A century-old wealthy family that rose from Shanghai

Chapter 283 The Beginning of 1934

The Paramount Film Studios in December attracted many people to check in, which had some impact on the Shangri-La Hotel on the same street.

This forced Chen Guangliang to put aside his status. He brought Yan Renmei with him and made an appointment with Zhuang Zhujiu and Sheng Qi and their wife to go to the Paramount Ballroom together.

It happened that the founder of Paramount, Gu Lianzhang, was also there. When he saw the four people, he immediately greeted them with a smile.

"Mr. Chen, you are a rare guest!"

Chen Guangliang said generously: "I can't say I'm a rare visitor. The Paramount has been open for less than a month and I'm here!"

Gu Lianzhang smiled and said, "That's fine. How about I take you and Madam Chen around first? You're an expert, so you can give me some advice if you have any!"

Chen Guangliang nodded and said, "Please."

There was no such thing as inquiring about information. Chen Guangliang also went to the Cathay Hotel, and Victor also came to the Shangri-La Hotel. Everyone was supporting each other, but they were also observing the strengths of their opponents.

Gu Lianzhang introduced the Paramount to everyone.

"Our ballroom at the Paramount is divided into two floors and can accommodate hundreds of people. The first floor is paved with a spring floor specially designed for dancing, while the upper floor is a 'crystal floor' made of glass and lit by light bulbs."

"Although the ballroom isn't as large as the Shangri-La's, the designer's philosophy was that if it were too large, it would fill up during holidays or banquets, while the smaller number of guests on weekdays would feel desolate and lonely amidst the vast expanse. The original Majestic Hotel is a prime example: on weekday evenings, when the number of guests was small, it felt like entering an ancient palace, diminishing the joy."

According to statistics, the number of guests in the dance hall every Saturday night often increased by more than five times compared to weekday nights.

Gu Lianzhang's use of the "Dahua Hotel" as an example is obviously a bit "impolite". Everyone knows that the former Dahua Hotel was the predecessor of the Shangri-La Hotel.

Of course, this is the designer’s idea, and it is not wrong. It turns out that the Dahua Hotel is indeed like this.

But after the Shangri-La Hotel was renovated, the first thing they did was use screens to partition the room and reduce the area of ​​the dance floor; secondly, the number of customers doubled, and there were many people attending banquets on weekdays.

Chen Guangliang responded, "The designer's concept is correct. If the Paramount's dance floor is designed to accommodate more than a thousand people, that would be unprofessional."

Gu Lianzhang choked, it was obvious that there was something else behind these words, the implication being - what can the Paramount Hotel compare with the Shangri-La Hotel? You have a dance floor designed to accommodate more than a thousand people, so where will the guests for the banquet come from?

The current dance floor at the Shangri-La Hotel can easily accommodate 600 to 800 people, though it can accommodate to people with screens. (The previous Dahua Hotel could accommodate more than people at most.)
Sheng Qi and Yan Renmei were laughing on the side, and it was obvious that they both heard the hidden meaning in Chen Guangliang's words.

In fact, the people here are all "relatives". Chen Guangliang married the daughter of Yan family, Yan Zhiduo married the daughter of Liu family, the richest man in Nanxun, and the Gu family of Nanxun also married the daughter of Liu family. Sheng Qi's fifth sister married the daughter of Gu family.
Of course, there is no family affection in business wars, not even between fathers and sons, or brothers.

Above the third floor are restaurants and hotels. The Paramount is also designed to combine a ballroom, restaurant, and hotel into one, which is actually similar to the original Majestic Hotel.

In this type of design, the most prominent one is the dance hall, followed by the restaurant, and finally the hotel or inn.

Today's Shangri-La is different. It has added an eight-story hotel building, which can provide 168 rooms or suites. The original four-story building now has dining on all four floors, and the dining options are extremely diverse, including lobby, private rooms, buffet, Western food, bar, tea restaurant, etc.

As for the Shangri-La ballroom, it has always been the best, most elegant and most cultural ballroom in Shanghai.

"Thank you Mr. Gu for introducing me today. I have learned a lot."

Gu Liancheng was feeling quite proud at this point, and he couldn't help but ask, "Mr. Chen, why don't you give us some pointers and let us, the younger generation, listen to your professional opinions!"

Chen Guangliang said bluntly: "I'm worried that Mr. Gu doesn't like to hear the truth!"

Gu Liancheng's face flushed immediately, and he said, "Then don't say it."

But he felt that this was not graceful, so he said, "Please teach me."

Chen Guangliang said: "There is nothing wrong with Paramount"

Everyone was shocked, Gu Liancheng was even more powerful.

But Chen Guangliang said: "But it is difficult to make a profit"

Everyone almost fell down.

Gu Liancheng blushed again and said, "Why do you say that, Mr. Chen?"

Chen Guangliang said, "Of the three, accommodation, restaurants, and ballroom, accommodation is the most profitable, followed by restaurants, and the ballroom last. From my observation of the Paramount's design, the emphasis is on the ballroom. I'm not sure if the restaurant will excel, and the accommodation only has a few guest rooms. So no matter how good the ballroom business is, it will only bring you some credit."

Losing money to promote the business.

In the past, the Dahua Hotel went bankrupt, and the Paramount Hotel closed down after only three or four years of operation.

Now that the Shangri-La Hotel is here, it will be difficult for the Paramount to survive for three years.

Gu Lianzhang could only say: "The Paramount is a dance hall. If it can be successful, I will ask someone to take you there to have fun!"

Afterwards, he arranged for a manager to entertain the four people, while he himself hid himself.

The four of them first went to the restaurant to eat.

A bottle of champagne costs 16 yuan, a steak costs 1 yuan, and a cup of tea costs 0.5 yuan. (A cup of tea can buy 9 kilograms of flour)
Calculated this way, the consumption is indeed high.

But compared with Shangri-La, Paramount has too few ways to make money.

At the Shangri-La Hotel, a guest may spend 8 to 20 yuan a day to stay, and he or she may also eat in the restaurant. Because the Shangri-La Hotel includes food, drink and entertainment, many guests call it a "den of money-spending"; and many people are reluctant to leave once they sit down, and may stay for a week or a month at a time.

The four of them had a Western meal.

Sheng Qi immediately said, "Looking at it this way, I totally prefer the Shangri-La Hotel. It's true! The Shangri-La Hotel is bigger, more comprehensive, more luxurious, and more cultural."

How about culture?
For example, the song "Rose Rose I Love You" was originally performed by Gong Qiuxia, but only at the Shangri-La Hotel. Li Jinhui, who wrote the lyrics and music, also said that the song was inspired by the Shangri-La Hotel, but he did not mention purchasing the music and lyrics.

Chen Guangliang cut the steak into pieces and then exchanged the plate with Yan Renmei's. This scene was naturally seen by Zhuang Zhujiu and Sheng Qi.

Sheng Qi put down his knife and fork directly, the meaning was self-evident.

Zhuang Zhujiu quickly sped up.

Seeing this scene, Yan Renmei smiled secretly.

Sheng Qi glanced at his goddaughter and said, "Still laughing! Honest people have their advantages!"

Chen Guangliang immediately looked at Sheng Qi with dissatisfaction, bringing up something that was irrelevant to the topic.

Sheng Qi knew he was in the wrong and quickly turned away from Chen Guangliang.

Yan Renmei spoke up for Chen Guangliang and said, "Godmother, we each have our own preferences!"

Sheng Qi nodded. To be honest, even if Chen Guangliang had that incident, she couldn't be angry with him. Of course, the premise is that Renmei can accept it, and she will still treat Chen Guangliang as a friend.

Zhuang Zhujiu exchanged the cut steak with Sheng Qi.

Sheng Qi is already six months pregnant, and the two are obviously in a good relationship.

To be honest, although Sheng Qi and Song Ziwen had a passionate relationship, Sheng Qi would never let Zhuang Zhujiu down. Even Song Ziwen meeting Sheng Qi was impossible; Sheng Qi wouldn't let him see her.

Then everyone started talking about business.

Chen Guangliang first said, "The design of the Paramount's ballroom is quite good. It can attract people who like dancing. Do you think it would be better if the Shangri-La Hotel also had dancers?"

Yan Renmei instinctively thought about it for a moment, then said, "Will it lower the quality?"

Being a dancer is not a respectable job after all.

Chen Guangliang said: "If the dancers we recruit have a certain level of education and are very formal, we can cultivate intelligent, generous and high-end dancers. The fees can be high, but the number does not need to be too large. In this way, the Shangri-La Hotel's ballroom can still maintain its cultural and elegant identity."

Zhuang Zhujiu said at this time: "It's actually possible. After all, there are always people who don't bring a dance partner. Proper improvements will not affect the overall layout of the Shangri-La Hotel."

Everyone was discussing business, so naturally, the topic was serious. Sheng Qi lowered his voice and asked, "Do you want the Paramount to close down sooner?"

Fortunately, I didn’t invest in Paramount at the beginning, otherwise I would have lost it all without knowing it.

Now they have invested 40 yuan in Times Pictures and have already recovered 30 yuan; and the stocks they hold are still worth more than 50 yuan (currently 180 yuan per share, and there are still 3000 shares left).

Chen Guangliang said with a smile: "Business is like a battlefield. As long as it is not illegal or immoral, I naturally hope that the Paramount will go bankrupt soon."

Of course, this is just talk. Real business wars are still quite low-class.

Chen Guangliang's visit to the Paramount this time was to prepare to attack the Paramount's strongest part - the dance hall; the Shangri-La Hotel was recruiting "talented women" to be dancers, and they might even be required to know some English (training is available).

Of course, this is not enough. Chen Guangliang plans to use the song "Night Shanghai" as the signature song of Shangri-La Hotel next year.

It’s a new year again (1934).

On New Year's Day, the Chen and Yang families celebrated the festival at the Shangri-La Hotel.

Although Chen Guangliang has become rich over the years, he has never forgotten the kindness of his second uncle in taking him in. Therefore, he regards his second uncle's family as relatives and has been cultivating his cousins.

Of course, it now seems that the two families are destined to be one - after all, his own brother Chen Guangcong is going to marry his cousin Yang Xiuying.

In fact, Chen Guangliang felt a little awkward. In the past, Yang Xiuying served him attentively, but now Yang Xiuying was going to marry his own brother. Of course, Chen Guangliang definitely had never touched Yang Xiuying.

In the private room, Chen Guangliang looked at Yang Xiaohu and said with a smile, "You are already 16 years old, and you have grown a lot taller!"

When my second aunt heard this, she immediately said, "It's just that you started studying late, otherwise you could have done something!"

There is something else behind her words. When she said 'you started studying late', she was covering up the fact that Yang Xiaohu didn't like studying very much; and 'you can go out and do something', she was reminding you, the cousin, not to forget your younger cousin.

Chen Guangliang naturally understood his second aunt's character and said with a smile, "In two and a half years, Xiaohu should be able to go out and work!"

Yang Xiaohu started studying in 1928 and studied for six years before he skipped a grade. So in another two and a half years, he would have graduated from junior high school.

But there is no problem in coming out to work for him. Chen Guangliang has many companies, so there will always be a place for him.

In this day and age, it is quite normal for relatives to join a business. Take the Rong family business for example. It is said that there are hundreds of relatives and friends working in major textile and flour mills, most of whom are in management positions. It is a typical real family business.

Chen Guangliang is a person who pays more attention to ability. Although many people from his hometown of Ningbo have come to him, most of them first have to pull carts or work as workers, and then get promoted based on their real abilities. There is almost no one among them who is even a middle-level cadre.

However, it is different for a biological brother. To Chen Guangliang, Chen Guangcong is no different from a son, which also proves the saying that the eldest brother is like a father.

"Then Guangliang, what do you think Xiaohu should do?" Second aunt said in an 'inflated' manner.

Yang Qingshan immediately said: "Of course it would be better to pull a cart or work in a factory first."

After saying that, he looked at his wife with dissatisfaction, as if to say - do you think this nephew is an ordinary person? He can't tolerate any grain of sand in his eyes.

Back then, he and his daughter worked for their nephew, and the highest he could do was an ordinary salesperson. Later, they simply let him take care of them in their old age, and it was okay for them to support him directly.

Chen Guangliang said at this time: "After all, I have studied for so many years, so I still have some advantages over others."

The second aunt had already lost her temper, but she suddenly became happy when she heard this and said, "Thanks to your cousin for training me, otherwise I would really have to rely on my physical strength to make a living." Turning to her son, she said, "Did you hear that? Study hard in the future. Your cousin is a cultured man, and he likes his subordinates who are also cultured."

Yang Xiaohu said with a stiff upper lip: "Yes"

He doesn't like reading, but he is most afraid of his eldest cousin.

The one he was least afraid of was his second cousin, because he was about to become his brother-in-law, but unfortunately his second cousin was also under someone's control.

Of course, what Yang Xiaohu most desired was not to study, but to get rich and do business.

That night, we talked about many things.

In September of this year (1934), Chen Guangcong and Yang Xiuying held their wedding at the Shangri-La Hotel. After their marriage, they moved to the villa in the middle section of Yuyuan Road.

Of course, the villa in the middle section of Yuyuan Road was just the house Chen Guangliang gave them in Shanghai.

In fact, after the two get married, they will go to Hong Kong.

Chen Guangcong is going to join Global Shipping's shipping company in Hong Kong (two second-hand ships of 5000 tons), and Yang Xiuying will naturally follow suit.

Return home in the evening.

Chen Guangliang went upstairs happily. The room was water-heated (heat was transferred by a boiler).

Yan Renmei changed into a cheongsam and cotton stockings, put on a coat, and came to Chen Guangliang.

"You seem very happy today. Is it because Guangcong is able to come out and work?"

Chen Guangliang stepped forward, put his arms around her slender waist, and greedily sniffed the fragrance on her body. His obsession with Yan Renmei had not diminished at all, and his feelings for her were still as strong as his first love.

"There's this reason! After Guangcong and Xiuying went to Hong Kong, we had someone we trusted go there first. From now on, we can go directly to Hong Kong without any interruption."

Yan Renmei asked curiously, "The concessions are similar to Hong Kong. If you are really worried about Japan's full-scale invasion of China, then what is the difference between the concessions and Hong Kong?"

Indeed, in the past, Hong Kong and the concessions fell in the second half of 1941.

Chen Guangliang said, "Of course it's different. The Japanese are becoming more powerful in the concessions now. The Municipal Council and the Municipal Council both have several Japanese directors. If Shanghai were to fall in the future, if I stayed in the concessions, there would only be two possibilities: I would become a traitor and be assassinated by the Nanjing spies; or I would refuse to become a traitor and be dealt with by the Japanese."

Yan Renmei suddenly understood. After all, her husband had such a great influence that if he stayed in the concession, he would only become the target of competition or attack from all parties.

“Then Hong Kong will be safe?”

"Not really. This world is not peaceful, and there is no safe place. That's why I've arranged so many shelters. Mountain City, Hong Kong, and Macau could all be our options."

Yan Renmei still admires her husband in her heart, as he always thinks long-term when doing things.

However, she deliberately said, "No, there's also the United States. You've arranged for them to go there. Are you thinking of going there for refuge someday so you can reunite with them?"

After the "bottom line" of not allowing Chen Guangliang to take a concubine was established, Yan Renmei relaxed a little on Chen Guangliang's affairs outside. She also knew that if she pushed too hard, she would suffer.

Chen Guangliang immediately said, "Don't think too much. I will stay by your side for the rest of my life, and of course, our children as well."

Not to mention Yan Renmei and her children, even Chen Guangliang could not escape the war of resistance and keep himself out of trouble.

Although Chen Guangliang knew that if his family went to live in the United States, the most he would have to do was put a sticker saying "I am Chinese, not Japanese" on his back when he went out, although it was very troublesome, at least his safety was guaranteed.

However, the war of resistance is everyone's responsibility, and businessmen have the responsibility of businessmen. Chen Guangliang will also participate in the war of resistance, but only as a businessman. For example, industrial production in the rear, transportation with overseas, etc., are all things he can do.

"Brother Liang, you are not allowed to look for other women anymore. I'm afraid there won't be enough for me!"

Yan Renmei's tone was gentle, but revealed persistence.

She admitted that this man was too outstanding, so she had such concerns.

"Absolutely not, I swear."

"No, don't swear nonsense, I believe you!"

After this incident, Chen Guangliang has learned enough lessons. If he wants a stable family, he should stop having affairs.

A stable family environment is also the basis for Chen Guangliang to build a "century-old wealthy family".

(End of this chapter)