‘What problem? You are an old settler. You have no reason to worry. You have such good ties with the higher-ups. Who doesn’t know you? You are involved in so many social activities. That day in the meeting, you were the first to sign on the declaration of loyalty. Why would anyone harm you?’

After talking to them for a while, Mok Min stood up.

‘I’ll take your leave now, sir. The family will be worried.’

‘Yes, go ahead. Send me two bottles of ginger ale and a tin of cheese, if you can,’ the OC said.

‘Sure sir, I’ll send them over immediately,’ Mok Min said.

Feeling a little relieved, Mok Min went back to his shop, while the other three remained immersed in their secret discussions.

Mok Min sent over two bottles of ginger ale, a tin of cheese and two tins of wafers as well, and went home. The children were all home. Everyone was worried.

‘Are they going to arrest us too?’

‘The OC says we have nothing to worry about. We are old settlers.’

After freshening up, Mok Min took a stroll around his house. He had a lot of money in the bank. But he also hoarded a great amount of money and gold in his house. He hid that money behind walls and inside photo frames and secret drawers. He even dug holes on the floors to bury cash and gold. He inspected the secret places and returned to his room. Shedding his worries, he sat down to do the accounts of the shop. And at that very moment, he heard a heavy knock on his door.

As soon as the door was opened, the crying began. Leaving his hard-earned wealth behind and his beautiful house in the hands of his neighbours, Mok Min walked towards Cheenapatti with his family, silent and shocked.

In their house in Tipling, Hong, Ming and their parents sat, numb. The second officer of the Duliajan police outpost, and a football fan, said to them with tearful eyes, ‘I don’t understand why I’ve been asked to arrest you. If you want to get away, do that. I don’t care if I lose my job, but I’ll help.’

‘We won’t run away. Why should we? We haven’t done anything wrong. Are we thieves? Are we dacoits? No, we won’t run away. Let them take us away.’

The anger and resentment of the two brothers shattered the air, their eyes filled with tears of despair.

‘Don’t be angry!’ the father consoled. ‘We are Chinese. That is the reality. Even if we live here for a thousand years, this will be our identity. They will not consider us one of them. Come, let us go.’

Wiping her tears their mother said, ‘Please don’t mind what my sons said. They were born here. They think of this place as their own.’