He became acquainted with the then chairman of the newspaper, Tan Cheng Lock, who would become his friend, mentor and later colleague in the pursuit of Malayas independence.
After the war, the English-only policy for top positions at the Straits Times led Tan to join the Singapore edition of the Tiger Standard, the paper established by Aw Boon Haw.
In 1950, a Standard-owned DC-3 airplane crash-landed in Thailand, paper's substantial profits, but Aw refused on account that his son was also a victim.
The boycott lasted three weeks and ended when the High Commissioner agreed to consult the leader of the majority party on the filling of five of the seven nominated seats in the Federal Legislative Council.
Other than in the field of politics, Tan also had substantial accomplishments in business and industry, as a prime mover in the establishment of Malaya's first integrated multimillion-dollar steel mill (Malayawata) and as the leader of the Selangor and All-Malaya Chinese Chambers of Commerce.
While a Buddhist by birth and he was decorated by the King of Malaysia for his service in the propagation of Buddhism in 1964, he was converted to Islam by Tun Abdul Razak.