The arrogance started from Chinatown

Chapter 641: Chinese businessmen from Singapore seek refuge

"This is San Francisco..." A passenger ship that departed from Singapore and crossed the Pacific Ocean docked at the port of San Francisco.

There was a great deal of noise on board.

"Young Master, run slower!"

"Sister, where are you?"

"Li family, take all your luggage."

All the sounds came together, creating a loud noise.

There were two or three hundred Chinese people on the deck of the ship, both men and women. Many of them were wearing silk gowns or Mandarin dresses, and they were all very excited.

This time, the boat trip from Singapore to San Francisco took a month, and we are finally arriving.

At this time, several middle-aged people were standing by the fence, chatting and laughing in low voices.

“We’re starting over again in San Francisco this time!”

"As long as there is an opportunity, you can do something anywhere."

"I heard that the environment here is much better. The United States is vast, and now there are people doing business in Panama..."

"Brother Qianyi, Brother Ziyi, your son is working under Mr. Chen. We'll have to rely on you to take care of him in the future!" One of them bowed to the other.

"We've all just arrived! If we want to gain a foothold, we all need to help each other!" another person said immediately.

They all knew that although they were all Chinese, there were differences in how close or distant they were.

The Chinese Americans here have already established themselves.

If these Chinese Singaporeans want to gain a foothold here, they still need to stick together and help each other.

"That's Mr. Chen's warship over there, it's really majestic!" The group of people exclaimed as they looked at the warship anchored in the distance.

It took a long time before he looked away.

"Zichun and Wenqing are here!" Someone pointed at the dock and said with a smile. There were two young men on the dock, with seven or eight strong men standing behind them.

It was Xu Zichun and Lin Wenqing who came to San Francisco half a year ago and joined Rong Jiacai.

The two wrote back about what they saw and heard here, and their family members who remained in Singapore decided to move here.

Of course, some personnel and industries are still left in Singapore as a retreat.

Once the gangplank was put up, everyone got off the boat one after another.

"Zichun! Wenqing!"

Xu Zichun and Lim Boon Keng stepped forward to greet everyone. After a lively exchange of greetings, the two men led everyone out of customs.

These wealthy businessmen from Singapore have been observing since they arrived in San Francisco. They have only seen customs officials doing a casual check and then letting them go, while Chinese people can be seen everywhere on the docks and streets.

"People here don't have braids! Mr. Chen likes to wear gentleman's suits. What the leader likes, the subordinates will follow." Xu Zichun introduced along the way.

"It's also to integrate into the local community. Having braids, dressing differently from the locals, and having different looks and styles will inevitably make people feel excluded."

"Originally, those wearing gentleman's suits were all Mr. Chen's men. Now that they all dress like this, it's hard to tell them apart. But you can look at their hats! Those wearing those soft hats with upturned brims are almost all Mr. Chen's men."

"There's another story behind this hat..."

"Oh? What's that?" a group of people asked excitedly.

"It's called a thug hat or a Chinese hat. But in San Francisco, only Mr. Chen's men wear it." Xu Zichun said with a smile.

When I passed by a street intersection, I saw a street politician giving a speech, and he mentioned Chinese people in his speech.

"Mr. Chen has hired a lot of people like this!" said Lin Wenqing.

"Oh?"

"The main thing is to say good things about us Chinese and change the foreigners' views on us Chinese. The more they speak, the more those people listen, and the image of Chinese people will naturally improve."

“Mr. Chen has a long-term vision!” Lim Boon Keng’s father, Lim Fuyuan (Ziyi), nodded slightly and sighed.

"It is indeed long-term. The world is deceived by Mr. Chen's appearance. In fact, Mr. Chen's mind is extremely delicate and his layout is far-reaching. All the arrangements in San Francisco are from his hands. It subtly improves the status of the Chinese."

"Second brother really respects Mr. Chen!" a young man laughed nearby.

“Of course…” Lin Wenqing thought for a moment and said, “Although Mr. Chen is fierce and overbearing to the outside world, he is still good to his own people.”

The group first settled down near Chinatown.

Afterwards, some of the Lin family's leaders sat in the room and chatted about their recent situations, mainly asking about the situation in San Francisco and Panama.

Lin Wenqing's cousin touched the braid on the back of his head and said, "People here don't wear braids. I'll go cut mine off later! People originally wore braids for convenience when traveling to and from the Qing Dynasty, but it's obviously out of date here."

“Don’t worry!” Lin Wenqing said immediately.

"If we, the Chinese Singaporeans, want to gain a foothold here, we still have to do something. There is an opportunity recently! But I don't know if it can be done."

"Oh? Lin Fuyuan and the others all looked over here."

"Is there anything I can do?" Lin Fuyuan looked at Lin Wenqing.

"But this matter is a bit dangerous!" Lin Wenqing said first.

Lin Fuyuan stroked his beard and said, "You tell me first. You said there is danger, but you are not allowed to cut your braids. Is it related to the Qing Dynasty?"

“That’s right!” Lin Wenqing said, and then told some things.

"Mr. Chen wants to do something with the Qing Dynasty to send those guns away. But he doesn't have the right people, which makes this difficult! If my Lin family can help with this matter, Mr. Chen will definitely look up to me."

These wealthy businessmen from Southeast Asia are different from the wealthy businessmen in San Francisco.

Most of the wealthy businessmen in San Francisco were sold as piglets to build railroads, and they made some fortunes here through scheming and luck.

Many of the wealthy merchants in Southeast Asia were from wealthy families who had been reading poetry and literature since childhood. They also had close ties with the Qing Dynasty and had extensive connections.

"This matter is of great importance, let's talk about it in a few days." Lin Fuyuan said, stroking his beard for a moment.

He will have to wait and see what happens in San Francisco before making a decision.

"It would be best if I could meet Mr. Chen."

After all, it is a major family matter, and there is a risk of accidental death, so we cannot be careless.

"I'll try to think of a way. There's a party tomorrow! It's for John Rockefeller."

"This guy is an American oil tycoon. His company owns 80% of the oil production in the United States and 90% of the oil market."

Lim Boon Keng Road.

……

The next day, Chen Zhengwei got up from Anna's place at noon and was awakened by the sound of the piano.

Anna was wearing a long dress and sitting on the piano playing a very cheerful piece of music, just like lying on the lawn with the sun shining on her body.

Chen Zhengwei lay on the bed and listened for a while. Anna's piano playing level was much better than before.

After a while, Chen Zhengwei got up from the bed, walked to the window, took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth.

I opened the window and the cold, moist air after the rain blew in my face.

"It's a bit cold!" Chen Zhengwei smoked a cigarette before closing the window.

In the afternoon, I went shopping with Anna on Montgomery Street and bought some jewelry.

In the evening, he took Anna to the club.

At this time, there was a lot of traffic in front of the club. After all, it was a banquet prepared for John Rockefeller. And John Rockefeller was also a big shot in the whole United States.

Many wealthy people wanted to meet him and listen to his business tips.

"Mr. Chen, Miss Anna!"

When everyone saw Chen Zhengwei coming in, they all greeted him.

"Brother Wei, there are a few people here today, you can say a few words to them." Rong Jiacai walked up to Chen Zhengwei and said.

"Who has such a high profile?" Chen Zhengwei asked back.

"The wealthy businessmen in Singapore want to move their business to San Francisco. They are nothing special, but they can be regarded as a role model for Chinese businessmen in Southeast Asia. We in San Francisco are the people's choice," Rong Jiacai said with a smile.

A few wealthy businessmen may not mean much, but the fact that Chinese businessmen from Southeast Asia crossed the ocean to San Francisco shows how attractive San Francisco is to overseas Chinese today.

"Bring it to me when the time comes!" Chen Zhengwei nodded.

Then he smiled and greeted the others: "Jones, I heard that you made a lot of money from your recent investment! Remember to take me with you next time!"

"I'm afraid Mr. Chen doesn't think much of these small businesses now. If Mr. Chen is willing to join, many people will be very happy." A foreigner walked over with a smile.

Jones, a famous investor in San Francisco.

I once participated in Chen Zhengwei's baptism and later cooperated with Chen Zhengwei in the warehouse at the port.

Especially since he owns 5% of the shares of the Golden Club and has a personal relationship with Chen Zhengwei, he has an advantage in everything he does in San Francisco.

"Good evening, Miss Anna!"

"Every time I see you, I feel envious from the bottom of my heart!"

"Good evening, Mr. Jones!" Anna smiled.

After everyone chatted for a while, John Rockefeller came.

"I hope you are not here to reject me today!" Chen Zhengwei stretched out his hand and shook hands with the other party, saying with a smile.

"No one will refuse Mr. Chen, right? It took me a lot of effort to convince them! After all, the company does not belong to me alone, I am just a major shareholder." John Rockefeller said.

Just like he said, no one would refuse Chen Zhengwei.

He also didn't want to go to war with Chen Zhengwei.

However, Chen Zhengwei spent 4000 million and insisted on buying Standard Company shares worth 8000 million... Actually it was not 8000 million, because it was an additional issuance, so these shares were actually 8800 million US dollars.

This has caused each shareholder's wealth to shrink significantly.

It did take him some time to convince others.

"Take a long-term view. If we unite, our influence can cover the entire United States and move the country's wheels toward our goals! This is a win-win situation." Chen Zhengwei laughed.

"That sounds inspiring!" A smile appeared on John Rockefeller's rarely expressionful face.

"There is no doubt about it. I think no one will doubt my influence! And... in the future you can dig for oil anywhere you like abroad!" Chen Zhengwei said with a smile.

Of course, if Chen Zhengwei’s security company needs to step in, they will have to pay.

Chen Zhengwei not only acquired shares in Standard Oil, but was also able to sign several more contracts for the security company.

"Now it's us!" corrected John Rockefeller.

"That's right!"

Chen Zhengwei walked back to the banquet hall with John Rockefeller, smiling and clapped his hands to attract everyone's attention.

"Let me introduce to you the protagonist of tonight's banquet, who is also my partner! Mr. John Rockefeller!"

"You must all know him. Even if you haven't met him, you are very familiar with his deeds. Otherwise, you wouldn't be here!" Chen Zhengwei said with a smile.

"Of course, the American oil tycoon!" Others laughed and guessed in their hearts what Chen Zhengwei meant by partner.

It seems that Chen Zhengwei and John Rockefeller are cooperating in some way.

"Tonight's banquet is also to celebrate this cooperation. I will invest in Standard Oil Company!"

Only then did everyone understand.

Standard Oil was a giant worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

And Chen Zhengwei also has a powerful army.

This cooperation between the two parties will obviously have a huge impact on the US oil market.

And the influence of both sides will be taken to a higher level.

This is indeed a big deal.

It is conceivable that this incident will appear on the headlines of American newspapers tomorrow and cause an uproar.

"Mr. Chen, can you tell me some details?" someone asked.

Chen Zhengwei's investment in Standard Oil will obviously cause some fluctuations in the market, and many people are wondering whether there are opportunities to make money.

"Some specific details will be announced tomorrow." Chen Zhengwei replied casually.

Later at the cocktail party, John Rockefeller was surrounded by many people, and everyone wanted to hear what he had to say.

Chen Zhengwei walked aside, and Rong Jiacai came over with a few people.

"Brother Wei, this is Mr. Xu Xinyi, this is Mr. Lin Fuyuan, this is Mr. Huang An, and this is Mr. Huang Yunxing. They are all leading figures among the Chinese in Singapore and have done great business there..."

"Mr. Chen!" Lin Fuyuan and others had been observing Chen Zhengwei before, and everyone could feel the power in him.

"Don't be too reserved. I don't care much about etiquette. Are you from Southeast Asia?" Chen Zhengwei asked with a smile.

"Yes! What Mr. Chen has done overseas has inspired all Chinese people. Now Mr. Chen's reputation is spreading everywhere." Lin Fuyuan and others were still respectful, although Chen Zhengwei said that he didn't care much about etiquette...

But they all knew Chen Zhengwei's character before they came.

"Oh? I'm curious, what do you say about me?" Chen Zhengwei asked with a smile.

"It is said that Mr. Chen is the leader of the Chinese community. It was Mr. Chen who brought out the prestige of the Chinese community and helped them gain a firm foothold overseas. So we came all the way from Singapore to San Francisco, hoping to take advantage of Mr. Chen's influence and settle down in San Francisco!"

"No one said anything bad about me? I guess there must be a lot!" Chen Zhengwei laughed, then waved his hand: "But it doesn't matter."

"If you want to settle down in San Francisco, I definitely welcome you, and the bigger you can do, the better!"

"I always say that my voice will only be louder when the Chinese people's voices are louder. You guys can all become wealthy people, so who will still speak loudly to me?"

"You are weak now, I will protect you! When you become big, you will be able to support me!"

Chen Zhengwei's words stunned everyone. These were not words that someone with Chen Zhengwei's personality would say.

At the same time, I felt a little touched. There are very few overseas Chinese who have the same idea as Chen Zhengwei.

I have an even higher opinion of Chen Zhengwei.

Just as Xu Zichun and Lim Boon Keng said, Chen Zhengwei looks rough, but in fact he has both thundering methods and long-term vision.

He is truly a local hero.

　Yesterday's expense report was originally placed in the main text, but then I felt it was unnecessary and would affect the reading experience, so I took it out and placed it in the chapter remarks for free.

　　In addition, I failed to adjust my work and rest schedule yesterday.

　　I slept for six hours last night, and I thought I had adjusted. But I thought I would take a nap at around 9am, and then I got up after two or three hours to continue typing. I ended up sleeping until around 7pm, and I don’t need to sleep tonight.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)