A century-old wealthy family that rose from Shanghai

In late May, the "Oriental Football Team", which had won two "Scott Cup" championships, set off from Shanghai and headed to Manila, Philippines to participate in an invitational tournament.

At present, the Oriental Football Team is a strong team in Shanghai. Since its establishment in 1930, it has won the Scottish Cup Football Championship for two consecutive times (it was suspended for one season due to the January Incident).

Therefore, the current Oriental football team is the No. 1 football team in Asia.

However, the Philippines at that time was a sports powerhouse in Asia and had repeatedly achieved good results in the Far Eastern Games. However, in the field of football, it was always suppressed by China.

Even with the legendary striker Alcantara, whose number of goals in Barcelona's history is second only to the 'later Messi', the Philippines team was still defeated by the Chinese team.

The Philippines will cover all of the team's travel expenses, including food, lodging, and other expenses. This treatment demonstrates the importance of Chinese football in Asia.

As the owner and teammate of the "Oriental Football Team", Chen Guangliang also went to the dock to see them off in person.

The Oriental Football Team has a total of 16 players on this trip, plus the team's general manager Li Chao and a logistics support manager. The Oriental Daily also sent a reporter to accompany the team for interviews, making a total of 19 people.

"Don't be impatient when playing football in this invitational tournament. We are a professional team, and our physical fitness and basic skills are definitely better than those of the opponent. They are playing at home, and if we are impatient, we will give them an opportunity." At the dock, Chen Guangliang was mobilizing all the team members.

Not all members of the Eastern football team were sent on this trip. Several veteran players did not go and were reserved for the 1936 Olympics.

Even so, it is no surprise that the Oriental Football Team will sweep all the Asian teams. After all, in recent years, Chen Guangliang has always advocated the professionalization of football, and the Oriental Football Team has also become a semi-professional team (some players have jobs).

As the team captain, Feng Yunyou immediately responded, "No problem. Attitude is key. That's the home-field advantage. Mr. Chen, the Oriental Daily even sent a reporter along. That's putting some pressure on us, haha!"

The last sentence is obviously relaxing.

Chen Guangliang said, "Don't worry, everyone. The reporters are only there to report the situation as soon as possible. In short, I have confidence in you all."

"Yes, Mr. Chen."

Afterwards, everyone boarded the "Russian Empress" passenger ship of the Canadian Changxing Shipping Company, slowly sailed out of Wusongkou, turned into the East China Sea, and then headed south.

Only then did Chen Guangliang get on the car and return to the office building in the concession.

He invested in a football team and rewrote the history of football in Shanghai.

In the past, people always said that only bored young masters would invest in football teams, such as Cheng Linsheng’s nephew Cheng Yize and Sheng family’s concubine’s son Sheng Shengyi.

It was not until Chen Guangliang invested in the "Oriental Football Team" that everyone realized that this was also possible - although Chen Guangliang provided funds for the Oriental Football Team, he sponsored them in the name of companies, such as Vitasoy, "Oriental Daily" and other brands, and took the opportunity to do some advertising.

Moreover, due to the outstanding performance of the "Oriental Football Team", it has attracted many celebrities to become sponsors.

The Oriental Football Team even has its own "team fund", which initially had 20 yuan. The annual profit from investment thereafter was barely enough to cover the team's huge expenses. The "Oriental Football Fund"'s investments included real estate (rental), mortgages, government bonds and other investments, with impressive results.

For example, the Oriental Football Fund has made considerable profits from its investments in government bonds and benchmark funds. It is expected that the fund will exceed 30 yuan this year, and the principal will increase significantly.

It is through this method that Chen Guangliang can keep the team alive while sponsoring and supporting China's sports.

"Next year, we will continue to invest the principal of the Oriental Football Fund in real estate assets in the hope of generating stable returns."

In the car, Chen Guangliang was already thinking about his next move.

Next year (1934), Shanghai's real estate will experience a big drop, mainly because silver will flow out of China starting from the end of this year, and there is a shortage of money everywhere. Therefore, Shanghai's real estate will plummet next year, and it is estimated that it will fall to the level of 1930.

This wave of real estate fluctuations in the Shanghai market is as follows:
There was a surge from 1927 to 1931;
In 1931-1932, due to the influence of the '918 and 128 Incidents', the land prices in the Chinese areas plummeted, while the land prices in the concessions fell slightly;

From 1932 to 1933, the land prices in the concessions rose again and reached their peak this year (1933).

Then, between next year and the year after (1934-1935), real estate in the concessions would also experience a significant drop. Although Chen Guangliang himself would not buy the dip, his companies, such as Ping An Bank, might. After all, the deposits belonged to the customers and could not be transferred to Hong Kong.

On this day, Chen Guangliang had a small gathering with Du Yuesheng at the Shangri-La Hotel.

During the dinner, Du Yuesheng asked tentatively, "Guangliang, do you have any accurate information on how high the government debt will rise?"

Chen Guangliang smiled and said, "I know Mr. Du always has a lot of money to spend at the end of the year. Why not sell it at the end of this year?"

Du Yuesheng did not care that Chen Guangliang saw his "lack of money". Instead, thanks to Chen Guangliang, his Zhonghui Bank earned nearly a million in profit.

The total investment of China Hui Bank in government bonds this time is 300 million, which is not much. After all, its strength is far less than that of Chen Guangliang's Ping An Bank.

Meanwhile, Du Yuesheng completely withdrew from the lucrative tobacco and gambling businesses in 1932 (the French Concession's general manager had changed, threatening to crack down on them), leading to a sharp decline in income. However, while his income streams narrowed, his spending remained as abundant as ever, and he simply couldn't stop. Consequently, the end of each year was a difficult time for Du Yuesheng. Lacking the funds to pay his various clients, he would sometimes become furious. This year (1933) during the Spring Festival proved to be the coldest winter yet for Du Yuesheng. Legend has it that he approached Zhang Gongquan, president of the Bank of China, to borrow 30 yuan, but was flatly refused.

Of course, this was not true. Quite the contrary, Zhang Gongquan agreed without hesitation.

When other banks heard about the famine in Du County, they all expressed their willingness to lend money. After some discussion, four banks, including the Bank of China and the Communications Bank, jointly provided the capital, with the Du family's real estate as collateral.

The deed was wrapped in a piece of newspaper, sealed with Du's seal, and kept by the Bank of China. Was the newspaper truly the deed? No one had ever opened it to verify. In other words, a stamped newspaper could be used to loan 30 yuan—a fact that Du Yuesheng was most proud of.

In any case, although Du Yuesheng made a lot of money at the beginning, he was also famous for spending money. Not to mention the group of disciples he had to manage, his annual charity donations were also considerable.

Otherwise, why did Du Yuesheng only have 10 US dollars when he went to Hong Kong later?

"Well, I made a lot of money by taking advantage of you this time."

"Mr. Du, you're very polite. You've been helping me a lot."

The interactions between the two were mostly based on interests, but their relationship has always been good, with few conflicts of interest.

Then, Du Yuesheng suddenly said, "Do you know that Gu Zhuxuan has already used his connections to get out of prison!"

After saying that, he looked at Chen Guangliang, trying to find something from his face.

Unfortunately, Chen Guangliang replied calmly, "This is a good thing. Every failure is a learning experience. Mr. Gu will definitely not be so reckless in the future!"

Du Yuesheng couldn't help but admire Chen Guangliang for his courage despite his young age. He was not worried at all that Gu Zhuxuan would seek revenge on Chen Guangliang, the "mastermind", after he was released from prison.

Although it was said that the main reason why Gu Zhuxuan was imprisoned was that his subordinate Wang Xinggao betrayed him, it was the three tycoons who facilitated this.

But the three tycoons, after all, share the same fate, and their power is much larger and more complex. If Gu Zhuxuan were to seek revenge, Chen Guangliang would be easier to do. Of course, Du Yuesheng also understood that Gu Zhuxuan would not dare to seek revenge on Chen Guangliang. After all, Chen Guangliang was now a favorite of the Nanjing government and controlled the "official-business" relationship of the China Merchants Group.

"If you have any problems in the future, you can come to me. I am more suitable to handle this kind of thing!" Du Yuesheng then took the initiative to say.

"Okay, if that's true, I will definitely come to Mr. Du for help!" Chen Guangliang did not refuse.

Even though Du Yuesheng had done him a favor, he would never owe Du Yuesheng a favor.

So every time Du Yuesheng helped him, Chen Guangliang would repay him the favor.

Now that Chen Guangliang is deeply rooted, it is naturally difficult for him to ask Du Yuesheng for help.

After the party with Du Yuesheng, Chen Guangliang worked at the Shangri-La Hotel in the afternoon. Gao Zhichao and Li Xinli reported to him on the situation of the hotel.

Gao Zhichao was the first to report, "Boss, I heard the Paramount will open at the end of the year, operating both a dance hall and a restaurant."

Chen Guangliang asked: "How big will the impact be on us?"

Gao Zhichao replied, "There will be some impact, but our Shangri-La Hotel is not afraid of competition. The Shangri-La Hotel and the Cathay Hotel are our true competitors in Shanghai. Both are top-tier hotels. Of course, the Paramount's main business is ballrooms, so that will definitely have an impact on our first-floor lobby."

The ballroom on the first floor of the Shangri-La Hotel has always been synonymous with elegance, luxury and romance in Shanghai. Even the "poor" Sir Victor Sassoon (owner of the Cathay Hotel) often came to dance.

Of course, Chen Guangliang also understood that the opening of the Paramount would definitely have some impact on the Shangri-La Hotel.

But he quickly came up with a brilliant idea. He said, "A British writer has published a book in London called 'Lost Horizon,' which tells a very touching story centered around Shangri-La. Contact the Oriental Newspaper and have them find someone to translate the book and publish it in Shanghai. This is called a joint venture. The newspaper will get the publishing profits, and our hotel will gain greater publicity."

Gao Zhichao and Li Xinli's eyes lit up. You know, Shangri-La Hotel has been full of cultural and romantic elements since its establishment.

"Okay, I'll contact them as soon as possible."

Afterwards, Li Xinli reported to him the hotel's room occupancy rate, which continued to maintain over 90% this year, making it a very profitable tool.

Guests staying at the Shangri-La Hotel can enjoy the novel afternoon tea, buffet restaurant, western restaurant, bar, dance hall and library. This place is called "Paradise".

Chen Guangliang had such deep feelings for the Shangri-La Hotel that he did not plan to sell his shares in 1941. Instead, he planned to resume the operation of the Shangri-La Hotel as soon as the Anti-Japanese War ended, and then sell his shares in 1946.

Although he sold his shares, he had to ensure that the Shangri-La Hotel continued to operate until the establishment of New China.

a few days later.

News came from the Philippines that the Oriental football team had five wins and one draw in six games, which boosted the morale of Chinese sports enthusiasts.

at the same time.

Gu Zhuxuan walked out of the prison and saw the light of day again. At this moment, his face no longer had the arrogance he had before.

Not only his family came to greet him, but also the leaders of the Jiangbei Gang. A group of people surrounded Gu Zhuxuan and went to the hotel for a banquet.

During the banquet, the leader of the Jiangbei Gang inevitably declared, "Fourth Father, now that you've figured it out, isn't it time to settle some accounts?"

Gu Zhuxuan quickly said, "Stop, there's no score to settle. We in the Jiangbei Gang must keep a low profile and not allow anyone to catch us with anything."

Although he was in prison, he was naturally well aware of the news outside. He knew the "three tycoons" and Chen Guangliang, and he could not afford to offend any of them now.

However, when he thought about the Zhabei real estate incident, his heart was bleeding. If he had received Chen Guangliang's guidance earlier, he would not have lost nearly one million yuan.

At its peak, the value of his land in Zhabei was nearly one million, and including the properties on it, it was nearly two million; but since the "January 200 Incident", the value of land and properties in Zhabei has plummeted, with the lowest land value being only 1927 oceans per acre. His land near the railway station was also worth more than oceans per acre, which was back to .

All this was because during that war, Zhabei’s businesses were almost destroyed and people were generally fearful.

Zhabei saw the sharpest price drop, followed by Hongkou and Jiangwan.

South Shanghai is considered the most expensive and least affected area in the Chinese area.

Another leader complained, "Fourth Father, our Jiangbei Gang is having a tough time right now. The car rental company has been significantly weakened by Chen Guangliang, and morale is low. Most importantly, the rental rates are cheap right now. Tianchan Stage has also been hit hard by Huang Jinrong and his gang, and business is in a slump."

There are so many businesses, but not a single one is good.

It turned out that after Gu Zhuxuan was imprisoned, Chen Guangliang first dismantled the Gu's rickshaw company. He first bought 500 rickshaws and then made them "rent-free" for four years. As a result, the remaining 1000-plus rickshaws of the Gu's rickshaw company also became demoralized due to these reasons. In the end, the unity of the Jiangbei people was restored by reducing the rent.

As a result, Gu's car dealership's profits naturally dropped sharply.

Gu Zhuxuan is not a serious businessman like Chen Guangliang. He also needs to support many fellow villagers and disciples, so the expenses are naturally not small.

At the same time, Huang Jinrong and others continued to poach people from the Tianchan Ballroom, which soon led to the Tianchan stage being poorly managed and having difficulty making money.

As for other teahouses and restaurants, they were not very profitable businesses; in addition, there were some shipping investments, etc.

Gu Zhuxuan said: "Don't be discouraged, business will gradually get better. I came out this time to unite everyone and make money together."

"Okay, with Fourth Father's words, our Jiangbei Gang remains mighty."

"Yes, now that Fourth Dad has come out, our Jiangbei Gang will be more united."

Gu Zhuxuan laughed. Although he didn't dare to compete with Chen Guangliang and the three tycoons anymore and planned to keep a low profile, he still had to continue doing business.

This time, the Gu family suffered heavy losses and their wealth was drastically reduced, but they did not go bankrupt like Huang Chujiu.

Moreover, although Gu Zhuxuan was caught, he still had a powerful fellow villager, so he was not directly dealt with.

He was imprisoned because Chen Guangliang and the three tycoons joined forces to sue him for attempted kidnapping and extortion, which was done according to the formal procedures. Moreover, after being imprisoned, Gu's property was also properly preserved.

Unlike Huang Chujiu, who originally had assets of 4 million (and liabilities of million), his family only received yuan per room for living expenses. (End of this chapter)