Chapter 11: I Am the Best Example

The entire conference hall was enveloped in a deathly silence. Everyone stood there, staring blankly at Zhou Ming on the stage, as if they were petrified. It was as though Zhou Ming's words were not spoken but were some sort of petrifying incantation.

Even Zhang Zuo, the spokesman for the Hong Kong government, and Guan Sheng, who had just passed by, gaped in disbelief at Zhou Ming. At that moment, their only thought was: Is this person insane? How can he speak like this?

They couldn't understand Zhou Ming's mindset. With everyone in the hall cursing mainland China, creating a united front of hostility, one would expect him to calm the situation, explain more, and stabilize the environment. How could he start by angrily cursing everyone? Wasn't this just adding fuel to the fire and exacerbating the already intense class conflict?

As the saying goes, "Those who do not perish in silence will erupt in silence." After a brief moment of silence, the hall erupted like a volcano.

"What beasts are you talking about? I think you're the real beast that has forgotten your roots! Your entire family is a bunch of beasts that have forgotten their origins!"

"Judging by your accent, you must be from the mainland, right? Indeed, mainlanders are all molded by a ** system, lacking manners, and spewing dirty words. They're all uncivilized barbarians!"

"You mainland lackeys, why don't you just go back to the mainland and stop embarrassing yourselves here in Hong Kong? As soon as your true colors are exposed, you start throwing a tantrum and making a scene. This is all you mainlanders are capable of. You should stay in your poor mountain villages and never come out again!"

"I have always hated mainlanders, but now I really want to kill you. You're a disgrace to us Chinese. Just having you in this world taints the air!"

…

Listening to the thickly accented curses from below, Zhou Ming remained silent on the stage, simply smiling as he stood there. The contrast between his calm demeanor and the angry denunciations from earlier was stark.

Seeing Zhou Ming's demeanor, Liu Xiaotian and Zhang Zuo frowned. If Zhou Ming had been agitated and argued with the crowd like Guan Sheng, it would have been normal. But his calmness suggested that something was amiss.

Especially for Liu Xiaotian, recalling the encounter with Zhou Ming at the building entrance, Zhou Ming had remained calm and collected despite knowing his identity. Coupled with his bodyguard, who had a wolf-like gaze, Liu Xiaotian concluded that Zhou Ming was not an ordinary person.

As the saying goes, "When things are out of the ordinary, there must be something fishy." When a capable person behaves unusually, it means that the situation itself must be problematic.

This was the conclusion Liu Xiaotian and Zhang Zuo reached. However, despite their bad premonitions, they could not intervene to stabilize the situation. They could only observe. What they didn't realize was that Zhou Ming wanted exactly this effect.

Zhou Ming stood quietly on the stage, observing the turbulent crowd below. After a few minutes, when the noise began to subside, Zhou Ming spoke: "So, are you all tired of cursing? Don't want to curse anymore?"

Immediately, someone from the crowd shouted, "Bullshit! People like you from the mainland are not worth our curses. Cursing you dirties our mouths!"

Zhou Ming smiled: "Is that so? Actually, I don't know whether to agree or disagree with your comment. Because if you say cursing me dirties your mouths, what were you doing earlier? Was it excrement-spraying?"

"You're the one spewing filth, and your entire family is too!"

Zhou Ming's words reignited the crowd's anger, and more people began to curse at him. However, compared to before, the intensity of the cursing had noticeably decreased.

Facing the subdued crowd, Zhou Ming spoke in a tone as if soothing children: "Alright, everyone. Actually, we're just like you. It's normal that you don't agree with some practices and systems of the mainland. After all, when two brothers have been separated for a long time and suddenly live under the same roof again, there will be many adjustments. It's no surprise that you have concerns."

"You seem to have misunderstood something. We are dealing with real problems!" someone below immediately retorted, "You heard the recording earlier. Your mainland officials are indeed tyrannical, treating laws as nonexistent. I've even heard that a county secretary there can execute someone at will. It's terrifying!"

"Is that so? I've lived on the mainland for half my life and have never heard of such things," Zhou Ming replied.

"You're a mainland bureaucrat, of course you will cover for the mainland's practices. Otherwise, you would be executed if you went back!" someone below jeered.

Zhou Ming calmly responded, "Do you think that's important? I don't think it matters at all, because the joint statement has already been issued. Do you have any other choices?"

This question immediately silenced the crowd. Unlike the initial effect of Zhou Ming's sudden accusations, this question cut straight to their hearts. In other words, this was something they most wanted to avoid facing. It was also why the central government dared to send officials like Zhou Ming to this meeting because the situation was already set, and even the British Hong Kong government could not change it. The people here were even less likely to.

The silence was expected by Zhou Ming. He continued: "In our country, there is a common saying: life is like being raped. Since you can't resist, you can only choose to accept it."

Immediately, someone retorted, "We can choose not to accept. We can choose to escape to Hong Kong. We can choose to give up Hong Kong, so you can't get the essence of Hong Kong!"

"Do you really think you can take away all of Hong Kong's essence? Do you really think you can leave Hong Kong? If you leave Hong Kong, will you still have your current status?"

Zhou Ming's words pierced into everyone's hearts like steel needles, leaving them speechless. Zhou Ming continued: "Do you think that after Hong Kong returns, all your assets here will be seized? Do you think the system in Hong Kong will undergo a drastic change after the return? Haven't you read the joint statement?"

Zhou Ming pretended to think for a moment before continuing: "If I remember correctly, the third article of the joint statement clearly states that Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy will be maintained, and the current political and economic systems will remain unchanged. Don't you, in this free land of Hong Kong, know this information that even someone in the closed-off mainland knows?"

This questioning rendered the crowd speechless. After a long time, someone finally said, "Can we trust what the mainland authorities say? Do the mainland authorities have any credibility?"

"That's a very good question!" Zhou Ming said loudly, as if praising them, "You may not trust the mainland's party and government, but do you also distrust your British Hong Kong government? Because this joint statement is not a unilateral declaration."

Zhou Ming looked around the conference hall. Everyone he made eye contact with instinctively lowered their heads, afraid to meet his gaze, as if afraid of being pierced by his sharp eyes.

Zhou Ming was not going to let them off easily. He continued: "And do you really think that Hong Kong will always be this good and that the mainland's development will never catch up? You're being too naive. You're all businessmen. Have you not considered that the mainland has vast land, rich resources, and a market of hundreds of millions of people? If the mainland is determined to develop, how could it not succeed?"

"Take Nanjing, which is across the river. I'm sure you've heard of it," Zhou Ming pointed north, "It was just an ordinary county in the mainland ten years ago, but now? It has already formed a certain shape of an international metropolis. And most importantly, Nanjing has only been developing for ten years. The term 'Nanjing Speed' is recognized worldwide, not just made up by us."

"So," Zhou Ming concluded, "if in another ten or twenty years, who can guarantee that Nanjing won't catch up with or even surpass Hong Kong at this speed?"

"That's all because the mainland concentrates all resources!" someone below still protested.

Hearing the crowd's stubborn arguments, Zhou Ming smiled and said, "On this topic, I don't think there's any need for further discussion. Whether it's true or not, it makes no difference. If the mainland can produce a Nanjing, it can produce a second, third, or even more. The end result will only be better and better. If you continue to argue, I can only say that you lack vision."

"The mainland's political system is always a fundamental flaw!" someone shouted again, "Economic development requires freedom. The kind of ** control on the mainland will push Hong Kong into a dead end!"

"That's more like it!" Zhou Ming nodded approvingly, "Economic development indeed requires freedom. A self-sustaining economy is a healthy economy. That's why the mainland is currently undergoing reform and opening up—to dismantle the previous constraints and let the economy be in charge. I'm sure you know that during the recent Spring Festival, the central government's highest leader Yang's southern inspection trip was to show the determination to continue reform and opening up!"

Zhou Ming paused before adding: "Let me share one more thing with you. You've been cursing me as a bureaucrat, but actually, I'm not. I'm just an ordinary businessman, just like you. I have no family connections and have made money purely through my own efforts. According to your understanding, this should be impossible, but I've done it. Isn't this the best example of the mainland's reform and opening up?"