HongKong1960

Chapter 2: The Qing Gang's Big Shot

“You stop right there!” I yelled, rushing forward to confront him.

The moment I shouted, the two huge guys in long gowns standing next to the slick-haired youth instantly jumped up and glared at me. My heart immediately sank. Even though I wasn’t in the triad world, working in a teahouse meant I saw all types of people, and those guys in long gowns? You just didn’t mess with them!

Back then, they were referred to as Shanghai Elites (****) or 'White-So’ guys (*** - Bak Seung Yan), mostly disciples of the Green Gang. They had numbers and money; you absolutely couldn't cross them.

Sure enough, the guy grabbed a plate and flung it at me. I ducked just in time, but one of the hulking bodyguards shoved me hard, sending me tumbling to the floor. Ah Fung immediately rushed over to help me up.

“I'll f**king end this busboy! Playing the hero to save the girl, huh? If I don’t cripple you today, I’ll stop showing my face in Kwun Chung!” The slick-haired youth straightened his long gown, revealing a shiny dagger tucked into his waistband!

I’d never seen anything like this before. I scrambled backward, terrified. The manager and some of the older, regular customers quickly stepped forward to plead on my behalf.

“Young Master Wong, please, let it go. The lad is just green, don't take it to heart!”

It turned out this guy was Wong Yuen-Ban, the son of Wong Kam-Hung, a senior figure in the Green Gang hierarchy. His father had made his start in the opium trade and now ran several companies and nightclubs in Mong Kok, commanding countless followers. This Wong Yuen-Ban, emboldened by his father's power, ran several 'powder dens' (fan dang - drug stalls) around Kwun Chung and Tiu Keng Leng. He was reckless and notorious, having ruined countless young girls. Getting involved with a rich brat like him was terrible luck for me.

Thankfully, there were a few well-connected uncles in the teahouse who stepped in. Wong Yuen-Ban finally backed off and put his knife away. Despite my fear, I stood my ground, shielding Ah Fung behind me.

“You f**king suk jai (i***t)! I won’t touch you here, in front of all these uncles. But the minute you walk out that door, I promise you 'three cuts and six holes' (san dou luk dung - to be stabbed to death)!” Wong Yuen-Ban spat at me.

With that, he stormed off, leaving his two massive henchmen outside the teahouse door. They stood there, hands tucked into their robes where their knives were hidden, waiting. They weren't moving.

I was freaking out. I had never dealt with anything like this. The manager and the uncles advised me that the guy was a beast, and as long as his men were outside, Ah Fung and I shouldn’t step foot out of the teahouse.

Ah Fung called the police. A plainclothes detective and two uniformed officers from the Kwun Chung station arrived. Just as we sighed in relief, the officers started chatting and smoking with the two toughs waiting outside the door!

When I nervously dared to ask the 'A-Sir' (officer) what was going on, the detective actually shoved me aggressively and yelled, “You damn sui jai (loser)! They’re standing outside having a smoke, what the hell’s it got to do with you? Cause any more trouble and I’ll arrest you for filing a false report!”

That night, Ah Fung and I huddled inside the teahouse. We locked the doors and nervously watched those two menacing thugs through the windows until they finally left late that night. Only then did I dare to sneak out with Ah Fung through the back door.

With my limited experience, I couldn't understand why the detective acted like that. Of course, I would later learn: that was simply the way things were in that era.

The next day, everyone at the teahouse advised me to stop antagonizing Wong Yuen-Ban. They said he hadn't actually harmed Ah Fung, so I should just lay low and not stick my neck out. "That kid has killed people in the street before. Just bite your tongue and don't push him!"

But the brat kept showing up at the teahouse every day. Each time, he'd either flirt crudely with Ah Fung or physically harass her! He even demanded she accompany him to the Kwun Chung cinema. Ah Fung and I endured it, trying to keep a low profile and not offend him in any way.

Sadly, in a heartless age like that, simply enduring and backing down does nothing. I just learned that too late.

It was a Sunday. Ah Fung had the day off and asked me to volunteer with her at the Catholic Church. I was delayed because my mother was in the hospital.

When I finished up at the hospital and went to find Ah Fung, the worst happened...

Wong Yuen-Ban and his gang went to the church and cornered Ah Fung. They actually violated her—one after another—right there, in front of the people at the church. Unable to bear the humiliation, Ah Fung jumped from an upper floor of the church building.

When I finally arrived, all I saw was a pool of blood on the ground and Ah Fung's body wrapped in a white sheet...

My whole world turned to black and white. The roses I had bought for her slipped from my hands, lying on the ground, as red as the blood beneath the sheet. The innocent, nascent feelings I had at eighteen were instantly framed in a black-and-white photograph of tragedy.

“Ah Fung!” I cried out, but there was no calling her back.

Afterward, Ah Fung's parents cried hysterically. The Kwun Chung Police Station opened a file and arrested Wong Yuen-Ban and his crew.