Rebirth: Outstanding

The businessmen from Shanghai that Du Zhaojian said were businessmen who moved from Shanghai to Hong Kong after the defeat of the Kuomintang in 1949. The term businessmen is not practical enough to be accurate. Indeed, there are many wealthy businessmen and industrialists in Shanghai, but there are also many. Former Kuomintang officials who fled huge amounts of wealth to Hong Kong due to corruption, and some tycoons such as Du Yuesheng.

Each of these visitors from Shanghai is worth a lot of money, and they are all top figures who have spent many years in the Great Shanghai Shiliyangchang, a city that never sleeps in the Far East. Visiting a small place like Hong Kong is naturally like swallowing mountains and rivers with anger and dragons crossing the river. Banks, jewellery and gold shops, factories, logistics, and shipping, as long as they look at one industry to make money, four or five businessmen from Shanghai will invest in partnership and enter the market, quickly seizing the market that belongs to these local Chinese businessmen.

Frankly speaking, whether it is Chu Yaozong in Chaozhou, Zhou Xiyu in Wuyi, or even Cai Wenbo in Dongguan, these local Chinese businessmen at the top of the pyramid have been doing business in Hong Kong for 20 to 30 years, and even more. The two generations of father and son doing business in Hong Kong have seen a lot of strong winds and waves. With the vision that the city can become the leader of the three major Cantonese chambers of commerce, where can it go? But it is the first time I have seen so many wealthy businessmen appearing in the small city of Hong Kong at the same time.

Most importantly, it was the first time they saw such an unruly outsider.

Hong Kong is a small place, but it does not exclude any outsider from coming here to make money. These Shanghai businessmen have big capital and like to do big business. Even if the local Cantonese businessmen complain that the other party has robbed their own business share, they will not be black hands. , Or do some nasty things of vicious competition.

Chu Yaozong, these traditional Chinese businessmen, can’t tell the more professional Western economics terms such as financial markets and capital operations, but they have years of experience in business warfare and know that the more money these Shanghai businessmen bring to Hong Kong, the greater Hong Kong’s business can be done. .

Therefore, since Shanghai merchants entered Xiangjiang in 1949, local Cantonese merchants agreed that after all, everyone was Chinese and they were doing business under the British colonial rule. These Shanghainese left their homeland and entered Hong Kong. As local merchants, local merchants could not give These outsiders of the same tribe were too embarrassed, so they did not deliberately join forces to target these powerful Shanghai businessmen. They have always embraced the benign competition between Cantonese businessmen and Shanghai businessmen, and everyone makes money based on their ability and the idea of ​​making money with qi.

However, these visitors from Shanghai did not have the idea of ​​making money in harmony. Although Shanghai is a Far East metropolis with many concessions, it still has the National Government's supervision and operation before it. Hong Kong is a British Far East colony, and the supervision and various policies and regulations are far less than Shanghai. Time is so harsh, which makes Shanghai businessmen who have discovered various business loopholes suddenly unable to bear it. From the end of 1949 to 51 years now, in just two years, the local Cantonese businessmen have been forced to retreat again and again. .

The banking industry has always been the world of Cantonese merchants. The shipping industry has been fragmented and plundered by Shanghai merchants. The gold and silver trade field where most Cantonese businessmen are based is now divided into two parts, with half on the market and half on the sidelines. .

"Everyone is Chinese, no one is forbidden to do business in Hong Kong, but they must abide by the rules of business in doing business. These Shanghai businessmen are all speculators, different from you and me. Starting from the Spring Festival this year, There are four closed banks, five bank accounts, and three money shops. All of them are the business of our Cantonese, and all of them are the business of the Shanghai businessmen. It’s not that Hang Seng Bank will save a few, and more will be closed.” Du Zhaojian finished drinking his tea, staring at Chu Yaozong and said, “Even the two businesses of bus and ferry do not have one or two Shanghai businessmen want. Intervene. Fortunately, I barely have some fame in the eyes of the British, and I have been awarded a medal. I can talk to the British, otherwise I am afraid that my business has been robbed of half by the Shanghainese."

Chu Yaozong slowly helped the two to fill their tea cups again: "In less than two years since the liberation of the mainland, the large and small banks, bank accounts, and money shops opened by the Chinese in Hong Kong have closed at least 30. If we Cantonese The bank fights against the Shanghainese's bank. The method is nothing more than raising interest on deposits and then running on each other. In the end, the fishermen profited by the British and drove all those who wanted to save money to the banks opened by the British. This period of time The British ghosts allow the banking industry to turmoil, not necessarily because they want to see us Chinese infighting. Every time we close a bank, whether it is a Cantonese or a Shanghai bank, ordinary people will treat us Chinese. The bank was disappointed. Finally, he deposited his hard-earned money in a bank opened by Gui Lao."

"Don’t fight and behave? Don’t let the Shanghainese make the move without the rules, we can’t return the move? Don’t talk about the bank, talk about the gold and silver market (referring to the Hong Kong gold and silver trade market), the rules of the gold and silver market, if it’s not gold If the clerks of the silver market want to participate in the trading of the gold and silver fair, they must entrust the clerks of the gold and silver fair to carry out the transactions. These Shanghainese have just made a mistake, and eat up the profits that originally belonged to the trade fair. The rules of the silver field are not set by the British, but by the Chinese. All the staff are from our Cantonese. The Shanghainese did this to steal money from the Cantonese nakedly. We Cantonese are not united anymore and we will be caught by these sooner or later. The Shanghainese drove to the sea." Du Zhaojian's tone was already a bit fierce.

Chu Yaozong looked at Deng Zhaojian: "What do you mean?"

"I'm in the early days, in the name of the Charity Fundraising Dinner of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, I brought together the bosses of the Guangzhou Chamber of Commerce in Chaozhou, Wuyi, Dongguan, etc., to discuss this matter, but without the three of you, the presidents just spoke about it. I can't save my face. If I don't unite, I will have to wok." Du Zhaojian took a deep breath and touched his bald head with his hand to calm himself down.

Chu Yaozong leaned back on his seat and slowly closed his eyes: "The people in Shanghai started from crossing the sea to speculate in gold, and now they are making waves in the banking industry. They are indeed terrifying, but most of the businessmen in the family do not The Shanghainese are hurting their muscles and bones. Those who close the door are nothing more than people who have a poor vision, a greedy appetite, and a small scale but want to swallow a giant elephant. In the past, the three major chambers of commerce competed separately, and the British drew an isolated one. China’s chambers of commerce suppressed the two joint chambers of commerce. On the surface, our three major chambers of commerce are constantly fighting each other, but in fact, we all know that those discords on the surface are good for everyone and can develop steadily. But if we three Unity, fighting against Shanghainese, instead gave Shanghainese a chance. Think about it, what if those British people praise the Shanghainese and overwhelm the local snakes of our Guangdong? You have to know, those Shanghainese don’t Lack of money, what is lacking is the opportunity for the British to take them. If they really want to get this opportunity, that is the situation where they are really full of fangs and eat people at every turn. This is also the reason why the three of us have never spoken, this Opportunities cannot be given to Shanghainese. If they are not given, they can only continue to jump up and down with the money in their hands.

"If you don't unite to fight the Shanghainese, the business is not stable, and you are afraid that the British will give the Shanghainese a chance. Would you just sit back and wait for death?"

Chu Yaozong opened his eyes, turned his face to look at Du Zhaojian, who was too far behind in raising qigong, and smiled slightly: "Be patient, the British are also very dissatisfied with these Shanghainese who do not follow their rules, but the British can bear it. , We are all Chinese. What can’t be tolerated? Since the Shanghai businessmen entered Hong Kong, I have endured it for two years and waited for another two years. How difficult is it? Zhao Jian, the Japanese robbed you back then For the bus company in Beijing, you have not endured it for nearly four years? How about the Japanese in four years, and how about you? It’s only two years now, the time has not arrived, it’s still too early."