The birth of the Hong Kong Island family

Time flies, and two months have passed in the blink of an eye.

In the office of Global Shipping, Lin Zhichao could not help but feel his heart beat faster when he looked at the financial statements. The rent for July has not yet been recorded in the account, but Global Shipping still has a cash flow of US$16.8 million and a debt of US$1.5 million to build new ships for the UK.

Global Shipping, which has 59 cargo ships and a load capacity of 610,000 tons, is like a golden rooster that lays golden eggs, continuously generating large amounts of profits. In fact, if Lin Zhichao had not signed many five-year leases for Global Shipping, the annual profit would not have reached more than 20 million US dollars.

After browsing the information for a while, Lin Zhichao paused and thought.

It’s time for Global Shipping to buy oil tankers!

However, Lin Zhichao has no idea of ​​entering the field of oil tankers in a big way, because oil ships currently account for about 15% of the total merchant ships in the world, which shows that the market is not very good; at the same time, Lin Zhichao is also worried about the safety performance of oil tankers. A large number of When buying a second-hand tanker, the chance of an accident increases.

Therefore, this time, Global Shipping plans to increase the load capacity by 100,000 tons, but only plans to purchase four second-hand oil tankers of 10,000 to 20,000 tons, and the rest will still purchase cargo ships.

In terms of freighters, the market has further expanded. Although the price is not high, it is still a normal market. A second-hand ship can be returned in two or three years. The important thing is that Lin Zhichao will only sign a two-year lease or short-term lease.

All roads lead to Rome, and they may not necessarily follow the path of Bao Yugang in his previous life. Dong Haoyun has also become the largest independent shipping king, but he will not land in the end.

"Boss, it's time for the conference room!" Assistant Chen Tian'an walked into the office and said respectfully.

Lin Zhichao stood up energetically and walked towards the conference room, just like a general preparing for a battlefield.

When they came to the conference room, more than a dozen senior executives were preparing for a meeting. When they saw Lin Zhichao coming in, they just paid normal attention because Lin Zhichao didn't like an overly 'bureaucratic' meeting style.

"The conference room has officially begun! This meeting is mainly to lay out the arrangements for Global Shipping's new round of expansion. I hope to add four more oil tankers of more than 10,000 tons and three or four cargo ships of more than 10,000 tons to Global Shipping. Vice President Feng General manager, tell me!"

Lin Zhichao directly named Feng Yongfa. Everyone already knew about these plans. He was just preparing to test his subordinates normally.

Feng Yongfa nodded and then said: "At present, the largest oil tanker is the one launched in Hamburg, Germany last year with a load capacity of more than 40,000 tons. Other oil tankers generally have a load capacity of about 10,000 to 20,000 tons. Before 1949, the largest oil tanker was only 20,000 tons. tons. Therefore, oil tankers of 10,000 to 20,000 tons are currently common types of second-hand oil tankers. As for senior seafarers, we plan to use the newly trained to drive the previous second-hand ships and carefully select a group of senior seamen with rich experience to drive them. Tanker.”

Lin Zhichao knew that the reason why oil tankers did not develop towards large tankers was because of two reasons: first, large oil tankers require deep-water ports, which are not yet available in most ports in the world; second, only after the closure of Suez in 1956, Make people aware that only large tankers can handle this situation.

At the same time, most of the current 10,000 to 20,000-ton oil tankers were built in the 1930s and 1940s, and are expensive.

The price of second-hand ships is floating, and can reach up to more than 90% of the price of new ships. For example, when the Suez was closed, even second-hand ships could be sold at prices close to new ships. Because at that time, second-hand ships were also hens that laid golden eggs.

At the same time, the current price of second-hand ships has not fallen, but has increased. The price of an oil tanker is much higher than that of a cargo ship, so it is a big investment. Of course, the rent will also increase accordingly.

Later, Lin Zhichao said to Gao Qiqiang: "What does your department think of the tanker business?"

Gao Qiqiang said confidently: "The four oil tankers will still be popular in the Japanese market, so we don't have to worry about the owners."

Lin Zhichao shook his head and said: "Japan's demand for oil tankers is still small for the time being. Only Europe and the United States are the major consumers of oil tankers. And in terms of long-term interests, I prefer to lease to large European and American oil companies. Therefore, your department just made a survey plan , about this aspect.”

Gao Qiqiang immediately said: "Okay, boss!"

He knew that the boss had always done this kind of sales personally, so he could only do it first. The boss always likes to do it himself when it comes to buying boats and selling them for leasing.

In the end, Lin Zhichao arranged the purchase of ships and still purchased second-hand ships from the European market because the prices were cheaper than those in the United States. Although Britain is declining, its annual shipbuilding capacity is still the first in the world, not to mention the shipbuilding industries of Germany and France.

As for the U.S. shipbuilding industry, it has moved to the mainland, so it is not the first in the world. Moreover, since the United States owned a large number of ships as merchant ships after the war, it is not keen on building a large number of local ships.

As for Japan's shipbuilding industry, it has not yet come under Lin Zhichao's discernment, and it is expected to be in the late 1950s. On the contrary, if he builds new oil tankers, Lin Zhichao will definitely consider Germany.

Germany's industry is too developed, even after being divided up by various countries. Before 1949, the world's largest oil tanker was a German-made oil tanker with a load of more than 20,000 tons; last year (1953), Germany manufactured another oil tanker of more than 40,000 tons. It is expected that Germany is already building a 50,000-ton oil tanker, which will sail next year.

Therefore, in shipbuilding, Europe and the United States are still the leaders, and Japan can only be said to be in its initial stage. Next year, if the conditions provided by Japan are good, Lin Zhichao will be happy to build a small number of new ships.

Lin Zhichao's visit to Lee Shau Kee's wig factory can be regarded as the background of the wig industry. Hong Kong's wig industry has been around for less than a year, but now there are 18 wig factories employing more than 2,000 workers, making it a dazzling emerging industry.

And for all this, everyone attributes the credit to Lin Zhichao's main contribution, so he has received a lot of honors.

Lee Shau Kee's wig factory has two production lines and more than 100 workers. It can produce 300 to 400 wigs per month and can earn a monthly profit of 60,000 to 80,000. The raw materials and sales channels for wigs are still handed over to Yangtze River Trading.

"Many people have entered this industry and are preparing to make a big splash, and there are also many wig factory owners who are preparing to expand production. What do brothers Zhao Kee think?" Lin Zhichao asked.

Lee Shau Kee, who accompanied Lin Zhichao on the inspection, said with a serious expression: "I will not expand production! The threshold of the wig industry is too low, and everyone will soon flock to it. This is a good thing for the Hong Kong wig industry, but it is a challenge for us. Expanding hastily can easily lead to backlash, after all, costs are rising and prices are falling.”

Lin Zhichao nodded. Since Li Shauji did not pursue innovation in wig raw materials and sales channels, he knew that Li Shauji planned to become a 'satellite factory' of Yangtze Wigs.

"Well, I think so too. Of course, the popularity of wigs in Europe and the United States is still growing, so there is no need to worry about it, so just make money with peace of mind. Although the number of people entering this industry has increased recently, it does not affect the development of the entire industry. Lin Zhichao said.

He plans to support two people to become vice presidents of the Hong Kong Wig Chamber of Commerce. One is Lee Shau Kee and the other is Liu Qingshan, both of whom are trusted by Lin Zhichao. Chen Linyuan serves as the secretary-general, but is actually Lin Zhichao's spokesperson.

Of course, the Hong Kong Wig Traders Association is not expected to be established until next year, or the year after. Mainly, this wig trade association will not be influential until the wig industry really becomes famous in Hong Kong.

"By the way, Lin Sheng, I have a friend who wants to be the agent of Yangtze Zipper. He asked me to ask what you mean?" Li Zhaoji asked tentatively.

Yangtze Zipper has recently made rumors that it plans to recruit a Hong Kong businessman to become an agent, mainly in Hong Kong and Macao. Of course, it can also be an agent in Southeast Asia. There is no regional plan for this.

This is because the scale of Yangtze Zipper is getting bigger and bigger, and the growth trend this year is very good, and it no longer has the energy to contact the manufacturers directly. Moreover, the agent system has the advantage that agents will sell zippers very hard, because they are also beneficiaries.

"What's going on with your friend?" Lin Zhichao asked casually.

Lee Shau Kee immediately said: "He is from Xiangshan, Guangdong Province. He has been running grocery stores in Hong Kong and Macao. His name is Guo Desheng, who does quite well. We are all friends we met in the teahouse."

Lin Zhichao immediately thought about it. The candidate was indeed a good candidate, but was this considered as 'funding the enemy' and cultivating a real estate competitor?

However, he quickly said: "It seems to be quite suitable. There should be no problem in asking him to contact Wang Liang, the general manager of Yangtze Zipper."

Lee Shau Kee said: "Yeah. Mainly because he begged me, and I thought his conditions were suitable, so I took this line."

Lin Zhichao waved his hand and said, "It doesn't matter. As long as the conditions are right, it doesn't matter who acts as the agent."

Then the two of them stopped talking about this topic!

Lee Shau Kee is currently engaged in wigs, hardware, and trading. The hardware trade can only be regarded as a small business, earning only 200,000 Hong Kong dollars a year. On the contrary, the wig industry can bring him 8.9 million Hong Kong dollars a year.

As for whether Sun Hung Kai can be re-established, Lin Zhichao thinks there may still be the "Sun Hung Kai Big Three". After all, Lee Shau Kee is a relatively conservative person, and a partnership can avoid many risks.

Moreover, Sun Hung Kai seems to be a real estate company at the beginning, but in fact it is an alliance. Many real estate projects are divided into separate shares; the three founders also have private real estate companies and do some personal projects.

Of course, these matters have nothing to do with Lin Zhichao. With Lin Zhichao's current financial situation, it is difficult for anyone to help him, and it is even harder for him to do business in partnership with Hong Kong Chinese businessmen.

This is why dinosaurs are so big and huge!

What Lin Zhichao can do is network with a group of younger brothers to form a group. Therefore, although he will not do business in partnership with others, he does not care about supporting a group of people.

In late July, Lin Zhichao came to London, and Audrey Hepburn drove to pick him up.

"Are you nervous?" Audrey Hepburn asked slyly.

Lin Zhichao was sitting in the passenger seat. When he heard Audrey Hepburn's teasing, he said with relief: "Of course not. It's just my first time meeting the Baroness. I'm worried about whether I will be kicked out."

Audrey Hepburn is four months pregnant, and it would be inappropriate not to see her mother Ella Van Hemstra again.

"Hehe, I think you'd better be prepared!" Audrey Hepburn said in a relaxed tone.

Lin Zhichao said deliberately: "Don't you communicate well in advance and can't bear to make the world's shipping king so embarrassed? That's really too bad!"

Audrey Hepburn had no doubt that Lin Zhichao was bragging, but said: "You, the world's shipping king, seem to be very low-key, not as high-profile as Onassis. If so, maybe it will give my mother a good impression!"

Onassis is naturally high-profile. The superyacht converted from a Canadian warship has just signed the "Jeddah Agreement" with the Saudi government at the beginning of this year, which shocked the entire West and attracted a lot of pressure from the United States.

It turns out that the Saudi government and American oil companies have always signed a "mining license agreement", which means that Saudi Arabia will receive a certain license fee for drilling a barrel of oil. Because of this, the United States needs to develop its economy and naturally desires low oil prices. Therefore, the current price of oil in the world is generally between 2.7 and 3 US dollars per barrel. This price is a full ten times higher than the tens of dollars in later generations.

However, Onassis discovered a loophole in these agreements, that is, it did not stipulate who owned the fleets transporting oil. You must know that the cost of transporting oil may not be lost to the oil itself. For example, these are two equally big cakes.

Therefore, Onassis lobbied the Saudi government last year to nationalize the oil transportation rights, and then he cooperated with the Saudi government to build a fleet and make huge profits.

As a result, the old king did not dare to offend the United States, but the new king signed the "Jeddah Agreement" as soon as he came to power, which caused a sensation in the entire West and caused indiscriminate bombardment by the American political circles, business circles, and media. He even bribed Onassis' cronies to slander Onassis for bribing the Saudi royal family.

Therefore, under tremendous pressure, the new Saudi king could only unilaterally cancel the Jeddah Agreement.

Although Onassis invested in a large number of oil tankers (with a load capacity of 500,000 tons), he actually did not suffer any losses because the ships were still his; on the contrary, he became famous and major Western oil companies signed contracts with him.

It is also beneficial to be famous as a shipping king.

Lin Zhichao said with a smile: "If I am photographed by the media dating you, will it increase my reputation a lot?"

Audrey Hepburn's expression was overjoyed. The relationship between the two has always been secretive, and the reason for this is Lin Zhichao. Currently, Audrey Hepburn feels that since she is pregnant, even if it is exposed, the worst she can do is stop acting.

"Aren't you afraid?"

"Just let nature take its course! What I'm afraid of is not the rumors, but I don't want to be too high-profile and disturb your life."

Lin Zhichao really doesn't like the high profile of Onassis. After all, if he owns a 600,000-ton shipowner, he will soon own a 700,000-ton shipowner. If reported by the media, he will also become a new world shipping king.

Soon, the two came to an apartment building in London, held hands and knocked on a door.

"Hello, Baroness!" Lin Zhichao greeted Ella immediately as soon as he saw her.

When Ella saw Lin Zhichao, she had a very disdainful expression on her face, but probably because of Audrey Hepburn's insistence, she didn't chase them away directly.

Without saying a word, Ella looked at Lin Zhichao intently. After a long time, Ella said, "Come in, Asian!"

After entering, the two parties sat on the sofa. Lin Zhichao's face was full of smiles, which was the opposite of Ella's expression. And Audrey Hepburn poured tea for the two of them.

"I don't understand why Audrey falls in love with you. Can you tell me?" Ella said with an unhappy look on her face.

Lin Zhichao frankly talked about the scene when the two met and their experiences along the way. Finally, he said sincerely: "At the beginning, I did deceive her. At that time, I didn't realize the difference between our laws in Hong Kong and those in the West. Later I realized When it came to this question, I found that the two of us already loved each other deeply and were inseparable!"

What I mean by this is that I didn't break the law or anything. Polygamy is allowed in Hong Kong. Legally, there is nothing wrong with him.

Ella immediately said: "I don't think you will persist, and I don't like you to persist. Although I already know that you are rich, that kind of wealth is nothing in the West. Audrey is already a Hollywood superstar, If she waved, someone richer would chase her.”

This sentence is obviously a boast. A real rich man would not look down on Audrey Hepburn unless he was also a lover. Monroe is more famous than Audrey Hepburn, but she is just someone else's plaything.

Lin Zhichao said: "Of course Audrey is excellent, but she is now my person, she is done, and she also has our child in her belly. Of course, I will take good care of her. In five years, she will not regret it; After fifteen years, she still won’t regret it. So, Baroness, why don’t you tell me what you want me to do before you can trust me with your daughter!”

Audrey Hepburn also deliberately touched her pregnant belly at this time, the meaning is obvious!

Ella couldn't help it!

"We don't need anything! Don't be complacent. Even if Audrey gives birth to your child, I will still persuade her to leave you because you can't give her a marriage."

"If your persuasion is effective, it must be that I did not satisfy Audrey, so I will admit failure."

The subtle tit-for-tat confrontation caused Audrey Hepburn to quickly come out as peacemaker. Of course she had been conquered by Lin Zhichao. Not to mention being a woman, she would do it even as a slave.

Lin Zhichao's charm is shared by all men, women and children, so Ella will soon be 'conquered' by Lin Zhichao and recognize this son-in-law.

"Okay, how about we go out for a meal?" Audrey suggested.

"Of course," Lin Zhichao agreed.

Ella also wanted to understand Lin Zhichao deep down, so she agreed.

During his time in London, Lin Zhichao lived a very good life while getting along with Audrey, Ella and his daughter, while dealing with ship purchase matters. Ella's feelings towards Lin Zhichao soon changed surprisingly. Although she did not directly agree with their relationship, she did not make things difficult for them either.

"Boy Lin, are you sure that the company you and Audrey co-founded has a bright future, instead of writing a bad check to my daughter?" Ella said enthusiastically when the family was having dinner that day.

"Don't worry, Baroness. Currently, Bierlili, which I have developed with a German partner, is already selling well in Europe. It is expected to sell 100,000 to 150,000 this year. And Barbie is even better than the previous one. I think it will be available next year." Calculating this by selling 300,000 units, the company can earn at least half a million US dollars (including clothes). The important thing is that Barbie is a big toy IP that can continue to operate and become the same as "Roman Holiday" Classic." Lin Zhichao explained.

It is better to teach a man how to fish than to teach him how to fish. Giving money directly to a woman is a way to deal with a "passing lover". Since Audrey Hepburn was willing to give birth to her child, of course he was willing to give her an easy career.

It doesn't matter if she doesn't want to run the business, Lin Zhichao just needs to do it in her name and leave it to professional managers. Of course, the overall business policy is still in Lin Zhichao's mind.

Ella immediately said: "Audrey is pregnant now. It is not convenient to go to companies in the United States. Do you need me to go there to prevent those American country people from lying to you?"

Lin Zhichao choked, if Americans are all country people, then he himself is not from the slums.

"Yes, yes, but it is planned to be run by professional managers, so if you go there, you can only go there as the mother of a shareholder." Lin Zhichao said.

He knew that Ella was a little worried and thought that Lin Zhichao was lying to her daughter.

"I don't want to run the company, and I don't want to interfere in the company's affairs."