Nanyang 1931: From piglets to giants

Chapter 138 New Base: Yangon
Yangon, Myanmar.

This place was even a relatively wealthy city before World War II. Historically, not all places had better lives for their people after the withdrawal of the colonists.

Myanmar is an extreme example.

Before World War II, this place was very rich. Except for Singapore, there was almost no place richer and wealthier than it in the whole of Southeast Asia.

The geographical environment here is very good, with rich natural resources and no large-scale soil and water loss like in the Malay Peninsula. Whether planting cash crops or rice, both can have a good harvest, and three crops can be harvested a year.

The mineral resources are rich. The copper, silver, oil and various gems alone are enough to make most adventurers who come here return with a full load.

The core of Myanmar is naturally Yangon.

"Read the newspaper, read the newspaper! Professor Zheng Yi has officially begun negotiations with the Governor-General of the Far East and the British Colonial Office. Yangon's tax collection is imminent! Yangon's tax collection is imminent!"

Early in the morning, the loud sound of newspaper vendors pierced the streets and alleys of Yangon.

Countless newspapers of all races, whether English, Hindi, Chinese, or Burmese, all had the same headline on their front pages today. In the photo, Zheng Yi looked particularly handsome while shaking hands and negotiating with British officials.

"Who? Professor Zheng? Could it be... the Chinese Professor Zheng from Penang? Kid, come on, give me a newspaper."

Zheng Yi is now Professor Zheng of the world, and naturally, it is not only Chinese who know him.

Yangon is a bit special. The main ethnic group in the city is neither Burmese nor Han Chinese, but Indians, who account for more than half of the population. These Indians are almost all lackeys of the British.

Zheng Yi himself didn't know that he had always left a very good impression in the eyes of Indians, especially the elites among them.

After all, he did support the Indian regime in Perak.

Moreover, his policy towards Perak in Malaya was generally good, especially after the Chinese withdrew from the mines and plantations in large numbers, and these old businesses returned to the hands of these Indians.

Although these people were not formal workers in Penang and did not have to comply with labor laws, and Zheng Yi did not buy insurance for them, he always insured them if they worked less than ten hours a day.

Moreover, they provided food and accommodation, and the conditions were pretty good. Basically, the Chinese workers ate the same thing as the Indian workers, without any discrimination.

These are the most basic things in Zheng Yi's eyes, but in the eyes of those Indians, this treatment is much better than that of the British.

It is precisely because there are a large number of Indians in Perak and even in Penang there are a large number of Indians working illegally.

Indians in Yangon, at least the upper elite class, actually know Zheng Yi very well, and they are also very familiar with the current development status of Penang.

"I heard that three years ago, Penang was just a small city with no industry, only able to dock British ships, refuel water, and do some entrepot trade. It had a population of only 300,000 to 400,000. Now, it seems to have become the largest city in Asia."

"Penang is indeed very developed. I once saw an electric razor at my host's house. It was amazing! Just place it on your face and it automatically shaves off your beard. I heard that this razor is from Penang and was manufactured by Professor Zheng."

Another Indian man nodded at the side and said: "It's more than just a razor. The hostess I serve has a very powerful juicer at home.

Any fruit can be placed inside, and there is a very powerful blade inside that spins and spins, and very quickly, the fruit can be squeezed into very, very delicious juice."

Another Indian said: "What you said is nothing. Have you noticed that in the past six months, the British in Yangon have been wearing clothes made of a very new material?"

"Yes, yes, yes, I know, I know. That kind of clothing is amazing. It's actually cool when you wear it, and it's also very sturdy."

"Those kinds of clothes are said to be made by Professor Zheng in Penang."

"Professor Zheng is known as the world's number one scientist. All of those British people admire him highly. Most importantly, he's a rare good person."

“Can there be good capitalists?”

"Hey, this Zheng Yi is no ordinary capitalist. Have you heard of the labor law? I have a friend who once went to Perak. After returning, he told me about the Penang labor law.
He said that in Penang, every worker has fixed weekly hours and a minimum wage. If there is more work, the boss will give overtime pay. I heard that even many British engineers want to work in Penang.

"He's not a capitalist, he's clearly a philanthropist."

"I'm not a philanthropist. What you said is nothing. I heard that in Penang, if you work hard and become a Penang resident, you can get a free house. It's a building with running water and electricity."

"How is that possible? A house with running water and electricity, and it's free for you?"

“Really? Every Penangite has one, and have you heard of it? Is it insured?”

"What is insurance?"

"That is to say, if you are from Penang, Penang will provide you with retirement care when you are old, Penang will provide you with medical treatment when you are sick, and Penang will even help you deliver your child."

"Hahaha, the more you exaggerate, the more outrageous it gets. How could such a good thing happen in the world? How much would it cost?"

"You know what? I heard that Professor Zheng is incredibly rich. There's no one richer than him in the entire world."

"Oh, God, is this the Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, who possesses a thousand hands and eyes, great powers, and compassion?"

"What Guanyin Bodhisattva? I heard there's a man in China who's also the son of God and the younger brother of Jesus. Do you think it could be Professor Zheng?"

"I see he is clearly Lord Shiva."

The religious beliefs in Yangon are very mixed. The locals believe in Buddhism, the British believe in God, the Indians believe in Hinduism and Islam, and the Chinese mostly believe in Mazu. With so many people believing in them, sometimes they all mix with each other.

"If Mr. Zheng takes over Yangon, will Yangon be able to develop as well as Penang?"

"I think so. Such a kind master must be better to us than the British."

"Oh~, praise God, are we going to have a good life too?"

"Don't be so happy too soon. Professor Zheng just said he wants to cover it. It's still unclear whether the British will agree."

"Oh, Sakyamuni, will the British reject Professor Zheng?"

"I think we should do something to express our welcome to Professor Zheng and put some pressure on the British at the same time."

"good idea."

The entire Indian elite society spent the whole morning connecting with each other and inquiring about Zheng Yi and Penang.

Rumors always get more and more outrageous. There's a saying in China that the moon is rounder abroad, and there's also a saying in India that the grass is greener outside.

The news spread back and forth, and in just half a day, these Indians actually deified Zheng Yi.

This nation is really weird in everything they do.

Some were praying to the gods, hoping that the gods would bless Zheng Yi to successfully obtain the contract rights from the British.

Some of them simply worshipped Zheng Yi. God knows where they got Zheng Yi's photo from, but they put it on the tree and started to kowtow.

As we all know, photos from this period are all in black and white.

That scene looked particularly strange.

Some people simply organized marches and strikes to put pressure on the Colonial Bureau in Yangon.

If Indians are like this, the Chinese in Yangon are naturally even more crazy.

The Chinese know Penang far better than the Indians do. In fact, those who can leave have already relocated there. Most of those who haven't left are unable to do so, having either settled in Yangon or simply owning property. If Zheng Yi were to truly take control of Yangon, would these Chinese be afforded special privileges? Would they be able to enter management, similar to Penang?

Within the morning, the Chinese community had already started celebrating with each other, and the pub owners were in such good spirits that they announced discounts on drinks.

Although the matter has not been finalized yet, many smart people can actually see the clues and know that this matter is definitely almost certain.

After all, for Penang, Zheng Yi is now actually a spiritual leader and rarely interferes with practical affairs. If something is uncertain and not 99% certain, you will definitely not see Zheng Yi shaking hands with the British in the newspapers.

Li Xiaoshi was now able to handle all foreign affairs on behalf of Zheng Yi.

A few days later, Hu Wenhu returned to Yangon from Penang and began to convene a meeting of Chinese people in Yangon and even throughout Myanmar who had certain financial strength or influence. It was said that even people from the northern Shan State rushed over.

At this point, all the Chinese in Myanmar knew that Zheng Yi’s plan to take over Yangon was a foregone conclusion.

This is indeed the case. This time, the British Colonial Office and even the entire Downing Street were extremely cooperative with Zheng Yi's request. It can even be said that they gave Zheng Yi whatever he wanted. The negotiations went so smoothly that it was unbelievable.

You know, since the economic crisis, most of Britain's colonies have become loss-making businesses. This is also the historical background for the British Labour Party to sell off citizens' land on a large scale after World War II.

The bureaucracy is becoming increasingly bloated, the indigenous people's national consciousness is rising, the cost of literature is increasing, the United States is eyeing its colonial market covetously, and under the economic crisis, the profitability of most colonies, which can only provide raw materials, is gradually declining.

Due to these reasons, Britain's colonies have all been money-losing in recent years, and Yangon is no exception.

But Penang is a real exception.

Not to mention the net profit of one million US dollars, the development of Penang itself has also driven a large number of industries in the Nanyang region. Zheng Yi himself has cooperative relationships with British Electric, Shell Oil, Persian Oil, and Royal Machinery.

Although they are all stealing British taxes, even shipping, and the large amount of construction machinery and various industrial raw materials that Penang has to import from the UK every year during its large-scale infrastructure construction, have already made British companies and finances profitable.

The demand for food even led to a significant increase in fiscal revenue in surrounding areas.

Although Britain has actually lost the administrative rights of Penang, Zheng Yi still invited Marshal MacArthur to build a base in Penang to fly aircraft, which is really embarrassing for Britain.

But the economic crisis.

Face is not that important.

The inside is still important.

Zheng Yi is the one who made money for them.

Anyway, the current colonial income in Yangon cannot cover the local colonial costs. Since Zheng Yi likes it, let him take it.

When the British heard that the first thing Zheng Yi did after taking Yangon was to build a railway, they were overjoyed.

He immediately said that you can take the city of Yangon if you like, and you can even expand the city in the future, but if you want to build a railway, you must give them 50% of the shares of the British Railway Company after the railway is completed.

Of course, their British Railways will also send technicians, engineers and others.

Apart from this, the British had no other demands. Zheng Yi said that he would take care of the taxes, and the Colonial Office said that everyone was one family and there was no need to worry about taxes.

Of course, Zheng Yi also promised to protect the original interests of the British in Yangon after taking over Yangon, and was even willing to co-govern with the British to a certain extent.
For example, the Yangon Police Station is still controlled by the British. Within three years, Zheng Yi and the Chinese will not excessively interfere in the grassroots governance here.

After all, this is a city where Indians are the majority ethnic group.

Whether Indians, Chinese, or British, they all welcomed Zheng Yi to come and take over Yangon. They all hoped that Zheng Yi could create another miracle and build Yangon as good as Penang.

Of course, that's impossible.

Zheng Yi has a different positioning for Penang and Yangon.

When Zheng Yi took over Penang, more than 90% of the population were Chinese. Now, more than 95% are Chinese, and most of the remaining 5% are Japanese.

In Yangon, more than half of the people are Indians, about 30% are Burmese, and the Chinese account for less than 10% of the total population. There were originally more than people, but now after being absorbed by Penang, there may not even be left.

In terms of numbers, they may not be as numerous as ethnic minorities like the Kachin.

The ethnic composition of this place is too complicated, not even as complicated as that of the Malay Peninsula. At least, apart from the Chinese, most of the people on the Malay Peninsula are Malays. He only needs to treat the Malays as kindly as possible, using both kindness and force.

The ethnic composition of Yangon is very diverse. There are many Indians in the city, but there are many Burmese outside the city. In addition to the Burmese, there are also many other ethnic minorities.
The terrain between the various ethnic groups is particularly complex, there is a lack of road connectivity, and there is even hatred between the ethnic groups.

It is difficult to govern effectively.

Very troublesome.

Moreover, Yangon Port has a dry season every year. The water is only 6-8 meters at its shallowest, making it impossible for large ships to berth. For this reason, Zheng Yi does not plan to develop large-scale industry in Yangon.

Zheng Yi positioned this place as Penang’s food security base. Its most important responsibility is to supply food to Penang and ensure its food security.

The supply of raw materials is just a matter of convenience.

At most, they would move some light industry there, such as the textile factory he cooperated with Toyota.

That’s all. Heavy industry, or any industry with a high premium that Zheng Yi needs to personally inquire about and pay attention to, cannot be moved here.

With this place as a base, Zheng Yi pays more attention to the Hakka people who are reclaiming wasteland and growing rice in other parts of Myanmar.

Of course, for the upcoming World War II, this will definitely be a very important main battlefield.

The Chinese Expeditionary Force was mainly sent to Burma. Once Yangon fell, the domestic war of resistance fell into a huge predicament where aid could not be transported in.

So there are three main reasons why Zheng Yi booked this place:

First, it is to use this place to ensure food security in Penang. As a food transit station, it will receive local rice from Myanmar and potatoes and corn from Yunnan via railways.

He spent tens of millions of dollars to build a railway, the main purpose of which was to transport potatoes and rice. This business would definitely be a loss, but issues like food security are not a loss-making matter.

Second, it was to use this railway, as well as the Burma Road built in advance for the purpose of building the railway, to support the motherland's war of resistance.

Historically, the New Burma Road was built in 1938. The Chinese in Southeast Asia shed blood and sweat for it, and the Nanyang Overseas Chinese Mechanic Team also left behind many heroic stories.

Zheng Yi paid for the construction of this road two years in advance, and even wanted to build a railway. If this railway can be built well, it will definitely be of great help to the overall situation of the domestic war of resistance in the future.

The third, of course, is to seize the expeditionary force in Burma and the command of the British and American Allied Forces there, and open up a second battlefield here to fight the Japanese.

But the importance of Yangon is definitely not comparable to that of Penang. In his opinion, Penang is his foundation and lifeline, and he would never let the Japanese invade even if he died.

Yangon is a satellite city of Penang, which can greatly ensure the security of Penang. It can also transport supplies to Penang through Yangon. Backed by the hinterland of Myanmar, it is more suitable for Britain and the United States to fight a naval battle and counterattack against the Japanese in this place.

This place is also a strategic military location. We will try our best to defend it when the time comes. But if we really can't defend it and lose it like in history, Zheng Yi can accept it.

After the Anti-Japanese War is over, the expeditionary force in this place will definitely belong to him.

Now, Hu Wenhu has been sent back. If nothing unexpected happens, he will be able to officially take office as the mayor of Yangon in a month or two.

(End of this chapter)