Chapter 339: Ten‑Million Bonus! One Percent Original Shares! The Boss Is Generous!

Top floor of the Xinghan Building, the President's office.

A man in a crumpled white shirt, with disheveled hair and sunken eye sockets, looking as if he had pulled all‑nighters for many days, sat opposite Lu Qingshan.

He was Liang Zhiwei, President of Head Office of Xinghan Bank.

His appearance was ten‑thousand‑plus li away from the awe‑inspiring banker image Lu Qingjun imagined, even a bit shabby, yet those blood‑veined eyes held a calm as if punching a hole in the sky were just a breath of fresh air.

"Twenty days, twelve branches, President Liang, how did you manage that?" Lu Qingshan personally poured him a cup of hot tea, his voice full of genuine admiration and curiosity.

Lu Qingjun stood nearby, not daring to breathe, and looking at the unremarkable man before him, he could think of only one word—monster!

Liang Zhiwei lifted his teacup, gulped down the scalding tea as if it were plain water.

He said in a hoarse voice, "Boss, nothing complicated. HSBC and Standard Chartered think opening a bank must follow rules, step by step. I don't follow rules; I only deliver results."

"Renovation: I hired the three best contractor teams on Hong Kong Island, signed a gamble contract—bonus doubled for finishing a day early, double penalty for each day delayed. Three‑shift, 24‑hour nonstop work, wages tripled, and I'll cover any issues myself."

"Approvals: the foreign clerks at the Municipal Department love to stall, so I treat them to meals at Hong Kong Island's most expensive restaurants, take them to the best nightclubs, give their wives their favorite jewelry. Anything solvable with money isn't a problem. If they refuse, I hire a private detective to dig up dirt and deliver it to the ICAC doorstep, forcing them to accept."

"Talent: I literally camped at the foot of HSBC's building, poaching staff in front of their executives—double salary, three‑grade promotion, respect and prospects HSBC can't offer. In three days, HSBC's Central Head Office HR line was flooded, half the calls were resignations. Their executives called me a mad dog; I replied, 'Right, I'm a mad dog that only listens to the boss.'"

His words were spoken lightly, yet Lu Qingjun felt his scalp tingle and cold sweat pour down.

Is this opening a bank? It's clearly using money, connections, and tactics, force‑pushing a bloody road across Hong Kong Island's financial map with a Bulldozer! Simple, brutal, yet supremely effective!

Lu Qingshan listened, paused in silence, then laughed. This is exactly the kind of 'monster' and 'mad dog' he wanted!

He pulled a checkbook from the drawer, scribbled a string of numbers, tore out the page, and slid it in front of Liang Zhiwei.

"This is your bonus—ten million Hong Kong dollars."

Liang Zhiwei lowered his head for a glance, not lifting his eyelids, and poured himself another cup of tea, "Boss, I can't use that much."

"No, this is what you deserve," Lu Qingshan said, his gaze scorching. "The time you saved me is worth far more. I, Lu Qingshan, never shortchange my meritorious ones. Take the money, and I'll give you another promise: one percent of Xinghan Bank's future original shares, yours alone."

"Bang!"

Lu Qingjun's cup slipped from his hand onto the expensive carpet; he seemed oblivious, staring intently at Liang Zhiwei, his eyes reddened, breathing heavy like a bellows.

Ten‑million bonus! One percent of the bank's original shares!

This isn't even a hefty reward, it's treating someone like a brother and giving them everything! If the bank goes public, that's money no one can ever spend in a lifetime!

Liang Zhiwei's hand holding the teacup finally trembled imperceptibly. He looked up, and those previously placid eyes surged with a storm for the first time.

He had sold his life to the British for twenty years, gaining nothing but a career ceiling and the slur "yellow‑skinned monkey."

And the man before him, about twenty years his junior, achieved in twenty days everything a banker could dream of, and more! That trust and respect burned hotter than money!

A man dies for a confidant!

Liang Zhiwei set down his teacup, stood, bowed deeply to Lu Qingshan, his hoarse voice each word as hard as iron.

"Boss, in three days the twelve branches of Xinghan Bank will open on schedule, shaking all of Hong Kong!"

…

Three days later, Central, Queen's Road Central.

On the top floor of HSBC's headquarters building opposite the Xinghan Building, a blond‑eyed, blue‑eyed British executive held a coffee, his expression grim as he stared out the window.

Below, crowds swarmed, drums and gongs blared.

Twelve majestic South Lions surged and leapt to the deafening drumbeats, the scene livelier than the Governor's inauguration. The thunderous drums mixed with the sulfurous smell of exploding firecrackers and the roar of the crowd, nearly tearing the ceiling off the entire Queen's Avenue.

The whole avenue was virtually choked by citizens and reporters who had rushed in upon hearing the news.

"Xinghan Bank's opening is auspicious!"

"The first bank wholly owned by us Chinese!"

"I heard deposit rates are twenty percent higher than HSBC and Standard Chartered! I even brought my coffin money!" an elderly white‑haired lady, clutching a cloth bag, exclaimed excitedly to those near her.

The crowd buzzed with discussion, every face radiating excitement and pride.

Exactly ten a. m., the auspicious moment had arrived.

Lu Qingshan, dressed in a black Zhongshan suit, walked to the bank entrance amid a crowd of Chinese‑capital tycoons. Li Fuying, Bao Chenggang, Li Zhaolong, Guo Dongying… the Chinese magnates of Hong Kong Island who could make the list, all arrived today without exception, personally to back Lu Qingshan.

The scene, captured by countless reporters' cameras, instantly spread across Hong Kong Island and throughout Southeast Asia.

Everyone understood that from today, Hong Kong Island's financial landscape would no longer be dominated by a single Yingzi bank.

Lu Qingshan did not deliver a long speech; he took the microphone, his gaze sweeping over the excited, expectant faces below, his voice steady and powerful.

"Today, Xinghan Bank opens, for one purpose."

"That is to give our Hong Kong Island neighbors, all our Chinese compatriots, a place to deposit money, sleep soundly, and earn returns!"

"In the past, our hard‑earned money sat in others' banks, and they decided the interest rates! When our companies needed loans, they gave us umbrellas on sunny days and took them back on rainy days; they decided whether we could borrow! I, Lu Qingshan, no longer want to live like that, and I believe none of you do either!"

"From today, our own money will be decided by us! Our Chinese enterprises will be protected by our own bank!"

"Boom—!"

The brief sentences, like a bomb, exploded into a mountain‑like, tsunami of applause and cheers among the crowd! Scores of people were so moved their eyes filled with hot tears, shouting with all their might!

"Well said!"

"Long live Mr. Lu!"

Bao Chenggang, flushed with excitement, led the clapping, shouting until his throat went hoarse.

When the ribbon‑cutting ceremony ended, the doors of Xinghan Bank's twelve branches opened simultaneously. Citizens already lined up in a long queue at the entrance surged in like a breached dam.

The scene resembled not a bank opening but a supermarket grand opening with free gold bars! Inside the bank, Liang Zhiwei personally took charge; over a hundred counters opened at once, the clatter of abacuses and the whir of note‑counting machines filled the air, forming the most stirring symphony of the new era!