Song Chengqi simply nodded slightly and said, "Xu Guang, it's been a long time."
He then looked at Ge Zhaohuang opposite him and said with a faint smile, "General Manager Ge."
The reason why Ge Zhaohuang is called Mr. Ge is because his position in the Kuomintang was not dismissed because he was planning to build Hongfa Mountain. It is not known whether Taiwan has not completely abandoned him, or Ge Zhaohuang himself still has expectations for the Kuomintang. Therefore, no matter whether he is called Mr. Ge when he is a member of No. 14 or when dealing with Jianghu people, Ge Zhaohuang has never refuted it. However, Song Chengqi called Mr. Ge lightly, but Ge Zhaohuang hurriedly smiled and shied away:
"How dare I call myself 'General' in front of Mountain Lord Song? Back when you, Mountain Lord Song, followed the Shanghai Army on the Northern Expedition to Yantai, I hadn't even touched a gun yet. If you call me 'General,' do you expect me to stand at attention and salute you? If Mountain Lord Song doesn't mind, just call me by my courtesy name Fuxin."
As they spoke, they politely yielded to Song Chengqi and Zhu Xuguang, and the three of them walked together toward the hall.
Once inside the living room, they sat down at the table that had been prepared. Chen Zhongying and Qi Weiwen sat at the lower end of the table. Ge Zhaohuang and Zhu Xuguang had met a few times before when they came to Hong Kong as the leaders of the Hung Mun Hongfa Mountain the Hung Society. However, Ge Zhaohuang had never met Song Chengqi Chengxi. He handed Zhu Xuguang over to Chen Zhongying to keep him company while they chatted. Ge Zhaohuang first exchanged pleasantries with Song Chengqi. Both of them came from military backgrounds, and although they had never met, they were not unfamiliar with each other when they talked about the Shanghai Uprising, the Northern Expedition of the Revolutionary Army, the Yue Army, and other past events.
After the dishes on the table had cooled down, Ge Zhaohuang, despite his illness, forced himself to drink two more glasses before finally revealing the main point of the story:
"Mountain Lord Song, Lord Zhu, we are all from the Hung Mun family. To be frank, besides the fact that the three of us rarely meet tonight, I would like to ask you two to reminisce about our fellow disciples. There is also something I would like to ask you to consider."
Zhu Xuguang seemed to already know about this matter, and when Ge Zhaohuang spoke, his eyes were only on Song Chengqi sitting next to him.
Song Chengqi calmly met Ge Zhaohuang's gaze. "Mountain Lord Ge, since you have found me, you should know that East Liang Mountain is in dire straits, its halls broken and its incense extinguished. I have no face to meet the Old Mountain Master in the afterlife, which is why I have been clinging to life until now. My own mountain has collapsed, how dare I consider things for Mountain Lord Ge's Hongfa Mountain?"
"Mountain Lord Song, although we haven't met before, I've heard about the affairs of East Liang Mountain. Mountain Lord Song and Young Mountain Master their followers to save the people and serve the country, which is a model for us in the Hung Mun. If Mountain Lord Song wants to revitalize East Liang Mountain, I, Ge Zhaohuang, am willing to lend a hand. I will provide money and manpower as needed, and help Mountain Lord Song make East Liang Mountain a resounding success in the Hung Mun." Ge Zhaohuang said with a righteous expression as soon as Song Chengqi finished speaking.
Song Chengqi smiled faintly, "The Qing Dynasty has been overthrown, and the Japan have been driven away. What's the point of hanging up the Hung Mun East Liang Mountain signboard again? It's just family fighting family."
"But who knows what the future holds for East Liang Mountain..."
"When I die, burn all the opening proclamation, Han script, Yaoping letter of appointment, mountain map, and command flag. I will go down myself to apologize to the Old Mountain Master and all the martyrs of the Hung Mun." Song Chengqi said to Ge Zhaohuang.
His words left everyone at the table stunned.
Song Chengqi's words clearly indicated that the East Liang Mountain branch of the Hung Mun Triad Society would be severed from now on. Even the map of the mountain and the appointment letters of the past leaders would be burned. In the future, even if someone were to act under the banner of East Liang Mountain, they would not be able to produce these documents, and the other Hung Mun branches would not recognize them. In other words, after burning these documents, Song Chengqi would have no chance to back out.
Seeing the awkward silence, Chen Zhongying forced a smile and said, "Mountain Lord Song, why put it this way? The downfall of East Liang Mountain Lord Song and the Hung Mun brothers of East Liang Mountain fighting for their country. Heavenly Treasure Mountain and Hongfa Mountain are helping out, and with Mountain Lord Song's prestige..."
"Incense Master Chen, let's talk about tonight's meal," Song Chengqi said, looking up at Chen Zhongying and interrupting him in a cool voice.
Chen Zhongying, interrupted by Song Chengqi, was not angry. He lowered his head and smiled self-deprecatingly, "It was Zhongying who misspoke. Tonight, Hongfa Mountain wants to ask the two leaders to agree to something. The Hong Kong He-prefix gangs has fallen out with the Shanghai Green Gang and has come to Hongfa Mountain for help. There's a saying in the Hung Mun: 'One mountain, one tiger; five tigers in one place will surely unite.' In Hong Kong, there are currently three Hung Mun strongholds: East Liang Mountain, Heavenly Treasure Mountain, and Hongfa Mountain. If Hongfa Mountain were to fight with an ordinary gang, it wouldn't matter if they directly sent men and forces. But since this time the opponent is the Green Gang, their status is different. If Hongfa Mountain wants to help the Hong Kong He-prefix gangs, it must first get the approval of all the leaders of the local Hung Mun mountain strongholds. The leaders of the Hung Mun must have a unified opinion to avoid rashly sending men to fight the Green Gang and being ridiculed by outsiders for breaking the Hung Mun rules."
This is why Chen Zhongying went so far as to bring up Ge Zhaohuang and invite Zhu Xuguang and Song Chengqi to a meeting in Ge Zhaohuang's name. It didn't matter if the 14K fought with other local gangs, because even if those local gangs were indignant and called themselves the Hung Mun, they had neither a mountain map nor a founding manifesto, so they could just fight as if the other side was impersonating a member of the Hung Mun.
However, fighting the Green Gang is different. Although the Hung Mun looks down on the Green Gang, and there are even some derogatory sayings within the Green Gang Hung Mun, Green Gang "three knives and six axes hanging over the Hung Mun" and "a carp leaping into the dragon gate" when switching from the Green Gang to the Hung Mun, the Qing Gang and the Hongmen have rarely clashed over the past hundred years. Moreover, there is a specific rule that if the Hung Mun and the Green Gang become enemies and start fighting, especially if the Hongmen wants to strike first, all the leaders of the local Hung Mun mountain strongholds must agree before any action can be taken. If even one stronghold opposes, no action is allowed to be taken. Otherwise, it would be considered a major taboo, like planting flowers in a golden basin, or the separation of the Qing and Hongmen. If word gets out, the reputation of Hongfa Mountain, which already has no background or support, will become even more worthless and ridiculed.
Chen Zhongying was a meticulous man who did not want other local gangs or outsiders to have any leverage over 14K. That's why he went to great lengths to gather the leaders of the three local Hung Mun mountain strongholds and get Ge Zhaohuang, Song Chengqi, Zhu Xuguang to agree to take action against Li Caifa's Green Gang.
"As long as the two mountain lords nod in agreement," Ge Zhaohuang clapped his hands beside him, "This little bit of travel expenses can be left for the two mountain lords to have some tea."
Two female disciples, 14K, came up carrying trays, each containing Hong Kong dollars 100,000.