Chapter 396: The First Step in Political Investment
Upon hearing the question, David Trench chuckled and said, "The Hong Kong government does have plans for this. But just like Britain, we're also facing the same issue—our three major docks currently employ tens of thousands of workers. Before we move forward, I need to make proper preparations.
London spent several years planning its container port project, and even now, it's not going smoothly. Let's hope that by the time Hong Kong reaches that stage, things will go better. We might need your help then, Mr. Yang."
"No problem. I'll do my best to help provide more job opportunities," Yang Wendong replied with a smile.
Historically, the Kwai Chung Container Terminal project in Hong Kong officially began in 1970, but the preparatory work—including site selection, planning, and logistics—had started years earlier. Still, none of that was more critical than solving the massive unemployment problem that would come from replacing traditional dock labor with automated container operations.
This same dilemma was being played out across the world. London had, in fact, failed in its attempt to transition. The dockworkers united and blocked all initiatives. London's current effort to attract manufacturers was unlikely to succeed either, and probably wouldn't in this lifetime either.
Hong Kong's success in transformation was due to special conditions. In the '60s and '70s, the city was growing at an annual GDP rate of over 13%, with more and more factories opening up, creating a vacuum to absorb displaced workers. London, by contrast, never had that kind of momentum.
"Thank you," David Trench said, seeming to catch Yang Wendong's deeper meaning. "If container ports are built in the future, do you have any ideas, Mr. Yang?"
Yang Wendong smiled. "As a Hong Kong businessman, I naturally hope to contribute to Hong Kong's economic development."
"Haha, I understand," David Trench nodded. "This matter isn't something I can decide on right now. It'll have to wait. But I promise, when the time comes, everything will be handled through fair competition."
"Thank you, Governor," Yang Wendong replied with a courteous smile.
Fairness, in this context, was already a huge advantage for Chinese capital. Not because the Hong Kong government was inherently fair, but because the geopolitical situation demanded it. The British Empire could only maintain control over its colonies by winning over local powers—otherwise, they'd lose them one by one, as had already happened in Malaysia, Singapore, and elsewhere.
After leaving Government House, Yang Wendong didn't return to his corporate headquarters. Instead, he ordered his motorcade to drive through Victoria Harbour and headed straight for Kwun Tong.
When the convoy arrived at the Changxing Industrial Park, Wei Zetao quickly received word and rushed to the entrance to greet him. "Mr. Yang, I wasn't expecting you today."
"Just came straight from the Governor's Residence," Yang Wendong said with a smile. "Let's go upstairs. There's business to discuss."
"Understood." Wei Zetao could tell this was important and immediately escorted Yang Wendong to an office on the top floor of the administration building—an office designated for Yang Wendong, even though he rarely used it. It was kept spotless every day, just in case.
Once seated, Yang Wendong began, "Today I went to meet with the Governor. He told me that the British side…"
Wei Zetao listened attentively as Yang Wendong explained the situation. Afterward, he commented, "Setting up a factory in the UK to serve the European and American markets… In theory, the cost could actually be lower than producing in Hong Kong and shipping overseas.
We've looked into this before—not in the UK, but the East Coast of the United States. But after thorough research, we concluded it wouldn't work. Labor unions in Europe and America are extremely difficult to deal with. Once you sink heavy capital into fixed assets, it becomes nearly impossible to pull out."
"You think I don't know that?" Yang Wendong said, shaking his head. "But David Trench made a good point—our group has been making huge profits off Europe and America for years. In Hong Kong, that success has created tens of thousands of jobs.
So far, our products haven't directly competed with theirs, so we haven't faced much retaliation. But if we continue to grow at this rate, sooner or later we'll be targeted. That kind of risk has to be factored into our long-term planning."
If he were an American-owned business, Yang Wendong wouldn't worry—he'd simply set up shop in the U.S. and sell globally.
But he was a Hong Kong capitalist. While Hong Kong was technically under British rule, it had been financially autonomous since the 1950s. The UK didn't interfere too much in local economic affairs.
Wei Zetao thought for a moment. "Mr. Yang, you're right. We do need to consider the political angle. If we shift some production to the UK and export from there, we can curry favor with the British side."
"Yes, but nothing too big for now. Start small—just enough to create a few hundred jobs," Yang Wendong instructed. "So, what products do you think would be most suitable to shift over?"
Wei Zetao replied, "Wheeled suitcases and spin mops would be good choices. Among our current products, they have the highest transportation costs and relatively low value. Making them in Hong Kong and shipping to Europe or the U.S. is already unprofitable.
Production capacity here is already limited, so moving it won't affect local output. And if production in the UK succeeds, we might even expand later."
"That makes sense," Yang Wendong nodded. "Alright, let's settle on that. We'll start with spin mops and a small number of wheeled suitcases. Set up an assembly plant first.
Ship smaller components from Hong Kong if it's cost-effective. For larger, irregular parts, source them locally. I'm sure the UK has its own plastic component factories."
Spin mops were smaller than suitcases, but their awkward shape made them inefficient to ship—especially before shipping containers became widespread. Their low value only made it worse. Within Changxing Industrial, wheeled suitcase development had struggled for years. Eventually, the company resorted to licensing the design out to other manufacturers.
If the historical timeline stayed the same, Hong Kong wouldn't start building its first container terminal until 1970, and it wouldn't become operational until 1972. Even if Yang Wendong could get involved in the project, it would be impossible to speed it up during the 1966–1967 economic crisis, when the government's attention would be elsewhere.
"Alright," Wei Zetao replied. "Even if the UK doesn't have the suppliers we need, we could produce the plastic parts ourselves and create more jobs that way."
"That's fine," Yang Wendong agreed. "But we should keep things light. Asset-light operations are best."
The light-asset model had become the goal of many large corporations in Yang Wendong's past life. With massive scale came huge management costs, leading to internal friction.
Even if you could keep hiring people indefinitely, executive bandwidth was limited. No company could scale infinitely in every direction.
When it came to influencing employment, small companies were judged based on the number of jobs they created directly. But for large corporations, the jobs created indirectly through order placements were also part of their influence. And the key trait of large enterprises was that they could shift their production sites at will—this alone gave them tremendous leverage. After all, once a factory is built in a location, it's not so easy to leave. If the local government had a darker side, the factory could become a golden goose to be squeezed for all it was worth.
Wei Zetao hesitated, then said, "There's one more issue—Britain probably wants us to invest near London. That doesn't align with our best interests."
"This is a complex matter. We'll have to wait until their officials arrive and discuss it directly," Yang Wendong replied. "We might want to set up a factory to produce spin mops, but the British side may have other ideas. I'm sure they'd prefer us to move several of our main product lines over. We'll negotiate when the time comes."
This wasn't just an investment—it was, essentially, a political move for protection. Large conglomerates always needed to consider this. Without a powerful backer, it was almost impossible to scale globally.
His products were mostly exported to Europe and America. With so many countries involved, he had to pick a side. Things might be smooth today, but when the electronics boom hit in ten or fifteen years, if he made significant inroads without powerful political backing, suppression would be inevitable.
The Western concept of "free trade" was nothing but a joke. When they were thriving, they'd call it free trade. When they weren't, you'd suddenly become a "threat to national security."
But if he tied his identity to Britain, then even when entering the American market, the U.S. government would have to think twice before targeting him. After all, Britain still carried weight—even if it was no longer a superpower like the U.S., it wasn't a country one could easily push around either. But to earn Britain's backing, he would have to offer something in return—at the very least, a sizable contribution to British employment.
Of course, electronics was a special industry—it really could pose national security concerns. So even with British backing, he'd have to avoid sensitive fields. This was something that would have to be carefully managed when the time came.
Five days later, on the 21st, George, the Governor's assistant, arrived at the Changxing Industrial Park in Kwun Tong, accompanied by two British officials.
Both Wei Zetao and Yang Wendong personally received them. The first order of business was a tour of the industrial park. They visited the production lines for adhesive hooks, wheeled suitcases, spin mops, various plastic toys, plastic bags, woven polypropylene sacks, and much more.
As he watched the packed products being loaded onto trucks for distribution, one of the British officials, Sean, exclaimed, "I never imagined there was a factory of this scale in Hong Kong—this is truly incredible."
George explained with a smile, "Mr. Sean, the industrial park you're in right now is Hong Kong's largest. Its annual output exceeds 360 million Hong Kong dollars. It employs around 21,000 people."
Changxing Industrial Park didn't just house workers from Changxing Industrial itself. There were also partner factories, suppliers, independent plastic manufacturers, and a significant number of office personnel. In an era without computers, clerical staff were essential in large numbers.
The reason so many people could be concentrated here was because the entire supply chain was localized. Even raw plastic materials were shipped directly from Taiwan. With smooth internal logistics and an abundance of skilled labor, almost anything plastic-related could be produced here. It was extremely efficient.
As a result, the scale of the park had already exceeded the original blueprint. With the growth of Hong Kong's industrial sector, the plastics industry had risen in tandem. The park was already nearing full capacity.
Still, any expansion or replication of such a facility would have to be handled by Changxing Industrial itself. No other company had the capability to execute such a complex project successfully.
"Oh my god, this is truly remarkable," Sean said. "I only recently learned that wheeled suitcases, Post-it notes, and adhesive hooks were all manufactured in Hong Kong."
George smiled and said, "All of them were invented by Eric."
Sean turned to Yang Wendong and said, "Eric, before I came here, I read your profile. I must say—I'm absolutely amazed. Your entrepreneurial story is nothing short of extraordinary."
"Thank you," Yang Wendong replied with a modest smile. "Shall we get down to business, then?"
"OK," Sean nodded.
"Let's head to the conference room. We've already prepared tea and coffee there," Yang Wendong said.
The group made their way to a conference room on the top floor of the administrative building. After a bit of polite conversation, the room was cleared—only four people remained: the two British officials, Yang Wendong, and Wei Zetao.
Everyone else, including George, had left. It was clear that the Governor's office didn't want to get too deeply involved. After all, this was essentially about relocating jobs from within Hong Kong to the UK. If the Hong Kong government were seen as pushing that agenda, it would spark public backlash. The Governor's office was merely facilitating contact on behalf of the British government.
After a few minutes of casual discussion, Sean got to the point. "Eric, you already understand the purpose of this cooperation. We're prepared to offer assurances that your company's business will be able to operate freely within the Commonwealth markets.
And beyond the Commonwealth—if you're ever treated unfairly, the British government will step in."
"The Commonwealth part is easy to understand," Yang Wendong replied, then paused. "But outside of the Commonwealth—how can you guarantee intervention? I don't doubt your ability, but how can you ensure you'll actually act? Will this be put into writing?"
If the British really did intervene, even the U.S. would have to give them face. The problem was whether they would intervene. After all, he wasn't a domestic British company.
"A written agreement won't work," Sean shook his head. "This isn't a legal transaction that can be spelled out in contract terms. Even British companies don't get written assurances like that.
What I can say is this: the UK government gives similar support to all Commonwealth companies that make substantial investments in Britain. You're not being singled out."
"Others too? Then let's discuss this further down the line," Yang Wendong replied without pushing. Getting the British government to make a written guarantee was unrealistic. But if multiple major companies were receiving the same unofficial commitment, then breaking that trust would have serious consequences.
At least in the 1960s, the British government still cared about its image. It was trying hard to maintain its status as a "great power." If it reneged on promises made to major corporate investors from within the Commonwealth—even just one—it would suffer significant reputational damage.
Wei Zetao then asked, "Mr. Sean, you mentioned a need for significant investment. What exactly do you mean by 'significant'? Do you have a number in mind?"
Sean replied, "It varies by industry, of course. But our baseline requirement is an investment of no less than £2 million, with the ability to create at least 1,000 jobs."
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