A century-old wealthy family that rose from Shanghai

Chapter 157 Targeting
That night, Du Yuesheng held a grand banquet at the Grand Hotel to celebrate his election as a director of the French Concession Municipal Council, which was the highest position a Chinese could reach in the French Concession.

Chen Guangliang was also invited and went with pleasure.

It's not that he is trying to curry favor with the powerful, but with his current status, he is no longer afraid of gangster tycoons like Du Yuesheng and has a very calm mentality.

"Congratulations, Mr. Du," Chen Guangliang said with a bow as they arrived at the first-floor hall of the banquet.

Du Yuesheng saw Chen Guangliang and said happily, "Guangliang, you're here. I heard that this Dahua Hotel was bought by you and the Ningbo Yan family, so today it's your territory."

Everyone was attracted by his words and looked at Chen Guangliang.

Chen Guangliang said modestly: "The transaction has not been completed yet, and they don't recognize me as their boss!"

Du Yuesheng pointed at Gao Zhichao, the deputy general manager of the Dahua Hotel, who had already come forward, and said with a smile, "Isn't he waiting over there?"

There was laughter all around!
Chen Guangliang gestured to Gao Zhichao, who nodded and smiled quickly.

The Dahua Hotel is about to change its owner, and the managers and staff here are all worried. It is still unknown whether the Dahua Hotel will continue to operate or close down.

Tonight's banquet is held on the first floor of the Dahua Hotel.

The hotel's ground floor lobby was the largest among luxury hotels in Shanghai at the time, covering an area of ​​over 1000 square meters. It could be used for large banquets or as a dance floor, accommodating thousands of celebrities and young men to gather and dance at the same time.

A closer look at the hall reveals Ionic marble columns and a symmetrical elliptical dome, which is intricate and exquisite, a near copy of the Church of St. Andrew in Rome, Italy.

The Majestic Hotel not only boasts a prime location but also boasts a vast lawn surrounding its main building, covering nearly 60 mu (approximately 62 mu in total, including 4 mu of building space). In 1925, the hotel opened an open-air film screening space there, hailed by a contemporary pictorial as "Shanghai's Crown." The Majestic's ballroom also pioneered Shanghai's "sea dance craze" of the era.

Chen Guangliang took a casual look around and felt that he couldn't let it go. He planned to become the general manager and continue to run the restaurant, but he had to consider the details carefully!
"Mr. Gu" After a while, Chen Guangliang took the initiative to greet his 'former boss'.

Gu Zhuxuan immediately smiled and said, "I thought Guangliang no longer recognized me as his friend now that he's rich!"

Today's Chen Guangliang is no longer someone that Gu Zhuxuan can control. Not only is Chen Guangliang now a "real estate tycoon", but also because Chen Guangliang is now the owner of the "Oriental Daily". With this dual identity, Chen Guangliang is a big shot in Shanghai.

To give a simple example, Zhang Jinglu, the editor-in-chief of the Oriental Daily News, could theoretically enter and exit the presidential office of the Nanjing government at will, because the editors-in-chief of Shen Bao and Ta Kung Pao were treated in the same way. (At this time, Shen Bao as a whole was not yet against the commander-in-chief.)

Of course, the styles of Oriental Daily and News Daily are similar, and they adhere to the principle of objective reporting without any party or faction, so Chen Guangliang did not allow Zhang Jinglu to enter and leave the Presidential Palace freely.

"No, Mr. Gu used to take good care of me. Besides, we are old friends. Mr. Gu, you won't blame me for not greeting you first, right?"

"Haha, I was just joking with you, why are you taking it so seriously?"

Afterwards, Gu Zhuxuan did not mention the "real estate commission" at all. You should know that the land in Zhabei has increased from less than 1500 to more than 5000, which is equivalent to an increase of more than 200%.

According to the original agreement, with this level of income, Gu Zhuxuan needs to give Chen Guangliang a commission of 15%, which is about 30,000 to 40,000 yuan in commission, but he only gave him 10,000 yuan.

Of course, if Gu Zhuxuan didn't mention it, Chen Guangliang wouldn't ask.

If he offered to give it to Chen Guangliang, he would later instruct him to sell it in time. After all, the "January 1932 Incident" in turned Zhabei into a ruin and it would never be possible to rebuild it.

That night, celebrities from Shanghai gathered together, and Chen Guangliang also witnessed Du Yuesheng's good popularity.

From the perspective of the government of that era, Du Yuesheng was undoubtedly a "big shot". Even intellectuals like Zhang Taiyan came to congratulate him.

During this period, Chen Guangliang also entered the circle of literati, and everyone chatted and laughed happily.

Zhang Taiyan commented, "Guangliang, is your 'generation' really considered poetry?"

Chen Guangliang smiled and said, "What do you think, Mr. Zhang?"

Whether it counts as a poem or not is up to you to decide, all he cares about is that it has caused a sensation!

After thinking for a moment, Zhang Taiyan said, "It's definitely poetry, but it's definitely a new school!"

Chen Guangliang replied: "Then it is poetry."

If you say it counts, then it counts. Anyway, I am not a professional poet. At most, I can write a few new-age hazy poems, such as "Facing the Sea, Spring Flowers Bloom".

However, it is not appropriate to the situation and it just sounds pretentious when written.

It was also very enjoyable to chat with literati such as Zhang Taiyan. Chen Guangliang is now considered a member of the literary circle. Not only does he own the "Oriental Daily News", he also wrote a poem as his representative work!

There were hundreds of guests that night, including celebrities from Shanghai, making the first-floor hall very lively.

"Boss, I got a piece of news - Jinxing Business Company has been buying up a lot of land on Yuyuan Road recently, and it seems that they are going to compete with us." Guo Deming came to Chen Guangliang's office and told him something.

Yuyuan Road is Chen Guangliang’s base camp, and it is difficult for any move to escape his eyes and ears.

Upon hearing this, Chen Guangliang immediately said, "There's no time to lose. We're launching the second batch of Yuyuan Road villas in late July. Are you fully prepared?"

The second batch of projects have been preparing for sales since early June.

Guo Deming said confidently, "We've already prepared everything and can start selling at any time. As long as we start selling before them, they won't be able to sell any properties in a short time. Besides, the reputation of Jinxing Sales Company is far inferior to that of Changjiang Real Estate."

Although Jinxing Business Company is also a real estate company with assets worth millions, it was previously only famous for "land speculation" and "apartment development (for rent)". Therefore, it is definitely far inferior to Changjiang Real Estate in the "land leasing and construction" and "phased and layered" models.

Chen Guangliang said, "Well, we need to seize the moment and catch them off guard. Oh, and let's hire a few more people to create a sales boom."

Guo Deming was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized and said, "I understand!"

To put it bluntly, it's a "property trust." Based on Chen Guangliang's past experience, property sales tend to get less and less popular each time. The sales of strata units in early May were indeed quite a sensation, but now, just over two and a half months later, he's worried about a cooling of activity.

Therefore, it is necessary for the real estate agent to set off the scene at this time. After all, the on-site situation on the first day must be publicized in newspapers to set off the scenes later on the second day.

After Guo Deming left, Chen Guangliang spread out a map and carefully observed his "real estate empire".

He plans to develop more than 170 acres of land (including the part he built on behalf of others) on both sides of Yuyuan Road, occupying a large proportion of the western and middle sections of Yuyuan Road.

Once all of this land is developed into residential housing, it will become a mid- to high-end residential area in Shanghai. On the eastern section of Yuyuan Road, the Oriental Daily News purchased 2.6 acres of land for just over 5 yuan, intending to incorporate a "newspaper building." The eastern section will also see commercial real estate development, such as the future Paramount, located in this section (near Jing'an Temple).

Chen Guangliang's interests in this area are not limited to this. The eastern section of Yuyuan Road is parallel to and adjacent to Nanjing West Road, and Chen Guangliang also owns 62 acres of land on Nanjing West Road (Dahua Hotel and surrounding land).

He also has 10.2 acres of land on Weihai Road. This land is actually adjacent to Nanjing West Road, but on the other side.

In fact, the western extension of Xiafei Road is not far from Weihai Road, and Chen Guangliang also has 20 acres of land in the western and middle sections of Xiafei Road.

From the map we can see that Chen Guangliang has established a real estate empire in the outer and middle circles of the concession.

On July 7 (Thursday), Changjiang Real Estate took out a large advertisement in the three major newspapers, Oriental Daily, Shenbao, and Xinwenbao:
Well-known real estate company, Changjiang Real Estate Construction, owns 140 villas on Yuyuan Road in the International Settlement;
Can be purchased in layers, with title deeds;
The minimum down payment for each floor is only 1410 yuan, and the minimum monthly payment is 137 yuan for 24 installments;
The house will be delivered within one year, with high quality and reputation guaranteed.

The company has extensive real estate experience and has sold nearly 800 buildings, receiving widespread acclaim.

The sale will start on September 7th at the XXX Changjiang Real Estate Sales Office.

When the news came out, Shanghai's business and real estate circles all took notice, thinking it was another big deal!
At that time, the most famous real estate companies in the Shanghai real estate industry were: Sassoon & Co., Hardoon & Co., and Yip Kuang & Co., but if there was a fourth, it would probably be the prosperous Changjiang Real Estate.

Changjiang Real Estate may still have a gap in asset value compared to the real estate trust department of Siming Bank, but its influence has already surpassed the trust departments of these banks.

The reason is simple. "Big landlords" such as Siming Bank and Yu Qiaqing rented out their properties, while Changjiang Real Estate sold them, and the transaction cost millions of dollars at one time.

Zuo Yi, the king of earthworms, has earned tens of thousands of yuan in commissions and accumulated considerable wealth by taking advantage of the "land fever" on Yuyuan Road in recent years.

He acted as the broker for a large portion of the land transactions on Yuyuan Road, including the recent purchase of land by Jinxing Operation Company.

At this time, Wang Zuoyi was engrossed in looking at the advertisement in the newspaper.

"Changjiang Real Estate promised that sales contracts can be resold. If I buy a house here now, even if I don't have the title deed yet, I can still sell it and make a profit!"

"The land prices on Yuyuan Road are still rising, so theoretically the housing prices will also rise, but Changjiang Real Estate is launching the property at the May price, which clearly shows that there is room for appreciation."

Soon, Wang Zuoyi discovered the trick, but he decided to go to Boss Chen to inquire about the situation.

In fact, Chen Guangliang had already made arrangements for this. The "sales contract" can be resold. Changjiang Real Estate only needs to intervene as a third party to register it. You can sell it as many times as you want in the first twelve months. However, after registering the title deed, you need to pay the balance in full before the sales contract can be implemented. Similarly, if the owner wants to get the title deed, he must first pay off all the balance, otherwise he can only mortgage it to Changjiang Real Estate Company.

Jinxing Business Company.

Yu Boying said to his boss, Sun Chunsheng, "Boss, Changjiang Real Estate sold so many buildings at once, and before us. I'm afraid they're deliberately targeting our real estate activities in this area!"

"I know," Sun Chunsheng said depressedly, "I didn't expect that Changjiang Real Estate still has so much land on Yuyuan Road. I don't know if we can sell it all this time."

Jinxing Business Company has learned the model of Changjiang Real Estate and also learned from the Municipal Council that strata deeds are allowed. It is nothing more than based on the building rights and indicating a fraction of the property rights. It is not illegal in law.

Yu Boying suggested: "We can either advertise the product immediately and compete with them, or wait a month or two to stagger the sales!"

At this point, the two companies have become competitors in this area.

Sun Chunsheng said, "If we put the ad in the newspaper right away, will we have enough time to prepare the sand table and brochure? Besides, competing directly with Changjiang Real Estate is not a wise choice. But if we wait too long, I'm worried that Changjiang Real Estate still has projects on Yuyuan Road. So, let's start sales in a month!"

Yu Boying nodded and said, "Okay, I'll get ready right away!"

Two days later, the sales office of Changjiang Real Estate officially welcomed a large number of home buyers, and many real estate companies also sent people to inquire about the situation.

The "installment and stratification" concept has been around for nearly three months. There are already sporadic followers in the Shanghai market, but they are basically just a few or a dozen villas, and no large-scale real estate developers have yet appeared.

There are two reasons for this:

First, large real estate developers and bank real estate trust departments disdain "installment and stratification". Most of them plan to rent out the houses for a long time. Even if they sell a little, they will sell the whole building.

The second is that people have not yet fully learned and realized what "installment and stratification" means, and the "good days" of those big landlords may be coming to an end.

"Oh my God, there are so many people!" Mao Wenzhi, a partner of the Greater China Rubber Factory who is in his twenties, came to check it out with his family and couldn't help but be surprised.

He originally thought that he would have saved enough money next year. After saving for more than ten years, he would finally be able to buy a house.

As a result, he found that the houses developed by Changjiang Real Estate could be purchased in installments, so he became tempted and thought why not buy them in advance to avoid unnecessary trouble.

The wife immediately said, "That's right! It seems that the houses developed by Changjiang Real Estate are very popular. There must be hundreds of people here, and they all came so early."

"Let's go and have a look"

Soon, Mao Wenzhi got a brochure with a detailed introduction.

"Lane XX, middle section of Yuyuan Road, third floor, 5999 yuan, this is a good floor!" Mao Wenzhi quickly took a fancy to the more expensive apartment.

The land in the middle section of Yuyuan Road is 12 mu, and a total of 30 buildings have been developed, 8 of which are street-facing commercial and residential buildings with larger areas.

This place has a nice name - Spring.

What Mao Wenzhi was interested in was naturally not the street-facing one.

"How about this three-layer No. XX?" Seeing that more and more people came, the wife was worried that she wouldn't be able to buy it.

"Don't be anxious, there is a sand table model inside, we still need to go and take a look at it first!" Mao Wenzhi said calmly.

In fact, fate is like this: in a previous life, Mao Wenzhi spent 10 large yellow croaker gold bars to buy a two-story Western-style house on Shaanxi South Road. At that time, the silver dollar had depreciated significantly (the gold-silver ratio is now 38, and it will be 62 next year). If you buy it now, it will definitely maintain its value.

As more and more people gathered at the sales office of Changjiang Real Estate, with nearly a thousand people gathered, they even had to alarm the nearby police to maintain order.

Of course, all of these were photographed by reporters from Oriental Daily and included in tomorrow's news.

(End of this chapter)