1900: A physics genius wandering around Europe

Chapter 653 Gang Shakeup! Legend of Mountains and Seas! Gathering from All Directions! Protect Professor Li! Arrival in Lion City!
1926 5 Month 30 Day.

On a street east of Singapore, hundreds of people gathered, making a racket that disrupted the entire street.

Under normal circumstances, absolutely no one would dare to be so presumptuous.

This is because it is the headquarters of Wah Kee, the largest Chinese gang in Singapore.

An ordinary name, yet it is a source of reliance for countless Chinese people in Southeast Asia.

Hua Ji is a branch of the Hongmen in Southeast Asia.

Of course, this relationship is only a connection based on historical origins; the two gangs are actually independent.

Similar to the principles of the North American Hung Society, Wah Kee's motto is "mutual help and assistance, acting on behalf of Heaven."

They openly raised the banner of "protection for the Chinese" in Singapore's Chinatown, secretly playing a game with the colonial authorities.

When local Chinese people suffered injustice, their first instinct was not to seek help from the colonial police, but to turn to the Chinese community for assistance.

Its influence is evident.

Today, all the major gangs from Southeast Asia have gathered at Hua Kee, a spectacle not seen in decades.

Today, those who came to the Huaji headquarters came from dozens of gangs, large and small, throughout Southeast Asia.

Among them, Yixing Company and Shuangqi Society have the greatest influence.

The former is based in Johor, Malaysia, and its influence extends to both underground forces and officially recognized organizations.

The latter spanned Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia, maneuvering among the British and Dutch colonial authorities.

As for the industries the gangs were involved in, they were all things that the Europeans had left behind and didn't want.

Despite this, it still provided a livelihood for countless desperate overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia.

The younger brothers quickly became familiar with each other and started chatting and joking around.

"Goodness, what big event is happening today?"

“My eldest son came all the way from Java without stopping.”

"I've never seen him so excited."

A well-informed person said:
"It seems to be related to the meeting the day after tomorrow."

Everyone was confused.

"What meeting?"

"Those conferences held by scientists, I suppose."

"Damn, what does that have to do with us roughnecks?"

"Does this mean they want us to be bodyguards?"

At this moment, in a luxurious room at the headquarters of Wah Kee.

This place was originally where Wah Kee held meetings of its senior gang leaders, but today it's being used to entertain the gang leaders who have come from afar.

A dozen or so people sat around a huge round table.

Among them, the three men's imposing presence was the most striking.

At the head of the table sat a man who appeared to be around 50 years old, with a burly build and a fierce appearance.

He is the current leader of Wah Kee: Chen Xikui, nicknamed "Iron Bone Fa".

Chen Xikui's ancestral home is Chaozhou. He was originally a dockworker, but by chance he joined Huaji.

In a battle with indigenous forces, he fought bravely and lost his left arm.

He replaced his severed arm with an iron hook and coiled his braid on his head, thus earning the nickname "Iron-Bone Hair".

Chen Xikui rose from the bottom to the top, and he was a man of great integrity and loyalty.

After he took office, he implemented vigorous reforms, which made Wah Kee thrive.

However, only he himself knew that his success was inseparable from the support of that man in Borneo.

Although the person who helped him was only one of the other party's subordinates, he always remembered it and was determined to repay the favor.

And now, the opportunity has come!

To Chen Xikui's left was Huang Guanghai, the leader of the Double Flag Society, and to his right was Zheng Wanlong, the leader of Xingyi.

The meeting hadn't officially started yet, but the impatient Huang Guanghai couldn't help but ask:

"Old Chen, what earth-shattering good news is it? You can tell us now."

“I dropped everything and came all the way from Java. You can’t let me down.”

Chen Xikui looked around, smiled, and said:

"Let's wait a little longer, there are still distinguished guests who haven't arrived yet."

No sooner had the words been spoken than a young, youthful yet composed voice boomed in the room.

"Sorry, I'm late!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Xikui stood up abruptly, rushed forward, and burst into laughter:
"Not too late, not too late."

"Brother Baoqing, we've been waiting for you!"

"I know you're a very busy person."

Having said that, he took the other person's hand and addressed the crowd:

"Everyone, let me introduce myself."

"This is Xie Baoqing, the leader of the Shan Hai Gang."

Wow!
Everyone was shocked!
The Shan Hai Gang, which has recently gained fame, has made a name for itself in Southeast Asia.

I never expected the gang leader to be so young.

"Wow, he looks like he's only in his early twenties."

"Boss Chen was actually so polite to him."

"What exactly is Xie Baoqing's background?"

Zheng Wanlong squinted; he did know some inside information.

Xie Baoqing can be considered an outlier in the gang because he was an intellectual.

The other party graduated from Borneo and has a junior high school education.

This is simply unbelievable in the gang circles of Southeast Asia.

In the minds of ordinary people, only those who are desperate to survive or those who have committed crimes would join gangs.

You can do very well anywhere with just a junior high school education.

Moreover, a high level of education may not be a good thing.

However, reading did not make Xie Baoqing rigid; on the contrary, it gave him a special kind of temperament.

Savagery and civilization, reason and violence, intertwine to create a highly impactful personal charisma.

Xie Baoqing is only 25 years old this year, but he is already the leader of a faction and has a great reputation.

However, Zheng Wanlong was very puzzled.

Why do intellectuals join gangs?

"What does he want?"

Chen Xikui once asked the same question.

This is how Xie Baoqing answered him:

"I'm not cut out for studying; I get a headache just looking at books."

"I prefer a thrilling and exciting life to spending my whole life studying academic subjects."

"If it weren't for the principal's encouragement, I might still be in high school."

"Of course, there's nothing wrong with studying. But for me, gangs offer a much wider world of possibilities."

Chen Xikui was shocked by what he heard.

He had long known that Xie Baoqing was no ordinary person, but he never expected that the other party had received guidance from Professor Li.

The two immediately became close friends.

Xie Baoqing revealed his even greater ambitions to him.

"Nanyang is just a stop on my journey."

"My goal will always be that continent!"

"I want to contribute to the country in my own way!"

"In this world, there will always be people who do dark things."

Chen Xikui was immediately filled with admiration.

"Good brother, you're the one!"

He knew that the young man in front of him was on a much higher level and could not be judged by the standards of ordinary gangs.

At this moment, Chen Xikui pulled Xie Baoqing to sit down, and then he returned to the main seat.

He was beaming and extremely happy.

"Gentlemen, I have invited you all here today because there is indeed an important matter to discuss."

"As you all know, Professor Li is coming to Singapore."

Everyone nodded.

Although everyone present was involved in gangs, they were no strangers to Professor Li, who was renowned worldwide.

Because they frequently have to deal with the Shanhe Group.

Professor Li is the big boss behind Shanhe Group.

After more than 20 years of development, Shanhe Group has become an undisputed behemoth in Southeast Asia.

Its industries are spread all over the place.

Moreover, for some unknown reason, Shanhe Group takes good care of these gangs and often gives them paid orders.

From wood to metal, to rubber to herbs.

Many of the scattered demands are outsourced by the Shanhe Group to various gangs in Southeast Asia. In this way, everyone can make money and is naturally grateful.

Most importantly, the Shanhe Group can even procure weapons for gangs.

But this is highly confidential, and not many people know about it.

Chen Xikui continued, dropping a bombshell!
"I have received accurate information that Professor Li will arrive tomorrow."

"And he wanted to talk to us gang members privately."

boom!
The whole audience was shocked!

Everyone stared wide-eyed, hardly believing their ears.

"My God!"

"How can it be!"

"Boss Chen, you're not making fun of us, are you?"

"Who is Professor Li? Would he meet with us peasants?"

Everyone was talking about it.

Only Xie Baoqing remained calm and composed.

Because someone asked him to inform Chen Xikui of this news.

Although he abandoned literature for martial arts, he still belonged to the Borneo lineage and had countless connections there.

Ridgway even personally commented on him: "Everyone has their own unique talents."

Xie Baoqing will never forget!
Huang Guanghai and Zheng Wanlong looked excited.

As the leaders of the largest gang in Southeast Asia, they naturally knew some unknown information.

Professor Li is a big shot at the North American headquarters of the Hongmen.

In Southeast Asia, if we're talking about lineage, this person would definitely be considered a senior among seniors.

However, they did not actively publicize this matter.

As shrewd individuals, the two knew that they couldn't utter a word about anything involving the big shot.

The two of them had benefited the most from the Shanhe Group and had long wanted to befriend Professor Li.

Even just saying a single word would be enough.

But considering their lowly status, they never dared to hope for anything more.

I never expected that something like this would fall from the sky today.

"Boss Chen, is it absolutely true?"

Chen Xikui smiled slightly.

"Absolutely true!"

"This news was actually brought by Baoqing and his brother."

You can believe his words unconditionally.

Wow!
Everyone was shocked!

This one sentence reveals a lot.

This unassuming young man in front of me actually has such a powerful background.

No wonder he was able to thrive in Southeast Asia.

Xie Baoqing simply nodded slightly without offering further explanation, as he did not want to overshadow the main point.

Soon, the atmosphere in the room became even more lively.

What an honor it would be to be able to strike up a conversation with Professor Li.

Most importantly, whenever he's in a good mood, even a tiny bit of money from Shanhe Group is enough to feed everyone present.

To outsiders, Professor Li is a great scholar and scientist; to them, he is a god of wealth.

Although these gang leaders also felt that this was a bit snobbish.

But there's no way around it; getting them to talk about science is worse than killing them.

Chen Xikui continued:

"As is widely known, Professor Li was once assassinated by the Sakura Clan in the waters near Lion City."

“This time, he set foot on Singaporean soil, and we absolutely cannot allow such a thing to happen again.”

"Although Professor Li has his own security team, we must also make our stance clear."

"Therefore, I propose that from now on, Hua Ji and all the brothers you have brought should be on high alert for suspicious persons at all times."

"Disperse the brothers throughout Singapore to gather information at any time."

Huang and Zheng immediately expressed their views:
"I agree."

"Professor Li has made too many contributions to us Chinese in Southeast Asia."

"I bet some of you here have children studying in Borneo."

"Such an important person must not be harmed in any way!"

"I don't trust those people in the Colonial Bureau."

"The Sakura Clan are wolves in sheep's clothing and capable of anything; we must be wary of them."

Then, the bigwigs all expressed their support, one after another.

The difficulty and effort involved in this task were negligible compared to the rewards.

At this moment, someone suddenly asked:
"When we meet Professor Li, what should we talk about?"

"I'm just a roughneck; I can only write my own name. I hope I won't make a fool of myself."

Everyone burst into laughter and made fun of each other.

Chen Xikui laughed and said:
"I believe Professor Li won't hold it against us."

"To be honest, I'm very nervous right now."

“A great figure like Professor Li would be on par with Confucius in ancient times.”

"I'm also very curious to hear what he'll say."

"But no matter what, I believe that as long as you show your true feelings, there will be no problem."

Everyone nodded.

Sincerity is always a must-win.

There's nothing about them that Professor Li should value, so why worry about losing them?

Then, Zheng Wanlong raised an interesting question.

What should we call Professor Li?

"I feel that addressing him as Professor Li is a bit inappropriate; it doesn't suit our status."

Chen Xikui's expression shifted; he hadn't considered that.

Professor Li has many identities.

But it seems that none of them are related to their kind of gang.

Chen Xikui knew the identity of the other party's Hongmen leader, but he dared not bring it up.

No one can fathom the thoughts of a great person.

Just as everyone was offering their suggestions...

Xie Baoqing, who had been silent until now, finally spoke.

"Call me Teacher Li."

Wow!
Everyone was surprised.

With the groundwork laid just now, no one dares to underestimate the young Xie Baoqing anymore; he is definitely a rising star.

Everyone took his words very seriously.

Chen Xikui was the first to laugh:
"Brother Baoqing's suggestion is good."

"Calling him Teacher Li will not make us appear obsequious or ignorant, but will also highlight Professor Li's status as a teacher for all ages."

"This is something that professors cannot demonstrate."

“Although we are gang members, we have learned a lot from Shanhe Group, so we can call ourselves Professor Li’s students.”

After his analysis, everyone applauded.

Just kidding, this is Boss Xie's only speech, so of course everyone has to give him face.

Moreover, this name is indeed very fitting.

Finally, the group discussed various details, all for the sake of a perfect tomorrow.

This is the power and influence Ridgeway wields in Southeast Asia today.

His every move is on the minds of countless people.
-
March 31, 1926, morning.

Ridgeve, leading a large Borneo scientific delegation, successfully arrived in Singapore.

On this trip, he also brought his two wives and the Chengdao and Chengde brothers.

He was warmly welcomed by Kingson, the British colonial governor of Singapore, as soon as he arrived.

"Welcome, Professor Bruce."

"Your arrival has filled Singapore with an atmosphere of knowledge."

Kimson was all smiles; organizing such a large-scale academic event was one of his achievements.

Li Qiwei said:
"Thank you for your support, Governor Kim."

"I'd like to take my wife sightseeing in Singapore first."

Kimson laughed:
"Then I won't bother you any longer."

After exchanging pleasantries, Ridgeway began his trip to Singapore.

(End of this chapter)