A century-old wealthy family that rose from Shanghai

at the same time.

Chen Guangliang sent his younger brother, Chen Guangcong, to Shanghai to register a 5000-ton ship there and participate in the irregular operation of the coastal shipping route.

Although Chen Guangliang has been in Hong Kong for more than two months, he has not publicly announced that he has settled there. Although the Shanghai government invited him to return to Shanghai to develop his business, he declined the invitation, citing health reasons.

At present, Chen Guangliang has no intention of drawing a line between himself and the Nationalist government, so he simply sent his younger brother back to Shanghai to take charge of the business.

As for registering the 5000-ton ship in Shanghai, it's not a big problem; in fact, it might make some business operations easier.

During my stay in Shanghai.

Chen Guangcong attended a meeting where private shipping companies, which had suffered heavy losses during the War of Resistance against Japan, formed the Committee for Claims of Wartime Losses of Private Ships (hereinafter referred to as the "Committee for Claims of Warships") to handle all claims, the most important of which were claims against ships damaged by the Nationalist government during the war.

Two of the ships that Chen Guangliang had invested 100 million yuan in (at the time, the legal tender was equivalent to the silver dollar) to be operated by Minsheng Company were destroyed during the Yichuan evacuation.

Although Chen Guangliang didn't expect this compensation, he still had to show some respect.

At this meeting, five representatives were appointed as standing committee members: Shen Qi from Sanbei Shipping Company, Li Zhiyi from Continental Shipping Company, Yao Yunshu from Zhongxing Shipping Company, Dong Haoyun from Dazhen Shipping Company and Tianjin Shipping Company, and Zhong Shandao from Minsheng Shipping Company and Daxing Shipping Company. Qian Xinzhi was elected as the chairman of the committee.

Because the work was too slow, Qian Xinzhi instructed Yao Yunshu to stay in Shanghai as his representative to oversee everything.

Chen Guangcong's appearance also made the Shanghai business community feel that Chen Guangliang was back!
In fact, many entrepreneurs are still in Chongqing, including the Nationalist government, which is also temporarily based in Chongqing. Therefore, Chen Guangliang's trip to Hong Kong did not cause such a stir.

Upon hearing that Chen Guangcong had returned to Shanghai, Du Yuesheng, who was disillusioned with his official career, specially invited Chen Guangcong to meet him at his mansion.

Uncle Du

Chen Guangcong greeted him respectfully with an honest and kind expression.

In fact, the two families are related; both Chen Guangliang and Du Yuesheng's eldest son, Du Weifan, married Yan Zhiduo's daughter.

Du Yuesheng said amicably, "I heard you were back, so I had someone invite you over. After all, we're relatives."

Chen Guangcong quickly said, "It is I who should be visiting, but I don't know if Uncle Du has returned to Shanghai yet, so I have been impolite."

Du Yuesheng mentally evaluated the two brothers and immediately felt that their personalities were quite different. If it were Chen Guangliang, he would definitely be smiling on the surface and speaking in a relaxed tone; while Chen Guangcong would appear honest and meticulous.

"You're welcome. By the way, why hasn't your older brother returned to Shanghai? I heard he's recuperating in Hong Kong!"

Du Yuesheng's purpose was precisely this: he returned to Shanghai this time full of joy, thinking that he would be given an important position, and that he might even become the mayor of Shanghai.

The results of it?
Qian Dajun became the mayor of Shanghai, while his "apprentice" Wu Shaoshu became the vice mayor. It turns out that he was not even as good as his apprentice. What's even more despicable is that his apprentice Wu Shaoshu exposed his dirty secrets everywhere and didn't even mention his contributions to the War of Resistance against Japan.

As a result, he felt somewhat disappointed with the Nationalist government.

On the other hand, according to his sources, Chen Guangliang only stayed in Shanghai for half a month before hurriedly taking his family to Hong Kong. Rumors circulated that Chen Guangliang encountered difficulties with government officials while taking over the assets, and in a fit of anger, he fled to Hong Kong; others said that Chen Guangliang suffered a shock while on the plane, causing a relapse of his old illness, and then went to Hong Kong to recuperate.
But given Du Yuesheng's understanding of Chen Guangliang, could it be that he had sensed something?
In short, Du Yuesheng wanted to get some information from Chen Guangcong, since in his eyes, Chen Guangliang was one of the people with the best judgment.

The two met in Hong Kong at the end of 1937. After that, Du Yuesheng only did some fundraising work in Hong Kong, while Chen Guangliang did a lot of business in Hong Kong - trade, smuggling, factories, etc.

Chen Guangcong said very honestly, "My brother doesn't have any serious illness. It's just that the years of war, especially the bombing of Chongqing, have caused him a lot of mental stress, so he wants to rest and recuperate."

Du Yuesheng glanced at Chen Guangcong, who didn't seem inclined to speak, and then said with a smile, "I think he's reluctant to leave his comfort zone, with his wife and children by his side. Haha, let's have lunch together."

Yes, Uncle Du.

Chen Guangcong's personality is not something that would reveal anything to others, after all, he is 31 years old and has been working for at least 11 years.

When he came back this time, many people were looking for him, but they were actually looking for Chen Guangliang.

Chen Guangliang visited the Xinfeng Textile Factory in Kowloon Bay to check on its resumption of work.

Before the fall of Hong Kong, Xinfeng Textile (Hong Kong) transferred most of its equipment to a warehouse in Macau and sealed it up.

Although there were many Japanese spies in Macau, they targeted those who were spreading anti-Japanese propaganda in Macau, not the machinery and equipment of a factory. Therefore, the equipment of Xinfeng Textile (Hong Kong) was basically preserved.

However, without Chen Guangliang's advance preparations, there simply wouldn't have been enough time to dismantle and transport the equipment, and the Japanese would naturally have confiscated it.

"Boss, our current operating rate has reached 60%, and we're sure it will exceed 80% next year. Our products are mainly sold to Southeast Asia, where they are very popular."

The person in charge, Zhang Fangshuo, excitedly reported to the boss.

It turns out that Xinfeng Textile in Shanghai is operating at less than 30% capacity due to corruption and mismanagement by the Nationalist government; in contrast, Xinfeng Textile in Hong Kong is operating much faster.

This was also the first time Zhang Fangshuo truly felt that there was a reason why the boss valued Hong Kong Xinfeng Textile.

Chen Guangliang looked at the scene in the textile workshop. There were mostly female workers, but also some child laborers. Their faces weren't numb; instead, they seemed somewhat happy. Thinking about it, it made sense. How many people in Hong Kong were unemployed, called 'refugees,' and then placed on ruins by the military government, receiving only relief from the military government and charitable organizations every day?

Xinfeng Textile resumed work immediately, solving the wage problem for many people. Even the female child laborers were able to learn to work and support themselves, and even support their younger siblings.

Sometimes, we need to consider the context of the times. If these girl laborers had no factories to accept them, their fate would have been very tragic.

"What about the quality of the workers?"

Zhang Fangshuo said, "Many of them are our former textile workers, and their skills are already quite good. Moreover, a new batch of textile talents have come from Shanghai. Our current products are among the best cotton fabrics in the entire Hong Kong and Guangdong region. Among them, the 'Pegasus' and 'Phoenix' fabrics are already in high demand in Southeast Asia."

First, the resumption of work in Shanghai is progressing slowly; second, the products of Hong Kong's Sun Fung Textile are sold in Shanghai and are among the best in terms of quality; third, Southeast Asia is a very good market.

Chen Guangliang said with satisfaction, "We must take good care of this group of textile technical talents from Shanghai. In the textile industry, technical personnel are the most valuable. Although they are graduates of Xinfeng Textile School, it would be a great loss if they were poached by others."

In the 1920s and 30s, outstanding textile talents (such as those who had studied in Japan) would even directly ask the boss for shares. Liu Hongsheng's Huazhang Woolen Mill encountered this situation. At that time, he lacked expertise and had no reserve of textile talents, so he could only offer shares to a few woolen textile workers, and even then, only 30%. In comparison, when Tong Runfu and Li Shengbo came to Xinfeng Textile, they did not ask for shares; however, their treatment at the time was already the highest possible, with a monthly salary of 500 yuan (equivalent to silver dollars), along with accommodation, a car, and various other benefits. Even after the devaluation of the yuan, their salaries increased accordingly. Xinfeng Textile also supported their ideals, allocating a large amount of funds each year to support the Xinfeng Textile School.

Zhang Fangshuo said, "Yes, we have done a good job in this regard. At the same time, we also need to increase their practical skills and resolutely eliminate the situation where they only know how to give orders in the office. We need to make sure that they all start from the front line."

Chen Guangliang also agrees with this point.

He had also heard Liu Hongsheng say that there were textile talents who had studied in Japan, who were hired at high salaries, but who only stayed in the office every day and never went to the front-line workshops.

Therefore, it is not easy to find good talent, and Chen Guangliang's decision to allocate a large sum of money to Xinfeng Textile School every year is now truly reaping the rewards.

In fact, only one-fifth of these textile talents were employed by Xinfeng Textile; the rest were handed over to the state. Li Shengbo and Tong Runfu's ideal was to use Xinfeng Textile's financial resources to cultivate more textile talents for the country. They planned to recruit twenty to thirty textile talents with high school education each semester, then have them taught at the university. Many of the instructors were heavyweight textile experts with overseas study experience, including Tong Runfu and Li Shengbo themselves.

Essentially, it was a small textile university that never stopped enrolling students during the War of Resistance against Japan.

During his visit to the workshop, Chen Guangliang said to a group of management behind him: "After the war, textile equipment will be updated very quickly, and textile technology will also decline if it does not advance. As the largest textile factory in Hong Kong, if we, Xinfeng Textile, do not maintain a sense of urgency in these two aspects, we will be surpassed by others and even decline. Therefore, we must attach importance to technology, equipment, and products."

"Yes, boss"

Everyone was deeply moved by these words and kept them in mind.

Having been in the textile business for so long, Chen Guangliang naturally possessed considerable skill. He had also studied under masters such as Tong Runfu and Li Shengbo, demonstrating his extreme emphasis on textile technology.

Moreover, Chen Guangliang's goal is to penetrate Europe and America, especially the Commonwealth region, with his products within three years.

Meanwhile, Sun Fung Textile had already purchased 106 acres of farmland near Castle Peak Road in Tsuen Wan, which is approximately 64 square feet. This land area was enough to frighten Shanghai businessmen who later came to Hong Kong to develop industries.

In fact, land prices in Hong Kong should rise across the board next year, and there won't be as much land available for factory construction in the future. Ping An Bank will not sell the industrial land it holds directly; instead, it will build factories and lease them out.

"Regarding the new factory in Tsuen Wan, I also asked the Shanghai Municipal Government to send an expert team to inspect it. We in Hong Kong also need to participate and offer our opinions on the overall planning and design of the factory. In short, my opinion is that we should build a multi-story factory building and construct it in phases."

Zhang Fangshuo said, "The boss has great foresight."

The boss's current idea is that Shanghai entrepreneurs will definitely see a surge of investment in Hong Kong, just like in 1937.

The overall design framework for the new factory is to first divide the area into sections, including vacant areas; then build textile workshops, administrative workshops, dyeing and printing workshops, etc., which may occupy one-third of the area, and basically adopt a 2-3 story factory building model (first batch).

The new factory is expected to be operational in 1948, and two-thirds of the land will remain for future expansion of production.

The Vitasoy factory in Hong Kong resumed operations immediately, giving the Vitasoy Luo family from the previous life no chance at all.

In his previous life, Vitasoy was founded in Hong Kong in 1940 by Lo Kwai-cheung. In this life, Vitasoy had already established a factory and started selling in Hong Kong in the mid-30s. Therefore, as Yu Tung-shuen's private secretary, Lo Kwai-cheung naturally had no chance. Even if he had ideas, he could not get Yu Tung-shuen's financial support because it was obvious that he could not compete with him.

Over the years, the 'Vitasoy' brand has become well-known throughout China and has always been considered a mid-to-high-end gift. 'Soy milk powder' and 'White Rabbit milk candy' are also well-known to Chinese people.

The Vitasoy factory in Hong Kong initially did not choose to produce bottled products, but only produced White Rabbit milk candy and soy milk powder; however, after the war, it added this production line.

Wu Guangsheng, the chief engineer, is the person in charge of setting up this production line.

"Boss, the relevant equipment and machinery are still at sea. It is expected that bottled Vitasoy will be available in Hong Kong by the middle of next year."

Chen Guangliang said, "Yes, even without bottled soy milk powder, it is enough to meet the nutritional needs of Hong Kong and Guangdong. However, the most urgent task is to control costs. Our products can no longer be positioned in the mid-to-high-end market, but should be targeted at the lower-tier market."

Times change. If you always position yourself as mid-to-high-end, then others will have an opportunity to take advantage of you.

Lee Mo-shan, General Manager of Vitasoy Hong Kong, immediately said, "Lowering the price of bottled soy milk and opening up sales in restaurants to reach the general public market should be considered as tapping into the lower-tier market. As for soy milk powder, the production cost is high, so it will probably be difficult to popularize it in the short term."

He was transferred from Shanghai and has been an employee for over ten years.

Chen Guangliang said, "In short, the goal is for products to be affordable for everyone. Hong Kong has the Dairy Farm Company, which is something that ordinary people can't afford. If we Chinese can't even afford soybeans, wouldn't we be a laughing stock?"

"Yes, we will definitely do our best to reduce production costs and prepare for product popularization."

Chen Guangliang nodded and said, "Of course, this is a process, and it can't be accomplished overnight. Just keep moving in this direction. Once our Vitasoy products are popular in Hong Kong and Guangdong, then we'll have our next goal. Don't stop."

"Ok"

What is the next goal?
Naturally, we should make juice and soda series.

After returning to his office on Des Voeux Road.

Chen Guangliang carefully wrote down some information on the paper. He would never be satisfied with textile and food production when it came to industry.

During the period of rapid industrial development in Hong Kong from the 50s to the 70s, the Chan family businesses should have been at the forefront and led Hong Kong's economy to take off even further.

A steel mill is a good option. We can bring a group of talented people from Shanghai to Hong Kong. Although Hong Kong doesn't have any mines, we can use methods such as scrapping ships to make steel and importing raw materials.

Machine factories were possible, as China did have its own during this period, producing various types of machinery, including textile equipment. The presence of numerous machine factories in the wartime rear areas was a significant factor in the victory against Japan. Of course, the specific type of machinery produced depended on technological limitations.

Finally, Chen Guangliang wrote 'zipper' on the paper.

In 1930, the first zipper factory appeared in Shanghai, although at that time it was entirely handmade.

Today, the United States and Germany can produce 'automatic chain-locking machines', but the Far East is still a blank.

Chen Guangliang quickly decided to organize a 'zipper industry'. Indeed, this is an industry development project. In the later stages, the surrounding industries of the zipper industry—smelting plants, chemical plants, and machinery plants—all formed part of the industrial chain.

Let's get started! (End of Chapter)