Reborn as a Noble's Son-Chapter 491 - 451: Fruitful Results_1
Chapter 491: Chapter 451: Fruitful Results_1
The second day, the Eastern Development Forum officially opened at the Liangxi City International Convention and Exhibition Center. The exhibition area of more than 30,000 square meters, at this moment, was divided into six sections. The five eastern provinces, plus Donggang Special Administrative Region, each accounted for a space of about 5,000 square meters. Apart from the Donggang Special Administrative Region’s exhibition, which showcased various businesses and tourism departments, the exhibition areas of the other provinces were divided into smaller zones, with each province having at least ten Dizhou cities, and some even more. It may have seemed vast, but once the provincial government’s exhibition area was included, the space indeed appeared somewhat limited.
For this Eastern Development Forum, several provinces rolled out some significant investment attraction projects. For example, the joint release of the Lu-Hu Expressway project by Ludong Province and Hucheng city which winds through Jiangbei Province and has a total investment that reaches tens of billions. There was also the high-tech park project launched by Hangzhou, the capital of Jiangnan Province. With its attractive policies, it drew much interest from Hong Kong businessmen.
The projects promoted by Liangxi City were novel and related to the clothing industry. Additionally, the exhibition stand set up for the West Village Group attracted many people for inquiries.
At nine in the morning, under the guidance of Shen Yanshuo, Secretary of the Jiangbei Provincial Committee, and Governor Ning Shouchang, Deputy Chairman Shen appeared at the exhibition.
At the exhibition stand of Donggang Special Administrative Region, Deputy Chairman Shen took a close look. The beautifully printed promotional pages of Donggang Special Administrative Region sparked Deputy Chairman Shen’s interest.
Next to him, Chief Executive Tong was explaining: “Deputy Chairman Shen, these materials were prepared especially for the Development Forum. Donggang is a world-famous free port and an international financial center. Donggang is a shopping paradise and an excellent tourist destination with attractions like Ocean Park, Victoria Harbour, Dayu Mountain and the upcoming Disneyland.”
Deputy Chairman Shen nodded with satisfaction, saying, “I am surprised and very satisfied with the pragmatic attitude of the Donggang Government. It’s something we should learn from.”
He then added, addressing not only Chief Executive Tong but also the leaders from the other five eastern provinces around him, “Due to geographical limitations, Donggang Special Administrative Region has limited space for development. However, the Donggang government is doing a good job in developing the tourism industry and attracting mainland tourists to the port. This is excellent as it promotes mutual understanding between both regions. The state should vigorously support this. I think we can let the National Tourism Bureau and Donggang Tourism Bureau cooperate and communicate to promote the robust development of Donggang’s tourism industry.”
Afterwards, Deputy Chairman Shen couldn’t stay at the exhibition until the end due to his status. But his presence alone was appreciated.
After seeing off Deputy Chairman Shen and his party, the Eastern Development Forum returned to its normal course. At this forum, the tycoons of Donggang Special Administrative Region saw immense business opportunities within the country.
For example, Li Estate reached an investment agreement with Ludong, Jiangbei and Hucheng on the Lu-Hu Expressway project.
At that moment, Nie Zhenbang was in the banquet hall of Liangxi Grand Hotel, hosting Li Chaoren and Shao Daheng, among others.
“Mayor Nie, we meet again since our last parting in Donggang. This time, a few of us old friends noticed that the investment projects in Liangxi City are quite unique. Specifically, the specialized technology park. I wonder if there are any projects suitable for us?” Li Chaoren said with a smile.
The situation now was different from when they were in Donggang. Despite Li Chaoren’s status, it was perfectly normal for Nie Zhenbang to address him as Uncle Shi back then. However, now, they had to go through formalities.
Nie Zhenbang also laughed, understanding clearly what Li Chaoren and others meant. They were indirectly expressing their gratitude towards him. Even though the major credit for the country’s resistance against international speculative capital went to the state, this victory wouldn’t have been as smooth without Nie Zhenbang’s strategic planning.
Given the power of Tenglong behind Nie Zhenbang, neither money nor gifts mattered. For him, political achievement was more beneficial. And this was a gift that he couldn’t refuse. Li Chaoren and his friends had gone to lengths to present this gift. He wondered if they would still offer this generous gift if they knew he would be transferred after this Eastern Development Forum.
However, Nie Zhenbang had no intentions of revealing this information. While political achievements were his pursuit, he would never give up the development of a place for them.
Nie Zhenbang then chuckled, “Mr. Li, Mr. Shao, this time, our Liangxi city proposed an exclusive industrial park project. To be honest, I came prepared for this.”
Pausing a little, Nie Zhenbang added, “By exclusive industrial park or economic park, it’s just a broad term. In simple words, if you esteemed individuals from Donggang are interested in investing in Liangxi, we can allocate a specific area here for you. The size of which we can discuss later. This place will then be named Donggang Economic Park or Donggang Industrial Park. For all fields like land policy, commerce, taxation, municipal transportation, water, electricity, and communication, Liangxi city will give special consideration. This way, your benefits will be much more than investing individually.”
After stating this, Nie Zhenbang paused deliberately, giving Li Chao and others time to think. Their expressions were now serious, unlike their casual demeanor earlier when presenting gifts. Being businessmen, they had firsthand experience of the impact domestic policies had on business. Should they enjoy substantial policy benefits, it would certainly be a guaranteed profitable business.
“Earlier, we spoke about potential investment projects. Mr. Li, you are involved in various sectors like real estate, commerce, and transportation, so I don’t have any specific suggestions for the time being. However, Mr. Shao, I happen to have a very good project for you,” Nie Zhenbang stated with a grin.
This remark left Shao Daheng somewhat astounded as he asked, “A project suitable for me?”
Nie Zhenbang nodded and elucidated, “Mr. Shao, being one of the top media tycoons in Donggang and the world, your TV stations produce countless masterpieces each year. However, the limited spaces in Donggang, given its high property value, constrain your set designs and location selections. Our Liangxi City has an idea – to introduce capital and build a high-standard film city just like Hollywood Film City. How about it?”
Shao Daheng fell deep in thought. A film city would be a fantastic augmentation and boost for his own businesses. The production of future TV dramas and films would appear much grander. That’s one aspect. Second, the film city can be rented out giving an additional income. Third, Shao was quite pleased with the picturesque scenery of Liangxi city featuring the unique charm of the water towns in south China. Mountains, water bodies, even artificial grasslands, plains, and deserts are all present in Liangxi, it’s a great advantage. Moreover, its geographic location in the heart of Huaxia allows for diverse weather conditions, from snowy landscapes to subtropical climates. Truly, an ideal location.
Having thought it through, Mr. Shao showed interest, “Mayor Nie, I wonder how much land your city can provide. Also, what type of partnership are we talking about?”
Seeing Shao Daheng’s interest, Nie Zhenbang was delighted, and replied confidently, “Our plan is to allocate 15,000 acres of land between the Guicheng district of old Liangxi city to Zisha city. My philosophy is, if you want to do it, do it big, do it strong. We will also reserve some 20,000 acres around it for future expansion of the film city. If all goes well, we can emulate Hollywood Film City, turning it into a world-class film base that combines tourism and film production. As for the investment, it’s up to you, Mr. Shao. You can go for sole ownership, joint ventures, or even let everyone here be a part of it. You can even run everything while we do not participate in the operation and construction.”
What Nie Zhenbang really cared about was not the operation of the film city, but the wealth of job opportunities and business chances it can bring to Liangxi city once built. This was the key to the city’s development.
Li Chao and the King of Chartering on the side were quietly considering the proposition. They were both well aware of the income generated by Hollywood Film City from tourism alone, which is around 2 billion per year, in US dollars. Even if it wasn’t as much in our country, even 2 or 3 billion yuan over 50 years would result in a huge return on investment.
The King of Chartering spoke, “Mr. Shao, what do you think? If you’re interested, I’m willing to invest 2.5 billion HKD.”
Li Chao interjected, “I’m quite interested as well. However, this is not our main business. Mr. Shao, if you join in, I can also invest 2.5 billion. Also, a friend of mine from the Tenglong Group can invest another 2.5 billion.”
Shao Daheng thought carefully. His total net worth was around 8 to 9 billion, most of which was in fixed assets. In liquid cash, he had no more than 1 billion. Yet the attraction of this venture was simply too strong. 15,000 acres of land, going by the current land prices in Liangxi city, amounts to 4.5 billion yuan. After some consideration, Shao Daheng nodded, “All right, I accept this project. Shao Group will also invest 2.5 billion in it for joint development!”(To be continued. If you like this novel, please vote for it at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
