Hong Kong Tycoon: Starting from Delivering Dongfeng Express

Chapter 137 Ye Dongsheng: It's time to buy horses!

The afternoon sun blazed down on Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong.

With a roar, 12 fine horses shot off onto the track like arrows, instantly igniting the adrenaline of the more than 30,000 spectators in the stadium.

The stands, layer upon layer, were already filled with a roar of cheers, and colorful sun hats and fluorescent signs intertwined to form a flowing sea under the blazing sun.

Meanwhile, in a private room, several people were chatting comfortably while sipping wine.

"Zhenting, it seems my Black Pearl is going to win this match!"

Huo Zhenting laughed and said, "Brother Wen, my bid for Asia was a late surge!"

That's right, Fok Chun-ting's horse was named Shenya, a name given to China when it applied to host the Asian Games.

Since the 70s, the Huo family has been leveraging its international influence to promote Chinese sports. At that time, sports were not simply about sport; they contained significant political and diplomatic elements.

At that time, many of China's legitimate seats were occupied by Taiwan. Huo spent a lot of energy traveling around and made great efforts to regain legitimate seats in football and other competitions.

For decades afterward, the Huo family remained deeply involved in the promotion of Chinese sports, with even their grandchildren marrying diving athletes.

While watching the situation at the racetrack, Ye Dongsheng also sized up the foreigner in front of him.

Shipping magnate Y.K. Pao had no sons but four daughters, which resulted in four sons-in-law marrying into his family.

The eldest son-in-law, Su Haiwen, is a European. He was originally a renowned lawyer, fluent in multiple languages, and a graduate of a prestigious university in Chicago. Later, he married Bao Yugang's daughter and went directly to work in the family business.

The second son-in-law, Wu Guangzheng, was a top student in architecture. He later inherited Bao Yugang's real estate business, and several real estate companies, including Wheelock and Wharf Holdings, came under Wu Guangzheng's name.

The third son-in-law is Japanese. He inherited Bao Yugang's business in Japan, which includes finance, automobile trading, and so on. He is said to be the largest automobile trader in Japan.

The fourth son-in-law, Zheng Weijian, is also quite remarkable. He is a world-renowned oncology expert who later abandoned medicine for politics and also managed the investment fund of the Bao Yugang family.

The man in front of me, Su Haiwen, is the Austrian who married my eldest daughter. He speaks fluent Cantonese.

Nowadays, Hong Kong people are influenced by the British and have to give themselves an English name. However, Su Haiwen does the opposite and never mentions his real name. He always emphasizes his Chinese name when he meets people.

A few years ago, he even added the character "Bao" before his name, making his full name Bao Suhaiwen. Obviously, the "Bao" was added to please the shipping magnate. As for his English name, it has long been forgotten.

On the track, Black Pearl, who was originally in the lead, was half a body length ahead. However, the red horse behind her suddenly burst out with amazing sprinting power. The mane on its withers was pulled into a straight horizontal line by the speed, and it caught up with Black Pearl with the naked eye. It was none other than Shen Ya, the horse of Huo Zhenting.

This was the final stretch of the race, drawing the attention of the entire racecourse. The neck-and-neck race caused the shouts from the stands to become a piercing scream, and the edges of the bettors' tightly clenched tickets were wrinkled with sweat.

Finally, the noses of the two horses became level, and they crossed the finish line together.

Moments later, when it was announced that Black Pearl had crossed the finish line first by a narrow margin, a thunderous roar of cheers and sighs erupted from the stands. Winning gamblers threw their hats into the air, while losers pounded on the railings in frustration.

Inside the private box, Su Haiwen laughed heartily, "Luckily, Black Pearl's lead in the first half was big enough, otherwise Shen Ya would have really caught up!"

Huo Zhenting smiled and shook his head, then raised his glass with Ye Dongsheng to congratulate him.

Su Haiwen was in a great mood, not only because of the horse race that had just taken place, but also because his shipping magnate father-in-law had recently made a will, dividing the family fortune into four parts according to industry, and Su Haiwen would inherit the shipping empire worth tens of billions!

"Brother Wen, I heard that the Dong family is in a bad situation lately?"

Su Haiwen nodded: "The Plaza Accord, coupled with the oil price crash this year, has made things even worse for the Dong family, who were already heavily indebted!"

Uncle Tung took too big a step back then, and now things are difficult to manage unless he gets a large sum of money back. But right now, no one in Hong Kong can come up with that much money to help them through this crisis. They're really in trouble this time!

The Tung family they were referring to is another shipping magnate in Hong Kong, Tung Chao-yung. During the shipping boom of the 70s, he made the opposite decision to Pao Yue-kong, and expanded aggressively. However, after the shipping industry declined in the 80s, the Tung family suddenly fell into difficulties. Currently, the company is heavily indebted and in a very difficult situation.

The Dong family was originally known as the shipping magnates of Asia, meaning that their main business was in Asia, and the main shipping route in Asia was actually to Japan.

However, with the signing of the Plaza Accord in Japan, the appreciation of the yen has led to a decline in the competitiveness of its goods exports, resulting in a decrease in Japanese exports and inevitably affecting shipping.

As crude oil prices plummeted, oil-exporting countries also reduced their oil exports, causing tanker shipping prices to fall sharply as well.

The Dong family is now in a very difficult situation due to the combined impact of these two factors.

At this moment, Ye Dongsheng suddenly interjected, "It is indeed difficult, but it's not necessarily insurmountable."

Su Haiwen looked at Ye Dongsheng and asked with interest, "Oh? Tell me about it, Dongsheng!"

Ye Dongsheng smiled and said, "Just because no one in Hong Kong is willing to lend a hand doesn't mean the mainland isn't."

Su Haiwen smiled and said, "You're right. If the mainland is willing to help, the Dong family can indeed overcome their difficulties. However, in that case, the Dong family may have to keep a low profile for a while..."

If they accept help from the mainland, it's tantamount to completely siding with one side. In reality, most Hong Kong businessmen are currently fence-sitters, meaning they don't offend either the British Hong Kong government or the mainland, thus avoiding any targeting.

People like the Huo family, who have long been staunch supporters of the mainland, have been openly suppressed by the British Hong Kong government, so they have kept a relatively low profile in Hong Kong over the years.

Ye Dongsheng smiled and said, "Keeping a low profile for a while is better than going bankrupt completely. Besides, the future of Hong Kong Island lies in the mainland, so it's better to choose sides sooner rather than later!"

Haha, the first number one government official in Hong Kong was from the Tung family!

He knew very well that the Dong family had received help from the mainland over the next two years and had weathered this crisis.

Knowing this information, if we could lend a hand to Lao Dong now, it would be a timely help. Wouldn't it be wonderful when Lao Dong comes to power in the future?
Unfortunately, the difficulties the Dong family is facing are beyond Ye Dongsheng's ability to intervene; what they lack is a ten-figure sum of money!
Su Haiwen smiled but didn't dwell on the topic. Although his father-in-law was a patriotic Hong Kong businessman, he himself wasn't truly Chinese; he only cared about business. Currently, the mainland was relatively closed off, and its share in his shipping business was far too small. "I wonder how long the impact of the Plaza Accord will last?" Su Haiwen sighed.

For those in the shipping industry, the impact of such sudden political events is significant; adjusting shipping routes is not something that can be done overnight. In Lao Bao's shipping empire, Japan, an economic powerhouse, is also an important part. His third son-in-law is Japanese.

The Plaza Accord has only been signed for a little over two months, and those involved are still unable to see the full picture.

Ye Dongsheng smiled and said, "I estimate it will take at least a few years."

The US has fattened up its pigs, and now that its own fiscal deficit and trade deficit have reached new highs, it's only natural to slaughter the pigs and eat the meat!

But I think this is a good thing for us!

"Oh? What do you say?"

"The Hong Kong dollar is pegged to the US dollar, and with the yen appreciating continuously, costs on Hong Kong Island are seen as decreasing by Japanese companies. They will continue to accelerate the transfer of labor-intensive industries, and Hong Kong Island, as a capital flow hub in Southeast Asia, will become a 'springboard' for Japanese investment in China."

After Hong Kong Island takes on these orders, it will turn its attention to the mainland, where labor and raw material costs are lower, and accelerate the transfer of industries to the mainland!
Both Hong Kong and mainland China will benefit from this!

After listening to Ye Dongsheng's analysis, both of them were immediately impressed: "Ah Sheng, we didn't expect you to have such insightful views on the international situation! It seems we'll have to learn more from you in the future!"

Ye Dongsheng smiled modestly: "I just happened to read some newspaper analyses."

Su Haiwen now looked at Ye Dongsheng with new respect. He came here to give Huo Zhenting face. In fact, the so-called chartering of the air route was just a matter of a word, which his secretary could handle.

Given the scale of Ye Dongsheng's small business, he didn't even take it seriously. After all, Ye Dongsheng was just using speedboats to deliver packages to the mainland; compared to his world-class shipping company, it was like child's play.

I never expected the other party to have such a broad vision and to be able to speak so eloquently about the international situation. This level of understanding is something that someone who only cares about small business in front of them could not possess!
Su Haiwen smiled and said, "Ah Sheng, do you have any suggestions for our shipping business?"

Ye Dongsheng chuckled and shook his head: "Brother Wen, you're involved in a global business. I'm just a deliveryman; I wouldn't dare to presume to teach you a lesson."

"It's okay. Your cross-border trade is also transportation, and my shipping is also transportation. We're all in the same business, so what's the difference?"

Ye Dongsheng smiled and said, "Since Brother Wen says so, then I will speak boldly. In my opinion, the Plaza Accord will affect the overall development of the world."

As for the US, I don't need to tell you, Brother Wen should already know that their export volume will definitely continue to rise in the next few years.

In Asia, the relocation of Japanese manufacturing will directly promote the rise of several surrounding regions, such as Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korea. These are all regions with the foundation to absorb the relocation of Japanese industries…

Su Wenhai and Huo Zhenting listened to Ye Dongsheng's analysis and fell into thought. Whether Ye Dongsheng was right or wrong was one thing, but at least he could provide them with reference and judgment.

The Huo family has been suppressed in recent years and has not been able to take any action. However, Su Wenhai is really considering whether to add some routes to the benefiting regions and adjust the business of the Bao family's shipping empire if the development really goes as Ye Dongsheng said.
Ye Dongsheng spent the entire afternoon at the racetrack. At first, the group watched the horse races, but later they started exchanging information.

Huo Zhenting and Su Wenhai know a lot about the current affairs of the upper echelons of Hong Kong, which Ye Dongsheng is currently unaware of. Moreover, the experience they casually share, which allows them to manage such large businesses, is invaluable to Ye Dongsheng.

Ye Dongsheng, on the other hand, stood on the shoulders of giants, possessing various analyses and explanations of the current era from later generations. Many of his views and opinions gave the two of them a sense of clarity and enlightenment.

It's not that they can't analyze these things, but even these experts, when they're in the thick of it, can only see a part of the picture and can't have a clearer perspective like a time traveler like Ye Dongsheng.

The gathering was a great success, with both hosts and guests enjoying themselves. Su Wenhai even exchanged phone numbers with Ye Dongsheng and agreed to keep in touch frequently in the future.

……

Inside the car, Ye Dongsheng couldn't help but sigh. What was a rather thorny problem for him was nothing to these top figures in Hong Kong.

For example, the matter of his purpose in coming today—to lease the shipping route from Hong Kong Island to Shantou Port—was something that Su Wenhai resolved in just 10 seconds.

However, this is only the most basic gain today. In comparison, being able to exchange contact information with the other party and gain their special treatment is the greater gain!

He then smiled and thought to himself that the other party was quite impressive. He could become the head of a multi-billion dollar empire just by marrying a wife. His ability to live off a woman was top-notch!
Of course, after a conversation, it became clear that although this Austrian fellow was a son-in-law, he was very capable; otherwise, he wouldn't have gained Lao Bao's approval and been allowed to inherit the business.

Ye Dongsheng wasn't so lucky; he had to start from scratch and work his way up step by step.

If we're talking about the potential to be a gigolo, Ye Dongsheng does have it, but unfortunately, he's just a shallow guy who only cares about looks. Only someone like Moonlight or Ruan Mei can catch his eye!

With assets worth tens of billions, I wonder if he can reach that level within 10 years?

Ye Dongsheng smiled and shook his head. He shouldn't be thinking about such messy things now. The most urgent thing for him was whether he should raise a racehorse.
Horse racing is very popular on Hong Kong Island, and these upper-class people also enjoy raising horses, some even owning more than one.

This thing, like golf, isn't a competitive sport or activity, but rather a means of socializing!

He didn't want to be like he was today again, watching the game alone in a private room while everyone else had horses running on the field, and he could only be a spectator, unable to even get a word in edgewise!

……

Inside the villa, Jiang Tiansheng, who had just swum two laps, saw Chen Yao approaching and leaned over the edge of the pool.

"Ah Yao, what's up?"

"Mr. Jiang, Ye Dongsheng has contacted me and wants to meet you tomorrow!"

Jiang Tiansheng's expression brightened with joy. He said that the other party was a smart man and would agree to his cooperation!

(End of this chapter)