Chapter 483 Uproar
Couples.
That was another market that Keung was thinking of targeting. There were families, business travelers and foreign tourists.
But there was another category that would boom during the holiday season, and that category was couples.
Naturally, there was no problem with straight couples. But the boldest move was to open the hotel industry for same sex couples.
Although in the recent years of China, the society has been slowly accepting gays, lesbians and transgenders, they still suffered discrimination by their orientation at many places. It looked on the outside that the society was progressing, but in reality, the people in LGBT community were still afraid of coming out.
As such, there were no hotels who openly supported the accomodation of same sex couples. Some hotels outrightly prohibited them while some never took a clear stand afraid of the public's opinion and their reputation.
When Keung studied the market, he knew. It was a misconception that the percentage of same sex couples was low. It was simply that they were hiding their relationships out of fear of judgment.
The most who suffered during festivals and holiday seasons was the LGBT community because they didn't have any place that would welcome them. They had no place where they could spend time with their partner without being criticized.
That's why Keung chose to do this by officially making this announcement.
It would cause a huge uproar and once the LGBT community had confidence and finally a place to go to, his customer base would soar like crazy.
That was exactly what was happening. All over the branches of Han Corps' hotels, they were getting a steep rise in bookings made by same sex couples.
This announcement had stirred the media like a storm and Weibo was filled with back to back comments about such a bold move.
Han Huizhong, who was sipping on his yet another bland tea made by Xinyi, choked in his throat as he scrolled through the news section. The cup almost slipped from his hands.
"Keung!!! What is this!?"
His loud voice roared through the entire villa.
Everybody hurriedly came out. Han Tian frowned. "Dad. What's wrong? You will destroy your voice like that."
"Shut up! Where is Keung? Call him right now!"
Xia Liqin furrowed her brows. "Why are you so agitated, Dad? What happened?"
"Read the news and you will know," he sneered.
"Huh?"
"OMG!" Zizi came out, brimming with energy. "Did you see the news? All our hotels would now be open to the same sex couples. So cool!" Her eyes sparkled in delight.
Xia Liqin was stunned. "Really?"
"Yes! I cannot believe Keung did this!"
Han Guang was extremely nervous as she saw them gathered. "Did you hear that? Uncle is so furious!"
Han Mingli pressed his brows. "I cannot believe Keung could do something so stupid! Now the media will grill us like crazy! How did he not tell me something so important!?"
"What if Uncle…"
"No. He won't kick Keung out. He still has the majority of shares. But it's just…Keung has made everything so complicated!"
From upstairs, Keung yawned and stepped out. "Why is everybody shouting so much?"
Zhiyuan and Xinyi exchanged silent glances.
Keung frowned. Then he realized it.
"Oh. I see. Guess you all read the news."
Han Mingli quickly came to his rescue. "Uncle, please forgive Keung. He is young and doesn't understand…He will take back the announcement. Rest assured."
Han Guang furiously nodded. "Keung really doesn't need to be so desperate. We all know Han Corps is going to win," she threw sharp glances at Keung.
Zhiyuan and Xinyi shook their heads.
Keung glared at his parents. "What are you going on about? I am not desperate, and I am not gonna take my announcement."
Han Mingli gritted his teeth. "Idiot son! Do you realize what you have done? Our company is all over the media! People are condemning us!"
"And if you read it further, there are people supporting us too," he coldly said.
"You…It's not necessary to officially include those types of people!"
Keung smirked. "I only care about profits, not anybody's orientation. If people have problems with it, I am ready to give a press conference. But I am not taking my statement back."
Han Huizhong narrowed his eyes. "Come here. Stand in front of me."
He wasn't afraid, so he did as told.
"You wanna slap me? Go ahead. Hit me all you want. But it would be of no use. I am the CEO. I make all the decisions now. I am not stepping back from this."
Han Huizhong stared at him with a frosty expression.
"The nerve of you to do something like this."
He sneered. "I am so great, right? Because you didn't have the nerve to do something like this in your own time."
Han Guang wanted to bang her head.
Don't forget that this house still belongs to him! Do you want us to get kicked out!?
"Uncle, he doesn't mean that-"
Han Huizhong raised his palm, and she gulped back.
He faced Keung. "I am telling you. Take that announcement back."
"No."
"You will smear reputation on our company's name that I worked so hard to build," he sharply exclaimed. "You are riding on my coattails, so don't you dare ruin this for me."
Keung sneered. "Grandpa, you have grown old. Just sit back in your room and sip on your bland tea."
Xinyi coughed.
Han Huizhong squinted his eyes. "So you will face everything? The criticisms, the losses-"
"It's not gonna happen. I will handle all the negative PR, but there is no way my move would bring loss to the company," Keung snarled. "I have thought a lot about this. It's not because of any desperation. So shut it."
Zizi choked.
Han Huizhong was quiet like the calm before the storm.
Han Guang and Han Mingli broke into a cold sweat.
Suddenly, he chuckled and then burst into a loud laughter. "Hahahaha. Did you hear what he just said? Shut it. Hahaha. Who had ever dared to talk to me like this? Nobody. Fantastic! For the first time in so many years, Han Keung did something that has made me proud."
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