He was later known as Tan Hiok Nee, and started his working life as a cloth peddler and in the course of his frequent visits to Wan Abu Bakar's home in Telok Blangah of Singapore, where he became a friend of the royal family.

This was to form the beginning of a vast holding of 9 such grants which made him the largest holder of kangchu concessions, as well as the wealthiest and most influential Chinese in Johor.

However, what made him so powerful among the Chinese community in Johor was his position as the leader of the Ngee Heng Kongsi after Tan Kee Soon's death in circa 1864.

Nevertheless, with his position as Kapitan Cina and head of the Ngee Heng Kongsi, as well as being a partner in the Great Opium Syndicate, Tan held all the levers of wealth and power available to a Chinese during his time.

Cong Xi Ancestral Hall, located in Jinsha Caitang, Chaozhou City, Guangdong Province, with its exquisite stone carving architecture, was listed in the sixth batch of protected key national cultural relics on May 25, 2006, by China's State Council.

Empress Cixi therefore bestowed his "two bows" (慈禧太后因而赐他二品顶戴), and constructed an arch with the words "Zealousness for Public Interests" in his hometown as a memorial for Tam Hiok Nee.

Hence the characters 资政第 “Zi Zheng Di” are until today prominently displayed at his ancestral home; it gives us a sense of its occupant's high rank.

The administrative structure of government was well established and was managed by a core of able and experienced officers led by the much respected Dato' Jaafar bin Mohamed as Menteri Besar.

Even so, he continued to have a towering presence in the Kongsi as his successor, Lim Ah Siang, was referred to only as Second Brother, the second most senior-ranking member in the secret society hierarchy.

Tan Chin Hean was a prominent elite of society who served as vice-chairman of the Ngee Ann Kongsi, President of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and headed the Teochew Huay Kuan.