A century-old wealthy family that rose from Shanghai

Time flies, and it's already early May.

CK Asset Holdings Limited.

On this day, Chen Wenjie came to Chen Guangliang's office.

"Father, the Hong Kong government has decided to auction off a new reclaimed land plot in Central early next month. It's 5.3 square feet. Rumor has it that an American consortium has already made its move, determined to acquire it!"

Chen Guangliang raised his head and said, "An American consortium? Isn't Jardine Matheson determined to acquire it?"

Chen Wenjie said, "Jung Kong is probably determined to win, after all, they have always regarded the heart of Central as their own territory."

Chen Guangliang nodded and said, "So, our main competitor should be Hongkong Land. This plot of land can be considered the 'king of land kings' in Central, so the competition can be fiercer than you can imagine, and we can't rule out the possibility of some underhanded tactics!"

After racking his brains for a moment, Chen Wenjie said, "How would Jardine Matheson rig this public auction?"

This wasn't a sealed bid, but a public auction; most people wouldn't even think of how to rig it.

Chen Guangliang, a man of wide experience, said, “That means they’re colluding with the auctioneer. Generally speaking, the auctioneer’s three hammer strikes are spaced out, giving the audience ample time to prepare, since he also gets a commission. But if Landmark wants to do this, they could easily collude with the auctioneer to give the crucial three hammer strikes a quicker time when the price reaches a certain level. In this way, if the competitors hesitate for too long, they will inevitably fail.”

Chen Wenjie suddenly realized and said, "That's really possible! But this piece of land is very important to Cheung Kong Holdings, so we won't hesitate."

Chen Guangliang said with a smile, "But there's always a psychological price point. At a normal auction, this plot of land would probably fetch over HK$5000 per square foot, which would be over HK$2.5 million in total. Let's set our psychological price at HK$4 million."

Now that his business is so large, and with even more opportunities ahead, he's determined to win everything. Of course, this price of 400 million is also something he's determined to get; even 300 million would be an astronomical sum.

Chen Wenjie said, "Okay, I'll personally attend the auction."

More than a year ago, a prime piece of land in Kowloon was auctioned off for over HK$3000 per square foot.

如今过去一年时间，香港地产可谓又涨了很多。例如高级住宅已经涨到180~220港币每平方尺，中低档住宅则涨到130~170港币每平方尺，低价唐楼则涨到120~140港币每平方尺。

In the office building sector, rents have also skyrocketed. For example, a Grade A office in Central cost only HK$1.5 per square foot in 1968, but now it costs HK$3 per square foot.

Regarding shop rents, ordinary shops cost HK$6-8 per square foot per month, while those in prosperous areas cost HK$18-35 per square foot, and those in the tourist area of ​​Tsim Sha Tsui can reach HK$100-120 per square foot per month. As for the selling price, it is calculated based on 100 months' rent, that is, a shop with a monthly rent of HK$5000 would generally sell for HK$50.

Hongkong Land.

John Keswick the elder was secretly discussing something with his son, Henry Keswick.

Old John pointed to a map of Central and said, “Over the years, the Chan family has acquired a lot of land in Central. What pains me the most is Cheung Kong Plaza (formerly the Hong Kong Hotel) and Poly Plaza (formerly Lane Crawford). We should have been able to invest in Landmark Plaza here, but now we are watching helplessly as Cheung Kong Plaza becomes a prosperous gathering place in Central.”

Henry Keswick nodded and said, "The Chan family not only owns two properties in Central, but also the Ping An Bank Building at 1 Garden Road, the Lane Crawford Building on Queen's Road Central, the Shangri-La Hotel on Des Voeux Road Central, the Global Group Centre on Des Voeux Road Central, and the International Commerce Centre on Queen's Road Central. Their strength in Central is not to be underestimated."

At that time, there were two major real estate companies in Hong Kong: one was the Chinese-owned Cheung Kong Holdings, and the other was the British-owned Jardine Matheson.

Cheung Kong Holdings is a diversified real estate group with a very strong real estate business. It develops properties that supply 15-20% of Hong Kong's residential properties, and its commercial properties include Cheung Kong Plaza, Poly Plaza, and Paterson Street mixed-use commercial projects. Its hotels include Shangri-La Hotel, Miramar Hotel, and Furama Hotel. It is a powerful and well-equipped enterprise.

After thinking for a moment, Old John said, "In terms of strength, Hongkong Land is not as good as Cheung Kong Holdings. Cheung Kong Holdings is backed by Ping An Bank and the entire Chen family. So it will be very difficult for us to win this time!"

Henry Keswick, the heir to the Keswick family fortune, said in a deep voice, “Indeed, we can’t risk everything for this piece of land. It is valuable, and I think it’s currently worth HK$5000 per square foot. But depending on the determination of Cheung Kong Holdings and the American consortium, we can only offer a maximum of HK$6000 per square foot. Of course, that price isn’t enough to guarantee a win. I suggest we talk to our British auctioneer. If he favors us when the hammer falls, we’ll have an 80% chance of winning. After all, once the price reaches HK$5000, I believe anyone will hesitate and reconsider. Especially Cheung Kong Holdings, now that Chan Kwong-leung’s eldest son, Chan Man-kit, is in charge, he’s a steady and reliable person and certainly won’t risk everything.”

Old John was overjoyed and said with satisfaction, "You can handle this yourself, and you can attend the auction on the day of the auction."

"Yes, father"

The auctioneer for this "Central land king" was Bill de Blasio, a British national and the official auctioneer for Hong Kong government land. De Blasio is also a "white glove" in the auction industry.

The so-called 'white glove' is the highest honor for an auctioneer.

That day, Henry Keswick approached Bill de Blasio and offered to help out at the auction with the Landmark.

Bill de Blasio refused on the spot, saying, "Master Henry, we auctioneers value honor above all else, and there is no reason for us to ruin our careers."

Henry smiled and handed over a check for £10, saying, “This is a deposit. More importantly, we won’t put you in a difficult position. Just be a little quicker with the hammer after our offer comes in when the price is finalized. If you can do us a big favor, we’ll give you another check with the same amount later. And most importantly, the initial £10 is yours no matter what!”

At this moment, Bai Sili's heart began to flutter.

Although it's called a commission, the auction price for these "Central Ring land kings" is high, but the commission isn't that high. Plus, you can earn an extra £10 or £20 without taking any risk, which seems pretty good.

The specific operation should not be too risky, since he can control the situation.

Seeing that Bill de Blasio hesitated, Henry Keswick continued, "Our main competitors this time are American companies and Cheung Kong Holdings. Neither of them are British companies, especially Cheung Kong Holdings, which is a Chinese company. I think you can't be without sympathy for us, since we are all British."

Bai Sili took the check and said, "I will help you to the best of my ability, provided that the auction price is at least 40% higher than the reserve price."

"no problem"

Time quickly came to the day of the auction.

Chen Wenjie remains very low-key. He will greet people occasionally, but he will not deliberately seek the limelight in the media.

Henry Keswick and Chen Wenjie nodded to each other. Later, he also had a brief chat with Johnson, a representative of the American consortium, and seemed to be harmless.

At this moment, Bai Sili behaved perfectly normally. After all, he had already made up his mind to help as much as he could and would never get himself into legal trouble.

Southeast Asian consortia, Hong Kong consortia, American consortia, and British consortia were all present at the event, making today's auction a highly anticipated event.

The transaction price of "land kings" at auctions has always been regarded as a "barometer" of the real estate market. Generally, a price exceeding 40% of the reserve price is considered a booming real estate market; if it exceeds 70% of the reserve price, the real estate market is extremely booming, which can be described as peak.

Soon, Bill de Blasio began introducing the "Central Land King" at today's government land auction: "This land was reclaimed from the sea in Hong Kong in the 1960s. It is located east of the bus terminus, bordering Victoria Harbour and close to the London docks. Such a large plot of land is rare, measuring a full 53,000 square feet. Therefore, its starting price today is HK$180 million, and each bid must be at least HK$200,000. Let's begin."

Upon hearing this, everyone became incredibly excited, realizing how expensive this piece of land truly was!

At this time, Hong Kong attracted considerable international capital. Southeast Asian capital was the most abundant, but its strength was somewhat insufficient; the United States regarded Hong Kong as an important intelligence hub in the Far East, so American capital naturally also ventured in; and British capital, needless to say, considered Hong Kong a 'colony' in their eyes.

As a result, the price of this land began to rise steadily. Southeast Asian tycoon Robert Kuok attempted to bid for the land, but quickly gave up due to the high price.

Johnson, a major real estate developer in California, is now showing his determination to win.

However, an American consortium also came today, namely the Sheraton Group, but they were there as a "dummy bidder." The major shareholder of the Sheraton Group is Amazon Hotels, which is Chen Wenjin's business.

To be on the safe side, Chen Wenjie instructed his younger brother (the eldest son of the second wife) to direct the Sheraton Group to submit a bid, in order to confuse any possible schemes by Hongkong Land.

Soon, the auction featured a competition between four consortia: two American-owned consortia, Hongkong Land, a British-owned consortium, and Cheung Kong Holdings, a Chinese-owned consortium.

"2.58 million. First time."

When Hongkong Land's Henry Keswick bid 2.58 million, de Blasio began to deliberately speed up the bidding.

Unfortunately, his wish was not fulfilled. Cheung Kong Holdings quickly raised its bid, and Sheraton's representatives swiftly followed suit. This was pre-arranged: the two consortia would first compete to defeat Hongkong Land, and then Sheraton would withdraw.

Henry Keswick of Hongkong Land frowned. If it were just Cheung Kong Holdings, it might be easier today; but now that the Sheraton Hotel has joined in, making it an American consortium, the auctioneer, Bill de Blasio, can't be too conspicuous.

He had no choice but to raise his sign again.

"2.62 billion"

Those present couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "This price is just too high!"
But clearly, this is not the end!

Sheraton took the initiative to raise its paddle first!

Then CK Asset Holdings made another bid!
As the price went back and forth, Henry Keswick's expression changed when it reached 3 million.

Hongkong Land's strength already doesn't allow for further expansion.

He could only sneer coldly, his face grim: "Let you fight it out. I hope the American capital wins."

Next, Sheraton raised the price 10 times, but each time it was capped at 20.

When CK Asset Holdings announced, "3.08 million..."

The Sheraton representative began the performance, and Bill de Blasio could only shout, "3.08 million, first time! 3.08 million, second time!"

Henry Keswick glanced at the Sheraton Hotel representative, seemingly about to raise his paddle, but appeared to be discussing something.

During his observation, time was up, and seeing that Henry Keswick was no longer in the mood, Desmond Blair could only shout, "3.08 million, for the third time!"

Chen Wenjie breathed a sigh of relief; thankfully, the price wasn't too high.

Henry Keswick sensed something was wrong and was about to raise his paddle when he realized it was already over. He was stunned – Sheraton had seemingly bid ten times in the end, but almost all of them were just around the 20 mark. What was going on?
After the auction, Chen Wenjie was surrounded by reporters outside the venue.

This time, he did not refuse the interview, but said: "Cheung Kong acquired this land in order to better participate in the construction of Central. A world-class hotel building will be built on this land, which will also become a landmark building on both sides of Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong, contributing to Hong Kong's economic development."

After saying that, he left the scene.

Meanwhile, Henry and Desmond de Blasio met briefly in the corridor.

Bill de Blasio's first words were: "Mr. Henry, the Sheraton's performance is more like that of a sidekick brought in by Cheung Kong Holdings, whose purpose is to squeeze you out first."

"What?" Henry Keswick exclaimed in shock. "How is this possible! Sheraton Group is an American conglomerate. How could it possibly be content to be a mere supporting player for Cheung Kong Holdings?"

He has already accepted his defeat.

He would be unwilling to accept defeat if he lost again due to a lack of strategy.

Bai Sili said, “There are two unusual things tonight. First, Cheung Kong and Sheraton came prepared, not giving me a chance to call for a second bid from Hongkong Land. Second, after Hongkong Land withdrew, Sheraton raised its price by 20% each time, and it seems they were exchanging glances with Cheung Kong. I just heard that the major shareholder of Sheraton Hotel changed in 1967. Although it was still an American consortium, it was backed by Chinese.”

Henry Keswick was struck by lightning. He knew that Chen Guangliang had more than one wife, and it seemed that one of his wives had already moved to the United States. Could it be that one of his wives had grown to such a scale?
He was more concerned about being 'tricked' than losing tonight.

Chen Guangliang was very approving of Cheung Kong Holdings' acquisition of the Central land parcel for HK$3.08 million.

This price isn't expensive!
In the previous life, this piece of land was acquired by Hongkong Land for HK$2.58 million. In this life, with Hong Kong's economy growing by 20% compared to the same period, this price is perfectly acceptable.

Moreover, Cheung Kong Holdings emerged victorious in this battle between the two companies.

"Find the best design firms in the world to design according to my requirements. Construction will begin a year later, around 1975, when it will replace the Shangri-La Hotel building on Des Voeux Road Central. The new Shangri-La Hotel will stand proudly over Victoria Harbour, becoming a landmark building with its sailboat shape. Not only that, it must be highly modernized, with computerized control for the electricity, ventilation, fire protection, and other post-construction processes."

Although Apple computers did not exist at that time, the period from 1963 to 1970 was actually the era of integrated circuit computers; however, computers during this period were all commercial products, and each one cost about $40.

If construction of this building began in 1971, the later stages of the water, electricity, ventilation, and other facilities would not have been completed until late 1973 or 1974. By then, computers had already entered the era of large-scale and very large-scale integrated circuit computers, and personal computers had begun (Apple was just popularizing them).

At that time, the Shangri-La Hotel will be further modernized.

Chen Wenjie carefully listened to the reporter's father's words and then said, "Yes, I've noted it down. However, we bought this plot of land for 3.08 million, but the construction cost of the Shangri-La Hotel will likely far exceed that of a typical skyscraper. If it were a 50-story office building, the estimated cost would be around 1.5-2 million, but the Shangri-La Hotel's cost could be as high as 3 million. The total investment will be 6 million."

"It's worth it, you can do it with confidence."

"Okay, Father"

In fact, Chen Guangliang had already come up with a way to raise money, which was to raise at least 2 million through a rights issue in 1972. He also planned to sell some non-core properties starting at the end of 1972, which would strengthen the financial strength of Cheung Kong Group and make it easier to buy at the bottom in 1974-1975.

at the same time.

The record-breaking land price of HK$6000 per square foot in Central, Hong Kong, ignited the Hong Kong property market and sparked a frenzy of property speculation.

If the first two years were like 'lighting a bonfire,' then the next three years were like 'adding fuel to the fire.' (End of Chapter)