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

There is pressure coming from the 'north'.

There is pressure from the fleet at the gate.

There was pressure coming from the man in front of her who had no moral compass.

At least that's what Lao Li thought, so unsurprisingly, he refused, saying, "Isn't this a bit inappropriate?"

Although this tone sounds a bit weak, just say whether you refused or not!

We can surrender, but not so quickly. We must let the Wangs feel the dissatisfaction of Singapore!

Wang Yaotang: I understand, it's all about being coy and hesitant.

Old Li really couldn't think of any good solutions.

With Britain in decline, Russia collapsing, and the US shifting its strategic focus to the Middle East, the situation in Southeast Asia where a single private armed force dominates is incredibly worrying.

Let alone Singapore, even Malaysia and Indonesia can't come up with any good ways to deal with Wang Yaotang.

This is a private armed force with no borders to protect. If they really clash with Wang Yaotang, then they can expect the entire coastal area to be attacked at any time.

After all, it's a private armed force, so there's no need to worry about the UN's attention that a country would have to face if it went to war.

Ultimately, this world is about strength. You're a powerful nation, yet you can't defeat a private armed group, so you go to the United Nations to cause trouble?

How shameless!
If the authorities have lost all face, they're not far from stepping down.

Of course, Wang Yaotang is not a demon. He never intended to annex or interfere with Singapore's port industry plans, and he made his position very clear.

“I think that Singapore’s current approach of having the government manage port development in a unified manner is not keeping up with the construction and development of port operations. It’s fine to operate, supervise, and promote the port itself in the early stages of development, as it concentrates all its resources. That’s why Singapore’s container port has become the world’s largest.”

"But we've reached our maximum. The next step is to compete with ourselves, shifting from external driving forces to internal driving forces. The operating mechanism must also change accordingly to maintain the momentum of development," Wang Yaotang said eloquently.

Although Lao Li and his group were all thinking about how Wang Yaotang had forced himself on them, they still fell into deep thought upon hearing this assertion.

This is a matter of respect for billionaires in business.

It's definitely not because of the Umbrella Fleet.

This time it's for real...

"Of course, this is just my personal opinion, and it's primarily based on Singapore."

“If it’s going to be split up, then I hope to get a board seat on the management committee.” After Wang Yaotang expressed his opinion, he left the subsequent negotiations to his subordinates.

This time, the fleet's voyage wasn't solely aimed at Singapore; its primary objective was to inspect its own territory...

Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, etc.: Bullshit!
Yangon: I have experience with this!

When the fleet passed through the Strait of Malacca, all other ships made way for the umbrella fleet to clear the main channel.

Among them were several cargo ships from our hometown. Standing inside the ship's deck, perhaps triggered by the scene, someone instinctively shouted, "They can be replaced!"

Wang Yaotang was naturally unaware of these things, but the radar showed that there were aircraft in the high sky on both sides, clearly from Malaysia and Indonesia.

What level are you guys at!
Wang Yaotang didn't bother with them at all. After leaving Malacca, he headed north and made a brief two-day stop in Phuket, demonstrating the strength of the "leader" to the "national liberation" organizations from all over the world.

There was absolutely no need for them to meet; they were unworthy. Instead, they negotiated with the Phuket local government to lease a plot of land to build the Indian Ocean branch of the Umbrella Corporation.

Phuket: Was there any negotiation? Wasn't it an order?
Wang Yaotang: None of that matters.

Two days later, they set sail north.

Yangon.

Su Mao immediately alarmed his close team in the military government, and his first words were, "It's time to consider moving the capital!"

Damn it, what country's capital gets blocked by private individuals with fleets every few days?!
What a load of rubbish about business visits! Anyone who wants one can have it!
That guy surnamed Wang is inhuman! The capital must be moved!

Historically, the issue of relocating the capital has always been met with strong opposition from the authorities, as it involves the personal interests of too many people.

First of all, there's the issue of fixed assets like housing prices and land – the difference between the capital and the capital is too great!

But this time was unusual; the proposal was agreed to by everyone without hesitation.

When Wang Yaotang learned of this later, he couldn't help but exclaim, "I made great contributions to the nation's development and should be remembered in Myanmar's history!"

“Yangon is not suitable as a capital city. Relocating the capital is necessary and can drive the economic development of a region.”

"Yangon, as Myanmar's largest port, has great development potential. Its urban positioning should be economic, while the capital's positioning should be political and cultural. Mixing the two together will inevitably lead to politics suppressing the economy, which greatly limits Yangon's development and makes Myanmar's political situation too susceptible to economic influence."

“Globally, the most economically developed city in the United States is New York, but the capital is inland in Washington, D.C.”

"The Russians' largest port is St. Petersburg, which is developing very well, but the capital is Moscow."

"That's how it is in my hometown."

"The homework is all here, you can't even copy it."

"What about Bangkok, Siam?" Wei Tao couldn't help but ask.

"Siam has been around for years, but lately its development has been worse than Malaysia's. It deserves to fail." Wang Yaotang spat.

……

After the Umbrella Corporation's fleet notified them, Yangon immediately approved their entry into the port.

If someone gives you face, you should accept it, otherwise it will make things awkward for everyone.

Despite feeling disgusted, Su Mao still led his men to welcome Wang Yaotang at the port with state honors.

Wang Yaotang still expressed his embarrassment and said he wouldn't do it again next time, but he was very skilled at going through each step.

After a tacit understanding...

Wang Yaotang was in a great mood, with a smile on his face.

Su Mao was in a terrible mood, but a smile was on his face.

We talked about the international situation, the situation in the Middle East, and Myanmar's economic development.

Overall, since the establishment of the new Myanmar National Workers' Association, Shan State has experienced unprecedented development momentum, with its economy more than doubling. Of course, this is also because the base was too small in the past.

Driven by the development of Shan State, several ethnic minority states in northern and eastern Myanmar have also experienced development, including the military government's region along the Mandalay-Yangon line, where the economy has shown an upward trend.

The Soviet Union had to admit this, but what was disgusting was that, due to development, the military government's influence in these areas had greatly weakened, and the hope of unification was becoming increasingly invisible.

Beast!
After discussing further economic cooperation, Wang Yaotang asked with a smile, "I'm planning to sell a few warships held by Umbrella Corporation. Are you interested?"

Su Mao blurted out instinctively, "Isn't it from Somalia?"

Wang Yaotang's face stiffened.

Su Mao's eyes darted around...

Wang Yaotang: I'll give you a chance to reorganize your words.

Su Mao: I admit I sometimes speak without thinking, but isn't this something you always say?

“Mr. Wang wants to sell those warships, and we in Myanmar are very interested!” Su Mao stood up with a look of delight, took two steps forward and grabbed Wang Yaotang’s hand.

“0⑶7”.

"A missile ship?" Su Mao's eyes widened.

“Old-fashioned,” Wang Yaotang said succinctly.

"I see." Su Mao said with a look of regret.

"Don't like it?"

"How could that be? I just think Mr. Wang has poisonous spiders (0), and 7 can retire and make the most of his remaining time in Myanmar," Su Mao said with a grin.

He dared not even think about the poisonous spider (3). Wang Yaotang looked down on the old-fashioned warships, but Myanmar would.

An old 037 can easily overwhelm the current Myanmar Navy.

“The old-style one is $1200 million, and the enhanced version with increased artillery power is $1800 million.” Wang Yaotang raised his chin. “So expensive!” Su Mao exclaimed subconsciously.

Wang Yaotang tilted his head, but didn't say anything.

"As far as I know, this type of submarine chaser was exported for 83 years. Eight of them were sold to Egypt for 10 million RMB each, and two more were exported to Bangladesh for the same price."

"Do you even know what 'aid' means?" Wang Yaotang said with a smile. "Throughout the 80s, there were several small-scale armed incidents along the border between Bangladesh and Myanmar, some of which were more serious, such as the Rohingya refugee crisis. There were also several maritime border disputes. How does that make you feel?"

Just before the Lunar New Year, the Myanmar military government launched Operation Clean & Beautiful Country under the pretext of combating the Rohingya, carrying out a large-scale military crackdown on the Rohingya in Rakhine State, forcing more than 25 Rohingya to flee to Bangladesh.

Su Mao's face darkened for a moment, but he quickly forced a smile and gave a thumbs up. "Mr. Wang, impressive!"

"polite."

"We want these three warships, but you will be responsible for training them, and you must ensure timely maintenance and ammunition replenishment!" Su Mao said in a deep voice.

"We are a commercially driven company, so you can rest assured about after-sales service; it's not a problem," Wang Yaotang said with a smile. "I'll be building a boat repair shop in Phuket soon, which will definitely be able to resolve related issues promptly."

"That's good. It's a pleasure to cooperate with you." Su Mao extended his hand.

Although they didn't acquire missile ships, they have enhanced artillery capabilities, and three warships have entered service. Not to mention distant areas, in the Mengjia Bay and Andaman Strait region, Myanmar's naval power can be said to be the strongest!

Suddenly, Su Mao felt like he could do it again!
I ask you, who else is there?

He also took a trip to Shan State, inquired about the development of the new Myanmar industry, listened to the complaints of the four families, refused their request to stand up for justice, and advised them to focus on development, saying that development can solve all problems. After that, Wang Yaotang inspected two major tin mines and a gold mine.

This inspection was merely a way of expressing the boss's attention; aside from words of encouragement, Wang Yaotang didn't offer any further comment.

The previous internal turmoil purged many unstable elements and demonstrated the company's strong problem-solving capabilities, which greatly ensured the company's stable operation.

Although... the company's treatment here is still far above the average level in Myanmar, and this strong deterrent effect has attracted more people.

During his inspection tour of Shan State, news of Myanmar's purchase of three warships from Wang Yaotang also spread to several neighboring countries, causing considerable shock in Malaysia, Singapore, and Bangladesh.

Myanmar's military government has always been a source of instability in the region, and this surge in naval power has made all three countries somewhat uneasy.

Singapore is concerned about the safety of shipping routes near the Gret Strait, Malaysia is concerned about the safety of the area near the east coast, while Bangladesh is more acutely aware of the issues.

Coincidentally, all three countries turned their attention to the protective umbrella.

Could China purchase this warship?

It remains to be seen whether the Chinese will actually sell it.

For many years, Laos and China have maintained a very low profile in their foreign relations, focusing on economic development. Moreover, everyone considers Wang Yaotang to be Laos and China's representative in Southeast Asia.

The fleet did not stop in Phuket on its return journey, but instead sent a note to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, requesting resupply at Port Klang.

Port Klang in Kuala Lumpur is the largest port in Malaysia and one of the important gateways connecting the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea. It has been targeting Singapore in its development, doing the same things as Singapore. With a similar geographical location and lower prices, it has also developed well.

It will eventually rank among the top ten globally.

Wang Yaotang must have had his own ideas about such an important port.

Kuala Lumpur was in a dilemma when it received the request from the Umbrella Fleet to arrive in port for resupply.

Deep down, they didn't want to agree; it was clearly an unwelcome guest. But they couldn't bring themselves to refuse, since both Phuket and Aceh across the street had the ability to threaten the security of Port Klang.

Of course, these are all just speculations from the Malaysian side, and even if it really happened, it would have nothing to do with Wang Yaotang.

The fleet has been lightened, losing three ships, but its momentum has not diminished in the slightest. After all, even just one Type 1135 destroyer would be enough to easily overwhelm the current Malaysian navy...

Using the same rhetoric and the same cooperation terms, Kuala Lumpur refused much more decisively than Singapore. After all, Kuala Lumpur is a regional "big country," and Wang Yaotang didn't say anything. He couldn't force them, could he?

At most, we would make a phone call to Hong Kong and have the department in charge of maritime security under the Umbrella Corporation issue a risk warning for Port Klang. The company would then refuse to accept escort orders near Port Klang and advise customers to change their transshipment ports to Singapore.

As for whether there are real security issues, the fleet had just rounded Singapore and arrived near Bangkok when a merchant ship was hijacked near Port Klang.

The pirates kidnapped most of the management team, including the captain, and demanded a ransom of $100 million from the shipping company.

They don't kidnap crew members; most of them are hired from Central Asia and Southeast Asia, and no one cares if they die.

The money wasn't much, but clearly this wasn't the end. Who wouldn't want to come up and have a bite of this golden waterway? Although the success rate was very low, just one success could earn more money than one could earn in several lifetimes. Those poor bastards on Sumatra were never afraid of danger.

What could be more terrifying than poverty?

Since the development of container shipping, most pirates around the world have changed their business methods, from robbing ships or cargo to kidnapping people.

There's no way to get the container out of the box. It's too big to fit in. Even if we could get it out, who knows what's inside? Maybe a box of towels, a box of shirts, a box of slippers—it's really worthless.

In fact, Umbrella Corporation's maritime security contracts mainly target this kind of kidnapping. There are very few pirates who can hijack an entire ship, and even if they do, they don't know how to deal with it. It's better to kidnap them, take them to Phuket by speedboat, and sell them for $100,000.

Several middlemen in Phuket would contact shipping companies to help them communicate with the pirates and try to bring the people out safely through dialogue and ransom payment.

Even if the shipping company could find the pirates, so what?
If you go directly to negotiate, the pirates will be overjoyed and accept the offer—another job has come their way!
As for suing the middlemen, that's even more impossible. They're just using their influence to do things and they charge service fees, which are documented with official invoices!

Legal and compliant!

The middlemen didn't actually know the exact location of the kidnapped captain and others; they were able to do this kind of business because they had ways to help launder money.

Making money from both ends, that's what you call having influence!

Piracy has now become an industry chain, and governments around the world are helpless to do anything about it. First, cross-border cooperation is difficult, and second, when pirates come ashore, they are just ordinary fishermen, working in villages. Going out to work is no different from working as a laborer, and they are just getting paid.

The salary is relatively high.

We're all from the same village, with families to support; who would dare betray someone else!

Even Wang Yaotang couldn't do anything about this. All Umbrella could do was open fire to intimidate the pirates and make them back down. Over time, all the pirates on this waterway recognized Umbrella's flag, and only novices or hotheads dared to provoke them.

Umbrella Corporation really did send gunboats to storm the pirate village!
In front of everyone, they hung up the pirate captain and his family and skinned them alive.

In the eyes of pirates, Umbrella Corporation is the real devil.

……

This isn't the first time the Umbrella Fleet has been to the Gulf of Thailand. The two sides have been cooperating for many years, so there's no need for this kind of thing. They simply stopped outside the waters of Thailand, except that the budget aircraft carrier followed them to Bangkok.

The aircraft carrier park is for an event.

The newly appointed Prime Minister of Siam, Suchinda, warmly received them.

Chatchai was in office two years ago. In the past year, there have been frequent coups in Siam. After Chatchai stepped down, Anan Banyarachin took over, but he was ousted by the current Suchinda a month later...

Historically, Suchinda only served for a month before being ousted by Mechai in May.

Michai fared even worse; in less than a month, he was ousted by Anan's betrayal.

Of course, none of this matters. Wang Yaotang is used to it. Su Chinda privately confirmed that Myanmar was buying warships. After receiving a definite answer, he immediately said that Siam also wanted to buy them.

Siam's appetite grew; they wanted not only the latest version of the missile ship, but also the latest Type 05.

It is anti-ship, anti-aircraft, and has a helicopter platform. It was launched just two years ago and has been tested and integrated into actual combat. Although its displacement is only about 1500 tons, it is perfectly capable of operating in the Gulf of Thailand.

The Siamese navy's hypothetical enemy was the Annamese, and this combination had already proven its strength.

However, there is only one Type 037 missile ship, which cannot meet Siam's requirements. They want four ships to form a fleet combination with the Type 053.

Wang Yaotang agreed after only a brief consideration and offered a relatively low price: $20 million for the 037 missile version and $45 million for the 053 version with a helipad.

Don't think it's expensive. Buying directly from your hometown is indeed cheaper, but these kinds of military and national heavy weapons are never just a matter of price; they also represent politics.

It would be better to buy from Wang Yaotang; it's worth the extra money.

However, Wang Yaotang also made a request: Natuna Island has been developed by Chinese people for more than 200 years, and the rights and interests of Chinese people on Natuna Island should not be ignored because of the colonial issue.

Suqinda looked at Wang Yaotang with some surprise, suspecting that the neighbor to the north had some ulterior motives, and his expression was somewhat uncertain.

Wang Yaotang immediately understood what was going on and shook his head, saying, "Don't worry, it has nothing to do with the north. It's aimed at protecting the rights and interests of Chinese people in Southeast Asia. Everyone knows what has happened in Southeast Asia over the years, including Siam. As the saying goes, 'When you are poor, you should cultivate your own virtue; when you are rich, you should help others.' I feel that I should do something for the Chinese people in Southeast Asia."

Su Qinda looked somewhat embarrassed in the face of Wang Yaotang's gaze.

In Southeast Asia, Siam had the best policy towards Chinese people, but...

It's just a competition of who's worse. (End of Chapter)