When people mention the richest man in Hong Kong, the first thing that comes to mind is Li Ka-shing, in fact, there is a richest man in Hong Kong who cannot be climbed by Li Ka-shing, and this person is the first richest man after the opening of Hong Kong - He Dong, who is a Chinese-Jewish mixed-race child.
He Dong's father is a Dutch Jew, his mother is a Guangdong Bao'an named Shi Di, the world knows that Jews are smart and can do business, He Dong seems to inherit this specialty of the Jews, he quickly made a fortune by relying on his shrewd mind.
However, He Dong's childhood was very unfortunate, his father initially got to Hong Kong to do business, and his mother Shi Di just lived together, and left after doing business, so He Dong was raised by his mother alone, although He Dong had a foreigner's appearance, but he was a Chinese inside.
He Dong learned Chinese Confucian culture from childhood, and when he grew up, he learned fluent English, and the appearance of foreigners plus the ability to understand both Chinese and English brought He Dong a good opportunity for development, which is the embodiment of his own ability to work his own.
In his early years he joined jardine matheson in Hong Kong as a translator, and in 1882, Ho dong was promoted to manager of jardine matheson & co.'s fire and water insurance company, and it took him 12 years to become the general manager of Jardine Matheson & Co. In 1897, he resigned and was succeeded by his brother Ho Kai Fu.
At that time, Ho Dong was already a rich man with a fortune of two million, and more importantly, his social status increased, and in 1906, with the approval of the Governor of Hong Kong, he became the first Chinese national to live on the top of Victoria Peak, and in 1915 he was knighted by the Emperor.
After the resignation of Jardine Matheson & Co., He Dong invested in real estate to get rich, He Dong made a fortune instead of eating alone, his brothers and family members followed suit, and the He Dong family was established with He Dong as the head, and there were "four major families" in Hong Kong at that time, headed by He Dong, Xu Aizhou, Li Shipeng and Luo Wenjin.
The He family headed by He Dong was the head of the four major families at that time, as for how much money He Dong had, it is estimated that no one knows, but from He Dong's descendants, we can see that He Dong has a son named He Shili, who is a second-class general in the Kuomintang Army.
In 1962, after Retiring from the army, Ho Shi Li took over the business of his father Ho Tung, and among the descendants of Ho Tung, there is a very famous richest man, this person is Ho Hung Sun, known as the "Macau Gambling King", Ho Hung Sun is Ho Tung's nephew and grandson, a member of the Ho Tung family.
In Hong Kong, as long as he is a rich man or a celebrity surnamed Ho, he may be a member of the Ho Dong family, although Ho Tung created a super rich family, he is still very modest and kind, he donated his Macau real estate to the Macau authorities before his death, and now Ho Tung Library.
In addition, He Dong also established a charitable fund to help the poor, he has a deep affection for China and Chinese, He Dong, who has a foreigner's appearance, often thinks of himself as a Chinese, he is also proud of being a Chinese, but now some people show foreign nationality everywhere.
He Dong left a precept to the members of the He Dong family, the original words were: "One is to be diligent, the other is that the money must be held steadily in your hands, don't let it slip away!" "Maybe that's the secret to being the richest man!"