We're building a super chaebol in Hong Kong

Time quietly slipped into the deep winter of 1981.

Since Su Cheng successfully took control of Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land, a fleeting two or three months had passed in the alternating seasons.

Initially, Su Cheng believed that by retaining Newbigging and Balloch as executive directors of the two major groups, he could gain their sincere support and ensure a smooth transition, avoiding unnecessary turmoil.

He had hoped that this tolerance would be reciprocated with harmony, but the world often defies expectations.

However, reality gave Su Cheng a sobering lesson.

He gradually discovered that his goodwill was not cherished as expected; instead of showing gratitude and loyalty, Newbigging and Balloch were secretly brewing unknown schemes.

This made Su Cheng realize that the business world is like a battlefield, and a compassionate heart, though good, often struggles to gain a foothold in the game of interests.

After successfully incorporating Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land into his command, Su Cheng had quietly planted numerous "sleeper agents" within these two major groups, ensuring that almost every move of the groups was within his grasp.

He not only placed capable personnel in the upper echelons of the two groups but also gradually took over a considerable portion of key powers.

After two or three months of careful planning and integration, these newly joined executives quickly integrated into their respective positions, demonstrating outstanding work ability and adaptability.

Their arrival not only brought new vitality to the groups but also quietly began to weaken the original influence of Newbigging and Balloch, gradually eroding their power base.

During this period, Newbigging appeared quite compliant on the surface, managing Jardine Matheson as always, seemingly without much unusual behavior.

Balloch of Hongkong Land, on the other hand, behaved even more discreetly, almost adopting a posture of "hiding his light under a bushel," making it difficult to discern his true intentions.

However, Su Cheng knew that calm waters often conceal turbulent currents, and he had to remain vigilant at all times to prevent unforeseen events.

Relying on the informants he had carefully placed throughout Jardine Matheson, Su Cheng gradually noticed that Newbigging was secretly maintaining contact with the Keswick family and other British Jardine shareholders.

This discovery alerted Su Cheng, and he understood the complex motives and schemes that might be hidden behind this secret communication.

Through further investigation and information from his informants, Su Cheng quickly uncovered their true purpose—a covert contest for his control was quietly brewing.

Faced with such a situation, Su Cheng had to respond more cautiously to ensure that he could firmly grasp Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land.

Regarding Hongkong Land, Su Cheng might have had some intention of letting go, because he understood that with his current level of control, it was almost impossible for British capital to regain it.

However, the situation with Jardine Matheson was completely different.

This was not only because of the huge value inherent in Jardine itself but also because it occupied a pivotal position in the hearts of the British consortium, a symbol they were proud of.

Now, seeing Jardine Matheson fall into the hands of others, the British consortium naturally felt unwilling and found it difficult to accept this reality.

Therefore, they began to secretly plan, attempting to regain control of Jardine Matheson through various means.

This unwillingness and anger were driving them to secretly plan and prepare for a fierce contest with Su Cheng.

And Su Cheng had already seen through all of this.

The most indignant of all was Simon Keswick, the leader of the Keswick family.

As a major shareholder of Jardine Matheson, he had long been dissatisfied with Newbigging's leadership position and had even harbored the idea of replacing him.

In recent years, the overt and covert struggles between Simon Keswick and Newbigging had intensified, especially after Newbigging's misjudgment led to Hongkong Land losing control of Wharf, his influence within the family and Jardine Matheson had greatly increased, gradually gaining the upper hand in the internal struggle.

Simon Keswick was confident that he only needed to wait a little over a year, until Newbigging's term expired, and he would be able to successfully oust him.

However, to Simon Keswick's surprise, Jardine Matheson was suddenly taken down by Su Cheng.

This sudden change completely disrupted his plan, making him feel unprecedented frustration and unwillingness.

In Simon Keswick's view, Jardine Matheson was not only an important part of the business landscape but also a symbol of family glory, and now that it had fallen into the hands of others, how could he not feel resentment and vow to regain the lost ground?

In order to regroup and regain control of Jardine Matheson, Simon Keswick decided to take extraordinary measures.

He secretly contacted Newbigging and made a major promise: once he successfully regained Jardine Matheson, he would voluntarily withdraw from the competition for the next chairman of the board and fully support Newbigging to continue serving in this important position.

This promise was undoubtedly a timely help for Newbigging.

In the past two or three months, he had not only lost his position as Tai-pan of Hongkong Land, but also his influence within Jardine Matheson had been declining, and his management power was being gradually eroded.

This continuous sense of crisis made him not hesitate at all about Simon Keswick's proposal and quickly expressed his agreement.

Newbigging knew that under Su Cheng's strong leadership, his position as an executive director of Jardine Matheson, although seemingly stable, was actually precarious.

He was worried that one day he would be suddenly fired by Su Cheng and lose everything.

Therefore, joining forces with Simon Keswick became his only hope to get out of trouble and regain power.

So, the two began to plan intensively.

They not only strengthened communication and collaboration between each other but also actively contacted all British Jardine shareholders, trying to use a united force to fight against Su Cheng.

A battle for control of Jardine Matheson was quietly unfolding.

Although Su Cheng only directly held 31.26% of Jardine Matheson's shares, plus the 25.8% held by Hongkong Land, he actually directly or indirectly controlled a total of 57.06% of Jardine Matheson's equity.

Theoretically, such a shareholding ratio already made it difficult for Simon Keswick and other opposing forces to shake Su Cheng's position.

However, Simon Keswick and others did not give up because of this, and they instead adopted a more aggressive and united strategy.

They planned to unite all the shareholders they could mobilize, form a powerful alliance, and jointly file a complaint with the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, attempting to use legal means to determine that Su Cheng's acquisition of Jardine Matheson was invalid.

In their hearts, Hong Kong was still their traditional territory, and everything should be led and decided by them, the superior British.

This deep-rooted sense of superiority and territorial awareness drove them to reclaim control of Jardine Matheson at all costs.

To achieve this goal, Newbigging was chosen as the intermediary, responsible for coordinating all parties and promoting the smooth progress of this conspiracy.

He understood that he played a key role in this power struggle, needing to balance the interests of all parties while ensuring the plan's secrecy and success rate.

A contest of law and wisdom surrounding the control of Jardine Matheson quietly began in this bustling land of Hong Kong.

After learning of Simon Keswick and others' conspiracy, Su Cheng did not show much worry. Instead, he sat on the balcony of his villa, frowned slightly, and muttered to himself that these opponents were like persistent flies, truly annoying.

Faced with such a challenge, Su Cheng quickly reacted.

He directly contacted Ma Shiming, a business elite who had demonstrated outstanding management skills since taking the helm of Hong Kong Electric Group.

Under Ma Shiming's careful operation, Hong Kong Electric Group not only achieved steady growth but also successfully implemented a diversified development strategy, which boosted the group's strength. Its stock market value has proudly exceeded the 30 billion Hong Kong dollar mark, ranking among the top enterprises in Hong Kong.

Given Ma Shiming's brilliant achievements and extraordinary abilities, Su Cheng decided to give him a new mission: to take over Newbigging's position in Jardine Matheson.

This decision was not only a full trust in Ma Shiming's personal ability but also a strategic deployment after Su Cheng's careful consideration of Jardine Matheson's future development.

He believed that under Ma Shiming's leadership, Jardine Matheson would be able to cope with the current challenges and continue to develop.

In fact, Ma Shiming and Jardine Matheson had a significant connection.

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Back then, Su Cheng had a discerning eye and discovered Ma Shiming, who was just a middle-level manager in a subsidiary of Jardine Matheson. Now, in just a few years, Ma Shiming had already grown into a business elite capable of standing alone.

For such a transfer opportunity, Su Cheng firmly believed that Ma Shiming would be full of interest and expectation.

Faced with Newbigging's secret actions, Su Cheng decided to take decisive measures to remove him from the core management of Jardine Matheson to eliminate future troubles.

As for the Securities and Futures Commission's subsequent handling of this matter, Su Cheng adopted a reactive approach and was not overly worried.

After all, the shares in his hands were real and solid, and his control over Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land was indisputable.

Su Cheng had confidence in his heart. He knew that his position and strength were no longer what they used to be. He was prepared to deal with any possible bias towards the British by the Securities and Futures Commission.

He was looking forward to seeing how the Securities and Futures Commission would choose in this game of power and interests, and he would remain steadfast in his position and principles.

Su Cheng maintained an open attitude towards the controlling stake in Jardine Matheson. If necessary, he was not unable to lose Jardine Matheson, but the prerequisite was that the other party must pay the corresponding price.

In his eyes, Jardine Matheson had a certain value, but it was not indispensable. In comparison, Hongkong Land was more important to him.

However, these were all future considerations. Su Cheng's primary task at present was to solve the immediate trouble—removing the "traitor" Newbigging from Jardine Matheson.

With his current strong controlling stake in Jardine Matheson and his position as the Taipan of Jardine Matheson, removing Newbigging from his position was just a simple administrative procedure for him, which could be achieved with a single announcement.

Moreover, after two or three months of running-in, the senior executives he sent to Jardine Matheson had gradually been able to control the group's management, even if Newbigging was directly ousted, it would not cause much loss to Jardine Matheson.

Therefore, on the same day he received the intelligence, Su Cheng directly initiated a board meeting, which would be held the next day.

At this time, Newbigging was still unaware that his affairs had been leaked, and he felt somewhat confused about Su Cheng's initiation of a board meeting.

He had always been secretly contacting others, so he never thought that his actions had already been known by Su Cheng.

At nine o'clock the next morning, Su Cheng brought Ma Shiming to the headquarters of Jardine Matheson.

In a conference room of Jardine Matheson, Su Cheng, as the Taipan of Jardine Matheson, sat in the main seat.

Newbigging, as an executive director, sat on the side. At this time, he also felt that Su Cheng's attitude towards him today was a bit strange.

What made him even stranger was that Ma Shiming, the president of Hong Kong Electric Group, appeared at the scene of the Jardine Matheson board meeting.

Su Cheng looked at the more than twenty board members below, not even glancing at Newbigging.

At this time, Newbigging seemed to feel something was wrong.

However, at this moment, he did not know what was happening. Even if he felt something was wrong, it was of no use.

When the time came and everyone was there, he began to speak.

"Everyone is here. As the Taipan of Jardine Matheson, and as the shareholder with absolute control of Jardine Matheson, I now formally announce something here: effective immediately, Mr. Newbigging's position as Executive Director of Jardine Matheson Group is officially removed. From today onwards, Mr. Newbigging is no longer a member of Jardine Matheson Group," Su Cheng said solemnly.

As soon as these words came out, there was an uproar in the audience.

No one expected that the meeting convened by Su Cheng was actually to remove Newbigging.

Something big has happened.

At this moment, many board members had only this thought in their hearts.

Newbigging, who had been in charge of Jardine Matheson for many years, no one had thought that it had only been three months since Su Cheng acquired Jardine Matheson before he was directly removed.

Newbigging was also stunned. At this moment, his mind was blank.

After a long time, Newbigging came back to his senses and asked, "Mr. Su Cheng, why?"

"Why? Mr. Newbigging, how dare you ask me why? Look at what this is?" Su Cheng threw some evidence in front of Newbigging.

Seeing this evidence, Newbigging finally understood what was happening. What he had done had been exposed before it was successful.

At this moment, Newbigging's expression was somewhat颓废.

He knew that it was useless to say anything more.

So, Newbigging got up silently and left the conference room directly.

The moment he walked out of the conference room, the secretary in charge of the meeting minutes photographed his lonely figure.

A business tycoon came to an end. (End of this chapter)