Mixed in 1980

Chapter 290 The Tallest Building
"Mr. Chen, it's been a long time!"

"Comrade Lao Hu, you're too kind. When you come to the mainland, let's do as the locals do. Just call me Comrade Lao Chen; it sounds more friendly."

Upon hearing this, Hu Yingxiang almost threw a punch.

Shameless! How old are you to call yourself Comrade Chen in front of yourself? You're over fifty; you're old enough to be your father.

Taking a deep breath, Hu Yingxiang said with a forced smile, "Mr. Chen, what brings you to Guangzhou?"

"The Chinatown supermarket has opened, come and take a look."

Chen Fan smiled and said, "Comrade Lao Hu, I have a real estate project that I'd like to discuss with you. When do you have time to talk about it?"

Hu Yingxiang looked at Chen Fan with suspicion.

This guy is Hong Kong's number one real estate developer. He has an astonishing amount of land, but he holds onto it tightly, only cooperating with China State Construction Engineering Corporation and leaving no room for anyone else.

China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) was responsible for everything, including land, materials, and construction. Every construction company in Hong Kong was envious and had strong opinions about it.

Those in the construction industry are usually associated with social organizations.

Some people, out of envy, sent others to cause trouble at the construction site, but it was like stirring up a hornet's nest; they were all dealt with horribly.

There are many retired veterans on China Construction's construction sites.

It was Chen Fan who came up with the idea. Since wages are high in Hong Kong, we should take care of retired veterans and bring in more of them. This could solve a lot of problems if necessary.

Then those troublemaking gangs were dumbfounded.

Not only were they horribly dealt with at the construction site, but a group of migrant workers also swept away the gambling den that same day.

From then on, no one dared to cause trouble again.

Seeing Hu Yingxiang's disbelief, Chen Fan added, "It's not Hong Kong, it's Guangzhou. Xinghuo Real Estate has a piece of land in Tianhe. Let's go big."

Hu Yingxiang asked suspiciously, "Develop commercial housing?"

Chen Fan shook his head slightly: "That's no fun. The project for that land was already decided beforehand. It's to create Guangzhou's future CBD. We'll build a 500-meter-tall skyscraper."

"Mr. Chen, you're not joking, are you?"

What kind of economy does the mainland have that allows it to build a 500-meter-tall skyscraper? The world's tallest building today, the World Trade Center in the United States, is only 417 meters tall.

Can such a building recoup its costs?
"I'm not kidding. We have to show our strength and let the foreigners see our capabilities. If we're going to build, we'll build the world's tallest building."

Chen Fan turned around and instructed Zeng Ali to take Gong Xue to rest first. He then pulled Hu Yingxiang and Lao Gu to the rest area in the lobby to chat.

Xinghuo Real Estate owns 36 plots of land. China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) initially invested and took a 40% stake. A considerable amount of land was also allocated to the mainland.

There's a large area of ​​it in Guangzhou.

It is not only large enough to build the world's tallest building, but also to support the construction of dozens of Grade A office buildings around it, creating a business center.

Similarly, there are Shenzhen, Beijing, and Shanghai.

Such a large project is beyond the capacity of Xinghuo Real Estate alone. Chen Fan plans to bring in other companies to participate, and Hu Yingxiang is undoubtedly the most suitable candidate.

He's skilled!
Despite the rapid economic development in mainland China, there is a lack of experience in building high-rise buildings. Hu Yingxiang built Hong Kong's tallest building as early as 1980.

After giving a brief overview of the situation, Chen Fan continued, "Old Hu, with our two companies, plus China Construction and Guangzhou Construction Group, we have enough resources to get this project going."

Hu Yingxiang tapped the table lightly: "Mr. Chen, construction is only one aspect. Have you considered commercial revenue?"

"How much investment is needed for such a large project?"

"Billions, tens of billions!"

"Since it's an investment, we need to consider revenue. We don't want to build it up only to find that we can't sell or rent it out, and it ends up as an empty building."

Upon hearing this, Chen Fan pondered for a moment: "Old Hu, you returned to the mainland in '79, right? So many years have passed, what do you think of the development of the mainland?"

Hu Yingxiang took out cigarettes, offered one to each person, and lit one for himself: "It is precisely because I am optimistic about the mainland that I came back to do infrastructure construction, but now we are building the tallest building, which is taking too big a step."

Chen Fan lit a cigarette: "If we talk about it now, it will take at least a year from project approval to design completion, and several more years to build. That's enough time for the economy to develop."

Hu Yingxiang pondered for a moment, then took another drag of his cigarette: "I'll think about it. This matter needs to be discussed and approved by the board of directors."

"I'll have someone send the documents over later."

After seeing Hu Yingxiang off, Chen Fan and Lao Gu sat down again and chatted about having fun.

"Who was that Mr. Hu just now?"

Following Zeng Ali back to the room, Gong Xue was a little curious, having heard them say that they were going to build the world's tallest building here.

"Hu Yingxiang, a wealthy man and major real estate developer in Hong Kong, built the tallest building in Hong Kong."

Zeng Ali opened her suitcase, took out her clothes, and hung them in the closet: "And the Huaxia Hotel where we are staying now was also built by Hu Yingxiang."

"Chen Fan once said that Hu Yingxiang was a patriotic businessman and one of the earliest Hong Kongers to return to the mainland to invest in infrastructure projects. He invested in many projects."

"Don't be fooled by Chen Fan's disrespectful and somewhat frivolous behavior in front of him. In fact, Chen Fan really admires him. There aren't many people like Hu Yingxiang."

“Chen Fan had previously persuaded him and Sister Ying to invest in the Guangzhou-Shenzhen, Guangzhou-Zhuhai, and Beijing-Tianjin expressways, which are now all open to traffic.”

Upon hearing this, Gong Xue clicked her tongue in astonishment.

I didn't know until I came here. This trip has broadened my horizons. I wonder what Chen Fan does. He invests in highways. How much money must that cost?

However, she only expressed her feelings in a way that was considered sentimental.

Standing by the window, gazing at the distant view, my thoughts drifted across the ocean to my husband and daughter on the other side.

How old is your daughter?
When she returned to China, her daughter was only a month old, and she had just finished her postpartum confinement. If it weren't for the fact that "The Most Beautiful Youth" hadn't finished filming yet, she would have wanted to fly over there long ago.

Having experienced the attacks of rumors and the ups and downs of life, she understands the meaning of life even more clearly, and that nothing is more important than family.

She sighed softly. Zeng Ali understood her melancholy: "Is 'The Most Beautiful Youth' almost finished filming?"

Gong Xue nodded and said, "It will probably take another two months."

Zeng Ali asked, "What are your plans after filming? Do you intend to go to the US or stay in China?"

Gong Xue was stunned; she hadn't considered it.

Staying in China would mean being separated from her husband and children, while going to the United States would mean she wouldn't be able to balance her acting career.

Have you considered bringing the whole family back together?

"Come back?"

Gong Xue pondered for a moment, then smiled bitterly: "Of course I want to come back, but my husband's income in the mainland is still too low."

My husband is a PhD and belongs to the high-income bracket.

As for Gong Xue herself, although she is said to be a top female star in the Chinese entertainment industry, her income is actually not high. For example, her salary for filming "The Most Beautiful Youth" was only 3.6 yuan.

That's considered high.

Many actors receive the same pay as their salaries, which is only a few dozen or a hundred yuan a month.

For a moment, Gong Xue didn't know what to do.

I rested for a night!
The next morning, someone knocked on the door. It was a team of makeup artists from Hong Kong who came specifically to take care of Gong Xue's styling.

Exquisite makeup, luxurious clothes...

After changing into this outfit, even Zeng Ali, who is also a top beauty, was immediately impressed. She truly deserves to be called the number one beauty in the Chinese entertainment industry.

After leaving the hotel, we got into a car and soon arrived at Jingcheng Road, which in the late 1980s was equivalent to Wangfujing in Beijing.

Chinatown Supermarket!
A stage had already been set up at the entrance, attracting a large audience. The event had been promoted for half a month, and Gong Xue was scheduled to attend and perform a song.

Gong Xue is not only a good actress, but also proficient in music and dance. She was a pillar of the performing arts troupe and was not just a pretty face.

Roadshow, ribbon-cutting...

There were not only audience members but also many reporters in the audience. After the whole process was completed, the supermarket opened its doors to welcome the guests, and many audience members rushed in.

Hmm... Grand opening special, there are discounts!

This is the point.

Zeng Ali, arm in arm with Chen Fan, found a spot to watch for a while: "There are quite a lot of people. It seems that there are no problems with Chinatown supermarkets entering the mainland."

"It's a safe bet!"

"So confident?"

"It's not confidence, it's inevitability!"

Chen Fan pointed to the other shops on the street: "Leaving aside the variety of goods, the service alone is far superior to theirs. The service industry in the mainland... it's hard to describe!"

"That's true!" Zeng Ali didn't even bother to complain.

From the beginning of the planned economy, whether it was a department store, a supply and marketing cooperative, or a small restaurant, the service industry was not like the service industry.

The waiters are the bosses!

Holding a secure job, earning a high salary, and ranking among the top eight employees, looking down on customers is the norm for them.

In this environment, ordinary people receive "God-like" treatment when they enter a supermarket, and their shopping experience is completely different.

After watching for a while, the couple picked up Gong Xue and went back to the hotel.

The next day, Gong Xue returned to Beijing, and Chen Fan had already arranged for someone to take her to Saihanba to film a movie.

Chen Fan and his wife also got busy with their own tasks.

Zeng Ali owns a large-scale project in Guangzhou, which integrates materials research and development, textiles, printing and dyeing, and garment manufacturing, with a total investment of several hundred million US dollars.

Previously, it was the three presidents of Lululemon and Zeng Ajing who were in charge. Zeng Ali rarely came over, so this time she came to take a look.

Upon seeing her younger sister, Zeng Ali frowned: "Three more months!"

"Sister, we're already trying our best."

Zeng Ajing looked distressed. Her older sister had given her a strict order: if she didn't get pregnant within six months, she would have to stop working. Three months had already passed.

"That's none of my business. Anyway, if you're not pregnant in three months, go back to Beijing and rest. We'll talk about work when you get pregnant."

"I see!"

Zeng Ajing said sullenly, taking her older sister's arm: "It's not time yet, let's talk about work first, I'll take you around the factory."

Zeng Ali gave a faint "hmm" and said, "Let's go!"

Zeng Ajing touched her nose: "Sister, I'm your own sister, can't we be a little more friendly? People who don't know us might think we're rivals."

Zeng Ali chuckled: "If you weren't my own sister, I wouldn't care about you at all. I'd rather you never get married or have children and be my slave for life."

Zeng Ajing wisely shut her mouth, thinking to herself that he was really imposing in front of her, but in front of her brother-in-law, he was like a little lamb.

Meanwhile, Chen Fan was also busy.

Old Gu drove over personally and helped Chen Fan into the car: "No matter what, we have to go to the company today and give some feedback. Don't act like it has nothing to do with you."

"Don't worry, I'll be staying in Guangzhou for a few days this time."

Chen Fan fastened his seatbelt and touched his nose: "Let's go to the LCD factory first. I need to find out how far our LCD technology has developed."

PS: Second update!
(End of this chapter)