In order to defend themselves, they bought rifles of various sizes and organized militias of youths and adults, standing guard at the forts day and night. Some overseas Chinese did not dare to stay at home during the night, so they brought their basic necessities into the fortified towers, taking up residence there. In this way the forts became one of the peculiar sights of the overseas Chinese hometowns.
為求自保，他們建砲樓，添購長短步槍，還組織青壯年自衛隊，日夜在砲樓守衛；到了晚上，有的僑胞不敢在家裡過夜，就帶著細軟住在砲樓裡，砲樓也就成為僑鄉的獨特景觀之一。