The Industrial Giant Reborn

"Sheng Chen wants to invest in highways in Zhejiang Province?" Director Li's eyes lit up. This is a large-scale infrastructure project that is no less important than the port. It even drives the economy as much as the port, and the port + sufficient highways , then together, it will have the effect of 1+1 greater than 2. Tianjin’s Tanggu Port has suddenly begun to expand exponentially in the past two years. The fundamental reason is the opening of the Beijing-Tianjin-Tanggu Expressway, which conveniently and quickly connects Yan Beijing and Tianjin are two big cities with a population of more than 30 million. If you include the road links with nearby provinces and expressways, the number of people they drive will be even greater.

Even because of the emergence of expressways, many goods that were originally transported at a loss have become profitable, thus further stimulating the economy. It is because of the success of the Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan Expressway that everyone understands the importance of expressways, but Local governments simply cannot afford such a large investment. Even at the national level, investments must be planned slowly.

As early as a few years ago, the central government of the country had planned eight highway arteries, three horizontal and five vertical, running through the country in the future. Most of the cities in the country could be connected through auxiliary roads. However, the plan was made, but it was difficult to start. The amount of funds required is too great. The last five-year plan of the central government only planned a few cities in close proximity. Zhejiang Province was also planned to have a highway from Hangzhou to Ningbo, but there was no highway. Money, this is just a plan. If you want to build it, you have to pay for it yourself.

"Yes, I have this idea. I think Zhejiang's location and industrial base are very good. The economy will definitely get better and better in the future, so I think it is definitely more cost-effective to invest in expressways here." Chen Zhiwen laughed. said.

After the completion of the Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan Expressway, Hutchison Huangji Construction did not make any big moves in the mainland. Although it also invested in Tanggu Port, it was purely an investment and did not participate too much. However, it was still during the negotiation of the Hong Kong issue, so Chen Zhiwen also I didn't take the initiative to make any big moves.

Now, in 1985, Hong Kong and Britain are no longer a problem, and the domestic side has also begun a new round of further opening up, so naturally it is the time to invest.

Ports are one of them, but suitable ports have actually been discovered a long time ago. These places have basically been developed by local governments, but like Ningbo Port, they will lack money for modernization reforms.

Not to mention the great powers now, even the great powers a hundred years ago knew about the great role of ports. Therefore, the mainland government actually has a strong confidence, including the Ningbo Port in front of us. Although Hong Kong capital can participate, but It is more likely to be pure investment and appropriate management. In terms of price, it is difficult for the mainland to make concessions. After all, there are only a few high-quality deep-water ports.

Therefore, Chen Zhiwen is planning to invest heavily in ports in the mainland, but the upper limit is not very high. Firstly, there are only so many super large ports. Secondly, even if the mainland government introduces foreign investment into the ports, it is unlikely that many large ports will find one. This It is the most basic way to avoid risks. It would definitely be the same if Chen Zhiwen was in the mainland position.

But expressways are different. Currently, all in the country are 0, and the most indispensable thing in the country is cities with large populations. Every city needs expressways to develop its economy. In this way, you will have more choices.

Zhejiang Province, as a super-large economic province in later generations, is naturally Chen Zhiwen’s key target for highway investment. Especially in the 1980s, many quasi-first-tier cities could be said to have chosen it at will, while the other two super-large provinces, Suzhou and Guangdong, In Eastern Province, the former has the Yangtze River and the demand for highways is not very high in a short period of time. The latter has a lot of investment from Hong Kong and is not too short of money.

Therefore, this time I came to Ningbo to see the port just by the way. Anyway, the future achievements are there. I can actually pay with my eyes closed. The main purpose is to discuss investing in a highway here.

The entire coastal area will be the essence of the future inland economy. Investing in high-speed development here will make a lot of money.

Of course, real estate is stronger, but currently Hong Kong capital is basically unable to participate. At best, it can build hotels. In this regard, Chen Zhiwen has also arranged for the Mandarin Oriental Hotel under Landmark to do this.

"Thank you Chen Sheng for being so optimistic about our Zhejiang." Director Li asked with a smile: "Chen Sheng is planning to build an expressway connecting Ningbo Port? Is it the same as the Beijing-Tianjin-Tangzhou Expressway?"

As the local person in charge of attracting investment, Director Li certainly knows how much wealth this young man in front of him, who is much younger than himself, has in his hands. It can be said that as long as he is willing, he can invest a little in Ningbo City. It can overall change the living standards of the entire Ningbo people.

The Yanjing side has been driven by a series of portfolio investments that have driven a large amount of the economy. It has a highway that connects several urban areas, one of the only two large-scale automobile joint venture factories in the country, a large home appliance factory, and a national-level The skyscraper-Yanjing International Trade Center, coupled with the industrial chain formed around these, tens of thousands of high-income employees, and indirect economic effects, have benefited at least hundreds of thousands of people. That is because Yanjing has too many people. If the investment is placed in Ningbo City, it will feel like the entire city’s economy will take off qualitatively.

"Yes, I have this idea. The main function of the expressway is to serve freight." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.

In fact, many people don’t know that the purpose of highways is to help truck transportation. Before there were highways, goods were transported by trucks on various roads, which caused a lot of trouble.

The first is more fuel consumption and more time. Now the main thoroughfares in the country are national and provincial highways connecting various cities. Sometimes when going to distant cities, you have to detour through the city centers of countless cities. This not only consumes time, but also increases traffic jams. , thus causing a reduction in the efficiency of the overall social operation. At the same time, it is also a big problem for drivers to know the road, which is also a huge waste of time.

The second is that the truck itself is also a perishable product. Especially nowadays, the quality of domestic trucks is not very good. They spend longer time on the road, travel more roads, and stop and go at low speeds, which is a serious impact on this important production material. damage.

Therefore, although highways charge fees, any truck driver is willing to pay this cost compared to the benefits. This is completely different from that of later generations. Ordinary highways in later generations are also of high quality and have electronic navigation. Therefore, it is very convenient, but even so, the efficiency is still higher at high speed.

As for so many family cars, they are actually just services that come with the highway. However, for highway investment, the income from so many civilian cars is also very considerable. In this era, no one can imagine that in a few decades, the mainland will become a global In the largest car market, how many people couldn't even afford a bicycle in the 1980s.

"Then I don't know where Chen Sheng plans to start from Ningbo. Where will he connect?" Director Li asked quickly. It's such an unexpected surprise that we can get this news today. If we can see another large-scale expressway, not to mention the economic impact it can bring in the future, even in the past few years of construction, it can also create tens of thousands of jobs. This is real A real achievement.

"Starting from Ningbo, passing through Shaoxing, and then arriving in Hangzhou, we can connect the three large cities in Zhejiang Province. If we build more kilometers locally, we can cover many areas north of Zhejiang." Chen Zhiwen said .

"Even to Hangzhou? This is almost 200km." Director Li was delighted. Such a large project can really radiate economic benefits to half of the northern half of Zhejiang. When the Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan Expressway starts construction, it will The nearby construction companies are almost overwhelmed. In fact, not only does the high-speed itself require a lot of workers, but the various raw materials it requires also require a lot of manpower, and because of the weight, they can only be purchased from nearby. In this way, this The profits are basically kept within the province, even in the cities in the north.

"Director Li, actually, I want this expressway to start from Hangzhou and turn around to go to Shanghai. In this way, it can also connect to the metropolis of Shanghai. I think it will have a better effect on the nearby economy. ." Chen Zhiwen said again.

This expressway is naturally one of the most famous expressways in later generations. The Shanghai-Hangzhou-Ningbo Expressway connects the largest cities in Shanghai and Zhejiang. Its economic benefits are only slightly worse than those of the Guangdong-Shenzhen Expressway. It has also been among the top ten in mainland China in terms of highway revenue for a long time.

It's now 1985, and many domestic highways are already under planning. It's just that there is no money to start construction. Instead, we will wait until the early 1990s when the economy improves before taking actual action. This can be said to be our own window period. If you miss it in a few years, you will never have the chance again.

However, this was a matter of Jiangnan Province after all. Unlike the previous Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan Expressway, it was not easy for him to go to Yanjing to negotiate. It happened that Bao Yugang wanted to persuade him to invest in Ningbo Port, so he gave Chen Zhiwen a direct proposal. Time to come out.

Director Li was stunned when he heard that it was going to be connected to Shanghai. Bao Yugang, who was listening on the side, laughed and said, "Sheng Chen is really generous. If this expressway connects to Shanghai, Hangzhou, Shaoxing, and Ningbo, then It can really benefit tens of millions of people.”

Although they did not invest in highways, Hu Yingxiang and Chen Zhiwen invested in two domestic highways, and Bao Yugang probably knew the costs involved. The prices exceeded one billion U.S. dollars. Although it was not as good as a super port, the risks were greater. , because the port is being expanded in one phase, and if the initial effect is not good, the loss can be stopped in time, but the expressway is different. Basically, it needs to be built before we know how the benefits will be, not to mention, this time The expressway is much longer than the Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan Expressway and the Guangdong-Shenzhen Expressway.

I originally thought that Chen Zhiwen was just following me for a formality, but I didn't expect that he was the protagonist, but it didn't matter, he didn't care about this, as long as he could really take care of the tens of millions of people in Ningbo's hometown, then nothing mattered.

"Sheng Chen, when it comes to Shanghai, I can't make the decision, but I think they won't refuse. Besides, no matter where an expressway is built, it must be reported to the central government. You also know that expressways require joint ventures. Our mainland side also needs investment." Director Li thought for a while and said.

"It doesn't matter. Even if Shanghai and Shanghai disagree, we can just calculate the distance from Hangzhou to Ningbo separately." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile. In fact, Shanghai is unlikely to disagree. Hong Kong investment will come to build the road. It is also a matter of benefit to the country and the people.

Of course, it is not absolute. When the Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan Expressway was completed last year, Chen Zhiwen was interested in the Beijing-Shanghai Expressway that was being proposed in China at that time. This expressway passes through several provinces and dozens of big cities, and can be said to cover It has provided transportation for hundreds of millions of people, and this road will also be the most profitable in future generations. Perhaps the unit length is not comparable to the Guangdong-Shenzhen Expressway, but the Beijing-Shanghai Expressway is much longer. A Beijing-Shanghai Expressway is stronger than the Beijing-Tianjin-Tangzhou Expressway + Shanghai-Hangzhou-Ningbo + Guangdong-Shenzhen Expressway.

However, when the representative of Hutchison Whampoa proposed this investment intention, it was eventually rejected. The mainland government decided to invest in this expressway on its own. Later, Chen Zhiwen did not insist on it. Maybe there was a special reason, maybe because everyone with a discerning eye knew the purpose of this expressway. The benefits must be very great, and there will definitely be no loss. If there are no risks, there is no need to introduce foreign capital. This is normal. Chen Zhiwen will do the same thing, such as building office buildings or shopping malls in Central, Hong Kong. He will not enter into joint ventures with outsiders, only those that have a little risk, or the return on capital investment is not very high, or require the introduction of strategies. partners, will consider bringing in others.

The business rules of this world are like this. Everyone is the same when comparing their hearts to their own.

Besides, if it is true that the highways with the highest profits in the country are all invested by themselves in the future, then the situation may be a bit ugly. In such a large market, it is enough to eat appropriately. Shanghai, Hangzhou and Ningbo are my next targets.

"Okay, Mr. Chen, I will report this matter as soon as possible when we get to the city hall." Director Li said.

"Thank you." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.

…

Everyone soon arrived at the city hall. The trip itself was just for a look. Chen and Bao had basically decided to invest in Ningbo Port, and they learned that Chen Zhiwen intended to invest in Zhejiang Province for a long time. After the new expressway surpassed the Beijing-Tianjin-Tangzhou Expressway, the leaders of Ningbo City were naturally even more happy.

After passing the news to the leaders of the provincial party committee, Shanghai Municipal leaders and central leaders, the municipal party committee immediately called the leaders of the relevant departments of infrastructure construction and prepared to discuss a preliminary plan in the shortest possible time.

Chen Zhiwen and Bao Yugang returned to their hotel.

"Sheng Chen's investment in the mainland is estimated to be tens of billions of Hong Kong dollars, right?" The two sat by the small lake, drinking tea and chatting.

"I haven't calculated it specifically, but it should be about the same." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said. A highway that has been invested, several large factories, Yanjing International Trade Center, and land ready to build large-scale hotels in the mainland, add up to almost hundreds. 100 million, and there is Galaxy Trading, which has no investment but has given orders to the mainland of more than 10 billion Hong Kong dollars.

"How far does Chen Sheng think the mainland can develop?" Bao Yugang asked again.

"Have you seen Japan now? I think sooner or later, the mainland will be able to reach this level." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.

"Isn't this impossible?" Bao Yugang frowned and said, "One Japan is already a headache for Europe and the United States. Add another mainland, and there are so many people in the mainland. If it really develops like that, unless technology develops further, Otherwise, it is theoretically unreasonable, and this world can only sustain about 1 billion people living a good life."

"What Mr. Bao said is right, but I still stick to my point of view. We Chinese have an unyielding spirit in our hearts. Now that we are fully developing economy and technology, we will definitely not give up halfway. If we do not develop to the top of the world, we will not give up." I won't give up." Chen Zhiwen said: "In fact, the same is true for Japan. In terms of culture, it is relatively close to the mainland. South Korea may be similar, but Southeast Asia is far behind. The Southeast Asian Chinese who inherit this culture have gradually developed. , many of them have become the super rich in Southeast Asia.”

"What you said makes sense." Bao Yugang nodded and said.

"Why did Mr. Bao ask this?" Chen Zhiwen asked.

"You also know my situation. I have to prepare for the worst." Bao Yugang said calmly: "I also need to decide the future direction of the group for my subordinates."

"That's right. What we can worry about is the future generations." Chen Zhiwen agreed. In fact, as long as it doesn't hurt the fundamentals, basically they don't care at this level.

Not to mention that he knows the future, he will basically not lose. Even ordinary rich people, as long as they have achieved a high status from scratch, will basically use various methods such as diversification to protect their wealth, unless they encounter something like this very rarely. In the special case of the collapse of Kodak or the collapse of Nokia.

But when wealth is free, how to pass it on has become a more worrying issue. It is definitely not a joke that you can only be rich for three generations. The existing rich people in Hong Kong also attach great importance to the future education of their children. Since Chen Zhiwen had children Finally, I often think about this issue.

However, Bao Yugang is special. He has no sons, only 4 daughters. However, none of the four daughters like business, so he can only let his son-in-law inherit his business empire. This is also a very rare family in the history of global business. A case of inheritance.

"Seeing that Chen Sheng is investing heavily in China, it seems that you are as optimistic about the future of China as I am. This makes me feel at ease a lot." Bao Yugang said with a smile: "I have been wandering on the ocean doing business all my life. I missed the real estate in Hong Kong. Now, I don’t want to miss the domestic one. Unfortunately, apart from the deep sea, pure real estate investment is not very convenient at present. I can only invest in infrastructure such as ports. Compared with Chen Sheng, it is still worse. That’s right.”

"In terms of ratio, you are actually higher than me." Chen Zhiwen thought for a moment and said, "Sheng Bao, if you really want to invest in domestic real estate, then choose Deep Sea. Just build any shopping mall, office building, or hotel apartment. I My father also has a large number of these projects in Deep Sea City."

In the past, Pao Yugang acquired Wharf. With the huge land held by Wharf, it was considered a successful landing. But now it is CLP Power. Although the potential of CLP is not worse than that of Wharf, it is indeed not. When it comes to land and property, it can't compare to Hong Kong Electric.

The relationship between Bao Yugang and me is pretty good, and there is a high probability that he will remain the same as before, so it doesn't matter if he gives me some advice on correct investment. After all, Shenhai City is so big that he can't live alone.

"Okay, I feel relieved with Chen Sheng's words." Bao Yugang nodded and said: "Chen Sheng, if my sons-in-law have any difficulties in the future, please Chen Sheng to try to help them."

"No problem, but it is limited to investments in Hong Kong and the Mainland." Chen Zhiwen said.

"Okay, if they want to invest overseas and fail, they will have to blame themselves." Bao Yugang said. Of his four sons-in-law, three are foreigners and their attitudes towards the country are not very good. Now that he is still here, nothing is a problem. After he leaves, it will be really hard to say. (End of chapter)