The Birth of the Hong Kong Island Family.

Chapter 153 [Shanghai Ship King]

In the meeting room of He Dong Real Estate, Lin Zhichao and He Dong each signed their own names under the witness of their lawyers, which is considered to be a formal deal. Changjiang Real Estate won the Des Voeux Road Central of He Dong Real Estate at a price of 416 million Hong Kong dollars. Lot 77 has an area of ​​1.65 square feet.

For the planning of this land, Lin Zhichao has decided to pick it up, and he will not consider building it into the most beautiful building in Hong Kong until the late 50s.

"Thanks to Sir Ho Tung's completion, this land is really suitable for building the headquarters building, with Victoria Harbor in front, it is very suitable for my global shipping." Lin Zhichao said with a smile.

This piece of land is just south of the Central Ferry Terminal, and the north is the newly reclaimed land in Central - the future Exchange Building and International Financial Center. If Lin Zhichao builds a modern building with more than 20 floors (the tallest building in Hong Kong for a short time), it will be able to Overlooking Victoria Harbour, you can see the bustling business of Hong Kong and Kowloon, which is full of artistic conception.

He Dong said: "It's a pity that the land is still a bit small, otherwise you can build a beautiful building like HSBC Bank."

There is a lot of joking between the words, which shows that the relationship between the two is still good.

Lin Zhichao said with a smile: "How dare you compare with my God of Wealth, I am already satisfied to build a new building."

He Dong said again: "You can build such a foundation in five or six years. I believe that even if your company is not as big as HSBC in the future, you will not lose too much to it. When I was young, I was like you. , the whole body is full of money-making ideas; seeing you, I think of when I was young, but unfortunately I am old now, I can only guard my own one-acre three-point land, and I don’t want to make progress.” Aging touches the scene.

How could it be possible to lose to HSBC, Lin Zhichao thought in his heart.

"Sir Ho, I'm overwhelmed! But the younger generation is really similar to you when you were young, because my first pot of gold was introduced to Boss Li of Po Chai Pills, and since then, I have developed a strong interest in making money. Hobbies, thinking about making money all the time.”

He Dong was overjoyed immediately, because Lin Zhichao mentioned one of the most important things in his life, and also one of the most critical things in his opinion - when he was 26 years old, he got involved in the real estate brokerage industry (part-time, he was Yi and compradors), he heard that Duanna & Co. was going to sell a piece of land located between Des Voeux Road and Queen's Road in Central, so he took the initiative to ask for an intermediary.Knowing his character and ability, the Taipan of Duanna Foreign Firm entrusted him with full power, and set a reserve price of 30 Hong Kong dollars.In the end, Ho Tung lived up to expectations and sold it for HK$43.5, breaking the record for the highest land unit price since the opening of Hong Kong.Ho Tung drew 1% commission from both buyers and sellers, totaling HK$8700.

The two chatted happily, of course, there is also the reason why Lin Zhichao is good at communication.

Another group of old residential buildings - located at Nos. 16-20 Kimberley Road and Nos. 40-46 Carnarvon Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, was signed by Li Gaofu himself and Hotung Properties. The price was negotiated, a total of 102 million Hong Kong dollars .This old residential building complex covers an area of ​​2.335 square feet. Because there are residential buildings above that can be rented, it cannot be paid according to the land price, and the commercial area can be planned downstairs of such residential buildings.

Generally speaking, it is less than fifty Hong Kong dollars per square foot, which is really cheap.If the preparations for development in 1955 were kept, a 10-storey building could be built, with more than 20 residential units on each floor, that is, more than 200 units, each priced at 3 to 5 Hong Kong dollars, which is also a huge profit.

Back at Cheung Kong's office, Hu Zhaoxu came to Lin Zhichao's office and reported another piece of good news.

"Boss, the owner of Deep Water Bay No. 79 has agreed to sell it at a price of 48 Hong Kong dollars! After all, the owner is only a military officer stationed in Hong Kong. He knows that he will be sent to the Peninsula battlefield or return to China someday, so it is better to cash out .”

Lin Zhichao nodded, after all, he was still defeated by his ability.Although the deal was unexpected, it was Lin Zhichao who took the initiative to seek a deal on the grounds that he thought Feng Shui was good; and the British military officer naturally took the opportunity to sit on the ground and raise the price, which was [-]% more expensive.

For Lin Zhichao, it is not a problem to buy 79% more expensive. Who told him that he is determined to win No. [-] of Deep Water Bay!

This piece of land is only 1.2 square feet, but it can’t stand the excellent geomantic omen, surrounded by mountains at the back, and Repulse Bay in front of the side, surrounded by mountains and water; Nie Gaochen Mountain and Shouson Mountain form a "double gold gathering treasure", this place There is no flat land, but it was excavated, so a mountain lip was formed, which made the dragon's energy gather around and not disperse.

"Then arrange a contract!"

"Okay, this Friday is a good day to sign a contract. I will communicate with the owner."

"feasible"

After Hu Zhaoxu left, Lin Zhichao stretched himself, thinking happily about the progress of the property this year.To be honest, although shipping makes money and can bring him great prestige, Lin Zhichao feels that there is no property to make people feel at ease.

After all, the old saying that sailing is three-point risky has some truth.And real estate is an unchanging 'hegemony'. You think that the landlord has disappeared, but in fact it is just a different group of people and a different method.

At present, Cheung Kong is also considered to be a small success. The properties it owns include: Paterson Street Banbian Street (covering an area of ​​more than 21 square feet), Sing Tao Orchard Road (covering an area of ​​more than 20 square feet), No. 77 Des Voeux Road (1.65 square feet of commercial land), and several scattered properties.

The Lin family owns: Conduit Road Garden House (over 3000 square feet), No. 79 Deep Water Bay (over 1.2 square feet).

Lin Zhichao's heart suddenly became more at ease.Next year (1952) he will continue to look for land, and every year he will buy a certain amount of land and reserve it.

Worldwide shipping in early December.

Lin Zhichao is reviewing the accounts in the office. The cost of Global Shipping was well controlled in October and November, and the profit was in the early million dollars.And the rent in December came to the account one after another, Lin Zhichao felt that he could not spend it all, and of course it was just a "consolation".

In fact, shipping has never had enough money, at least until the 70s.

"dong dong"

"Come in"

Business manager Gao Qiqiang walked in, and then reported a message: "Boss, recently a new ship owner joined the fixed route from Yokohama to Hong Kong."

Lin Zhichao asked: "How is the strength? How many ships does it have, and how many tons of deadweight?"

It's not that the shipping volume from Yokohama to Hong Kong is very small, on the contrary, it's not bad. Although Yokohama is only a port city in Tokyo Bay, due to reconstruction, more materials are needed.

However, the fixed line is only a part of the capacity of this route, and a lot of the capacity is one-way short-term rental mode, or Japan's own fleet transportation.

Gu, adding one more ship will still have an impact!
Gao Qiqiang said: "It's from the Ningbo Gang, called Zhao Congyan. It seems that he made a lot of money in the peninsula campaign, and then stopped in time. It is said that there is only one ship at present, with a tonnage of 3500 tons, and the ship is very old."

Lin Zhichao suddenly realized: "It's him!"

Gao Qiqiang said, "The boss knows him?"

Lin Zhichao nodded, and told the story of Zhao Congyan's solicitation of goods to offend people.

"This time it's quite regular. The price is about the same as ours. There is still some capacity on this route. If there is another ship, the impact will not be too big, but it is still there. Fortunately, we have established a reputation with many merchants. , can still be dealt with.”

Although Global Shipping has only four ships on fixed routes, each of them is a large ship of 7500-8600 tons, which is much superior to other peers.

"If this is the case, we only need to do our own thing well. The main thing is that we must ensure a strong enough competitiveness to compete with other competitors." Soon, Lin Zhichao said so.

"Well, first observe and observe to see what the specific impact is, and then we will take some targeted measures." Gao Qiqiang said seriously.In his opinion, since he is a competitor, he naturally has to use some small means, which is of course allowed within the rules.

"The fixed route is mainly for business, so this matter is up to you to watch."

"Ok"

Shanghai School has four ship kings, Bao Yugang, Dong Haoyun, Zhao Congyan, and Cao Wenjin. Lin Zhichao naturally wants to "restrict" their growth, but the method must be "fair and aboveboard" and "talking about business in business". of small means.

To deal with Bao Yugang, Global Shipping has taken the lead in gaining the credibility and trust of HSBC and Japanese shipping companies, so Bao Yugang will never have half the achievements of his previous life, and it is already incredible to have a fleet of several million tons.

To deal with Dong Haoyun, Global Shipping will take the lead in "container transportation" and even be a pioneer in container transportation.

Because the main force of Bao Yugang’s fleet in the previous life was oil tankers, the main force of Dong Haoyun’s fleet was container ships, and the main force of Zhao Congyan’s fleet was bulk carriers. As for Cao Wenjin’s fleet, many of them were in Southeast Asia, and cooperated with the Southeast Asian national team in shipping companies.

In short, global shipping needs to pick three-Bao Yugang, Dong Haoyun, and Zhao Congyan, and the focus is to pick two-Bao Yugang and Zhao Congyan; because the bulk carrier business is the smallest, it may gradually reduce its development in the mid-50s.

the other side.

Zhao Congyan was sitting in the office building in Central that he had just rented, feeling very excited and feeling lucky to survive the catastrophe.

It turned out that he ran the dangerous journey for a full year, and lived in fear every day, because the National Star was his most valuable property.

Fortunately, during the early years of this year, he made a full 120 million US dollars, enough to buy three or four 'National Star Wheels'.

This month when the Guoxing returned to Hong Kong, he immediately chose to stop before taking the risky journey. After all, he heard that many people were caught in the trap and lost their fortunes.

"Go to buy another 3000 to 5000-ton second-hand cargo ship, and use the remaining funds to buy two [-]-[-]-ton cargo ships. My fleet will grow in no time."

"Although there is no risky way to make money, the current shipping situation is still very good, and the money is safe."

Zhao Congyan thought of the giant Global Shipping again. It is rumored that it has a fleet of about [-] tons, which is larger than Xu's fleet.

"In less than three years, Lin Zhichao has grown so fast in the fleet! I think he was just a person who didn't even have a boat when I met him at the dock. Now, it is five or six times the size of my fleet. Stranger!"

"No! It is said that Lin Zhichao has made a lot of money in real estate and gold, so if he invests this part of the money in shipping, I am afraid that he will start with a load capacity of [-] to [-] tons, and then rely on the support of HSBC Bank to grow to the present day. It's quite understandable."

"However, the price of long-term rental is much cheaper. Isn't he a little silly for agreeing to most of the long-term rental?"

In the end, Zhao Congyan felt that Lin Zhichao was a little stupid, and actually rented most of the boats for a long time, which would not make a lot of money.

As everyone knows, the shipping market has been good for only one year, and it may have to decline slowly before 1953.

"dong dong"

"Come in"

Zhou Yi, Zhao Congyan's confidant, came to his office.

"What's the reaction from Global Shipping?" Zhao Congyan asked.

To be honest, he was a little nervous. After all, the two sides were going to compete, and he wanted to grab food from the tiger's mouth.

Zhou Yi said with a smile: "The boss is overthinking. This fixed route is not a patent of a certain company. Naturally, it is reasonable for us to run. Therefore, Global Shipping also knows this and has not taken any action."

Zhao Congyan nodded and said, "It's just that I heard that Lin Zhichao is very domineering, so it's best to be careful."

Zhou Yi said, "Boss, are you talking about Lin Zhichao cheating Wang Tongyuan?"

Zhao Congyan said: "Although I don't know whether it is true or not, Wang Tongyuan did lose millions, and the textile industry was also affected. Now he has fallen behind brothers Tang Bingyuan and Tang Zhongyuan."

Losing millions of Hong Kong dollars in this era is already an astronomical figure.

In addition, in the past few years, people in Guangdong Province have wiped out all the gold merchants, financiers, and speculators in the Shanghai stock market. It is safest to do business safely and steadily.

Zhou Yi said: "After all, shipping is different. There are too many people doing shipping in Hong Kong, so it is normal for them to compete with each other."

Zhao Congyan thought for a while and said, "How is our business?"

Zhou Yi said: "The business has just started to develop, so I can't tell whether it is good or bad, but what is certain is that the market is really good. Japan has become the rear base of the US military, and the Japanese industry has received a large number of wartime special orders. And Japan's industrialization The way is the same as in Hong Kong, we have to rely on overseas raw material markets - cotton, rice, ore, metal, plastic, etc., the supply of goods is estimated to be stable, and although the profit is not as dangerous as the dangerous way, it must be very rich."

Zhao Congyan was relieved, but another old problem occurred again, and said: "I think Global Shipping is deeply rooted in this route and has a very good reputation. In order to stabilize our business as soon as possible, we should still offer a little discount. The price should not be too favorable, and we should not compete with Global Shipping." It is the same as shipping, but with a little concealment, it will definitely develop more quickly.”

Zhou Yi thought for a while, agreed with the boss's idea, and said, "No problem, I will arrange it."

Zhao Congyan breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I will soon buy another batch of ships, so we need to get the business done as soon as possible. Today, we are no longer fleeing in panic like we did in 1949, but we have truly established ourselves in Hong Kong." It’s time for shipping to flex its muscles.”

At this time, Zhao Congyan was in high spirits. After all, he had earned an extra 120 million US dollars a year, which was already a lot of money.In fact, he is not a shipping expert, but a shipping person who has become a monk halfway, so he planned to train his son to be a professional shipping person, and he had to choose a navigation major in college.

This morning, Feng Yongfa approached Lin Zhichao with a serious face.

"Boss, there was a problem with a ship on its way to Nagasaki, Japan this morning. According to the description of the chief engineer on the ship, there is a high probability that the main machine of the ship has a problem. I have arranged for He Yunjin, the manager of the technical department, to take people to Japan immediately. , personally supervise the maintenance, and minimize the loss as much as possible.”

Lin Zhichao also clicked. If the ship is damaged at sea for too long, the charterer will deduct money; if the cargo is refrigerated, it will be more complicated. If it is not handled in time, even the cargo will have to lose money.

If the money was deducted once, Lin Zhichao would feel heartbroken for a long time, because it was more than tens of thousands of dollars.

"Book a plane ticket for me, and we'll go together as soon as we have time."

Lin Zhichao decisively decided to board the ship himself and take the lead.

For the maintenance of such a major accident, it is necessary to hire a professional maintenance team from outside. In the waters of Japan, it is natural to invite engineers from Japanese shipyards. The problem is to maintain the machine.

"Ok"

At 9:[-] in the morning, Lin Zhichao got on the Hong Kong Airlines flight to Japan.

Hong Kong Airlines is one of the two airlines in Hong Kong. It is responsible for the northern routes. The major shareholders are Jardine Matheson and British Aerospace. The biggest market is missing.

The plane arrived in Nagasaki, but the ship stopped in the sea. Lin Zhichao and others had to take a barge to get on the ship.It was severe winter, and the sea was bitingly cold, and the icy waves splashed on Lin Zhichao and others, as sharp as a blade.

Lin Zhichao was in good health, but he also felt a strange cold, but he did not flinch and complain; instead, he joked to everyone with a smile: "Today's weather makes me think about winter swimming, lest I fall into the water that winter I can't react."

He Yunjin said tremblingly: "The boss is in good health, and winter swimming is no problem."

Lin Zhichao looked at everyone, including some Japanese engineers, who were frozen like dogs, lamenting the bad weather, but did not complain.

After more than an hour of sailing, I finally arrived on the 1-ton ship that ships around the world.The ship is one of seven large ships purchased in January last year.Unexpectedly, something went wrong, which is really a bit bad.

After boarding the boat, everyone drank some hot water and couldn't wait to understand the situation.

In the next three days, Lin Zhichao realized the truth of the three-point risk of sailing.During the repair time of the ship, the weather at sea was bad, the wind and the huge waves rolled by mercilessly, and the ship was like a rootless leaf, floating on the sea.

Fortunately, Lin Zhichao didn't get seasick, otherwise half his life would be lost.Even so, even a [-]-ton ship looks so small in the sea and in bad weather.

Of course, what makes people very happy is that the ship was repaired within three days and arrived at the port smoothly. The fine of tens of thousands of dollars was saved, because it was within a reasonable time.

The cause of the accident was not the responsibility of the seafarers, it was an accident of the second-hand ship itself. Lin Zhichao did not have any dissatisfaction, and instead invited everyone to have a dinner together to celebrate.

And this incident also reminded Lin Zhichao that the ships under his banner are all old ships, and the frequency of accidents may increase as time goes by.This major accident was the first time in more than two years, so Lin Zhichao was a little touched.

But there is no other way, second-hand boats are cheap, and the time to pay back is fast.Within 15 years of global shipping, I am afraid that all second-hand ships under the banner will not be eliminated.

　更新时间改改：每天12点~3点Chapter 1，每天晚上8~12点Chapter 2。

　　If there is a manuscript, it will be fixed at 12:8 noon and [-]:[-] pm.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)