Alexander Tjoeng

Sir Alexander Tjoeng, 5th Baronet, of Surbaia (b. 1971), or more commonly known as Alex Tjoeng ( /tʃʊŋ/ chung), or Tjoeng Fook Yew (钟富耀), is a Batavian-Puffish penguin with Zhouese-Hindonesian ancestries. A scion of the prestigious old money Zhouese-Hindonesian Tjoeng family, he is known to be very wealthy, with his fortune based on agriculture and real estate. His landholdings are based in Puffle'and, Calada, Margate, Malesia, Austiceia, Hindonesie, Honk Gong, and Castilla and its colonies. Despite his wealth, he manages to stay out of the spotlight by not being too flashy in real life and by using several fake identities to conduct his activities.

Despite appearing to be a philanthropist (albeit a rather discreet one) and a kind-hearted penguin in general, Alexander is in reality a sociopath. He is also a player who regularly cheats on his wife Annie Wang. Above all, he has a murderous streak, having personally killed several of his enemies via several means.

Family background
Alexander Tjoeng is a heir of the aristocratic Hindonesien-Zhouese Tjoeng family, which had its roots from the region of Surbaia in Hindonesie. The earliest recorded ancestor of the family was originally an orphan from Quandon who was adopted by a merchant who made and sold clocks in the mid 18th century. He was given the surname 钟, which meant clock in Mandarin. The orphan soon became an expert craftsman at making clocks and managed to afford a considerably good education in the Zhouese classics for his eldest son, who entered the civil service and became the prefect of a prefecture in the region. In turn, the prefect’s son emigrated to what was then the Batavian East Indies and started engaging in the spice trade. His venture turned out to be successful and marked the start of the family’s fortunes.

Thanks to his father’s status as an imperial mandarin, he was able to gain respect from the local Zhouese community, which anointed him as one of their community leaders. The Batavian colonial administration, noticing his potential to lead the Zhouese community, appointed him as the Majoor der Zhouese (Major of the Zhouese) of Surbaia. This position effectively put him in charge of the local Zhouese community and made him responsible for enforcing the colonial administration’s laws among the community. The position, like many other Zhouese leadership positions created by the Batavians, was hereditary. By keeping the position within the Tjoeng family (which was coined via the Dutch pronunciation of Zhouese names), the family gained vast influence and wealth over the next century. It dominated the Surbaia region’s lucrative revenue farms, gained ownership of particuliere landrijen (private domains) in rural areas of the colony and became some of the largest landowners in the Batavian East Indies, even rivalling the foreign conglomerates operating in the region. The family would dominate the prestigious position of Majoor der Zhouese for another few generations before the Khanzem War occurred.

By the time of Majoor Tjoeng Khai Rui (b. 1843 - 1927), the Tjoeng’s had already expanded their real estate holdings to Batavia, Malesia, Puffle'and, Austiceia and Margate. It owned numerous plantations that grew rubber, coffee, tea and spices. While the initial generations of the family dabbled in commercial trade and manufacturing, Khai Rui’s generation viewed participation in commercial trade to be too plebeian for their own class (which was called the Cabang Atas, literally “highest branch” in Malay, the traditional Zhouese gentry of the Batavian East Indies) as traditional Zhouese customs deemed merchants to be lesser than the scholar-official gentry class. As a result, the Tjoeng’s either joined the colonial administration, became lawyers, doctors (specialising in both traditional Zhouese medicine and its modern Archipelagoan counterpart) or military officers (which, despite being looked down upon for its violent nature, was deemed to be more contributive to society than merchants). They mostly derived their incomes from their landholdings.

Just as Khai Rui passed the baton of Majoor der Zhouese to his son Hendrik Tjoeng (b. 1870 - 1955) in 1910, trouble began brewing in Antarctica. The Khanzem War soon erupted in 1912, with the Japalandese wrestling control of the Batavian East Indies from the Batavians. Determined to resist them, Khai Rui donated sizeable amounts of his fortune to the Allied war efforts by sponsoring tanks, airplanes and even 2 warships. His son, who did not flee to Puffle'and like his father, organised and funded a resistance group against the Japalandese military. The Tjoeng’s also dedicated a substantial portion of their money to funding humanitarian efforts in order to alleviate the pains of the war. Despite the fact that the Allied managed to defeat Khanzem and its Japalandese allies, the Tjoeng’s were dealt yet another blow to their faces when the newly independent Hindonesian government seized all of their landholdings in the country, with parts of them nationalised and the rest given out to political cronies.

All was not dark for the Tjoeng’s, because the King of Puffle'and at the time granted Tjoeng Khai Rui the Baronetcy of Surbaia in honour of his family’s contributions to the Allied war effort. The Baronetcy allowed his descendants to inherit the title of Sir. Utilising what was left of their fortune, the Tjoeng’s bought more lands in Malesia, Margate and other war-ravaged countries at really cheap prices. They also bought plantations from their previous owners who no longer wanted to run them. The reconstruction efforts that followed marked yet another reversal of the family’s fortunes as property prices soared once again. The post-war era also saw a population boom, which resulted in immense profits for the family’s agricultural holdings. Making much more money than before, the Tjoeng’s began to buy prime lands in major cities around the world and constructed high-rise buildings there. The office and retail spaces of these buildings were leased out to businesses, which gave the family a larger income stream than before. They were said to be the first to start building high-rise buildings that came to dominate the skyline of Margate City. They also took part in the mining business, leasing out lands with substantial minerals to mining companies.

Biography
Alexander Tjoeng was born on the 25th of June, 1971. His father was William Tjoeng, while his mother was Vanessa Cheng. William was a general physician who also specialised in neurological surgery. His mother was a socialite and a member of the Cheng family, which is a wealthy Honk Gongese family. Thanks to the marital alliance between these two families, the Tjoeng’s and the Cheng’s became formidable competitors against the Puffish conglomerates and the Mason’s in Honk Gong, both of which had influenced the local economy. The alliance worked via the Tjoeng’s leasing out industrial, office and retail spaces to the Cheng’s at discounted rates, which freed them from the Mason family’s exorbitant rents (this was due to the fact that the Mason’s were allied with the Puffish conglomerates and wanted to reduce the competitiveness of their Zhouese opponents).

In 1984, William inherited the Baronetcy from his grandfather grandfather Sir Arthur after Sir Arthur and William’s father Benedict perished in a plane crash in Calada. Alex himself spent his childhood in Puffle'and, Francterre and Honk Gong. When he was still a chick, he was taught to converse and write in Mandarin, English, Malay, French and Latin by privately-hired tutors. At school, he showed that he had an excellent memory and a sponge-like ability to absorb information by topping his class several times. However, he was also known to be rather mischievous. At the age of just 17, he was sent to the Royal Military Academy of Puffle'and by his father in hopes that he would be disciplined after becoming a commissioned officer. He graduated in 1989 as a second lieutenant in the Puffish army.

The subsequent year saw the outbreak of STINC-zachal, which resulted in Puffish and Caladan forces attempted to drive STINC out of Antarctica. Alexander was deployed in several campaigns and even fought in the frontline himself, earning the rank of lieutenant colonel by the end of the war. However, his military career was rather stagnant after the war. When his father passed away in 1993, Sir Alexander decided to leave the military and enrolled himself in Oxoniensis University, which was one of the most prestigious universities in Puffle'and. After 3 years, he received a Bachelor of Arts in Jurisprudence from the university. A year later, he was admitted to Outer Temple (one of the four Inns of Court in Snowdon) as a barrister. He started his private law practice in the Puffish capital, running it until 2014. He was renowned for doing pro bono work for his clients, which increased his popularity among those who aren’t well-off.

Near the end of the Colonial Antarctica War, the Batavians managed to seize control of Hindonesie once again. When the local government was overthrown, Alexander seized the opportunity to regain his family’s spot as the archipelago’s largest landowners. He forced cronies who took over the Tjoeng’s lands back to him at substantially low prices, which they were forced to accept after a local financial crisis evaporated most of their fortunes. However, that wasn’t enough for him. He sought retribution against those who he deemed to have wronged his family by personally assassinating some prominent former Hindonesian politicians and businessmen.

In 2001, he met Kay Chan, who later became his first and current significant other. Kay was a Zhouese-Malesian general physician who started her own private practice on one of central Snowdon’s streets. Despite Alex cheating on her multiple times during their courtship, he decided to marry her anyway because his family was pressuring him to get married. They got married in 2003 at Alex’s family estate in Surbaia, Hindonesie. Even after their marriage, he still cheats on her with multiple women.

Appearance
Alexander Tjoeng is a Zhouese-Hindonesian penguin who has black feathers. As his ancestors had once married native Hindonesians, he looks partially Hindonesian too. This gives him a rather distinctive look. He has dark brown eyes and rather wavy hair, which he keeps at a medium length.

In Hindonesia, Alex is fond of wearing plain dress shirts in dark colours (with navy blue being his signature colour). These shirts are sometimes replaced by polo t-shirts in similar colours. However when he’s in places that have cooler temperatures, he wears lounge suits in dark colours and dress shirts in either white or light blue. Whenever he’s not out to enact revenge, Alex would try to overdress himself a bit unless the dress code of the event indicates either black tie or white tie (in which case he would follow the dress code).

Alex owns 7 watches and wears them as his accessories (one at a time). While he bought 2 of them, the remaining wristwatches are considered to be family heirlooms which he inherited from his father (who in turn inherited it from his father). These watches are rather expensive as many of them are handcrafted by expert craftspenguins.

Abilities
Alexander is renowned for his sharp wit and prodigal memory, which helped him to win many lawsuits. He also possesses what someone described to be a “sponge-like ability to absorb information”, which probably meant that his reading comprehension was strong. These “abilities” enabled him to excel in his academic studies.

Behind his family’s back, however, Alexander possesses the abilities of an expert contract killer. He has ample knowledge and skills in firearms and unarmed combat, which he utilises to eliminate those whom he truly dislikes. While his physical strength is average, he is remarkably agile. Alex also knows how poisons and toxins work, which helps him In assassinating his enemies.

Besides that, Alex is a remarkably skilled driver and pilot. This enables him to make a quick escape if necessary. However, what he perceives to be his most important skill is his ability to forge several fake identities and aliases for himself. By using some underground proxies, he manages to possess several passports under different aliases, which he uses as necessary for his “missions”.

Hobbies
In his university days, Alexander participated in competitive rowing, most notably in the boat class known as a “coaxed eight” (which involves an eight-penguin racing shell with a coxswain). Despite being able to win a few prizes, he was considered to be mediocre compared to his teammates. Alex was also taught how to play tennis and golf in his father William Tjoeng’s golf club (whose membership he inherited after his death). His skills in these sports, although amateurish, are still formidable enough to allow him to socialise with other important figures.

Alexander is also fond of sailing. He is quite fond of his 3 sailboats, which he considered to be among some of his most prized possessions (along with the Tjoeng family plantation in Surbaia, the classic cars and watches that he inherited from his ancestors). He often goes on vacation by sailing to random seas around Antarctica, which he cites to be his way to escape the burdens of normal life. Alex also occasionally flies light aircrafts for leisure, although this isn’t as serious as his interest in sailing.

Relatives
Alexander has some relatives, who are themselves wealthy public figures.


 * Martin Tjoeng (b. 1987 - present) - One of Alex’s cousins and Stanley’s eldest brother, Martin Tjoeng is a Margatian philosopher, poet, writer and mathematician. Initially a student in a Governance academy, he later decided that a career in the Governance was not ideal for him, and started studying philosophy and pure mathematics. He is known among certain circles for being a strong proponent of nihilism and hedonism, with himself regularly living a decadent lifestyle funded by their father’s extremely generous trust fund (allegedly paying Martin and Stanley at least 10 million CPC per month). However, his family considers him to be a “fake intellectual” because he often flaunts his knowledge and his values clashed with his relatives’ more conservative values.


 * Stanley Tjoeng (b. 2002 - present) - One of Alex’s cousins and the younger brother of Martin Tjoeng, Stanley is a high-ranked civil servant in the Ministry of Law and the Ministry of Home Affairs, as well as a former intelligence officer in the Margatian Special Branch. He would go on to become the ceremonial President of Margate in 2031. Stanley is considered to be the more responsible and successful among the Margatian branch of the Tjoeng family.

Residences
Alex Tjoeng owns several residences around Antarctica, many of which are inherited from his family.


 * Tjoeng Estates - The Tjoeng Estates is the family’s largest plantation in Surbaia, Hindonesie. It is considered to be the ancestral home of the Tjoengs as they first owned the land in the 19th century. After it was confiscated from them, it was placed under the ownership of a Hindonesian political crony until he was forced to sell it back to Alexander. Today, the Estates is 1.5 times larger than its original size. Alexander has also renovated the main house to give it a modern yet classical taste.


 * Tjoeng House - The Tjoeng House is the family’s residence in the Hindonesian capital of Jakaarte. It used to be the family’s main residence in the area until they acquired the Oranjehuis at the outskirts of Jakaarte.

Trivia

 * Alexander only kills those whom he deemed to have directly wronged him. He rarely kills these penguins’ underlings, preferring to knock them out instead.


 * Alexander used to have a policy of not killing any female creature. He cancelled this when a female assassin attempted to seduce and kill him once.


 * Unlike most wealthy creatures, Alex doesn’t like to avoid taxes by finding loopholes.


 * Despite being the head of one of Antarctica’s wealthiest families, neither Alex himself nor one of Alex’s ancestors after Majoor Tjoeng Khai Rui has been reported to be among the wealthiest creatures in Antarctica. This is reputedly because the family bribes media outlets in exchange for respecting their privacy and not giving them any media coverage.


 * In order to protect their privacy, neither Alex nor the rest of the Tjoeng family uses social media. As a result, none of them have Beakbook or Chitter accounts.
 * Despite that, in order to give his fake identities a more “authentic” appearance, he has created several social media accounts for them. These accounts are accessed via mobile devices separate from those that he “officially” uses.