Chapter 635
The Secret to Staying Young
Donatella's superyacht is over 30 meters long and is made by the Italian brand 'Riva', which is currently controlled by a Hong Kong yacht company.
The weather was clear and the sea was cloudless. A yacht approached Donatella's superyacht, and two blonde, blue-eyed supermodel girls boarded the yacht under the guidance of a female agent.
"Remember, there is a real tycoon and nobleman on board. If you have fun, you will not only have many opportunities in the future, but you will also make money!"
The two blonde, blue-eyed models, only 19 and 21 years old, dared not offend the female agent, much less the owner of the yacht, and quickly nodded in agreement.
However, when they saw the 'male owner' on the boat, they were immediately taken aback, as he turned out to be an old man.
They quickly calmed down; after all, those who could be called nobles and wealthy people couldn't possibly be young.
At this moment, Chen Guangliang's eyes lit up. It's so nice to be young!
"My name is Chris, and I'm nineteen years old."
"My name is Lisa, and I'm twenty-one years old."
Chen Guangliang said with satisfaction, "You can call me Sir Victor. As for my age, that's a secret. Actually, it's the same age as a beautiful woman!"
The model, named Chris, was a typical blonde with blue eyes and a very lively personality. She immediately said, "Aren't we beautiful?"
The implication was that they first stated their age.
"That's because you're young enough that you don't hide your advantages at all."
Chris was delighted and leaned closer, saying, "You're so funny! I bet you're only in your fifties!"
"Ha ha"
Chen Guangliang was overjoyed. He had dressed up to look younger today, which was undoubtedly a good choice.
Donatella then gave the two models a business card, leaving Chris and Lisa amazed. They had stepped into the real circle of the wealthy!
They were certainly familiar with LEDiN Apparel Group, but they were somewhat surprised that such a beautiful woman as Donatella was the founder and chairman of the board.
Sir Victor, who is standing before her, must be an investor or someone who has a very important relationship with Donatella.
Thinking of this, both women became eager. Although Chen Guangliang was a bit old, he was still very charming. Simply put, women wouldn't dislike him at first glance and would want to socialize with him.
Before long, Chen Guangliang was surrounded by women on his left and right, and Donatella and Monica appropriately kept their identities hidden, maintaining their partnership.
Chen Guangliang picked up a bottle of red wine worth tens of thousands of dollars and, while clinking glasses with the young girl Chris, deliberately spilled it on her chest.
"Sorry, it seems I should do something!"
After saying that, he began to suckle Chris's chest from top to bottom, sucking on his young skin and his impressive physique.
"Sir Victor, it's alright!"
Even the lively Chris shyly refused, gently pushing Chen Guangliang away, but he wasn't angry.
Chen Guangliang understood that this was nothing more than playing hard to get, or bargaining.
He pulled Chris into a tight embrace and whispered, "Baby, I'm a very generous tycoon, and I hope you'll be generous too!"
"Really?" Chris asked, both surprised and shy.
She had a vague feeling that if she could satisfy this guest today, she would not only gain access to the resources of the LEDiN Clothing Group, but also receive a tip from Sir Victor.
Although Sir Victor has not yet offered any terms, the fact that several bottles of red wine, each worth tens of thousands of dollars, were opened at once speaks volumes, doesn't it?
"Sir Victor, I accidentally spilled it too!"
Lisa, who was next to her, suddenly poured red wine on her chest and then raised her voice to say something.
She wasn't as proactive as Chris at first, but now she was the most proactive because she was smitten. First, this wealthy man was very influential; second, he had considerable charm; and finally, Sir Victor said he was very generous.
"Really? I'll help you!"
Chen Guangliang used his mouth to clean up the spilled substances for Lisa, and soon they arrived at the girl's grandmother's house.
Donatella and Monica wisely left to continue their vacation elsewhere.
Their initiative this time was not impulsive, but rather an attempt to give this man some motivation and solidify their positions. As for these models affecting their status, that was impossible. After all, having been with Chen Guangliang for so long, they knew that women with wealth and status needed at least many years of cultivation, and Chen Guangliang clearly didn't have that energy at the moment.
On the other side, Chen Guangliang seemed to have rediscovered his youthful spirit, and at this moment he felt it was all worthwhile.
Moreover, he hadn't tasted a blonde, blue-eyed woman until he was ninety, so today he could say his wish had been fulfilled. Fortunately, he was still full of energy; he fought Lu Bu against the two heroes and was still able to handle the situation with ease.
After all, these young girls didn't have the fighting power of mature women like Donatella and Monica.
afterwards.
Chen Guangliang didn't linger. He gestured to Donatella and then comfortably lay down on the bed.
"You two come with me."
Chris and Lisa could only put on their clothes and then follow Donatella into a room.
"Designer bags and clothes, you can choose whatever you like, hurry up!"
Chris and Lisa perked up immediately and started choosing without hesitation. They could choose as many LV, Gucci, and Prada items as they wanted, things they usually only dreamed of. They just wished they had more hands to carry them all.
Donatella's face flashed with disgust. Compared to herself, these women were too superficial. When she was with Sir Chen, she didn't have any demands; she was simply attracted by his charm.
"It's packed up."
Donatella didn't even glance at it, and directly tossed out two more stacks of euros, saying, "Take 2 euros each. If Sir Victor still thinks of you in the future, he can summon you again."
"Yes, Mrs. Donatella."
Afterwards, to make amends to Donatella and Monica, Chen Guangliang stayed in Europe for three more days and visited the two women once more before leaving satisfied.
As for the two blonde, blue-eyed models, they were just hired once, with no further intention of generating traffic. After all, these girls could easily cause trouble if they were to spend too much time with them.
But now that I think about it, Chen Guangliang seems to have a different kind of 'charm' compared to the wealthy, princes, and powerful people on 'Lolo Island' in my previous life. This 'charm' at least allows him to win over young girls without having to use force; he only needs to offer some benefits.
This reminded him of his past fling with Princess Margaret, and he thought that charm must have worked.
Des Voeux Road Central, Global Group Centre.
Chen Wenming's third son, Chen Zewen, arrived at the general manager's office of Global Shipping.
"Uncle Wenbo," Chen Wenbo raised his head, a smile spreading across his face, treating his cousin and "successor to Global Shipping" with great kindness.
Today, the Global Group's business actually consists of only four parts: real estate and hotels, shipping, aviation, logistics and trade.
The original Universal Properties has long been merged into Wharf Holdings. Over the years, Wharf Holdings has developed into a group with over 10 million square feet of commercial real estate in Hong Kong (Harbour City in Tsim Sha Tsui, Times Square in Causeway Bay, Hollywood Centre in Lion Rock, Kowloon), more than 20 large-scale commercial projects and a large number of small and medium-sized real estate projects in key cities in mainland China, Lane Crawford Plaza and Singapore Land in Singapore, as well as many properties in Europe, America and Japan.
If valued as a whole, Wharf Holdings' net assets are at least HK$2500 billion. Of course, Harbour City and Times Square alone are valued at HK$900 billion, accounting for about 35% of the total value.
In shipping, Worldwide Shipping currently boasts the world's largest oil tanker fleet and the fifth-largest container fleet, with a total tonnage of approximately 11 million tons. This represents a significant increase from the more than 8 million tons in the early to mid-1980s.
In the aviation sector, thanks to its mainland routes, Hong Kong Airlines has finally achieved equal value with Cathay Pacific, becoming one of Hong Kong's two major airlines. Meanwhile, the aircraft leasing business invested in by Universal Group many years ago now owns passenger aircraft worth just over US$20 billion, with headquarters in Ireland and Hong Kong.
Global Trade has completed its transformation and now mainly invests in logistics and industrial real estate (warehousing). Its original global properties have been gradually transformed into warehousing and logistics centers around the world.
Chen Wenming, the chairman and general manager of Global Group, has four sons but no daughters.
The eldest son, Chan Chak-sung, began serving as the general manager of Wharf Holdings in the year 2000 and will succeed him as the head of Wharf Holdings.
The second son, Chen Zeqi, left the Global Group early on to start his own business, and is now the head of PCCW and Hong Kong Telecom.
The third son, Chen Zewen, is 36 years old this year and serves as the deputy general manager of Global Shipping. He is learning from his uncle, Chen Wenbo.
The fourth son, Chen Zechi, holds a senior position at Global Trade, preparing to take over the company.
Although the four sons are "separated", Chen Wenming divided the assets into only two parts: the first part is the entire "Global Group", which is packaged into a trust and inherited by his three sons, Chen Zesong, Chen Zewen and Chen Zechi; the second part is the profits over the years, which are basically given to his second son, Chen Zeqi, as support for Chen Zeqi's independent entrepreneurship.
"Zewen, what's the matter?"
Chen Zewen replied, "The development of global shipping has reached a bottleneck, and new opportunities are needed to break through it, as well as to integrate resources and reduce operating costs."
Upon hearing this, Chen Wenbo recalled that in the late 1990s, Global Shipping had attempted to acquire SeaLand Container Terminals, but ultimately lost to Maersk. Ultimately, this was because SeaLand had eight container terminals, many of which were sensitive US ports, thus involving some political factors.
Tell me, what specific ideas do you have?
My nephew is already thirty-six years old, and taking over the reins is just a matter of a few years. This is a good opportunity to make the final handover.
After all, Chen Wenbo is 66 years old, and Chen Wenming is also 66 years old; both of them have reached retirement age.
Chen Zewen said, "Bengersen Shipping of Norway is the world's largest natural gas transportation operator. If we can complete the acquisition, we can create synergies in the oil and gas sector and strengthen our investments in Europe."
Chen Wenbo immediately said, "I fully support your idea. Strengthening investment in Europe has always been my idea. I happen to have many connections in Europe, and Bengerson's major shareholder and chairman of the board, Longvens, is also a good friend of mine, so go ahead and do it. Of course, to avoid an overly abrupt acquisition, I can test Longvens first."
Chen Zewen's eyes lit up, and he immediately said, "Uncle Wenbo, this is what I'm thinking: we can first acquire about 10% of Bengerson's shares, and then take further action."
"Okay, go ahead and do it. I will fully support you. I will report this operation to your father later."
"Thank you, Uncle Wenbo."
"No need for formalities among family."
Chen Wenbo watched Chen Zewen leave with satisfaction.
By this time, their lineage had already taken root in Europe. His father, Chen Guangcong, was living in retirement in London, and Chen Wenbo had two sons who successively withdrew from global shipping and became independent businessmen in Europe.
With Chen Zewen promoted to power and Chen Wenbo set to retire in Europe, the mission was accomplished. After all, their uncle had treated their family well, and their family's assets amounted to tens of billions of Hong Kong dollars.
That day, Chen Wenming, along with his four sons, visited Chen Guangliang in the villa area of Discovery Bay.
"dad"
"grandfather"
Chen Guangliang said with a smile, "It's rare to see you five, father and sons, all together!"
Chen Wenming has four sons, but his second son, Chen Zeqi, is not on good terms with him. However, Chen Zeqi dares not show anything in front of his grandfather.
"Father, we have some business questions we'd like you to give us some pointers on!" Chen Wenming was very humble, even though he was about to retire.
"Speak, what is it?"
Chen Wenming first explained the planned acquisition of Bengtsson in Norway, adding, "I don't feel there was any loss from the failed acquisition of SeaLand in the US last time; after all, that's perfectly normal. Before the Asian financial crisis, I followed your advice and reduced our shipping capacity in Asia, but later, taking advantage of the extremely low prices offered by the South Korean shipbuilding industry, we quickly placed many orders to replenish our maritime shipping capacity. This time, we want to bet on European shipping; Bengtsson is just another opportunity for the future."
Chen Guangliang nodded. The failure to acquire Hailu Company was ultimately due to the fact that those eight ports were basically core ports in the United States, which made Global Shipping somewhat sensitive.
Acquiring a fleet of ships naturally eliminates such concerns. While a network of connections is necessary, the Chen family has sufficient resources in Europe.
“It’s feasible. Shipping can continue indefinitely, as long as the cycle is managed well. Since this acquisition was proposed by Zevin, you will be fully responsible for it.”
Thank you for your trust, Grandpa.
Chen Guangliang waved his hand, then looked at Chen Zeqi.
This kid is 'rebellious'!
But Chen Zeqi dared not do anything to his grandfather. He immediately said, "Grandpa, the global internet bubble has burst, and I have encountered some troubles in this acquisition of Hong Kong Telecom, but I will have enough patience. In addition, you said that Tencent is a company that can be invested in for the long term. I think your judgment is definitely correct, and I will hold it for the long term."
Chen Guangliang asked, "What's the current situation with your Tencent shares?"
Chen Zeqi quickly replied, "I hold 20% of the shares, the founders and team of Tencent hold 60%, and IDG holds 20%."
Chen Guangliang continued, "What about the valuation?"
Chen Zeqi immediately said, "In 1999, IDG was valued at $1100 million. Now that we're facing the dot-com bubble, that valuation probably won't grow much! At least IDG doesn't seem very optimistic about it."
Chen Guangliang shook his head and said directly, "In that case, it is an opportunity! Value Tencent at 6500 million US dollars and see if IDG is willing to give you a portion of its equity."
At this moment, Chen Zeqi didn't have a very high opinion of Tencent, but since his grandfather had said so, and he didn't lack the money, he would hold onto it for the long term.
Yes, Grandpa.
Chen Guangliang nodded. Based on the past behavior of the founders of IDG and Tencent, it was highly likely that Chen Zeqi could obtain 50% equity before the IPO (2004), which was equivalent to the shareholding of the Tencent founding team.
Even if the listing will dilute the shares, Chen Zeqi will still hold 37.5% of the shares.
Of course, Chen Guangliang still hopes that Chen Zeqi will cash out a portion of the money, and then the family office will start purchasing some.
Ultimately, Chen Zeqi can continue to cash out when the company's market capitalization reaches 5000 billion, while the Chen family can continue to hold the shares discreetly. Tencent's long-term, stable dividends make it a very worthwhile investment.
After giving his guidance, Chen Wenming returned home with his four sons, laden with gifts. Upon arriving home, he reminded his sons to treat their grandfather's words as sacred and never disobey them.
"Yes, Father." (End of Chapter)