Chapter 303 Museum Construction and New In-depth Cooperation

Chapter 303 Museum Construction and New In-depth Cooperation

Chapter 303 Museum Construction and New In-depth Cooperation
"That's great." Yang Wendong was delighted and asked, "What about the land we want?"

Robert Black said: "We can grant you a 5 square foot plot of land. The land is for public facilities. The price per square foot is HK$150. It will be used as the first phase of the museum."

"What about the second phase?" Yang Wendong asked calmly.

Mainland experts suggested building the building in two stages, each with an area of ​​5 square feet. This was mainly due to the fact that cooperation also needed to be gradually upgraded, and Hong Kong's current economic population did not require a large museum.

Robert Black said: "You can temporarily keep that piece of land nearby. We will not grant it to others in the short term. When your first phase of demand cannot meet the needs of Hong Kong citizens, we will give it to you.
However, the price at that time may be different from now, but it will still be approved as a public facility, so the price will not be outrageous. "

Yang Wendong thought for a moment and said, "Mr. Governor, can the price of HK$150 per square foot be reduced a little more?"

Robert Black shook his head and said, "Mr. Yang, you are a famous real estate businessman in Hong Kong. You are more familiar with land prices than I am. Based on the current prices in Central, if the land is for commercial purposes, it would start at at least 800."

Yang Wendong smiled faintly and said, "Yes, but after all, it is not commercial in nature, and the income from public projects is far less than that from normal business."

Although museums can charge admission fees, they certainly cannot make as much money as five-star hotels or office buildings or shopping malls do, especially as their operating costs are relatively high.

Bai Liji said again: "Mr. Yang, I have been working on this for a long time. It is unlikely that the price will be lowered. After all, the location of the land is very good."

"Well, thank you, Governor." After thinking for a moment, Yang Wendong agreed and said, "As long as the land is approved, the museum will be built as quickly as possible. I will ask that it be completed and opened before the end of next year. Then the Governor will have to attend the opening ceremony."

Robert Black nodded and said, "No problem. I also hope to leave a large historical museum in Hong Kong before I leave."

"I understand." Yang Wendong said, "Some of your experiences will also be recorded in the museum for future generations to see."

This museum can be said to be a milestone in the rapid development of his relationship with the Governor of Hong Kong. He left his name for the Governor in exchange for some "fair and legal" transactions.

This is also the highest level of cooperation between government and business. To just HUILU is too low-level. Even if we are honest and do it for money, there are still many legal ways to do it.

"Haha, okay, thank you Yang Sheng." Bai Liji said with a faint smile.

It is a pride for an official to be able to leave his name in a city museum. Even for the higher-ranking officials in the UK, it is difficult to do this.

This kind of thing depends more on luck, timing, connections, etc.

Yang Wendong said: "You're welcome."

Bai Liji said: "This matter will be announced soon, you can prepare yourself."

"No problem." Yang Wendong agreed.

Robert Black added: "Because it is a public project, you can apply for a preferential loan from the Hong Kong government, that is, HSBC. I have already talked to Sanders, you can just go to him directly."

"Okay." Yang Wendong said happily, "Thank you, Governor."

After returning from the Governor's House, Yang Wendong directly called Zheng Zhijie and informed him of the matter.

After listening to this, Zheng Zhijie said, "Don't worry, Mr. Yang. I asked Bei Jinming to do the design two months ago. It should be almost done. Once the design is finalized, we can prepare to start construction."

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "Okay, I estimate that the Hong Kong government will transfer the land to me within half a month. In addition to the design, you also need to prepare the construction team."

"I understand." Zheng Zhijie agreed.

Yang Wendong asked again: "I remember Changxing Real Estate has already bought property nearby, right?"

Zheng Zhijie replied: "Yes, after the mainland team selected the location, I arranged for someone to take action. After all, even if the land was not approved, there would be no loss."

"Okay." Yang Wendong said with satisfaction: "Then we just have to wait for the process from the Hong Kong government."

This matter is finally coming to an end. As long as the land is in hand and the license is approved, it is basically a sure thing. Even if there are still cooperation issues in the future, they will be trivial matters.

The most important thing is that he will build the largest museum in Hong Kong, purchase some special cultural relics, and cooperate with the Governor of Hong Kong and the mainland, thus killing two birds with one stone.

The next day, Yang Wendong came to the headquarters of HSBC Building:

"Mr. Sanders." Yang Wendong said politely.

The influence of the bosses of HSBC and Jardine Matheson in Hong Kong in the 60s was no less than that of the Governor.

Although his rights are certainly not comparable, the Governor of Hong Kong is a civil servant and is subject to too many restrictions. He cannot do many things as he pleases. But the head of a business consortium has much more freedom.

Sanders also smiled and said, "Mr. Yang, it's only been a short while and you've already released such big news. The museum is about to be built."

Yang Wendong replied: "There are commercial benefits in building a museum, but it is not entirely for economic reasons. It is mainly because Hong Kong is a city that is developing better and better and needs a large museum."

"Yes, that's right. Hong Kong does need a museum." Sanders nodded and said, "You came to me for a loan for the museum, right?"

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "Yes, the Governor of Hong Kong should have told you that the land for this museum is not commercial, so it is not very expensive. In this way, if we only consider the economic investment, it will not be very large.

Therefore, in the future, the museum can also rely on commercial tickets or some other operating income to maintain normal operation and be able to repay debts. "

The land price will be around HK$750 million, with not much up or down. Adding the cost of foundation, construction and equipment, the investment is estimated to be just over million.

Yang Wendong could afford the money, but it would be foolish not to take out a bank loan to do internal business in Hong Kong, especially since this was a public infrastructure project.

Sanders nodded and said, "Well, I know. According to the principle of public projects, I will also give you a preferential low-interest loan. The collateral is the museum."

As a "quasi-central bank", HSBC has to assume certain government responsibilities in order to enjoy excess commercial benefits.

This includes stabilizing Hong Kong's financial markets, government public utility loans, etc., and also requires low interest rates.

"That's good." Yang Wendong smiled and said, "There is one more thing. The first of the cargo ships I ordered from Japan last year is almost ready, and the rest are also coming soon. These merchant ships have also been successfully leased out.

So I am preparing to carry out the second round of new ship purchases, which will require the cooperation of HSBC."

In the 50s and 60s, Hong Kong shipowners basically did not participate in the operation of ships themselves. Most of them rented out ships directly, especially large Japanese companies, trading companies, shipping companies, etc. They would not buy ships themselves, but preferred to rent ships.

This is also one of the important reasons why Hong Kong shipowners have been able to rise. As long as they buy a ship, they can basically rent it out.

So when Changxing Shipping became bigger and bigger, Japanese companies came to discuss cooperation and lease existing ships as well as future ships. Now that there are few ships and a lot of cargo, there is basically business for buying ships.

Of course, renting a ship is not like renting a house where you just sit back and collect money. Instead, the Japanese company rents your ship, but you are still responsible for the operation. The Japanese company is only responsible for paying and arranging ship transportation.

After listening to this, Sanders smiled and said: "Of course this is not a problem. HSBC is also happy to participate in Hong Kong's shipping business."

"Okay, then I will discuss the specific details with you after I have negotiated with the Japanese shipyard and the Japanese bank." Yang Wendong nodded and said.

After Sanders came to power, HSBC began to cooperate with Chinese capital and shipping companies because Sanders was optimistic about the future of Chinese capital in Hong Kong and the global shipping market. This led to the rapid development of HSBC in the 60s and its expansion, which also laid the foundation for the later tycoon Shen Bi to internationalize HSBC.

Because the interest rates for Chinese commercial loans and shipping commercial loans are not low.

"No problem," Sanders nodded, and then asked, "Mr. Yang, are you still planning to buy a cargo ship?"

Yang Wendong replied: "The new ships purchased this time are not ordinary cargo ships, but large bulk carriers and large oil tankers, which may be in the 5-10-ton level."

After the outbreak of the Middle East crisis, any ship can make a lot of money, but large oil tankers and large bulk carriers are definitely more cost-effective, because the larger the ship, the stronger the carrying capacity, and the cargo of these two types of merchant ships is simple and easy to get on and off.

Ordinary cargo ships have low tonnage and need to stay at the port for a long time to load and unload goods. After the Middle East crisis breaks out, the ports may be more crowded, which will waste more time; at special times, the waste of time is even more regrettable.

Moreover, the times are about to change, and the container era will become popular in a few years. If you buy a new ship at this time, you will definitely not lose money, but you will make much less money. Therefore, for this type of ship, it is enough to buy a second-hand one. When the container era comes, the lifespan of the ship will be almost over, and then send it to be dismantled as scrap metal.

Sanders smiled and said, "Well, first of all, congratulations to Mr. Yang on your growing scale. It seems that maybe in ten years, you will become one of the largest shipping tycoons in Hong Kong."

"No, I want to become a world-class shipping king." Yang Wendong said with a faint smile.

In front of the British devils, people have to be appropriately arrogant so that they can cooperate better.

"Haha, good." Sanders said, "Pao Yugang and Bao Sheng have the same idea as you. If both of you can become world-class shipowners, it will be a great joyous event for Hong Kong."

"I think it's definitely possible to guarantee birth." Yang Wendong nodded.

Ten years later, there were really many shipping tycoons in Hong Kong. Even without him, there were still four such tycoons in history, three of whom were ranked among the top ten in the world.

This is definitely the strength of the Chinese. No matter what the external reasons are, the British capital in Hong Kong, which had stronger capital in the early days, is getting worse and worse in this golden shipping era.
On October 10, the Hong Kong government officially announced that a large-scale history museum will be built in Hong Kong. The address will be 22 Hung Kam Road, Central, with an area of ​​19 square feet. The land is a public facility and the total transaction price is HK$50000 million.

The project is wholly owned by Changxing Real Estate Company and will be open to 300 million Hong Kong citizens after completion.

Because this is a special approval of land and there will be no competitors, it will be approved directly. It only needs to be announced for a period of time. If there is no reasonable objection from others, then this matter will be approved and construction can begin.

As soon as the news came out, newspapers reported the incident one after another.

"Build a museum? There will be many cultural relics from the mainland inside?" A man smiled after reading the newspaper and said, "In the future, we can directly see cultural relics in Hong Kong."

"Yes, I am still interested in ancient people's calligraphy and paintings. I hope to see the masterpieces of Li Bai, Du Fu and Qu Yuan." said a woman.

"What are you dreaming about? How could such cultural relics come to Hong Kong?"

"Not necessarily. It says here that the mainland will rent cultural relics, so maybe it will be possible."

"I also want to see mummies, but I don't know if I can rent one. Egypt is too far away and it's too chaotic there, so I don't dare to go."

Many people who read the newspaper began to discuss the matter.

That afternoon, Bei Jinming also came to Yang Wendong’s office to introduce his museum design: “Mr. Yang, this museum has five floors above ground and two floors underground, with a total construction area of ​​22 feet and 17 areas to store different cultural relics;
The entire building has the most advanced temperature and humidity control system to ensure the preservation of cultural relics.
There is also "

Bei Jinming introduced his new designs one by one according to the drawings.

Yang Wendong also listened carefully. Although he did not understand some professional terms, he had visited many museums in the mainland in his previous life, so he had some understanding of them.

After the introduction, Yang Wendong asked, "How long will the construction take?"

"About a year, at most 13 months," Bei Jinming replied. "This is the data I discussed with Hong Kong Gammon Construction Group. All workers will take the approach of stopping work but not stopping work to ensure the project goes on."

"Well, we should try to be faster. On the premise of ensuring the quality, I will give certain rewards to all workers if they finish the work ahead of schedule." Yang Wendong nodded and said.

This is the deal he made with the Governor of Hong Kong and it cannot be postponed.

Bei Jinming nodded and said, "Okay, I will negotiate with Kinmen Construction."

"There are still some questions." Yang Wendong looked at the drawings and raised some questions of his own.

The next day, two more guests came to Changxing Building.

"Mr. Huo, Mr. Ding." Yang Wendong said with a smile: "Sit over here, what would you two like to drink?"

"Whatever you like, tea or boiled water is fine." Huo Yingdong said after sitting down.

"Bring some tea." Yang Wendong said to his assistant. He couldn't just give him plain water.
The assistant took the order and left. Yang Wendong said, "You two, the Hong Kong government has approved all administrative permits for the museum, and the land has been sold. I will start construction soon. Our cooperation has officially begun."

Although many cooperation projects have been discussed before, they were only intentions. If the museum does not formally implement them, there will be no transaction.

"No problem, I will fully cooperate with you." Ding Kejian said: "We in the mainland also hope that the Chinese in Hong Kong can learn more about the history of their own country."

"Okay, then there won't be any problem." Yang Wendong nodded and said, "The museum will probably be completed around this time next year, and cooperation on cultural relics will probably begin around that time."

He is not Zhao Congyan, and he has no interest in setting up a private antique storage point. Any cooperation requires him to wait until the museum is built and then put the antiques inside.

"Okay." Ding Kejian agreed.

Huo Yingdong asked again: "I wonder what the design of the museum looks like? Can we take a look at it?"

"Of course." Yang Wendong nodded, then took out a blueprint from a bookcase and said, "This is a copy of the design by architect Bei Jinming. The entire museum..."

After giving a brief introduction, Huo Yingdong praised: "This museum is bigger than the ones in the mainland now."

Yang Wendong said with a smile: "A bigger museum will meet future needs. I am very optimistic about Hong Kong's economy. A bigger museum will be able to store more cultural relics, accommodate more tourists, and provide enough space for protection."

Land in Hong Kong is very expensive, and you can't get a good location just by wanting a large area, even if it is under the name of a public project. The Hong Kong government is not stupid. If you have a little reason or connections to get some benefits, that's fine, but if it's too outrageous, it's definitely not allowed.

Therefore, the only option was to build upwards, which was also an early decision. Bei Jinming designed it based on his needs.

Huo Yingdong nodded: "That's good, we can display more cultural relics. Chinese civilization has been around for thousands of years, and there are too many different cultural relics."

"Yes." Yang Wendong nodded.

There are so many museums in China that are not big enough for exhibitions. One of them in Shanghai alone has an area of ​​11 square meters.
At this time, Ding Kejian asked: "Mr. Yang, we have another thing to discuss with you this time. Our China Resources Group wants to have a deeper cooperation with Carrefour."

"How do we cooperate?" Yang Wendong asked.

PS: My child has had a high fever these days. I don’t know if it’s COVID-40 or influenza. It’s often over degrees. I need to accompany my child here, so I won’t update for now.

(End of this chapter)