The birth of the Hong Kong Island family

Jardine Matheson, Taipan Office.

"Henry, what does the Hong Kong government say?" John Keswick asked seriously.

There is Jardine first, and then there is Hong Kong. This is a proverb in Hong Kong.

Therefore, Jardine Matheson has many contacts within the Hong Kong government, and even some officials were originally from the management of Jardine.

"There are many things involved, so there is no exact information. But it is said that the ownership of the Navy Yard has already been owned, and it will not choose to cancel the bidding."

John Keswick suddenly frowned. No matter who gets the Navy Dockyard, its strength in Hong Kong Central is already close to that of Hong Kong Land. Of course, it is only close. After all, Land's properties are located in the heart of Central. The location of Admiralty is still inferior. a little.

However, if Cheung Kong Holdings acquires this land, then Landmark will lose its title as the number one real estate company in Hong Kong. This is what John Keswick does not want to see.

"Hmph, Hong Kong's real estate is so sluggish, and it is too close to the mainland, the risk is very high! If the Chinese really gets it, he is putting all his eggs in one bet."

The Keswick family is still skeptical about the prospects of Hong Kong's real estate. Otherwise, the large number of high-quality land owned by Hongkong Land will be rebuilt.

Henry Keswick said: "Indeed! Not every time will be so lucky!"

In the end, the father and son could only let go of the matter and wait for the Hong Kong government to announce the result. Because Henry Keswick had been to the Hong Kong government for activities, he found that this matter was of great importance, and Jardine could not intervene.

July 28th.

The Hong Kong government officially announced through the media that Cheung Kong has won the bid for the site of the old naval dockyard at a price of 165 million Hong Kong dollars.

When the news came to light, Hong Kong and Kowloon were shocked.

This is the largest real estate development project in Hong Kong so far, and it is also the largest single site price in Hong Kong.

For a time, stimulated by this, Hong Kong's real estate industry has a stable and upward trend in an instant.

In Cheung Kong's office, Lin Zhichao immediately calmed down after learning that he had won the bid.

This land is in the planning period for the last three to five years, so construction will not be stopped for a while, and the Hong Kong government has not requested it. The entire project is expected to be completed by the end of the 1970s. Of course, it is expected to be divided into three phases of construction, with a total construction period of about 15 years.

take it easy!

As for the impact on Hong Kong real estate, Lin Zhichao believes that the impact will not be particularly large. Even if it stabilizes this year, when the mainland movement starts next year, everyone will have to invest cautiously; by the year after that, it goes without saying that a sharp decline is certain.

What Lin Zhichao changed was only the small trend, while the big trend was affected by political events and international events and was irreversible. Because Hong Kong is too small, it is not only heavily influenced by the mainland, but also affected by international trends. For example, interest rate hikes and cuts in the United States, oil crises, and war in the Middle East will all affect Hong Kong's economy.

The five giants of Cheung Kong Industries came to Lin Zhichao's office.

"Let's have a simple meeting at the conference table!" Lin Zhichao stood up and sat down at the conference table.

Everyone was very excited. After acquiring this piece of land, Yangtze River Industrial's influence has greatly increased, and they have naturally risen with the tide.

Later, Lin Zhichao said: "We do not have the ability to develop this land in a short time, so the last 3 to 4 years will be the planning period, which mainly involves communication with the design drawings and the Hong Kong government. Generally speaking, there is no need to rush. The first is funding. The second reason is that Hong Kong’s economy cannot keep up.”

Everyone nodded and calmed down. Such a large area requires huge funds. And the real estate industry is so sluggish now that rents in Central have dropped a lot.

Huang Changhong said: "Fortunately, the Hong Kong government does not stipulate a development cycle, so it is completely possible to plan for 3 to 4 years, and then divide this place into several phases of construction and develop it in phases."

Lin Zhichao said: "Yes, I think so too, but before that, I would like to communicate with you about the future layout of Yangtze River Industrial."

Everyone pricked up their ears and listened carefully, because Cheung Kong Holdings is too huge.

Lin Zhichao said: "After this real estate slump is over, I will reorganize the real estate industry. The first is to establish a future listed company-Cheung Kong Industrial Group. In the future, you will all be the senior executives and directors of this company, which is the company reorganized by Yangtze River Industrial. This The company's assets will only be about a dozen development properties, Miramar Hotel and Shopping Center, Poly Construction, and Anderson Daya. The reserve land and buildings will not be listed assets, including the land acquired this time. Listed assets. Unlisted assets will belong to my family real estate company, which is the restructuring of Changjiang Real Estate."

Everyone nodded secretly after hearing this. The boss was hiding his assets by doing this, which was very necessary. At the same time, these listed assets are scary enough. Even if they are not as good as real estate, they are not much worse.

Lin Zhichao continued: "After going public, I can use fundraising and other methods to slowly purchase my reserved land and participate in the development of cooperative naval docks. In short, this listed company will be one of the cores of my career, and I will develop my energy in the future." It’s all on top of it. You are all considered young, the oldest is only 50 years old, and you can still work for more than ten years. You will see companies listed and grow. Of course, I will also use listed companies to give you large stock bonuses. To ensure that you can achieve true financial freedom after retirement."

Everyone's blood boiled when they heard this. They all now have a net worth of more than one million. If they go out to work alone, they can all become the bosses of small real estate companies. But they know that real estate is too dangerous.

Take Lu Xiaopei as an example. After going out to start a business for a year, he encountered a real estate slump and troubles began to ensue. Although it was not fatal, it was also very helpless.

"Thanks to the boss for his cultivation, we must do a good job!" Everyone expressed their opinions one after another.

Lin Zhichao nodded and finally said: "There are no new real estate projects in Hong Kong for the time being, but I am going to Xingdao for inspection recently, so everyone must be prepared, there are also new projects there!"

Everyone was immediately encouraged. Although Cheung Kong's cash flow was less than 100 million Hong Kong dollars, it had no debt after all; and they knew that the boss also had two large companies, so he could always find funding channels.

Huang Changhong said: "Although rents will have a certain impact this year, fortunately, the income from retail properties is relatively stable. In addition, some people have signed three-year contracts, so the overall rental income will not be less than HK$30 million, which is very stable. Funds are coming in. The investment in Xingdao must also be very sufficient."

Last year, the rental income reached 35 million Hong Kong dollars, which has dropped a lot this year, but it is still more than 30 million. As for other Chinese-funded real estate companies in Hong Kong, there is no one with an annual profit of 10 million.

"I'll take care of the funds. Anyway, there won't be any shortage! Before it goes public, I can embezzle it from other companies."

"OK"

Time flies, and more than twenty days pass in the blink of an eye.

Lin Zhichao and Tang Caiyun brought their son Lin Ruihuan to Harvard University in Boston to register.

Walking into the Harvard campus, there are no high-rise buildings here, and many of the buildings are low-rise European-style buildings. If such a well-known university does not have high-rise buildings, it must have a very large area, so Harvard covers an area of ​​4,800 acres. Almost 30,000 acres.

The annual tuition fee of Harvard University is more than 2,000 US dollars. An ordinary family in Hong Kong has to earn several years, but scholarships and loans are provided. Of course, these are not problems for Lin Ruihuan.

For Lin Zhichao, as long as Lin Ruihuan did not enter the Harvard campus through the back door, he would not ask for anything else, even if he got a scholarship or not, it didn't matter.

Tuition fees and living expenses are not a penny less than Shaolin Ruihuan's; but in terms of standards, Lin Ruihuan's living expenses are probably at the level of a moderately wealthy family, not low, but not very high either.

Enjoy campus life to the fullest and don't spend your energy on money. For this reason, Lin Zhichao deliberately did not buy property or cars in Boston. When he and Tang Caiyun came, they both needed to stay in a hotel and take a taxi.

Harvard University officially started school on September 5, but Lin Ruihuan moved into the dormitory on August 23. His dormitory is a triple room. It matches the treatment of freshmen. In fact, you can enjoy single and double rooms, but the price is higher. But obviously, Lin Zhichao will not do that. What he wants is that Lin Ruihuan has communication skills.

"Hello"

"Hello"

I happened to meet my roommates and their parents in the dormitory, and everyone greeted me in a friendly way. The other party is white, which is a good thing for Lin Zhichao. It means that there is at least one white classmate in this dormitory, and it doesn't matter even if the remaining one is black.

After briefly communicating with the other party's parents, the other party was probably an American white-collar worker. After hearing that Lin Zhichao was a Hong Kong businessman, the other party also felt very good.

"Your son Lin Ruihuan doesn't look 18 years old, right?" Pete, the male patriarch of the other party, asked curiously.

"I just turned 16 this year!" Lin Zhichao answered truthfully.

"OH, then he must be a genius!" Pete said exaggeratedly.

Lin Zhichao said with a smile: "No, he just studied early and is an ordinary person. I am worried about whether he will adapt to a powerful university like Harvard University."

It is not wrong to say that Lin Ruihuan is a genius. His learning ability is indeed very good, and he has inherited the advantages of Lin Zhichao's secondary development.

But of course you can't show off this point, geniuses will have no friends. Lin Zhichao also said the same to Lin Ruihuan, asking him not to stand out too much, and of course not to be too low-key.

"It must be possible. Look, the two of them have become friends!"

The first roommate was good and very reliable. For a short time, Lin Zhichao was also observing everything.

After all, it would be very troublesome for Lin Ruihuan to be a very discriminatory student, and it might not even be something he could handle well at his age. It's nice to have a roommate these days, and the other one doesn't have much of an impact anyway.

Later, Lin Zhichao used his camera to record the dormitory where his son went to college, took a few photos, and then went to visit Harvard University.

Lin Ruihuan's dormitory is adjacent to Harvard Square, across the street from the Harvard Bookstore and the Harvard Smith Campus Center. This center not only serves as a visitor center for Harvard, but also provides a tranquil place for students to study. And it only takes 2-5 minutes to walk from their dormitory building to the classroom and the Weeden Memorial Library.

There are several study rooms in this library, which are very quiet, as if you can hear the sound of a needle falling, making it an excellent place for studying. Moreover, the library also houses a Gutenberg Bible, which was printed between 1454 and 1456 and was the pioneer of European movable type printing.

Across the Harvard campus is Annenberg Hall, where freshmen dine. The decoration of this hall is extremely ornate, perhaps reminiscent of a scene in Harry Potter. Lin Zhichao is full of expectations for his son's next four years at Harvard, and hopes that he can fully enjoy every moment here!

While dining in the Anneberg Hall, Lin Zhichao said to Lin Ruihuan: "To be honest, I envy you at this moment because you can enjoy 4 years in such an institution of higher learning."

Lin Ruihuan saw that his father was so serious and said, "If Dad had money to study, he would be much better than me!"

Lin Zhichao smiled and said: "If your father had money to study, his fate would be different and he might live in the mainland. So people should not regret the past, the important thing is to cherish the present."

Lin Ruihuan immediately understood what his father said and said seriously: "I will cherish these four years of college, study and make friends."

Lin Zhichao nodded with satisfaction and said with satisfaction: "I believe you!"

There is no need to talk too much because there is a school to teach him. Lin Ruihuan studied at Harvard for four years and graduated at the age of 20. After that, it was his choice whether to study for a master's degree or work in the United States for two years.

Studying for a master's degree is to improve one's abilities, not just because the diploma looks good. Moreover, he is two or three years younger than his classmates, so he can use this time to strengthen his studies.

Of course, if Lin Ruihuan wants to enter the society, he can only find a job by himself and work in the United States for two years.

Tang Caiyun also said: "Study harder and participate in activities, and strive for scholarships; in life, you must learn to be independent and keep your clothes clean."

Mother hands line, wandering clothing.

What Tang Caiyun said is also very reasonable. You must be independent in life. After you go to college, you must be responsible for the hygiene of the dormitory and personal hygiene.

Lin Zhichao's son must not be a young master and have no ability to live independently.

When they study, they will not enjoy the life of the rich second generation; in the first two years of their work, they can only use their own salary.

Really enjoying the family's wealth can only officially begin after they have worked for two years.

Giving away luxury cars and mansions at the age of eighteen is the idea of ​​a nouveau riche.

If they don't know that making money is not easy, how can they cherish the wealth created by their parents.

After sending his son off to college, Lin Zhichao quickly arranged a flight to Singapore.

During this month, Star Island was abandoned and Singapore was founded.

After arriving at Xingdao, the team led by Huang Changhong was already waiting, and then everyone was officially received by Xingdao.

In the conference room, Lin Zhichao and Lawyer Li sat together, with their subordinates sitting on both sides. This is an official meeting, and Xingdao receives everyone with the courtesy of receiving investors.

"After hearing about the founding of Singapore, I hope to invest in a five-star luxury hotel here to provide a comfortable environment for businessmen who come to invest in Singapore."

When Lawyer Li heard this, he was also very interested. After all, Singapore had just been founded, and the next step was to consider developing the economy. To develop the economy, it is necessary to attract overseas investors. Currently, there are no decent hotels in Singapore, so this investment is very good.

"We very much welcome Mr. Lin's investment. I wonder where you plan to invest?"

Later, Lin Zhichao said: "I invested in a department store on Orchard Road and found that Orchard Road has great development potential, so I wanted to get about 15 acres of land in the western section of Orchard Road with a total investment of 100 million. A super-luxury five-star hotel priced above Hong Kong dollars. I like the support of the new government for this hotel to serve as a place for banquets on state affairs.”

Lawyer Li said: "I very much support this investment, but the land area in Singapore is very small, so we hope that every large-scale real estate project will be carefully planned. Therefore, if Mr. Lin invests in this project, I hope to have more discussions with our development bureau. Communication, regarding site selection and area, this is their business. Of course, Singapore definitely welcomes Mr. Lin to invest in this hotel. As for government support, this problem is not big. After all, according to Mr. Lin’s investment, it can definitely become the government’s choice. It’s a hotel for official use.”

He was a little wary of businessmen, but he had different feelings about Lin Zhichao, because Lin Zhichao had brought a lot of factory investment to Singapore over the years and was an industrialist.

Lin Zhichao knew that such a large project would require a certain amount of time for negotiation between the two parties. Lawyer Li could receive him as soon as possible. In addition to Lin Zhichao's identity, he also had many years of friendship.

This project is very stable and an agreement should be reached this year.

Later, Lin Zhichao suggested: "Although I am not a Singaporean, I am very confident in Singapore. I have been investigating over the years and feel that Orchard Road can invest in shopping malls and department stores to form a shopping street. If the new government With intentional planning, I am willing to invest in another large shopping mall there to drive economic development.”

Lawyer Li was naturally happy with this kind of thing and said: "Okay, let's consider the plan carefully. If the plan is feasible, we will definitely invite Mr. Lin to invest. I remember that Mr. Lin once told me that you have two pieces of land there. One Daimaru Department Store has been built, and the other is still vacant!"

Lin Zhichao nodded and said: "In the early 1950s, I studied the geography of Singapore and always believed that Orchard Road would develop in the future, so I purchased two pieces of land and waited for development."

Lawyer Li said with a smile: "Mr. Lin is so optimistic about Singapore, why didn't he consider moving to Singapore before? It's really a loss for us!"

Lin Zhichao said with a smile: "Although Singapore has good development prospects, it will definitely not be as good as Hong Kong at the beginning. It will be able to compete with Hong Kong in the future, because I believe that under the leadership of Lawyer Li, Singapore will definitely develop."

Dream on, before 2015, Hong Kong will never lose to Singapore. Because once Lin Zhichao grows up, he will bring great changes to Hong Kong.

One person can affect one city, he can definitely do it. As for after 2015, due to political influence, Hong Kong will no longer be able to be led by Lin Zhichao. What's more, at that time he had already retired.

"Thank you, Mr. Lin, for being so optimistic about Singapore and the Singapore government. Now Hong Kong is also the object of our study. This is a fact, and we must admit it."

"Singapore is truly blessed to have a pragmatic boss like Lawyer Li."

"You are over-rewarded, this is my duty."

After meeting with Lawyer Li and other government officials, Lawyer Li held a reception lunch and the treatment was generous.

Lin Zhichao personally welcomes and supports Lin Zhichao's investment requirements. Of course, the details still need to be discussed. After all, this is a big matter, and both parties need to communicate and communicate.

To be honest, if it weren't for Lin Zhichao's early friendship with Lawyer Li and Lin Zhichao's influence in the world, it would be impossible for him to express his position like this. Because Lin Zhichao is not a Singaporean or a Malay-Chinese, investing is not that convenient.

After this matter was settled, Lin Zhichao had already selected the addresses of the two Shangri-La hotels. The Shangri-La Hotel in Hong Kong is located in the Central Navy Dockyard and spent huge sums of money to build a sailing ship; Acres, large lot.

Both investments are not expensive, especially the cost of Hong Kong's Shangri-La Hotel and Hong Kong Burj Al Arab, which is probably going to be very scary. Therefore, I am afraid that it will not be officially built until the 1970s.