The dealers of Thai "Buddhist" Amulets are marketing Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) as "God Of Gambler / Gambling (赌神)" and Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) Amulets as Good Luck Charms for Gambling Purpose, without bothering to share the real history of Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰).
In order to respect a great person, we should 1st spend time to do research and truly understand his real complete history. Not simply produce or read up twisted stories of a great historical figure as a "Gambling God" (赌神), for the sake of trading the image of it as Good Luck Charms / Amulets.
Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) was formerly known as Zheng Yifeng (郑义丰), also known as Li-Yu (礼裕), and he self-named Hai-Tao (海涛) in his later years. Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) was his alias.
Because he had funded Sun Yat-sen's democratic revolution and became a sworn brother with him, Sun Yat-Sen praised him as "wise and courageous", so he was renamed "wise and courageous" - Zhi Yong (智勇) - Zheng Zhi Yong (郑智勇). （因他曾资助孙中山的民主革命,并与他结拜为兄弟, 孙中山嘉其为“有智有勇”，故改名为“智勇”。）
In the early years of Tongzhi in the Qing Dynasty (清同治初年), 14-year-old Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) received 19 silver dollars from his clan family and pawnshop head Zheng Yuwen (郑育文) to "send down the wind". He took sweet rice cakes, market baskets, and bath cloths from Shantou to Siam on a red-headed boat (红头船) to earn a living. (清同治初年，14岁的二哥丰得到族亲、当铺头家郑育文“送顺风”的19个银元资助，带着甜粿、市篮、浴布，从汕头搭乘红头船到暹罗谋生。)
At the beginning, he was a "Runner Boy" (跑街小伙计) in the warehouse run by Chaozhou people (The Teochews) at the Red Head Boat Wharf. After a bit of social experience, he went to the northern border by himself, did coolies first, and after a little savings, he sold medicinal materials, cloths and other things back to Sanpin Street (三聘街) in Siemjing (暹京). Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) was almost killed when he was hijacked by a strongman during a cargo trafficking. He realized that he had to gather a group of like-minded brothers to work together in order to gain a foothold in Siam. （开始，他在红头船码头潮州人开的货栈里当跑街小伙计。有点社会经验后，独闯北部边陲，先做苦力，略有积蓄后，便贩运药材、布匹等物回暹京三聘街出卖。一次贩运货物途中被强人劫取，二哥丰险些丧命。他认识到必须聚集一帮志同道合的兄弟一起做事，才能在暹罗立足。）
At the age of 16, he joined the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (太平天国) King Kang's (康王) fugitive general, known as the "Big Brother Mang" (大哥莽) Chaozhou man Lin Mang (林莽), a private faction in the "Hua Siam Eighteen Gang"(华暹十八帮), a peripheral organization of the Fuming Hongmen Tiandi Association (反清复明洪门天地会的外围组) against the Qing Dynasty. （16岁那年，他加入太平天国康王的逃亡部将、人称“大哥莽”的潮州人林莽的反清复明洪门天地会的外围组织“华暹十八帮”中一个私派。）
The origin of the name of Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰)
At the age of 35, he became the “second brother” of the gang’s deputy leader. After Lin Mang's death, the second brother Feng was promoted to the chief "Big Brother". Others renamed him the eldest brother, but he humbly asked people to still call himself "the second brother" (二哥). This is the origin of the name of Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰). （35岁，他当上该帮派的副头领“二哥”。林莽过世后，二哥丰升任头领“大哥”。别人改称他为大哥，他却谦虚地要人仍叫自己为“二哥”，这便是二哥丰名字的来历。）
After being promoted to Big Brother, Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) advocated "harmony is the most precious" and did not use violence to resolve disputes. At the same time, he focused on maintaining coordination with the dynasty, reducing confrontation, and being friendly with the people, and gradually transformed the gang organization into a legal society organization. （升任“大哥”后，二哥丰提倡“和为贵”，不泛用暴力解决争端，同时注重与王朝保持协调，减少对抗，亲和民众，逐渐把帮派组织改造为合法的社团组织。）
At that time, there was a "Dutch-born" gang in Siam, which was composed of Dutch and Siamese and was quite powerful. Once, a French prince came to visit Siam and was kidnapped by a "Dutch student". Out of justice, Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) led more than a dozen congregation members to rescue the French prince, and his reputation became very popular. The smaller Hua Siam gangs borrowed heavily or turned to him, and they had to ask Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) to come forward if they had troubles, and even the King of Siam looked at him with admiration. （当时暹京有个“荷兰生”的帮会，由荷兰人和暹罗人组成，颇有势力。一次，法国王子来暹京旅游，被“荷兰生”绑架。二哥丰出于正义，率会众十余人救出法国王子，名声大振。势力小的华暹帮会纷纷借重或投靠他，有麻烦事也得请二哥丰出面摆平，连暹罗王也对他刮目相看。）
The Flower Fair (花会)
At the beginning of gaining power, coincided with the financial difficulties of the Thai dynasty, the fifth king decided to start gambling and taxation, and private organizations needed to come forward. Zheng Zhiyong relied on his social power and matched the social situation in Thailand at that time, contracted the "gambling rate" of the Royal Siamese government, opened the "Flower Club" casino, and formed a huge gambling taxation network. The general manager, banquets (gamblers), bodyguards, waiters, no fewer than thousands of people, collected a lot of taxes for the dynasty. (得势之初，恰逢泰王朝财政困难，五世王决定开赌征税，需要私派组织出面。郑智勇凭借他的社会势力，配合当时泰国的社会情况，承包了暹罗王国政府的“赌饷”，开办“花会”赌场，形成一个庞大的开赌征税网络，手下人员上自司库、总管，下及批脚(收赌款人员)、保镖、侍者，不下数千人，为王朝征收了大量税款。郑智勇不但获得巨大酬金.)
"Huahui Factory" (花会厂) of Siam Capital's gambling industry was one of the important tax sources of the dynasty. But in this industry, underworld and gang forces have always intervened, and it is difficult to control and operate. As a result, a Chaozhou native of Surname Hu (胡姓) lost after contracting. Er-Ger Feng (二哥丰) was gaining momentum, and King Rama V (King Chulalongkorn) of Siam asked him to contract the entire Siam Flower Fair. （暹京的博彩业“花会厂”，是王朝的重要税源之一。但这一行业，历来黑社会和帮派势力插手其中，难以掌控和经营。因而，一位胡姓潮州人承包后失利。二哥丰势头正旺，暹王拉玛五世便请他承包全暹京花会厂。）
"Flower Fair" was originally a form of gambling among the Chinese people. It was most popular in eastern Guangdong and southern Fujian in the past. It was passed down from Chaozhou to Siam. （“花会”本是中国民间的一种赌博形式，旧时在粤东闽南最为流行，它是潮州人传暹罗的。）
Huahui factory has management personnel such as treasurer, general manager, footman, bodyguard, waiter, etc., to ensure the effective and normal operation of the casino. After the Siam Capital's Flower Fair Factory was on the right track, Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) gradually extended this gaming industry to all provinces outside of Siam Capital. （花会厂设有司库、总管、批脚、保镖、侍者等管理人员，确保赌场能有效正常的运作。暹京花会厂走上正轨后，二哥丰逐渐把这一博彩业推广到暹京畿外各府。）
Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) started many businesses
With strong capital, Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) founded the "Zheng Qian He Hao" (郑谦和号) general commercial bank, which operates shipping, Huolong (火砻) - Rice Mills , bank, pawn, newspaper {"Hua Siam Daily"} (华暹日报), Printing Bureau, etc. Business organizations spread all over the Southeast Asian countries and Japan, Hong Kong and the mainland. （有了雄厚的资本，二哥丰创办了“郑谦和号”总商行，经营包括航运、火砻、钱庄、当押、报纸{《华暹日报》}、印务局等。商务机构遍及南洋诸国和日本、香港及内地。）
In 1905, he founded the "Hua Siam Shipping Company" (华暹轮船公司) with 8 ships sailing in Hong Kong, China, Shanghai, Xiamen, Shantou, Siam, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, Malaysia, and Japan. （1905年，他创办的“华暹轮船公司，8艘轮船航行于中国的香港和内地的上海、厦门、汕头和暹罗、印尼、越南、柬埔寨、新加坡、马来西亚及日本等港口。）
When the Hua Siam Wharf was built, it coincided with the Japanese invasion of China. Yamamoto, a Japanese in Siam, also took a fancy to the dock under construction. Taking advantage of the temporary shutdown of the dock for some reason, he sent people to the construction site and resumed the project in an attempt to occupy the dock. Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) and Yamamoto went to court several times, fought hard based on reason, and finally won the lawsuit. （在建造华暹码头时,正值日本侵华之际。旅暹日本人山本也看中在建码头,乘码头因故临时停工之机,派人强进工地,恢复工程,妄图占据码头。二哥丰与山本多次对簿公堂,据理力争，最终赢得官司。）
Because of his great contribution to the Siamese economy, King Rama VI of Siam named Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) the title of "Kun Bo" (坤伯) - Bo Jue (伯爵) - (Earl), and gave him the Siam surname as Cheng Chawani (郑差哇尼). （由于他对暹罗经济做出巨大贡献，暹王拉玛六世封二哥丰为“坤伯”(伯爵)头衔，赐其暹姓为郑差哇尼。）
After Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) became prosperous, he attached great importance to giving back to the society.
In Siam, he has repeatedly donated huge sums of money to the Red Cross and Tianhua Hospital (天华医院). Set up "Pei-ing School" (培英学校) and create a "Benevolence Hall" (报德善堂- Bao De Shang Tang) . Many good deeds such as building bridges, paving roads, and building piers have also been done. (二哥丰发达后，很重视回报社会的。在暹罗，他多次捐巨款给红十字会和天华医院。兴办“培英学校”，创建“报德善堂”。还做了许多诸如建桥梁、铺道路、造码头等善事。)
Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) funded Sun Yat-sen's revolutionary activities and joined the Tong Meng Hui (同盟会)
In 1903, Sun Yat-sen went to Siam Capital for activities and came to Senior Official Rong Lu mansion (荣禄大夫府) to meet with Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰). The fifth son of Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) who understood English, did English and Chaozhou dialect interpreter. Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) generously donated his money to fund Sun Yat-sen's revolutionary activities and joined the Tong Meng Hui (同盟会). Sun Yat-sen is thirteen or four years younger than Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰), worship him as a righteous elder brother. The two forged deep friendship. (1903年，孙中山到暹京活动，来到荣禄大夫府第会见二哥丰，由懂英语的二哥丰第五子做英语和潮州话翻译。二哥丰慷慨解囊资助孙中山革命活动，还加入了同盟会。孙中山比二哥丰小十三、四岁，拜他为义兄，两人结下金兰之好。)
Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) in Qing Dynasty official uniform
During the reign of Guangxu, Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) donated 100,000 silver for domestic disaster relief, and the Qing Dynasty gave him a second-grade Hua Ling (
二品花翎顶戴) wearing "Senior Official Rong-Lu" (
荣禄大夫). This is the origin of the image of Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) in Qing Dynasty official uniform. (
光绪年间，二哥丰捐10万白银国内赈灾，清王朝诰赠他二品花翎顶戴的“荣禄大夫”。这就是“二哥丰佛牌”半身像着清朝官服的来历。)
After the victory of the Revolution of 1911, Sun Yat-sen became the interim president, and Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) sent his fifth son to congratulate him, offering 50,000 guangyang and ivory carvings, and then donating 1 million baht to the Guangdong Dudu Mansion (广东都督府). (辛亥革命胜利后，孙中山就任临时大总统，二哥丰派第五子来祝贺，献5万光洋及象牙雕刻工艺品，后又赠暹币100万銖给广东都督府。)
In 1911, Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) built a magnificent mansion with a combination of Chinese and Western styles near Qiyuan Village (淇园村) in his hometown, including ancestral halls, western-style buildings, schools, auditoriums, playgrounds, sports and entertainment venues, etc., covering an area of 140 acres, with 300 halls and rooms. During the War of Resistance Against Japan, the mansion was bombed by Japanese planes. It is rumored that Yamamoto tried to occupy the Hua Siam Wharf in Thailand and lost the lawsuit against Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) and instigated revenge. (1911年二哥丰在家乡淇园村附近建成中西合璧，富丽堂皇的华厦巨宅，包括宗祠、洋楼、学校、礼堂、操场、体育娱乐场所等，占地140亩，厅、房300间。抗日战争期间，华厦巨宅遭日机轰炸,传闻系山本在泰国妄图霸占华暹码头，败诉于二哥丰而指使报复的。)
Later, two "shell ash roads" (贝灰路) were built from Qiyuan Xinxiang (淇园新乡) to Chaozhou Fucheng (潮州府城) and Fuyangxu City in the county (县内的浮洋墟市), with a total length of 42 li. (后来又修筑两条贝灰路，分别由淇园新乡通往潮州府城和县内的浮洋墟市，总长42华里。)
In 1916, the first "Zhiyong Higher Primary School" (智勇高等小学) exempted school fees for 1st intake, miscellaneous, board and lodging fees, enrolled 180 students in three classes, and hired the famous teacher of Chaozhou Jinshan Middle School (潮州金山中学), Mr. Yang Liu (杨柳先生), as the first principal. (1916年，“智勇高等小学”首届免收学、杂及食宿等费用，招收三班180名学童入学，聘请潮州金山中学著名教师杨柳先生为第一任校长。)
After the huge mansion in Huaxia (华厦巨宅) was built, Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) learned that his mother, Mrs. She, had a hard life in Nanjie Village (南界村), Chenghai, and that his second husband had passed away. Regardless of the opposition of the feudal defenders in the Zheng clan, he resolutely took her back to Xinxiang to enjoy the blessing. "I lived in an old house in the past, but now "I live in a new hall and 300 rooms. I didn't even dream of it!". (华厦巨宅建成后，二哥丰得知老母佘氏太夫人在澄海南界村生活艰辛，第二任丈夫已过世，不顾郑氏族内封建卫道士的反对，毅然接其回新乡享福。昔日住一旧厝，现时居新的厅、房三百间，连做梦也没想到！)
In 1917, on the eve of the 80th birthday of Mrs. She -
佘氏太夫 (Er-Ge Feng's Mother - 二哥丰的母亲) , Sun Yat-sen, who was the General Marshal of the Navy and Army in the Guangzhou military government, happily ordered a pen to write a birthday card with the Chinese character "
寿" (Sou) . The head of Haiyang County (
海阳县长) came to
express birthday good wishes to an elderly person on his behalf. (
1917年，在庆祝佘氏太夫人八十大寿前夕，时在广州军政府任海陆军大元帅的孙中山，欣然命笔，亲题一个大“寿”字的寿幛，落款“孙文敬贺”，嘱托海阳县长代他前来为义母拜寿。)
At the beginning of 1918, a major earthquake occurred in Chaozhou, which jeopardized the Hanjiang embankment. Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) successively donated 380,000 taels of gold and a large number of materials transported from Siam to build the south and north embankments. The Chaozhou gentlemen and elders built the "Zheng Gong Zhi Yong Memorial Pavilion" and the "Zheng Gong Zhi Yong Monument" on the embankment to show their merits! (
1918年初，潮州发生大地震，危及韩江堤防。北堤是关系到潮汕平原数县人民生命安全的重要堤防，郑智勇拨黄金38万两，并用他来往汕头至曼谷的五福轮船公司的轮船运来大批物资，修筑南堤、北堤和东堤。修复工程于次年8月竣工，潮州绅士父老在北堤建“郑公智勇纪念亭” ，在南堤树“郑公智勇纪念碑”，以纪念其功绩。)
Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) passed away
On the 7th day of the 3rd lunar month in 1937, 87-year-old Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) passed away in Siam. Before his death, he instructed his family to dedicate Senior Official Rong-Lu Mansion (荣禄大夫府), located in the third district of Papachachai, Bangkok, to the dynasty government. It was later converted into a Central Police Station building (Prapacha Police Station Building).
On the roof of the 4th floor of the building, there is Er-Ge Feng Temple (二哥丰庙) for worshippers. The eldest lady and other clansmen worship even more respectfully and piously. (
1937年农历三月初七日，87岁的二哥丰在暹京逝世。逝世前，他嘱咐家人，把位于曼谷拍抛猜三区的荣禄大夫府第献给王朝政府。后改建为14层的中央警署大楼。该楼第4层的天台上，建有二哥丰庙,供信众祭拜。大小姐等族人祭拜更是恭敬、虔诚。)
Er-Ge Feng's coffin was transported back to his hometown in China
During the mourning of Er-Ge Feng (二哥丰) , both the Siamese Dynasty and the Chinese National Government sent special envoys to express their condolences. (在追悼二哥丰期间,暹罗王朝和中国国民政府都派出特使到灵前吊唁。)
Er-Ge Feng's coffin was transported back to his hometown and buried in a deep pit on the east side of Long Shan Da Ji Ridge (葬后陇山大脊岭东侧的深坑). The inscription reads "Zhi Yong Zheng Cemetery of Senior Official Rong- Lu" (祖考荣禄大夫智勇郑公墓). (二哥丰灵柩后运回故乡，葬后陇山大脊岭东侧的深坑。碑文曰“祖考荣禄大夫智勇郑公墓”。)
Pictures of Er-Ge Feng’s tomb are contained in the township document "Feng-Tang Town Chronicles"《凤塘镇志》
