Chapter 199 Investigating Borneo and deceiving the British
On August 1, 1906, Li Qiwei took He Yujie, Xia Yuanzhen, and Xu Qitai, escorted by Li San, on a British merchant ship to Borneo.
Now that it is summer vacation, Li Qiwei is thinking of going to Borneo to investigate and relax his daily tense nerves.
He contacted Li Qiguo in advance, and in the name of an educational inspection team, they made an appointment to meet in Kuching, Sarawak, northern Borneo, on August 5.
The high-speed ship, which can reach a speed of 25 knots, is speeding forward in the endless South China Sea.
The scenery here is completely different from the North Sea in Europe. It makes Li Qiwei and others feel relaxed and happy, but also has a sense of intimacy.
He is educating a few people on the current situation in Borneo to facilitate future development here.
Although Sarawak and Sabah in northern Borneo were British colonies, the British did not send people to directly administer them.
Both of these places are controlled by two forces related to the United Kingdom.
In 1881, British businessman Dent established the British North Borneo Provisional Association Co., Ltd. in Sabah.
After more than 20 years of development, it has completely occupied the current Sabah area.
In 1888, Sabah officially became a British protectorate until now.
Sarawak historically belonged to Brunei.
In 1841, the Englishman Brooke was appointed governor of Sarawak for assisting the Sultan of Brunei in suppressing the rebellion.
As a result, the next year, Brooke declared Sarawak independent from Brunei and became the Brooke Dynasty, and the dynasty was also recognized by the United Kingdom and the United States.
And Brooke himself became the first prince. He was British, so of course he did not dare to call himself king, otherwise it would be disrespectful to Britain.
This is also due to his British identity. If the Chinese had done this, the British would have sent warships to suppress it.
Later, with the help of the British, the territory of the Brooke Dynasty expanded rapidly, forming today's Sarawak.
The current second Prince of Brooke is Brooke's nephew, Charles, who succeeded to the throne in 1868.
Brunei has also become a British colony. Although it is still a sultanate in name, the country's internal affairs, foreign affairs, national defense and other powers are in the hands of the British.
The area has also changed from originally having the entire Borneo to now only 5,000 square kilometers, which is the territory of Brunei in later generations.
The southern part of Borneo, which is now the Dutch colony, is mainly high mountains and virgin forests, which are not suitable for large-scale human settlement.
The people living inside are some primitive tribesmen who are not yet civilized.
Therefore, the south is far less prosperous than the north, which is also where the largest number of Chinese people gather.
After Li Qiwei introduced the history of Borneo, He Yujie and others were filled with sighs.
Whether it is Lanfang Republic or Brunei, they have proved the truth that if they fall behind, they will be beaten, and weak countries have no dignity.
At its peak, Lan Fong occupied one-fifth of Borneo, and at its peak, Brunei occupied almost the entire Borneo.
But now, of the two countries, one has perished, and the other is only a palm-sized place left and has become a colony of other countries.
It’s simply miserable enough to describe it.
On August 5, the ship with Li Qiwei and others arrived in Kuching safely, and successfully entered the city under the reception of Li Qiguo.
Kuching is the oldest city in Sarawak. It is located in the west of Sarawak, only 35 kilometers away from the coastline. It is known as the "City on the Water".
The Sarawak River, which leads directly to the South China Sea, passes through the city and divides Kuching into two parts, the north and the south.
To the south is the center of Kuching. Various buildings built by British colonists are here. It is also the political, commercial and cultural center of Kuching.
Currently, Kuching has a population of about 200,000, of which 50,000 are Chinese alone, making them a force that cannot be ignored.
The current Prince Charles once publicly published an article in the "Sarawak Gazette" saying: "Without these Chinese people, we can't accomplish anything."
During his tenure as prince, Charles witnessed firsthand the business capabilities of the Chinese and their hard-working spirit in reclaiming wasteland.
Compared with the Chinese, the local indigenous people are as stupid as monkeys.
Charles deeply realized that in order for the kingdom to prosper, it was necessary to introduce a large number of Chinese to develop agriculture and commerce.
For this reason, in 1874, he published news about Chinese immigrants in the Sarawak Gazette:
“There is no doubt that Borneo can only develop in the future by relying on the Chinese. ”
"Because their love for trade is the most precious resource developed by a country."
Following this, the Brooke dynasty introduced various policies to attract Chinese immigrants.
For example, the state funded the reimbursement of the ship fare for all bosses and coolies coming to Kuching, and gave the pioneers a 99-year lease of land use rights.
Charles also signed a contract with Liu Jianfa, the richest man in Kuching at the time and a Chaozhou native, to introduce farmers from the Chaoshan area to Sarawak to cultivate gambier and pepper.
So, in 1871, there were only more than 3,000 Chinese in Kuching. By 1900, the number had reached 45,000.
Today, there are more than 50,000 people.
However, even though there are so many Chinese, there is not even a decent Chinese school in Kuching.
Although there were one or two in the past, they all disappeared for various reasons.
On the one hand, it is because most of the Chinese coming to Kuching now are farmers, and they do not pay attention to the education of the next generation.
Who has the heart to go to school when food and clothing have not been completely solved yet.
On the other hand, it was because, let alone Kuching, even the Qing Dynasty had not yet popularized education. How could such a barren land be better?
And the British colonists were not good people and would teach the Chinese knowledge for free.
What they are thinking about is how to squeeze the wealth of the Chinese people. How can they cheat even though one or two of them have become civilized through education.
This leads to the fact that although there are many Chinese in Kuching, there are not even primary schools, let alone universities.
Everything had to wait until the success of the Revolution of 1911 before the situation gradually improved, and various new schools began to be established in Nanyang.
When Li Qiguo told this information, He Yujie and the others suddenly felt a chill in their hearts.
It was promised that millions of overseas Chinese in Nanyang would be students waiting to be fed as long as they raised their arms?
The psychological gap is too big.
Any county in the Qing Dynasty would probably be a hundred times better than Kuching.
Li Qiguo was also helpless: "This is why I want to ask Principal Li to take action."
“It is impossible for ordinary people to have the ability to run a good education in Kuching.”
“But it’s not possible if we don’t do it.”
“Do we have to watch these teenagers Will a 20-year-old child spend his whole life growing peppers and working as a coolie for foreigners?”
“There is no decent school in Nanyang now, let alone a famous university.”
“My father’s goal is to vigorously develop education with Borneo as the core.”
“Because King Charles of Sarawak is a foreigner who is relatively friendly to the Chinese.”
“In setting up education here, we will encounter the least resistance and have the best chance of success.”
“Give millions of overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia a hope, give a hope to the children.”
Li Qiguo’s words were so profound that even Li Qiwei was deeply moved.
With the other person’s family background, there is absolutely no need to do such a thankless thing.
However, Li Qiguo's father, and himself, did just that.
Li Qiwei knew that the father and son had absolutely no selfish motives. They just held very simple values: they hoped that the Nanyang Chinese would live a better life.
So, no matter how difficult the conditions are, Li Qiwei is not afraid.
What countless Chinese lack is not money or personnel, but a correct direction.
As long as one person takes the lead, with the diligent and enterprising spirit of overseas Chinese, Li Qiwei believes that he will be able to lead everyone and create a miracle.
"Everyone, there is no need to be discouraged and disappointed."
"Tall buildings are rising from the ground."
"Although the road is long, the journey is about to begin." "In my dictionary, Li Qiwei, there has never been "Difficulty"
"I will let all Chinese in Nanyang know that we Chinese can accomplish anything!"
Li Qiwei's sonorous and powerful words shocked Li Qiguo, He Yujie and others and were infected by his courage.
For a moment it felt like it was no big deal.
If there are no schools, then build schools; if there are no teachers, then recruit teachers.
Li Qiguo said excitedly: "Principal Li, you are really the great hero of all overseas Chinese in Nanyang."
"No, no, no, no!" Li Qiwei quickly denied it for three consecutive times.
This Li Qiguo is good at everything, but his praise is too disgusting. Maybe this is the secret of his success.
“You must have confidence, but you must also face the difficulties.”
“Brother Li, I want to tell you in advance that building a school in Kuching cannot be accomplished overnight and requires long-term planning.”
< br>Li Qiguo nodded quickly, "That's for sure, I understand."
"The Nanyang Chinese have survived for hundreds of years, they don't care about the past few years."
So, under the leadership of Li Qiguo, a local snake, Li Qiwei and others visited various areas of Kuching.
The city of Kuching has crisscrossed canals and green water. Various small boats shuttle between them, carrying rubber, coconuts, special fruits and so on.
Li Qiwei and others took a boat to browse the entire city.
At this time, Li Qiwei suddenly pointed to a place on the other side of the river and said, "Where is that place?"
Li Qiguo and others looked at the place he pointed to. The environment there was beautiful and it was a piece of land. On the hillside, you can overlook the King's Palace on the other side of the Sarawak River.
"That's the Fengshan Temple, which was built by the Fujian gang in Sarawak more than ten years ago."
"The Fujian gang is very united here and is a big force." Li Qiguo explained road.
Li Qiwei nodded. He liked that place very much and could consider building a school in the future.
After the tour, Li Qiguo took a few more people to the King's Mansion, preparing to meet Prince Charles.
This is the advantage of having a local snake. Otherwise, if Li Qiwei had to rely on himself, it might take a lot of effort to figure out the situation here.
As the ruler of the Kingdom of Sarawak, Charles has been the King of Sarawak for nearly 40 years. Here, he can be said to be a man of his word.
Of course, everything depends on the support of the United Kingdom behind him, otherwise he would have been overthrown eight hundred times.
So, Charles, the king of Sarawak, is actually equivalent to the governor, but for political reasons, the United Kingdom agreed to give him the throne.
The King's Palace is a typical British-style building located in the center of Kuching. It is the most magnificent building in Kuching.
And it is close to the river. If something uncontrollable happens, Charles can just take a boat and leave, both offensive and defensive.
Ridgway's arrival was welcomed by Charles.
The 63-year-old Charles has no signs of aging and is in good spirits.
He was not overbearing and arrogant. Instead, he was very kind and said with a smile: "Hello, Dr. Bruce."
"I have heard of your name."
< br>“I was very surprised when my friends in the UK told me about you.”
"When did a genius like you appear in the Qing Dynasty?"
Li Qiwei also smiled and replied: "Hello, His Majesty Charles."
"Thank you for the compliment."
His title made Charles very happy, so his attitude became better.
"Bruce, Li has told me everything about your purpose of coming."
"To be honest, I am very supportive."
"My country doesn't even have decent schools. As a king, this is very derelict in my duty."
"The Chinese are the best here Race, for the development of the kingdom, I need higher quality Chinese, so education is imperative."
Li Qiguo, He Yujie and others were very excited. This old king must be too talkative.
It seems that their next work will go smoothly.
However, Li Qiwei was calm and calm. He did not believe that Charles would be so kind.
It is better to expect the colonists to be kind than to expect them to perish tomorrow.
Sure enough, Charles suddenly changed his tune and said: "But, you also know that Sarawak is a small country with scarce resources."
"The country is no longer able to allocate funds for education. Too many.”
“Even if you raise your own funds to build a school, it will require various supporting facilities, land, administrative management, infrastructure, etc.”
"This is a lot of money."
"I am also worried about this."
"Bruce, you come from the Qing Dynasty, you must know the situation in Asia. Regarding this, you Is there any good idea?”
Good guy, I’m waiting here.
Not to mention Li Qiwei, even He Yujie understood. Isn’t this just paying protection money?
It sounds so nice, and it also comes with supporting infrastructure.
Europeans really have a way of grabbing money.
However, Li Qiwei smiled. It was time to give him a pillow when he felt sleepy.
"Your Majesty, Charles, you are absolutely right."
"I happen to still have some companies and industries in China."
"I think Sarawak is a very good place, with beautiful environment, clear politics and abundant labor force."
"I am going to move all domestic companies here."
"I also I want to contribute to the country of Sarawak.”
At this time, Charles couldn’t sit still. He originally just wanted to make a fortune, but it was different now.
If the other party moves the company here, wouldn’t there be a steady stream of tax revenue?
In comparison, building schools is a trivial matter. Just build as many schools as you like.
Next, the two parties discussed the tax standards.
One is a king and the other is a great scientist.
The two of them were just like the market man, constantly haggling. Business is so simple and unpretentious.
Finally, Li Qiwei agreed to a very harsh condition.
That is, his company needs to pay a minimum tax. Even if the company goes bankrupt, it still has to pay this amount.
But if the company makes normal profits, it will pay taxes in proportion as normal.
Li Qiwei pretended to be heartbroken and accepted this condition, making Charles think he had taken a big advantage.
Charles had a handle on Li Qiwei and knew that he really wanted to build a school here.
He thought he was standing on the second level, but little did he know that Li Qiwei was standing on the atmosphere.
Now Li Qiwei could logically move all his domestic industries to Borneo.
Before, there were various constraints in China, but here, companies can work freely.
As for taxes and so on, Li Qiwei looked at Charles and sneered in his heart: "I just want to see how many years your Brooke dynasty can last."
"When the time comes, even the capital and profits will be given to me. Spit it out, that is the wealth of my city of science”
(End of this chapter)