Returning wealthy individuals develop their hometowns and become rich in the 1980s

"Director Yang, Xiaochi agrees with the proposal put forward by the Shanghai Municipal Government."

Yang Guoliang gripped Chen Dong's hand with much more force than before, and his smile deepened. He hadn't expected Chen Dong to agree so readily; he had thought he would have to do some persuasion, but it turned out to be a deal so easily.

"Mr. Chen, then it's settled." Yang Guoliang released his hand, took out a document from his briefcase, added and deleted some information on it, and handed it to Chen Dong. "This is my draft letter of intent. Take a look at it first. The specific contract will be decided after the city holds a meeting to discuss it."

Chen Dong took the document, flipped through it, and found that every clause was clearly written, even the repurchase clause after 20 years had a specific calculation method marked on it, which was obviously written after careful consideration.

The land use rights for the automobile city established by Xiaochi Company are for a period of 50 years. However, Xiaochi Company must consult with the Shanghai Municipal Government before any transfer or mortgage of the land use rights can be carried out. This can be seen as a disguised constraint on Xiaochi Automobile to prevent Chen Dong from using the land for cash-out activities.

As for the corporate income tax being levied at a reduced rate of 15%, the exemption for two years and the halving of tax for three years for businesses operating for more than 10 years, the exemption of customs duties and consolidated industrial and commercial tax for imported construction machinery, equipment, vehicles and building materials, etc., these were all similar to what was given by Tuocheng, so Chen Dong did not investigate further.

Chen Dong closed the document and said to Yang Guoliang, "Okay, Director Yang, I will review the document and contract. Once the municipal government has reached a conclusion, you can give me an answer."

Yang Guoliang stood up, shook hands with Chen Dong, and said, "Mr. Chen, I won't bother you any longer. I'll let you know the good news as soon as the municipal government comes out with the results. I'll be leaving now."

Yang Guoliang was about to leave when Chen Zaixing, who had been listening to their conversation, tried to stop him. "Director Yang, I have some things I need to ask you. Let me introduce myself. My name is Chen Zaixing, and I am the chairman of Huaxingsheng Company. This is my business card."

Yang Guoliang took the business card from Chen Zaixing and looked at Chen Dong hesitantly. Chen Dong smiled and said, "This is my cousin. He is a real estate developer in Tuocheng and also owns a Huaxingsheng Supermarket. He heard that I was going to invest in a factory in Shanghai, so he thought he would also come here to open a branch of Huaxingsheng Supermarket. He has his eye on a commercial building on Nanjing Road and was thinking of asking Director Yang if he could contact the owner."

"That's great! I wonder which building Mr. Zaixing has your eye on?" Yang Guoliang was equally interested in Chen Zaixing. These days, those who can get involved in real estate development are either people with connections or people with abundant funds. Obviously, Chen Zaixing belongs to the latter. What Shanghai is lacking now is big investors like Chen Dong and Chen Zaixing.

Chen Zaixing unfolded the map and pointed it out to Yang Guoliang. Yang Guoliang immediately knew where it was after looking at it. He smiled and said, "This building used to be privately owned. Later, after the wind rose, it was nationalized. In recent years, the policy has changed, and some overseas Chinese have started to come back to reclaim their property rights. The building that you are interested in, Mr. Zaixing, falls into this category."

"I want to acquire this building outright. Director Yang, do you have any good ideas on how to help me take it over?" After saying that, Chen Zaixing smiled and pushed a Huazi cigarette over. Yang Guoliang understood and took the cigarette, saying, "It's easy. It just depends on whether you want to solve the problem once and for all, or get things done with less money first."

Chen Zaixing leaned back in his chair, a cigarette in his hand, and squinted as he asked Yang Guoliang, "Director Yang, what's the explanation for this? Please tell me."

"Alright, then I'll explain it to you," Yang Guoliang rolled up the map he had spread out and put it aside. "Gentlemen, this building currently belongs to the Shanghai Municipal Government and is state property. In principle, it cannot be directly sold to private individuals, as I'm sure you both understand."

Chen Dong and Chen Zaixing both nodded. Yang Guoliang continued, "The most effective way right now is for Mr. Chen Zaixing to first lease the property from the municipal government, then find the original owner and transfer the ownership directly."

"However, this will involve a lot of trouble. The original homeowner may raise the price on the spot, and the municipal government may argue about the original homeowner's property deed and other related transfer procedures. These are all troublesome."

"If you want to get things done quickly and cost less, you can lease directly from the municipal government and sign a long-term contract. When the landlord comes over, he can handle the disputes with the municipal government. However, it's hard to say whether your supermarket will relocate in the future."

Yang Guoliang stopped there, assuming Chen Dong and Chen Zaixing understood the key point. Chen Dong smiled and asked Yang Guoliang, "Director Yang, is the homeowner currently in China or overseas?"

"After liberation, they moved to Hong Kong. We have no idea what they are doing there now, whether they are still alive, or whether they have children," Yang Guoliang replied ambiguously.

"Alright, it'll be much easier if it's in Hong Kong. Thank you, Director Yang, for clearing things up for us," Chen Dong said with a smile as he stood up. Yang Guoliang repeatedly said it wasn't necessary. After the two brothers saw Yang Guoliang out of the room, Chen Dong said, "I'll contact people in Hong Kong to help you find the owner of this property. Don't worry, Fifth Brother, this building will belong to Huaxingsheng Supermarket from now on."

Chen Zaixing was aware of Chen Dong's influence in Hong Kong. He smiled and nodded, then began to plan how to proceed with the renovations.

On the Shanghai Automotive side, Bai Jianbo and others were still delving into the specific details of their negotiations with Xiaochi when the secretary hurriedly knocked on the conference room door and came in. Bai Jianbo frowned unhappily, and upon hearing the secretary's whispers, he glared angrily, almost slamming his fist on the table in his anger.

"You little bastard," even Bai Jianbo, with his excellent self-control, couldn't help but swear after hearing the secretary's report about the leaked information from the municipal government office.

"I finally managed to set up the stage, and before we even got to perform, the city government is tearing it down! This is outrageous!" Bai Jianbo, increasingly indignant, waved his hand and said to everyone, "That's all for today, meeting adjourned!"

After saying that, Bai Jianbo stormed out of the conference room. When Fan Guotao saw Bai Jianbo's demeanor, he wondered if there had been a major breakthrough in the negotiations with Xiaochi. He immediately closed his notebook and quickly chased after him.

"Secretary Bai, what's wrong? Has something happened to General Manager Chen?"

"The municipal government is bypassing our factory and directly negotiating shares with Chen Zaidong. The letter of intent is almost ready, and the listing committee plans to discuss it tomorrow," Bai Jianbo said angrily, veins bulging in his neck. Fan Guotao was dumbfounded and hurriedly asked, "How many shares does the municipal government want from Xiaochi?"

"20%!"

"This won't do! What will happen to Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC)?"