We're building a super chaebol in Hong Kong

As a seller, everyone wants their goods to sell for a high price.

However, most of the time, one has to face reality.

It's not like you can set any price and people will buy it.

A transaction is a two-way street; the price must be agreed upon by both the seller and the buyer for a deal to be made.

Undeniably, the land on the Central waterfront held by Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land is indeed a prime piece of real estate. Two years ago, someone would have bought it for at least 2.5 billion, let alone 2.3 billion.

However, times have changed, and the economy follows the market.

The same goes for land prices. When everyone is tight on cash and unable to come up with much capital, how can you expect high housing prices?

After experiencing two months of relentless setbacks, Niu Bi Jian no longer has any confidence in recouping the investment from this piece of land.

Li Chaoren offered 1.8 billion, and he doesn't want to sell to him under any circumstances.

Su Cheng's appearance was an unexpected surprise.

However, he naturally knows that Su Cheng is no pushover either.

The Kowloon Wharf shares from last time are a prime example.

Niu Bi Jian stared straight at Su Cheng, waiting to see what price he would offer.

If he offered another 1.8 billion Hong Kong dollars, Niu Bi Jian might have stormed out.

Su Cheng had researched the other party's background, so of course, he wouldn't offer that price.

If they were willing to sell for 1.8 billion, they would have already approached Li Chaoren and the others and sold it at that price. There wouldn't have been such a good opportunity for him.

Before becoming the richest man, Li Chaoren was known for his love of leveraging small investments for big gains.

"Mr. Niu Bi Jian, we are all very straightforward people, so I won't beat around the bush. When I invited you over, I had already discussed it with my team. The highest we can offer for this land is 2 billion Hong Kong dollars. Any higher, and we feel the land isn't worth it. So, 2 billion Hong Kong dollars is our bottom line, a one-time offer. I won't start negotiating with you from a few hundred million Hong Kong dollars."

"To be honest, I am being very sincere. You've been trying to sell it for two or three months now, right? If no one is interested for such a long time, it means the price you're asking is not the market price, but higher than the market price. As long as Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land are willing to sell, we can close the deal at this price," Su Cheng said, not planning to haggle too much on the price.

For Su Cheng, being able to acquire that piece of land for 2 billion Hong Kong dollars would be a great bargain.

The real estate market in Hong Kong, even in a recession, is only temporary and won't last long before it rises sharply again.

Now is a good time to acquire this land at a low price.

After all, the location is too good.

Acquiring this land and planning a skyscraper over 400 meters tall in this location would definitely make it the C-position protagonist of Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour.

Even if the headquarters of Hutchison Whampoa and the Su Corporation are moved to Tseung Kwan O, some positions would have to be retained here for business in the city center.

Putting the Hutchison Whampoa and Su Corporation brands on this building would allow everyone to see these two groups when they look at the Hong Kong skyline—what a great advertising spot!

And when the time comes, I can build a private penthouse on the top floor. Isn't that the life!

The remaining floors will naturally be used for rent.

As for selling?

Selling is out of the question.

As for the buildings developed by Hutchison Properties, he doesn't plan to get involved. There are already a certain number of tenants. There's no need for him to manage too many rental properties. It's impossible for everyone in Hong Kong to live by renting, especially those above the middle class.

Commercial buildings, however, don't need to be sold.

Collecting rent is the way to go!

Seeing Niu Bi Jian fall silent, as if thinking about how to respond to Su Cheng's words,

Su Cheng continued, "Mr. Niu Bi Jian may not know, but many British consortia are selling properties to me. They don't seem to be very optimistic about the future of Hong Kong. Their actions could easily lead to the collapse of Hong Kong's economy."

"After all, although Chinese consortia are now on the rise, British consortia are still in the lead. If British consortia withdraw from Hong Kong, the consequences would be unimaginable. I don't know if you are optimistic about the future of Hong Kong, but I still hope that Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land will not withdraw from Hong Kong. You have a very important role to play in Hong Kong. Hong Kong has contributed greatly to my becoming the richest man, so I don't want Hong Kong's economy to collapse."

"I don't know if my current large-scale investment in Hong Kong is the right choice. With my current wealth and status, I could actually move to places like Los Angeles or New York, and my development speed might be even faster!"

"Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land are both very good business competitors of mine. Competition leads to progress. I hope that in the future, Jardine Matheson will continue to support Hong Kong's economy like I do!"

Of course, Su Cheng was talking nonsense. He knew the future of Hong Kong very well.

However, Su Cheng's words also seemed to have a pessimistic view of Hong Kong.

This was, of course, intentional.

According to Su Cheng's understanding, Jardine Matheson's senior management is not very optimistic about the future of Hong Kong either, but because they and HSBC have most of their main industries in Hong Kong, the proportion of overseas industries is not very high. Therefore, they are different from other British companies. Others can withdraw at any time, but they cannot withdraw casually. If they withdraw forcefully, the final losses will be very high, so high that they themselves cannot bear it.

Therefore, Su Cheng specifically brought up the future of Hong Kong.

The meaning was simple: I am now spending 2 billion to buy this land. I don't know what will happen to Hong Kong in the future. If the withdrawal of British capital leads to the collapse of Hong Kong's economy, then I, Su Cheng, will suffer a big loss.

In fact, a collapse is of course impossible. On the contrary, the withdrawal of British consortia will feed Chinese enterprises, and many high-quality assets will be taken over by Chinese consortia, thereby expanding the power of Chinese capital and eventually surpassing British capital, becoming the largest force dominating Hong Kong's economy.

Su Cheng didn't plan to give Niu Bi Jian too much time to consider. This matter is best handled with a quick decision.

"Mr. Su, 2 billion is really too low. We would lose nearly 400 million Hong Kong dollars. 2.2 billion Hong Kong dollars, and we'll sell it to you right away!" Despite Su Cheng's numerous arguments, Niu Bi Jian was still unwilling.

The auction price of 2.386 billion Hong Kong dollars, and these funds have been tied up for a whole year, which means the cost is higher than 2.4 billion Hong Kong dollars.

If they sell it now for 2 billion Hong Kong dollars, they would really lose 400 million.

Losing 400 million on a project in one year is something only large companies like Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land can afford. If it were other smaller companies, it would really hurt them.

"Mr. Niu Bi Jian, 2.2 billion is impossible. I've already given a one-time price, and it's definitely very sincere. Actually, we don't necessarily have to buy this land. Buying land and building buildings is just to meet the office needs of our subsidiaries. I wonder if Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land are interested in selling Connaught Centre. If you're willing to sell, I can offer 4 billion Hong Kong dollars to buy Connaught Centre. That way, you don't have to sell this land, and you can recoup funds—a win-win situation," Su Cheng joked.