Mercenary I am the king

Chapter 574 High-end Forum
"You'll be here for a week this time, and I've arranged four activities for you."

In the room of the Marriott Hotel, Angel opened the huge clothing gift box on the bed and introduced the recent event arrangements.

"In the remaining three days, you should go visit Fair and see how he's doing. His website and newspaper are both doing quite well. Although they're small, they're quite distinctive and have a certain influence among right-wing people..."

After taking out his suit, Angel headed towards the bathroom.

As soon as Song Heping came out, she held up his suit and compared it to his body.

"It fits perfectly. I still remember your size..."

After saying that, he glanced at Song Heping, who was only wearing shorts and shirtless, and his eyes fell on his chest muscles and abdominal muscles.

"They say you can tell a self-disciplined man at a glance."

Song Heping took the suit and said with a smile, "What do you think?"

Angel said: "Men who are self-disciplined have good body management. Only those who lack self-control will become fat pigs."

Song Heping patted his abdominal muscles and said, "I have no choice. If I don't stay in good shape, I will die."

Angel sighed and said, "I think you should set up a company here in the United States."

"Company? Why?"

Song Heping asked while changing clothes.

Angel said, "If you want to participate in the political game in the United States, you must have a legal identity. As I said earlier, if you want to deal with lobbying firms and invest in politicians you like, you need a legal business identity. And establishing a legal company is the beginning."

Song Heping put on the shirt and found that it was the perfect size.

While adjusting her clothes in front of the mirror, she said, "I'm not trying to gain greater benefits here..."

As he said that, he turned around, picked up his pants and started putting them on his legs.

"I'm saving my life."

"Save your life?" Angel walked out of the living room, went to the small bar, picked up a bottle of wine, took some ice cubes from the refrigerator, and poured himself a glass of wine.

"Were you in any trouble?"

"Not yet..." Song Heping said as he fastened his belt in front of the mirror in his room, "But there's an old saying in our country: be prepared for danger in times of peace. Just because I don't have it now doesn't mean I won't have it in the future. I need enough protection."

After putting on his pants, he walked out of the living room and walked to the bar to pour himself a glass of wine. Then he returned to sit next to Angel, put his arm around her waist and said, "I originally went to Yiligo just to make a living. At that time, my dream was simple: to make some money during the war, buy a house for my brother when I returned home, save some for my sister's dowry, and then keep some for myself to open a store and do some small business."

"But I didn't expect a roadside IED to explode, killing two of my companions. My partner was left with a mountain of debt and had to leave. I had no choice but to become a mercenary. I didn't expect to meet the chef by chance, join the 'musician' and this small team, and then meet you by chance..."

At this point, Song Heping became a little emotional.

He looked at Angel beside him, and gently lifted the golden hair beside his ear with his hand and gently hung it behind his ear.

"I have to say, you are the beginning of my good luck, Angel. I am very grateful to you."

Angel just looked at Song Heping, without seeming to respond much, but his eyes were full of tenderness.

After a long pause, he said, "Song, you are different from all the men I've ever met. There are many outstanding young talents in the American elite field, but most of them come from wealthy families, have lived a life of luxury since childhood, and their paths are arranged by their families. But I feel that although they are excellent in some aspects, they are just relying on the protection of their families. You, on the other hand, are from a different world. I like men who have made their own way. Only such men can give me a sense of conquest."

Song Heping knew she was not lying.

Angel's words were sincere.

She also came from a distinguished background.

Children from such families tend to be more successful, but they are also more likely to lack a sense of accomplishment.

The glory of their fathers often forces them to live under the shadow of their predecessors' success while enjoying the benefits of their ancestors, and they are unable to demonstrate their own abilities.

Therefore, although they do not have much interest in the people at the bottom of society, they sincerely admire those who can climb up from the bottom and achieve something.

"Angel, there's a saying in my hometown: People who are used to eating lobster and abalone always think that sweet potato porridge is the most delicious thing in the world."

Song Heping smiled bitterly and said, "In fact, many people like me don't like their own success. What you take for granted and think is within your reach is often what we pursue our entire lives to obtain. Some people spend their entire lives trying to reach Rome, while others are born in Rome."

After sighing, he continued, "Now my defense company is growing bigger and bigger, with more and more business and a wider range of areas involved, but I sense the danger. I must buy an insurance policy for my future. That's why I came to Washington to find you."

"I see," Angel said. Song Heping said frankly, "You have no obligation to help me. Helping me to make connections might implicate you in the future. I won't be unhappy if you don't help me. After all, I have to be honest with you."

Angel suddenly stood up, went back to the room, took out Song Heping's coat and threw it to him.

"Don't worry, you won't cause any trouble to me."

After a pause, he continued, "Hurry up and get dressed and follow me. There's a forum this afternoon, followed by a cocktail party. The forum will be attended by politicians, scholars, and retired military personnel from various countries, and probably some intelligence personnel. It's a great place to listen. Some of the current defense forums and international political seminars will be very helpful to you."

She raised her index finger, pointed at Song Heping, nodded at him and said, "Remember, you are no longer an ordinary defense company boss. You need a higher position and a wider network of contacts."

At two o'clock in the afternoon, on the fifth floor of a building near Mount Vernon Square on the northeast side of the Washington Convention Center, Song Heping followed Angel to the entrance of the venue. The security guard conducted a detailed security check as usual. Since the Twin Towers incident, the security level in various parts of the United States has been raised to the highest level.

After presenting the invitation letter and identity ID, the two were able to enter the venue smoothly.

The meeting inside has just begun and the host and guests are taking their seats.

Angel took Song Heping to a corner to sit down, and then she whispered, "Today's forum is hosted by the Rand Corporation, and one of the sponsors is the well-established lobbying firm BGR. I can introduce you to their CEO at the evening reception. However, this kind of well-established lobbying firm will probably be very sensitive to your identity, so the key is not here, but the people in this venue and the guests. Do you see the guy sitting on the far left? He's the deputy head of the Military Commission's Counterterrorism Affairs Group. Although this guy doesn't hold a high position, his words carry a lot of weight when it comes to overseas counterterrorism deployments..."

Angel began to explain to Song Heping the identities and roles of the key figures present, and also introduced Song Heping to some traditional culture of American political lobbying.

The English word "lobbying" comes from lobby, which originally meant lobby. Later it became a verb, meaning "trying to influence politicians or public officials on a certain issue."

Because the politicians at the beginning of the founding of the United States decided to set the capital in Washington. In addition to geographical considerations, they also wanted the political center to be far away from the economic center to avoid interference from financial consortiums.

At that time, lobbyists representing many local interests traveled a long way to the capital, rented hotels, and then went to the lobby of Congress or government departments to wait for the politicians and officials they wanted to meet, and presented their respective proposals to them, hoping that the government would adopt them.

Later, as this type of people grew in number, the lobby became their "battlefield," and so this type of behavior began to be referred to as "lobby," and professional lobbyists were called "lobbyists."

In the United States, there are more than 106057 registered lobbyists, with a median annual income of $. Some are big, some are small.

Lobbying firms in the old United States are divided into two types. One type is the old lobbying firms like BGR, which basically specialize in Congress. No matter who comes to power, Congress is very effective in influencing policies, so specializing in Congress is the most sustainable.

However, specializing in Congress requires more flexible lobbying skills and strategies, as well as the connections accumulated over the years. Maintaining good relationships with members of Congress from all parties is impossible without long-term investment.

Another type of lobbying involves targeting officials or even a specific president. For example, campaign managers or advisors who worked on a campaign team might open a lobbying firm after their client becomes governor or president, leveraging their connections to the governor or president to generate lobbying funds. Some even describe these lobbying firms, created specifically for high-ranking officials, as "white gloves."

These lobbying firms are generally small and efficient, with a short lifespan, depending on the term of office of the official they specialize in.

The topic of the forum was the war in Ilgabad and Afghanistan. The guests on the stage expressed their views on the war on terrorism and the current situation in Ilgabad and Afghanistan.

Song Heping listened very carefully.

After all, these guys have a certain influence in American politics and represent the true thoughts of certain capital forces or political forces behind them.

The most exciting part was when discussing the situation in Afghanistan, a British guest and the deputy director of the Congressional Overseas Terrorism Panel had a heated debate.

On the surface it was a discussion, but Song Heping actually saw clearly that these two guys were just trying to pass the buck.

Because the current commander of the coalition forces in Afghanistan is a British man, and the Americans believe that the current situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated and the coalition forces are in an extremely passive state due to improper command by the British. Moreover, Americans account for 70% of the coalition forces. Other countries have only made little contribution and sent a few small forces that cannot play a fundamental role. They require the British and other coalition forces to send more troops.

Song Heping saw some clues from their argument. First, Afghanistan was currently seriously short of soldiers and manpower. Second, the Americans seemed determined to continue the war, and it seemed that it would take quite some time.

"What's the name of this deputy team leader?"

"Simmons, Nicholas Simmons."

"What is the Elephant Party or the Donkey Party?"

"Donkey gang. Just like my aunt."

"Looks like a war hawk."

"The Donkey Party is all belligerent."

At this, Angel couldn't help laughing.

"Most of America's wars were started by the Donkey Party, but fewer by the Elephant Party."

Song Heping smiled and said, "Then I support the Donkey Party."

　Asking for a monthly ticket! Asking for a monthly ticket!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)