao had specifically reminded him to be careful when dealing with the new Governor of Hong Kong.

This guy is a true expert on China and knows the situation in China very well. After all, he spent several years in Beijing in both the 1960s and 1970s.

Therefore, it is certain that Li Changhe will be met, but careful preparations must be made.

“Five days from now, Edward Youde will be hosting a banquet at the Governor’s House, inviting some wealthy businessmen from the Hong Kong Chinese business community. We have invitations too, so why don’t we go together then?”

Bao Yugang said softly at this moment.

Li Changhe nodded: "Okay, let's go together on that day."

"Oh, right, there's one more thing. What's your fiancée in Shanghai thinking?"

"When would be a good time for your aunt and me to go over?"

Bao Yugang then turned to Li Changhe and asked again. Last time Li Changhe had told him he was going to marry a woman from Hong Kong, but there had been no further news.
"Let's wait until July. At that time, I'd like to trouble you two to find some time to visit that place."

Li Changhe thought for a moment, then spoke.

June is too rushed, July is just right.

Then, they can spread some word about it later, so that Li Changhe can leave under the guise of tourism in August or September.

Anyway, if he places his pieces in advance, it won't affect his profits.

"July?"

"also!"

"It seems the two ports in Ninghai are nearing completion, and the mainland has been wanting to invite me to visit. I'm actually considering when to go."

"Now that you're involved, I think we can deal with it all at once."

Bao Yugang thought for a moment and then spoke to Li Changhe.

"Are they trying to invite you to invest there?"

Li Changhe asked curiously at this moment.

As expected, Bao Yugang was referring to Ningbo-Zhoushan Port. He really knew about this port, after all, it would be the world's number one port in terms of throughput for more than a decade.

Most importantly, this port with such a large throughput is not a central state-owned enterprise, but a local state-owned enterprise controlled by local state-owned assets.

This also means that there may be external shareholders in Ningbo-Zhoushan Port.

Thinking about Bao Yugang's registered residence, Li Changhe felt that, at least in this era, the Bao family probably had the opportunity to get involved in Ningbo-Zhoushan Port.

Bao Yugang shook his head: "Whether or not to invest is another matter. After all, that's the port of my hometown. Old Lu has always hoped that I, as a shipping person, would go and take a look, and give some advice."

"Actually, if we really want to invest, we won't get many shares. The investment in a port is too big. Unless we pool our funds and invest heavily, I think a small share is not very meaningful."

Bao Yugang was quite clear-headed. Ports have always been vital national transportation routes, and they involve huge investments.

Even if the country now opens up investment channels for him, the amount required is still very large.

For Bao Yugang, investing too little is meaningless, while investing too much is unaffordable; he is still quite conflicted.

“Uncle, I think we can invest. No matter how big or small the amount is, as long as they are willing, we can invest.”

“Ningbo Port has a superior location, supplying Shanghai to the north and the entire Zhejiang region to the south. In my opinion, it will definitely become one of the largest port channels for importing goods into the mainland in the future.”

"In terms of future development of the mainland, if we talk about regional cluster development, I am currently optimistic about two regions: one is the Pearl River Delta region, mainly in Guangdong Province, across from Luohu, and the other is the Yangtze River Delta region, centered on Shanghai."

"These two places are definitely the two regions with the highest priority and fastest development in the future on the mainland, and among them, the Yangtze River Delta has greater potential than the Pearl River Delta!"

"The Pearl River Delta region relies on Hong Kong and Macao. They are so close in location that they are definitely the first choice for Hong Kong and Macao capital to go there."

"But in the long run, the Yangtze River Delta region, with Shanghai as its tip and linked with Jiangsu and Zhejiang, is the area with the highest economic potential on the mainland."

"In fact, this time when I returned to the mainland, I also reached an agreement with them on an investment, which is to cooperate with a petrochemical company in the Ningbo area."

“If you are also interested in investing in Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, I think that investing together this time can also be a way for the Bao family to give back to their hometown. What do you think?”

Li Changhe then gave a serious analysis.

Bao Yu's face showed a look of interest after hearing this.

Li Changhe's analysis is not without reason. He himself is a Zhejiang businessman and is very clear about the economic potential of the Jiangsu and Zhejiang region. As long as the mainland relaxes restrictions, the commercial culture there will soon flourish.

"Ah Yang, it's a great opportunity, but funding is a problem."

"The development and construction of a port requires a huge amount of capital. If we were to invest, how much money could we contribute?"

"To be honest, an investment of one or two hundred million US dollars is actually meaningless, but if the amount of money is more, I will need to raise funds."

“And once you start raising funds, you can’t get around HSBC, which is essentially the British.”

"Things may not have turned out as smoothly as we imagined in the end."

"Unless you use that money from your side."

Bao Yugang then spoke after careful consideration.

Although he is now very wealthy, he doesn't actually have much cash left to use. Don't forget, he still owes HSBC money for the past two years, which was the HK$2 billion he spent on acquiring Kowloon City shares.

Once Bao Yugang raises funds, he will inevitably have to rely on HSBC.

Besides the sum of money he had hidden away with Li Changhe, which was the hundreds of millions of dollars he had gradually accumulated from gold and silver futures to oil later on.

But in reality, that money is now being used by Li Changhe.

"Uncle, I have money."

"Texaco just put two billion dollars into my venture capital firm in the United States, and I was wondering how to spend it. Actually, I think we could work on it here."

"The petrochemical company that cooperates with the mainland actually gets its funding from the money from Texaco."

"I don't think it's difficult to transfer the rest out."

Li Changhe said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Bao Yu looked at Li Changhe with some surprise.

Texaco gave you two billion dollars? That much?

He certainly knew Texaco; it was a famous American oil company with close ties to Rockefeller.

As for how many shares the Luo family actually owns, Bao Yugang didn't know, since that was a closely guarded secret of the Luo family.

Texaco gave Li Changhe two billion US dollars in one go, an amount that truly shocked Bao Yugang.

"In the two years since the oil crisis, Texaco has made so much money that they have no idea what to do with it. They have so much cash in their accounts that they have no idea what to do with it."

"This two billion dollars is just a strategy for their company to diversify their investments. Of course, the terms I offered were also good, and I certainly won't let them lose money."

"Besides, Uncle, we won't be short of money anytime soon. In my opinion, a great opportunity will soon come to Hong Kong!"

At this moment, Li Changhe spoke mysteriously to Bao Yugang.

Bao Yugang looked at Li Changhe with curiosity.

What mysterious tricks is this kid up to now?

What big opportunity are you talking about?

"As far as I know, it won't be long before Downing Street will personally come to negotiate with the mainland."

"Uncle, you've also been in contact with high-ranking officials on the mainland. Do you think Margaret Thatcher's side has a chance?"

Li Changhe then asked with a smile.

After listening, Bao Yu looked at Li Changhe with some surprise.

Goodness, he didn't even know what was going on in Downing Street, but this kid already knows?
(End of this chapter)