Nanyang 1931: From piglets to giants

Chapter 195: Japanese Conspiracy
Hei Gu Ren, Du Yuesheng?
Hei Gu Ren is a big boss of the Hongmen, the founder of the Hong Kong Island society Heji, and the boss of the local gangs in Hong Kong Island. In the future, all the Hong Kong Island societies with the word "He" in their names are basically his disciples.

As for Du Yuesheng, there is no need for introduction. I am afraid there are few Chinese who don’t know him.

"You two masters, you are indeed very powerful. You were able to find me and even had the courage to look for me. I wonder what advice you have for me?"

Du Yuesheng didn't say anything, but Hei Gu Ren said anxiously, "I came here to ask you to save my life."

"Help? Save whose life? Whose life can I save?"

“Save the lives of 150 million people in Hong Kong!”

"what?"

Wang Qiaoyun couldn't help but frown and shook her head, saying, "How could I have such ability?"

"Sister Yun, we're out of food."

Hei Gu Ren smiled bitterly and said, "I have accurate information. Of the 95 dan of rice originally stored in Hong Kong Island, the Japanese army has taken away 80 dan for military rations."

Wang Qiaoyun: "You mean, there are only 15 dan of rice on the market in Hong Kong Island right now?"

Hei Gu Ren nodded.

Wang Qiaoyun couldn't help but frown when she heard this. Unconsciously, she didn't know whether she was asking someone or muttering to herself, "How can 15 dan of grain be enough to feed 150 million people? Will the Japanese army...will they bring in grain from outside?"

Behind him, a young man couldn't help but sigh when he heard this: "If the Japanese army really wanted to bring in food, why did they have to transport the 800,000 tons of rice? I think the Japanese army is really crazy."

But the man was only about thirty years old, dressed in military uniform, but he was missing a leg. He used a wooden stick to make a prosthetic leg, and his hand seemed to have an old injury.

"General Chen, you're here."

It turned out that this person was Chen Ce, also known as the Broken-legged General, the Nationalist government's plenipotentiary representative in Hong Kong Island.

To some extent, he should be considered Wang Qiaoyun's boss.

If Wang Qiaoyun was not there, he should have been the leader of the remaining rebels, but since Wang Qiaoyun came, this man naturally had to stand aside.

After all, this is Hong Kong Island. To put it bluntly, the situation is somewhat special. The people from Chongqing are far less powerful than those from Penang.

Before the fall of Hong Kong, everything was in order, so naturally Wang Qiaoyun listened to him. However, after the fall, he became the one who listened to Wang Qiaoyun.

Of course, Wang Qiaoyun knows her own business. She also knows that he is just a flag, or in other words, a goal. Everyone is doing this for the sake of Zheng Yi behind her, but in fact, it is just a slim hope.

Therefore, no matter big or small, Wang Qiaoyun always respects Chen Ce's opinions.

"Gentlemen, is there any way to get out of Hong Kong Island?"

Upon hearing this, Du Yuesheng nodded and said, "I've already arranged for the Japanese troops at the port. Sending a few people to Macau shouldn't be a problem. However, if only a few people leave, I'm afraid it won't help the situation in Hong Kong at all."

Wang Qiaoyun: "What do you mean? Can you get a large quantity of rice?"

Du Yuesheng shook his head: "I can't get it. I don't have the ability to do it. If I really get it, it will just benefit the Japanese devils. The rice will definitely not come in. The only way is to find a way to get people out."

"If we can transport 70 people out, and leave half of them, then Hong Kong Island's food crisis, while not entirely resolved, will at least have enough to eat."

As we all know, Hong Kong Island had a population of about 150 million before it was occupied by Japan.

After Japan surrendered, the population of Hong Kong was reduced to only 70.

No one knows where the remaining 70 people went, and there is no specific statistics. But at this moment, Du and Hei are actually planning to transport these 70 people directly out.

Wang Qiaoyun: "Transporting 700,000 people? What does that mean? How will they be transported? Where will they be transported to?"

Du Yuesheng: "Macau, and only Macau, is safe now. To be honest, I have already discussed this with the Japanese."

What we talked about was not that surprising. Du Yuesheng was a typical man who had his feet in several relationships and was friends with everyone.

"The Japanese army did not dare to attack Macau because the Portuguese government threatened Japan that if Japan dared to attack Macau, they would ask the Brazilian government to expel the 300,000 Japanese expatriates in Brazil."

"Macau itself has no strategic value, so the Japanese army decided not to attack Macau. Now, it has become the only pure land in Asia that is not disturbed by war."

Wang Qiaoyun frowned upon hearing this and said, "Can Macau support so many people? And how can I help?"

Hei Gu Ren: "Macau certainly can't afford it on its own. In fact, people in Macau are already starving to death."

Macau's development during this period was extremely distorted. Because it was the only pure land in Asia, all the rich people ran there, including traitors and bandits, who also transferred their ill-gotten gains to Macau.

This led to the extreme prosperity of Macau's financial industry during this period, and a large number of casinos were also established during this period.

However, due to the poor land and dense population, and the interruption of sea transportation, the Japanese did not have enough food to eat, and the management of rice circulation was extremely strict.

This resulted in the fact that although the place was prosperous, the price of rice was extremely high, and people were starving to death in large numbers.

On one side there are lights, wine and women, and a life of decadence and extravagance; on the other side there are starving people everywhere, and people are eating their own children.

There are already signs of this happening. If we send another batch of 70 refugees...

There is no food in Hong Kong Island, is there any in Macau?

"Macau certainly can't support so many people, but if... you can step up and transfer as many of these people as possible to Penang, then we will naturally have a way to survive."

Wang Qiaoyun: "Transfer to Penang? How? Will the Japanese allow it?"

Du Yuesheng: "The Japanese will definitely give in."

Wang Qiaoyun: "The Japanese will definitely give in? How could they possibly..."

Halfway through the conversation, Wang Qiaoyun also realized: Penang is also unable to be self-sufficient in food.

Although Japan hadn't officially attacked Penang yet, with hundreds of thousands of Japanese residents, who knows how many spies they might have. The Japanese knew Penang was a difficult place to conquer, or at least a difficult place to land and rule. It was filled with tall buildings, military training, a ridiculously high rate of gun ownership, and even underground tunnels.

They bombarded the ships with artillery, bombed them with planes, and fired mortars at them. The Japanese were so arrogant that they were about to fly into the sky. They would definitely not be afraid of Zheng Yi.

But the Chinese are still very powerful, and Tao Jun and the eight hundred warriors underground in Pattani have already started teaching them a lesson.

If they were really allowed to land, any military general with a little common sense would know that there would be no street fighting.

Then they will definitely use the same tactics they used against Hong Kong Island: first scare you, then bomb you, and finally find a way to cut off your food and water supply and force you to sign a document of surrender.

Although the fighting had not yet begun, no Japanese soldier would think that Alor Setar could not be taken.

Penang is a place that cannot even provide its own fresh water, has almost zero agricultural production, but has more than five million mouths to feed.

Why fight them? Just let them starve to death or die of thirst.

The British are finished.

The Americans have also been driven away.

The entire Pacific Ocean already belongs to Japan.

Of course, they also knew that Zheng Yi had specially stored a lot of food in Penang, but how long would this food last?
Although Zheng Yi has always emphasized that the Americans will be able to fight back in a year, the Japanese side thought he was bragging and did not believe it at all.

So now in the eyes of these Japanese, if Penang’s population continues to increase, it will not be a good thing for Penang, but will definitely be a disaster.

Furthermore, the population of over one million in Hong Kong Island is also a burden for the Japanese, and they cannot afford to support it.

There was no agriculture, no industry, and what was left after the British left was a mess. Even if they wanted to catch people to screw screws, there were not enough factories.

If Penang wants it, then of course we can give it to Penang.

They even saved the cost of killing people, so the travel expenses must be paid by Penang, and they may even be able to get some money from Penang.

The Japanese governor of Hong Kong Island was Rensuke Isogai, one of the very few in the army who was not very good at fighting and always lost, but was very good at economics, or in other words, colonial plunder.

This person called Hei Gu Ren and Du Yuesheng to negotiate for this very reason, because he also knew that Hong Kong Island has a strong gang culture, and these people will sooner or later become the main force causing trouble. Lack of food is a major problem, and no economic policy can create food.

Instead of waiting until problems arise before suppressing them, it is better to send away those who are most capable of causing trouble.

It just so happens that Wang Qiaoyun is not the woman known as Zheng Yi. Can she represent Zheng Yi?
Then go find her.

That's probably what it means.

Of course, to do this, Wang Qiaoyun needs to take the initiative to step forward. Without Zheng Yi's credit endorsement, if the Japanese want to pack up and transport the people to Macau, the people will definitely not cooperate. Portugal will not dare to take these 70 people. This requires Zheng Yi's reputation to guarantee it.

Culturally, the people of Hong Kong Island and the Chinese in Southeast Asia were actually quite similar during this period, so Zheng Yi's name was still useful.

In this case, Wang Qiaoyun would have to step forward, give up her guerrilla warfare, and become a public figure under the spotlight.

There was definitely no need to think about safety, and she also had to worry about whether the Japanese would kidnap her and threaten Zheng Yi.

In other words, if this thing is to be done, it will mean that Isogai Rensuke will reduce the burden, Penang will increase the burden, and Wang Qiaoyun will have to bear the risks, with almost no benefits.

But if Wang Qiaoyun doesn't do it.

Guess why Rensuke Isogai came to find her through these two underworld bosses?

Losing the support of the people and affecting his reputation are secondary. Isogai Lianjie can even instigate and shift the blame for the basic contradiction of insufficient food onto Zheng Yi.

Aren’t you a leader of the Nanyang Chinese?

So are the Chinese on Hong Kong Island considered Nanyang Chinese (in fact, they were considered so in that era)?
Through the mouths of the Hongmen and Qing Gang, this news spread throughout the city. What would happen if the people in the city knew that only Mr. Zheng could save their lives and Zheng Yi was unwilling to save them?
This is a conspiracy.

Aren’t you, Zheng Yi, good at fighting economic and food wars with us Japanese? Are you trying to starve us Japanese to death?

Then let’s see who starves to death first.

Wang Qiaoyun even thought that if Zheng Yi dared to accept these 700,000 people, there might be another 1.7 million or even 7 million people in Hong Kong Island in the future, until Zheng Yi refused to accept it.

But she didn't answer...

After a moment of hesitation, Hei Gu Ren knelt down in front of her.

"Sister Yun, we also know that the Japanese are imitating the Mongols and are implementing a siege strategy that prioritizes civilians like us. However, this involves the lives of 700,000 people, or even 1.5 million people in Hong Kong."

"Please, please save us. As long as we can survive, we can do anything. We promise to follow your lead, Mr. Zheng and the Second Madam."

After that, he performed a three-and-a-half-stick incense ceremony and said, "Two pine branches split left and right, and in the middle of the festival, there are red flowers blooming in the pavilion of brotherhood. I heard that Mr. Zheng is the leader of the Hongmen sect. Please, save my brothers."

On the side, Du Yuesheng also sighed, slowly took two steps back, and knelt down to Wang Qiaoyun together, but did not say anything.

Call it moral kidnapping or hooliganism, the problem of Hong Kong Island is here. At the critical moment of life and death, there is no food to eat, so why the hell do you still have any face?

Of course, Hei Gu Ren and Du Yuesheng would never starve to death. Du Yuesheng was okay, as he was also an outsider in Hong Kong Island. Hei Gu Ren really had hundreds of thousands of laborers under his command.

If there really was no food, he would have no choice but to lead his brothers to fight against the Japanese.

"Don't be like this, you guys... I... Hey~ I want to see Isogai Rensuke. I need to send a telegram to that person first to decide whether it's possible or not."

After saying that, he turned around and said to Chen Ce, "General Chen, if I don't come back alive after this trip, the guerrillas on Hong Kong Island will be handed over to you. At this time, I hope you can put aside your party prejudices."

Chen Ce: "I understand. It's fucking time now, so it doesn't matter what party it is."

(End of this chapter)