The Hong Kong Triad (香港三合会 Honkon sangōkai), also just called the Triad (
Structure[]
The Triad is structured so that each branch has a boss, with the boss referred to as "eldest brother" (大哥) by members below him, also applying to lower members who must refer to higher-ranking members as "elder brother" (哥哥). Conversely, a lower-ranking member is referred to as a "little brother" (弟弟). There are also certain administrative titles for high-ranking bosses, such as Chang being bestowed with the honorific title of "White Paper Fan" or Pak Tsz Sin.[1] Members of the group commonly speak Cantonese.
History[]
The Hong Kong Triad has global influence and several branches, including a New York branch (with the front business Oriental Mystic Collection or OMC), the Thai branch in Roanapur and Bangkok, and the base in Hong Kong, where a person named Zhuang Dai-Long approves orders for the other branch leaders.[2] In Roanapur, the Thai branch eventually saw Mister Chang, a former Hong Kong Police officer,[3] be promoted as the branch's leader. In Thailand, the Triad controls several businesses and makes other profits from the red-light districts in Phuket and Pattaya.[4] Two of the Triad's front businesses in Thailand include the Hot River Film Company and The Golden Swingin Night Club, the former of which Chang uses as one of several offices, and the latter of which Chang uses as a location for Council summits between Roanapur's crime lords. Among the city's bosses, Chang is the leader of the Council.
Chang's primary office is in one of the towering hotels seen in the Roanapur city scenery, and he also has a yacht house as an extra residence.[5] The Thai branch in particular has frequent dealings with the United States' Central Intelligence Agency as seen in the "Goat, Jihad, Rock'N Roll" arc and in "El Baile de la muerte." Like all the larger crime syndicates, the Hong Kong Triad is forced to have good relations with the Roanapur City Police to allow the Triad to operate.[6] Nonetheless, Chang is able to use his power to get his affiliates out of jail in the city, such as when Sawyer the Cleaner was able to leave Roanapur City Police custody due to her affiliation with Chang.[7]
When Hotel Moscow came to Roanapur in 1993, Mister Chang got into a shootout with the Thai branch's leader Balalaika in November, resulting in both leaders being wounded but surviving the ordeal.[1] Peace was brokered between the two bosses thanks to Dutch's intervention,[8] and the Russian and Chinese mafias have more or less been on good terms. The Triad also commissions the Lagoon Company for jobs on occasion, though Chang primarily commissions Triad affiliates like Shenhua and Leigharch for assassin and getaway jobs respectively. Although not official Triad members or gangsters, Sawyer and Lotton are Triad affiliates by association due to their partnership with Shenhua, and they can also be summoned by Chang.[9] In Roanapur, the Hong Kong Triad primarily deals in drugs, weapons and prostitution. As one exception, the only person outside of the Triad whom Mister Chang allows to sell weapons is Sister Yolanda of the Rip-Off Church.[10] The Triad has also used the Rip-Off Church as a middleman to contact the CIA[1] and has an alliance with Khun Sa's Mong Tai Army which is essential to the Triad's heroin trafficking.[11]
Bloodsport Fairy tale[]
When two murderers began to kill Hotel Moscow members in Roanapur, Chang summoned a discreet Council meeting between Roanapur's main crime lords, including Balalaika of Hotel Moscow, Abrego of the Colombian Cartel, and Verrocchio of Cosa Nostra. At the meeting, Chang clarified that he liked the current power balance between the syndicates and wanted to maintain that balance to maximize profits, with Balalaika being unconcerned about that and more concerned about her dead men. When she asked the Triad boss if he had any involvement in the murders, he denied it and added that two of his men, one a member of the 14K and one a direct lieutenant of his, were killed as well at a brothel on Rachada Street. Verrocchio as well stated that one of his fixers got killed, saying that the murders had to be the work of an outsider. Going with Verrocchio's assumption based on everyone's testimonies, Chang declared that all the bosses needed to send a message to their subordinates to avoid unnecessary bloodshed. Annoyed at the lack of progress, Balalaika left the meeting and elaborated that she would get revenge on whomever killed her comrades, including the family and pets of those responsible. With the meeting ending sourly, Chang grumbled about the awkward atmosphere.[12]
Later when Balalaika identified the murderers as two Romanian children, Balalaika discreetly met Chang at the harbor shipping yard, giving him an envelope containing pictures of the children's faces. She mentioned the twins' history as child sexual abuse survivors who were exploited in films made for pedophiles, with Chang uneased by the story but nonetheless adding that he had no sympathy for the twins and their bloodlust. Chang then replied that he was not fond of words like "justice" and "morality," claiming that he would take full responsibility for the next action. Putting on his sunglasses, he asked Balalaika what she wanted from him. In turn, Balalaika said that she wanted to start a just war instead of a gang war, so Chang agreed to have the Triad temporarily ally with her, remarking that he did not need to consult his bosses in Hong Kong on the matter.[13]
When it was reported that there was trouble in Verrocchio's territory, Chang and his men drove to the outside of Verrocchio's headquarters, and soon upon their arrival, a body fell out of the window onto Chang's car, making Chang tell his men to contact Hotel Moscow immediately. After the twins finished massacring the Italians, Chang sensed that the twins were exiting the building, so he quickly pulled out his pistols and started shooting. Gretel killed Cho and the other bodyguard with her elephant gun, so Chang had to shoot at them and take cover. The young girl commended Chang for his shooting skills. In response, he sarcastically thanked her, but Gretel told him that she did not have time to fight the Triad, leaving the scene and leaving Chang unharmed.
Minutes after the massacre, Chief Watsap of the Roanapur Police Department arrived at the scene and questioned Chang about the twins, and Chang deliberately sent Watsap away by giving him false information about where the twins traveled. The Triad leader then called Balalaika, telling her that he sent Watsap out of the way and wanted her to pay him back for the favor. Balalaika thanked Chang and told him that she and her Vysotniki would take over the hunt since Chang and his men could not defeat the twins.[6]
Goat, Jihad, Rock'N Roll[]
When a Bulgarian spy arrived in Roanapur and started selling weapons, Chang did not approve and asked the man to stop his business. When the man refused, Chang had his men interrogate the Bulgarian by threatening to cut off his genitalia, so the Bulgarian confessed that he was a spy and gave the men intelligence documents about an attack that Hezbollah was planning. After receiving the documents, Chang went to visit Hezbollah affiliates in the outskirts of the city and offered to sell them the documents back, but the gunmen threatened Chang to leave due to disliking the price that he offered. When Chang and his men left and decided that they would instead sell and deliver the documents to the CIA, who gladly agreed due to their fear about another terrorist attack like the recent U.S. embassy bombing in Zaire, Hezbollah retaliated by bombing his office, forcing Chang to flee and take refuge at the Lagoon Company office.
There, Chang offered Dutch the job and told him the details of the intelligence documents as well as the delivery location on Basilan Island, where a getaway driver would be waiting for him. He added that there would be five teams sent to leave, with four teams having fake documents and the Lagoon Company having the real documents. When Chang said that the time frame to deliver the documents to the CIA was two days, Dutch replied that it was too small a time frame. To persuade Dutch, the Triad leader offered to pay his other expenses as well. Unfortunately for them, the meeting was interrupted by Hezbollah soldiers firing a rocket-propelled grenade into the building and beginning to storm the building. Unharmed, Chang pulled out his customized double pistols and offered to help the Lagoon Company escape. Accordingly, he and Revy killed the first sets of soldiers who attempted to raid the building, and afterward, one of Chang's cars arrived outside the building to escort the Lagoon crew to their boat while Chang and the Triad members fought the rest of the Hezbollah soldiers. As the escort car left, Chang told them to use the password "The Triad is super awesome" as an identifier.[14]
After the attack ended in a Triad victory, Chang returned to his other office in his towering hotel building. Meanwhile, Revy and Rock went to Basilan Island while Dutch and Benny used the Black Lagoon to throw off the pursuing Hezbollah agents. At an abandoned village, Masahiro Takenaka did not give the second password that Chang passed onto Revy, resulting in a quick shootout during which he was able to abduct Rock. To her fortune, Revy was saved by Shenhua and Leigharch, both of whom were contracted by the Hong Kong Triad. As Leigharch drove them to the military base, Revy told them that they had to go back since Rock had the documents,[10] so the two begrudgingly heeded Revy's request and stalked the Abu Sayyaf camp where Rock was held.
After Revy and Shenhua saved Rock, Leigharch was high on drugs but managed to outpace the enemy vehicles while the two women killed the fighters. Thirty minutes before the end of the CIA's delivery deadline, Chang called a CIA agent to assure them that the documents were on the way. After he hung up, a Triad gangster informed Chang that Hong Kong had ordered them not to get into a direct confrontation with the enemy. In short time, the team arrived to the military base, with Revy revealing that she had the documents the entire time, angering Shenhua and Leigharch. Nonetheless, the mission succeeded, and everyone got their respective pay, though some of Rock's pay went to Revy for a rescue fee.[15]
Fujiyama Gangsta Paradise[]
Only in the anime adaptation, when most of Balalaika's forces temporarily left Roanapur to help Hotel Moscow's Japanese branch, gang violence arose, so the Triad did its best to quell the violence.[16]
Greenback Jane[]
When Shenhua did not recognize Sawyer the Cleaner, Sawyer reminded her that a week before their concurrent job, Shenhua brought a tied-up man to the cleaner's workplace and relayed to her that Chang wanted the man killed for attempting to steal his money.[17] On the same night, Shenhua mentioned to Revy that Leigharch had gone into long-term medical care due to consequences from his extended drug use.[18]
El Baile de la muerte / Roberta's Blood Trail[]
When rumor spread throughout Roanapur regarding Roberta's return to the city, Chang knew that her presence would spell disaster for the city, so he sent Biu Yuen and other Triad gangsters to gather information throughout town. At first, Biu and his men went to the brothel upstairs in the Yellow Flag for information, but none of the prostitutes saw anything, so the men left.[19] After the Colombians attacked the Yellow Flag in their failed attempt to interrogate Fabiola Iglesias, Biu returned to Chang at his hotel penthouse and informed him of the attack. Chang discussed the background of Roberta's first rampage in Roanapur while Biu confirmed that Roberta's recent motivation was the murder of Diego Lovelace.
With that information, Chang knew that they needed to pinpoint the identity of Roberta's enemy. Despite Chang's worry, Biu responds that the Triad at least had knowledge of everyone present in the city, but Chang stated that Roberta's enemy was likely well-hidden since their goal was not recognition or money but because they had great capabilities and strength. Accordingly, Chang told Biu to come with him to gather better information, so he drove Chang to Sankan Palace Hotel, where Roberta's current master Garcia Lovelace was staying.[20]
Fabiola and the Lagoon Company arrived at the hotel and entered Garcia's suite to see Chang there, with Fabiola becoming angry at his presence. She tried to attack him but he disarmed her. While Chang held her down, Garcia assured the maid that he was only there to talk, so Fabiola reluctantly backed off and stood at Garcia's side. When Revy pulled out a cigarette, Chang forced her to ask Garcia for permission first, and Garcia politely told her to refrain from smoking since there were no ashtrays in the suite. Beginning their discussion, Garcia told everyone that after the bombing, members of the Venezuelan military sympathetic to the MVR visited the Lovelace estate to tell Garcia about six conspirators with Western ties involved in the bombing, showing them a photograph of U.S. and Venezuelan nationals. Additionally, the six conspirators quit the military six months before the bombing occurred, creating suspicion.[21]
Garcia recalled that with that little bit of information, Roberta secretly left the Lovelace estate to track down the conspirators and find the true culprits behind the bombing, killing and interrogating all six men including the leader Marcos José Lucientes. When Garcia said that Lucientes's body was found by a river on the outskirts of Calabozo with his lower legs hacked and stabbed numerous times, Chang remarked that Roberta's tracking skills truly matched her bloodhound nickname, causing Garcia to slam his fists on the table. The boy demanded Chang to refrain from calling Roberta by that moniker, to which he calmly agreed.[22] Continuing onward, Garcia pointed to a U.S. Army colonel, Simon Dickens, in the photograph and explained that his body was found in a burned-down hotel in Caracas. He elaborated that Dickens was an active-duty United States officer, startling Chang and Dutch due to his influence.[23]
After relaying this information to Chang and the Lagoon Company, Garcia and Fabiola stated that their goal was to find Roberta and return her to Venezuela, adding that anyone who helped them would be paid greatly. Chang recapped that Roberta's enemy was the U.S. Army, with Garcia saying that was all the more reason to stop Roberta since he was pained to see Roberta kill people. Chang joked that he would love to send the two children home, but he reminded them that the Colombian Cartel in Roanapur wanted to kill Roberta, summarizing that such discord would throw Roanapur into even worse chaos. In his closing statement, Chang told the Lagoon Company that they were the best ones to take Garcia's job since they were a neutral party and the Triad was too large to make a move, but Dutch wanted nothing to do with it.
Chang responded that the Triad would take the job if they did not, and he implicitly convinced Rock to consider taking the job before he left. Chang also told the Lovelace affiliates that they had to leave the Sankan Palace the next morning regardless of their decision. While Biu drove Chang back to his office, the former asked him if he was sure that Rock would take the job, with Chang confidently replying that Rock had a sympathizing nature.[24] After Rock and Revy agreed to help the two children, Garcia and Fabiola left Sankan Palace Hotel, and Chang allowed the children to stay at his yacht house for better security.[25]
The Golden Swingin Nightclub, one of the Hong Kong Triad's fronts
With the new information and background, Chang called for a Council meeting between Roanapur's crime lords at his nightclub, The Golden Swingin Night Club. There, the meeting between the four bosses (Chang, Balalaika, Abrego, and Ronnie the Jaws) began with Balalaika and Ronnie insulting each other, but Chang interrupted them to tell them that they needed to focus on their topic. Ronnie suggested that they throw a party for the U.S. troops, an idea which was immediately rejected. Abrego wanted to kill Roberta so he could stabilize his cartel's relations with FARC, but Balalaika said their real enemy was the U.S. Army since they would crush the drug trade, with Chang agreeing and adding that Abrego should not make a move. Soon, Chang interrupted the leaders' arguing and ended the meeting by saying that they would not interfere with the Americans' presence until they could confirm if part of Grey Fox's mission was to meddle in Roanapur. Lastly, he stated that the mafia leaders should not backstab each other since Roanapur would be destroyed if that occurred.[26]
The next day, Chang went to the Rip-Off Church to talk to his CIA contact, with Rico guiding him to the confession booth to talk with them using a cellphone. Unknown to him, Eda was the contact who used a voice changer, and she told Chang about the details and history of the Grey Fox team as well as their mission purpose and hideouts in Roanapur. Eda articulated that she wanted Grey Fox's mission to fail, adding that Chang should hold the same view since Grey Fox taking out Shue Yan would cripple the opium dealing in the Golden Triangle that supplied the Hong Kong Triad's heroin. When Chang told her that the call was over, Eda stopped him and asked him what his plan of action was. He replied that he was under no obligation to tell her anything, calling Eda a bureaucrat and saying that the Triad was not a lapdog of the CIA. In response, Eda laughed and told him that smack talk did not work when the receiver was stronger, insulting Chang as "street trash" and saying that the CIA was one of the many hydra heads of the United States government that could control and topple countries and governments, in contrast to the Triad only being able to control businesses. Upon hearing her comment, Chang angrily hung up the phone and left the chapel without saying a word.[25]
Later that day at the Roanapur harbor, Chang met Balalaika, who wanted to know why Chang was telling her details about Grey Fox. He told her that Roberta would attack at dawn, elaborating that getting Roberta out of the city as well as the Americans would prevent the possibility of Roanapur's destruction. The Russian soldier then coldly told Chang that she would continue her mission to fight the U.S. soldiers. Surprised, Chang asked her if she really wanted to die as a soldier, and Balalaika responded that a gangster like him would never understand, adding that ex-soldiers like herself who were cast aside by the USSR and betrayed by the Russian Federation only had memories of battle to cling to.
Chang merely replied that her mindset was pointless, as valuing one thing adamantly meant not putting value on anything else. Annoyed, Balalaika decided to walk away, but Chang stopped her, adding that if he had to have value for one thing, it would be his own life after surviving their firefight back in November 1993 and living another day.[1] With Roberta's imminent attack in mind, Chang asked Balalaika if she valued her life, and as she left the harbor, she told him that she did not have much time to think about her plan carefully.[27]
At night after the first part of Roberta's attack on Grey Fox began, Chang called Rock while the latter was waiting in his car. Looking out his window, Chang told Rock that he could see the violence from his place and remarked that the Triad would take care of the situation from there. When Rock told him that he could not quit yet since Garcia and the maid were still involved, Chang asked how that was his concern since they were only chess pieces in his game. Rock called Chang an inhuman scumbag, making the Chinese boss laugh and telling Rock that he had guts, adding that he knew more about justice during his life than Rock ever would. Rock was angrily curious, so Chang told him that he was a former police officer in Hong Kong, asserting to Rock that Roanapur was his first priority and not the Lovelace family. After telling Rock that he could try and save them if he wanted, he ended the call.[28]
Later at his office during the fighting between Grey Fox soldiers and Roberta, Chang finished a call with Rock. After finishing it, he tossed his phone to Biu, who informed Chang that they received word from Shue Yan, who reasoned to the Triad that inspections of the controlled territories were essential to contain the effects of Khun Sa's "surrender." He asked Chang if he should have contacted Khun Sa directly, but Chang declined, stating that the surrender was a farce anyway and they needed him to continue living quietly in Yangon. Biu then wondered about the "hound," and Chang answered that he just got a call from Rock about the Lagoon Company agreeing to ship Grey Fox out of Roanapur into the Golden Triangle. Biu in turn stated that he was working on contacting the "hound" but was unsure if she could catch up to the Americans.
Smiling, Chang joked that Biu was worrying too much and would get gray hair by pondering too much on the Vysotniki's plans. Still curious, Biu wondered if Balalaika would keep her promise of their temporary alliance, but Chang smoked a cigarette and smiled, commenting that it did not matter if Balalaika caused enough trouble for them that Roanapur fell since they could set up shop somewhere else and duke it out with Balalaika. Squatting, Biu smiled back and stated that he finally saw why their leader chose Chang to lead their branch, repeating that Chang was a gutsy ex-cop who let his friends die at Star Ferry Pier. In turn, Chang responded that he was not gutsy and simply was able to enjoy things for how they were, concluding that he needed to check his remaining cards on the table.[11]
Sometime after Lagoon Company escorted the Grey Fox Commando Group out of Roanapur, in addition to Roberta settling their fight in the Golden Triangle, Chang met up with Rock at the Roanapur harbor and tossed him a duffel bag full of bonus money for helping him with the killer maid. Rock then said that he did not do it for the money, and Chang replied that the whole situation really took a toll on his strength. Contemplating the aftermath and what Fabiola told him, Rock asked if he was a villain to Chang, but the Triad boss only responded that Rock got his wish of Garcia saving Roberta but remarked that Garcia might not be truly happy since he would walk a difficult path after the destruction.[29]
L'homme sombre[]
When the Frenchwomen of Les Cinq Doigts arrived in Roanapur and began killing Black men in the city, Chang hosted a Council meeting at his nightclub with Balalaika and Ronnie in attendance, but Gustavo (who then replaced Abrego as the head of the Colombian Cartel's Thai branch) did not come since he was busy rivaling with the Nuevo Laredo Cartel in Latin America. Ronnie accused Chang of complicity in the recent murders since both he and the women wore black suits, and Chang and Balalaika refuted his accusations since the women also killed a Black bouncer at a Triad-owned go-go bar. Ending the meeting, the Triad boss suggested that they should spread rumor of the killings around Roanapur to lure the women out, specifying that they needed to avoid any overt action to prevent scaring tourists out of the profitable red-light districts. After the Hotel Moscow-affiliated drug dealer Jinx survived an encounter with the women, Chang told Revy about the murders and asked her to brief the rest of the Lagoon Company about the incidents.[4]
Concerned for Dutch's safety, Rock brought Revy with him to see Chang at his office inside the Hot River Film Company building. Chang wondered why Rock came to see him, with Rock saying that Dutch had to be one of the next targets, so Chang reluctantly directed them to the hospital where Jinx was saying, adding that he would call Shenhua to provide security to them.[30] Shenhua came to help the two Lagoon crew members, demanding that Rock pay for all her meals, to which he agreed.[31] At Isaac's antiques shop, Shenhua, Revy and François Modibo fought the Frenchwomen in a firefight and captured Le Majeur, with Shenhua recommending that Isaac contact Chang about compensation for the damage to his store.[32] Subsequently, the three brought the Frenchwoman to the Lagoon Company dry dock to interrogate her.
Feeling hungry, Shenhua left to get some food while Revy managed to persuade the bitter Le Majeur to confess her mission details,[33] and Shenhua brought food to their hostage as well. While visiting both Dutch and Balalaika, Shenhua stuck by to listen to Rock's plan to have the Frenchwoman betray her comrades,[34] and Shenhua herself waited outside the ambush site in the nightclub until the women arrived.[35] During the ambush after two of the four Frenchwomen got killed by Hotel Moscow soldiers, Shenhua and Revy used a hidden entrance in the club to aid Le Majeur's escape from the kill zone.[36] Seeing L'auriculaire trying to stab the pinned-down Majeur, Revy shot at the blonde agent, killing her. The three women then followed Le Pouce's trail of blood and found the leader laying against a wall. Standing by while Majeur found out that Le Pouce knew it was a trap all along, Shenhua smiled and remarked afterward that Majeur was genuinely sensitive. With the assassins eliminated, Shenhua quickly exited the building with Revy and Majeur.[37]
Eventually, after the Vysotniki killed four of the five Frenchwomen in the ambush, the surviving traitor Le Majeur was brought to the nightclub's meeting room to answer for her collaboration in the murders. Chang told the attendees the information that Rock relayed to him regarding Majeur's betrayal. Rock himself said to Ronnie during the meeting that Majeur could be a valuable asset, with Chang agreeing but stating that Balalaika would be given the final say on her fate since most of the Black men killed were contracted under Hotel Moscow. In the end, Balalaika decided to make Majeur her lapdog who would act as a shield for Hotel Moscow and threatened death if she refused. Ronnie was skeptical of Majeur's loyalty when the latter accepted the offer, but to his dismay, Balalaika allowed Majeur to live and stay with the Lagoon Company, making Chang smile when Balalaika remarked that she had gone soft. With the meeting adjourned, Chang reiterated to everyone that Majeur would be under Balalaika's control.[38]
Where the Chips Fall[]
When Balalaika opened a luxurious new casino on Yatchalaya Street, she invited Roanapur's various leading figures, including Mister Chang of the Triad, to attend the opening night ceremony. Accepting her invitation, Chang arrived and soon met the fancily dressed Balalaika inside. Commending the place's design, he complimented the retro theme that she chose for opening night. Enjoying herself, the Hotel Moscow leader elaborated that she brought in people from the United Kingdom to design the building, also mentioning the no-weapons policy. Having been at the joint for a bit, Chang wondered where Ronnie the Jaws had been. Balalaika answered that Ronnie was not attending despite her invitation, but his captains and lieutenants were present. Smirking, Chang claimed that Ronnie was not the social type, with Balalaika replying that she was glad that Chang at least accepted her invitation. In turn, he reciprocated her sentiment and reminded themselves that they had had a long history. At that moment, Revy, Rock and Le Majeur greeted Chang and Balalaika, congratulating the latter on her new business.
Looking at Rock, the Triad leader claimed that he had not seen him since Les Cinq Doigts were trying to hunt the "Black guy" (La Mouche). Relaxed, Rock merely responded that he and his company had only done the usual shipment jobs since then. Speaking calmly, he asked Rock if he still had a penchant for gambling on various things, to which Balalaika advised Chang to be nice. Apologizing for his comment, he accompanied Rock to gamble on roulette. At the table, the croupier wished both men luck, and both of them agreed to start off with small bets. Although the pill first landed in Chang's favor, Rock replied that the beginning was not where the true action was. With his own poker face, Chang heard Rock tell him that the casino would certainly be profitable for Hotel Moscow. The ex-salaryman reminded the Triad leader that the business could attract international attention that Roanapur did not need, but Chang responded that the mafias needed to move away from shady dealings. Sharing his seriousness, Rock declared that people enjoyed the daylight.
As the croupier asked them to place their next bets, Chang stated that it might be a good or bad thing that Rock was continuing to take an interest in Roanapur. Additionally, he rhetorically asked Rock if he had resolve since he was confident in his own convictions. As the pill spun on the roulette wheel, Rock clasped his wrists and recalled how he once had a client who deduced that he was in his new life to see people's fates play out. Moreover, he disagreed with Chang about being the city's judge, specifying that with his own help, he could possibly go somewhere beyond people's fates. Advising him not to get arrogant, Chang proclaimed that such a place is God's domain, though Rock in turn claimed that the domain in question was the good outcome itself. Trying to change the framing, Chang warned that changing someone's fate could result in the person being swallowed up by the same fate and become part of their lives.
Lighting his own cigarette, Rock explained that his own bets were more cautious than that, summing up that one could only change people's fates in a good way by getting up close and personal. Chang joked that Rock seemed to fancy himself the troubleshooter of Roanapur, but the latter nonchalantly declared that he truly liked Roanapur. Elaborating, he reminded the Triad leader that their city had exiles, scumbags, the abandoned, and other misfits, proclaiming that his own guidance could save people who shared his own history of being cast aside and could even save Roanapur itself. Still in disagreement, Chang coldly replied that Rock's analysis was a sentimental lie, sternly saying that the bloodshed that both of them had seen would absolutely result in a path to hell. As the room filled with their mutual cigarette smoke, Rock rebuffed his answer and stated that they still had a chance of receiving a different ending. Chang explained that his answer was based on the laws of nature rather than virtue.
The ex-salaryman calmly retorted that they would only truly know at the end of their lives, betting more chips and telling Chang that he would continue extending his hand to others. Agreeing with Chang's next analysis, Rock answered that he would have a good view from the hilltop of the far side of good and evil. Chang then asserted that he believed in predestination and once more warned Rock that his desire for changing fates was in vain. Putting up all his chips on one gamble, Rock confirmed his bet, genuinely surprising the Triad leader enough to make him grin. Blowing out cigarette smoke, Rock claimed that his straightforward bet was his way of seeing the beyond. Chang commented that he also had Rock's going-for-broke mindset in his own youth, but the sangfroid Rock announced that going for broke would allow them to see beyond their world and truly allow himself to get satisfaction. Rolling into four black, the pill favored Rock, giving him a 35-to-1 payout, impressing Chang enough to call it devil's luck. Thinking that Rock's analysis might have some ground after all, Chang told Rock that he would remove the latter's obstacles as an offer if he could accomplish showing the "beyond" to him.[39]
Trivia[]
- As stated by Black Lagoon creator Rei Hiroe in several interviews, the physical appearance of Mister Chang is based on the Hong Kong actor Chow Yun-fat. In one interview, Hiroe stated that he read books on the Chinese mafia to create an organizational chart of Black Lagoon's fictional Hong Kong Triad, and one film that influenced his writing of the Hong Kong mafia was Year of the Dragon.[40]
- Although the Triad type is vague, Mister Chang refers to a member of the 14K Triad as one of "his guys" during the "Bloodsport Fairy tale" arc. By chance, the Thai branch leader of Sun Yee On in Chapter 00 of the manga was named Chou/Chang, but the Sun Yee On boss's name was later changed to Wan in the anime.
- There was a real Hong Kong police officer, Anthony Chung, who joined the Sun Yee On Triad; however unlike Chang, he asked the cops for protection in exchange for identifying the Triad's leader.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Chapter 56: El Baile de la muerte Part 13
- ↑ Black Lagoon: Shaitane Badi (Chapter 5)
- ↑ Episode 27: Angels in the Crosshairs
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Chapter 103: L'homme sombre Part 2
- ↑ Chapter 52: El Baile de la muerte Part 9
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Chapter 13: Bloodsport Fairy tale Part 3
- ↑ Gore Gore Girl Chapter 07: The Rats in the Walls
- ↑ Black Lagoon: Shaitane Badi (Chapter 2)
- ↑ Gore Gore Girl Chapter 21: The Lure
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Episode 11: Lock'n Load Revolution
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Chapter 68: El Baile de la muerte Part 25
- ↑ Episode 13: The Vampire Twins Comen
- ↑ Chapter 12: Bloodsport Fairy tale Part 2
- ↑ Chapter 16: Goat, Jihad, Rock'N Roll Part 1
- ↑ Episode 12: Guerrillas in the Jungle
- ↑ Episode 23: Snow White's Payback
- ↑ Chapter 39: Greenback Jane Part 2
- ↑ Episode 17: The Roanapur Freakshow Circus
- ↑ Chapter 45: El Baile de la muerte Part 2
- ↑ Chapter 48: El Baile de la muerte Part 5
- ↑ Chapter 49: El Baile de la muerte Part 6
- ↑ Chapter 50: El Baile de la muerte Part 7
- ↑ Episode 25: Collateral Massacre
- ↑ Chapter 51: El Baile de la muerte Part 8
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 Episode 26: An Office Man's Tactics
- ↑ Chapter 53: El Baile de la muerte Part 10
- ↑ Chapter 57: El Baile de la muerte Part 14
- ↑ Chapter 60: El Baile de la muerte Part 17
- ↑ Chapter 76: El Baile de la muerte Part 33
- ↑ Chapter 105: L'homme sombre Part 4
- ↑ Chapter 106: L'homme sombre Part 5
- ↑ Chapter 107: L'homme sombre Part 6
- ↑ Chapter 108: L'homme sombre Part 7
- ↑ Chapter 109: L'homme sombre Part 8
- ↑ Chapter 110: L'homme sombre Part 9
- ↑ Chapter 111: L'homme sombre Part 10
- ↑ Chapter 112: L'homme sombre Part 11
- ↑ Chapter 113: L'homme sombre Part 12
- ↑ Chapter 116: Where the Chips Fall Part 1
- ↑ Loser's Horizon column in the April 2021 issue of Monthly Sunday Gene-X.