"Actually, helping Ou Xiaolong through this crisis was a great risk for you too. I only found out about it afterward; otherwise, I would have advised you to consider it more carefully. But talking about it now is a bit too late since the money has already been given out."

"However, if everything goes smoothly and Ou Xiaolong is able to deliver the buildings on time, and considering the current market, housing prices should soar in a year! So, the profits you stand to gain will be quite substantial."

Yi Anguo nodded and said, "The Ren Family has offered greater benefits. If everything goes well, I could gain even more."

"Indeed. It's clear to everyone that the risks the Ren Family faces this time are even greater than those of Ou Xiaolong's company," Zhuo Weidong said with a smile. "The bigger the company, the greater the risks it faces when a crisis hits."

"Brother Zhuo! We're close enough that I won't beat around the bush. I want to ask what you really think about this matter. What are your true thoughts?" Yi Anguo asked curiously.

"Brother Yi! Are you implying something? I don't quite catch your drift," said the shrewd Zhuo Weidong.

"Brother Zhuo! There's no point in saying that to me! Don't tell me you didn't understand what I meant!" Yi Anguo said, dissatisfied.

"They say peers are rivals. Could it be that all you real estate bigshots are hoping for the Ren Family to smoothly get through this crisis and become even stronger?

"So, are you genuinely hoping that I will step in and help the Ren Family out of this predicament?"

Zhuo Weidong was shocked and asked, "Brother Yi, are you saying you really have the ability to help the Ren Family out of this crisis? They have to demolish thirty-five buildings and rebuild them, which will require at least a billion or so yuan in funds!"

Zhuo Weidong felt that he had always valued Yi Anguo highly and had never underestimated his capabilities. However, in just the past year, Yi Anguo had paid off all the loans on his properties and had now invested another six hundred million yuan in Ou Xiaolong's real estate company. How could he possibly have the capacity to spare over a billion yuan to help the Ren Family now?

"Are you planning to mortgage your properties to get a loan from the bank?"

"Brother Zhuo, I just want to ask what you're really planning. What are you thinking?" Yi Anguo did not answer the question directly.

"Brother Yi! Frankly, I've long wanted to persuade you to join my company. If we brothers join forces, we can definitely make a mark in the real estate industry," Zhuo Weidong began.

"With our country's economic boom, housing will become a necessity for the entire nation. In a few years, a surge in housing prices is inevitable, not just in first-tier cities like Shenzhen but also in second-tier and third-tier cities, including those inland county towns. The real estate industry is sure to explode, and property prices will rise sharply!

"Therefore, I'm very bullish on the domestic real estate industry. Why don't you invest and become the second-largest shareholder of Blue Coast?"

Of course, Yi Anguo was well aware that domestic real estate enterprises would soon experience a heyday. Major developers would grow rapidly, reaching asset scales of tens or even hundreds of billions. One after another, real estate tycoons would ascend to the throne of China's richest.

But the good times wouldn't last. Most developers, in their greed and haste, would secure land at exorbitant prices. When housing prices finally peaked and could no longer rise, they would plunge instead. Many developers would find themselves heavily indebted, with broken capital chains and unsellable properties.

Reducing prices to recoup cash, given the high cost of land acquisition, would mean incurring losses, which would result in numerous unfinished buildings. Some real estate companies would default, so burdened by excessive debt that they would simply give up.

Some developers would transfer money overseas, divorce their spouses, and send their children abroad. More outrageously, some would even go to the United States to declare bankruptcy to avoid responsibility and continue enjoying their affluent lifestyles.

Other companies, even while heavily in debt, would resort to so-called private charitable foundations, transferring tens or even hundreds of billions overseas as donations. The owner of one such private foundation was the developer's own sister.

Clearly, this was a classic case of transferring money from the left pocket to the right, moving funds from a public account to a private one. Although a charitable foundation isn't technically a private account, they certainly had ways to eventually funnel the money into their own pockets.

One by one, the former billionaires ended up with nothing to show for their efforts.

Zhuo Weidong's Blue Coast had tried to apply for an IPO on Harbor Island twice, in 2007 and 2009, but both attempts ended in failure. In the end, the company had no choice but to spin off its property management services and list them separately, but that wouldn't happen for more than a decade, long after the property industry's heyday had passed. Even though the listing was eventually successful, the market capitalization was only around 10 billion Hong Kong dollars.

In his rush to go public, Zhuo Weidong had aimed to expand the company's assets to over a hundred billion. He aggressively acquired a lot of land at high costs, a move that ultimately drained all his financial reserves. For a large real estate enterprise with an annual sales revenue of only 20 billion yuan, spending over 30 billion yuan on land acquisition in a single year was unsustainable. The meager savings accumulated over the years couldn't withstand such overspending.

"Brother Zhuo, we can collaborate, but I'm not interested in taking a stake in your real estate company," Yi Anguo said, shaking his head.

Zhuo Weidong thought for a moment, then laughed loudly. "To each his own. Since you're not interested in investing in my company, I can't force you. Since you don't want a stake, we can still collaborate! For instance, if you help me acquire the Ren Family's real estate this time, I can make you the same offer Ou Xiaolong did: whatever capital you invest, I will convert it into property for you at an 80% discount on the current market price."

"Brother Zhuo! Honestly, I'm more interested in property management! The discount is immaterial. I want your promise that wherever Blue Coast develops, my property management company will follow!" Yi Anguo voiced his demands and intentions.

"Alright! I agree to your terms. I'll come over right away to discuss the specifics with you," Zhuo Weidong readily agreed.

In fact, he had been running a property management company for several years, but it had never brought him any tangible profits. On the contrary, it was continuously losing money. This was the main reason Zhuo Weidong had previously transferred the property management company to Yi Anguo at no cost.

After Yi Anguo took over, he restructured it significantly, rejuvenating the company and greatly satisfying the residents.

One of the other reasons Yi Anguo was willing to assist Ou Xiaolong was that Ou had proactively handed over the management of his company's developed properties to Yi Anguo's firm. Not only that, but Ou Xiaolong had also used his connections to help Yi Anguo's property management company secure numerous contracts for residential communities and even commercial properties, including some office buildings. Returning the favor, Yi Anguo naturally didn't want to see Ou Xiaolong's company run into any trouble.

After some time, Yi Anguo discovered that property management, if done well, could be quite profitable. It was possible to make money while keeping the residents satisfied and free of complaints.

While the profit from each individual property might not be much, managing enough of them would add up to a significant sum. Most importantly, he was providing many jobs for society by hiring large numbers of veterans, resolving their employment issues. He also offered them excellent pay, at least much higher than what other companies paid their security guards.

And if trouble ever arose, who would dare to cross him? With just a single call, hundreds or even thousands of veterans could surround you. He'd like to see who wouldn't be afraid.

Yi Anguo didn't have to wait long, as Zhuo Weidong arrived with great haste. When he saw that Yi Anguo's office had undergone a complete transformation and was now filled with rosewood furniture, he thought he had entered the wrong place!

"Brother Yi! What's going on here? Why have you turned your office into a rosewood museum?" Zhuo Weidong asked with a chuckle.

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