The Tyrant Billionaire-Chapter 652 Conflict In Malaya

The audience erupted into applause.

Hepburn stood up, trembling with excitement despite having prepared herself mentally. Seated beside her, Hardy received a tight hug from the elated actress.

On stage, Hepburn wore a white princess evening gown, accessorized with a pearl necklace and a pearl-encrusted hairpiece.

She accepted the golden statuette, the symbol of her new status as a leading lady.

"The first person I’d like to thank is Mr. Hardy," she said during her speech. "He discovered me and gave me the opportunity to step onto the big screen."

Many women in the audience couldn’t help but feel envious. This girl was truly fortunate to have caught Hardy’s attention. They wondered, Why didn’t they get that chance? If Hardy had noticed anyone of them, perhaps she could’ve become a star too.

That evening, Hardy stayed at Hepburn’s new home.

Her bed was exceptionally soft, with plenty of bounce—probably from numerous springs, Hardy speculated.

...

During this time, Hardy inspected his enterprises. In Australia, where he had purchased vast tracts of land, he had discovered an enormous iron ore deposit. Since then, he had also found two additional iron mines, a copper mine, and a large coal mine.

These discoveries caused the stock of Hardy Mining to soar.

Hardy Mining had begun developing these resources in collaboration with several major U.S. mining companies. Together, they formed joint ventures, quickly establishing Hardy Mining as one of the world’s leading mining giants. Experience tales at novelbuddy

Currently, Hardy Mining’s assets had grown to exceed billions of dollars, far surpassing the value at the time of acquisition. Even selling just a few of his mines could yield three to four times the profit, but Hardy had no intention of selling. Being in the mining industry provided him with significant influence.

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Meanwhile, Hardy’s chain supermarket business in the U.S. had expanded to over 20 locations, with plans to reach 100 stores by the following summer.

His fast-food chains as well as coffee shops, had also begun appearing rapidly thanks to the franchising model, which accelerated their rollout.

The plans Hardy had made were now materializing.

Just as Hardy was contemplating new investment opportunities, news arrived from Penang: A group of Chinese officials from the MCA had seized the assets of one of Hardy’s Malay-owned investment companies, resulting in casualties.

Hardy’s focus sharpened immediately.

"To Penang," he ordered.

Wasting no time, Hardy boarded a B-29 bomber and flew swiftly to Penang. Upon his arrival, the local leaders gathered to report the situation.

Hardy glanced over the group and said sternly, "Tell me everything. Leave nothing out."

An economic secretary stepped forward and explained, "It’s the Idris family in Johor. They own numerous plantations and processing companies in the area. Recently, they’ve been harassed repeatedly by Chinese locals. Messages were sent demanding that they sell their industrial parks and businesses at near giveaway prices. They were warned that refusal would bring endless trouble."

"Three days ago, a conflict broke out. It started with a shootout, and then the local Sultan dispatched police and military forces, who sided with the Chinese attackers. They fired on the Idris family, killing several of their members. The remaining family members were arrested on charges of rioting and causing harm. Now, the head of the Idris family and his son are imprisoned in Johor’s jail. Only his younger brother, Idris Azman, managed to escape and came to the governor’s office for help."

The Malays capitalists in the region were known for their resourcefulness and industriousness, which enabled them to build successful businesses and enterprises. This situation, however, led to deep-seated resentment and prejudice among the Chinese, who believed in communism, and the Malaysian Sultans, who wanted to maintain control. They felt that the capitalist businessmen were gaining too much wealth and should start sharing it with them.

When the British felt that the situation in Malaya was getting out of hand, they resorted to their most frequently used tactic: divide and conquer. They announced that the Chinese were entitled to certain privileges in the region. The Chinese interpreted this as the government endorsing their ideology of equal sharing and believed that the Malay businessmen had gone too far, profiting from the labor of their people while refusing to share equally with them.

First came the increased taxes—taxes imposed on the Malays businessmen were significantly higher than those for the Chinese.

Then came extortion. Using their control over local governance, the Chinese officials frequently demanded money under various pretexts.

Now, things had escalated to outright confiscation of Malay-owned businesses and properties. The Idris family, who had endured this for a long time, finally decided to resist, especially since they had connections with Hardy’s investment group. This gave them more confidence to push back against the oppression.

Initially, the Chinese locals gathered two to three hundred people to attack the Idris family’s properties. However, the Idris family was not to be underestimated. Their plantations and processing facilities employed a large number of Malay workers. Seeing their livelihoods at risk, these workers armed themselves and fought back against the attackers.

The locals were driven away, but they regrouped with even more people—over a thousand this time—and clashed again with the Idris family and their workers.

Both sides suffered casualties, but the Chinese were once again repelled.

Then there was the local Sultan, who was receiving only a fraction of what the businessmen were earning. He felt deeply dissatisfied, believing it was his right to take whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, on his land. However, this newly emerged group of capitalists refused to yield to him, treating him like a beggar—giving him some money only when they made a profit, and nothing when they did not.

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