The first task of the Hong Kong business inspection team, with Lu Yuankai as the core, is to determine the address of shopping malls in several major cities in the mainland, with Shanghai being the first stop.
As China's most open, powerful and oldest commercial city, it will be a battleground for businesses in the future and will also serve as a national demonstration.
Seeing Chen Xia and the Hong Kong people pointing at the map and shaking their heads, Xie Zhenguo, the Shanghai official who was accompanying the inspection, became anxious.
At that time, the degree of openness of the Shanghai Stock Exchange lagged behind that of Guangdong. Shanghai was not included in the five special economic zones. Seeing the rapid development of other countries' economy, Shanghai was anxious.
Even in attracting foreign investment, they are lagging behind Yuezhou.
The international pharmaceutical park established in Yuezhou has already attracted more than four well-known foreign pharmaceutical companies, and there are more than 30 supporting raw material manufacturers.
The total foreign investment attracted has exceeded US$3 billion, and it has now become the world's largest pharmaceutical production base, with annual export earnings reaching US$2 billion.
In addition, Yuezhou also has one of China's largest textile production bases and small commodity production bases. This year's foreign exchange earnings have made it the leading city in the country.
A city that was considered a rural city in the eyes of Shanghai people has developed, but Shanghai itself is still living off its past success and is still dominated by a large number of state-owned factories. This makes the two top officials of Shanghai very anxious and worried.
This time, the Xiangjiang Four Seasons Group came to Shanghai to investigate the business environment. The city issued a strict order that they must be retained and any preferential policies could be negotiated.
You know, Four Seasons Group has created an economic miracle in Yuezhou. If it can create another miracle in the Shanghai Stock Exchange, it would be like pie in the sky.
If we can get Four Seasons Group's mainland headquarters to be located in Shanghai, that would be the greatest success.
Therefore, the officials from Shanghai who accompanied the inspection were of high rank, very sincere, and offered sufficient preferential conditions.
As a result, the first commercial project that Four Seasons Group was preparing to invest in got stuck. After searching everywhere, they only found places like Putuo, Minhang and Yangpu.
Is this Hong Kong guy crazy?
Aren’t the central urban areas like Huangpu, Zhabei, Xuhui, and Jing’an all great?
Xie Zhenguo was so anxious that he scratched his head and could not help but:
"Mr. Chen, there's actually no need for you to worry. You should consider building the Four Seasons Center here. We're planning to renovate the old city here, so we can make use of it."
The place Xie Zhenguo pointed to is the northwest corner of Nanjing Road and Xizang Road, north of People's Square. There are several old state-owned shopping malls here, and behind the shopping malls is the "Shikumen" community.
Speaking of this Shikumen community, it is definitely not much better than the "pigeon cage" community in Hong Kong.
It turns out that the houses in the Shikumen alleys were all based on households and were the residential areas for the middle class before liberation.
Later, as the times changed, these houses were filled with people, with each family occupying more than a dozen square meters, and the whole family ate, drank, defecated and urinated here.
There is a TV series called "The Debt of Sin", which contains detailed scenes describing how difficult the living conditions of Shanghai residents were at that time.
When Chen Xia saw the local officials directly naming such a prime location among prime locations, his heart was pounding.
"Comrade Jie, is this really possible here?"
If we talk about the largest business district in Shanghai, it must be Nanjing Road, whether in the 1980s, 1990s, or in the next few decades.
Moreover, this is a place that tourists must check in after arriving in Shanghai. There is no doubt about the passenger flow, just look at the huge crowds of people.
Are tourists short of money?
Chen Xia wants to build the largest single commercial complex in the country. The spending power of Shanghai residents alone may not be enough, but if the spending power of tourists from all over the country is added, then this shopping mall will be able to be supported.
The Shanghai Stock Exchange has given Four Seasons Group such a prime location, which shows that it attaches great importance to it.
It was also that Chen Xia himself was a little self-deprecating. In his heart, he did not regard the Chen family as one of the top ten conglomerates in Hong Kong. It had to be said that as a doctor, his vision was indeed not big enough and he was not a business genius.
Xie Zhenguo felt quite proud when he saw Chen Xia's shocked expression.
Nanjing Road, don’t be too hard-working, you will get what you want.
"Mr. Chen, don't worry. The city leaders have already promised that as long as Four Seasons Group agrees to invest in Shanghai, they can choose any location they like."
Chen Xia's eyes were fixed on the huge map of Shanghai, in the middle of People's Square.
Xie Zhenguo was sweating profusely: "Well, well, People's Square won't work. This is where the city government is located."
Chen Xia nodded. "Okay, since the leader said so, we want the land on Nanjing Road. I wonder what the land transfer policy is..."
Xie Zhenguo was delighted when he heard this:
"As for the land transfer, everything is negotiable. We will definitely ensure that Four Seasons Group is satisfied. After all, Mr. Chen's investment in Shanghai is the best example. I hope that both of us can achieve a win-win cooperation. However, there is a small issue with this plot of land that may require your resolution."
Lu Yuankai understood immediately: "Mr. Xie, are you talking about the demolition issue?"
Xie Zhenguo felt quite embarrassed.
"Mr. Chen, Mr. Lu, you see, there are several state-owned shopping malls on this land. This is easy to deal with, but there are thousands of residents living behind the shopping malls, so the demolition task is more difficult.
The city gave two suggestions:
One is that Four Seasons Group pays for the demolition and resettlement.
The second is for Four Seasons Group to select a suitable location, build a resettlement community, and relocate all these residents there.”
Chen Xia nodded in his heart. The Shanghai Stock Exchange is different. Although they have tried every possible means to attract investment, the bottom line of principle still exists, which is to protect the interests of the indigenous people.
Chen Xia also didn't want to be demolished violently and be criticized after school. You know, Shanghai people are very good at scolding people, and they talk endlessly.
These were some unexpected events that happened during the demolition process, and he didn't want to be troubled by supernatural events like "XXX Department Store".
While chatting, Xie Zhenguo took the Hong Kong inspection team to visit this area.
Chen Xia had been to Shanghai when he was a child in his previous life. Comrade Chen Zhenwu had a younger sister who married in Shanghai and lived on Sichuan North Road.
What impressed Chen Xia the most was the beautiful Bund, the bustling Nanjing Road, and the tram with two braids.
It was that narrow alleyway, and the tiny houses. My aunt's family lived in a little over ten square meters. The rooms were so low that a standing adult could touch the ceiling with their head.
Chen Xia looked at the residential area from an adult's perspective this time. Seeing the toilets neatly stacked upside down at the entrances, he felt like he was back in old Shanghai...
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