Rebirth of Hong Kong Island, leading the technology war

Chapter 627 Board of Directors Mocks the纨绔太子爷 (Wánkù Tàizǐ Yézǐ)
Hezhong Group is a listed company with a relatively clear equity structure.

Although the Hu family, as the founding family, still holds more than 50% of the absolute controlling stake, the other directors, who also hold significant stakes, each possess considerable power and influence.

After all, if most of them unite and form a unified opposition, it is still possible that they could pose a considerable constraint and challenge to the Hu family's daily management decisions.

At this moment, a director named Zhou Xuecong broke the silence. He looked to be around fifty years old, a little overweight, but with a dignified face and wearing a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, making him appear quite refined.

He picked up his teacup, blew on it gently, and said in a calm tone, "Speaking of which, the recent large-scale investment projects led by the group have been progressing quite smoothly, and two projects have even achieved profitability ahead of schedule. Chairman Hu is indeed very capable and insightful in grasping the direction of investment and controlling the pace of projects."

Zhou Xuecong belongs to the conservative faction on the board of directors who supports Chairman Hu Wenxin, and she also has a relatively good personal relationship with Hu Wenxin.

A woman sitting on the sofa diagonally opposite Zhou Xuecong gave a faint, enigmatic smile upon hearing this.

To some, that smile might have carried a hint of subtle sarcasm.

The female director, named Tian Ziyi, was in her early forties and was very well-maintained. Although she was dressed in a seemingly understated dark business suit, she was adorned with valuable jewelry, including a necklace, earrings, and bracelets, all clearly from top-tier haute couture brands. The dazzling jewelry highlighted her extraordinary status and background.

Tian Ziyi's family background in Hong Kong is quite complex, with deeply entrenched influence. To put it simply, they are extremely wealthy and powerful.

She holds approximately 10 percent of the shares in the Hezhong Group and plays a pivotal role on the board.

It is well known that Tian Ziyi and Chairman Hu Wenxin have a long-standing strained relationship, with heated clashes and even public arguments occurring at numerous board meetings. Of course, Tian Ziyi also has a distinctive characteristic, or rather, her guiding principles in the business world.

She's still reasonable.

If she is in the wrong, or if her proposed solution is clearly untenable, she generally won't resort to sophistry.

Conversely, if she believes she is in the right, she will argue her case forcefully and refuse to give an inch, making her a very difficult opponent.

At this moment, when she heard Zhou Xuecong's praise of Hu Wenxin, she did not directly refute it, but the meaningful smile revealed her disapproval.

Zhou Xuecong glanced at Tian Ziyi without making a sound, taking in the ambiguous smile and indifference on her face.

He knew perfectly well what Tian Ziyi was thinking at that moment.

She clearly did not agree with, or rather, was unwilling to readily acknowledge, the remarkable achievements Hu Wenxin had made in the group's investment decisions recently.

At this moment, Dong Jianming, who was sitting on the other side of the single sofa, suddenly chuckled.

Dong Jianming leaned forward slightly, turned his gaze to Tian Ziyi, and said, "President Tian, ​​judging from your expression, you seem to have some insightful opinions. Regarding the group's recent investment performance that President Zhou just mentioned, I wonder what your thoughts are? I'd very much like to hear your opinion."

Tian Ziyi gracefully picked up the coffee cup in front of her, took a small sip, her movements unhurried, and then slowly replied, "President Dong is joking. What special opinion could I possibly have? Brother Zhou's analysis just now is quite reasonable. Recently, the major investment projects led by our Hezhong Group have indeed been remarkable, and the results are quite impressive. This is an undeniable fact."

At this point, Tian Ziyi immediately changed the subject: "However..."

Dong Jianming immediately caught the shift in her tone and pressed, "But what? Ms. Tian, ​​please speak freely. We're all family here, so it's a good opportunity to exchange views."

Tian Ziyi put down her coffee cup, her tone becoming slightly more serious: "My personal concern is whether the success of these investment projects is just a flash in the pan, a short-lived boom? Because I've noticed that the group's recent investment focus seems to be overly concentrated on some technology startups in mainland China."

“These kinds of companies often demonstrate tremendous explosive growth and momentum in their early stages, thanks to their concepts and novel business models, which I have no doubt about. But what I am really worried about is their stability and resilience in the medium to long term.”

“The competition in the mainland market is extremely fierce, and the policy direction is also subject to change. Will these high-growth star companies suddenly fail due to various unforeseen factors during their development? At this point, I'm afraid no one can say for sure.”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Xuecong frowned slightly and couldn't help but interject, "Ms. Tian, ​​isn't your judgment a bit too arbitrary? Just because the investment targets are mainland technology companies, to predict that they are at risk of failing midway, isn't that a bit lacking in sufficient evidence?"

Tian Ziyi seemed to have anticipated the rebuttal and explained, "Brother Zhou, please don't misunderstand me. I didn't conclude that these companies will definitely fail. I was just suggesting a possibility and reminding everyone to maintain a cautiously optimistic attitude. After all, isn't investment risk management about considering all possible scenarios? Don't you agree?"

Seeing this, Tung Kin-ming immediately stepped in to smooth things over, subtly siding with Tian Ziyi: "Hey, Mr. Zhou, I think what Ms. Tian said makes sense and is very thoughtful. The field of technological innovation in mainland China is indeed booming. As far as I know, almost every month one or two startups are dubbed 'unicorns,' each with an impressive initial momentum. But in the long run, only a very few can withstand the test and ultimately succeed in entering the capital market. The vast majority fail at different stages of development. Ms. Tian's emphasis on risk awareness is a demonstration of responsibility to our shareholders' interests."

Zhou Xuecong's gaze swept across Dong Jianming and Tian Ziyi's faces, and he asked in a deep voice, "So, according to your views, you have reservations about the group's overall strategic direction of investing heavily in technology companies at this stage, or rather, you are not very optimistic about it?"

Dong Jianming quickly shook his finger, a slick smile on his face, and corrected him, "No, no, Mr. Zhou, your generalization is a bit too absolute. As Mr. Tian just said, he's cautiously optimistic, not completely skeptical. Who can guarantee the future with absolute certainty, right, Mr. Tian?"

Tian Ziyi neither confirmed nor denied this, but simply picked up her coffee cup and took a small sip, her posture perfectly appropriate.

Zhou Xuecong knew perfectly well that Dong Jianming was deliberately trying to stir up trouble today, as if he wanted to create chaos within the board of directors.

If we're talking about who's the most adept at stirring up trouble and manipulating power in the board of directors of Hopson Group, then if Tung Kin-ming claims to be second, probably no one would dare to claim to be first.

This guy has tried to profit from the chaos more than once, sowing discord among board members through various means, creating or amplifying disagreements, and then seizing the opportunity to gain personal influence or practical benefits. Zhou Xuecong is deeply disgusted by this behavior, but in his position, he often has to deal with such people, and sometimes he does feel quite helpless.

At this moment, Tung Kin-ming seemed to suddenly remember something: "Oh right, I think I heard someone say that the young master of our Chairman Hu family... is supposed to be attending this high-level meeting? Is that true?"

Tian Ziyi put down her coffee, a half-smile playing on her lips, and replied calmly, "Who would know? I haven't received any definite news." She skillfully deflected the question.

Another director chimed in, "I heard someone from the secretariat mention this too. Apparently, Mr. Hu is supposed to be attending the meeting this time."

Upon hearing the title "Little Hu," Tian Ziyi's smile deepened slightly, and she then subtly shook her head. Although she didn't say anything directly, her indifference was quite evident.

No wonder Tian Ziyi looked down on Hu Jiangshan.

She had met Hu Jiangshan twice before at different social parties, and both times he left her with a terrible impression.

His behavior was frivolous and his speech was shallow; he was the complete image of a spoiled, ignorant playboy.

In Tian Ziyi's opinion, calling him a playboy was even an exaggeration; he was the lowest of the low among playboys, completely unworthy of respect.

Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, Hu Wenxin rarely allows her son to appear in important public occasions, presumably because she is afraid that his appearance will only make her look foolish and cause embarrassment.

Tung Kin-ming deliberately drew out his words, his tone filled with undisguised sarcasm: "Oh, well, this time, we'll have a real chance to catch a glimpse of the Crown Prince's splendor!"

No one present was a fool; who could fail to hear the sarcasm in Tung Kin-ming's words?
Tian Ziyi finally couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Brother Dong, what you said is really interesting, 'Prince'..."

Dong Jianming raised an eyebrow and said, feigning seriousness, "President Tian, ​​don't take this lightly, and don't underestimate this young General Manager Hu. He's now a legitimate boss of a company, managing the Jiangshan Group! I've heard he's been doing quite well lately, making quite a stir. What, President Tian, ​​haven't you heard about this?"

"I heard about it, I've heard some rumors." Tian Ziyi's tone remained calm. "There were quite a few rumors circulating recently. The company that Mr. Hu owns is called Jiangshan Group, right?"

“That’s right, it’s Jiangshan Group,” Dong Jianming confirmed.

Tian Ziyi gave a soft hum and said with a knowing tone, "I just don't know where Chairman Hu found this capable person to help his son run Jiangshan Group. And he's managing it quite well, making it seem quite professional."

Her implication was all too clear: Hu Wenxin had hired a professional management team to pull this off in order to glorify her son and salvage his image, while Hu Jiangshan himself was nothing more than a figurehead.

In fact, this view is held by the vast majority of people within the board of directors.

Because they all knew more or less about Hu Wenxin's son, they firmly believed that he was an incompetent fool, a piece of rotten wood that could never be put to any use, no matter how much they tried to mold him.

However, for a powerful family like the Hu family, failing to find a suitable heir would undoubtedly be a disaster.

Therefore, Hu Wenxin has every reason to rack her brains and spare no expense in investing a lot of resources to reverse the public image of her only son, Hu Jiangshan, so that he at least appears to be accomplished and no longer so disgraceful.

To put it bluntly, if we put ourselves in Hu Wenxin's shoes, we might very well do the same thing, or even use more extreme and outrageous methods.

At this moment, Zhou Xuecong felt it necessary to say something fair. He cleared his throat and said, "Gentlemen, let's not always look at people with prejudice. Perhaps Mr. Hu is not as bad as we imagine. According to some information I have gathered from the side, Mr. Hu is indeed personally in charge of and leading the daily operations of Jiangshan Group and several important projects."

Upon hearing this, Dong Jianming immediately burst into exaggerated laughter: "President Zhou, are you saying that Mr. Hu built up a company entirely on his own, without relying on any resources or influence from the Hu family?"

Zhou Xuecong quickly waved his hand and carefully corrected his statement: "President Dong misunderstood. I didn't say that. What I meant was that Jiangshan Group's current achievements should also be attributed to the personal efforts and contributions of President Hu. It cannot be entirely attributed to the support of the family."

However, Zhou Xuecong's attempt to be more objective only drew more obvious laughter from the people around him.

Clearly, almost no one present believed that Hu Jiangshan, who was known for his extravagant lifestyle, could actually have the skills to run a business.

Tian Ziyi tapped the table lightly with her fingertip and said with a hint of teasing, "If our little General Manager Hu could just take one day a week to sit in the office and handle some business, I would think he would be very responsible and have made great progress. We really can't expect too much from him."

Dong Jianming immediately chimed in, "President Tian is right! That's true. If President Hu can really make a point of going to the company regularly and symbolically managing some affairs, that would indeed be a step forward. At least it wouldn't be a complete waste of Chairman Hu's painstaking cultivation and arrangements."

Zhou Xuecong was speechless for a moment.

He did have a private conversation with Hu Wenxin before, during which Hu Wenxin mentioned with great satisfaction that her son Hu Jiangshan had changed a lot recently and made rapid progress, especially in his career.

Trusting Hu Wenxin's character, Zhou Xuecong believed him to be at least 50-60% of the time.

But he also knew that people's prejudices were like a heavy mountain, and how easy would it be to reverse the deep-rooted bad impression that a group of shrewd and worldly directors had of Hu Jiangshan?
Moreover, the person whose image needs to be changed is Hu Jiangshan, who has a long history of bad behavior.

(End of this chapter)