Hong Kong Island: From a small stall to a global supplier

"Brother Yao, Mayor Wan Azman asked if we should go directly to the city hall?" Sha Ze asked, turning his head.

"What would I do at the government building? I'm not the mayor of Phuket. Giving orders there would only give others something to criticize." Wang Yaotang snorted, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes.

"Master Yao, I think this guy is up to no good. Whenever you ask him to do something, things always go wrong. He doesn't want to take any responsibility and instead wants to drag you down with him." Gao Lishi's voice was low but every word was forceful, and he immediately started to sow discord.

He had little education and didn't understand the intricacies of politics, but he wanted to increase his value in Wang Yaotang's eyes. So what could he do?

After much thought, he came up with the idea that "by learning from history, one can understand the rise and fall of dynasties!"

Wang Yaotang was the absolute "emperor," and I was his personal "eunuch." Wang Azman was at most a "governor." Now that I was going to be the "supervisor," how could I not go to the "emperor's" side and whisper in his ear, trying to sow discord between the "supervisor" and the "governor"? If the "supervisor" and the "governor" were truly in cahoots, the "emperor" would be the first one the "supervisor" would deal with!
He held himself to the standards of a chief eunuch, never forgetting the code of conduct for a chief eunuch.

"Brother Yao, Qiu Haishan suggested going to his family's manor?" Sha Ze asked again.

"Too many people and too much attention," Wang Yaotang said, also dissatisfied.

Gao Lishi's eyes darted around. "The Qiu and Chen families clearly have no sincerity. What kind of family would they be if Master Yao came and took over their old house? They should have given up their newly acquired garden long ago!"

Seeing that Wang Yaotang didn't speak, Sha Ze understood. He turned his head and glanced at Gao Lishi. Gao Lishi knew how to handle things and smiled brightly, nodding slightly.

Soon, the mayor's car, which was leading the way, changed direction and headed straight for the western part of Phuket, northwest of Wat Chalong, which is the site of the later Zolitut Villa Resort Hotel. This place is now the Qiu family's private resort estate built on the rainforest hillside, which is usually only used to entertain distinguished guests. This time, in order to curry favor with Wang Yaotang, Qiu Haishan simply gave away the estate.

Wang Yaotang was fairly satisfied with this.

He wasn't short of money; what he wanted was this submissive attitude, which put Chen Jingchuan under a lot of pressure...

If you own a house, you should own a car, but Wang Yaotang actually went out with his custom-made bulletproof Rolls-Royce, which put him in a bit of a predicament.

While Wang Yaotang was being settled, Chen Jingchuan was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. He hurriedly sent someone home to fetch a golden Buddha statue and secretly slipped it to Gao Lishi, whom he had met before. Gao Lishi's hand felt heavy, and he estimated that the golden Buddha weighed at least three pounds. The tense lines on his face immediately relaxed, and he stroked the patterns on the golden Buddha with his fingertips, his eyes crinkling with a smile.

After weighing the options, Gao Lishi smiled and offered a suggestion: "Master Yao will leave a group of Umbrella Corporation's men stationed in Phuket to deter all sides and teach them what the rules are."

Chen Jingchuan was immediately delighted. "Thank you for your guidance, Mr. Gao. My Chen family will definitely repay you handsomely once this is done."

“Heh, Patriarch Chen, you’re too kind. Let me add one more thing. Initially, this battalion will remain here, and defensive measures will be built at both docks. Also, the vehicles used for daily patrols will be Toyota Hiace nine-seater models, paired with Toyota pickup trucks.” Gao Lishi said with a smile, “Well, nobody cares where you got your vehicles.”

Chen Jingchuan nodded. "How about the Ford Club Wagon E-350? That car is spacious and impressive."

Gao Lishi's eyelids drooped, and his tone was laced with sarcasm, "Master Chen has been waited on for too long, hasn't he?"

"Ah, this..." Chen Jingchuan was taken aback, his expression somewhat embarrassed.

Having held a high position for so long, he hadn't bothered to flatter a 'petty person' like Gao Lishi for many years. He couldn't figure out which remark had touched a nerve, and for a moment, he didn't know how to respond.

With a determined look, he picked up the Omega Constellation Manhattan of 82 on his left wrist. It was a watch he had someone bring back from Switzerland last year, which he treasured dearly. But he didn't care about the watch now. He reached out and gently shook Gao Lishi's hand, and the watch slid right off. "Oh dear, Mr. Gao's watch strap is loose."

Gao Lishi glanced down and immediately recognized the watch. His expression brightened instantly. "Haha, I accidentally loosened it. Thanks for reminding me, Patriarch Chen."

“Ford cars are certainly good, but they’re used for patrols every day, so they’re bound to get bumped and knocked over. What if they break down?” Gao Lishi then softened his tone and patiently explained, “We can’t just bring a repair team from the United States, can we? This isn’t Hong Kong or Singapore; the conditions aren’t that convenient.”

Chen Jingchuan slammed his eyes shut, inwardly cursing himself for being so foolish: How could I have forgotten this! Sure enough, having been in a high position for so long and detached from the trivial matters below, I've even neglected this basic common sense!
After settling in a bit, Wang Yaotang, who had come by yacht and wasn't tired, asked someone to call everyone over for a meeting.

After everyone was seated, Chen Yuanchao stood up and said loudly, "Chairman! Our company's security team landed and deployed, taking a total of 2 hours and 35 minutes; during this time, we stopped 46 street fights and killed or injured a total of 108 criminals. The main urban area of ​​Phuket Island has now been restored to safety and order!"

Wang Yaotang nodded. "Well done."

"Thank you for the compliment, Chairman!" Chen Yuanchao snapped to attention with a sharp, clean movement.

“Phuket has a serious security problem, Mayor Wan Azman, Director Mohd Farouk.” Wang Yaotang glanced at the two men.

"I'm sorry to disappoint Mr. Wang. It was due to our mismanagement," Wan Azman quickly admitted.

"Let's standardize the law first," Wang Yaotang said, not wanting to waste time arguing with him. "In order to address the current regional security challenges, the municipal government plans to sign a 'Security Cooperation Agreement' with Hong Kong Baoxin Security Company."

He paused, then said, word by word, "The specific background is as follows: Due to the infiltration and influence of anti-government armed activities in the surrounding areas, smuggling, drug trafficking, piracy and other illegal and criminal activities in Phuket and the surrounding waters are becoming increasingly rampant. These activities not only disrupt the normal order of the region, but also pose a serious threat to the lives and property of local citizens, merchants and passengers on passing ships."

"In order to effectively curb the trend of illegal and criminal activities and build a solid security defense, after multi-party evaluation and demonstration, the municipal government plans to entrust 'Hong Kong Umbrella Security Company' to provide professional security support, focusing on cooperation in areas such as maritime anti-piracy, cross-border smuggling, and drug crime investigation, so as to effectively safeguard regional security and stability and the fundamental interests of the people."

This well-organized official statement nearly made Wan Azman's eyes pop out of their sockets—who the hell spread the rumor that Wang Yaotang was a street thug who hadn't even finished junior high and only knew how to solve problems with violence? Damn it, his speaking skills were better than all the professional copywriters under his command!

No wonder he was able to become one of Hong Kong's top tycoons in just a few years; his learning ability alone is something that ordinary people can't match.

Wan Azman immediately stood up and led the applause, which immediately filled the reception room with thunderous applause.

The crowd seemed to be competing, each clapping harder than the last, their palms turning red from clapping, and they kept going for a full two minutes, their enthusiasm growing stronger with each clapping.

Wang Yaotang was both amused and exasperated: Once a person gains influence, even their farts are treated like gospel treasures. This scene was truly comical.

但爽
"Alright, alright, that's enough." Wang Yaotang smiled and raised his hand to stop it.

The crowd slowly stopped clapping. Seeing Wang Yaotang smile, the four of them finally felt relieved, and their suppressed emotions eased somewhat.

“We’ll finalize the contract today, and move the date forward to the day we last met. Let’s make it look better.” Wang Yaotang changed the subject and got to the specifics. “As for the fees, we’ll settle at HK$500 million per year. Don’t feel like you’re losing out; at least we didn’t make any money off you for the first two years.”

Wang Yaotang took to heart what Luo Wenhua had said earlier.

Wan Azman immediately stood up and said loudly, "How could we feel cheated? It is clearly Wang Sheng who is helping us. This price is very reasonable. An independent infantry battalion has more than 450 people, and they are on overseas business trips. Their salary expenses will exceed HK$2500 million. I don't even know if HK$500 million is enough to protect the Umbrella Corporation and cooperate with the coastal patrol boats. Our municipal government thinks that this price is too low and should be increased to US$800 million!"

"You certainly know how to take advantage of a situation." Wang Yaotang chuckled, pointing at him with a hint of teasing in his eyes. "I hadn't originally planned to equip this place with coastal defense ships, but since you brought it up, I might as well provide them."

"Thank you, Mr. Wang! Thank you, Mr. Wang!" Wan Azman grinned so wide his teeth were showing, and he quickly clasped his hands in thanks. He was overjoyed. He didn't think the price was too low; he wanted to use the excuse of 'paying more money' to finalize the deal on coastal defense forces.

While Phuket is called a "city" abroad, in Siam it's actually called a "province." Siam has 77 provinces in total, and above the province is the parliament. Don't be fooled by the seemingly ordinary names of these "mayors"; they wield considerable power. However, all government expenditures within a province are subject to national-level review.

Signing the security agreement is fine, paying money is fine too, since it's not his own money. But he has to produce some real 'results' to shut the higher-ups up.

If the army alone isn't enough, the police can make up the numbers; at worst, we can just spend more money.

But the Navy is different. Not only does the police lack the capability, but even Congress can't do anything about it. Today, when he wanted some support from above, people were making excuses and delaying it.

Building a navy isn't something that can be solved simply by spending money; it requires professional naval personnel. It's not like ancient times where you could just gather a bunch of sailors and put together a navy.

He had also considered the problem that Qiu Haishan had thought of: with naval power, Langkawi would have no room to struggle.

Go try to reason with my 57mm rapid-fire cannon!
With legality secured, the rest would be easy. Wang Yaotang looked at Police Chief Mohd Farooq and asked, "Does Siam allow its citizens to own guns?"

Mohd Farouk stood up and bowed, saying, “According to the Law on Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, Fireworks and Imitation Firearms promulgated by Siam in 1947, ordinary citizens who want to own a gun must meet three conditions: first, they must be at least 20 years old; second, they must pass a criminal background check and have no criminal record; and third, they must provide a reasonable reason for owning a gun, such as hunting or self-defense.”

Siamese police officers are not armed; they need to purchase their own guns.

It has the flair of the US military buying its own guns.

"Then print out the relevant laws and have all the officers in your police station go door-to-door checking guns," Wang Yaotang ordered directly, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Any gun without a valid license, or whose license doesn't match the gun model, should be confiscated. The Protectorate will send people to assist you in this operation. If anyone resists, arrest them on charges of 'resisting with a firearm and endangering public safety.' Have the officers on site request the Protectorate's assistance in making the arrests."

"Tell your people to do it cleanly," Wang Yaotang concluded.

"Yes!" Mohammad Farouk snapped to attention and saluted, his back ramrod straight, but his mind was in turmoil. "I can't do it!"
“Mr. Qiu, please contact the media team to film the entire gun raid and then promote it on television.” Wang Yaotang then looked at Qiu Haishan, “Focus on showcasing the Phuket City Government’s determination and action in improving public security. Also, there’s something we must emphasize: all the master tapes must be returned. I don’t want anyone to use the master tapes to edit them haphazardly and smear the Protectorate.”

"Okay, Mr. Wang, I promise this won't happen." Qiu Haishan really didn't want to take on this mess, but he couldn't refuse.

"Alright, everyone get back to work and finish the cleanup as soon as possible." Wang Yaotang waved his hand. "These people need to understand that things have changed in Phuket!"

“Yes!” Wan Azman, Mohd Farouk, Qiu Haishan, and Chen Jingchuan stood up in unison, and then carefully left the meeting room.

……

After leaving the estate, Mohd Farouk and Wan Azman rode in the same car.

As soon as he closed the car door, Mohamad Farooq's face fell like a drooping rag, and he said in a mournful voice, "Mayor, we can't do the investigation of illegal weapons!"

Wan Azman's eyes widened instantly, his voice filled with anger: "Do you know what you're saying? Why didn't you say that inside! Now that you're out, you're coming to mourn for me. What's the use of crying!"

"It's not that I want to shirk responsibility!" Mohammad Farouk hurriedly explained, his voice trembling slightly. "Phuket has a total population of 45, with over 10 living in the main urban area. Add in the migrant population, and it's about 12. But our police station only has 2000 people. After deducting those who do clerical work and logistics, there are less than 1200 frontline police officers. A city-wide house-to-house search would require far too many people. Even working around the clock, it might not be possible to complete it in half a month!"

Wan Azman's eye twitched violently; his intuition told him that things weren't that simple. "Tell me clearly, how many of these officers are actually on the front lines?"

“Nearly 800 people…” Mohammad Farouk didn’t dare look him in the eye, lowered his head sheepishly, and spoke in a voice so soft it was like a mosquito’s hum.

"I fucking..." Wan Azman felt a sudden tightness in his chest, his vision went black, and he couldn't even breathe properly. Based on his many years of experience in politics, anyone who said "close" was definitely exaggerating a lot!

"I need the exact numbers!" he said through gritted teeth, enunciating each word clearly.

“580 people…” Mohammad Farouk’s voice was even lower, his head almost drooping to his chest.

Wan Azman, panting heavily, pressed on, "How many of them are actually capable of doing anything worthwhile?"

“Uh…uh…it should be more than 400 people…I guess.” Mohammad Farouk’s voice was uncertain, and his eyes darted away, avoiding Wan Azman’s gaze.

Wan Azman was so angry his lips were trembling. He raised his hand and slapped him hard across the face. "How dare you take so much pay without working! You stupid ox!"

“It’s always been like this. The Qiu and Chen families alone have more than twenty people holding nominal positions in the police station. Many other local families also have people holding nominal positions. The heads of various departments also have several vacant positions in reserve. In addition, there are many people who are too old to do anything, but they are not yet of retirement age. They are all veterans of the police station with extensive connections and great influence. There is simply no way to dismiss them!” Mohammad Farouk felt very wronged. He hadn’t actually taken many of the hundreds of vacant positions. His main source of income was not from this.

Even among these 400 capable people, almost all of them are colluded with local underworld forces. It's no wonder they're unlikely to find anything when they're tasked with investigating illegal firearms!
Wang Yaotang was clearly not someone to be easily fooled. If the number of firearms confiscated was insufficient, the blame would definitely fall on him, the police chief, and he would have no choice but to be fearful.

Even if he isn't killed that day, once he loses his position, all the dirty deeds he's done during his years in office will eventually be brought to light, and countless people will come after him for revenge. He won't even know how he died!

Azman moved aside, looking at him coldly. "I can't help you with this. Figure it out yourself."

"Mayor! Mayor, you can't abandon me!" Mohd Farouk immediately panicked, grabbing Wan Azman's arm tightly and refusing to let go. "I've shed blood for the mayor! I've done my part for the mayor! You can't treat me like this!"

"Let go! Let go of me!" Wan Azman struggled violently, but Mohammad Farouk was almost driven to his death and refused to let go, holding on even tighter than before.

"You idiot!" Wan Azman roared, both angry and exasperated. "What good is it for you to have me? Do you think I can conjure up men out of thin air to do your bidding?!"

"Mayor, you must have a way!" Mohamad Farouk looked up, his eyes full of pleading, tears welling up in his eyes.

Looking at his pathetic state, Wan Azman was both angry and amused, and could only sigh: "I... let me go first, and I'll tell you a way."

"No! You go first!" Mohammad Farouk hugged him even tighter, afraid that he would change his mind.

Wan Azman cursed a few times before saying irritably, "You idiot! That Mr. Wang only cares about the result, he doesn't care about the process at all! We may not have experience handling this kind of thing, but don't he have people around him? They've fought their way up from Hong Kong, they've handled countless similar cases, Pattaya is a ready example! You can't just go directly to Mr. Wang, can't you ask someone around him for help!"

He paused, then added, "His secretary Wei Tao, and Gao Lishi who has always followed him, they also need to do things. You have no grudge against them. If you go there with enough sincerity, do you think they would just stand by and watch you die?"

"Really?"

"Otherwise what? I saw Chen Jingchuan go to beg that Gao Lishi, and when he came back, his face was all smiles, like he'd just eaten honey and shit."

"Okay, okay, I'll get off, I'll get off right now!"

Watching the person get out of the car and leave in a hurry, Azman let out a long sigh of relief.

Damn it, the government office is full of a bunch of bastards. How can you run Phuket well with a bunch of bastards around!
He was only in his early forties, yet he had already risen to the position of head of the prefecture. Of course, this was largely due to the strong support of the Qiu and Chen families. But the reason he chose to promote himself instead of others was first and foremost because he was indeed capable!
Although it is just a poor and remote area in Phuket Province, it is precisely because of its poverty and harsh conditions that once it is developed, its reputation can be infinitely elevated within the party and among the people, and it will have a 100% chance of entering the highest level in the future!
Azman really wants to advance his political career; he desperately wants to be president, he dreams of it...

Therefore, he had to prepare a contingency plan for dealing with Mohammad Farouk, and demonstrate his determination and ability to Wang Yaotang.

Phuket cannot leave on its own. He can only trust Wang Yaotang because of the success story of Pattaya. Otherwise, why would he trust the treacherous Qiu and Chen families?
Mohamad Farooq changed cars and went home to retrieve a pure gold Buddha statue and an ivory Buddha statue. He then immediately turned around and headed straight for Wang Yaotang Manor.

These people all had some pure gold Buddha statues in their hands. They all looked the same, but they would make excellent gifts and be very presentable.

Following Azman's advice, Mohammad Farouk immediately sought out Gao Lishi and presented him with a golden Buddha statue.

"Buddha saves people from the Yuan Dynasty, and I think Chief Inspector Faluke is a Yuan Dynasty person." Playing with the golden Buddha, Gao Lishi smiled. Who the hell said that Phuket is a poor and remote place that breeds unruly people?

The people here are just too kind!
Everyone possesses Buddha-nature!

Mohd Farouk explained the situation at the police station, saying, "I'm short-staffed, and even more so, I need people who can get things done properly. I'm afraid I'll mess up Mr. Wang's instructions, so I'd appreciate Mr. Gao's guidance."

"You..." Suddenly feeling that the golden Buddha in his hand was a bit hot, Gao Lishi put the golden Buddha back on the table. He thought that the Hong Kong Royal Police were already useless. He had followed Shen Xianjin before the 70s and had gone through the era of the Four Great Detectives.

But I never expected that there would be someone even more useless than the useless.

No wonder the Royal Hong Kong Police Force always boasts that Hong Kong is the safest city in Asia; the Siamese police are utterly rotten.

He had only ever seen people receiving salaries without working... in movies.

Gao Lishi pushed the golden Buddha back, saying, "Director, you should find someone else more capable."

"Mr. Gao, Mr. Gao!" Mohammad Farouk rushed over and grabbed Gao Lishi's leg. "I still have some, I still have some!"

He hurriedly took out a box with one hand, placed it on the table, and opened it. Inside was a Buddha statue carved from ivory.

“This isn’t about the gift!” Gao Lishi waved his hand.

“No, no, no, ten thousand, one hundred thousand US dollars.” Mohammad Farouk immediately added more money.

“You…” Gao Lishi hesitated.

"Two hundred thousand, no, five hundred thousand US dollars!" Mohammad Farouk went all out.

"Sigh!" Gao Lishi sighed. "I can see that you really want to do things for Wang Sheng, and your heart is good, but your situation is really too bad."

"Here's what we'll do. I can help you talk to Chen Yuanchao and Wei Tao. We need to face the objective reasons squarely, and the matter must be handled well no matter what!"

“Yes, yes, Mr. Gao is right. I really want to do things for Wang Sheng!” Mohammad Farouk lay on the ground, looking up at Gao Lishi with a shameless grin.

Seeing a dignified police chief kneeling at his feet, Gao Lishi's lips slowly curled into a smile. (End of Chapter)