Chapter 374 Landmark and Kinmen

Several rows of luxury cars and Rolls-Royce left the Governor's Residence on Victoria Peak, turned a few corners, and arrived at a European-style mansion on Peak Road.

Three white five-story Bavarian-style villas are arranged in a V-shape, overlooking the Central of Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula across the river. Each villa has an independent indoor outdoor swimming pool and other fitness facilities.

The public area is a small garden with various children's play facilities, swings, tennis courts, etc.

After the Rolls-Royces took turns entering through the gate, they drove into the underground parking lot built in the belly of the mountain and took the elevator directly upstairs to the living room.

Wang Deming, Mr. Bao, Mr. Dong, Mr. Shao and others walked out of the elevator together. Mr. Huo was chatting with Mr. Zhuang Shiping. I don’t know what they were talking about, but they were smiling happily.

Mr. Zhuang Shiping of the Nanyang Commercial Bank was dressed very simply, in an ordinary woolen suit, clean and tidy. He was very tall and thin, with bright eyes without glasses, and his gray hair was combed back, making him look very energetic.

Mr. Zhuang's most amazing move is something that none of Wang Deming and others can do.

Before his death, he donated all his HK$2000 billion fortune to Shantou. He left nothing to his children. His eldest son made a living by driving a taxi in Hong Kong.
Whether it was during the Anti-Japanese War or the reform and opening up in 79, Mr. Zhuang spared no effort to support the country. Moreover, when the Nanyang Commercial Bank opened in 49, it raised the first five-star red flag in Hong Kong.

This is also the reason why neither he nor Mr. Ho were invited by the Governor of Hong Kong because their stance was too firm.

Mr. Huo heard the footsteps of the crowd and turned around to ask, "Oh, you guys are back so soon. What did you talk about at the banquet hosted by Governor Ge today?"

"Grant Grantham will be leaving office and returning to England at the end of this year. Sister Tao, please help us make a few cups of this year's new Longjing tea."

Wang Deming walked towards the sofa in the living room and asked Tao Jie to arrange someone to make tea.

This luxury house on the Peak was bought by Wang Deming in 66, spending tens of millions of Hong Kong dollars. It used to be a consulate, and then Mr. Chen Zhanxiang was asked to help redesign and renovate it. He moved in last year.

"Oh, he wants to avoid any trouble this year and retire peacefully?"

"Of course, they probably want to borrow the names of Mr. Bao and Mr. Dong, the world's shipping kings." Wang Deming turned around and joked to the gentlemen, "Of course, Mr. Chen and Mr. Cao are textile kings, too."

"Haha, you just like to push us old guys to the front." Mr. Bao chuckled and pointed at Wang Deming with his finger: "You secretly make money in the back."

"How could that be? I know nothing about business, so I can only rely on you uncles. Besides, when I was making money from gold and oil, I was thinking of you all. Please come and try this year's new tea."

This house used to be a consulate, so the ceiling of the first floor is very high, at least 6 or 7 meters. Even with the crystal chandelier hanging high on the ceiling and several large sofas in the living room area, it still looks very empty.

"Haha, why do your words sound so familiar to me?" Mr. Yifu followed with a smile.

Mr. Bao joked, “Haha, Shaw, I remember when you came to Hong Kong, you also said you knew nothing about movies!”

"Now it is Shaw Brothers Film Company, and it is working with Li Haohe and Qi Dezun to snatch TVB's wireless photography. It is also unique in the film and television industry."

Mr. Shao waved his hand modestly, "It's all small business, small business."

Suddenly, he thought of something and asked Wang Deming: "Deming, I heard from Qi Dezun that a force has acquired a lot of shares in Hutchison Whampoa. It should be you, right?" Wang Deming raised his eyebrows slightly and asked back: "Haha, how come Qi Dezun has any ideas? In addition to Hutchison, he is also a director of Hong Kong Land and Wheelock. If you have any ideas, you can talk to us."

It was not just Hutchison Whampoa. Wang Deming had also been secretly encroaching on other foreign companies, including Wheelock and Whampoa. However, before the stock market crash in 65, he took the opportunity to sell off the shares and made a fortune. After that, he spent the money to buy buildings and land, and then slowly started to buy shares again.

There is a saying that goes, shoot quietly and don't let anyone enter the village.

What are stocks? If you don’t manipulate the market, stocks are just pieces of paper.

The British played no worse than the mainland in the previous life, and even more lavishly. The Chinese capital in Hong Kong was also not bad. Dividends? What a joke, it doesn't exist.

There are only dozens of stocks, and you can raise funds by splitting stocks whenever you want. As long as you are not the controlling shareholder or chairman of the board, all your money will be trapped.

It’s not that Wang Deming couldn’t use his golden finger to influence them to take over all the shares, but it would affect the whole body, and British capital was still dominant in this era.

The main businesses of Wheelock and Hutchison are currently shipping, which he has no interest in. Moreover, if he makes any bigger moves, there will be a reaction in the UK, and they will arrange for investigations by the Financial Investigation Agency and the CIA, which makes him very annoyed.

I don't know who the people are, and I have to persuade them every time.
So until now, he had only secretly bought the Hutchison Whampoa from Jardine Matheson, and took advantage of the confrontation between Henry Keswick of Jardine Matheson and Niu Bijian, the representative of other shareholders, to become the controlling shareholder of the Hutchison Whampoa in one fell swoop.

He also kept the foreigner Niu Bijian as the boss and as a shield. Of course, Niu Bijian's ability was still good enough, but the key was that he was a black heart.

所以置地在70年花21亿5千800万港纸买下中环新填海53000英尺地皮，正在兴建的52层178米的康乐大厦，英国人还以为是英资的胜利。

Mr. Shao looked at Mr. Bao and Mr. Dong and laughed, "Qi Dezun mainly wants to cooperate with Mr. Bao and Mr. Dong. He has already cooperated with Lin Baixin on bulk carriers and wants to cooperate with Mr. Bao on tankers and with Mr. Dong on container ships."

Mr. Bao did not respond. He sat down and looked around. He turned his head to look at the living room and said, "Deming, you call me uncle, but don't just focus on buying a house on the Peak. Do you have any other similar houses?"

"Prepare a set for us old guys, too."

"Haha, I know that you secretly took control of the Golden Gate Construction Company through the Construction Industry Mutual Aid Association. If you hadn't obtained the construction qualification for the Central Landmark Land Development last year, we old guys wouldn't have known about it. So, you now control those British companies?"

Mr. Bao's tankers are mainly leased to Japanese shipping companies on a long-term basis, and he has no access to Hong Kong ports, so why should we cooperate with him?

Wang Deming continued drinking tea, still smiling but not saying anything.

There are only a few luxury houses on the Peak, and I want to keep them. If they are on Barker Road or Sze Hoon Road in Mid-Levels, there are many more.
Mr. Huo helped to cover for him: "Mr. Bao, you also know that the construction companies under Huo Yip Hing Tong cannot get involved in the British real estate in Hong Kong, so De Ming secretly took control of Jinmen Construction, which also provided a better working environment and salary for the grassroots construction workers in Hong Kong."

"Since De Ming bought Kinmen Construction in 65, it has increased the salaries of frontline construction workers many times. Every year, 5% of the dividends are donated to the mutual aid association to help construction workers with education and medical care, thus alleviating their worries."

"Deming and I have a few plots of land in the mid-mountain area. What do you think? Mr. Bao, Mr. Dong, would you like to get a piece of land and become neighbors?"

　It would be better if I wrote it according to the previous chapter, especially if I want to write about 67, which is very meaningful. But Hong Kong belongs to China.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)