While there has been a lot of coverage of Li Ka-shing's business empire, little has been written about his private emotional world.
However, Hong Kong's "Ming Pao Weekly" once published an article titled "The Love of Li Ka-shing and Zhuang Yueming", revealing this touching love affair between a "famous cousin and a poor cousin", which is thought-provoking.
Although Zhuang Yueming has been dead for many years, Li Ka-shing comes to the grave of his deceased wife every year to remember their good times.
In the winter of 1940, when the war continued, Li Ka-shing's parents fled with the whole family to his uncle Zhuang Jing'an's house. Zhuang Jingan is a wealthy businessman in Hong Kong with a huge family business, which doubles his self-confidence.
Twelve-year-old Li Ka-shing met his cousin Zhuang Yueming, who is four years younger than him, and he is curious about everything here. However, Zhuang Yueming grew up in fairy tales and did not despise this distant cousin, but was willing to play with him.
As the days passed, feelings sprouted in their hearts and they became real "childhood sweethearts".
Zhuang Jing'an is a forward-looking businessman who loves his daughter very much, and even plans her life path in advance. His daughter, Zhuang Yuet-ming, lived up to expectations and was admitted to the University of Hong Kong with excellent grades to continue her higher education.
At the same time, Li Ka-shing's life is quite difficult. After his father's death, he had to work in a teahouse and even work as an apprentice in a watch shop. It was during this difficult period that Zhuang Yueming's presence became the driving force for him to persevere.
He knew that only by constantly working hard could he be worthy of his cousin. However, when Zhuang Yueming grew up, her father arranged several blind dates for her, including a talented man who studied in Europe and the United States and a famous queen who was born with a golden key.
However, Zhuang Yueming rejected them all, and her father didn't know what she really thought.
At the age of 22, Li Ka-shing founded the Yangtze River Plastics Factory, and Zhuang Yueming was full of confidence in him, believing that he would be able to show his talents in the future. No matter how many difficulties Li Ka-shing encountered in the mall, his cousin Zhuang Yueming always supported him unswervingly, and her sincerity touched Li Ka-shing.
This relationship was opposed by both parents, especially Zhuang Jing'an's side. But Li Ka-shing and Zhuang Yueming did not give up because of this, they insisted on it in their own way.
After ten years of hard work, in 1963, Li Ka-shing was 35 years old, and Zhuang Yueming was also 31 years old, and they still loved each other deeply. By this time, Li Ka-shing's business empire had begun to take shape, and the banker's parents were also impressed by his achievements and finally agreed to their marriage.
In the sound of blessings, the two finally walked hand in hand to the red carpet. Li Ka-shing bought a garden house for 630,000 yuan, in order to give his wife Zhuang Yueming a happy home.
After marriage, Zhuang Yueming also became Li Ka-shing's right-hand man. She works at Cheung Kong Industrial Company and is well respected by her colleagues for her hard-working style. Because of the birth of the two brothers Li Zeju and Li Zekai, Zhuang Yueming gradually moved from the front of the stage to the backstage, concentrating on taking care of his son.
In 1972, Li Ka-shing's "Cheung Kong Industrial" went public, and Zhuang Yueming also appeared on the list of executive directors, which shows that many things in the company still need her consent.
But she always keeps a low profile to outsiders and never accepts ** interviews.
Therefore, whenever people talk about Li Ka-shing's achievements, they often ignore the existence of Zhuang Yueming. However, judging from Li Ka-shing's life history, without Zhuang Yueming's company, his life may be different.
Perhaps it was with such a wife behind him that Li Ka-shing had greater confidence in the market, and even in the face of adversity that other businessmen were not optimistic about, he still resolutely took the land.
If he had misjudged the situation at that time, he would have lost everything. Luckily, this one"High stakes"Li Ka-shing had the last laugh: Cheung Kong became the largest landlord in Hong Kong.
Li Ka-shing, who is proud of the spring breeze, has always been consistent with his wife Zhuang Yueming. At that time, many Hong Kong tycoons regarded scandals as glory, but Li Ka-shing did not embark on this path, and he only loved Zhuang Yueming alone in his life.
Zhuang Yueming's life is regarded as a mystery by Hong Kong**, and the more low-key she is, the more people pay attention to her. On December 31, 1989, Li Ka-shing and Zhuang Yueming appeared at the New Year's banquet at the Grand Hyatt Hotel.
When leaving, although Zhuang Yueming was a little tired, his face was still ruddy. Li Ka-shing's deep affection for Zhuang Yueming has always been consistent.
There was also a small forest next to the villa where she lived, and whenever the cold wind passed through the woods, there was always a strange sound. However, no one would have thought that when Zhuang Yueming said goodbye and left, it would also become the last night of her life.
When the bad news came, the Li family's heart was like a knife, and they couldn't believe that she had just attended the event, how could she pass away so suddenly? This incident is so bizarre that there are multiple versions of the cause of Zhuang Yueming's death.
* Radio records show that she died of a drug overdose, though the Lee family has always denied this claim, insisting that she died of a heart attack.
Some people say that Zhuang Yueming was not happy during her lifetime, often had insomnia all night, regarded her sons as spiritual supports, and often beat them. On the day she committed suicide, her mood had reached the point of extreme depression.
It is said that Li Ka-shing may have had an affair with other women, and some people believe that Zhou Kaixuan appeared before 1989, but these speculations have not been confirmed by the Li family, so it is just a topic of small talk.
The outside world believes that Li Ka-shing was only in his 60s at the time, very healthy, and surrounded by many beautiful women who took the initiative to show love, but he always cherished his reputation and believed that any misconduct would damage his image.
There was ** who was willing to spend 400,000 Hong Kong dollars to buy Li Ka-shing and the actress**, but it was not successful.
When Macau gambling king Stanley Ho's new hotel opened, Li Ka-shing also attended the congratulatory ceremony. Reporters raised their cameras and waited for a bejeweled female star to appear, but when Stanley Ho turned around after greetings, he found that Li Ka-shing had quietly left.
According to Hong Kong mainstream ** reports, Li Ka-shing and Zhou Kaixuan's relationship began in 1992, and they met because of business and developed into a deep friendship. Zhou Kaixuan's care for Li Ka-shing is meticulous and has been widely praised by those around him.
However, Li Ka-shing's desire to remarry was resolutely opposed by Li Zekai, and he even linked this matter to the incident of Zhuang Yueming back then, which made people unpredictable the complex relationship behind it.
In the name of love, in order to commemorate his deceased wife Zhuang Yueming, Li Ka-shing not only donated a building and named it "Zhuang Yueming Building" to commemorate it, but also purchased a manor near the Forbidden City in Beijing to enshrine Zhuang Yueming's tablet.
Although donating the building to the school and enshrineing the tablet of the deceased wife are all expressions of missing and nostalgic for the deceased wife, this has caused an uproar on the Internet, some people say that Li Ka-shing is a superstitious person, he is obsessed with feng shui in the Hong Kong rich circle, so he built the "Soul Tower" to "trap the soul".
However, in any case, these are just speculations and misunderstandings about Li Ka-shing's behavior, in fact, his behavior is out of deep love and longing for his wife, his emotional expression, and his nostalgia and respect for his wife.
This argument does not hold water, because Li Ka-shing received great help from his wife Zhuang Yueming in the early days of his business. Zhuang Yueming was born in the first generation of wealthy families in Hong Kong, and has lived a prosperous life since he was a child, and has helped Li Ka-shing through difficulties many times.
From a personal emotional point of view, Li Ka-shing will not forget Zhuang Yueming's wife, which can also be seen from his actions of mourning his deceased wife every year. Therefore, in the consideration of building repair, the meaning of mourning will of course be more prominent.
However, the direction of things has become "weird", mainly because of the speculation of other netizens. Some speculate that:
Some people think that this move may be over-interpreted, while others believe that Li Ka-shing has his own thoughtfulness, and even has something to do with Feng Shui.
In any case, Li Ka-shing has never given any explanation for these things, and perhaps in his eyes, the primary purpose of the building is to commemorate his late wife, who he firmly believes in all his achievements.
Every New Year's Day is Zhuang Yueming's memorial day, and Li Ka-shing will take his son to the cemetery to mourn. As for Zhou Kaixuan, she can only be Li Ka-shing's confidante, and she cannot replace Zhuang Yueming's important position in Li Ka-shing's heart.
According to Hong Kong**, Zhuang Yueming's home is only a five-minute drive away from Li Ka-shing's home, and the two are often photographed enjoying breakfast together. However, although Zhou Kaixuan considers himself an independent person, because Li Ka-shing is firm in his heart, Hong Kong ** is frantically looking for possible scandals about him.
As a result, in 2006, Zhuang Yueming made front-page news again, this time because her grave was stolen. On the first day of the Spring Festival, four bandits used heavy tools such as electric drills and electric cannons to enter the vicinity of Zhuang Yueming's cemetery in Chai Wan, Hong Kong.
They were soon discovered by the employee couple who had spent the night in the cemetery, and the gang even kidnapped the couple and robbed them of HK$70,000 worth of property.
After a year of unremitting tracking, the theft of Zhuang Yueming's cemetery was finally solved. The criminals had attempted to pry open Zhuang Yueming's sturdy tomb and found that their target was not just the burial goods in the tomb, but Zhuang Yueming's bones, and they tried to use this to blackmail the Li family.
However, the Li family were devout Buddhists, and they always adhered to the principles of Buddhism and did not place any valuables for their ancestors. Therefore, there are no burial goods in Zhuang Yueming's tomb.
Li Ka-shing's deep affection for his wife, Zhuang Yueming, is not only reflected in his actions, but also in his social contributions.
In addition to"Zhuang Yueming Building"He also donated the Li Zhuang Yueming Nursing Home, Caritas Zhuang Yueming Middle School, and even set it up"Li Zhuang Yueming Buddhist Studies**"。
Years have passed, Li Ka-shing still appears in front of the public with a ruddy and full spirit, and his affinity can be seen. At an event, he was photographed by **, smiling and waving to the camera, accompanied by Zhou Kaixuan.
Unlike the stories of many rich people, the relationship between Li Ka-shing and Zhou Kaixuan has always been the same. Their story is no longer news, but just legend. Li Ka-shing protects his privacy well, and there are no rumors about him or others.
This stable and deep affection is undoubtedly an important factor in his success.
The way Zhou Kaixuan and Li Ka-shing get along is a private matter between the two of them, and it is difficult for the outside world to speculate. Zhou Kaixuan is not the kind of actress who will do anything to enter a wealthy family, she is not only Li Ka-shing's bosom friend, but her own story is also very inspirational.
From the perspective of their combination, Zhou Kaixuan also helped Li Ka-shing, but he couldn't compare with Zhuang Yueming. People's memories of Zhuang Yueming are always associated with Li Ka-shing's annual public appearance, and even though his body has been severely bent, he still adheres to this habit, rain or shine.
In Li Ka-shing's view, there is only one wife, and he has always firmly adhered to this.
The Guangdong court heard the case of the theft of the tomb of Li Ka-shing's deceased wife, and there were no burial goods in the tomb. At the same time, Nanfang *** also reported the touching love story of Li Ka-shing and his cousin, which was moving.
Haruki Murakami's works also touch on the theme of the legal system and society, which is worth reading.