Chapter 182: Acquiring Another Property in Central
Yang Wendong smiled and said, "It's not that I particularly believe in the potential of the plastic company—what I value more is Wang Yung-ching himself.
If you look at his entrepreneurial history, although it spans a bit longer than mine, it's quite impressive.
People like that are highly capable, and since he's already shown some achievement, if there's a chance to invest, I'm definitely willing."
Normally, the kinds of businesses considered suitable for investment were real estate, finance, or, in the future, high-tech and internet companies.
Traditional factories were rarely favored by capital in their early stages.
After all, giants like Huawei or BYD had a minuscule chance of being stumbled upon early—and even if they were, it would still take 20 to 30 years to grow.
That couldn't compete with the speed and returns of real estate or tech.
Talent, however, was the most valuable asset of all.
Su Yiyi nodded. "Oh, like how if someone had invested in you early on, they'd be rich now."
"Haha, yeah, something like that," Yang laughed. "But truthfully, I wouldn't have given anyone the chance.
Even if I were cornered, I'd give up the Post-it patent before ever selling shares in the factory."
It wasn't that he couldn't accept investment—he just knew that in the early stages, it would never be worth it.
Especially when he still had a mind full of future hit products and the right direction to lead a business. Selling equity now would've been incredibly shortsighted.
"Mm." Su Yiyi understood. Yang's greatest strength was his ability to invent useful consumer products.
Yang added, "That wraps up our business for today. Let's head back to the Island. We'll walk around Central for a bit this afternoon, then swing by the Hong Wah Tower—I've got something to take care of there."
Right now, the two major business developments for Changxing Industrial were:
First, purchasing a ship to support rolling suitcase exports;
Second, investing in what would become Taiwan's largest conglomerate—Formosa Plastics—to ensure a stable and low-cost supply of plastic pellets.
The ship deal was already finalized—just waiting on the dozen crew members to return with the Wilson to complete the final payment and transfer.
The Formosa Plastics investment would take longer to settle. Negotiations with Wang Yung-ching were ongoing, and the capital involved might exceed a million HKD.
It wouldn't be finalized overnight.
"Alright," Su Yiyi nodded. The two of them were already used to shuttling between the Island and Kowloon regularly.
By noon, they arrived in Central.
In front of a cinema called Blue Asia Theatre, Su Yiyi asked, "Dong-ge, are we here to see a movie?"
"Sort of." Yang checked his watch. "Let's wait for Haoyu. I asked him to meet us. Let's find a place with air conditioning—it's too hot."
"Mm, okay." Su Yiyi nodded, and they settled in a small shop nearby—one of the rare air-conditioned spots in Hong Kong.
Before long, Lin Haoyu arrived with a girl about the same age.
Yang called out, and they came in.
"Dong-ge, Yiyi," Lin Haoyu smiled. "This is Tingting, my girlfriend."
"Nice to meet you," Yang said politely. Su Yiyi, on the other hand, looked genuinely delighted.
"Hello, Mr. Yang, Sister Yiyi. I'm Zhou Wenting," she said, slightly nervous.
Lin reassured her, "Tingting, just relax. My Dong-ge is easygoing, not the kind of arrogant boss you'd imagine. He treats friends really well."
"Mhm," Zhou Wenting nodded.
Su Yiyi asked curiously, "How did you two meet?"
"We met through business," Lin said. "Changxing's pest control company provides rodent and pest services to many properties in Hong Kong. Tingting's family runs a grain store—that's how we got to know each other."
"Haha, what a coincidence. Looks like that pest control business wasn't a waste after all." Yang chuckled.
Back when he was just starting out, Yang's first major business shift was moving from making mousetraps to offering pest control services.
That was how he made his first real money—money that later funded the glue trap factory.
As Changxing's industrial scale grew, especially after the Post-it became a hit, the pest control division no longer made much money.
But Yang had kept it running so the people who helped him in the early days—like Lin—would always have something to do.
Lin smiled. "Dong-ge, that pest control business actually makes a decent profit—tens of thousands a year."
"Keep it in your company's books," Yang said casually. He knew it brought in around thirty to fifty thousand annually.
Then he added, "What about the task I gave you—are you still working on that?"
"Yes. I've been gathering all the necessary documents," Lin nodded.
"Good. Let's eat first. We'll talk after lunch."
"Mm." The group ordered a simple meal and ate together.
After lunch, they bought four movie tickets and watched a short film.
By around 2 PM, Su Yiyi and Zhou Wenting had clearly hit it off and wandered into a nearby accessories shop to browse.
Yang and Lin sat down at a tea café next to the cinema and ordered afternoon tea.
"So, Dong-ge, are you planning to buy this Blue Asia Theatre building?" Lin asked.
"Yeah." Yang nodded. "I had Zheng Zhijie looking into theater acquisitions or land for construction months ago.
In Kowloon, we've already bought seven plots across four towns to build cinemas.
But on the Island, getting large plots is tough. The best strategy is to acquire existing theaters. It's taken a few months, and finally, one is up for sale."
"I've heard this theater does pretty good business. There's a lot of foot traffic around here." Lin nodded. "We even worked with them before. After their daytime business, we'd send a team in to handle rodent control at night."
"Yeah, cinemas are like that—busy during the day." Yang smiled. "If public safety were better, there'd probably even be a late-night crowd."
"Yes." Lin Haoyu nodded, then asked, "Dong-ge, how much is this cinema? Just curious."
Yang Wendong replied, "It hasn't been finalized yet, but the price will be at least over a million. It's not the cinema itself that's valuable—it's the land. It's in a prime location in Central, and the plot isn't small."
Even if the final price of the transaction was kept confidential on Yang's end, the seller might not do the same. And besides, land values were well-referenced—outsiders could pretty much guess the price range. There was no need to insist on absolute secrecy.
Lin almost gasped. "That's insanely expensive. I'd have to work myself to the bone for a lifetime and still couldn't afford it."
"You want to buy property like that with a regular job?" Yang chuckled. "Only by doing business could that be possible. For now, focus on your work at the pest control company. Keep collecting first-hand property data for me around Hong Kong. Maybe someday, you'll run your own business too."
Yang hadn't paid much attention to the pest control company in the past, but once he started the real estate business, Zheng Zhijie—after learning about all the other operations in the group—specifically requested the pest control unit to help gather data.
After Yang learned the reasoning, he agreed. He came to realize that while the pest control company didn't contribute much financially, its cooperation with many properties gave it access to a vast amount of up-to-date information.
In a world without the internet, even real estate veterans had a hard time keeping track of changing property ownerships and availability.
But Changxing Pest Control, through its operations, could effortlessly access valuable intel.
"Alright," Lin nodded, then added, "Oh, one more thing. We've received a few pest control contracts for ships. I'm thinking of expanding in that direction.
Real estate properties in Hong Kong are fixed, but ships are mobile. That market could be huge."
"Ships? Sure, go for it." Yang didn't give it much thought.
To him, that business wasn't about making big money. As long as it created some jobs, that was enough.
...
By around 3:30 in the afternoon, Yang and Su Yiyi returned to Hong Wah Tower.
On the top floor—currently the headquarters of Changxing Real Estate—the view of Hong Kong was impressive, although a bit far from Victoria Harbour.
Zheng Zhijie had known in advance that Yang was coming and had already prepared everything. As soon as Yang arrived, he reported, "Mr. Yang, Blue Asia Theatre's asking price has been confirmed. Wheelock is asking for 1.75 million HKD."
"1.75?" Yang frowned slightly. "That's about the same as what we paid for the land for seven cinemas in Kowloon combined."
"Yes," Zheng continued. "But that location in Central is quite valuable, and the land is over 8,500 square feet. For that spot, land like this is very rare."
"Mmm." Yang nodded, understanding how critical location was. "Why is Wheelock suddenly willing to sell this plot?"
In the future 1980s, the "Four Major British Hongs" would dominate Hong Kong. But even by the 1950s and 60s, three of them were already top-tier real estate giants.
These British conglomerates had been in Hong Kong since the 19th century and controlled most of the best real estate, especially in Central.
Even by the 21st century, they still owned a large proportion of the city's most valuable property.
Zheng explained, "They're reportedly trying to raise funds to buy a new ship."
"Ah, that makes sense," Yang nodded. "Then keep negotiating. If the price is right, we'll take it."
Many British firms were doing well in Hong Kong at this time, but they had little faith in the city's future. Most were just trying to earn money and then get out.
That's also why many of them invested in shipping. Aside from Hong Kong being a trade hub, ships weren't fixed assets—they could be moved at any time.
Wheelock was a classic example of this kind of thinking.
By 1966, Wheelock and many other British firms would begin offloading their Hong Kong real estate holdings en masse—cheaply.
That selloff was one of the biggest reasons Chinese capitalists were able to rise so quickly in the 1970s.
"Understood, Mr. Yang," Zheng nodded.
He continued, "Aside from this cinema, I've also acquired several old buildings around Hong Wah Tower.
We now have enough space to tear them down and build a new tower. Should we start now?"
"Where exactly?" Yang asked.
Zheng pulled out a map and pointed. "Here—about 300 meters from our tower."
"Alright, build it," Yang said after glancing at the map. He paused and asked, "Do you think we could acquire everything in this block?"
"That would be difficult," Zheng replied. "The hardest part about acquiring old buildings is the owners.
Once they know a big company wants the property, they start demanding outrageous prices.
That's why most developers prefer to buy clean land with no prior structures."
"I remember something about 90% acquisition? That if you reach that threshold, the last 10% can be forced to sell at a fair market price?"
"Yes," Zheng nodded. "The law allows that. But reaching 90% is no easy feat.
Even for our commercial project, just acquiring that small plot took nearly six months.
If it were a residential redevelopment, we'd need to use some underhanded methods to get to 90%."
"Forget it then," Yang said. "Let's just start building the new tower. Show me the detailed plans before construction begins."
Land prices were on the rise. There were still some opportunities for acquiring properties, but getting entire blocks would be almost impossible.
Better to focus on acquiring properties that directly benefited his other businesses. For the rest, he'd wait until 1966—when, with enough cash, he could just buy up whatever he wanted.
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