Hong Kong 1980: The Savage Era

Chapter 260 Chapter 261 [Negotiate the Conditions]

Anyway, the money lost by Cheng Yutong was just a drop in the bucket for the Cheng family, unlike Zhao Congyan who gambled everything on it.

"Really? Then why did you dare to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to acquire Huaguang Real Estate Company?" Cheng Yutong stared at Luo Qihong and smiled.

"Be confident in yourself, but I can't afford to interfere with your investment." Luo Qihong smiled bitterly, "My private company has made huge profits in Japan and the United States. These hundreds of millions of dollars will not be a huge sum of money that will hurt my vitality. Moreover, even if Zhao Chuanwang takes back Huaguang Real Estate Company, I will just sell the stocks slowly and will not suffer any losses."

"That's true." Cheng Yutong nodded, agreeing with Luo Qihong's statement. "Then your most fundamental reason is that you don't predict the recovery of shipping in 85 or 87, right?"

Luo Qihong restrained his expression and said seriously, "I think the shipping recession this time will not be less than 6 years. Uncle Tong may not trust me, but he should trust people like Charter King."

"The charter king has integrated the assets of the global shipping group, leaving only a few ships. Until now, he has held billions of Hong Kong dollars but has not made any moves. I don't think the charter king is old, nor do I think he wants to offend HSBC because of this."

You have to know how much profit the charter king's global shipping brought to HSBC. At its peak, the profit in one year was equivalent to HSBC's normal annual profit. What a huge number.

"But the Zhao family's Huaguang Shipping and the Dong family's Orient Overseas Container Line are both buying ships on a large scale. How do you explain this phenomenon?" Cheng Yutong just wanted to hear Luo Qihong's analysis.

"Haven't King Bao and King Cao completed reducing their fleet? Haven't they purchased any new ships yet?" Luo Qihong smiled gently.

Cheng Yutong nodded thoughtfully, "What you said makes sense, but unfortunately we are already on this pirate ship and cannot get off easily."

"Uncle Tung is very rich. As long as he stops making acquisitions, getting through this difficult time will be a piece of cake." Luo Qihong said with a smile, "Hexiang Trading Company also has a lot of goods that need to be shipped overseas, and also has goods that need to be shipped back to Hong Kong. Together with Zhou Dafu's jewelry and gold business transportation, it is enough for the Hong Kong Shipping Company to survive." Luo Qihong took the opportunity to do a favor for Cheng Yutong. Anyway, Hexiang Trading Company's transportation contract was about to expire.

"That's great. With an additional big business, the Hong Kong Shipping Company can survive a little longer." Cheng Yutong laughed. He thought about it and realized that his favors with Luo Qihong were almost used up. It was time to save some more.

"I received news that your company has taken action against Wheelock's United Enterprises Company. Are you interested in Wheelock Company?" asked Cheng Yu-tung.

Luo Qihong frowned in vain. Was this a leak? Or was there something wrong?

If you think about it carefully, the acquisition of United Enterprises' shares has been kept secret for nearly a year, so it is understandable that the information is leaked now. After all, there is no wall that is impenetrable in this world.

But he still wanted to know what went wrong. "How did Uncle Tong know about my acquisition of United Enterprises shares?"

"This was discovered accidentally. Didn't I acquire the Hong Kong Shipping Company? I collected information on major shipping companies in Hong Kong a long time ago, including information on United Enterprise Company. After analysis, I found that it could only be in your hands." The explanation given by Cheng Yutong was quite reasonable, which made Luo Qihong feel a little relieved.

"Uncle Tong wants to intervene?" Luo Qihong asked.

Cheng Yutong shook his head and said, "I don't like this kind of acquisition, but I can lend you some money. 3 or 4 million yuan is not a problem."

Luo Qihong did not agree immediately. He was still not sure that he could take over and restructure Wheelock Group, but he was not satisfied with just taking some profits and leaving. So an idea came to his mind.

"What if the major or second largest shareholder of Hutchison Whampoa invites Uncle Tung to join in?" Luo Qihong asked with a smile. He knew that Cheng Yutong would agree, and this would not be a hostile takeover.

Cheng Yutong's eyes lit up and he said, "Of course this is a good thing. How sure are you?"

"Let's split it 2-. It's not easy to get the shares held by John Madden. We can keep an eye on Zhang Yuliang. At the very least, we can make a profit of several hundred million or share the profits among the two listed companies." Luo Qihong said with some boasting.

If someone else said this, Cheng Yutong would definitely not believe it, but Luo Qihong had repeatedly set records, so he chose to believe it.

"Then how do we divide it? Do we need to go back and think about it?" Cheng Yutong asked with a faint smile.

"We're almost done playing, Uncle Tong, you've won a lot, so why don't you treat me to breakfast?" Luo Qihong said jokingly with a cheeky look.

"Okay, this is easy." Cheng Yutong waved for the caddy to come over and pack up, and then the two got in the car.
On the table were some Cantonese-style snacks, such as xiaolongbao, siomai, and lavabao. The drink was naturally porridge that was cooked until it was soft. The fragrance filled the private room for a while.

At this time, only Luo Qihong and Cheng Yutong were left in the private room.

"Have you decided what you want to get?" Cheng Yutong graciously let Luo Qihong choose first.

However, Luo Qihong also respected Cheng Yutong and said with a smile, "Wheelock Group is a large company with many companies that match our business. The main ones are in three areas: department stores, shipping and real estate. The others are relatively small in scale and do not play a big role."

"My Hexiang Trading Company is engaged in trade, which matches the department store. So I want Lane Crawford to develop. Wheelock Shipping is the most responsible, so it should be matched with a company with better assets. I think a real estate trust company is very good."

Cheng Yutong smiled and said, "In that case, Ah Hong, you want to take over Lane Crawford Development, United Enterprises and half of Federal Realty, and let New World Development take over the rest. This plan is fine. But if this plan fails, how should we divide it?"

"If it is cash profit, it will naturally be distributed according to the proportion of investment. If it is to be divided between two listed companies, then we want Lane Crawford Development and Federal Realty or Property Trust. What do you think, Uncle Tong?"

"You want to develop Lane Crawford?" Cheng Yutong asked with some disbelief.

"Well, my private trading company needs to expand, and Lane Crawford Development also has good properties in the core area of ​​Hong Kong, which is already very good." Luo Qihong smiled slightly.

"Will the other party let go?" Cheng Yutong asked with a smile.

"We can get Zhang Yuliang's 34% stake, plus the 6.8% of the United Enterprise Company, which will be as high as 41%. It's time for the other party to ask us to let go." Luo Qihong smiled cunningly.

"Haha!! You are such a little fox, no wonder so many people are afraid of you." Zheng Yutong laughed cheerfully. Apart from his family, only Zheng Yutong dared to tease Luo Qihong like this.

"The business world is like a battlefield! When I first came in, many people threatened me. Now it's my turn to threaten others." Luo Qihong didn't feel bad. What's the point of being loyal in a weak situation? It can basically be concluded that this person won't go far.

"Then we have to start keeping a close eye on Zhang Yuliang." Cheng Yutong said seriously.

"We must not only keep a close eye on Zhang Yuliang, but also on John Madden." Luo Qihong explained, "Although Zhang Yuliang is busy selling off his assets, he is still reluctant to give up Wheelock's real estate business, so we need John Madden to let go first and crush Zhang Yuliang, so that we can take advantage of the opportunity."

"It seems that you already have a comprehensive plan. Tell me about it." Cheng Yutong pointed at Luo Qihong and laughed, as if an elder was scolding a younger person.

So Luo Qihong told him the general plan.

Return to Luo's Villa
Luo Qihong immediately went upstairs to take a shower, changed into a suit and tie, and prepared to go to work in Central, but was stopped by Lin Ya.

"Is the kidnapping case reported in the newspaper true?" Lin Ya asked with a pale face.

Seeing this, Luo Qihong knew that Lin Ya was frightened, but he couldn't lie openly, so he smiled and said, "It's true, don't worry, the couple was kidnapped because they were stingy and didn't want to hire bodyguards. Everyone in our family has bodyguards, and I have notified the security company to strengthen their forces."

"How much does a bodyguard cost per year now?" Lin Ya asked.

"It doesn't have to be too much. I can afford it." Seeing that Lin Ya was about to say something else, Luo Qihong interrupted and said, "If you don't give this money, what if your family is kidnapped? It will cost 1 million US dollars, which is 1 million Hong Kong dollars. Are you willing to give it?"

"And they are also threatened and frightened. The cost of these bodyguards is like insurance to ensure safety. We cannot save money on them."

Lin Ya swallowed her words and said thoughtfully, "Well, be careful, they are too rampant."

Luo Qihong comforted Lin Ya with a few words and then left the Deep Water Bay Villa.

(End of this chapter)