I'm back in 1990

Chapter 451: Tentative Impact

Huang Xiaochuan checked the time; it was almost six o'clock. He then invited Zhang Xiangguang to dinner: "Come on, you've come all this way, it's not easy for you. I'll treat you to dinner tonight."

Zhang Xiangguang didn't stand on ceremony with Huang Xiaochuan: "Then I won't stand on ceremony with you. But I heard from Wu Duo that you've been hoarding a lot of good wine."

Huang Xiaochuan laughed and cursed, "Damn it, Wu Duo has exposed all my secrets! No way! Wait until he comes back next time, and I'll see how I deal with him."

Huang Xiaochuan usually arranges small gatherings with friends at his brother-in-law Tang Jianhua's Huahong Restaurant. Before leaving, Huang Xiaochuan would call him and ask him to reserve a private room. Now the restaurant's business is gradually getting on track, with a constant stream of guests every night, and sometimes there are no seats available without a reservation.

The hotel staff were all familiar with Huang Xiaochuan, so as soon as he arrived, someone led him to a private room, where tea and hot towels were served.

After Huang Xiaochuan wiped his hands and face, Tang Jianhua pushed open the door and came in.

Huang Xiaochuan greeted Tang Jianhua, "Brother-in-law!"

He then introduced the two men to each other, saying, "Old Zhang, this is my brother-in-law, you can just call him Old Tang! Brother-in-law, this is my friend Zhang Xiangguang, you can just call him Old Zhang."

Zhang Xiangguang had already stood up, and said solemnly, "This won't do! We have to call him brother-in-law too!"

Then, in a familiar tone, she called out to Tang Jianhua, "Brother-in-law!"

Tang Jianhua had gained experience in welcoming and seeing off guests. He believed that anyone who came was a guest, and besides, this was Huang Xiaochuan's friend, so Tang Jianhua responded warmly to Zhang Xiangguang.

"No, no, Lao Zhang! Make yourself at home here, don't be shy! Just tell the waiter what you'd like to eat."

"Brother-in-law, don't worry, I'm the kind of person who likes good food and drink, I won't be polite."

Tang Jianhua quite liked this outgoing, bald guy; his personality and temperament were quite compatible with Tang Jianhua's.

After gesturing for Zhang Xiangguang to sit down, he said to Huang Xiaochuan, "Xiaochuan, your second brother-in-law is also hosting dinner here tonight!"

"Really! Who did he invite to dinner?" Huang Xiaochuan asked curiously.

"Some people in the Qingpu government office."

Huang Xiaochuan understood. His second brother-in-law, Huo Miao, with the support of his father-in-law, Zeng Jiahua, had opened a furniture factory in Qingpu. The foreman was none other than his own father, Old Huo. Old Huo had decades of carpentry skills and was an expert in making traditional furniture and carving. Huang Xiaochuan had already asked Nan Hui to place an order with the factory to customize a batch of mahogany furniture for use in Huyin Garden. He also provided the raw materials, and the factory only needed to process them.

Nowadays, starting a business requires maintaining good relationships with relevant government departments, and such wining and dining is unavoidable, so Huang Xiaochuan didn't take it seriously.

"Tell him to drink less, so he doesn't get punished by my second sister for drinking too much and then kneeling down when he gets home!"

Tang Jianhua immediately laughed. Everyone knew that Huo Miao was henpecked and had Zeng Xia completely under his thumb, never daring to disobey his orders.

Huang Xiaochuan then reminded Tang Jianhua, "Brother-in-law, bring over two bottles of the 86 Wuliangye I kept here."

"Okay, I'll bring it to you myself in a bit!"

After Tang Jianhua left, Zhang Xiangguang carefully examined the furnishings in the private room.

He even praised, "Xiao Chuan, your brother-in-law's business is doing quite well! The decor and service are comparable to a five-star hotel!"

"Hehe! It's alright!"

Huang Xiaochuan knows best why the restaurant is doing so well.

Firstly, he had Tang Jianhua study for a period of time to learn some tricks of running a restaurant. Secondly, he wanted to build connections and get to know more top chefs in the industry. Thirdly, he advised against being stingy with money; if the chefs and waiters were happy, and with proper management, the restaurant would definitely succeed.

Of course, in the early days of the restaurant, most of the customers were introduced by Huang Xiaochuan, but if the food and service were not good, it would definitely not work.

Huang Xiaochuan asked Zhang Xiangguang to order, but Zhang Xiangguang waved his hand dismissively: "Don't make things difficult for me. I'm notorious for only knowing how to eat, not how to order. You figure it out."

Just grab a couple of snacks to go with the drinks.

Considering that Zhang Xiangguang might not be used to sweets, Huang Xiaochuan ordered a mixed bamboo shoot and pork soup, as well as poached chicken, salted river shrimp, and about five or six other dishes.

When Tang Jianhua brought the wine, Huang Xiaochuan said to him, "Brother-in-law, if you don't have anything to do, sit down and have a drink with me. It's been a while since we drank together."

Tang Jianhua pointed outside: "I've been wanting to get together with you for a while now, but do you think I can get away?"

"You too, why don't you just find a reliable manager to help you run the business? You can't expand the business by yourself. I have a way to open restaurants all over Shanghai and even in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Come to my house later and I'll talk to you about it."

Tang Jianhua's interest was piqued: "Really?"

Tang Jianhua believed everything his brother-in-law said. He didn't even realize how much wealth his brother-in-law had built up. Whenever the couple talked about it at home, Zeng Hong always looked very proud of it.

Tang Jianhua had never dared to dream of such a life before, that his family could come to Shanghai, live in a villa, and travel in and out in cars. Now, everyone addressed him as "President Tang." He never imagined he would be living such a life now. Who was he all thanks to? It was none other than his brother-in-law.

After Tang Jianhua left the private room, Zhang Xiangguang said to Huang Xiaochuan with an envious look, "You're so good to your eldest and second brother-in-laws. I was wondering if you have any other unmarried sisters you could introduce to me?"

Huang Xiaochuan was amused by Zhang Xiangguang: "Damn it, are you insulting me? A young lady still unmarried? How old would that be? In our area, that's an old maid, a synonym for someone who can't get married."

Zhang Xiangguang said with a disdainful look, "Come on? I don't know about others, but I know that as long as she's Huang Xiaochuan's sister, no matter how ugly she is, she won't have to worry about not getting married."

"Shut your mouth, your sister is ugly! Drink up!"

In February, international capital made its move, resorting to its old tricks and tentatively attacking the Hong Kong dollar.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority reacted swiftly, immediately announcing an increase in short-term bank interest rates, with overnight interbank lending rates reaching as high as 300%. Although this successfully defended Hong Kong's exchange rate, the stock market paid the price with a sharp drop, with the Hang Seng Index falling rapidly from 16820 points.

Both sides in the game are fully aware of this, but international capital is unaware that their plan has been deciphered. Hong Kong, as the defender, is currently using a pocket strategy, waiting for all the international capital to be pocketed before closing in. However, in order to achieve final victory, some costs will inevitably be incurred during the game.

Fortunately, some state-owned institutions were also shorting the Hang Seng Index at the same time. Ding Yi, Zhang Sui, and Zhang Yun were doing the same thing. Both sides were desperately grabbing shares in the stock index.

The difference is that if these assets fall into the hands of state-owned institutions or Ding Yizhang and Zhang Suiyun, it is equivalent to protecting Hong Kong's high-quality assets in a disguised way. If these assets fall into the hands of international capital, the damage to Hong Kong will be much greater, and decades of accumulated wealth will vanish.

Zhang Sui and Ding Yi also used these international capital tactics to deal with them.

Borrowing Hong Kong dollars to sell off shares impacted the exchange rate.

Establish a large number of Hang Seng Index futures short positions in advance.

The sell-off of blue-chip stocks in the stock market has dragged down the index.

Huang Xiaochuan had made it very clear to them beforehand that if the Hong Kong Monetary Authority raised interest rates, causing the stock market to fall, short positions in stock index futures would reap huge profits; if the exchange rate system was abandoned, they would directly profit.

So the initial stage is all about acquiring leverage. Hong Kong's overall size is limited; the more you gain, the less international capital will get. Of course, you can't leave them with absolutely nothing. As the saying goes, "You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub!"

In the end, they will make these capitalists return all the money they have taken in, including principal and interest.

Under Huang Xiaochuan's advance planning and instructions, Zhang Sui and Ding Yi reached a consensus with some banks in Hong Kong beforehand, because the Hong Kong financial system was severely impacted, and these banks would also be greatly affected or even suffer losses.

After weighing the pros and cons, they chose to stand with Zhang Suiding and others, and together they faced this century-long financial battle.