My Lord, you need to stand up!

Chapter 910 Only those who don't want to make money can make big money.
It includes almost all of Hong Kong's well-known film, television and music stars!
It took mainland audiences many years to gradually realize that Hong Kong film and television actors didn't earn much money.

We're still used to mainland actors and stars reaping all the benefits of the demographic dividend.

Since the 1980s, actors who have become even slightly famous in mainland China have received far more income and benefits than ordinary people.

They also have various opportunities to go abroad and seek refuge in the free world.

Because of the huge mainland market, the various benefits that slip through the fingers of the entertainment industry are enough to make a small group of celebrities extremely happy.

No, not in Hong Kong. Until the 1980s, even the biggest stars here were just actors in opera troupes.

Except for a very few famous actors who have some status and business acumen to make money, most of them are just doing a job in a public place.

Moreover, she's an actress who's on the same level as a prostitute.

Actors earn their money from making movies and TV shows, which comes from the market provided by Hong Kong's population of a few million.

It's unlikely that there will be any substantial profits.

The gradual opening of the right bank market in the 1970s and 80s was a lucrative opportunity, indirectly propelling the flourishing of Hong Kong films.

Aside from Jackie Chan, only a handful of people, like Chow Yun-fat, have managed to generate box office revenue in Japan and Southeast Asia.

As for profits in mainland China, forget about it.

Even when Chow Yun-fat starred in "The Beach," which became a huge hit in mainland China, he didn't receive a single penny from the mainland.

Those were copyright contracts between television stations. Moreover, in the 1980s, mainland China did not recognize copyright awareness, and even television stations could not collect much money.

Pirated videotapes, completely left unchecked in mainland China, have become rampant and robbed the country of all profits.

Therefore, the "Bai Nian Run Fa" shampoo advertisement can be considered the opening bonus that Hong Kong artists earned in mainland China.

Before this, only the artist who sang "Chinese Heart" earned a little money.

The vast majority of Hong Kong artists can only rely on the local market.

The money they earn is about the same as that of ordinary workers; many extras even have to work two jobs to support their families.

So throughout the Spring Festival, as Qin Yuye triumphantly released the news, Hong Kong actors flocked to sign up.

Of course, this situation is also the result of the success of several films in the past few months, and the unique approach taken by Asia Television.

Even with all sorts of contracts, they tried every means to sign with ATV and Colorful Pictures.

Because Qin Yuye's thinking is quite broad, he's open to all kinds of contracts, including music videos, future film contracts, and advertising endorsement contracts, as long as he can sign them, he'll be eligible to participate in this "fundraising housing" project.

Chi Shih-ming knew it all by heart: "The top TV stars at TVB only get to live in villas on film sets in the suburbs. The ownership doesn't belong to the stars; it's a carrot given to popular actors by the boss. Once they're past their prime, they have to vacate and get out."

The film set was on the way to Clearwater Bay, so he and Jenny were very familiar with each other.

What surprised Wei Dong about the capitalists' ruthlessness was not unexpected: "Well, we're selling ownership cheaply using a collective housing model, so we have to restrict resale for twenty or thirty years?"

The original intention was to keep the residents and neighbors as industry professionals, rather than immediately profiting from resale.

But the supporting staff, in a disguised form, hoarded the high housing prices thirty years later.

Chi Shih-ming also thought this was a good idea: "We're not making money off this star village, but rather driving up land prices in the Sha Tin area. It shouldn't be a problem to hoard some land first, right?"

If Wei Dong himself doesn't get involved in real estate, he can't restrict his generals from doing so.

Chi Shiming is willing to become a live-in son-in-law just to get a seat at the table; forcibly suppressing this fierce determination will only lead to rebellion.

Based on Cheng Lang's description of his future, although Wei Dong still didn't know who this person was, Chi Shiming was indeed the most suitable candidate to drive his own real estate business.

This clearly indicates that they have more funds on hand: "Do they have the funds from the international community?"

Chi Shiming became even more excited: "So far, more than 1,200 units have been moved in, and 200 units were purchased with cash. Including bank mortgage loans, the total amount is now HK$2.5 billion. Many people flew over to look at houses and visit relatives during the Spring Festival!"

This is the special effect of having Wei Dong and Chi Shiming join forces.

On one hand, they have connections and influence in mainland China to secure international community projects for upfront funding and construction; on the other hand, they have the capability to launch and sell these projects in Hong Kong.

Aside from the two of them, practically no one else could do it.

Even his roles as Uncle Tak's son-in-law and the new head of ATV are indispensable. Leung Ka-fai's real estate advertisements certainly served as the finishing touch to his promotional efforts.

That's why so many properties were sold in Shanghai, a market thousands of miles away, a market where people still hold a sense of awe and caution.

It even exceeded the advertised number of several hundred units, and a considerable number of off-plan units were sold.

For a two-million-square-meter international community, that's about one-tenth sold!
The lord couldn't help but raise an eyebrow: "The loan is no problem?"

Chi Shih-ming was very certain: "Although Uncle Tak's bank was sold to Singapore Bank a couple of years ago, its reputation in the industry is still not a problem. In addition, with your financial strength from the acquisition of ATV, there are plenty of banks that can take on such a large mortgage business. Of course, if we can also lend to some local Hong Kong real estate projects, the bank's credit will definitely be even better. This Star Village project came at just the right time."

Wei Dong himself basically doesn't borrow money. From the reminders from his old leader in Shangzhou, to the clashes between Beijing and Shanghai, and even the short videos and internal tax gossip he watched in his previous life, mainland banks haven't left him with a good impression.

He doesn't understand foreign countries, but even if all industries decline, mainland banks will ultimately be the ones making money.

When business is good, they'll scramble to lend money and offer additional benefits; but when funds are in danger, they'll rush to remove any obstacles to ensure they don't suffer losses.

The staff at the tax office have been cursing the banks a lot. They say that if the banks keep cutting corners like this, factories and mines that pay taxes will disappear.

Therefore, he has always been very cautious, and Dong Xueqing has basically avoided lending money, following his advice.

Last year, during the most critical period of ordering container ships, when we were short of funds, we preferred to borrow from Zhenhua Port Machinery rather than borrow money from banks.

It is precisely because of various mortgage loans that they serve as a bridge between banks and consumers.

But the approach in Hong Kong is definitely different.

Qin Yuye, who was listening in with Jenny by his arm, understood perfectly: "If you borrow and repay, it's not hard to borrow again. Frequent borrowing and lending will lead to more good credit relationships and the opportunity to make big profits from small investments."

Wei Dong laughed and scolded her: "I'm telling you, why do those rich families and wealthy celebrities in Hong Kong collapse overnight and owe countless debts? It's because of this gambling mentality of trying to win big with small investments. I would never do that. Ah Ming, you can sort out the paperwork and hand over the house and pay the foreign exchange."

Currently, the Shanghai International Community has several hundred villas and townhouses, a very small number of detached villas completed, and a central commercial and residential building that I mentioned to Brother De has been topped out, with nearly 100 million yuan already advanced.

It was Wei Dong's funds and the money Chi Shiming got from Uncle De through selling himself into servitude that supported them.

Now that they're finally seeing dozens of times their initial investment return, they must be incredibly excited: "Have you handed over all these Hong Kong dollars?"

What pleased Wei Dong most was that Chi Shiming showed no greed or reluctance whatsoever.
"The purpose of building this international community in Shanghai is not only to attract foreign investors and overseas Chinese to invest and live, but also to obtain foreign exchange. All the funds from overseas sales go to them, and they will naturally be converted into RMB and paid to us in Shanghai. So, does this housing payment really belong to us?"

Chi Shiming nodded affirmatively: "You said that the majority of the profits would go to the city, and I have no problem with that. I understand that principle!"

Wei Dong happily hugged him and whispered, "Selling it for two thousand US dollars per square meter, the real estate company in Hong Kong also has to pay taxes and incur various expenses, such as Hui Zai's advertising fees, TV station broadcast costs, and so on. It's all legal and reasonable. Then there are the costs of various supporting facilities and advance payments in Shanghai. At the exchange rate of fourteen thousand US dollars per square meter, we take four thousand, and the other ten thousand is broken down into urban construction fees, greening and landscaping fees, and even land use fees, etc. Anyway, we'll help list some items and submit them to the city to see the reaction?"

If it were a pure Hong Kong businessman, he would probably be jumping up and down, wondering why he had to hand over more than 70% of his wealth.

Chi Shiming, the philanthropist who shuttles between two places, did some quick calculations and said, "Hehe, we've set aside over 700 million, and if we invest it all in the subsequent construction, it will be operational!"

Construction is only about 20-30% complete now, and most of it is still in the early stages; it's still a long way off.

Wei Dong also had his own calculations: "Who should build the roads in this international community? Who should pay for the trees and greenery? We paid for every single tree and blade of grass on the entire international community site. So, after the completion and sale of the houses, all of this is ours? It's impossible for us to operate the traffic lights, the pedestrian crossings, and direct traffic. So, since we've paid this money, shouldn't the city provide the necessary support for these things?"

I used to overhear casual conversations at the tax office about how much the roads, sanitation, public transportation, water and electricity facilities around a housing development cost per square meter, and that the government paid for it.

Therefore, many small places borrowed a lot of money to develop supporting new districts during the era of real estate boom.

When the real estate market collapses, it means that local governments will be heavily indebted.

At that time, there certainly wasn't such a perfect system yet; every step was still in the exploratory stage.

Not to mention this model of building houses in Shanghai and selling them in Hong Kong, it's unlikely to be seen again for another thirty or forty years.

Without hesitation, Chi Shiming said, "Actually, if you calculate it in terms of land price, you'll understand that what we're paying is justified. It's just that the mainland hasn't followed this model yet."

Wei Dongcai reminded him: "When Brother De came to Shanghai to talk to me a few days ago, he mentioned that Pengzhen was auctioning off land. When I came back and asked, it was indeed true. All parties are watching this model where the policy may be changed and land prices may be levied. So we can't just occupy two million square meters of land and let people itch to snatch it up in the next few years."

Chi Shiming admired him greatly: "You are always clear-headed and correct on important matters. I will just follow your advice and won't have any other thoughts."

Wei Dong still needs to keep the two big shots in the real estate industry in check: "Although we've exchanged all the Hong Kong dollars we've earned, if you want to do real estate in Hong Kong, the US dollars here can be exchanged back to you, so don't worry about not having funds in Hong Kong. You can exchange your profits for Hong Kong without any problem."

Chi Shih-ming then eagerly rushed towards Sha Tin Properties.

But Mrs. Chi wants to use Zou Huimin as a real estate spokesperson...

(End of this chapter)