"How about we meet Golden-Tooth Lei, the boss of Fuyixing? The dock business is changing hands, and since you're the boss, you should at least give him a chance to flatter you." Of course, Song Tianyao couldn't agree, letting Chu Xiaoxin really go around throwing money around like a money-giving boy.
Upon hearing Song Tianyao mention Golden-Tooth Lei, Chu Xiaoxin immediately reacted. "I have to see him, damn it! He almost sold your sister to Kowloon City! Hey, why don't you switch to another gang? You don't need to compromise yourself because of the business. There are so many gangs in Hong Kong, switching won't matter."
"Currently, the only powerful gang in Hong Kong without any backing is Fuyixing. Compared to established gangs like Chao Yong Yi, they are more dedicated and daring. To keep their livelihood, they will definitely risk their lives within three to five years. Even if Likang's ship encounters those Big Tin Yi, they might grit their teeth and fight to the death. That's why I chose Fuyixing. The Chiu-prefix gangs have been supported by these big merchants in Chiu Chow for so many years, so their loyalty is sufficient, but I'm afraid their courage to risk their lives is not what it used to be," Song Tianyao said to Chu Xiaoxin.
From the day it was established, the Chao Yong Yi gang was equivalent to the henchmen and dockworkers of the big Chiu Chow merchants. Over the years, their loyalty has been unquestionable. Big Brother like Chan Ah-sap and other Chiu-prefix gangs leaders did indeed earn the trust of these big Chiu Chow merchants by risking their lives.
In the 1920s and 30s, pirates still roamed the waters around Hong Kong. It was common for cargo ships to be robbed by pirates when they set sail fully loaded. At that time, not only merchant ships, but also government ships of the Republic of China and large Japan merchant and passenger ships were robbed by pirates without hesitation. They were much more ferocious than the so-called "Big Tin Yi" composed of Kuomintang defeated soldiers today.
The reason these Chiu-prefix gangs business associations are trusted and relied upon by Chiu Chow merchants today is because in 1928, the Chao Feng Chamber of Commerce transported a shipment of silver from Shantou to Hong Kong. This silver represented the assets that many Chaozhou merchants had pooled together to sell as they prepared to move their families to Hong Kong. If this shipment of silver had been stolen, those merchants would have had no choice but to commit suicide by jumping into the sea with their entire families. To ensure the safe arrival of these fellow countrymen's assets in Hong Kong, the Chaozhou merchants in Hong Kong selected daredevils from among the many Chiu-prefix gangs business associations at the time, who used their blood and lives to pave a path for the passenger ship loaded with silver.
At that time, the most famous pirate in the waters of Hong Kong was the Pirate Queen Zhang Yueying, whose husband was Zhang Liushun, a well-known pirate in Dapeng Bay, Hong Kong. After being captured by the Republic of China Navy, Zhang Liushun was escorted to Guangzhou and executed by slow slicing in front of the people of Guangzhou. He cried out for three days before finally dying.
After her husband's death, Zhang Yueying took up his pirate flag and continued to rob, kidnap, burn, kill, rape, and commit all sorts of atrocities. Within ten years, she went from a lowly pirate gang to a notorious bandit in the south, feared by all, and was known as the Pirate Queen. Zhang Guofu, the naval commander who captured her husband, was disemboweled by her and left to rot in the sea for three days before dying. Her wife and daughter were gang-raped by her men for many days before being sold into Brothel in Macau, where they were brutally raped and died soon after.
Moreover, this widow was vicious and ruthless, cautious in her actions, and meticulous in her planning. If she encountered any resistance, she would kill the entire ship without leaving any survivors. She was most skilled at working with people from both inside and outside the ship. At that time, this silver ship of the Chaozhou merchants had not only silver but also many Chiu Chow people traveling to Hong Kong. Zhang Yueying and six or seven of her men mingled in the cabins, pretending to be Chiu Chow people traveling to Hong Kong together.
As the Chaozhou merchant's silver ship was about to enter Dapeng Bay, Zhang Yueying took the lead, brandishing two pistols. Six or seven pirate speedboats surrounded the silver cargo ship. However, this time, she miscalculated. There were nearly a hundred passengers on board, more than fifty of whom were suicide soldiers selected by the Chao Feng Chamber of Commerce to guard against pirate hijacking. Among these fifty-odd prepared men were Chan Ah-sap and his four older brothers. At that time, it was forbidden to privately possess weapons when sailing from Shantou. These fifty-odd suicide soldiers were all young men who had practiced boxing and martial arts. They used their bare hands and chests to withstand bullets. Three of Chan Ah-sap brothers died, and one was crippled. More than thirty of the fifty-odd suicide soldiers died on the spot. The remaining less than twenty managed to rush up and hijack Zhang Yueying and her six men before the other pirates could board the ship.
Chan Ah-sap and several surviving Chiu Chow youths hung Zhang Yueying and her lover on the bow of the boat, stripped them of their clothes, and stood beside them with butcher knives in their hands, signaling the pirates not to come near. Even while hanging on the bow, Zhang Yueying still loudly urged the pirates to board the ship. Chan Ah-sap first castrated her lover with a knife, then held the knife to Zhang Yueying's genitals, threatening that if Zhang Yueying dared to say another word, he would use the knife on her.
Chan Ah-sap ordered the ship to set sail. Taking advantage of the pirates' moment of fear, the silver ship sailed into Dapeng Bay. Before reaching the dock, Chan Ah-sap, in a fit of rage, beheaded Zhang Yueying and her six men to eliminate any future troubles. He threw their corpses into the sea, and the ship, carrying the bodies of more than thirty Chiu Chow youths and countless silver coins, arrived in Hong Kong.
The dozen or so surviving Chiu Chow youths later became Big Brother in the Chiu Chow Gangs. After Chiu Chow merchants made their fortunes in Hong Kong, the dock businesses of various trading companies were naturally handed over to these people's gangs to manage. This is why these Chiu Chow gangs, though no longer ambitious, were still valued by the Chao Feng Chamber of Commerce.
At that time, Chan Ah-sap and others probably thought that if they were lucky enough to survive, they would have made a contribution and enjoy a lifetime of wealth and honor.
The current Fuyixing is thinking exactly the same thing as Chan Ah-sap and others back then.
Although twenty years have passed in this world, the only way left for these people in the world is to risk their lives to gain wealth.
Chapter Fifty-Six: Smuggling Throughout Hong Kong
"Does smuggling contraband mean loading a ship full of goods that are prohibited from being sold to mainland China and North Korea, and sending them directly to Shenzhen or Macau?" Chu Xiaoxin thought of Song Tianyao's description that he could earn more than 100,000 yuan a month just by smuggling contraband, so he rarely asked about smuggling.
Song Tianyao shook his head. "Of course it's not that simple. Although medicines are not taxed, the goods are always under the supervision of the Commerce and Industry Department while they are in the dock warehouse. If you want to make money by smuggling, you first need to bribe the people in the Commerce and Industry Department. Moreover, going out to sea alone is obviously just making a target for those Big Tin Yi shots. So of course, you can't just load up the goods and go out to sea. It's best to have the ship affiliated with a shipping company. That way, there will be at least three to five ships, and sometimes as many as eight or nine ships, crossing the sea together to exchange goods."