One Hundred Twenty-Nine: The Bronze Dragon Head

"Mr. Wei! Please, you must help! You have to win this bronze dragon head. It is a national treasure, looted from the Old Summer Palace in Beijing by the Anglo-French Allied Forces. It is one of the twelve zodiac animal heads, and we simply cannot allow it to fall into the hands of foreigners." He Xiaoya was clearly well-informed about the history of the artifact.

"Rest assured. I know it is a national treasure, and I will not let it fall into the hands of outsiders." As a patriot, Wei Hua could never stand by and watch his country's treasures be bought up by foreigners. He didn't care about the cost, and besides, he was not short on money. By this time, the price of the bronze dragon head had already climbed to 6.3 million Hong Kong dollars. Wei Hua raised his bidding paddle and shouted, "Ten million!" The previously incessant bidding suddenly ceased, leaving only the auctioneer’s voice echoing loudly:

"Ten million offered by this gentleman! Is there any bid higher than ten million? Any? This is a treasure from the Summer Palace of the Qing Dynasty! Anyone? I will count to three. If there are no higher bids, this bronze dragon head will belong to this gentleman. One, two—" Before the auctioneer could call out three, a voice cut in from the front row:

"Twelve million!" The bidder was the taipan of Jardine Matheson, Henry Keswick. Wei Hua held no fondness for the Keswick family, and even less for Henry Keswick. In Wei Hua's world, Jardine Matheson had always leveraged its assets to pressure the colonial government for special privileges; he was a man known for his anti-Chinese sentiments.

"Fifteen million!" Wei Hua countered bluntly.

"Sixteen million!" Henry Keswick, unwilling to be intimidated by Wei Hua, bid again.

"Twenty million!" Wei Hua added four million in a single stroke.

"Twenty-five million!" Henry Keswick refused to back down, raising his own bid by five million.

"Thirty million!" Wei Hua was determined not to let Keswick take the dragon head.

"Thirty-one million!" After declaring his price, Henry Keswick glanced back at Wei Hua and began whispering to the person beside him.

"Forty million!" Wei Hua’s bid was even more aggressive. The auctioneer fell silent, watching the two men trade bids.

"Forty-three million!" Henry Keswick retorted.

"Forty-eight million!" Wei Hua followed immediately. Just then, someone approached Henry Keswick and whispered something into his ear. After listening, Keswick looked at Wei Hua and made no further bids. Seeing this, the auctioneer waited a moment before striking the gavel, declaring the bronze dragon head sold to Wei Hua.

The auction concluded shortly after. Wei Hua, Ding Peng, He Xiaoya, and Rong Zhijian departed the banquet hall together. As they walked, Rong Zhijian remarked to Wei Hua:

"My friend, by offending Henry Keswick today, you have done yourself no favors for your future in Hong Kong. You must realize that Jardine Matheson is the largest conglomerate here, with immense influence. You only need to look at the recent stock market crash to understand that."

"So what? No matter how influential Jardine Matheson is, it cannot touch me. My primary industries are not based here; my Hong Kong ventures are only here out of necessity. If I could, I would have moved them to Shenzhen long ago. Besides, Jardine Matheson has already begun shifting its assets overseas, which shows they know well that Hong Kong belongs to the Chinese, not the British. They won't last long here, so why should I fear them? If anything, they should be the ones fearing me. You know I built my fortune on financial investment. Jardine has already lost the Wharf—is he not worried about his other assets? Take his container terminals, for instance! You should know that I own the Deep Blue Ocean Shipping Company, and having my own terminal would be a great addition," Wei Hua replied indifferently.

"Fair enough! You have more money than you know what to do with, and if you used it to make life difficult for Henry Keswick, he wouldn't be able to handle it. I suspect he realizes that himself! I, for one, would love to see you stir up some trouble for Jardine Matheson. Many of us have our eyes on their assets," Rong Zhijian said, making no secret of his covetousness.

"I will act if the opportunity arises, but for now, there is none. If I were to force an acquisition now, it would only benefit the Keswick family, so it’s not worth it," Wei Hua explained.

The next day, at the Xuechi Company, Wei Hua met with Basha and her two associates. The general manager, who was temporarily filling in for Jesse, brought the three into the conference room and left. Wei Hua ordered Ding Peng to stand guard at the door and asked He Xiaoya to stay to take minutes. Wei Hua got straight to the point:

"Miss Basha, your presence here in Hong Kong means the KGB has agreed to deal with me. I assume you are here to hear my conditions?" At Wei Hua’s words, a flash of sharpness crossed He Xiaoya’s eyes, though she quickly returned to her note-taking as if nothing had happened.

"Yes, Mr. Wei. We are here to learn your terms."

"My terms are quite simple. I require free trade rights within the Soviet Union. Specifically, I want to be able to sell goods, such as light industrial products, freely in your country. As far as I am aware, your domestic market is severely lacking in such goods, which represents a significant business opportunity for me. If you agree, I will provide the solar cells your Soviet aviation bureau requires," Wei Hua explained.