Hong Kong variety show: The mastermind behind the scenes is emerging.

"I plan to sell SJM Holdings."

These seven words landed on the table, leaving a dry silence in the meeting room.

The shrill laughter of Lu Qian chasing Coke on the lawn outside the window carried over two floors, creating an unreal contrast with the frozen atmosphere inside.

Bao Chuanwang placed the teacup back on the table, the porcelain bottom striking the sandalwood with a crisp "ding". Li Shutang took off his reading glasses, pressed his index finger and thumb against the sides of his nose, and then turned his gaze back to Huo Daheng.

Lu Chen did not move, maintaining his slightly forward-leaning posture, his fingertips interlaced, calmly looking at the elder, waiting for him to continue.

SJM Holdings, the leading company in Macau's gaming industry, or more accurately, the undisputed economic lifeline of the entire gambling city, monopolizes all legitimate gaming customers in Macau. Its annual gaming tax revenue accounts for nearly half of the Macau government's total fiscal revenue, directly or indirectly supporting the livelihoods of nearly one-third of Macau's population.

Given its size, it's not an exaggeration to say that "Macau is SJM Holdings and SJM Holdings is Macau."

To understand the origins of this business behemoth, we must turn back the clock thirty years.

In 1930, Macau began implementing a gambling monopoly system, with the government issuing only one gambling license, which monopolized the gambling business throughout Macau. Before 1960, this gambling license passed through two hands—Lu Jiu and Fu Laorong.

Among them, the most important is this Mr. Fu.

Fu Laorong obtained the gambling license in 1937 and held it for 24 years. By the time of his death, the Fu family's influence in Macau was deeply entrenched, and they had long been synonymous with the gambling industry. Under normal circumstances, even after the old man passed away, the gambling license should have continued to be in the Fu family's hands.

After all, at that time, the Fu family was one of the four great families, along with the Gao, He, and Luo families. They were deeply rooted and powerful, so no one thought there would be any changes.

But a key figure raised an objection.

A year before Fu Laorong passed away, the Macau government underwent a change of administration, and Ma Jishi became the new governor.

Governor Ma was very dissatisfied with the Fu family's long-term control of the gambling industry—he was not against gambling itself, but rather dissatisfied with the Fu family's management of the gambling business as a family enterprise.

For years, the Portuguese government's gaming tax revenue in Macau has declined rather than increased, and lower-level officials have been almost completely corrupted by the Fu family's money. The economic lifeline of the entire city has been firmly held by a single family.

Governor Ma thought this wouldn't work, so he began preparing for a new bidding process for the gambling license.

The mastermind behind Governor Ma's decision was Fu Laorong's nemesis, "Ghost King Ye" Ye Han.

Yip Hon was a gambling prodigy from a young age, almost always winning. His father disliked his son's gambling addiction, thinking he was doomed. But his father never imagined that this very "waste" would become the foundation for Yip Hon's later success in the gambling world.

When Ye Han was a teenager, he was introduced by his uncle Ye Zuopeng to work as a dealer at the Macau Chengcheng Casino. He quickly rose to fame with his superb dice skills and became the best dealer in Macau.

Later, through an introduction, he joined Fu Laorong's Tai Hing Company and was once highly regarded by the old gambling king. However, in the following years, the two fell out over issues of profit sharing and management rights. In the end, Ye Han left and made several attempts to wrest the gambling license from Fu Laorong, but all ended in failure.

However, with Governor-General Ma taking office, Yip Hon immediately saw a new opportunity. Under his influence, Governor-General Ma successfully lobbied the Portuguese government to issue Decree No. 18267 to prepare for a new bidding process for gambling licenses.

Yip Hon then formed a new consortium to compete for the title.

He first brought in the playboy Yip Tak Lee—a man who, though not a proper professional, was fluent in multiple languages ​​and had a wide circle of friends. Yip Tak Lee then used his Portuguese citizenship and business dealings in Macau as leverage to persuade Yip Hon to let Stanley Ho join his team.

At that time, Stanley Ho was already a successful real estate tycoon in Hong Kong Island. He neither understood nor was interested in gambling. He accepted the invitation at first only to give face to Yip Tak-lee, and also because he was determined to "return home in glory" after being kicked out of Macau years ago.

However, Stanley Ho's entry into the picture made Yip Hon, who was already extremely suspicious, very uneasy. In order to counterbalance Stanley Ho, Yip Hon decided to bring in another powerful Hong Kong tycoon—Fifth.

Huo Daheng, a man from a traditional industrial background, looked down on gambling as a shady business. In his view, gambling was nothing more than emptying one person's pocket and stuffing it into another's, offering no benefit to the country or its people. Therefore, he resolutely refused Yip Hon's initial visit.

After Ye Han repeatedly visited and pleaded with Huo Daheng, Huo finally relented.

He said that if the new consortium does not follow the old path of the Fu family, but instead adopts the Hong Kong Jockey Club model—that is, investing the profits from the gambling industry into charity and municipal construction, and using the gambling industry to do good—he would consider participating.

This suggestion gave Yip Hon a major headache, but it suddenly piqued the interest of Stanley Ho.

Although Stanley Ho knew nothing about the gambling industry, he was knowledgeable about construction. He came from a real estate background and knew how to build buildings, roads, and docks.

In his view, the brilliance of Huo Daheng's plan lay in its transformation of a shady, niche business into a pillar industry crucial to the region's future. This would firmly tie the interests of the new consortium to those of the Macau government and its people, granting them a political advantage far exceeding that of the Fu family.

Governor Ma shared this view. His fundamental reason for opposing the Fu family's continued holding of the license was that he did not want the gambling industry to become a one-man business, but rather hoped to develop it into a public undertaking for the entire city of Macau. Huo Daheng's proposal was exactly what he wanted, and thus he greatly favored it.

Ye Han never expected that Huo Daheng, whom he had invited to balance out Stanley Ho, would actually join forces with Ho. Now he was in a dilemma: if he didn't agree to Huo Daheng's conditions, his plan to take revenge on the Fu family would fall through; if he agreed, he might have worked for nothing.

Just as Yip Hon was hesitating, Stanley Ho offered him an irresistible deal: if he won the gambling license, Yip Hon would have full control of the casino, and he would also receive a share of the shares as a reward. The casino's main profits would be used for charity and infrastructure development, according to Ho's plan, while also taking into account the reasonable interests of all partners.

Ye Han had no choice but to agree.

In early October 1961, the new consortium narrowly defeated the Fu family to win the only gambling license. In March 1962, Macau Tourism and Entertainment Company Limited – abbreviated as "STDM" – was officially established.

The early development of SJM Holdings was not peaceful. The old forces of the Fu family were unwilling to lose their monopoly and organized a number of violent intimidation attacks, even blocking the Hong Kong-Macau air route in an attempt to prevent the new conglomerate from operating normally.

However, with the strong financial backing of tycoon Fok and the tough tactics of gambling king Ho, SJM Holdings managed to gain a foothold and built the landmark Hotel Lisboa in 1970, officially creating a modern gambling empire.

However, as the cake grew larger, the internal cracks inevitably tore it open completely.

Stanley Ho, the general manager in charge of operations, and Yip Hon, who controlled the traditional gambling tables, were fundamentally incompatible in their philosophies. Yip Hon emphasized the unwritten rules and old-fashioned style of the underworld; Stanley Ho advocated modern corporate systems, equity structures, and capital operations.

Later, leveraging his expertise in law and finance, Stanley Ho gradually diluted Yip Hon's shareholding through several rounds of targeted share issuance. Ultimately, Yip Hon became a completely marginalized figure within SJM Holdings. Finally, in 1975, Yip Hon angrily ousted himself, and in 1982, he sold his remaining 10% stake to jewelry tycoon Cheng Yu-tung.

Thus, the structure of SJM Holdings was finalized: Stanley Ho held absolute power and oversaw daily operations; while Fok Tai-hong, as the largest shareholder, nominally participated in decision-making but rarely interfered in specific business matters.

In the years that followed, SJM Holdings continued to expand, eventually becoming a behemoth in Macau. However, during these years of development, the "using gambling to support charity" model initially advocated by Fok Tai-heng unknowingly went astray.

On the surface, SJM Holdings does not seem to have the sole purpose of extracting huge profits through dividends; most of its profits are used for the development of Macau. However, the brilliance of Stanley Ho lies in his perfect integration of the casino's "core business" with his personal "derivative businesses."

Firstly, through his privately held listed company Shun Tak Holdings, which he absolutely controlled, Stanley Ho completely monopolized passenger shipping routes, port management, and hotel and catering services between Hong Kong and Macau. SJM Holdings funded the construction of the port and shops, while Shun Tak Holdings siphoned huge profits off the side. Every year, tens of millions of gamblers would not even step into the casino before their ticket money and hotel fees were already flowing into the Ho family's pockets.

Secondly, there is the more discreet profit-sharing system between the "VIP room" and the "junket operator".

The real exorbitant profits in the gambling industry reside in the VIP rooms. As the general manager, Stanley Ho held the ultimate power to allocate the management rights of the VIP rooms. His wives, children, and confidants directly subscribed to the most lucrative rooms. Massive amounts of anonymous funds were processed and intercepted within the VIP rooms, directly transforming into huge private dividends, and never flowing into the main accounts of SJM Holdings, which were intended for "charity and construction."

Of course, if that were all, Huo Daheng wouldn't be so angry. After all, in business, anything not prohibited by law is permissible. His initial stipulation was that the profits of SJM Holdings couldn't be touched, and even if Stanley Ho made money elsewhere, Huo Daheng would concede defeat.

But the most important issue is that as SJM Holdings continues to grow, Stanley Ho has also developed a covetous attitude towards its profits.

Over the years, SJM Holdings has reportedly made a net profit of over a billion dollars annually, but the actual investment in Macau's infrastructure has consistently been only a little over one hundred million dollars. However, SJM Holdings' internal equity structure and accounts have become extremely complex, making it difficult for outsiders to understand.

Huo Daheng was already aware of these matters. He had raised them several times at board meetings in the past, but each time he was gently brushed off by Stanley Ho with excuses such as "business requires flexibility" and "maximizing shareholder interests."

Their relationship gradually evolved from allies to nominal partners, and eventually into strangers who had to carefully choose their words even when they met in private.

Incompatible philosophies. These four words sound light, but when faced with decades of friendship and billions of dollars in assets, they are enough to make one feel suffocated.

……

"That's roughly the whole story." Huo Daheng finished recounting the old grievances and took a sip of tea.

The tea had long since gone cold. He frowned slightly and slammed the cup back onto the table. His left hand gripped the head of his rosewood cane tightly, his knuckles turning slightly white from the force.

"So, I want to sell it."

A moment of silence fell over everyone, until finally, it was Bao Chuanwang who broke the deadlock.

"Old Huo, it's easy to say, but it's not that simple to do." The shipping magnate's tone was very calm. He glanced at Huo Daheng, "STDM is not an ordinary company. Its shareholding structure has a lot of interconnected clauses. More importantly, the shares you hold are worth at least three or four billion. With such a large price, who would you sell them to? If you sell them to an outsider, Stanley Ho would be the first to stand in the door with a knife—he spent twenty years cleaning up the shareholders, and he would never allow an uncontrollable enemy to sit on his board of directors."

Huo Daheng did not refute, but simply nodded slightly. The shipping magnate was telling the truth. Given Ho's personality, he would rather pay any price to maintain the existing order than see a new face beyond his control sitting on the board of directors.

"What if Stanley Ho were to take over the entire company himself? Leaving aside whether he could come up with billions in cash, even if he could, the Ho family's shareholding would exceed its limit. At that point, the checks and balances of the company's board of directors would fail, and the other minority shareholders wouldn't agree, nor would the Macau government. Don't forget, why did Governor Ma kick out the Fu family? It was because he didn't want the gambling license to become a one-man operation. If Stanley Ho were to accumulate too much shareholding himself, it would be like handing a knife to the government."

"More importantly, with you gone, he'll have no one on the board to stop him anymore—doesn't that completely contradict your original intentions?"

Huo Daheng was silent for a moment, then sighed.

"That's also what I'm worried about."

The old man's left hand rested on the rosewood table, and the age spots on the back of his hand looked particularly glaring in the cold light.

"Money is just a number to me. These billions, whether given to Mr. Bao or Ah Chen, are all family, so the terms are negotiable. But SJM Holdings is too far-reaching. When the contract was signed, Stanley Ho left countless veto rights, originally intended to protect against the Fu family, but unexpectedly..."

His words ended abruptly, but everyone already understood his unspoken meaning.

"..."

Lu Chen remained expressionless, leaning back in his armchair, his long, slender fingers crossed in front of his abdomen, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

After about ten seconds, he leaned forward slightly, breaking the silence.

"Old Huo," Lu Chen said calmly, "actually, I have a way that satisfies both sides."

Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes immediately turned to him.

"Since we can't cash out, then we won't," Lu Chen tapped his finger lightly on the table. "Establish an independently operated 'Henry Fok Charitable Foundation.' Package all the SJM Holdings shares you hold and inject them into the foundation's asset pool free of charge. It will not be listed on the stock exchange, nor will it be traded on the secondary market. The foundation will hold the shares permanently as a legal entity, and the annual gaming dividends it receives will be mandated, according to the articles of association, to be entirely poured into infrastructure, education, and medical charities in mainland China and Macau."

"With the shareholding structure unchanged, SJM Holdings' cash flow remains unaffected; without the introduction of external consortia, Stanley Ho cannot find any fault with it. The shares are nominally still registered under the Fok family, but the beneficiaries have become the entire nation."

Upon hearing this, Huo Daheng's tense back suddenly relaxed, and a glint of light flashed in his cloudy eyes!

"This is good. Ah Chen, this is good."

"In addition, the foundation's board of directors can be composed of multiple parties—your Huo family, the He family, representatives of the Macau government, and trusted third parties—to jointly oversee the flow of funds. However, once the bylaws are established, no one has the right to change the use of the funds. It's an ironclad entity, and no one can touch it."

The shipping magnate slapped his thigh and retorted, "More importantly, as the major shareholder, the foundation has the absolute legal right to send an independent auditing team to SJM Holdings to conduct an audit! If Stanley Ho tries to cheat on the public accounts, he will face the entire foundation and public opinion, and he won't even have an excuse to refuse!"

Li Shutang also smiled and put his reading glasses back on his nose: "Moreover, from a political perspective, the destination of this money is open and transparent. Every year, there are written records of the charitable projects. Its credibility to the outside world is more convincing than any contract."

Faced with the praise from the three bigwigs, Lu Chen smiled faintly and remained silent. This was originally the final plan that Old Master Huo had finalized after going through many hardships in 2002 in his previous life. Now, he was just bringing it out more than ten years ahead of time to break the deadlock.

"Ah Chen, it's always you, your mind is so sharp... But there's still one problem," Huo Daheng leaned back in his chair, his hands resting on the top of his cane, his fingertips lightly tapping the rosewood, "Gambling King Ho won't willingly accept this change in the use of these shares. And—"

He raised his eyes, his gaze lingering on Lu Chen's face for a moment: "He would be even more unwilling to let me send someone to investigate the true accounts of SJM Holdings over the years; that would be worse than taking his life."

Upon hearing this, Lu Chen picked up his teacup and finished the last sip of the half-cooled Pu'er tea.

He then raised his hand, waved it casually, and said in a domineering tone, "It's alright, this isn't a discussion, it's a notification."

He raised his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the three people present, finally settling on Huo Daheng's face.

"If he cooperates obediently, that's fine. But if he doesn't—" Lu Chen sneered, "we won't include him in our games anymore."

"If he doesn't accept it, I won't play with him anymore."

The shipping magnate was slightly taken aback, then burst into laughter!

The four people present were all too aware of the weight of those words. Over the past few years, following Lu Chen's lead, they had amassed enormous profits in the Japanese stock market and the European and American financial markets, with each company receiving hundreds of millions of US dollars in net profit annually.

All of this hinges on one condition: Lu Chen must be willing to play along. Even if Stanley Ho were the most unruly man in the world, he would never dare to sever this powerful leg that brings him hundreds of millions of dollars in net profit every year just for a few bad accounts.

Huo Daheng stared at Lu Chen for a full ten seconds.

Finally, a long-lost, heartfelt smile appeared on the old man's face. He slammed his cane down heavily:

"Good! With your words, I can finally breathe a sigh of relief!"

He let out a long breath, leaned back in his chair, and the furrowed brows relaxed, as if decades of pent-up frustration had vanished. He grabbed the now-cold tea in front of him, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp.

"The tea has gone cold."

"If it gets cold, we'll replace it with hot tea." Lu Chen smiled as he stood up, picked up the teapot, and headed for the door. "The business is settled, elders, please come downstairs for your meal. Ah Mei heard you were coming and specially instructed the kitchen to braise some aged tangerine peel duck."

……

Dinner was served in a small restaurant on the first floor of the manor. It wasn't a formal banquet, but rather a few home-style dishes: tangerine peel duck, steamed grouper, blanched bok choy, a plate of Chaozhou braised dishes, and a pot of slow-cooked soup.

The three senior colleagues were exceptionally warm towards young Lu Qian today.

Bao Chuanwang kept putting food on his plate, while Li Shutang teased him with a stern face, saying that if he was bullied by bad kids at school, he should just tell Uncle Li, and Uncle Li would send the Flying Tigers to arrest him.

Little Lu Qian answered each question in his childish voice, then continued to struggle with the duck leg in his bowl.

As they were finishing their meal, Huo Daheng suddenly put down his chopsticks and turned to Lu Chen.

"Ah Chen, I was so busy talking about business that I forgot a little thing. Last month, my 'Flying Arrow' got a horse in Happy Valley, and the mare for breeding has been decided. The due date is at the end of the year. Once the foal is born and tamed, I'll have someone send it directly to your stable in Double Fish River for Qianzi to ride."

Lu Qian, who was intently gnawing on ribs, looked up, a soy sauce stain on his cheek, and stared wide-eyed: "Grandpa Huo, is it one of those really big horses?"

"It's small, about your height." Huo Daheng rarely smiled, his wrinkles crinkling together. "But it will grow. Once you learn to ride it, it will grow taller than your father."

Lu Qian was silent for about half a second, then turned to look at Lu Chen, his eyes shining brighter than the crystal chandelier in the restaurant: "Daddy! I can have my own horse!"

Ruan Mei gently wiped the sauce off his face, saying, "Learn to tie your own shoelaces first."

"I--"

"What do you mean, 'you'?" Lu Chen stuffed a piece of char siu into his mouth, "Marco won't bend down to tie your shoelaces."

Little Lu Qian puffed out his cheeks and muttered softly, "Horses can't tie shoelaces, but they can kick. When I learn to ride a horse, I'll make it kick Daddy's butt!"

The whole table laughed.

Outside the window, the September wind from Victoria Peak blew through the garden, and the fragrance of magnolia blossoms drifted into the dining room through the open window, mingling with the aroma of braised pork ribs with tangerine peel on the table.

On the lawn, Coke and Sprite were dozing off, with Coke's belly resting on a newly planted magnolia seedling. The old gardener passed by under the eaves, saw this, and simply smiled and shook his head, ultimately not having the heart to disturb its sweet dreams.