Nanyang 1931: From piglets to giants

Chapter 70 Zheng Yi in Action

In Perlis, northern Malaya, there is a place called Kaki Bukit. It was the land that Britain snatched from Siam when the two countries signed the Treaty of Bangkok in 1907.

Because it was a disputed area, the British did not trust the Thai people who originally lived on the land, and the local Malays did not mine, so it gradually became the world of the Hakka people.

Almost all the Chinese here are Hakkas, mostly from Meizhou and Huizhou, mixed with a small number of Dongguan Hakkas.

Everyone says this is a wild and desolate place, and even the Chinese, who are known for their hard work and perseverance, are afraid of it.

However, this is nothing in the eyes of these Hakka people. On the contrary, this place is a treasure land for many Hakka people with a fighting spirit.

It is close to Siam, making it very convenient to smuggle rice and other food crops here. It also has a large amount of land that can be reclaimed and used to grow rice.

The Colonial Office did not allow the Chinese to grow food crops, just like it did not allow the Malays to mine. This was the most basic policy of control. In a place like Kuala Lumpur, even if Li Xiaoshi had connections like him, the British would not allow him to grow rice.

It was different in Kaki Bukit. The British had very loose control over the place, so even if they secretly grew rice, the British would not care. They couldn't control it and were too lazy to care about it.

In their view, as long as they can grow rice, at least they will not starve to death. It is just a matter of suffering a little.

Bitterness is always easier to swallow than Guanyin soil.

What's more, there are ownerless tin mines everywhere. After farming every day, these Hakka people would go digging everywhere in groups of three or five with shovels. Who knows, one day someone might be lucky enough to dig out tin.

If you dig out tin rice, there may be tin mines in this place. If you dig a few more shovels, you can transform yourself into a distinguished tin mine owner. You only need to hand over 38% of the mine's profits to the British, and you can become the legitimate operator.

This is something you would never even think about in a mature, developed area like Kuala Lumpur.

Lai Renkang was one of these Hakka people, and luckily, he was one of those lucky ones who dug out tin with just a shovel and became a tin mine owner as he wished.

Although his tin mine was small, he, as the boss, had to take his son to dig it himself. He only hired a dozen workers from his hometown, and the staff was not very stable. His daughter-in-law was responsible for cooking for them and the workers.

Compared with the big tin mine owners in Kuala Lumpur, his small mine is like a makeshift team.

But no matter what, they have become their own bosses, and this is the first pot of gold for wealth.

Every day, the father and son would run around the mine tirelessly with their trouser legs rolled up, giving orders here and there, and their hands were always busy. They were exhausted like turtle calves every day.

But every night before going to bed, no matter how late it was, the three of them would carefully count their accounts and spend ten minutes looking forward to the future.
Until I fell asleep with my mouth curled up, even in my dreams, there were white tin sand and rustling tin ingots.

As long as there is a goal, no matter how hard the days are, they are sweet.

However, the good times did not last long. Since last year, a large number of Siamese people have flocked here from the north. It is said that a coup has taken place in Siam and some kind of constitutional monarchy has been established. The Thai government in power believes that the Chinese are lackeys of the old era and are not friendly to them.

Many Chinese people fled along the land route.

It would be fine if it were only Chinese, but since this year, more and more Indians have fled in. Some of them, like the Chinese, are also reclaiming wasteland and farming everywhere, but some Indians are thieves and robbers who steal their rice.

Starting last month, these Indians even joined the local Malay tribal armed forces, came to their mine with guns, and robbed them of all the tin they had just dug out and stockpiled but had not had time to sell. They also threatened them to pay protection fees every month from then on.

I heard that all the mine owners in the surrounding area were robbed.

As a large number of British mine owners went bankrupt, a large number of Indian workers who had lost their livelihoods were forced to come to this wild land to find a way to make a living. Because some Indians and Malays believed in the same religion, they unexpectedly got along well and the two seemed to have merged.

The Malays provided the Indians with a stable supply of food and a small amount of arms, while the Indians were responsible for robbing the fruits of the labor of these Hakkas and fighting them to the death.

I heard that in just one month, more than twenty Chinese were killed. For several months, Lai Renkang never dreamed of the white sand again.

His life, his tin mine, his dream, all seemed to be destroyed in a few short months.

To be honest, he didn't know what to do now. He could only mechanically repeat the daily mining work. Looking at the increasing amount of tin sand and tin rice, he could no longer feel the joy of satisfaction. Instead, he was worried every day that Indians or Malays would come to snatch them away.

I don’t know how much they will have left after paying the protection fee.

"Dad, Dad, Dad, out, out, out, something big has happened, Dad, something big has happened."

One day, the son came running in a panic, shouting as he ran.

"What are you doing? Don't run. Tell me slowly. What happened?"

"Perak, Perak, in Perak, we Chinese and Indians are fighting, and there are also Malays,
I heard that the night before yesterday, a group of Chinese warriors attacked the Royal Guards of Perak at night. An entire regiment, a regiment of 2,000 people, was completely, completely, completely wiped out.

Mr. Hu Wenhu from Myanmar is currently in Perak. He is said to be personally in charge of the operation. A British police force came to investigate the situation, and I heard they even beat up the British!

"What? They even dare to fight the British? Where did these ruthless people come from? They are so vicious. Are they the soldiers brought by Mr. Hu?"

"It's not Mr. Hu, it's Zheng Yi. Mr. Zheng, the guns in their hands are made in our Penang factory. I heard there are also cannons."

"Mr. Zheng? Mr. Zheng...this...this...Perak State incident, will it affect us?"

"That will definitely have an impact. I heard that Mr. Zheng seems to be trying to get everyone to rebel."

"Ah? Rebellion? No way, this... won't this implicate us?"

"What's there to be implicated about? Dad, we pay so much tax to the British every month. Now the Malays and Indians are robbing us. What have the British done? Aren't we just letting them rob us?
If we are submissive citizens and the Colonial Office doesn't give us a way to survive, then we can rebel against them. What's the point?"

Hearing this, Lai Renkang didn't say anything, but squatted down and smoked a cigarette.

"Dad, you said that this tin mine is the life of our family of three. Now those bastards are trying to take our lives by robbing us of the tin mine. It's a pity that we don't have guns, otherwise we would have to fight them to the death."

As he was speaking, he suddenly heard the sound of horse hooves outside. A man with a heavy accent shouted, "Who is in charge? Come out. I am here to speak to you on behalf of our leader, Mr. Zheng Yi."

Upon hearing this, Lai Renkang naturally did not dare to neglect it. He hurried out, clasped his hands together and said, "I am the host here. My name is Ren. May I ask what orders this brave man may have?"

But the man, who was riding on a horse, asked in a defiant tone, "My Mr. Zheng wants to know how many people are there in your mine, including the owners and workers?"

"To answer this gentleman, there are only seventeen of us."

The man took a quick look and felt that it was indeed similar, so he took out a notebook and wrote something with a pen.

"Don't sleep tonight. We from the Fuqing Gang will give you guns. Mr. Zheng has ordered that every Chinese in the Kaki Bukit area should have a gun and 20 rounds of bullets. We are giving them to you for free. If you need to buy more bullets in the future, please come to Perlis and find our Northern Fujian Chamber of Commerce."

"Also, listen carefully, everyone. My leader said that any tin mine in the Kaki Bukit area, as long as you are interested, can get investment from our Fuqing Gang. We will provide you with electricity and excavators, but we will take 40% of your shares. It is completely voluntary. You can choose whether to do it or not."

"Master Lai, my leader means that he can give you the guns, but whether you dare to use them is up to you. My leader will not force you. I have conveyed my message. Farewell."

(End of this chapter)