50s: Starting with a storage ring

Chapter 756 Entering Xia, one becomes Xia; entering Yi, one becomes Yi.

Secondly, the total Chinese population on Sulawesi Island exceeds 50.

Although the Chinese population is not dominant on Sulawesi, they hold the initiative in the economy and culture, and are more lenient in politics than on other islands.

Besides the Chinese, the inhabitants of Sulawesi Island are mainly composed of seven ethnic groups: Toala, Toraja, Bugi, Makassar, Minahasa, Mori, and Golundarun.

The Toala people live scattered and are a nomadic people living in the jungle.

The Toraja people are located in the central, southeastern, and eastern parts of the island. They have their own language, are mostly Christian, primarily agricultural, and belong to a newly civilized ethnic group.

The Phuket and Makassar people are Muslims, physically strong, energetic, and fair-skinned. They love gambling, feasting, and cockfighting. They live in the south, are very hardworking, and are skilled in making woven items, textiles, gold and silver filigree, and shipbuilding.

The Minahasa are a white ethnic group with a relatively Westernized lifestyle, and each village has a church and a school.

The Mori are a highland people who live in the east.

The Gorontalons live in the western and south-central parts of the northeastern peninsula. They are short in stature, have straight hair, and fair skin.

Sun Zhiwei's main reason for choosing this place is that the Javanese population here is small, while other ethnic groups are not among the world's mainstream ethnic groups, so there is a high possibility that they will be absorbed in the future.

How did our Chinese nation grow so powerful throughout history? Was it just by having children? Of course not.

It was our ancestors who conquered the surrounding barbarians generation after generation and assimilated the local people, which eventually led to the formation of the present-day Chinese nation.

Westerners value lineage, while we Chinese value culture. We become Chinese when we are in China, and we become barbarian when we are in China.

In Sun Zhiwei's view, if someone speaks Mandarin, writes in Chinese, wears traditional Chinese clothing, and follows traditional Chinese etiquette, then he is a member of the Chinese ethnic group. The more than 1000 million people from these seven ethnic groups on Sulawesi Island will eventually all be Chinese.

Today, one of the prominent Chinese families on Sulawesi Island also bears the surname Huang, and the current head of the family is Huang Yicong, who founded the Sinar Mas Group.

Huang Yicong is 65 years old this year. His Sinar Mas Group has a highly profitable company called "Sinar Mas Power Essence Co., Ltd."

This is an edible oil company he co-owns with the Salim Group, and it is also the largest edible oil company in Java.

But you need to know what the Salim Group does. The chairman of the Salim Group is named Lim Siew Leong, the richest man in Java.

Lin Shaoliang had saved Hassan Ding, a leader of the Dutch resistance, in his early years, and they became close friends.

Hassan Ding was the father-in-law of Ghana, the founding father of Java.

Through Hassan Ding's introduction, Lin Shaoliang became acquainted with Garno and began to use his own assets to strongly support their resistance movement against the Netherlands, even going so far as to personally escort their weapons.

During this period, Liem Sioe Liong became friends with many future officers of the Javanese military, and after Hato came to power, Liem Sioe Liong became Hato's business spokesperson.

This position is similar to that of Hu Xueyan during the Manqing era, a "red-hat merchant" (a merchant with official connections).

It is said that the Chinese community was severely suppressed during Harto's era, but that refers to ordinary Chinese. Lim Siew Leong was not affected much during this period, and his position was even more secure.

Putting everything else aside, Liem Sioe Liong is truly talented in business. Backed by the Hatoku Island Investment Corporation, he has taken over all the profitable industries on Java Island.

Because of Liem Sioe Liong's strong economic position on Java, Huang Yicong, who rose to prominence during the Harto era, had no choice but to partner with Liem Sioe Liong if he wanted to expand his business on Java.

This is the origin of "Golden Light Powerful Essence Co., Ltd." Given how profitable "Golden Light Powerful Essence Co., Ltd." was, how could a powerful figure like Lin Shaoliang not covet it? And Huang Yicong, who held half the shares, naturally wouldn't be happy either.

By last year, the two sides had developed many conflicts regarding the company's operations and other aspects.

Lin Shaoliang was a Chinese business leader backed by Harto, leaving Huang Yicong with virtually no room to resist.

In the end, he had no choice but to sell his shares in "Golden Power Essence Co., Ltd." to Lim Siew Leong and escape from Java Island.

Sun Zhiwei also felt that Huang Yicong's decision to leave his hometown of Sulawesi and go to Lin Shaoliang's home turf, Java, to expand his business was a mistake.

However, he did not come away empty-handed. Years of operating the edible oil business earned Huang Yicong market recognition, and many people called him the "Edible Oil King".

The industry’s good reputation made it much easier for him to return to Sulawesi and rebuild his edible oil business.

On the other hand, Huang Yicong was also lucky, because he had just escaped from Jakarta when Hato was purged by Sun Zhiwei.

Meanwhile, Jakarta, the business center of the Salim Group, was engulfed in war. Not only did Liem Sioe Liong's Salim Group's business plummet, but many of its industries on Java Island were also destroyed in the war.

Later, Sun Zhiwei will find an opportunity to go to Sulawesi and meet Huang Yicong, the Chinese leader of Sulawesi.

He needs to change Huang Yicong's political philosophy; focusing solely on business will not lead to success.

Ultimately, any business must have official protection to succeed, or it's just a lamb to the slaughter. His own experience in Java is proof of that.

Java's No. 1 Edible Oil Company, which had been painstakingly built up over nearly 20 years, was snatched away by someone else. This is a lesson that will never be forgotten.

Although Huang Yicong's newly opened edible oil company is rapidly capturing the market, the hardship of making a comeback is something no businessman would want to experience.

He's already over 60 years old. Starting a business after retirement is not a pleasant experience.

If Huang Yicong were to enter politics now, this would be a very good time.

In the future, Huang Yicong will expand his political career, and his son will provide him with financial support through his business. This will be a very good development path.

Huang Yicong's son, Huang Hongnian, is no ordinary person either; his experiences can be described as legendary.

Huang Hongnian's early life can be summarized in several decades.

He was born in Sulawesi in 1948 and lived there for 10 years; then he returned to his home country to study, which coincided with his time as a sent-down youth, which took another 10 years.

After that, he returned to Sulawesi to follow his father into business and quickly rose to prominence as a rising star in the business world. This is the third decade.
At the age of thirty, Huang Hongnian went to Singapore and spent ten years there developing and expanding his business, becoming a leader in the business world.

Now, having heard the call for reform and opening up, Huang Hongnian has shifted his focus to Hong Kong Island and is now venturing into the mainland.

Cheng Chia-fa of Cathay Bank had a good relationship with Huang Hong-nian and provided financial support to Huang Hong-nian's business on several occasions.

It's not that the Huang family is poor; they're just young people with high aspirations, always wanting to make a name for themselves.

Therefore, Huang Hongnian never borrowed money from his family's bank, "Java International Bank," when running his business.

(End of this chapter)