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

Chapter 742 Taking Down Standard Chartered Bank!

"Damn it, I knew it. That Vic was up to no good. He was deliberately setting a trap for Mark."

“I will absolutely, absolutely not yield to that Chinese woman. I will make her pay the price.”

Inside the Prime Minister's residence, Margaret Thatcher was furious and shouted angrily at her husband, Denis.

With her political acumen, she naturally saw through Li Changhe's intentions at a glance.

This guy nominally gave them a choice, but in reality, he left them with no choice at all.

If Mark is refused entry, can their family relationship remain harmonious?

But if he doesn't refuse, then Mark...
"Mary, don't be angry, listen to me!"

Dennis then calmed the angry prime minister down and pulled her to sit on the sofa.

“Actually, at first, I was also very angry when I heard these things, but later I felt that what Vic said made a lot of sense.”

“We treated Mark and Carol our way, but we ignored their own mindset.”

“Vic was actually just looking out for Mark from his perspective, helping him find a path within his capabilities that would allow him to make money and rise to prominence.”

"To be honest, by the end, I even admired him a little."

“I think what we need to do now is not to be jealous of Vic, but to talk to our son Mark first.”

“I think we should listen to Mark’s true thoughts. We should tell Mark our concerns and listen to his own opinions.”

"If he really insists, then I think we should support him and not let his self-esteem be hurt any further."

“Think about these past few years. Mark went to Hong Kong Island, Singapore, and many other places, but he has achieved nothing in legitimate business. Perhaps Vic’s idea is a way out for him.”

"After all, we can't protect him for a lifetime."

Dennis spoke softly to Margaret Thatcher.

Margaret Thatcher gradually calmed down with her husband's encouragement.

“Okay, Danny, let’s call Mark back and have a serious talk with him.”

That night, the lights inside the Prime Minister's official residence remained on all night.

Two days later, Li Changhe indeed received another invitation from Dennis.

This time, the meeting between the two sides was not as tense as the last one; instead, it felt more like a long-standing friendship.

"Vic, I'll be leaving Mark's matter to you from now on."

“Mr. Dennis, as I said, I am genuinely friends with Mark, and I hope that my friendship with him will be as pure and lasting as yours with my uncle.”

Li Changhe recently discovered that his uncle Bao Yugang's relationship with Dennis was not simply a matter of mutual benefit; there was indeed a lot of genuine affection involved.

It's no wonder that after Bao Yugang passed away, the first person to carry his coffin was Mr. Dennis.

“I know, Vic, you are a very outstanding young man. I think Mark will make the best choice in his life to work with you.”

"However, there's something I want to tell you in advance."

"Buying a car brand isn't so easy these days."

“The election is not over yet, and those brands are still national assets. Mary will only have the time and energy to push for the privatization of some state-owned enterprises, such as Leland, after the election. That will be the right time to sell them.”

"This will likely take until next year or the year after. You know, even if Mary is the Prime Minister, she can't just decide everything with a single sentence. There will be a lot of back-and-forth, and the Labour Party will definitely oppose it."

"After all, it was them who were the ones who strongly advocated for nationalization before."

Dennis then spoke to Li Changhe with a slightly apologetic tone.

The family did reach a consensus in a meeting, allowing Mark to cooperate with Li Changhe. However, Margaret Thatcher was still dissatisfied, so she did not intend to agree to Li Changhe's acquisition of the car brand so quickly.

Dennis actually supported this point, and they planned to delay for a while to see how Mark's collaboration with Li Changhe would go.

If the two men achieve great success and Mark gains something from the situation, then Margaret Thatcher will naturally help Li Changhe.

Conversely, if Mark gained nothing from his trip to the Middle East, they would naturally stop helping Li Changhe.

This thing is now just bait, bait to lure Victor, and also a way to protect his own son, to prevent Victor from using Mark and then dumping him.

After Dennis finished speaking, he thought Li Changhe would be angry or show some dissatisfaction.

Unexpectedly, Li Changhe simply smiled and said, "Of course, I fully understand Your Excellency's difficulties. In fact, it would be enough if Your Excellency could give me a chance to enter the market when you sell it."

Li Changhe readily agreed, seemingly unconcerned about the delay.

He's really not in a hurry about this.

The complete opening up of China will not begin until next year, which will then usher in the great era of reform and opening up.

Li Changhe and others purchased it in 1985 or 1986, which was also the right time.

If you really let him buy it now, he doesn't even have the money. After all, he needs money everywhere this year.

Seeing how considerate Li Changhe was, Dennis felt a little embarrassed.

He suddenly felt that they might be being a little too harsh on this young man.

In fact, Victor's suggestions for collaboration with Mark were not wrong, and they were made from Mark's perspective.

Whether he did it intentionally or unintentionally, he was at least different from those businessmen who were only looking to exploit Mark.

“Vic, I’m sorry I didn’t offer you enough help with the car issue.”

"If you have any other needs in London or the UK, you can let me know, and I will do my best to help you. This is just a small way for me, as an elder, to express my gratitude for your help to Mark."

Dennis then spoke to Li Changhe again.

This was actually a pre-arranged excuse: cars are powerful industrial tools, and he certainly couldn't give them to Li Changhe so easily.

However, they also wanted to offer some incentives in other areas, as a way to provide their son with some security.

Li Changhe smiled slightly after listening.

The British love to use the tactic of giving a slap followed by a sweet treat.

However, since Dennis had spoken, he didn't hold back.

“Mr. Dennis, I do have something I need help with.”

"Oh? You tell me!"

Dennis said with a smile. It's right for Li Changhe to continue making demands; a young man must have something to gain, after all.

"That's right. I currently have many businesses around the world, and they are very scattered. I need a bank to help me coordinate many of these things."

“I’m in Hong Kong Island, and my cooperation with Standard Chartered Bank has been very pleasant. I intend to further deepen our cooperation with Standard Chartered Bank.”

"However, the senior management at Standard Chartered in London has some concerns about the acquisition. I was wondering if Mr. Dennis knows any senior executives at Standard Chartered who might be able to introduce me?"

Since he couldn't take over the automotive industry, Li Changhe decided to target Standard Chartered Bank first.

Standard Chartered Bank?

"Are you talking about Standard Chartered, the one that merged with Standard Bank?"

Dennis asked curiously at this moment.

Li Changhe nodded: "That's right, it's Standard Chartered. It merged with Standard Bank and does have a lot of business in Africa. I'm considering acquiring it because of that."

"The business in Asia and Africa can complement some of my industries, including my business with Mark in Africa and the Middle East. I think we can also leverage Standard Chartered's strength at that time."

Seeing that Dennis knew about Standard Chartered, Li Changhe mentioned it a few more times.

See? Taking over Standard Chartered will also help your son.

After all, when Mark goes to Africa to do business with warlords and the like, having his own bank will be very convenient, whether it's mobilizing funds or leveraging the bank's influence in the local area.

After listening, Dennis nodded: "Vic, I have to say, you're a very lucky guy."

“If it were another bank, I might have to put in some effort, but with Standard Chartered, I can definitely help you introduce a suitable candidate.”

"Okay, I'll get back to you after I've contacted him!"

Dennis gave Li Changhe a positive answer. Li Changhe didn't expect that Dennis actually had acquaintances at Standard Chartered Bank.

Li Changhe and Dennis had a pleasant meeting. Of course, at the end, Dennis made another request to Li Changhe: that he should not do those things again after returning to Hong Kong Island.

Li Changhe readily agreed, having already completed the task assigned to him by his superiors: winning over many wealthy individuals and demonstrating his stance.

He didn't need to do anything after that.

Back on Garden Street, Li Changhe quickly obtained the information Dennis had given him.

"John Major, a rising political star within the Conservative Party, is highly regarded by some of the party's senior figures. Margaret Thatcher is also grooming him, and currently, he seems poised to become the next leader of the Conservative Party."

"This person is one of Standard Chartered's backers in London. Eight years ago, he was a senior executive at Standard Chartered, responsible for developing the bank's business development plans. Later, he entered politics and became one of Standard Chartered's political supporters."

At this moment, Catherine introduced herself to Li Changhe.

Li Changhe frowned slightly as he recalled something.

The name John Major sounded somewhat familiar to him.

This guy, it seems, was the Conservative Party's chosen successor to Prime Minister after Thatcher stepped down, until later when Blair of the Labour Party came to power.

However, Li Changhe was not sure either, since few British prime ministers have become famous since Thatcher.

Li Changhe, however, knew very well about those US presidents.

"I'll do my best to find out John Major's interests and prepare a suitable gift for him. I'll talk to him about it later."

"Also, let Matthews see that we are ready to start negotiations with Chelsea, including their stadium, and we'll talk to the Mills family as well."

Catherine quickly jotted it down, but then hesitated for a moment before saying hesitantly, "Boss, we recently discovered that His Excellency the Prime Minister doesn't have a good relationship with the British football community."

"Would it be a losing proposition if we continued to invest in football?"

Upon hearing Catherine's reminder, Li Changhe couldn't help but smile.

This time, he really stumbled.

He originally intended to present the renovated Chelsea stadium as a gift to Thatcher, but little did he know that this old woman had a deep-seated hatred for the British football world!
No wonder she wasn't very enthusiastic about the gift that night.

This inside story was something Dennis casually told him that day.

"Don't worry about it, we'll continue to invest in ours. Running a football team has other uses for me."

"By the way, while you're at it, find some professionals and see if they can find a coach for the football team named Ferguson."

“No, that old man isn’t him. That guy should be Scottish. He used to be a professional player, and now he’s probably a professional player turned coach. See if you can find him. Once you find his information, send me a copy.”

Li Changhe almost thought Ferguson was an old man, but he quickly realized that Ferguson was probably a middle-aged man.

Li Changhe knows a lot about world-renowned coaches, such as Ferguson, Ancelotti, Wenger, and Mourinho, but he is not a football fan; he only knows them from football novels.

The oldest among them is probably Ferguson, who was also the most likely coach to take the job in the 1980s. As for the others, like Wenger and Ancelotti, Li Changhe estimates that they are probably not old enough yet.

Li Changhe planned to let Ferguson coach Chelsea first, and then talk about it in the 1990s. Anyway, there wasn't much to watch in British football in the 1980s, so giving him some money every year would be a good start.

Let's also see how well Ferguson fared during this period, and whether he can achieve results without managing Manchester United.

If it works out, we'll continue using it; if it doesn't suit Chelsea, we can always replace them later.

Li Changhe is not a football fan and has no dreams. His only need is to use the football team to promote his other businesses, so he agrees with the Real Madrid approach he read about in the novel.

Play attacking football, build up superstars, and don't worry about the actual results. First, establish your reputation and momentum, and spread your club's football fans all over the world.

Besides, by the 1990s, we can just gather players like Ronaldo, Zidane, and Figo in advance.

Catherine quickly jotted it down: "Understood, boss."

He was used to it; sometimes the boss would assign her to investigate minor figures, and he didn't know where the boss got the information.

"Boss, will the funds we're using this time be transferred from Hong Kong, the US, or Europe?"

"The agency that Mark is working with is funded by European investment institutions. After all, the French are the supreme rulers of West Africa. The involvement of the Rothschild and Dassault families will help Mark help us expand our business in Africa."

"The money for the football team came from the United States and was transferred from my own personal investment funds. This football team is considered my personal investment."

"We'll have a sports real estate company from the US come and redesign the stadium and the surrounding land, like the team that designed the Lakers' arena, to make use of the surrounding land, including business hotels."

"If the land area is not enough, let's make a plan first, and then we'll communicate with London."

Currently, the ownership of Chelsea Football Club and the stadium is separate, which conveniently provides Li Changhe with a suitable arrangement. The club is considered his investment, while the London land is managed by a real estate company in the United States.

"Understood!"

Catherine immediately wrote it down in detail.

(End of this chapter)