Nanyang 1931: From piglets to giants

Chapter 67 Zheng Yi: I have finished speaking, who agrees and who disagrees

Throughout history, in China and abroad, and in any social environment, work and workers are essentially a relationship of supply and demand.

At present, the salary of Chinese people in Kuala Lumpur has dropped from twice that of China to 1.5 times compared to before Zheng Yi came.

If it continues like this, I'm afraid it will be on par with the domestic level.

This is just the Chinese. Indians are now starving to death in large numbers, and many of them have been pulled back by boat.

Furthermore, the economy did develop. In 1932, Malaya's import and export volume more than doubled.
This is especially true for Kuala Lumpur, which is a core area. It is not an exaggeration to say that Zheng Yi alone has driven an entire city or even a country.

However, economic development has not changed the distribution pattern at all. This part of economic growth has all been eaten up by the big bosses, tycoons and skilled workers among the Chinese who can enter the factories.

But the cost of economic development is borne by all Malayans.

In simple terms, it is inflation and rising asset prices.

But the income of Malays has not increased at all.

The Malays have an army and guns.

The Chinese people’s demand for self-protection has never been so strong.

Without basic self-protection ability, you are a fat sheep!
Therefore, the pro-British Chinese, represented by Li Xiaoshi, have recently been eager to find ways to make the Chinese "police-like".

You should know that even their police equipment is now made by Chinese.

Although, the Colonial Office's police force was just so-so in terms of equipment.

The British have very strict control over guns. In the police force, only the British are usually equipped with guns. Indians and Malays usually only have a wooden stick when patrolling the streets.

But if you really encounter an emergency, you can still carry a gun, and what the Chinese are preparing for is the so-called emergency situation.

He thought that the Colonial Office would definitely agree to such a reasonable request.

After all, the Chinese pay taxes! The Colonial Office is essentially a money-making department. If the Chinese are wiped out by the Indians or Malays one day, who will make money for you British?

However, what was unexpected was that the British actually proposed that the Chinese reduce their population as a condition.

The British actually planned to forcibly repatriate the Chinese.

We also have to get these Chinese leaders and chamber of commerce presidents to cooperate.

Moreover, the vast majority of chamber of commerce presidents seemed to be really cooperative.

Xuehuatang.

More than twenty bosses sat together for dinner again, and this time, even Li Xiaoshi, who usually did not mingle with them, joined in as the president of the Tin Mining Association.

"If you ask me, what the British said is not wrong. This is not our home in the first place. The Chinese came to Southeast Asia to work. Now that all the work is done by machines, there is indeed no work for them. There is nothing wrong with sending them back."

"Yes, yes, in the past when there were jobs, everyone came to Nanyang to pan for gold. But now, isn't it the same as if all the gold has been mined?
To be honest, we are not indigenous after all. Let’s not talk about repatriation or anything like that. At least as far as the existing Chinese are concerned, the number is definitely enough, even more than enough.”

"That's right, everyone. If you go to Singapore or Hong Kong Island, you'll see. There's a constant stream of ships arriving from China every day. Each ship carries at least hundreds, sometimes even thousands, of new passengers."

"Ah~, there's a war going on in the country. These newcomers are all going to Southeast Asia to avoid conscription. But it's true that the prices of inns have been rising more and more recently.

Even for a large dormitory where men and women share a bed, it costs one dollar per person per month. I heard that some tin mines only pay fifty cents a day, and another twenty cents for food."

"There are too many people and too little work. That's how it is. If this continues, not only will the Indians starve to death, but we Chinese will starve to death too. Our old Chinese immigrants who came here a long time ago are almost being squeezed to death by these newcomers."

"Yes, in the final analysis, we, the presidents of the chamber of commerce, have to consider our fellow countrymen in the chamber of commerce. But specifically, some people have been here for more than ten or twenty years, and have paid membership fees to the chamber of commerce for more than ten or twenty years. Can we allow those newcomers to take away the jobs that originally belonged to them?" "Hey~, the palm and the back of the hand are all flesh, but in the final analysis, the flesh on the palm is indeed softer than that on the back of the hand, isn't it?
We have no choice. We Chinese are simply too numerous. We are an alien ethnic group, but now we are almost becoming the majority ethnic group. It is no wonder that the British are unhappy with us. "

"That's right. If the population decreases, it will be easier to find jobs and the security will be better. Moreover, if we Chinese have police, at least in the city, we won't have to live in fear anymore."

"But... all those newcomers who left their homes came to Southeast Asia because they couldn't make a living. If we drive them back now, wouldn't that be like forcing them to die? This... is a bit unbearable. Besides, they haven't made any money yet. They're already worth their lives. If we force them to go back, I'm afraid they'll fight us to the death."

"You can't think that way. These new immigrants came here to avoid military service. When the country is in crisis, these people don't think about serving their country, but instead flee overseas. If everyone follows their example, who will resist the Japanese invaders and defend our country?

We are not sending them back to starve to death. If there are no jobs in China, they can at least serve in the military. If they can't find a job in Southeast Asia, they will easily starve to death."

"Hmm~hmm~."

After hearing this, everyone couldn't help but nod their heads repeatedly, and even the psychological and moral pressure were reduced a lot.

In fact, not all those who came to Nanyang to find work were avoiding conscription, but at this moment, it did not prevent them from deceiving themselves.

Even Li Xiaoshi thought that what they said made sense.

For these British politicians, stirring up trouble has become their instinct. They may not be targeting the Chinese, but they are indeed masters at dividing and winning over the Chinese.

It is true that the Chinese already account for more than 50% of the total population of Malaya, but this is not to mention the factional divisions among the Cantonese and Fujian Chinese themselves.

The new immigrant Chinese, the native Chinese, and the Nyonya are actually three completely different Chinese groups.

Even among the new Chinese immigrants, how can they be the same as those who have been in Nanyang for ten years, one year, or one month?

When there were many job opportunities, they could still get along harmoniously. Now that there are fewer job opportunities, this internal conflict has naturally become acute.

And one fact that cannot be ignored is that the speed at which these entrepreneurs create jobs is not as fast as the speed at which machines eliminate jobs, and it is also not as fast as the number of people coming to Southeast Asia from the mainland every day.

After all, people in the country really had no food to eat, and large numbers of people were starving to death. The people in the north went west and crossed the Guandong Pass.

The people in the south, especially those living along the coast, went to Southeast Asia.

For such people, let alone wages, just giving them food to eat is enough.

Even these old Nanyang guests can’t beat them.

Although Li Xiaoshi generally considers himself a new Chinese immigrant, he was born in Hong Kong Island after all and has hardly lived in the mainland. At times like this, these Nanyang people will instinctively consider the interests of the old Nanyang immigrants first.

Moreover, they did not think the conditions offered by the Colonial Office were excessive.

I even think that it is a good thing that the British send these poor people who can't find jobs away for free.

When you work for me, we become compatriots.

When you steal my job, we become enemies.

Just when everyone thought this was feasible and was about to agree, they heard the doorman call out the name of the knife: "President of the Northern Fujian Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Zheng Yi from the Fuqing Gang has arrived~~"

As they were talking, Zheng Yi came in with the gait of a dragon and a tiger, wearing only work clothes. He walked straight to the front of the long table, made a slight gesture, and sat down opposite Li Xiaoshi. Chen Taijie, the chairman of the Panyu Merchants Association who was sitting next to Zhang Yucai, stood up sensibly and gave his seat to Zheng Yi.

Zheng Yi sat down without exchanging pleasantries and went straight to the point: "I just came back from Penang and heard about the deportation of Chinese people and the police force. Let me make my point clear: I disagree."

As he spoke, Zheng Yi threw a pistol onto the table and said:
"I heard that something happened in Perak recently. Instead of playing cozy with the British, I suggest that we form a Chinese security group in Perak. I will provide the weapons and equipment.
Isn't it just a Malay Royal Guard company, with only about 2,000 people in total? Instead of being frightened, why not take the initiative and attack them? Isn't that enough? "

"After I finish speaking, who is in favor and who is against?"

(End of this chapter)