Chapter 261 Preferential policies!

Ah Liu was stunned, not knowing what to say. At this moment, Xiaolong hurried in from the door, with a serious look on his face: “Boss Su, I just received news that Young Master Jin is back from Macau. He brought back several million in cash, and the construction site in Dongwan has started again.”

Su Hanze’s face darkened when he heard this. He raised his head, took a deep breath, and then stood up: “Okay, I can’t eat this anymore. Go prepare the car, I’ll go to Dongwan myself to take a look.”

Ah Liu was stunned: “Boss Su, are you going there in person?”

Su Hanze waved his hand, his tone revealing a bit of helplessness: “If others don’t believe what I say, then I have to see what Young Master Jin is up to.”

Tourists were walking between the stalls and the stall owners were busy as ever, but there seemed to be a hint of anxiety in the air.

Several stall owners were whispering while flipping the fish balls in the oven, their eyes occasionally drifting towards the light box advertisement on the street corner. The advertisement was suddenly changed to a promotional slogan for a new project in East Bay, which read “A new landmark in East Bay, the most luxurious shopping and entertainment center in Hong Kong is about to open.”

A young fish ball stall owner couldn’t help but sigh: “There’s a lot of activity going on over in Dongwan. They say they’re going to build a Ferris wheel. Will all these tourists go over there?”

The fat lady who was selling durian sticky rice nearby rolled her eyes while filling her bowl with rice: “Run over there? Their construction site is so lousy that they haven’t even installed the street lights yet. I’m afraid it will take a long time for tourists to go there. Don’t worry, Xiwan is a well-known prosperous place, it won’t be snatched away that easily.”

The fish ball boss nodded, but his expression was still worried: “That’s what I said, but recently several stall owners told me that they are considering giving it a try. The rent is low, which sounds very tempting.”

The durian lady next to her was about to say something else when Ah Liu suddenly appeared at the stall and took out a twenty-dollar bill with a big smile on his face: “Give me one serving of fish balls and two boxes of durian sticky rice. I’ll take them back for my brothers.”

When the stall owners saw Ah Liu, they immediately fell silent and busied themselves with serving food. Ah Liu rolled his eyes, smiled and patted the fish ball boss on the shoulder: “I heard that some people have been interested in Dongwan recently? Young man, don’t be confused. Xiwan is our blessed land. Nowhere else is as prosperous as here.”

The fish ball owner smiled bitterly and said, “Brother Liu, I’m not going anywhere. I’m just worried that if everyone goes there, I won’t be able to keep this stall going.”

Ah Liu waved his hands while eating the fish balls that had just come out of the pot: “Don’t worry, our Xiwan’s signboard is here. As for Dongwan, they are making a lot of noise, but it’s still unclear whether they can succeed.”

This was said lightly, but Ah Liu was unsure. He knew that the Jin Shao of East Bay had indeed started to move, with vigorous publicity and a group of capital from Central. It was clear that he wanted to compete with West Bay for business. Thinking of this, he couldn’t help but stuff another fish ball into his mouth and chewed it hard a few times, as if he wanted to chew up the uneasiness in his heart.

At the same time, Xiaolong was sitting at a wooden table in the boxing gym with a map and some photos taken from the East Bay construction site in front of him.

The construction site in the photo is obviously progressing rapidly. Several huge tower cranes are in operation, and the surrounding fences are hung with various promotional slogans of “New Landmark of East Bay”.

“Dongwan is determined to seize our territory this time.” Xiaolong frowned and circled a few points on the map with a pencil. “Once their project is completed, some tourists will definitely be diverted.”

Sitting opposite him was a tall and thin man nicknamed “Skinny Monkey”, who was responsible for intelligence gathering. He chewed a piece of sugar cane and said disapprovingly: “Brother Long, no matter how much the Dongwan project is hyped, it will take a year or so to open. Our place is booming, and tourists can’t wait that long.”

Xiaolong shook his head. “Time is our advantage, but Dongwan has attracted a lot of capital this time. Young Master Jin is going to fight hard. Even if the project has not yet taken shape, he can still snatch our stall owners and even tourists through publicity. You can go and ask around to see if they are doing anything behind the scenes.”

The skinny monkey nodded, spit the sugarcane residue aside, stood up, patted his butt and ran out.

Meanwhile, at the construction site in Dongwan, Jin Shao was standing next to a pile of cement bags, looking unhappy. He came here to check on the progress of the construction site, only to find that all the crane operators were newcomers, and several workers were still smoking and chatting, not paying any attention to the construction schedule.

“Is this how you guys work?” Young Master Jin put out the cigarette in his hand fiercely and yelled at the foreman, “The tower crane can only move a few times a day. How long do you plan to finish this job?”

The foreman was a veteran in his forties, with a cigarette between his lips. He replied lazily, “Mr. Jin, it’s not that the brothers don’t want to do it, it’s just that the materials have been slow to arrive recently, and there’s nothing for the crane to lift even if we want to move it.”

Jin Shao gritted his teeth and held back his anger: “Why are the materials so slow to arrive? Didn’t we pay for it a long time ago?”

The foreman shrugged and said, “I heard that the supplier over there has had some problems recently. The payment has been slow to arrive, so they dare not release the goods.”

When Young Master Jin heard this, he was immediately furious. He knew that there must be someone behind this, and it was probably someone from Xiwan who did this secretly. He suppressed his anger and said coldly, “Hurry up and get the goods. I want to see the materials in place within three days. Otherwise, don’t blame me for being rude.”

The foreman nodded with a cigarette between his lips, but he muttered to himself: It’s easy to urge for delivery, but without the money to back it up, it’s useless even if you urge day and night.

At this time, in Central, in a high-end western restaurant, Lin Qiming was sitting by the window, shaking a glass of red wine in his hand. Opposite him was Xia Yan, who was wearing a light blue dress that made her skin look as white as snow, with a meaningful smile on her lips.

“Mr. Lin, I heard that you recently invested in Mr. Jin’s East Bay project. Do you think he can win this time?” Xia Yan poked the steak on the plate with a fork, her tone nonchalant.

Lin Qiming smiled and took a sip of wine slowly: “Winning or not is not important, what is important is that he can set up the venue. As long as there is movement, capital will follow and hype it up. At that time, who wins and who loses depends on who we want to win.”

Xia Yan smiled softly: “It sounds like you are planning to bet on both sides?”

Lin Qiming spread his hands and said, “How can I make money if I don’t bet on both sides? Xiwan does have potential, but Su Hanze is too conservative. Although Jin Shao is radical, he may not be able to last long. As long as I see the right opportunity, I can withdraw at any time.”

Xia Yan lowered her head and smiled, but did not respond. She knew Lin Qiming’s methods, and she also knew that she could only wait and see what would happen.

On the second floor of the boxing gym, Su Hanze was leaning against the window, looking at the lights of the night market with a cup of tea in his hand. He didn’t drink the tea, but just stared out the window in a daze. In the past few days, he heard more and more news. There was a lot of movement in East Bay, and the pressure in West Bay was also beginning to show. The complaints from the stall owners were increasing, and the consumption of tourists seemed to be declining.

“Boss Su, several stall owners on the street brought up the issue of rent again today. Do you think we should reduce it a bit?” Ah Liu walked in from outside with a list of stall owners in his hand.

Su Hanze turned his head, his eyes a little tired: “Can lowering the rent solve the problem? The stall owners are not worried about the rent, but the future customer flow. If the Dongwan project is opened, they are afraid that they will have no business to do.” Ah Liu scratched his head: “What should we do? We can’t just watch them get poached, right?”

Su Hanze was silent for a while, put down the teacup, and sighed: “I will go there myself tomorrow and see what the situation is.”

Ah Liu was stunned for a moment, then nodded.

The lights on the streets were bright, and the food on the stalls was steaming. A skinny hooligans was holding a large box of freshly bought fish balls.
I squatted on the roadside of the night market, stuffing my mouth with fruit while staring at the durian stall not far away. The stall owner was a fat woman in her forties, who was greeting customers enthusiastically, with a loud voice that seemed to be shouting to the whole street.

“Hey, Monkey, you’ve been staring at me for a long time. Have you figured out anything?” A short and fat man patted the gangster’s shoulder from behind. His name was Da Xiong, and he was one of the outside brothers of the Xiwan Boxing Gym.

“You really figured out something.” The gangster licked his greasy fingers and pointed at the man who was chatting with the durian stall owner. “Look at the man in the white shirt. He also showed up yesterday. He’s from Dongwan. He was walking around a few stalls and looked like he was trying to get close to them.”

Daxiong frowned and said, “People from Dongwan have come here? It seems that Young Master Jin is getting anxious.”

The gangster bit his fish ball and nodded: “You don’t know, I heard that the capital chain in Dongwan is as tight as a bandage, and Young Master Jin is borrowing money everywhere to fill the hole. He came to poach the stall owner this time, probably to rely on the night market to support for a while.”

Daxiong curled his lips in disdain: “Poaching the stall owner? He doesn’t even look at where we are. If the people from West Bay are really robbed by the East Bay, then what are we brothers still doing?”

The gangster smiled and said, “Brother Big Bear, you are right, but we can’t just talk the talk, we have to find a way to drive these people away, otherwise if Boss Su asks about it later, we will be in big trouble.”

Daxiong waved his hand: “Why are you rushing? Let’s first see clearly what these people are going to do. Young Master Jin’s methods are too wild, and he can hardly hold on now. There’s no need to rush.”

At the same time, on the other side of the night market, Ah Liu was sitting in front of a durian stall, holding a box of durian glutinous rice he had just bought. He didn’t eat it, but stared at the barbecue stall owner opposite him in a daze.

The stall owner was called Ah Xi, one of the earliest vendors in the night market. He used to have a very good relationship with the boxing gym and was considered a “veteran” in Xiwan. But in recent days, Ah Liu heard that Ah Xi had contact with people in Dongwan.

“Brother Xi, how is business lately?” Liu asked casually, his tone very relaxed.

Ah Xi looked up at him, flipped the chicken wings on the grill, and said calmly: “What else can I do? It’s just like that. There are more customers, but the rent is rising even faster. I can’t make much money.”

Ah Liu smiled and took a string of squid from his stall: “Your skills are known throughout Xiwan. You can’t make money by setting up a stall here? Otherwise, why don’t you try Dongwan? I heard it’s cheaper there.”

Ah Xi was stunned for a moment, then laughed out loud: “Brother Liu, your question is interesting. If I really go to Dongwan to set up a stall, would I dare? There are not even a few tourists there now. I might as well rest at home if I set up a stall.”

Ah Liu was relieved, but he still smiled and joked: “Glad you dare. Xiwan is so prosperous, don’t let those people take away our signboard.”

Ah Xi chuckled and said nothing more, but a hint of hesitation flashed in his eyes.

In Dongwan, Jin Shao was standing in his office, staring at several project leaders in front of him. They all lowered their heads, their expressions were stiff, and the air was filled with a depressing atmosphere.

“The construction site is progressing slowly and the funds are not in place. I know all this.” Jin Shao said coldly. His voice was not loud, but it carried a sense of oppression that was hard to ignore. “I don’t want to hear any more excuses. I just want results. Within two months, the night market in Dongwan must open and tourists must come in. No matter what method you use, you must get this done for me.”

A middle-aged man wiped the sweat from his forehead and said cautiously: “Master, now the main reason is that the stall owners are not willing to come. We have lowered the rent, but the effect is still not very good.”

“The stall owners don’t want to come?” Young Master Jin’s eyes turned even colder. He slowly walked up to the man and patted him on the shoulder. “Then give them some motivation and tell them that as long as they come, they can use the stalls for free for three months. If they still don’t want to come, have someone bring all the signature stall owners in Xiwan here one by one.”

The man’s face turned pale: “Master, is this… too tough?”

Young Master Jin raised his lips to sneer, “Hard? It’s not me who’s tough now, it’s them who are too stupid. There’s such a big opportunity in front of them in East Bay, but they can’t see it and insist on guarding the dead end of West Bay. What’s wrong with me choosing a bright way out for them?”

On the other side, Lin Qiming in Central was sitting in his spacious office, with a report on the latest progress of the East Bay project on the table in front of him. His secretary stood by, waiting for him to finish reading it.

“It seems that Dongwan has been making some big moves recently.” Lin Qiming closed the report, leaned back in his chair, and said with a smile, “Young Master Jin is really capable. He managed to turn a mess into a hot spot.”

The secretary nodded and asked in a low voice: “Mr. Lin, should we continue to raise the bet?”

Lin Qiming shook his head: “No hurry, although Dongwan is bustling, the capital chain is too tight, and Young Master Jin is gambling with his life. I have to wait and see if he can survive this wave.”

In the morning, as usual, street vendors began to set up their goods, the fish ball pot was steaming, the soy milk stall owner was shaking the iron bucket, and the old lady selling sesame cakes was flipping the crusts skillfully. The life of the vendors seemed to be busy, but in fact, there were undercurrents.

Ah Liu rode his old bicycle around the night market early in the morning. He held a copy of the Hong Kong Morning Post in his hand and frowned as he glanced at the headline on the cover: “East Bay Rise, Commercial Night Market to Open Soon”, and the photo showed a construction site in East Bay covered with colorful flags.

He stopped in front of a wonton stand and asked casually, “Uncle, I heard that East Bay has released a preferential policy again, and the booth fee is ridiculously low. Is this true?”

The uncle at the wonton stall was busy serving soup to customers. He replied without even looking up, “It’s true. Mr. Zhang, who sells sugar-roasted chestnuts next door to my house, was poached by someone from Dongwan. He was told that he could use the stall for free for three months and also get a new cart. It was like pie in the sky.”

(End of this chapter)