Hong Kong Movies: You Hongxingzi, what the hell is the charity king?

Chapter 777 "776" - Banks, media, and real estate developers all got slapped in the face~~~
A tea restaurant,

A group of elderly men and women were drinking tea and watching Guan Zu's speech on TV.

Aunt Zhang slapped her thigh excitedly and said, "Great! Finally, someone's standing up to regulate these housing prices! My son and daughter-in-law were planning to buy a house this year, scraping together money for the down payment, but these people have driven prices higher and higher, and we can't even buy one anymore. I was so anxious! Now, thanks to Mr. Guan's old building renovation plan, and the construction of low-rent and affordable housing, we don't have to rush to buy a house anymore..."

Uncle Li, standing nearby, nodded repeatedly: "That's right. Since Mr. Guan has said so, we can just wait and see. He'll definitely be able to help us old neighbors afford to buy houses."

"Mr. Guan's criticism is well-founded!"

"Those unscrupulous real estate developers and banks deserve a good crackdown!"

As everyone chimed in with their own comments, their initial anxiety about buying a house gradually subsided.

……

In a certain school,

In the dining hall.

Several teachers were sitting and eating, watching the news on TV, and having a lively discussion about Guan Zu's press conference.

Teacher Wang exclaimed excitedly, "I was originally planning to grit my teeth and borrow money from all my relatives and friends to scrape together a down payment for a house, but damn it, house prices have skyrocketed. Mr. Guan's plan is so timely, it gives me hope of buying a house."

Teacher Zhao, standing nearby, nodded and said, "That's right. I was worried that housing prices would only rise and never fall, and that if I didn't buy sooner, I wouldn't be able to afford it later. Now that Mr. Guan is here, I feel much more at ease. We can take our time with buying a house."

Everyone expressed their agreement, and the atmosphere, which had been somewhat oppressive due to the pressure of buying a house, was now filled with hope for the future.

……

……

Guan Zu's press conference was like a bucket of ice water poured on the scorching housing boom.

The once bustling sales offices are now deserted.

Haiyi Peninsula residential community
The sales office is located in a spacious and bright lobby.

This morning, the place was packed with customers coming to look at properties and ask questions; they were incredibly busy.

As a result, by the afternoon, the number of people in the hall began to decrease rapidly, and the previously busy salespeople began to have some free time.

The occasional customers who come in only glance at the door briefly, then look at it perfunctorily under the eager gaze of the sales staff, showing no interest in learning more.

Meanwhile, in the secondary housing market of South Horizons, homeowners who had previously raised prices wildly are now in a panic.

This afternoon, a buyer and a homeowner happened to be meeting for the third time, facilitated by a real estate agent.

Inside the real estate agency, the outdoor air conditioning unit on the wall made a creaking sound.

Mr. Chen, the homeowner, sat in a chair, feeling anxious.

"Ms. Lin, my house is in a great location, with complete amenities. We've already negotiated five times, and the price is about right. I'll lower it by 100,000 today, to 6.4 million. Shall we sign the contract today?"

Ms. Lin, the buyer, sat opposite him, crossed her legs, slowly picked up her teacup, took a sip, and said calmly, "Mr. Chen, you know the current situation. Mr. Guan Zu said he wants to regulate the real estate market, and everyone is watching and waiting. Now I'm not in a hurry."

They've been talking for 10 days, and including phone calls, they've communicated more than 20 times.

The homeowner raised the price twice, acting arrogantly, saying things like, "That's just how the market is now, take it or leave it." If Ms. Lin weren't so eager to buy a house, she probably would have slapped Mr. Chen across the face.

Now, the situation has reversed.

Mr. Chen was now in a hurry.

Ms. Lin said calmly, "Mr. Chen, I'm only here today because the apartment layout is quite good, 500 million. If you're not willing, then I'll have to look at other properties."

As she spoke, she made a move to get up and leave.

Gaa gaa gaa~~~
You bastard, you've finally met your match!

I wouldn't have come if I didn't want to see you make a fool of yourself!

Thank you, Mr. Guan, for letting me vent my anger!
Seeing this, Mr. Chen quickly stood up: "Ms. Lin, don't rush off! We can discuss the price further, we can discuss it further!"

Real estate agent Xiao Wang also advised, "Ms. Lin, such a good house is hard to come by..."

Ms. Lin was indifferent and continued to leave.

Mr. Chen gritted his teeth and stamped his foot: "Fine! I'll lower the price by another 500,000. This is truly my bottom line! Miss Lin, what do you think of this price?"

He stared longingly at Miss Lin.

Ms. Lin turned around and laughed, "Mr. Chen, your sincerity is still not enough. 500 million, if it works out, we'll sign the contract; if not, then forget it."

The homeowner, Mr. Chen, turned green with anger: "Ms. Lin, your bargaining is way too ruthless!"

Ms. Lin shrugged: "Mr. Chen, if that's how you put it, then there's nothing I can do."

After saying that, he left.

Cool!
Thanks again, Mr. Guan, hahaha~~~
The deal fell through.

Mr. Chen was on the verge of tears.

I wish I hadn't raised the price!

The real estate agent, Xiao Wang, inwardly complained to Mr. Chen: "If I hadn't raised the price last time, the deal would have been done right away. Now look what's happened, I can't sell it now!"
idiot!

……

Ling Zuer's side,
She had originally planned to visit the Haiyi Peninsula community again this afternoon, but after seeing the news about Guan Zu, she changed her mind.

Not only is she not in a hurry,
Many Hong Kong residents who wanted to buy a house are no longer in a hurry.

Mr. Guan is a man of his word; if he says he will push forward with the housing plan, then they naturally don't need to worry about future housing prices skyrocketing.

So, they're not in a hurry anymore!

but!

They're not in a hurry, but the real estate developers are!

……

Zhaoye Group.

Office of the Chairman.

Just before the end of the workday, the secretary finally received the day's sales data and reported it to Boss Li Ji.

"Boss, at City One Shatin, the number of customers has plummeted by 80% this afternoon, and not a single sale has been made. We had 13 sales this morning..."

Mr. Li's hand, which was holding the cup, trembled slightly.

In the end, he could only comfort himself: It's okay, it might just be a special case. I'll keep an eye on the data tomorrow... maybe things will get better.

This residential complex has been on sale since the year before last, building by building. There are still two buildings left unsold, mainly due to Mr. Li Ji's strategy of hoarding units. He is very confident about future property prices.

Last month, he thought his decision was brilliant.

Now, he feels like he's stuck with something he doesn't want!

Secretary: "Boss, should we lower the price?"

After thinking for a moment, Mr. Li Ji finally nodded: "Let's... reduce it by 5%."

Secretary: "Okay."

He realized that Guan Zu was angry, so he had to give in no matter what, otherwise he would be really upset if Guan Zu deliberately targeted and attacked him.

After thinking for a moment, Boss Li Ji said again, "Call the Soros Fund and tell them that our Zhaoye Group is withdrawing from their real estate development plan."

……

……

That night,

ATV and TVB continued to broadcast the story, and more and more people in Hong Kong learned about it. While cursing the banks, newspapers, and real estate companies, countless households were also looking forward to Kwan Cho's plan.

Of course, I support Mr. Guan's call!
Boycott newspapers such as the South China Daily!
Boycott unscrupulous real estate developers!
Boycott banks without conscience!
……

the next day,
Without a doubt, all the newspapers today are focused on Guan Zu's press conference.

The topic of conversation is everywhere – on buses, subways, in offices, tea restaurants, shopping malls…

among them,

Something is happening at a newsstand in Mong Kok.

An elderly man with graying hair was about to buy a newspaper to pass the time. Just as he reached for the *South China Daily*, a young office worker nearby saw this and quickly said:

"Uncle, don't buy this *South China Daily*! It's a heartless newspaper! It blindly follows those property speculators and reports nonsense, misleading everyone. Even a dog wouldn't buy it!"

The old man paused, his hands still. Those around him nodded in agreement, joining in the condemnation.

"You bastard, you're an accomplice to evil. I'll never buy this newspaper again."

"And this *Asian Wall Street Journal*, I'm not buying it anymore!"

Although the South China Daily was not as good as the Oriental Daily, it was still in the second tier and had a considerable readership.

Now, disregarding the interests of citizens, they are driving up housing prices. Coupled with Guan Zu's criticism and call to action, citizens are naturally boycotting them.

……

Leighton Road, Causeway Bay.

Inside the South China Daily office building
Editor-in-Chief J. D. G. (an American) was sitting in his private office, drinking coffee and deep in thought.

He was originally a reporter for The Wall Street Journal in the United States, and was hired last year to take over as the editor-in-chief of The South China Daily in Hong Kong.

Yesterday, the deputy editor-in-chief explained to him that yesterday's press conference by Guan Zu would cause a huge crisis of public trust in the South China Daily, and he was skeptical.

However, he was not an arrogant person. Since the deputy editor-in-chief took it so seriously, he naturally attached great importance to it as well.

So this morning, he arranged for people to call each newsstand early to inquire about newspaper sales.

Time keeps passing by...

9 o'clock……

10 o'clock……

At 10:24, knock knock knock~~~~ The office door was gently pushed open.

"Mr. Gideley!"

"How's it going? What's the feedback from the newsstand?"

The assistant said in a low voice, "Mr. Gideley, according to our telephone follow-up statistics, we have found that our newspaper has been subjected to a large-scale boycott."

"Many newsstand owners have reported that many of their regular customers who used to buy the South China Daily have now said they will no longer buy it..."

Gideon: "What about sales figures?"

The assistant lowered his head: "As of now, our sales are only 10% of usual, and the highest daily sales are only 20% of usual."

"What? Only 20%?!"

Ji Deli felt a sudden darkness before his eyes.

It's over now.

With such a sharp drop, the authorities (media mogul Rupert Murdoch) will definitely send people to Hong Kong Island to investigate.

Why would I help Soros's team?

It's because he received money and started trading stocks with Soros's team.

If the person being investigated finds out, they may not only lose their job, but also face imprisonment.

At this moment, Gideley's body swayed precariously, and he couldn't help but grab the table for support.

……

……

Even worse than the South China Daily is HSBC.

At 9:30 a.m., HSBC's headquarters and branches across Hong Kong Island were packed with citizens!
"Damn it! Give me my money back!"

A white-collar man slammed his bankbook on the counter, spitting as he did so onto the glass.
"You bunch of bastards, you colluded with real estate developers to drive up housing prices? Have you no conscience? If you don't get all the money out today, I'll smash your counter!"

Curses rose and fell from the ranks.
"A heartless bank! Vampires!"

"It's all because of you bunch of scoundrels who have disrupted the housing market and made it impossible for us to afford a house! From today onwards, I'm not putting any more of my money with you!"

The queue is getting longer and longer.

The criticism grew louder and louder.

The sentiment is exciting.

upstairs,

Lawrence, the cash management manager at HSBC, watched the chaotic scene below with a grave expression through the glass wall.

As the queue continued to grow, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.

A very familiar scene.

The last time this happened was when Five Star Bank was established, when a large number of citizens rushed to withdraw money, almost triggering a bank run.

now,

How similar they are!

Lawrence felt a strong sense of unease, fearing another run on the bank.

He picked up the phone and dialed several other branches in succession.

"A lot of people are coming here to withdraw cash..."

"The line was so long..."

"The citizens are extremely angry..."

The answers in each line were almost identical.

picture!
so similar!
Lawrence increasingly felt that, like last time, there was a high probability of a bank run.

quickly,

He then reported the news to his superiors.

The higher-ups took this very seriously and immediately sent people to investigate the situation at the branch. What they found was alarming: far too many people were coming to withdraw money.

A bank run...it looks like it's really coming!

The report was quickly passed up the chain of command, eventually reaching Brandon, the head of the department.

The top management was immediately thrown into chaos. When Five Star Bank was established last time, the run on the bank had caused HSBC considerable damage and heavy losses.

Come again this time!
Damn it, the money made from harvesting real estate is not even enough to cover this loss!
Brandon's office

*Smack!*
When no one was around, Brandon slapped himself across the face.

Last time, Guan Zu taught him a lesson, forcing him to donate HK$1 million to the Five Star Charitable Foundation. Why don't he learn from this lesson?

This time, he even went to provoke Guan Yu.

cry!
Damn it, we're going to lose money again!
……

In the following days, ATV and TVB continued to report on the matter:

"Following Guan Zu's press conference, major real estate developers stated that they had no intention of maliciously driving up housing prices... Several developers have lowered their selling prices..."

"In the real estate market, the once-hot buying frenzy has faded. In the past few days, reporters have repeatedly staked out various new home sales offices, only to find them deserted and no longer bustling..."

"Many neighbors said they trust Mr. Guan and believe that there will be more and more houses in the future, so they are not in a hurry."

"In addition, newspapers such as the South China Daily and the Asian Wall Street Journal have recently faced strong boycotts from citizens. According to data from the Newspaper Association, the sales of these two newspapers have dropped by 80% compared to last month..."

"Through television street interviews, many residents expressed that they would absolutely not forgive and would resolutely resist these unscrupulous media outlets that drive up housing prices and disregard the interests of citizens' livelihoods..."

"It's worth mentioning that, regarding the banks, HSBC and Standard Chartered, the two banks specifically criticized by Mr. Guan, have recently experienced a run on their banks... Through interviews with citizens, many expressed great disappointment with the banks' involvement in housing price speculation..."

"Some citizens even said that they feel more at ease depositing their money in Five Star Bank, and they also hope that Five Star Group, which has always been considerate of the people, can become even stronger..."

There is an old Chinese saying: "The people are like water; they can carry a boat, but they can also capsize it."

"In this housing speculation incident, real estate developers, banks, and the media have all angered the public and suffered considerable losses due to the joint boycott by the public."

"The Five Star Group has won the hearts and minds of Hong Kong Island residents through a series of measures, which has enabled it to grow so rapidly..."

"I hope all businesses on Hong Kong Island will take this as a warning. Since they are rooted in Hong Kong Island, they should coexist with the people and contribute to this land, rather than trying to extract its benefits."

"This is the path that businesses should take!"

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P.S.: Chapter 2 will be a little later. 10 PM?
(End of this chapter)