The land was acquired at the end of the year before last, at a high price of over two hundred million.

With the current land prices in the mainland, Su Yehao's heart stirred. He didn't dare reveal his interest, pretending to be indifferent, and asked, "Oh? My dad did mention that the development in Hu City is alright. Where is the land your company acquired, and what is the planned area?"

"It's in the new district across the river from the city center, separated from the Hu City Bund by only a river. The future plan is to position it as a core business district, and the mainland's first skyscraper is being built there. Our land is only one intersection away from that building, which is over four hundred meters tall. We plan to build a fifty-two-story office building, with a construction area of about 130,000 square meters, which converted into Hong Kong square feet, would be..."

Seeing that Pei Xinyao's husband was about to do the conversion, Su Yehao planned to say, "No need, I know how big a square meter is. What's the planned height?"

"Two hundred and sixty meters. The floor height is very comfortable. Unfortunately, the company can't afford that much money to build the building at the moment. Actually, we are very optimistic about the development prospects of this land, and soon after we acquired the land, the requirements for the construction start time became stricter. It is stipulated that if development doesn't begin within a certain period, the land can be reclaimed without compensation. There was no mandatory requirement when we acquired the land. The start time was extended to six years, which means construction can start after the millennium."

It was Pei Xinyao who spoke. This woman had a clear mind and was obviously a smart woman who was a good helper, definitely not just a pretty face.

Su Yehao had already guessed that the so-called new district was Pudong. Being only one intersection away from the Jin Mao Tower meant it was land in Lujiazui, the representative of the mainland's future skyline, truly worth its weight in gold.

Thinking that if they were really optimistic about the development prospects, they wouldn't be trying to sell it, this thought flashed through Su Yehao's mind, but he didn't reveal it.

Compared with the luxury house land on Big Wave Bay Road, the land in Lujiazui seemed much more worthwhile and had more room for appreciation in his eyes.

His heart burned for a while, but after careful calculation, he gradually calmed down.

Su Yehao said, "There seems to be a lot of land in the new district. Besides, the city center is also undergoing old house renovations, so there's no shortage of land for building. Recently, everyone is pessimistic about the real estate industry in the next few years, and prices are still falling. House prices in the mainland have also started to fall."

Pei Xinyao's husband explained:

"We acquired the land before the price increase, so it's very cheap per square meter. It's suitable for keeping for rental income. Our asking price is not high, only HK$250 million, which, including the cost of holding it until now, is just a break-even transfer. If we participated in an auction to acquire land, it would be at least HK$30 million more expensive than this price."

A piece of office building land in Lujiazui, with a planned construction area of 130,000 square meters, only cost a mere two hundred million.

That's just how the market was. No wonder people often heard about some real estate developers making a fortune by speculating on properties, holding them for more than ten years, and easily making ten times the profit.

Su Yehao certainly knew that the location of this land was excellent, but what he said about there being no shortage of land was also the truth.

It hadn't been many years since the completion of the Oriental Pearl Tower, and the solitary Jin Mao Tower had only just been capped. In this era, looking across the Bund, there were only large areas of empty land.

This also meant that the couple's land lacked a bit of scarcity and wasn't very competitive in the market, so they seized the opportunity to actively sell it.

It was a typical buyer's market, and the advantage was on Su Yehao's side.

Su Yehao's money was mainly invested in Yahoo, to make quick money. As long as there were no accidents, the short-term returns would definitely beat the profits from hoarding land.

But the thought of a building in Lujiazui made his heart flutter.

Having been in business for some time, he already understood that sometimes investment didn't require personally taking out money, especially for real estate like this. He could completely use the bank's money to make more money. It seemed that he could earn some extra income on top of his existing assets.

And so.

After a brief struggle, Su Yehao crossed his legs, stroked his chin, and said, "If the price is right, this business isn't impossible to discuss. First, give me a copy of the documents. After the evaluation, I'll give you a reply, okay?"

The market was in a downward spiral, far from the bottom, with prices steadily declining.

After peddling around for more than half a month, Pei Xinyao was meeting a genuinely interested potential buyer for the first time.

Last time, she did meet a businessman, but after three or four contacts, she realized that what the other party really cared about was her, not only suppressing the price but also having additional "conditions."

At least her family had some money, and it hadn't reached a true life-or-death situation. How could Pei Xinyao possibly agree? She still had that much pride.

…

The couple agreed to send the documents over later, exchanged contact information, and didn't bother Su Yehao any further.

They were both experienced people. Seeing Su Yehao having tea with a young and beautiful woman, they would naturally think of it as a date. Saying too much at this time would only annoy people.

After they left, Jiang Yu lowered her voice and said, "You're really different now. The boss of a real estate company, ah, was actually so humble in front of you, looking very restrained."

"Is that so? If they can't find someone to take over, of course, they need to be polite. Even if you're right, it's probably because of my parents' reputation. I don't have that much prestige yet. In the face of interests, age isn't the main point."

Su Yehao said calmly.

Jiang Yu then asked him, "The Hu City Bund, it's so famous. Are you sure you really plan to invest there?"

"As long as the mainland economy can develop, that place has a chance to become one of the most expensive areas for real estate. Earning several hundred million in rent every year, how comfortable would that be? Besides, you also heard that there's no need to rush the development. Before the agreed-upon six years expire, I probably won't care about the money to build the building anymore, and I'll have already withdrawn from the NASDAQ market."

"...Where does that confidence come from?"

Seeing that Jiang Yu didn't believe him, Su Yehao smiled:

"Your vision isn't good. Look at Nangong, who bottomed out Yahoo with me at the end of October, and has already made a fortune. Choosing a project is like finding a boyfriend, you have to pay attention to long-term potential. Since the mainland's economic development momentum is good, and it's a key core area, as long as the price is right and I can get a loan from the bank, I really want to acquire that piece of land in Hu City."

Jiang Yu seized the key point and asked suspiciously, "Why does it feel like you're praising yourself? Are you saying you're a potential stock?"

"Of course."

According to Su Yehao's temperament, he should have taken the opportunity to tease her, but after cohabiting with the little girl, he couldn't find the time. It was really difficult, so he could only take it one step at a time.

If he made a move under the little girl's nose, Su Yehao didn't have the confidence to hide it successfully. The main reason was that Jiang Yu wasn't experienced enough and always liked to show her emotions on her face.

Jiang Yu didn't think so much.

She was grumbling to herself that her vision for choosing men was indeed poor, having fallen for a playboy, and a narcissistic one at that.

While waiting for Pei Xinyao and her husband to deliver the documents, Su Yehao and Jiang Yu played golf. They had been taught in middle school, and both knew how to play. Their skills were evenly matched, both belonging to the beginner level.

He made a call to the Hong Kong branch manager of The Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank.

Su Yehao bluntly said that he hoped they could help with the money, and that he would only pay interest within three years. He could use the land as collateral, and he could also ask his father to help with the guarantee.

The manager readily agreed to this seemingly outrageous request, planning to talk to Su Yehao in person.

For major customers, Japanese banks would provide customized services, including corporate mergers and integrations, involving large projects of hundreds of billions, as long as there was money to be made, they were quite accommodating.

Taking money to buy land, and with Sihai International providing the guarantee, the manager saw almost no risk in it. It was a performance boost that was delivered right to his door, and his tone was very enthusiastic.

Su Yehao replied that things hadn't been finalized yet and that he would contact him later.

With the backing of the bank, his confidence suddenly increased, and he even considered taking a bigger step and continuing to expand his investment.

Yahoo's stock price had risen to $56.50, and he had made a fortune from bottoming out since the end of October. He had already tasted the sweetness of developing with bank funds, and it was always great to be in debt.

Compared to the profits so far, the interest on the loan was not worth worrying about.

Other banks also offered similar services, but Japanese banks were in a recession and had the most favorable interest rates. Even Su's father was tempted and was preparing to mortgage the Sihai International Building in Central for a loan...