Nanyang 1931: From piglets to giants

Chapter 36 Falling out?

The dinner table was still completely silent, with only the smacking sound of Zheng Yi chewing on the beef ribs.

It was a delicious meal, but the others hadn’t even touched their food yet, and he was almost full.

In fact, after eating, my rationality gradually returned, and I was probably able to analyze the problem again. I knew that this old man must be trying to scare me.

To put it bluntly, he came here today to discuss something, but the problem is that nothing has been discussed yet!
He didn't even know what price the old man was going to ask for. The old man had never quoted a price at all!
Even if they want to kill me, they must wait until they finish talking and fail to reach an agreement, right?

Probably, it was just to scare him before the negotiation. In the previous life, at least in the 90s, there were quite a lot of such things in society.

The more this happens, the more we must not be shocked by them. Once we are shocked, scared, and lose our confidence, there is nothing to talk about next. We will just have to accept whatever they say.

Of course, this group of people is definitely different from the ones in the 90s. Those people were really just trying to scare people most of the time.

These guys are really fucking murderous!
"Haha, haha, hahahahaha, little brother, little brother, looking at the way you're drinking and eating meat, you really don't look like a technical intellectual. You look more like a rough and tumble hero, huh? Hahahaha."

Zheng Yi: "What should an intellectual be like? I'm probably the most prominent intellectual in Southeast Asia. What I am like, that's what intellectuals should be like. Don't you agree?"

"Yes, absolutely right. I love dealing with people like you. Although I'm just an employee...but since you can make the decisions about the machinery factory, that's great too. You're also qualified to sit in this chair."

"Then I thank you, Master Zhang."

"My dear brother, since you're an intellectual, I advise you to study your technology as much as possible. Nanyang is not like China. I heard you came back from the United States? It's even more incomparable to the United States. There's no rule of law!"

Zheng Yi ate his food with big mouthfuls, nodding his head repeatedly. "You're right," he said. "I don't like being in the spotlight or being meddlesome. If I could just ignore everything and focus on my research, that would be great. But I'm afraid that even if the wind blows, the tree won't stop. I want to focus on my research, but someone won't let me."

Zhang Yucai: "Hahahaha, who's stopping you from doing research? Just tell me. We Chinese, even though our population has increased, are still outsiders after all."

"From birth to death, if anyone encounters any injustice, no one will stand up for you. Pointing to the Colonial Office? What can the Colonial Office do? As long as it has nothing to do with the interests of the British, they don't bother to intervene."

"So, we Chinese in Southeast Asia have to take care of ourselves. Who can we rely on? We can only rely on our chambers of commerce. Chambers of commerce are a term that only exists now. When we were young, we called them gangs, such as the Longqing Gang, the Panyu Gang, the Chaoshan Gang, and the Qiongzhou Gang."

"Bang means help. To put it bluntly, we are all from the same place, so we should help each other. Chinese people here have no relatives or friends, and we are unfamiliar with the place. If fellow countrymen cannot help each other, how can we survive?"

"Everything about a Nanyang Chinese, from birth to old age, sickness, death, marriage, funerals, and getting married, is arranged by us, the chamber of commerce. If he is bullied outside, it is our chamber of commerce that will help him. If he loses his job and has no livelihood, it is our chamber of commerce that will help him find a new job."

"Even for those who die in a foreign land, it is still us, the Chamber of Commerce, who are responsible for sending their remains back home, so that they can return to their roots. We also help them handle their funeral affairs and return their savings to their families back home."

"To be frank, the various chambers of commerce are the roots of the Chinese in Southeast Asia. They are our support and the sky above our heads."

"Little brother, if you encounter any problems in the future, you can come to us. These people here will help you."

Zheng Yi smiled and said, "Then I have to thank Master Zhang."

"Haha, I'm not an unreasonable person. I know that your machine uses a lot of Japanese stuff, but no matter what, this is also for the benefit of us Chinese."

"But, little brother, because of these machines of yours, countless workers will face the crisis of unemployment. Many of our men have sold their pigs and incurred debts, so they can only work in the rubber plantation."

"Without this job on the rubber plantation, how will they survive? It's all our fault, both morally and ethically, that we should take care of them. We should at least buy them a boat ticket and let them go home, right? Don't you agree?"

"You and Li Xiaoshi made a fortune building machines, but left a mess behind. You're leaving us to lose money and clean up your mess. That's not right."

Zheng Yi: "Why don't we also contribute a penny to establish a fund specifically to help the Chinese workers in Nanyang find new jobs? If they really can't find a job and are willing to go back, we can pay for their passage. Jinluntai also has a shipping business. The old chairman said that we can add a little more money to expand the shipping company. At most, we can just consider it a charity and not charge any money."

Zhang Yucai: "Hahahaha, that doesn't require so much trouble. How about this? We'll take care of the livelihoods of the unemployed rubber workers. You and Li Xiaoshi, give us some shares? You said, many hands make light work, right?"

Zheng Yi: "How much?"

"It's not much. We, the twenty or so people combined, only want 15% from you. And don't worry, we won't ask for it for nothing. As for the money we owe, of course we will give it to you. 15% of the shares, that's 150 million. How about that?"

Wow, 150 million for 15% of the shares. Boss Li Xiaoshi invested a total of more than million, but only got more than % of the shares. He made more money than Li Xiaoshi.

Zheng Yi: "One million and a half... US dollars, I'd consider it."

Zhang Yucai was stunned for a moment, then he stopped smiling and said, "Little brother, you're joking. Of course it's 150 million Malaysian ringgit."

"Oh~, Master Zhang, why don't you think of another way?
Actually, the rubber vulcanization process requires quite a lot of manpower. I've talked to Shell, and they'll be responsible for supplying us with sulfide at a low price."

"But this batch of sulfide is very large, and we at Taiyou don't plan to delve into rubber. So, if Master Zhang doesn't mind, I can transfer this amount of sulfide to you. You will be responsible for distributing this batch of sulfide. Of course, if you want to open a vulcanization plant, we can give you the priority of selling the machines."

Zhang Yucai: "Why, Brother Zheng, don't you want to give an old man like me a little face? For decades, in Kuala Lumpur, there are very few people who can't give me face."

Zheng Yi: "I have to give you face, but the problem is that your face is really not worth that much."

Zhang Yucai: “…………”

Zheng Yi: “…………”

The two looked at each other, and no one said a word.

Suddenly, the person sitting opposite Zheng Yi slammed the table and threw the chopsticks directly at Zheng Yi's face.

"I'm giving you some face, you little jerk, right? Do you believe I won't let you leave this door today?!"

Just as he finished speaking, he saw countless gunmen suddenly rushing in from the back hall, armed with rifles, pistols, and live ammunition, and directly pointed the gun barrels at his head.

Zheng Yi smiled after being extremely scared. He didn't even know that he had such psychological quality. Facing the black muzzle of the gun, he stretched out his hands and made a gesture of surrender. His heart was about to jump out of his chest, but he smiled as if he was basking in the spring breeze, as if he was very happy.

"Is this what you mean, Master Zhang? If this is what you mean, then have someone beat me to death. I told you, I won't do business at gunpoint!!"

As he said this, he picked up the decanter on the table and smashed it against the man who had just slammed the table, causing him to break his head and bleed.

"Come on! Are you going to kill me? Then come on!"

The worst that can happen is that we turn against each other.

At the same time, he was muttering in his heart: "Damn Li Xiaoshi, where is the grandson you said was protecting me! ! "

Just when the atmosphere was tense, the doorman suddenly called out the name of the Nanyang Fujian Chamber of Commerce, Vice President Tan Lark Sye, here comes~~~

(End of this chapter)