2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 111 Trip to Hong Kong (6K)

If you had to choose a song to describe your impression of Hong Kong, which one would it be?
In Tan Jincheng's mind, it should be Ding Xie's song "Laughing at the Wind and Clouds".

"Don't worry, it's just a technical adjustment." This meme became a hit among A-share investors years later, and the five crabs became famous figures among them.

After crossing the border from Shenzhen to Hong Kong, Tan Jincheng's purpose was naturally to get QQ. However, thinking of these five people at this moment, wasn't it a bit ominous?
But it doesn't matter, buddy. This is called investing, not stock trading. I'll just buy it and leave it alone. I won't use leverage. What can you do about it?

Kowloon Plaza, a 16-story building, is one of the tallest buildings in Hong Kong. It is located next to the international airport and in one of Hong Kong's most prosperous and famous commercial districts. The headquarters of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is located here.

As one of the most important indicators of Asia's economic climate, Hong Kong's stock market held a pivotal position during this period. It was also a crucial arena for the power struggles among various forces during the 2008 financial crisis.

The specific details of the game are unknown. In my previous life in 2008, my understanding of the stock market and financial market was limited to some business partners talking about which stock had fallen and how much money they had lost.

These people, although they had some money at the time, were just large-scale韭菜 (a metaphor for retail investors) in the financial market. They had very limited information and only listened to the stories about the long and short battles between international giants as mere gossip.

Later, many online novels also depicted these scenes. However, novels are meant to be enjoyed and read for fun; if you take them too seriously, then they lose their appeal.

Sigh, when it comes to online novels, the ones from this period are really good. They dare to write anything, unlike later generations.

Founded in 2002, Qidian now has many excellent online novels being serialized. Recently, when he has free time, Tan Jincheng will also read Zhang Xiaofan, an online novel that was hailed as a god in his previous life. Tan Jincheng had never read it before.

Don't tell me, it's quite interesting.

Tan Jincheng walked slowly through this famous commercial district, passing by neatly dressed men and women. Everyone was in a hurry, their fast-paced lives leaving them no time to stop and chat. If they encountered an acquaintance on the street, they would simply greet them and then hurry away.

Occasionally, people carrying large amounts of food, who look like delivery drivers, would rush out of the shops and head towards the building.

Towering skyscrapers and hurried social elites—for a moment, Tan Jincheng felt as if he had returned to his past life in the era of advanced internet development. No wonder it is one of the world's financial centers today.

After buying a newspaper, Tan Jincheng arrived at the agreed-upon coffee shop, ordered a coffee, and found a seat.

Yes, prices are quite high, but for Tan Jincheng who came from the mainland, it's still acceptable. These days, Hong Kong dollars are worthless; 5 Hong Kong dollars can only be exchanged for 4 yuan, and they can't be used in mainland China.

Although he was as extravagant as James when exchanging US dollars for RMB and spending money in Guangzhou, Tan Jincheng, who came from a later era, did not have the same rosy view of Hong Kong as people of this time, and he had a certain sense of superiority.

It's normal for wealthy relatives to look down on poor relatives; after all, fortunes change.

Unlike the hurried crowd, Tan Jincheng leisurely sipped his coffee and read the newspaper, which was reporting on the recent donation of HK$10 billion to Hong Kong University by the richest man in Hong Kong, which was the largest educational donation in Hong Kong and Asia's history.

These Hong Kong newspapers know how to generate buzz; their headlines are just as sensational as those of the internet age, though the traditional Chinese characters are a bit of a hassle to read.

"How about we visit Hong Kong University sometime?"

Forget it, I'd better not go. It's reasonable for a reborn person to be a little superstitious, right? I'd better hurry back to being my own factory owner after I've finished my business.

Before coming here, Tan Jincheng sorted out his assets, including dividends, 100 million yuan lent to him by Zhang Xupeng, Moutai liquor stocks worth more than 15 yuan, and a house (not counting the one in his hometown, which is not worth much).

Furthermore, if the historical inertia remains unchanged and the Champions League final still results in a miracle night like in the previous life, then the previous bets on Liverpool winning the championship, as well as the bets on the final score tie made secretly a few days ago, should have brought me a profit of 132 million yuan after deducting taxes.

All things considered, the available assets are around 400 million yuan, which is quite enough to start a factory.

As for the money owed, we can pay off Zhang Xupeng's debts when we receive the year-end bonuses first. There's no rush to pay off the bank loans and mortgages; we can pay them off whenever they're due.

Although he had a large amount of cash on hand, Tan Jincheng did not plan to buy more QQ stock. Compared with stocks, the interests of the factory were more important.

This time, Tan Jincheng only plans to buy 10 shares of QQ stock, worth about 50 yuan. He decided against buying the house in Yangcheng, believing that it's best to use most of his assets in businesses with renewable profits during the startup phase.

Zhang Xupeng is right. At most, you can only go twice. One or two houses in other places may appreciate in value, but they won't help your future much. Instead of spreading your money around cities that are not closely related to you, it's better to focus on Beicang.

Tan Jincheng has great confidence in the investment environment in Beicang. Speaking of which, before the last Canton Fair ended, Tan Jincheng visited the Ningbo delegation to express his gratitude again for the legal assistance provided to him.

The person in charge also introduced him to the person in charge of Beicang. After listening to Tan Jincheng's report, the two congratulated Jinpeng Trading on its achievements at this Canton Fair.

Although it was just a one-time meeting, it's enough to make them somewhat familiar with each other. In the future, for small things like exhibition booths, Jinpeng Trading probably won't need to go around seeking personal connections like it did this year.

If you have sales and clients, the official platform will help you get exhibition booths. If the scale reaches a certain number, it will be even easier to negotiate. In the future, whether it's exports or electric scooters, you need to maintain contact with the official authorities.

Now that we have a good foundation, there is no need to go through all that trouble.

Just like playing a game, unlocking new maps requires skill. If you're not skilled enough, focus on the starting village and level up by fighting monsters.

"Hello, are you Mr. Tan Jincheng?"

Tan Jincheng was reading the newspaper, lost in thought for a while, when he heard a question in broken Mandarin.

Looking up, I saw a middle-aged man wearing a polo shirt, slightly overweight, with a receding hairline, smiling at me.

Seeing Tan Jincheng looking at him, the middle-aged man took the initiative to introduce himself: "Hello, I was introduced by Mr. Lin. My surname is Li. This is my business card. I called you earlier to arrange to meet here."

Tan Jincheng quickly stood up, took the business card and said, "Oh, Mr. Li, hello, I am Tan Jincheng."

Li Jiamin, a very common name, has the title of manager of a certain securities company on his name tag, but he actually does the work of a securities broker. The Lin Sheng he mentioned is one of Jinpeng Trading's clients in Hong Kong, and also a stable source of customers.

Tan Jincheng wouldn't be running around like a headless fly when he comes here to buy stocks. These days, private exchanges between the two sides of the strait aren't that convenient. Otherwise, Tan Jincheng wouldn't have made a special trip for a mere 50 yuan worth of stocks.

In the future, it would only be a matter of a few taps on a mobile phone, but in this era when there aren't many stock market investors and buying overseas stocks is still a novelty, it's still quite troublesome.

"I've heard Lin Sheng say that Mr. Tan is young and promising, and also very handsome. Seeing you in person, you are even more handsome than in the photos," Li Jiamin said eloquently.

But from his eyes, Tan Jincheng didn't sense what he was saying. It was just his normal attitude towards customers, and there was no need to care about it. Once a person's mindset is fixed, it's not easy to change it.

It doesn't matter. I'm only contacting you once. Just maintain a normal, business-like attitude, and I'll pay the commission.

"Mr. Li, please have a seat. What would you like to drink? I'll go get you a drink," Tan Jincheng said with a smile.

"Then thank you, Mr. Tan. I'll have the same as you." Li Jiamin glanced at the coffee on the table and did not refuse.

"OK, wait."

As Tan Jincheng walked towards the coffee shop counter, he made a phone call to a customer. Since the customer could recite his name and Mr. Lin's information, he was probably not a scammer, but it was better to be on the safe side.

After confirming that everything was correct, Tan Jincheng returned to his seat with his coffee and began talking to the stockbroker.

There are no minimum capital requirements or minimum holding requirements for opening a securities account in Hong Kong. However, the Hong Kong securities market uses a brokerage custody model, which theoretically carries the risk of a brokerage going bankrupt and affecting the safety of client assets.

Therefore, choosing a brokerage firm is a very important step. The brokerage firm's qualifications and background, commissions and other fees, the stability and ease of use of the trading platform, the supported trading instruments and methods, and the quality of customer service are all very important.

Previously, Tan Jincheng asked his client, Mr. Lin, for help. When Mr. Lin heard that Tan Jincheng wanted to buy Hong Kong stocks, he introduced him to a whole bunch of rules and regulations, as well as how to choose a brokerage firm, which made Tan Jincheng's head spin.

In the end, it's best to just find a securities broker to handle it, which saves time and effort. As for the brokerage firm, Tan Jincheng chose the investment institution under BOC International Hong Kong Branch, which is definitely safe, there's nothing safer than that.

Commissions are not important to Tan Jincheng; security is what matters. Also, currency exchange through BOC International is much more convenient.

With all sorts of documents, I followed Li Jiamin to various counters, big and small, to open an account and deposit funds. After completing all the procedures, I could start trading directly. It was both troublesome and convenient.

That's how mature financial markets work. Tan Jincheng wasn't familiar with this stuff either, so he simply asked Li Jiamin to place an order: "Mr. Li, could you buy me 10 shares of QQ?"

"Huh? 10 shares of QQ? Then there's not much money left in the account, Mr. Tan, are you sure?" Li Jiamin was a little stunned by Tan Jincheng's request. However, he quickly switched to the QQ main interface. He knew this company; it was an internet company in Shenzhen, quite well-known in mainland China, but not considered a particularly outstanding company.

I was stunned when I saw this. The stock's total trading volume yesterday was less than HK$500 million, and the closing price yesterday was HK$5.35.

After opening flat today, the stock began to fall. The current share price is HK$5.25, and the trading volume has exceeded that of yesterday's entire day, which is a slight increase in volume during the decline. Furthermore, this internet company is currently facing difficulties in its transformation, and it remains to be seen whether it can overcome these challenges.

Where did this country bumpkin come from? Does he even know anything about stocks? He went all in right away, buying more than a tenth of yesterday's amount. Is this how you build a position?
“Yes, let’s forget about 10 shares; let’s buy this one right now with all the money in the account,” Tan Jincheng said confidently.

"Tan Sheng, are you really not going to reconsider? You're only going to buy this one? We have many other excellent stocks here. Besides, this company is currently facing performance difficulties; you see, it's still falling."

"No need to think about it. My friends and I use their software to chat, and I find it quite interesting. I have high hopes for it."

Seeing Tan Jincheng's resolute attitude, Li Jiamin's heart stirred, and he tentatively asked, "Does Mr. Tan have some inside story?"

"I don't have any inside information. I'm just buying for fun. My family gave me some money to invest, and I just buy based on my gut feeling. It doesn't matter if I lose money," Tan Jincheng shrugged.

It turns out he's just a country bumpkin rich kid undergoing training. That makes sense. Let him be. It's his money anyway, so let's just do what he wants.

Although he felt a bit contemptuous, Li Jiamin's professional skills were still sufficient. Although the trading volume of this stock had exceeded yesterday's, it was still not very high. Buying 10 shares at once would still have a certain impact on the stock price fluctuation.

So Li Jiamin placed orders in batches to accumulate shares, trying to keep the price within a small range so that he could buy more shares for his clients.

After a series of operations, Li Jiamin helped Tan Jincheng complete the purchase of 10 shares at a price of HK$5.29. Looking at the account showing a green color, Li Jiamin smiled slightly.

I've seen all sorts of bizarre clients in my career, but this is the first time I've encountered one this young, and from mainland China no less.

On the other hand, Tan Jincheng looked at his account with great satisfaction; haha, just wait to get rich!
Zhang Qingliang has been feeling uneasy these past few days, not because anything happened at the construction site, but because of his eldest nephew.

I've been in Ningbo for over a month now, helping my nephew manage the construction site. But I haven't seen him much in this time. He's either on a business trip to Guangzhou or driving around the city.

They even went to Hong Kong this time.

What troubles Zhang Qingliang the most is that his nephew really doesn't consult anyone before making decisions. He's too headstrong. Not only has he opened a second company, but he's also rented a 1200-square-meter factory to start a factory producing electric scooters!
He learned the news from his childhood friend Zhang Xupeng. The young man came over that day and said he wanted to treat him to a meal, and then casually revealed it.

When Zhang Qingliang learned of this news, he was extremely shocked. 1200 square meters! Where did his nephew get so much money?
Upon further questioning, the young man in front of him, who also looked quite young, revealed that he had lent him 1 million yuan, and that neither of their parents knew about it. The two of them settled on a loan of over 1 million yuan and an investment of several million yuan in just a few words.

Are young people these days all so wild?

Zhang Qingliang wasn't bothered that his eldest nephew hadn't told him about it. As a relative, even though he was his uncle, Zhang Qingliang didn't feel that his nephew had to tell him everything; no one had that obligation.

Isn't he afraid something might happen if he doesn't even know his own sister and brother-in-law? Should he tell his sister and brother-in-law? Investing millions is a bit too much.

If we can't sell them and the factory has to close, we'll be facing millions in debt. What will our family do then?
After agonizing for two days, seeing that his eldest nephew was about to return from Hong Kong, Zhang Qingliang decided to tell his sister. It wasn't an act of informing, but simply out of concern.

I learned about my nephew's schedule from his childhood friend Zhang Xupeng. The boy has been coming over from time to time these past few days. During the time Tan Jincheng was away, he entrusted some affairs of the new company to Zhang Xupeng.

Currently in Beicang, if we're talking about someone Tan Jincheng can absolutely trust and who's also capable of handling certain matters, then Zhang Xupeng is the only one.

Zhang Xupeng invited Zhang Qingliang to dinner to express the same idea. As Tan Jincheng's good brother who grew up with him, his own uncle had been visiting for more than a month, but they had not met or been invited to a meal. In the eyes of the people of Yicheng, this was somewhat impolite.

If my parents find out when I get home, I'll definitely get a scolding.

"Sister, is everything busy at home lately?" After thinking for a long time, Zhang Qingliang dialed Zhang Suzhi's number.

"I'm not too busy, I'm just taking care of the kids; your brother-in-law and Lamei are looking after things at the construction site, so there's not much to do. What about you?"

Lamei is the name of Zhang Qingliang's wife. The construction site in Yicheng was shut down for a few days after Zhang Qingliang left, but then resumed work. Usually, things like buying materials fell to Tan Lihua, while on-site management was handed over to Zhang Qingliang's wife.

She had worked in the renovation industry with Zhang Qingliang for several years and was also very skilled at plastering.

Zhang Qingliang said in a deep voice, "If you're not too busy at home, you or your brother-in-law could take some time to come and visit. Jinyue is almost six months old now, so it should be fine to leave her with her grandmother for a few days."

It has to be said that sometimes men are like this; they may care, but their emotional intelligence is really low.

Zhang Qingliang's words startled Zhang Suzhi; it sounded like something bad had happened. "What happened? Is it a problem at the construction site or something happened at Jincheng?"

"Oh, no, no, everything's fine here. Jincheng is also alright. He's in Hong Kong right now. He opened a huge factory, over a thousand square meters. I was thinking of not telling you, but why don't you come and take a look?"

"You scared me to death! You can't even speak clearly. You suddenly want us to come over out of the blue. Is that how you talk to people?"

"It's my fault, it's my fault, here's what happened."

Immediately afterwards, Zhang Qingliang told his sister about some information he had learned from Zhang Xupeng; Zhang Xupeng didn't hide anything, and he told Zhang Qingliang everything he knew and wanted to know.

Xiao Tan's parents knew that he had started a company and made money. As for why he hadn't mentioned opening a factory this time, based on Zhang Xupeng's understanding of Tan Jincheng, it wasn't because he was deliberately hiding it from his parents to avoid worrying them, but because he genuinely hadn't thought of it.

When a person makes decisions for a long time and gets used to it, they will habitually ignore some issues and the opinions of those around them.

Especially for someone like Xiao Tan, who hasn't made any mistakes yet and is extremely confident, she doesn't need to consult with others or consider their opinions when making decisions.

"Hey, sis, are you still there?"

"Oh, it's still there."

Her words were met with silence on the other end of the phone. As a state-owned enterprise employee, Zhang Suzhi was not an ignorant village woman. Her son had started a company last year, bought a car, and earned hundreds of thousands of yuan, which Zhang Suzhi could understand.

Even things that were previously incomprehensible—that selling clothes online could actually make money, and a lot of money at that—are now acceptable, given the hundreds of thousands of yuan lying in their bank accounts.

But Zhang Suzhi couldn't accept that the investment jumped from tens of thousands to millions all at once, and that was only the initial investment. Millions! That's a number that many people wouldn't even dare to dream of in their entire lives. Her son earned it in just six months and even invested it.

He's only 19! Where did he get the nerve? Can you make money that fast? Could he have done something bad?
Zhang Suzhi had seen factories of over 1000 square meters before, but those all belonged to the government. Now you know me, my son also has such a large factory, and he's going to produce electric scooters. Is that realistic?
After calming down for a while, Zhang Suzhi said, "Well, I don't know what to say right now. Let's talk about it when your brother-in-law comes back tonight and see when Jincheng is coming back."

"It should be in the next day or two, according to his friend, but I don't know the exact time."

"Oh, Pengya, I know. I'll give him a call and ask. That's all for now."

Before Zhang Qingliang could reply, Zhang Suzhi quickly hung up the phone and dialed Zhang Xupeng's mobile number.

Asking that brat at home directly probably won't get you anything, and he's in Hong Kong right now, so it might not be convenient for him. It's easier to ask Pengya; that kid is a bit too honest.

"Hey, Aunt Zhang, what made you think of calling me?"

"Pengya, I have something to ask you. Jincheng's uncle just called me."

Zhang Xupeng, who was directing the workers, immediately knew what was going on: "You want to ask about Xiao Tan's factory, right? I'm at his factory right now."

"Auntie, wait a moment, let me find a quiet place to have a proper talk with you."

Haha, wouldn't you say this counts as betraying Xiao Tan? Zhang Xupeng thought with a wicked grin.

In the past few days, he has been handling the affairs of Tan Jincheng's three Taobao stores. He is familiar with this area, so it is relatively convenient for him to deal with it.

He never expected that Xiao Tan had secretly opened a QQ underwear Taobao store and even asked him to help contact a factory in Lianyungang, Jiangsu Province!
How did this guy with thick eyebrows and big eyes come up with these thoughts? It's so disgusting!
(End of this chapter)