‘Sit down, sit down. What’s your name, eh?’

Knowing these tactics conceived to shock and to stun, employed to unhinge and detract from fixed resolve, visitors already labelled opponents, Quo Boon glanced at the desk, his face more cherubic than ever.

‘Quo, Quo,’ muttered the General, restlessly consulting a foolscap sheet (a condensation of Quo Boon’s life gleaned from his police file).’ Funny spelling with a Q. Never seen a name like that before. But then, you Chinese have got so many names. Aliases, one for each of your bank accounts, I suppose.’

He laughed loudly and stopped on a chuckle.

Quo Boon polished his glasses and put them on again.

The General was looking down the file: ‘Hmm … I see you’ve got rubber estates round Todak, bad spot, Todak … bumped off a good chap there … wanted to close down all the estates only it wouldn’t help, starving the rats would only make them run to the jungle more quickly, eh?

‘What I wanted to say is this.’ He bent forward, index finger straight at Quo Boon, eyes piercing. ‘We’re fighting this war to the death, war – to – the – death – with a dangerous enemy … a dangerous beast skulking in the jungle … and we want all the cooperation we can get from the people of this country whom we’re protecting from this bunch of murderous cowards.

‘We’re not getting it. I know what you’re going to say … I’ve heard all the arguments before. That only a free people can fight communism … that as long as this anti-communist fight is led by a colonial government, it’s our fight and not yours. That’s why so many of you are just sitting back and letting us get on with the job. Sitting on the fence.’

Quo Boon replied peaceably, ‘Perhaps you cannot expect people to show interest when they are only invited to take orders.’

The General gave his short, sharp chuckle, and smote his desk vigorously. ‘I see you’ve also got the answers. But that’s where I’m scoring now. We are going to get more of you people in with us. We’ve asked others, and we’re now asking you, to come in with us, openly, and to take your place in the prosecution of the war against communism.’

‘How?’ said Quo Boon.

‘As members of our Councils, to advise the Government on such matters as subversion in schools and trade unions. We’ve thought of you specially in regard to schools. You are well known for your generous endowments of Chinese schools. When we issued our Manpower Regulations, trying to draft young Chinese into our Forces, hundreds went underground to the jungle instead. We’ve been thinking of associating more people in this effort aimed at recruiting students out of Chinese schools into some sort of National Service. Mind you, it’s just a project, but we can’t get on with it unless prominent leaders, like yourself, urge them to join up.