THE FANLING CONSPIRACY
You can see from the blurb on the back of the book, and from Amazon, a brief description of the book. I will try to give a little more background
This was my first novel, first published in 2002. It is based largely upon my own law firm in Hong Kong, and the major case that dominated the nine years I worked there. I joined my 2 partners Mike and Rod in 1995. Originally very much a criminal firm, I was brought in with one major client and a remit to create a civil practice. A year later, however, we were still struggling, Mike having left for pastures new, when two strange men entered my office.
It was much like as described in the book. Rod and I were interviewed, and gave these guys a job, upon the consideration we would be handed this potentially huge litigation case, which was already ongoing, against the Hong Kong Government. Our client was a “Clan” in Tuen Mun in the New Territories, close to the mainland border. Maybe 100 families, all seeking a court declaration that they owned this 600 year old temple. Ownership of which, incidentally, also entitled the lucky party to ownership of a LOT of temple land, worth many, many, millions of dollars. There may have been some clansmen who had altruistic motives, but I suspect not many. I couldn’t frankly blame them.
The Government was arguing that a charitable trust had been established over the temple, and so the temple (and the land/money) belonged to the public.
There was evidence throughout of systematic Government corruption, running from the 1960s. There was no doubt that this was an important case for the authorities. They threw everything at us. Luckily, the Clan came up with the money so we could instruct the necessary world-class experts – on Chinese customary law, and on charities – to win the case. We instructed a top Queen Counsel from London, as well as a number of HK QCs throughout the case.
We won the High Court trial – it lasted about one month, to great celebration. The Government appealed to the Court of Appeal, we won again. To our dismay the bastards appealed AGAIN, to the Final Court of Appeal, and we won again. The relief was enormous, we had gambled our firm and our futures on this case. We obtained a legal costs order against the Government ie they had to pay the Clan’s legal fees. That was important to us, as we were virtually bankrupt by this time. In due course, we agreed a figure with the Government, which made it all worthwhile, for us and the client.
Much of the Fanling Conspiracy is based upon the above. There are however a number of other unrelated scenes, mainly showcasing our social life, some of which are true, some not, as detailed in the book. Artistic license is taken at times (especially in the sex scenes!). Those who know me in HK will recognise many of the characters involved – although, remember, this is a work of fiction!
I re-launched the book in 2018, to coincide with the publication of the second, and related, book, The Samui Conspiracy.
Quotes from the book:
“Stand up please, defendant!”
Ben stood up with his client. Both looked at the magistrate.
“The Defendant is convicted of the charge of burglary.”
“Fuck”, muttered Ben under his breath.
“I beg your pardon, Mr. McCann?”
“Er… I said bad luck, Your Worship.”
——-
He paid his HK$11 and stood in a crowded carriage for the few stops to his office in Wanchai. For most of the way he was obliged to nestle his crotch into the behind of a rather attractive young Chinese girl. Ben had represented numerous men charged with indecent assaults on the MTR, all of whom had pleaded not guilty. He could see how easily it could happen.
Patty seemed to take great pleasure in every one of Ben’s losses. Why, he knew not. She also considered him a foreign pervert, which, all things considered, was probably unfair.
——-
“Good afternoon, Mr. McCann. My name is Jacob Rosenthal, and this is my friend Ah Wai. We’re here to make you rich.”
——-
Ben just about got the words out in his anger. “Firstly, it’s against the law to shag 15 year olds in Manila. Anywhere come to that. Are you mad? You could get life imprisonment!”
——-
“The little bastard tried to stick his hand up Christine’s skirt. I wasn’t having that. So I hit him.”
“You hit him.” Ben looked at Dylan doubtfully. Dylan was the worst fighter known to mankind. “He obviously hit you back.”
——-
“Well, what do you think?” said Ben.
“I think, my son, that we’ve finally hit the jackpot.”
——-
The woman was simply gorgeous. About 5 feet 8 inches tall, long flowing black hair past her shoulders, and one of the shortest mini-skirts that Ben had ever seen in a courtroom. It served to showcase a pair of magnificent long legs. She wore a black tailored jacket to go with her black skirt, and a white shirt. Her face was beautiful too. Blood-red lipstick. She sat down delicately between Connell and Ben. He caught a whiff of her perfume. It was intoxicating. Ben loved his wife, but at that moment he was sure that he would divorce her and leave his children (if he’d had any) for one night of passion with this woman. He saw that she was speaking to him.
——-
“Hello Jacob, Wai, nice to see you again. Ah, you must be Ben McCann, the plump one.” He laughed merrily. “And so you must be Mr. Roberts. Glad to meet you both.”
Ben grunted. He had been trying to lose weight. Dylan grinned. He liked him already.
——-
“My God”, said Ben, “do you know it’s before 10.00am? Are you ill?”
——-
“I’ll tell you what, Ben, I was down the New Makati last Friday, I picked up these two Filipina girls. I thought they must be on the game, but they weren’t, they were just horny maids. Took them home, amazing stuff. Trouble is, I think they’ve given me a touch of the clap. I literally wet myself on the MTR this morning,
——-
“What’s the matter?” said Ben.
Dylan stared at him. “That was Stan. He found a bug in every phone in the office.”
——-
“I can’t disobey my boss Ben, you know that. There are other experts, get one of them.”
“That is not the point, Mandy. You used information you got from me, in my bed, to help your client!”
——-
“Well, Tyler will do most things we ask him to do, but so far as I recollect, giving fellatio to a senile judge was not in his job description.”
——-
“You want me to have sex with a bloke! You’re serious, aren’t you?”
“Tyler”, said Dylan, “if this works you can have 10% of the Tang Clan money”
“I’m not going to shag a man! Are you out of your mind? I wouldn’t have sex with a bloke for one billion dollars!”
——-
The judge came through the door. Tyler stared at him, appalled. The judge was wearing his court wig, and a pair of suspenders. Nothing else.
“Mr. Scott”, shouted the judge, “I find you guilty of the offence of being a raving queen. Do you have anything to say before I pass sentence?”
“I say, judge, there appears to have been a major misunderstanding here….”
——-
“May I remind you Mr. McCann” said Noble coldly, “that a Judge of the High Court of Hong Kong has been murdered. I do not find that a ridiculous charge and this Court resents the insinuation.” He glared at Ben. Ben glared back.
——-
“I am not a gangster, Mr. Roberts, no matter what you may think. I am a businessman. But I will stop at nothing to prevent the Tang Clan winning this case. You and Mr. Baxter are not indispensible.”
——-
“I still can’t believe this”, said Ben. “A few months ago I was happy plodding along, with a bail application here and there, a conveyance or divorce or two, and had never heard of the Tang Clan. Now, my best friend has been charged with murder and my partner has been kidnapped. What next?”
“Perhaps you’ll get laid”, said Dylan.
“Very funny.”
——-
“Jacob, if we win this trial, I will gladly offer you the services of my wife at any time of your choosing” said Ben.
“No thanks” said Jacob, “I’ve seen the photos, I’d prefer the money please.”
——-
Dylan was spread out, pole-axed, on the floor. Miranda was also lying on the floor, in her bra and panties, covered in Dylan’s multi- coloured vomit. She also appeared to be lying in a pool of the stuff, of which there seemed a remarkable quantity. She was crying. Dylan was moaning. Ben had difficulty in comprehending the scene.
——-
“We were paid a visit last night by some Tang Clan triads. They asked us how the case was going, we explained as little as possible. Their threats were indirect again, but very clear. We believe ourselves to be in physical danger.”
——-
Dylan stared at Wai. If looks could kill, Wai would be a dead man. Ben was also upset. The clients were rejecting the advice of Leading Counsel. If they lost at trial, Ben and Dylan would not receive a dollar in costs as the Clan had run out of money. To Ben and Dylan’s mind, Wai was not only wrongfully jeapordizing the future of the Clan, but also the firm.
——-
Ben and Dylan were appalled. Who on earth was this? The professor noticed the looks.
“I’m so sorry”, he said, “but I suffer from Tourette’s Syndrome. You may have heard of it, it’s become quite popular on the T.V., I just cannot help myself uttering profanities every so often.”
“But…but Professor, you have to give evidence as an expert witness in court!”
“Oh, it’s no problem, Mr. McCann”, said the Professor, “I’m only like this because I’ve spent so long on the plane. I can control the symptoms with meditation. It’s like self-hypnotism. As long as I can have an hour by myself before going into Court, I’ll be fine…whoops, cocksucker!”
Dylan and Ben looked at each other with horror.
——-
“Hey…what’s going on?” shouted Ben.
“Don’t worry, Mr. McCann, we’re just going for chat” said one of the men, and bundled him into the back of a car at the side of the road. There was no-one in this small alley. Ben realized that what had happened to Dylan was likely about to happen to him, and felt sick to his stomach.
——-
“What’s going on?” he asked Dylan.
“Come here”, said Dylan grimly, and led him into a conference room adjoining the court. He closed the door behind them and stared at Ben.
“None of our Tang Clan witnesses are willing to give evidence”, he said.
“What!”
——-
“Oh, Mr. McCann, she said, “I have some terrible news.” She sounded as though she was fighting back the tears. “Judge Lee was admitted to hospital last night. A suspected heart attack.”
“Oh my God!” whispered Ben.
——-
Ben stared stonily at him.
“Chan” he hissed, “I’m going to get you, one day I’m going to get you, I’ll never rest until I do.”
“I think not Mr. McCann, you’re out of your league. Go back to England, that’s my advice to you. It would be most upsetting if the same thing happened to you as your partner.”
——-
He pushed her aside and burst into the room. He saw the Professor face down on the bed. He was naked. A daffodil was protruding from his bottom. He also appeared to be groaning. Ben was speechless.
——-
He called Dylan and explained the situation. There was silence on the other end of the phone.
“Dylan? Dylan?”
“Yes, I’m here. Is it part of Chinese customary law for the expert to sleep with a prostitute before giving evidence?”
“Apparently so.
——-
“One final question for you today, Professor”, said Gordon. “Is it your expert opinion, after considering the evidence to hand, that the ancestors of the Tang Clan built the temple in question?”
“Yes indeed…whoops, bollocks”, said the Professor.
——-
“If I was a betting man, for a party trying to defeat the Government of Hong Kong, in courts appointed by the Government of Hong Kong, who’s judges depend upon the Government of Hong Kong, perhaps we haven’t shown enough. Perhaps it was always going to be an impossible task.”
——-
“Oh I know you’ll all think she’s a prostitute, and, actually, she is. But I’ve discovered she has a heart of gold, and frankly, I’m no George Clooney. She’ll do for me.”
——-
“Now then, Dylan”, said Richard, “we still have the heavy burden of the charity argument to overcome. But we have a fighting chance now.”
——-
As they were leaving court, Mandy approached Ben and whispered in his ear.
“How about it, tonight?” she said. Ben considered it. There was nothing more he would like than to partake in what Mandy was clearly prepared to offer, but as the case was not technically finished, he felt that he had to decline. He whispered back accordingly. She looked disappointed.
——-
“Ah…Mr. And Mrs. Willoughby-Smythe, good morning, how are you”, he stammered, making sure his towel was in place around his nether regions. “May I introduce you to…er…”
“Ivy”, said Ivy.
“Indeed, Ivy, a terrible mistake in fact, a misunderstanding, rather funny actually, ha ha…” said Ben rather hysterically.
Mrs. Willoughby-Smythe gave Ben a withering look, and Mr. Willoughby- Smythe glared at him. They pushed past them into the lift, Ben catching words such as “disgraceful” and “prostitute”. Ben groaned.
——-
“It may have escaped your notice, Ivy, but I am dressed in a small white towel, which just about covers my genitals, and my bottom is on show to the entire world. I am not really dressed for a night out.”
——-
“OK? OK?” said Ben bitterly. “I’ve been parading naked around town, nearly savaged by a rat, seduced by a lunatic woman, suspected of sexual assault, sat in a cold cell for hours, and it’s alright?” Dylan shifted uncomfortably in his chair. Had Ben gone off his rocker?
——-
“Yes, thank you, My Lord. Our proposal to Tyler started as a joke. Either Dylan or I – I forget which – suggested to him that he should attend a party the following night where Judge Chang was due to attend in an effort to persuade the judge informally of the merits of our clients’ case. We laughed a lot and said we would pay Tyler one million dollars if he slept with the judge.”
——-
“Sebastian introduced me to the judge. I was very uncomfortable at first. Everyone seemed to be making gay jokes, including the judge. What’s worse, everyone seemed to think I was gay too. I was very nervous, and had a lot to drink. Later, maybe a couple of hours later, the judge asked me to go home with him. I was appalled. He made it clear that he was falling in love with me.” There was a giggle from the gallery, which the judge silenced with a stare. Tyler continued.
——-
“Suddenly the bedroom door opened. There stood Judge Chang. I couldn’t believe it. He was dressed in suspenders, his court wig and nothing else.” Outright laughter this time erupted from the gallery. Judge Yeung was angry.
“Silence!” he thundered. “The next person who interrupts will be thrown out of this court!”
——-
“The judge was yelling at me. He said that I had been convicted of being a raving queen, and did I have anything to say before he passed sentence on me. He also said he was to sentence me to a morning of oral sex and an afternoon of anal penetration.”
The court exploded.
——-
“Mr. Chairman”, said the judge. “Have you reached a verdict upon which you are all agreed?” One of the jurors stood up.
“We have, My Lord.”
“Do you find the defendant Tyler Scott guilty or not guilty of the charge of murder?”
The silence seemed to stretch for minutes. Everyone in court was holding their breath, looking at the Chairman of the jury. He opened his mouth.