Chapter 443: Borrowing the Path

The yacht departed from Victoria Harbour; by day, Victoria Harbour lacked the visual impact of its nighttime scenery.

Inside the yacht, Li Li Dongling could see many other yachts also leaving the harbor, heading west toward Sai Kung or the open sea; Hong Kong was currently in its best economic period in decades, and there were no shortage of yacht owners, including some Hong Kong celebrities who had stretched themselves to buy one.

Luxury cars, yachts, hilltop sea-view villas, private jets—these were now standard for many Hong Kong billionaires; today's Hong Kong was a glittering, decadent den of excess, renowned across Asia and the world.

Li Li Dongling glanced back at Victoria Harbour behind him and thought that once Soros had visited Southeast Asia, if the timing was right, he might acquire some residences or yachts in Hong Kong; he suspected he would be coming to Hong Kong far more often in the future.

When Li Li Dongling and Ning Ning Wenke boarded the yacht, numerous paparazzi still lingered at the harbor; Hong Kong's reporters and paparazzi, it must be said, were relentless in their pursuit of big stories—if they hadn't gone out to sea, their meetings with Hang Seng, Nishiguchi Taifu, and Bank of China would have been impossible to conceal.

After Li Li Dongling and Ning Ning Wenke's yacht departed, several other yachts followed in quick succession, speeding swiftly toward the open sea.

…

"What do you make of this inland dragon crossing the river?"

Inside PricewaterhouseCoopers Group, Li Li Zekai, having just finished a call with his new lawyer girlfriend, pointed to the newspaper's front page—a photo of Li Li Dongling taken inside the Hong Kong Stock Exchange trading floor—and asked Yuan Yuan Tianfan, his most important strategist.

Unlike the two low-key members of the Yangtze Li family, Li Li Zekai was a well-known playboy in Hong Kong, drawn to women from law, modeling, and acting; figures like Zhao Zhao Shinan paled in comparison.

This man, though never marrying, was always generous with gifts—he'd given away yachts and villas, arranged bodyguards, and never gifted cars, since he had no interest in luxury automobiles; instead, he favored private jets and was among the rare Hong Kong billionaires who piloted his own.

Yuan Yuan Tianfan, in his forties, received little media coverage, yet his name carried immense weight among Hong Kong's wealthy elite.

Years ago, when the Hong Kong Stock Exchange faced crisis, Yuan Yuan Tianfan turned the tide and resolved the crisis, becoming the youngest chairman in the history of global major exchanges.

After leaving the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Yuan Yuan Tianfan founded his own business; with his ability and connections from the exchange, he thrived spectacularly. Rumors claimed that a former Belgian consul's mansion he bought in Hong Kong for over a hundred million HKD was later acquired by Alibaba's boss for over a billion HKD.

But with so many luxury homes in Hong Kong, why did Alibaba's boss specifically choose Yuan Yuan Tianfan's—known as the most powerful and well-connected in Hong Kong circles? The reasons remained unknown.

Both Li Li Zekai and his father sought to recruit Yuan Yuan Tianfan; Li Li Zekai did not want the title the Hong Kong media had pinned on him—he aimed to surpass his father.

Under the Yangtze Li boss stood a cadre of well-known Hong Kong lieutenants like Huo Huo Jianning, who led the charge in battles for territory and profit; Huo Huo Jianning was even called Hong Kong's highest-paid professional manager.

Currently, it was Huo Huo Jianning, the Yangtze Li boss's trusted general, who was managing the Orange Telecom IPO in Britain.

Li Li Zekai wanted to surpass his father and had long sought to recruit top-tier talent; to that end, he had paid a premium to acquire the insurance company Yuan Yuan Tianfan had founded, finally bringing him into PricewaterhouseCoopers Group.

After joining PricewaterhouseCoopers Group, Yuan Yuan Tianfan helped secure multiple projects, acquired several insurance firms, and won contracts like the Tokyo Subway; these were no small deals, but to Li Li Zekai, they were insufficient.

Although these projects were substantial and profitable, Li Li Zekai knew it was fantasy to expect them to surpass the Yangtze Group.

Yuan Yuan Tianfan glanced at Li Li Zekai and understood his new employer's ambitions; in truth, his joining PricewaterhouseCoopers was tied to the Yangtze Li patriarch—they had known each other for over a decade.

"Impossible to fathom."

Recalling the files on Li Li Dongling, Yuan Yuan Tianfan said, "Over the past few years, the inland has produced countless rugged heroes; even in Hong Kong, they'd make a name for themselves."

As for this founder of Li Dongling High-Tech, since his debut, he has never suffered a single defeat—he rose from nothing; compared to him, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia's new generation…"

Yuan Yuan Tianfan shook his head involuntarily; it wasn't the goods that needed comparison, but the people—when Hong Kong and Southeast Asia's new elite were lined up beside Li Li Dongling, any observer could instantly see the gap.

"Only the previous generation from Hong Kong and Southeast Asia could possibly match him!"

As he spoke, Yuan Yuan Tianfan noticed Li Li Zekai's expression—slightly resentful. He understood why: Li Li Zekai's temper wasn't mild, but among Hong Kong's new generation, he was the most diligent and the most outstanding, naturally arrogant; his sole focus was surpassing his father—he didn't consider others rivals.

Others feared Li Li Zekai, but Yuan Yuan Tianfan didn't care; he stood on equal footing with the Yangtze Li patriarch; his move to PricewaterhouseCoopers was known to all—he was here to assist Li Li Zekai, only after Li Li Zekai had repeatedly invited him; he was nothing like Li Li Zekai's subordinates.

In Yuan Yuan Tianfan's eyes, Li Li Zekai was indeed exceptional—his sale of the TV station to Murdoch was truly brilliant; among Hong Kong's new generation, few could rival him.

But Li Li Zekai's debut was far from rags-to-riches; when he founded Star TV, his father invested hundreds of millions of HKD—his starting point was higher than most people's finish line.

Moreover, the TV station performed poorly in its early days; Murdoch's willingness to pay a premium was not for Hong Kong's TV market, but to use Star TV as a gateway to the inland market.

After acquiring Star TV, Murdoch failed to achieve his goal; Star TV could only broadcast in parts of Guangdong; he suffered massive losses, and over a decade later, sold his controlling stake to a domestic TV station for tens of millions of dollars, exiting with nearly a billion-dollar loss.

In recent years, Li Li Zekai had many celebrated projects, but also many failures; when Soros arrived, his Tokyo Subway project hit trouble, and only his father's intervention—injecting billions of HKD—saved his face.

Li Li Dongling, however, was entirely different; Yuan Yuan Tianfan couldn't fathom how Li Dongling High-Tech had risen. Honestly, just from the files, the first impression was that Li Dongling High-Tech had simply ridden a trend.

The Li family of Hong Kong and other tycoons all had traceable origins, especially through real estate booms; but Li Dongling High-Tech's rise broke all conventional rules—it forged its own path, especially in technology, and in Asia, how difficult that was, Yuan Yuan Tianfan knew all too well.

In other words, tycoons who built fortunes through real estate, energy, or power faced ceilings—their industries were limited in size and couldn't expand indefinitely.

But the tech industry was unpredictable, with a ceiling far higher than real estate; companies like Japan's Sony, Toshiba, Panasonic, and America's IBM, Microsoft, when they exploded, grew faster than traditional industries.

This was precisely why Yuan Yuan Tianfan couldn't grasp Li Dongling High-Tech—he couldn't predict how high it might climb; the future of tech companies was binary: either ascend to godhood or crash into ruin—no third path.

Even the Yangtze Li boss had invested heavily in tech in recent years, especially telecom; Orange Telecom in Britain was betting on 2G, and the Yangtze Group had spent nearly ten billion HKD to acquire its predecessor and rebranded it as Orange Telecom—what audacity.

Regardless of reputation, the Yangtze Li boss's investment vision had always been uncanny; in comparison, Li Li Zekai was still focused on traditional industries like insurance and real estate; in terms of vision alone, Yuan Yuan Tianfan felt he was far behind his seventy-year-old father.

And Li Li Dongling—his flawless record since debut alone revealed his vision; a little-known PHS mobile phone format, ignored by global telecom and handset firms, became a cash cow in Li Li Dongling's hands, sold wildly worldwide, and turned him into one of the world's top four handset suppliers—could his vision be questioned?!

Li Li Zekai shoved the newspaper aside, unwilling to continue the topic, and asked directly, "Do you think Li Dongling High-Tech will join the battle for Hong Kong Telecom?"

Yuan Yuan Tianfan shook his head. "Hard to say. My view remains: the Hong Kong Telecom battle isn't just about money—the attitude of Beijing's Post and Telecom Department is crucial."

"So, neither the inland nor Hong Kong wants Hong Kong Telecom acquired by foreign telecom firms—meaning local Hong Kong companies have the highest chance of acquiring it, right?" Li Li Zekai said.

Yuan Yuan Tianfan nodded hesitantly, but added, "Inland companies also have a chance—especially if Li Dongling High-Tech moves."

"But this is PricewaterhouseCoopers Group's best opportunity!" Li Li Zekai waved his hand. If they acquired Hong Kong Telecom, he could gain a company valued higher than the Yangtze Group—fulfilling his lifelong dream of surpassing his father.

Yuan Yuan Tianfan looked at Li Li Zekai and silently thought: For PricewaterhouseCoopers to acquire Hong Kong Telecom, which bank would lend the money without his father's explicit approval and guarantee?

…

"Director Liang!"

Several yachts had gathered; originally thinking today was just a leisure trip, Liang Liang Botao had brought fishing rods—but when he saw Li Li Dongling, Ning Ning Wenke, Lin Lin Xianhui, and the people from Bank of China Hong Kong and Nishiguchi Taifu on another yacht, he quietly put away his rods, sensing a major deal was coming.