Hong Kong 1980: The Savage Era

Chapter 298 299 [Be Thick-skinned]

Saturday, May 9

The 12th Miss Hong Kong beauty pageant has reached the finals, with 12 beauties selected and 13 eliminated.

Luo Qihong still received the invitation, but he did not attend. Instead, he asked Bai Jinyan to attend on his behalf.

In the end, just like in the previous life, the champion was Gao Lihong, the runner-up was Ma Shanheng, the third place was Tang Liqiu, and Gao Huiming only got 6th place and didn't even get the championship.

However, in the previous life, only Gao Lihong was slightly famous in Hong Kong that year, and the others were just like everyone else.

Although Gao Huiming was not elected champion, she had the support of Luo Qihong, which seemed to be much better than the champion Gao Lihong.

At this time, Gao Lihong had not yet met Sammo Hung, so she only had the title of Miss Hong Kong. In addition, Gao Lihong was not proficient in Cantonese, so it was difficult for her to make a difference in the entertainment industry.

Like Li Zhi in her previous life, she was beautiful but could not speak Cantonese fluently, so she did not make it big in the entertainment industry.

Moreover, there are many beauties in the entertainment industry, and actresses who can speak Cantonese seem to be more popular with film companies and directors. After all, there is no need for dubbing and they can be used directly.

The next day's newspapers reported the results of the Miss Hong Kong beauty pageant in large pages. Some magazines even dug up all the background information of Gao Lihong and others. Some of the information was black history, but these magazines sold well, with sales 40% higher than ordinary magazines, allowing the unscrupulous magazines to make a fortune.

There are also gossip magazines that publish reports on which beauties are being pursued by which rich second-generation men, and even describe what gifts the rich second-generation men gave them and where they have been.

This is tantamount to stripping them naked and exposing them to the public.

Fortunately, Luo Qihong did not join in the fun, otherwise he would have been photographed on the date by the paparazzi, which would have caused him a lot of trouble.

Gao Huiming also hurried to meet with Luo Qihong, hoping that Luo Qihong could help introduce her to some movie roles so that she could take advantage of the popularity of Miss Hong Kong to make a splash.

Of course Luo Qihong agreed, but he had to go to the hotel and wrote a check for HK$10 to Gao Huiming.

After a Miss Hong Kong beauty pageant, Luo Qihong felt that Hong Kong at this moment was even more aggressive than the mainland entertainment industry in the 21st century, and unspoken rules were truly everywhere.

But after thinking about it, he suddenly understood that in a society where capital is king, although opportunities seem to be abundant, they actually require a price to be paid, otherwise why would they be yours?

Late September

The popularity of Miss Hong Kong gradually faded, and was replaced by shocking news.

The Sino-British negotiations finally produced results, with the mainland winning and the British suffering a crushing defeat.

This news was good news for the Chinese, but bad news for the pro-British faction. However, in the face of absolute authority, these people chose to remain silent and no longer dared to be as arrogant as before.

Stimulated by the good news, the Hang Seng Index of the stock market began to rise, from 676 points to 700 points, but some investors still remained on the sidelines, worried that this was a false rise.

After all, the Hang Seng Index has been fluctuating since October 82. Although it has been fluctuating at a low level, it has also scared investors.

The prices of properties in good locations have begun to rise tentatively. Some real estate developers are also buying in tentatively, not daring to spend large sums of money, but this is finally a good start.

The more fearful the market was, the more greedy Luo Qihong became, so he came to the trading hall of HSBC and found Zhang Taotao.

"Mr. Luo, I haven't seen you for a while." Zhang Taotao has become a department manager at HSBC. He is no longer the newcomer he used to be. He has the confidence and skills to deal with wealthy businessmen like Luo Qihong.

Luo Qihong smiled and said, "It's been a long time since we last met. I heard that you have become a manager. You should have time to help me with the transaction, right?"

Zhang Taotao said, "Of course, I am most afraid that Luo Sheng will not want me to be an operator anymore."

"Please come this way, Mr. Luo! Let's talk in the reception room." Zhang Taotao turned sideways and made a gesture of invitation.

The two came to the reception room, which was decorated similarly to the previous one, with basically no changes.

Zhang Taotao asked his secretary to bring him a cup of tea. He still remembered that Luo Qihong preferred drinking tea to coffee.

"Mr. Zhang, I have 2 million yuan in my hand. Can HSBC provide me with 20 times leverage? I need to buy the Hang Seng Index?" Luo Qihong put down the porcelain cup with a slight smile on his face. Zhang Taotao was slightly surprised, and then he returned to normal and said, "Mr. Luo is still so bold. It's not a big problem to provide 20 times leverage, but I want to explain that with such a high leverage, as long as the Hang Seng Index drops by 20 points, your position will explode. 2 million yuan can't last for 1 hour. Are you sure you want such a high leverage?"

Luo Qihong nodded, "Sure, the Sino-British negotiations have ended, and the haze is about to disappear."

Zhang Taotao hesitated for a moment, "Mr. Luo, we are old friends. I know your assets have already exceeded 40 billion yuan, but I don't think it's necessary to take such a big risk. It's better to reduce it a bit, with a leverage of 20 billion yuan. This will be much better, and your financial pressure will not be too great."

"No, just buy it." Luo Qihong waved his hand. "I know you have good intentions, Mr. Zhang, but I have my own plans. They are the result of careful consideration, not a decision made on impulse."

"Okay, then I'll do it for Luo Sheng. It may take a lot of time, but I'll try to finish it before the market closes tomorrow." Zhang Taotao promised.

"I have another request. Don't spread the news about my leverage. Be low-key when buying. I don't want any accidents to happen." Luo Qihong was worried that someone would forcibly pull down the Hang Seng Index, and he would be in trouble.

"Don't worry, Luo Sheng, I know the rules and it won't be leaked in a short time." Zhang Taotao only dared to guarantee it for a short time. Such a large amount of leveraged funds could not be kept secret for a long time.

Luo Qihong signed some documents, chatted with Zhang Taotao for a while, and then left the HSBC trading hall.

Monday, September 10
罗胥瑞旗下的瑞圆公司宣布收购世纪城市公司，向世纪城市公司注资4千8百万元，获取世纪城市公司将近70%的股份，其中罗胥瑞实际上付出1千5百万元换取1亿5千万股，再以数个地盘换取另外的1亿5千万股，一共持有3亿股。

At this time, Century City Company was no longer in the state it was in when it was fighting with Luo Qihong. Century City Company had accumulated losses of up to 2 million yuan, and its shareholders' funds had been reduced to 9 million yuan. Its creditors were planning to apply for liquidation.

However, Century City still has a lot of properties and land, including office buildings and shopping malls in Central, and luxury homes in Repulse Bay. As long as they can be saved, they can basically be considered a "good deal".

Perhaps other people would feel terrified about Century City’s debt, but for Luo Xurui, an expert in debt restructuring, it was just a small matter. After all, he could even revive companies like Regal Hotels and Paliburg Investments.

On the other hand, De'an Securities Investment Company acquired 1 million shares of Century City Company for a mere 1 million yuan. It originally held 3% of the shares. After the dilution by Luo Xurui's issuance of new shares, De'an Securities Investment Company now holds about 10% of the shares.

In order to stimulate the share price of Century City, Luo Xurui then sold his shares in Palibao Investment Company and Regal Hotels Corporation to Century City, thereby increasing the asset value of Century City and reducing its debt ratio.

Of course, the equity sale debt owed by Century City Company to Luo Xurui still needs to be repaid, but Century City Company is allowed to repay it slowly.

The shareholders knew that it was Luo Xurui who made the move, and that Century City Company was likely to become the parent company of Bailibao Investment Company, so the shareholders began to buy a large number of Century City stocks, and the stock price rose from 1.6 cents to 2.3 cents, an increase of 44%.

"Luo Xurui is really amazing. He saved Century City, which was in debt of 2 million yuan, with just a little effort." Bai Jinyan looked at Luo Qihong and asked with a smile, "Did you know in advance that Luo Xurui would take action against Century City?"

Luo Qihong nodded and said, "Of course I knew it in advance, otherwise you would think I am a fortune teller."

"You are more capable. You stand behind the scenes while Luo Xurui is fighting in the front to help you make money." Bai Jinyan couldn't help but praise him.

Luo Qihong smiled and said, "Don't underestimate Luo Xurui. He is a smart guy who can scheme against a tycoon like Luo Yingshi. If we fight openly, I may not be able to defeat such a man."

This is the truth. Only because Luo Qihong lives in this era can he feel how powerful these talented players are. They are like a cheetah, swift and accurate. Once they are targeted, it is very difficult to get rid of them.

"I think you are better than him. He has a family background, not just someone who started from scratch." Bai Jinyan still thinks that Luo Qihong is sharper and more outstanding.

"It's meaningless to compete with each other. Anyway, I don't want to compete with someone like Luo Xurui." Luo Qihong smiled bitterly and said, "Since Luo Xurui wants to hype up Century City Company, let's help him."

Bai Jinyan asked, "What do you want to do? Help spread the news?"

"It confirms the rumor that he wants to use Century City Company to acquire Bailibao Investment." Luo Qihong smiled slightly.

"Will it expose you?" Bai Jinyan said.

"So what if he's exposed?" Luo Qihong asked back, "Does Luo Xurui want to tear his face off with me for such a small matter? If so, his interests will probably be damaged."

"His original intention was to hype up Century City's market value to create the illusion that Century City was saved. In fact, Century City's debt did not decrease much. I indirectly helped him achieve his goal by doing this. He should thank me."

"." Bai Jinyan was speechless for a moment. This man was really thick-skinned. However, she soon realized that it seemed that many tycoons had faces as thick as city walls, and those with thin skins were swept into the garbage dump of history.

As he was thinking, Bai Jinyan inadvertently touched his cheek. It seemed that his skin was really thin. No wonder he couldn't achieve much.

(End of this chapter)