Chapter 193: Frenzy Over Pre-Sale Units
Yang Wendong said, "It's definitely a possibility. But among the shareholders, do you have enough combined voting power to stop him from doing it?"
Wong Yiu-nam replied, "After the IPO, Yan Cheng-kun's shares will be diluted. The rest of the shareholders combined could form a veto block. But the issue is, they won't go against him unless you, Mr. Yang, can secure about 10% of the company's stock. If you add that to my shares, it might be enough."
"That's not too hard," Yang Wendong said with a smile. "If I'm willing to spend a little extra, I can acquire that 10%. But I can't do it publicly. It would be best to buy from existing shareholders—less likely to arouse Yan Cheng-kun's suspicions."
If an outside investor suddenly acquired 10% of the company, even an idiot would sense something was wrong—especially with a company like China Motor Bus, where the founding families were famously at odds.
Wong thought for a moment. "There is one shareholder who doesn't have particularly close ties with either me or Yan Cheng-kun. I might be able to sway him."
"Good. I'll leave that to you," Yang said. "But that's a last resort. We shouldn't openly oppose Yan unless absolutely necessary. If he feels threatened, he might halt expansion altogether. That would ruin our entire strategy."
Wong asked, "So if we can't oppose him openly, how do we stop him from moving forward unchecked?"
"Right now, it's hard to say," Yang admitted. "Your priority should be preparing for the IPO. Once the company is listed, we'll have far more options to work with.
And make sure to be polite, low-key. Best to act like you've given up on fighting for management control. That'll help put him at ease."
There were things Yang couldn't tell anyone—not even a close partner.
For example, early next year, Liu Chong Hing Bank would face a serious bank run, which would spread panic to several other banks. Although the situation would eventually be brought under control by the Hong Kong government in conjunction with HSBC and Standard Chartered, most banks would still become extremely cautious and cut back on lending to protect themselves.
On the other hand, in 1961, Jardine Matheson would go public, freezing over 800 million Hong Kong dollars in the process and triggering a boom in the stock market. From that point onward, any company capable of listing would rush to do so.
In such an environment—where bank loans were scarce but equity financing was easy—a rational capitalist would always choose to raise funds through the stock market, as long as their control wasn't threatened.
Wong nodded. "Understood."
After settling the preliminary terms of their cooperation, the food arrived, and the three men enjoyed a hearty meal.
Later, as they left, Yang Wendong turned to Zheng Zhijie. "Old Zheng, this whole CMB matter will take time to unfold. If we're fast, a few months. If slow, maybe one or two years. I'll need you to stay on top of it during that time."
"Don't worry, Mr. Yang. I'll stay on it," Zheng said firmly.
Yang added, "Once Wong Yiu-nam confirms the IPO timeline, we'll begin preparations. It usually takes time to go public—it won't be immediate.
For now, just focus on your other responsibilities as usual."
"Got it," Zheng nodded.
A few days later, Wong Yiu-nam arrived at the China Motor Bus headquarters to meet with Yan Cheng-kun.
"Uncle Yan, I have something I'd like to discuss with you," he said politely. Despite his resentment, he still had to maintain a basic level of decorum. Yan was, after all, from his father's generation.
Yan didn't reply at first. Instead, he took a slow, deliberate sip of tea. Only after a while did he say, "Well, speak your mind."
"It's about the company's IPO and your post-listing expansion plans. I'm willing to agree," Wong said. "But I have a condition."
"Oh? What condition?" The previously aloof Yan immediately perked up. Until now, it had been Wong's opposition that kept the IPO on hold.
"I want my dividends. All the ones owed to me from the past several years."
"You want dividends?" Yan's face darkened. "Nephew, the bus route expansions in recent years have required a lot of funding. Most of the money has been spent, and we don't have much left in the accounts.
Besides, once we go public and raise funds, there will be plenty of money. Or, if you like, you could just sell your shares."
Wong remained calm. "True, but I need the funds now. The IPO is still a while off. I have no choice but to ask for the dividends that are rightfully mine."
Yan asked, "Why do you need so much money all of a sudden? If it's really urgent, I could introduce you to some banks and help you get a loan."
Wong had his answer prepared. "I see a lot of potential in the real estate market. I'm planning to invest. I've already considered taking out loans—but what I'm missing is start-up capital."
His intention to enter real estate was genuine, but the main goal was to assist Yang Wendong by draining CMB's resources.
Whether the funds came from the company or from the Yan family, the less liquidity they had, the better. The more debt they took on, the more vulnerable they'd be. Only a heavily indebted listed company would be easy to breach.
"Real estate?" Yan nodded, finding the explanation reasonable. He had also been bullish on real estate but had lacked the resources to make a move.
"You have a good eye," he said. "But I'm afraid the company can't spare that much money right now."
Wong smiled. "Uncle Yan, I'm only asking for what's mine. Once I get that money, I'll be focused on my real estate venture and won't interfere with the company anymore.
Isn't that what you've always wanted?"
Yan's brows furrowed. Then he said, "How about this: I can arrange for some people to buy your shares. That way, you'll have the funds you need to pursue your real estate project."
The Wong family's shares had always been a thorn in Yan's side. Although he retained control, having a major shareholder constantly opposing him was exhausting.
"That won't do," Wong replied, shaking his head. "These shares were passed down from my father. I won't sell them."
"Alright, I'll have to think about it," Yan said, clearly caught off guard by the sudden request.
"I'll wait for your response, Uncle Yan," Wong said calmly.
Soon, it was early November.
At Ganghua Tower, Zheng Zhijie came to report with a smile. "Mr. Yang, Yan Cheng-kun agreed to Wong Yiu-nam's request. He paid out 700,000 in dividends."
"Good," Yang nodded. "Then make sure Wong keeps a low profile before the IPO. He shouldn't meddle in anything else.
Once the company's raised its funds and burned through most of them, then it'll be time to act."
"Mr. Wong is already following that strategy. He's planning a real estate investment on the Island," Zheng said with a smile. "He was chatting with me earlier and heard that Changxing Real Estate is about to launch its residential project.
I gave him a general overview of our operation model, and he seemed very interested. He said he'll check out the model unit once it's ready—might even buy a few units."
"Haha, that's great. We've landed ourselves a VIP client," Yang laughed. "So, when will the model unit be ready?"
"In about a week," Zheng replied. "The sample house is a single-floor, freestanding structure with three rooms—completely separate from the Ti Xiang Shijia main building.
A one-story structure goes up fast; most of the time's been spent on the interior. Once the smell from the new paint and finishes fades a bit, we can use it for showings."
"Good," Yang nodded. "Once it's done, I'll go take a look. Invite Mr. Wong as well. While we're at it, we can talk more about CMB."
Ti Xiang Shijia—this was the name Yang Wendong chose for his very first residential community. In his past life, he had made a bit of money back in the mainland and had purchased quite a few properties in his hometown. The names of those developments still lingered in his memory, and Ti Xiang Shijia happened to be the name of one of the high-end communities he had owned.
Zheng Zhijie nodded. "Understood."
Mid-November.
Yang Wendong arrived at the future site of Ti Xiang Shijia accompanied by Su Yiyi, Lin Haoyu, Zhao Liming, and others. At the moment, the land was still largely undeveloped, but construction was already underway with quite a few workers bustling around.
Yang Wendong turned to Lin Haoyu with a smile. "Haoyu, didn't you say you were looking to buy a place? I'll give you a unit at cost—dirt cheap."
"Absolutely," Lin Haoyu agreed right away. On the way over, he had already heard that units in Ti Xiang Shijia were move-in ready, saving him the trouble of doing renovations himself.
Under the guidance of Zheng Zhijie, the group walked into the model unit. What greeted them was a fairly standard, somewhat luxurious interior—elegant but not overly extravagant.
Zheng explained, "Mr. Yang, due to time constraints and the relatively small scale of this project, we've only prepared one model unit.
In future developments, if the scale is larger, we can prepare two or even three different styles for buyers to choose from."
"Mm, that works," Yang nodded. "One model unit is enough for now. The finishing quality is already impressive."
When the units are only a few dozen square meters, there's only so much creativity possible with interior design. The priority is to maximize use of space, eliminate waste, and add as much built-in storage as possible.
After a brief tour, Lin Haoyu decided on the largest of the available units—a 1,000-square-foot "luxury home." Zheng then offered him one of the best locations.
Yang Wendong smiled. "Congrats. You'll be able to move in by July next year."
"Thanks, Dong-ge," Lin Haoyu grinned.
"For the loan paperwork, head to Liu Chong Hing Bank. They'll push it through on a special track for you," Yang added.
Honestly, it wouldn't have been a big deal to gift one unit to an early loyal comrade like Lin Haoyu. By this point, Yang's net worth was easily in the hundred-million range.
But Lin had refused charity, insisting on earning everything on his own, and Yang respected that.
"Alright," Lin agreed.
After another look around, the group had toured all three available layouts. Though they varied in size and design, the décor followed the same general aesthetic.
Outside the model house, Yang turned to Zheng. "Old Zheng, once the rest of the units are built, pay extra attention to the interior finish quality.
This is our first upscale, fully decorated project. We can't afford any mistakes. We need to make a splash with this one."
"Understood," Zheng replied.
"When's the pre-sale starting?" Yang asked.
"Next week," Zheng said. "Once the structures rise a floor or two, we'll open reservations."
"Good," Yang nodded. "Have we lined up coverage with Ganghua Daily and the Commercial Radio?"
"Yes," Zheng confirmed. "Mr. Qin has agreed to give us the front-page headline in five days."
"Perfect," Yang smiled.
Owning a media company had its perks—especially in promotions. Ganghua Daily positioned itself as a high-end newspaper, aligning well with Changxing Real Estate's luxury branding.
If they'd gone to another paper, even with money, it might've been difficult to secure front-page coverage.
A while later, Wong Yiu-nam arrived. Zheng personally welcomed him, and in less than 15 minutes, Wong had purchased 30 units.
Even Yang was a little surprised. "Mr. Wong, you really are something. Thirty units? That's nearly a million dollars right there."
At the time, a 1,000-square-foot luxury unit in Central cost around HK$40,000 to HK$50,000. In Admiralty, where Ti Xiang Shijia was located, the prices were a bit lower—around HK$30,000.
However, because Ti Xiang Shijia came with complete renovations and was marketed as a high-end product, prices were about 20% higher than average. Wong had bought a mix of large and small units, mostly in the 1,000-square-foot range, totaling nearly a million Hong Kong dollars.
Wong chuckled. "It's true, but most of that is bank-financed. I have to say, Mr. Yang, you're impressive—Liu Chong Hing Bank is willing to finance 70% of your real estate sales."
"That's thanks to Mr. Liu Baoshan's faith in the property market," Yang replied with a grin.
In the modern mainland, a standard mortgage usually required a 30% down payment. But in 1960s Hong Kong, it was more common to put down 50%, and loan terms were typically only 5 years, compared to the 20 years that would become standard later on.
But Liu Chong Hing Bank played a riskier game, and with Yang Wendong's rising financial clout—and the bank's own bullish outlook on property—they extended 70% financing on 5-to-8-year terms.
Wong smiled. "I heard Mr. Liu's assets have already topped 100 million. Truly remarkable. He's become a symbol of pride for the Chinese community here."
"Indeed," Yang agreed.
Recently, Liu Baoshan had been making increasingly high-profile moves, clearly aiming to turn the Liu family into Hong Kong's wealthiest Chinese clan, second only to the Ho family. In a recent interview, he even claimed his personal wealth had surpassed HK$100 million.
In 1960, that was an astounding figure. Even the future Four Big Families—decades later—only had assets in the low millions at most.
But Yang knew better. The higher Liu soared now, the harder he would fall next year.
November 22. Ganghua Daily ran a front-page story promoting the upcoming launch of Ti Xiang Shijia in Admiralty, highlighting a pioneering concept in the Hong Kong property market: luxury, fully furnished homes, "ready to move in."
No more hassle with renovations—the real estate company would deliver the homes fully finished and ready for occupancy.
The moment the paper hit the streets, the Hong Kong property market was stunned. No one had ever thought of selling furnished homes. Traditionally, buying a unit meant taking possession of a bare shell and dealing with the mess of renovations yourself.
November 24. Ti Xiang Shijia officially began accepting pre-sale reservations. Zheng had arranged for over 20 salespeople and a dozen security guards to handle the opening-day crowd.
It still wasn't enough.
Even before the doors opened in the morning, more than 100 people had gathered to view the units. As soon as the gates opened, the crowd surged forward.
Sales staff scrambled to assist everyone, but it was quickly clear they were overwhelmed. Each agent ended up fielding three to five clients at a time.
Outside the model unit, a long queue formed. The interior was simply too small to accommodate so many people at once.
Yang Wendong arrived early that morning and, seeing the chaos, said, "People are going nuts over these houses."
Zheng Zhijie was thrilled. "Mr. Yang, with property prices rising across Hong Kong, a development like ours—with a great location and move-in-ready units—is bound to be a hit."
"Excellent," Yang nodded. "That means we can be more aggressive with future projects."
"Absolutely," Zheng agreed.
By midday, an assistant came over with a report. "Mr. Yang, Mr. Zheng—the 160 units we released today have all sold out. Total revenue: HK$4.63 million."
"That fast?" Zheng beamed. "We can definitely raise the price for the next batch."
"Mm," Yang nodded. For non-essential properties in prime locations, pricing could—and should—follow market demand.
But the assistant hesitated and said, "There's a problem. Some of the people outside are getting aggressive. They're demanding units, and there was almost a fight with security."
"No more sales today," Yang said firmly. "We can't open that floodgate. Hand out some small gifts—towels, tea cups, whatever. Tell them to come back next time."
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