Chapter 262 -- LFN Storyboard 2

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Date Posted: 03:34:38 09/09/12 Sun
Author: taurus2124
Author Host/IP: CPE-58-161-100-4.nsw.bigpond.net.au / 58.161.100.4
Subject: Chapter 262
In reply to: taurus2124 's message, "Sorry everyone but I'm have major problems with The Rising Dragons on both boards with posting ... trying to fix it" on 00:23:33 08/27/12 Mon

Chapter 262

It was part of Triad tradition to democratically elect the Chairman every two years in an egalitarian manner and their current leader Sun Yee Lok would have his latest concurrent term completed soon. He�d been successively re-elected unopposed over the past few years as Dragon Head, but custom demanded that a new head take charge if decreed by a majority of members. Sun Yee Lok�s tenure would actually cease at the end of the year if a new candidate was chosen � thus Samuel would need to state his case for leadership and election. The time was ripe for the picking to stabilise the triads given the fractious position of authority that the Rising Dragons found themselves in after their tumultuous time of late. However, Samuel knew that Sun Yee Lok would not step down voluntarily when the time came and would seek to be re-elected once more to perpetuate the stronghold the Rising Dragons enjoyed. It was obvious to him that his long term plan was that his daughter Karen would eventually become the new Dragon Head in the future. However, Samuel was unsure how the elders would take such a proposition though. Knowing that Johnnie Tao was against this meeting as well as two of the elders didn�t bode well for him given that they either wanted the position for themselves or they supported Sun Yee Lok�s re-election or that of his nominee.

Samuel saw himself as one of a possible three frontrunners � with the other two being Big D of the 14K triad and Johnnie Tao from the Red Lanterns. Nonetheless, he was prepared for aggressive campaigning from his dissenters and main protagonists if it was called for. Samuel knew that either men wouldn�t take it graciously if he indeed became the preferred nominee for election and would try to sway the elder voters to get them to change their decision especially as Sun Yee Lok�s proposition for leadership could very bwell be his heir � a woman. He banked on the elders not favouring this proposal. Sun Yee Lok�s only other option was to select a potential candidate from amongst his five godsons which might be a more favourable one for the uncles. He needed to abate both of these options.

It would be a laid down misere in his estimation once he outlined his plans for the future. The focus needed to be on him. Samuel�s grand scheme was to push himself to the forefront of the election in his endeavour for power, title and money and if he had to plot or sow the seeds of doubt about Sun Yee Lok or any other contender then he would have no qualms about doing that. This was one time when he needed to be totally ruthless in his quest for the leadership. Everything depended on it. The campaign might get a little rough, but if he kept a cool head amongst the hotheads who had gathered, then the transfer of power could be done with a minimum of fuss or violence.

He fingered the special talesmen in his pocket once more. The disquiet of his thoughts about a foreboding incident was banished to the recesses of his mind. Thus with a renewed feeling of a successful outcome he opened the door to await his fate with self-assurance.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Passing through the triangular door the first thing Samuel Li saw was an arched corridor leading to where the different triad members were gathered. Once though the door the significance of its shape suddenly had far greater meaning than he thought it would. Unexpectedly triad lore was very much to the forefront of his thoughts as the triangle was a symbol of triad unity. Perhaps this was a subliminal message that he should be more attentive of, given that he intended to argue a case against the current Dragon Head for supremacy. He could cause disunity amongst his brothers if they were to take sides and he was aware that his task may not succeed. Then further along he was confronted by an ominous warning � a reminder of one of the oaths each triad member had vowed to uphold when first initiated. On entering the door, do not proceed further if you are not loyal. This statement rattled him a little as his loyalty could be one thing that was questioned by the elders. A person could or should not proceed further into the lodge if his loyalty was not steadfast. Disloyalty was punishable by death something that he hadn�t even contemplated before calling this meeting; however, Samuel put these thoughts to the back of his mind.

As he walked along the arched passageway he came upon another symbolism of the triads ... the archway of crossed swords with a sign declaring, Before the gate of loyalty and righteousness all men are equal. This was a debatable statement in his mind as Samuel thought himself superior to Sun Yee Lok or anyone who would go against him, and he vowed to prove it. The message on the third arch in the corridor was much more to his liking. Through the Heaven and Earth Circle are born the Triad Heroes. Samuel remembered vividly his own initiation into the triad as a younger man of passing through a bamboo hoop representing a sort of rebirth into triad society. Next had come a series of episodes symbolizing the history of the triads before standing before the triad altar adorned with burning sticks of incense. The altar was dedicated to the worship of their famous hero from the Han Dynasty, Guan Yu who exemplified the Chinese thinking of the six qualities of a humble man: humanity, righteousness, ritual obedience, wisdom, loyalty and trust. Samuel suddenly found himself in a conundrum � did he in fact exemplify any of these qualities himself? He was not a humble man and it was debateable if indeed these qualities could be found in his personality. It was as if he was a two sided coin � one side ruthless � the other more so. He was in actual fact a hypocrite to all that Guan Yu deemed honourable for triad membership but he would use his ruthlessness to his advantage to achieve his goal.

Remembering what happened next at his initiation was a blueprint for what he intended to happen at this meeting. After being given the white robes and straw sandals to wear following the washing of his face and removing his clothes, his initiation was nearly complete. With the swearing of the thirty-six oaths, and binding of the oaths with blood dripped into wine, his old life had been washed away. He was now prepared for his rebirth as a triad member. He intended this memory of his first initiation to be a new rebirth as the next Dragon Head of the triads too. The only thing that worried him was the breaking of the bowl to illustrate what became of traitors. If the elders at all sensed that his quest for supreme leadership was connected to his revenge towards Sun Yee Lok, then his life may be in jeopardy for bringing disrespect to the current Dragon Head as well as their institution. One of the thirty- six oaths immediately came to mind.

After entering the Han gates I must forget any previous grudges I may have borne against my sworn brothers. If I do not do so I will be killed by five thunderbolts.

Soon another triangular door confronted him. Flanked by his triad�s elder, Uncle Monk and Stanley Tai-hung, Samuel placed these reminisces to the back of his mind and stepped into the meeting room which had been transformed into a triad lodge. A lodge was not any fixed space; rather it was wherever a ceremony or meeting was set up to meet the needs of the situation � and this was a mammoth situation for him and the Black Panthers.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The room was noisy as the gathered members chatted to each other, however, once they realised that Samuel Li had entered the room an eerie quiet came over the throng. Glancing around the room he saw the wary faces of those gathered. Big D the charismatic, brash, and temperamental boss of the 14K triad was there with one of his enforcers Lam Suet and Samuel quickly summed him up as an opponent. Donnie Yew was a formidable leader � one who ruled with an iron hand and ruthless disregard for authority and could be power hungry. No doubt he was curious as to why Samuel had called for this secret meeting. If he knew his intentions Big D would certainly attempt to bribe and bully his way into the Chairman's seat himself if it was to his advantage. No doubt Lam was with him to keep an eye on things and to make sure that his boss wasn�t short changed at this meeting. His other henchman Heejun Kun was not in the room but Samuel knew that didn�t mean that he wasn�t close by.

When their eyes met, Samuel acknowledged Big Donnie Yew with a slight tilt of his head before casing the room once more.

The overly-righteous Big Head from the Crouching Tigers had his stuttering partner Eddie Ning and the fanatically loyal and uncompromising � Jet Chen as the companions with him, Samuel knew it would be difficult to get his vote for his proposition. While in the corner the farthest away sat Johnnie Tao smoking a cigarette while surrounded by two of his burly triad members. This man�s looks were deceiving. Sitting there Johnnie Tao cut a rather na�ve and vulnerable, if murderous, figure. Dressed like Hong Kong's version of Tony Manero, John Travolta's disco dancing character from Saturday Night Fever, he was watching Samuel observe those gathered. The slightly built, skanky street-smart Tao was known for his hot temper and could be volatile if provoked. He was full of blind ambition to succeed to heights of grandeur while also being able to instil fear, and self-doubt � sometimes simultaneously to those who opposed him. Johnnie had an edginess and sense of entitlement about him and would stop at nothing to assure his political ascendancy as his given right. Samuel expected sparks to fly when the meeting got underway from this dissenter. Tao was not pleased to be here � that was obvious. His facial expressions and actions spoke volumes.

Samuel nodded to him and was aware that he would need to be wary and stay cool, calm and collected at this meeting. He couldn�t let Johnnie rile him. At all times he would present himself as the opposite of this candidate � if indeed Johnnie Tao was one.

On further observation he saw that in the centre of the room sat Uncle Cocky from the Water Rats, another detractor, with the other elders, Uncle Harry, Uncle Gong, 6th Uncle and Uncle Ying. All bar two of the elders of the triad groups represented here were now collectively present. There was no representative from the Rising Dragons or from the Circle Gang as Uncle Kwan was in poor health and had failed to send a proxy due to not knowing why Samuel had called this meeting of the factions. That was one less vote he was unable to factor in his numbers as he would need more than two thirds majority of votes to make his move on Sun Yee Lok. At the moment he had two and those votes had been bought for a princely sum. He motioned to Uncle Monk who made his way to join the others seated at the table while Stanley joined the other members of the Black Panthers.

It was the uncles that Samuel needed to convince of his leadership capabilities for it was these men that cast the deciding votes in any election for the new Dragon Head. If he was to succeed today in his bid to oust Sun Yee Lok from the leadership then these men were crucial to that happening. These wise and astute elders had been in this situation many times before and had always voted in the best interests of all the triad groups. Today, if it came to a deciding vote, would be no different � Samuel just hoped that their vote would be in his favour.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

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