Killing a chicken to warn the monkeys? Killing the donkey after it turns the mill? (continued)

Besides the two of them working outside, there were more than twenty fully armed Uniformed Branch officers on the street, led by a Foreign Devil police officer, maintaining order in the vicinity and driving away loiterers.

Comparing his list with the one provided by Chu Xiaoxin, Song Tianyao saw that all the wealthy young men on the list had arrived. He turned and entered the church, sitting in a corner seat in the last row, and began to clap along with the crowd. There weren't many people attending Oxfam founding ceremony today, only a little over three hundred, but more than half of them were Britain in Hong Kong. The rest were Chu Xiaoxin's cronies and female companions. Compared to the annual fundraising and commemorative ceremonies of large charitable organizations like Po Leung Kuk and Tung Wah Group of Hospitals of Hospitals, which often have hundreds or even thousands of Chinese businessmen in attendance, this seemed far less impressive.

However, the Po Leung Kuk and Tung Wah Group of Hospitals are always attended by wealthy Chinese. On the surface, the highest-ranking person present today is Bishop He Mingguang Ming-kwong of the Anglican Church in Hong Kong and Macau. But in reality, Queen Elizabeth Ge Mulian, wife of Governor Grantham of Hong Kong, also attended the founding ceremony of Oxfam at the invitation of Bishop Ho Ming- He Mingguang as an Anglican Church.

Of the nearly two hundred Britain Foreign Devil present, more than half had sensed something and followed the Governor's wife to the scene.

This is also why Song Tianyao admires Shek Chi-yik. Of course, Ge Mulian couldn't have been invited by Bishop He Mingguang; it could only have been Shek Chi-yik who persuaded the Governor of Hong Kong to invite her. Since the Governor's wife was here, the highest honorary title of Permanent Honorary President of Oxfam should naturally be given to her. Although this title of Permanent Honorary President may seem to involve no participation in Oxfam's daily charitable affairs, and may only involve attending the ceremony today to show support and make a symbolic donation, the benefits that should belong to the Governor's wife behind the scenes cannot be reduced by even a fraction.

It's often said that Governor Grantham is better off in terms of wealth and fame than his predecessor, and today's observation confirms that the rumors are true.

For example, although it's impossible for Ge Mulian to go with Mrs. Bess to donate medicine to the poor in the Kowloon Squatter Area today, the newspapers will have to remember to mention the Governor's wife when they report on it tomorrow.

Besides He Mingguang and Ge Mulian, the next highest-ranking official at the Secretary Shek founding ceremony was Shek Chi-yik, who had already stepped into the upper echelons of the Hong Kong Colonial Government and was only a step away from becoming the top industrial and commercial leader in Hong Kong. He was the Deputy Director of the Hong Kong and Commercial Industrial and Commercial Administration Office, the Acting Director, and, upon formal promotion, would be known as Secretary Shi. These three Oxfam the highest positions. Others under Shek Chi-yik, such as the Trade Department and his wife, the Director of the Industry Department and his wife, the Customs Department and Excise and his wife, and some British merchants in Hong Kong, might be considered unapproachable figures to the Chinese, but in the Britain Hong Kong Colonial Government hierarchy, they were far inferior to these three. Ho He Mingguang was equivalent to the Archbishop of the Church of Britain in the Far East colonies, Ge Mulian was the wife of the Far East tyrant, and Shek Chi-yik was the direct supervisor who could directly influence the fate of these directors and British merchants.

However, what puzzled Song Tianyao was that if Shek Chi-yik was to immediately begin a thorough investigation of the European Coast Company after the ceremony, the Customs Department should have been obediently running around doing errands. Why was he here dressed in a sharp suit, leading a somewhat plump wife?

The bait he had thrown for Zhang Yuliang wasn't big enough to catch any fish in deep water. Moreover, if he had been a little slow and Zhang Yuliang had gotten wind of the situation, he could have easily breached the contract with Gaili Subsidiary Company and regained the initiative.

Could it be that Shek Chi-yik is so focused on promoting his wife that he's forgotten about Zhang Yuliang's affair?

But when Song Tianyao saw Chu Xiaoxin, dressed in a sharp suit, and Angie Perlis, who was dressed conservatively and elegantly today, following behind Mrs. Bess onto the stage, he sighed. He could just forget about it. After all, dealing with Zhang Yuliang was just a side effect. If Zhang Yuliang knew what was good for him, he would remember to show goodwill and thank Chu Xiaoxin for letting him off the hook.

As the three initiators took the stage, the four photographers who were already in position at various angles immediately pressed the buttons on their cameras again, and the flashes went off continuously.

Second Young Master Chu's facial expression was somewhat stiff, not as natural as the two women beside him, Angie Perlis and Mrs. Bess. However, Chu Xiaoxin had one advantage: he was self-aware and knew how to conceal his abilities.

Since my English wasn't good and most of the people sitting below Foreign Devil, I figured I might as well stand quietly to the side to avoid making a fool of myself, and listen to Mrs. Bess and Angie Perlis, two Britain women, talk eloquently about the purpose and vision of Oxfam.

It was a stroke of luck that Second Young Master Chu off. His slightly delayed steps and back positioning when he went on stage made many of the Britain present feel that this China man was quite gentlemanly. In an environment where he was exposed to the cameras and could easily have attracted attention, he remained calm, low-key, polite, and courteous to the ladies.

All the ceremonies were more or less the same, consisting of the initiator explaining the concept, followed by speeches from a few distinguished guests, and the guests sitting below applauding. However, it was Mrs. Bess who presented the Hong Kong water quality report, which she had investigated and drafted, that surprised many Britain.

It was clear that no one had discovered before that Shek Chi-yik's wife was actually a hydrologist, and she even produced a well-documented investigation report. When discussing water resources and water quality issues in Hong Kong, she spoke eloquently and cited numerous sources, displaying the demeanor of a true professional woman.

Then, what surprised the Britain even more was Second Young Master Chu's final speech. Although his English was a bit slow, it was delivered with force. "After learning of Mrs. Bess's investigation into Hong Kong's water quality, Likang Trading Company is willing to respond to Oxfam act and today donate HK$500,000 worth of deworming medication to Oxfam, which Oxfam be distributed free of charge to the citizens of Hong Kong suffering from parasitic diseases. Likang will donate medication of equal value at least twice a year. As long as Likang Trading Company exists, and as long as I, Chu Xiaoxin, am alive, this donation will not stop! Until the day Mrs. Bess's report clearly tells me that all citizens of Hong Kong can drink truly clean water! I sincerely hope that the day Mrs. Bess hopes for will come soon; it is also the day that I, everyone present, and all the citizens of Hong Kong are looking forward to!"

These platitudes of gratitude and hope were not worth the Britain's attention. What they heard was that Likang would donate 500,000 Hong Kong dollars worth of medicine at a time, at least twice a year, which meant donating one million Hong Kong dollars a year. And it was every year. In other words, every year from now on, this China person named Chu Xiaoxin would donate one million Hong Kong dollars worth of medicine to charity. This was something that the Britain below should admire and be astonished by.