Legend of Xiangjiang Tycoon

In 1919, the First World War ended. The Shi Huai Ya family sent Shi Huai Ya IV Shi Yoke to the Far East, and took Xiangjiang as the base camp to manage the Far East business.

Prior to this, members of the Taikoo foreign firm of Xiangjiang were all members of the family. The fact that Prince Shi is stationed exclusively in Xiangjiang means that the family attaches great importance to Xiangjiang.

A few years later, Shi Yueke was promoted to the taipan, becoming the first member of the Shihuai Ya family to serve as the Taikoo taiwan. Afterwards, the executive class of Heung Kong Swire Pacific was held by family members.

After Schjoker took office, he carried out drastic reforms. He moved the head office from Shanghai to Xiangjiang, while the holding company of Xiangjiang Dagu is a family company in the United Kingdom.

Schjocker believes that although Shanghai is the largest city in the Far East, it is not a British colony after all. The political situation in mainland China is changeable, and it is still safe to take Hong Kong as the base camp. Shanghai Taikoo & Co. mainly focuses on trade and shipping. Even if it is abandoned, it is only a property such as a commercial hall and warehouse.

It is not uncommon for women to join companies as staff in the UK. In Heung Kong, women can only engage in "lower-class occupations" such as the service industry.

Schjocker advocates respect for women and equality between men and women. He hired Miss Wu of British nationality as his secretary, breaking the prejudice of many foreign businessmen that women should not be employed as staff in Hong Kong.

Schjocker also believes that since it is a British colony, the treatment of employees should be on par with that in China. The annual salary of Swire Pacific's management ranges from 400 to 1,800 pounds, which is the highest annual salary of Heung Kong Taiyang.

Shiyoke's high-paying system has attracted many people who join Swire Pacific, and Shiyoke has also recruited a lot of business and technical elites.

Schjörk maintains that no distinction is made between British and Chinese. His idea was initially implemented in the white-collar class.

But when it was implemented in the blue-collar class, it was found that it was not so easy, and the company could not afford the huge salary expenses. Even so, the salaries of the industrial workers of Swire Pacific are still higher than those of other foreign firms.

Schyoke was the most outstanding taipan of the Schwariyah family. He has a long life, and in the 1970s, he was still in charge of Swire Pacific. It was his unremitting efforts over the long years that Swire Pacific, which was initially unknown, became a super business empire that is now well-known in the port.

On December 8, 1941, the Pacific War broke out. On the same day, the Japanese invaded Hong Kong and Britain declared war on Japan. Swire Pacific's properties in Shanghai and Xiangjiang were swept away by the Japanese army, and employees of Swire Pacific were evacuated, or returned to China, or went to other British colonies.

The war caused immeasurable losses to Swire Pacific. Due to the sudden occurrence of the war, the mobile assets - the fleet, were too late to withdraw, and most of the ships were either blown up or requisitioned by the Japanese army.

After the war, the first task facing Swire Pacific is to resume business in the Far East as soon as possible.

In October 1945, at London International Airport, the Hercules plane made a deafening roar as it fluttered out of the dense London fog.

In the cabin, there were more than 20 passengers who were going to the Far East, one of them was Shiyoke Shihuaiya, the senior class of Taikoo International.

Shiyoke came to Heung Kong in 1919 and was the first Taipan of the family as Heung Kong Swire Pacific. Time flies, Shiyoke is fifty-two years old, the sparse wrinkles contain the vicissitudes of the years, the eyes are bright, revealing fortitude, courage and depression.

What he is most worried about now is what happened to Swire Pacific?

Schjocker graduated from the famous Oxford University law department, and his classmates either held important positions in the political and military circles, or became a justice barrister. Schjoker and a few classmates took a different path.

Swire & Co. had a great track record, but now it has to start from scratch. Shyok is back in his heart, and travels again by plane, breaking his promise.

People who have flown in a plane often speak with pride about the adventures of air travel. Shiyoke's company in Shanghai is going to the southern capital for business.

At the Western Club, a German was gushing about his plans to fly around the world. Shijok said to John Scott, the company director sitting next to him: "Tomorrow we will take a plane to Nandu."

They took the MB twin-engine aircraft produced by the American Wright-Martin Company, and the pilots and co-pilots were all Americans. There were six passengers in the cabin, and there was a special passenger—a romantic American girl who was crammed into the cockpit, who appeared to be the pilot's girlfriend. It was morning and the airport was shrouded in fog.

The plane started, and the loud noise shook the eardrums. After the plane takes off, drive smoothly. The girl was sitting on the pilot's lap, laughing, fiddling with the buttons, and asking the pilot to put her hand on the control stick to control the plane.

The plane went up and down, and swayed from side to side. Sitting in front of Schjoker and John was the wife of the director of Huaxia Civil Aviation. She shrieked in horror and vomited shortly after.

Schjocker recalled in his diary: "She couldn't resist the swaying of the fuselage and she vomited, and the filth was spit on the newspaper, but it flew into the wind and flew to the face and body of me and John Scott. The sour smell was nauseating and unpleasant."

Passengers protested to the pilot that the plane had no mufflers, was poorly sealed, and the sound was drowned out by the roar of the engine. The pilot and his girlfriend exchanged champagne.

After a while, the pilot turned his face that was red like a cooked shrimp and said, "I'm sorry, please rest assured, it's safer than walking."

The clouds were getting thicker and thicker, and it was impossible to see anything. The passengers were silent, the plane jolted even more, and everyone was terrified, as if the plane was falling into the abyss of death.

The plane broke out of the thick fog, and the pilot was still hugging and kissing with his girlfriend. The plane kept shaking, and the southern capital gradually appeared in the eyes, and the passengers stopped cursing.

The plane slid to the runway, bounced a few times and gradually stopped. The passenger gave a lucky smile, as if he had saved his life.

Every time Shiyoke thinks of this, he has lingering fears. He vowed not to risk his life again. But because of the emergency, I still took several planes.

Schjocker had a prejudice against romantic and unruly American pilots, so he knew everything about the voyage.

The plane belongs to British Imperial Airways, the crew is all British, and the model is an American Douglas DC-3 aircraft. This kind of aircraft showed great power and great power in World War II. It was used for air transportation of the Allied forces and was known as Hercules.

The Hercules that Schjörk took was a converted civilian airliner with a spacious cabin, comfortable seats, and an aisle in the middle for the stewardess to go back and forth.

The noise cancellation effect of the aircraft is very good, and passengers can talk normally, unlike in the past who had to speak loudly to hear the other party clearly. The stewardess is beautiful and thoughtful, and her smile will make passengers forget their fears.

Schjoker left a good impression on the air trip. He had an idea: after the war entered the era of peace, international exchanges will be more frequent, and the aircraft has reached such an advanced level that people must be willing to take it.

Civil aviation will have an amazing development, and the large military aircraft eliminated after the war has laid a good foundation for this development.

The plane landed at Kai Tak Airport in Kowloon, and Schjoker took a ferry across Victoria Harbour. There are still Japanese fortifications along the coast, the damaged buildings have not been repaired, and there are broken walls everywhere.

A large number of war refugees returned to Hong Kong by boat, and the homeless were begging and sleeping in the streets.

The plane landed at Kai Tak Airport in Kowloon, and Schjoker took a ferry across Victoria Harbour. There are still Japanese fortifications along the coast, the damaged buildings have not been repaired, and there are broken walls everywhere.

A large number of war refugees returned to Hong Kong by boat, and the homeless were begging and sleeping in the streets.

How long will it take for Hong Kong to recover? Schjoker pondered the question in his mind. Company employees who remained in the Far East said in a letter to the London headquarters that the damage in Shanghai was less severe. Many directors at the headquarters advocate that the focus of the Far East should be placed on Shanghai.

Taikoo Dockyard, Taikoo Sugar Factory, and Taikoo Machinery Factory were blown up by Japanese aircraft when Xiangjiang fell. The ruins are overgrown with grass and the machinery is rusted.

Accompanied by the staff, Schjoker inspected the damage. Many industries were built by Shiyoke in Xiangjiang before the war. Shijok was in a heavy heart. He stood on the dock and looked out at the blue sea without speaking for a long time.

Schjoker immediately went to the Hong Kong government. The car passed through Causeway Bay, and both sides of Hennessy Road were still prosperous. The restaurants were full of diners, and the high-end shops were full of dazzling goods.

Schjocker recalled a quote by his classmate, Conservative MP Clement: "Whether in wartime or in peacetime, the world will always be the rich man's world."

Shiyoke is a pure businessman, he is not interested in zz, but with the sensitivity of a businessman, he knows that there are a large number of poor people in Xiangjiang who are worried about food and clothing, which will bring him new business opportunities.

Swire Pacific obtained the government's shipping contract to transport relief grain, fuel and daily necessities for the government. Half of Swire Pacific's fleet survived the destruction and immediately went into busy shipping. Other destroyed ships have also been put into intensive repairs one after another.

Schjocker wrote in his memoir: "The shipping contract with the Hong Kong government brought the first start-up capital to Swire. But soon, the Hong Kong government's demand for shipping dropped sharply, and the Hong Kong government handed over the market to businessmen. We switched to transporting materials for businessmen. In addition, all the original passenger flights have been restored. The changes in Xiangjiang are astonishing. What was originally envisaged to be completed in three or four years has been realized in one year. The population of Xiangjiang quickly recovered to The level before the war is still increasing. According to previous experience, the increase of Hong Kong's population is a sign of economic prosperity. Therefore, we decided not to move closer to Shanghai.

"The headquarters has always been divided on whether to move to Shanghai. At that time, no one expected such a big change in the mainland. I didn't have the ability to predict political changes, but I was in the Far East in Hong Kong when I was young. Development, I have reluctance to leave Xiangjiang, and I am optimistic about the future of Xiangjiang.

Of course, I was under a lot of pressure. In order to convince the people in the London headquarters, I can only be convincing if I work in Hong Kong. "

Before the war, Swire Pacific had always been the best-paid foreign firm. In order to alleviate the contradiction of lack of funds, Shijoke took the lead in reducing the salary, and then implemented it throughout the company.

Schjörk ordered that the company's office buildings should not be added to luxury goods for two years, and he also went to high-end entertainment venues as little as possible. Everything that Shi Yok pursues is naturally for the Shi Huai Ya family, but objectively plays a leading role.

Shyok is the most distinguished and longest-serving taipan of the Shyer family.

In 1947, the first phase of the reconstruction project of Taikoo Dockyard was completed and put into use immediately. The dock was mainly repaired and supplemented by shipbuilding. After the war, the world shipping industry flourished, and the business of the dock was very busy.

With the support of HSBC, the shipyard immediately put into full-scale reconstruction and expansion projects. By 1949, there were more than 4,000 workers in the dock industry, and it was one of the two major civil docks in Heung Kong, the other being the Huangpu Dock.

Taikoo Sugar Factory resumed production in 1946. Since then, the scale has continued to expand and has become the largest sugar industry base in Heungkong.

The sugar industry, shipyard, and shipping are the pillar industries of Swire, and their recovery has enabled Swire to rise from the ruins, bringing huge profits to the Shi Huai Ya family.

From today's point of view, Shiyoke's greatest contribution to Swire is not in these three traditional industries, but in the aviation industry of Hong Kong, which has been involved in and monopolized.

Before describing Schjörk's investment in the aviation industry, it is necessary to make a brief review of Heung Kong's aviation industry.

In 1918, Chinese businessmen Ho and Ou Tak reclaimed the sea in Kowloon Bay. The first phase of the project was completed in 1924, and the newly reclaimed land near the sea was turned into Kai Tak Airport.

After the airport was taken over by the Hong Kong government, the reclamation project continued. The original airfield was a mixed airfield for civilian and military use. By the early 1930s, the military airport was relocated to Shek Kong, New Territories, and Kai Tak Airport was converted to civilian use.

The original civil aircraft had no scheduled flights and had very short range. On March 14, 1936, the twin-engine civil aircraft of British Imperial Airways made its maiden flight to Hong Kong from Singapore, connecting Hong Kong and Singapore to London.

In the same year, on October 23, the seaplane of Pan American Airlines crossed the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco to Hong Kong, and opened up regular flights.

The following year, China Airlines opened a regular flight between Yangcheng-Xiangjiang-Shanghai. Afterwards, British Imperial Airways, British Overseas Airways, Pan Am Airways, Air France, AVIC's affiliates with the United States, etc., opened up a number of regular flight routes connecting important cities in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia. Hong Kong has become an important airport in the Far East.

Yang Muqi came to Hong Kong to serve as the Governor~www.readwn.com~ announced that Kai Tak Airport would be changed to Heung Kong Second Military Airport. Soon, the Pacific War broke out, Japanese planes raided Hong Kong, Kai Tak Airport bore the brunt, and all civil and military planes were blown up into wreckage.

During the Japanese occupation period, Kai Tak Airport was changed to a military airport, and the civil aviation business in Heung Kong came to a standstill.

After Hong Kong was recaptured, there were only three airlines flying to and from Hong Kong on a regular basis: British Imperial Airways, Huaxia Civil Aviation Company, and Pan American Airlines.

Schjörk flew to Hong Kong on an Imperial Airways flight, and from this he came up with the idea of ​​investing in the aviation industry.

Schjocker was very new to running the aviation industry, and his idea had not yet become a formal concept, and was immediately diluted by the bleak picture of Swire Industries. Shijok was busy restoring Swire's business, and when his time and financial resources were a little loose, he thought of getting involved in the aviation industry.

Schjoker was a step behind. In 1946, there was already an airline registered in Hong Kong, Cathay Pacific Airways. Schjoker is not afraid of competition, but not even the possibility of competition. The Hong Kong government has formed a law that only allows a locally registered airline to conduct patent operations; it implements patent management for foreign airlines to open up Hong Kong flights.

Please remember this book's first domain name: . Mobile version reading website: