Nanyang 1931: From piglets to giants

Chapter 290 Zheng Yi takes action, causing chaos throughout the United States

Washington, D.C. is not a livable city and is known as the least American city.

This place was planned in the late 18th century. The whole city is full of ancient and inconvenient atmosphere. There is no modern infrastructure such as commercial centers and shopping malls. In addition, there are height restrictions. All buildings cannot exceed the national monument. There are no high-rise buildings, so this place is actually not suitable for living.

Even most government officials who work in Washington, D.C., commute to Arlington, just across the river. So many people say that Washington, D.C. is only the national capital in name only, and Arlington is the real political center of the United States.

After the cocktail party, Zheng Yi also refused the so-called hospitality in Washington and instead stayed at the Arlington Hotel in Arlington.

The hotel itself was not very high-end. There was no Ritz-Carlton in Arlington at that time. As a government reception hotel, the overall decoration of the hotel was not luxurious enough. But with Zheng Yi's arrival, the door of the hotel was almost broken down within three consecutive days.

Almost all the congressmen have made appointments with Zheng Yi, including not only Republicans but also Democrats. Zheng Yi welcomes everyone and meets with everyone he can. There are even many candidates who are not in Washington and are interested in the congressional elections in various districts, who will fly to see Zheng Yi specifically.

After Zheng Yi donated his first $500,000 as a political donation to a Republican candidate he met for the first time, he never stopped meeting with candidates, meeting at least ten or eight candidates every day.

Zheng Yi was busy meeting those politicians, and Li Jianqiao, Zheng Yi's personal secretary, was also not idle. He was even busier than Zheng Yi and had to meet dozens of business people every day.

"Uncle, I've met with management from over 320 American companies recently. Basically, companies from all walks of life are extremely interested in joining the SAARC. Most of them are asking if they're eligible to invest in cities like Tunisia and Haifa if they're not listed in New York. They all want a piece of the action."

“In addition, most people also asked about Japanese workers and hoped that they could be brought in.”

Zheng Yi nodded and said, "The congressmen I met with all said the same thing. Most of them mentioned the Japanese labor issue. It seems that the labor-capital conflict in the United States is more acute than imagined."

When it comes to the actual implementation of Zheng Yi's so-called globalization at the policy level, there are currently only two important aspects for American society.

One is that when American companies invest overseas, if they are not listed in New York or Penang, what specific opportunities will they have, how will they operate, and most importantly, what kind of government support will they need.

And the most crucial thing is to relax capital gains tax and foreign exchange controls, especially since President Du came to power. For the sake of so-called national security, the CIA's supervision of transnational funds must be relaxed.

In fact, this is also the reason why Zheng Yi said he would never choose the Democratic Party. The United States is not always free, and the national security card is not something that was played only in the 21st century.

Secondly, everyone is asking about Japanese workers. Apparently, they have been suffering from American unions for a long time.

Around 1947, the United States was experiencing the most severe inflation, especially in cities where housing prices were rising rapidly. The union strike movement was very intense, and the Auto Workers Union, the Steel Workers Union, and the Railroad Workers Union were currently organizing a nationwide strike.

This is actually the reason why the United States is particularly vigilant against the reds. American capitalists are all overwhelmed by these strike movements.

Several large industrial capitals have suffered from the trade unions and the Democratic Party for a long time, so they naturally hope to introduce Japanese to do the work. It is impossible to completely replace American native workers, but it can at least stimulate the trade unions.

Therefore, these two points have actually become Zheng Yi's most important political propositions, and business owners above a certain scale also support his propositions.

With the support of business owners, there will naturally be financial support, and there will be the so-called political base, which will be the prerequisite for the establishment of a faction. Zheng Yi himself is just throwing out a brick to attract jade, and there will naturally be members of the Republican Party in various places who will take the initiative to occupy these ecological niches.

But many times, just having money is not enough. After all, Zheng Yi knows all his political propositions better than anyone else. Most of them are detrimental to the interests of the grassroots people in the United States, and the grassroots people have the votes. This requires Zheng Yi to have a complete set of campaign plans and related theoretical rhetoric to fool the voters.

Li Jiazhi also took out a document and said, "Here, this is the Gallup poll. They believe that the Republicans will lead by more than 80 seats in the House of Representatives this year."

“cao~“

Zheng Yi took it, took a quick look at it, and put it aside.

Even more outrageous than the presidential election polls.

The Republicans currently lead in the House of Representatives by 64 votes. To put it bluntly, these polls all believe that the Republicans will win and expand their lead.

"This so-called poll is conducted by telephone, but only urban areas, and even middle-class urban households, have telephones. A large number of working-class Americans and rural Americans don't even have phones, yet they have votes. So what's the point of this kind of poll?"

Of course, generally speaking, the voting willingness of villagers in this part of the United States is generally not high. After all, private cars were far from being as popular as they are in later generations, and even the roads in many states were not satisfactory. Who would have thought that this Democratic Party would have such a terrifying mobilization ability in rural areas?
After thinking for a moment, Zheng Yi said, "Let's set up a polling company, recruit more people, and conduct paid questionnaire surveys. We can also look around the market to see if there are any polling companies with suitable qualifications. We can even directly acquire them."

"One of the biggest problems for the Republican Party this year is that they have become too proud of themselves after being fooled by these unreliable polling organizations, so many people are not taking their campaigns seriously enough."

If I remember correctly, this election was a big reversal in history. He really didn't remember how much it was reversed, but the Democrats must have been leading by a large margin.

Li Jiazhi: "If, as you say, the Republican Party is not a major advantage but a major disadvantage, then the Democratic Party's base, with the exception of small farmers in rural areas and civil servants, is difficult for us to win over."

"Then what remains are the urban working class and the black community with voting rights. As for the black community, I know you have been trying to win them over in New York, but this year President Trump's support for the rights of the black community has caused a split within the Democratic Party.

No matter what the facts are, in the context of the Democratic Party's propaganda, it naturally becomes: President Du would rather let the Democratic Party split and lose next year's election, and insist on supporting equal rights for the black community. To be honest, it is difficult to win the argument.

As for the urban workers, aren't they just the unions? Honestly... this is quite difficult for us. Bringing in Japanese workers would be like poking at the unions' sore spot, not to mention moving American factories to Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Wouldn't that just destroy their jobs? We're almost naturally on opposite sides of the fence.

To put it bluntly, it is difficult to attract the iron vote base. The Republican Party now has such a big advantage, and the Democrats actually rely on the iron vote base.

Li Jianqiao: "More than that, some of the people I've spoken to this time have expressed concerns about your policy proposals. The Democratic Party is comprehensively attacking your pro-Gong stance, and honestly, it's hard to refute."

"There are some things Mr. Dewey finds difficult to tell you, but I'm not sure if he's trying to get someone to tell me that your relatively pro-Trump stance is actually unpopular among many Republican voters. Currently, there are indeed many Republican congressional candidates actively trying to woo us."

"But similarly, there are quite a few Republican candidates across the country who have expressed their desire to disassociate themselves from us, or even to attack us. The Democrats are now using our pro-tribution stance to attack Mr. Dewey. Honestly, if, as you say, the polls for this election are truly irrelevant and the Democrats are in the lead, then perhaps someone will blame you for this defeat."

Zheng Yi: "It's those anti-tribute lunatics, right? I sent someone to pass a message to Kohler earlier, but I don't know if it got through. Please contact Lawrence for me and ask him to treat those Kohler guys to dinner for me."

Simply put, a considerable number of the Republican Party's core voters are anti-Gong. At this critical juncture, the most common criticism leveled at President Trump by the Republicans is that he is soft on Gong in order to attract anti-Gong voters to vote for the Republican Party.

The one that jumped the most here was the Kohler Group.

After all, the Democratic Party is closer to trade unions. For many people who do not know the truth, they always think that trade unions are associated with the red color.

In fact, American unions and what the East thinks of as unions may not be the same thing. American unions developed on the basis of gangs. In many cases, the management of some unions even have dual identities as unions and gangs.

These people are more scared of red tide than the capitalists.

What the truth itself is is not important in American politics. What is important is what people believe. Historically, the reason why the Democratic Party has paid more attention to ideology and is almost fanatical is that it is essentially self-proving, similar to the fanaticism of a convert.

Zheng Yi: "In general, the Democratic Party's supporters in this election are industrial workers, union members, rural voters in the Midwest, urban minorities, and New Deal supporters among Southern whites."

"As for the presidential election, since Dewey won't listen to me, I'm not sure I can save him. Let's save the House of Representatives first. It's hard for us to reach rural areas, but fortunately, rural votes aren't too important for the House of Representatives election. The Republican Party also has a conservative base in rural areas, so we don't need to worry about it."

"Ultimately, the House elections still depend on protecting cities. Our people have an advantage in cities like New York, Boston, and Cleveland, but the Democrats still have a few seats. In cities like Detroit, Chicago, and Pittsburgh, where the Democrats have a stronghold, we are likely to only get a few seats."

"We must take action against the Democratic Party's unions and compete with them for urban minorities, especially black people. This time, we may have to play dirty."

"Dirty?" Li Jiazhi frowned. "What do you mean?"

Zheng Yi: "Mr. Du... served as a county judge in Jackson County, Michigan, in the early 20th century, right? Could he have come into contact with, or even joined, the Ku Klux Klan during this period? Could the cases he adjudicated during this period have had strong racist overtones?"

"I remember two candidates from Michigan came to see me this morning. Regarding this matter, Cambridge, after returning to New York, I will go to Chinatown to find the most trusted person and personally go to Michigan to see if I can find any evidence of his connection with the KKK."

"Jiazhi, for the next two months, go to the boss. No matter how much it costs, buy every radio station and newspaper you can and report to me that President Du joined the KKK in his youth. At the same time, there's a reward for anyone who can provide solid evidence. The reward is $3."

Li Jiazhi: "Isn't there still no evidence? Isn't this just a rumor?"

Li Jianqiao: "Yes, Uncle, even if it's true, doesn't this just dig up old grievances? This happened decades ago, and bringing it up now will definitely make President Du look very embarrassed. You and President Du are still friends, and if, as you said, there's a high probability that he'll be re-elected next year, isn't this just walking into a trap?"

Zheng Yi shook his head and said, "It's definitely not a rumor. There are very few politicians from Michigan who have no ties to the KKK. The early 3th century was also the time when the KKK was at its most rampant there. As long as we get the word out, we'll definitely find clues."

More importantly, Zheng Yi knew very well that Mr. Du had problems in this area. As far as he knew, Mr. Du even paid a $3 membership fee to the KKK when he was young.

"As for saying we're friends... well, when it comes to politics, there are no friends. As for whether he'll make things difficult for me if he's re-elected, well, don't you think about it? He relies on the CIA. As for domestically, I've already told you that I will ultimately win the civil war."

"Jiazhi, we just agreed a few days ago to let Xiangjiang represent us in Hong Kong Island. Given the level of ideological obsession the Democratic Party has, do you think we can still coexist?" "Don't even mention that I'm indeed pro-tributary. There's one thing we can't avoid. We're Chinese, with yellow skin. Even if I became an American citizen, I can't avoid being forced to express my political views."

"To put it bluntly, we must be politically reliable in order to be accepted by the American political community. To put it even more bluntly, even if we've done business as well as we have, even in Southeast Asia, without the acceptance of the American political community, we're doomed. The United States is the hegemon of the world, especially in the commercial world based on nationality. There's no way I'm going to join CMEA."

"So-called political reliability in the United States naturally means working for elections. The nature of the SAARC dictates that it would be difficult for me to join the Democratic Party. I've considered that if President Trump really targets me in the future, it would be proof that I share the hardships with the Republican Party."

"Of course, we still need to maintain a personal friendship. In this regard, Jiazhi can only be left to you. President Du and I will inevitably become enemies, but you and his wife may continue to maintain a relationship and help me to develop a diplomacy with the wives."

"I heard that Mr. Du's daughter, Margaret, dreams of becoming a singer. So, you can buy a record company for Margaret in your own name and find the best songwriters. Um... I'll write a few songs for you and have Margaret sing them. If she's interested in acting in movies, I'll give her a film company."

Unlike later generations, this year, most people in the entertainment industry and literary and artistic workers are pro-Republican. As for the art circle, especially the American art circle, most people want to show off their proud personality.

So although it is magical, Margaret's entertainment career has not developed smoothly. Although she certainly has more opportunities than others, she has also received a lot of criticism. The most amazing thing is that just this year, a music critic from the Washington Post used an entire article to criticize Margaret's singing for being terrible.

You have to know that this is President Du’s only daughter, the apple of his eye. As a result, President Du was so angry that he did not hesitate to personally intervene and quarrel with the music critic as the president.

And he still cursed for losing.

From a certain perspective, the United States does have freedom of speech. Precisely because she is Mr. Du's daughter, and she came out to sing and dance in person, many people came out to criticize her.

This resulted in this woman receiving constant invitations, with some people wanting to curry favor with President Du and willing to pay a large sum of money to have her sing. She had many more opportunities to appear in public than ordinary singers, but at the same time she was constantly criticized. Everyone in the industry said that her singing was actually not very good, so the more she appeared, the more black fans she had, and ordinary people began to dislike her.

This singer isn't singing for me, he's showing off his privileges. Why not just sing about my presidential father?

"Can you write English songs?"

Zheng Yi: "What can't I do? I can write songs and I know English. Isn't it normal for me to write English songs? I don't write many songs because there are not many singers in the world who are worthy of me writing songs. Writing a song for Mr. Du's daughter is not bad."

What Margaret lacks most in this situation is a representative work. Indeed, the entertainment industry these days is full of Republicans. Everyone believes that President Du cannot be re-elected, so they mock Margaret at this time just to show that they are not afraid of the powerful.

And these two things happen to be what Zheng Yi can give.

He plans to invest heavily in Los Angeles next, with the film and television industry being a top priority.

"Public affairs are public affairs, private affairs are private affairs. It would be best if President Du could understand me. If not, there's nothing I can do. We're all politicians."

"Although this is directed at President Du personally, it doesn't matter. Our goal is to make it difficult for the Democratic Party to play the African-American card. We are making groundless accusations and throwing dirty water on all Democratic candidates, even those in the North."

"As long as we can prove that President Trump joined the KKK, we can freely throw mud at other Republican candidates and mobilize the media. As long as they run a party with black members or are trying to attract black votes, we must report all of this, no matter if it's true or not, to muddy the waters."

"Finally, Jiazhi, this matter still has to be handed over to you. Help me acquire an insurance company in the United States. MetLife or Prudential Financial will do. If neither of them is willing to sell, we can build one from scratch."

"Introduce a specific insurance policy for a specific region, only for business policies, to serve factories and unions, and have the government force factory owners to pay for it, introduce the concept of universal social security, and support Republican lawmakers."

"Tell those business owners that this is a condition for bringing in Japanese workers, and that Japanese workers don't need insurance. As long as they don't mention this in their marketing, there shouldn't be much of a problem. It should be enough to undermine some of the Democratic Party's support for labor unions."

"Finally, aren't workers in the automobile, steel, railway, and some military-industrial complexes on strike?"

As he spoke, Zheng Yi unconsciously crossed his legs, took a puff of his cigarette, and suddenly shouted, "Collins."

"what?"

Collins, the personal secretary who had been hiding far away and didn't dare to eavesdrop on their conversation, was stunned. Although they were speaking Chinese, she couldn't understand anything.

"Sir, you called me."

"Contact your brother. Tomorrow, come with me to U.S. Steel. U.S. Steel has officially started hiring black workers."

Collins: “Huh?”

The first and second largest shareholders of U.S. Steel are now Morgan Bank and the Rockefeller family, all of whom are from the same family. Zheng Yi said that this matter should still be counted.

Collins was stunned. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Isn't this... a strike?"

"Indeed, those white people are on strike. What? Are you black people unwilling to do the work that the white people don't want to do?"

Collins: "No, no, but how could those white unions let us..."

Zheng Yi: "If they don't allow you, you won't do it? They have guns, but you don't? If you black people can't unite yourselves, I can't help you."

"Starting in New York, in three days, I will arrange for the relevant police officers to take a holiday. I'll give you the work, but whether you black people have the ability to do it is up to you. I can guarantee that within one day, there will be no police intervention."

Collins took a deep breath when he heard this. Even Li Jianqiao and Li Jiazhi, who didn't know much about the United States, couldn't help but widen their eyes.

"Uncle, this is a bit too much."

Zheng Yi: "Big? Why do I feel it's still too small? As the old saying goes, you should be firm and flexible in doing things. Alternating between tension and relaxation is the way to be both civil and martial. I gave you the sweet dates, but I can't do without the slap."

Then he turned to Collins and said, "Los Angeles, Houston, Detroit, and Pittsburgh, I want these four cities to also realize the Hongmenization of black gangs within a month. Steel, railways, and automobiles. Oh, and I also have some influence in the oil and chemical industries. I can talk to those bosses and ask them to open up a little space for you black people."

"Finally, I'll take out another 30 million US dollars as funding for the Hongmen. If any of the brothers are killed or injured in gang fights, this will be used to pay for their resettlement. Guns, grenades, and even rockets can also be provided if needed."

Collins was stunned for a full half minute, but he finally understood that this was the purpose of hiring him as a personal secretary.

"I understand. I'll take care of this. I can guarantee you that within three months, all the black gangs in all the industrial cities in the United States, no, I should say the black Hongmen, will be fighting against the white labor unions everywhere."

Zheng Yi took out a check and signed it for one million US dollars to her: "You or your brother, this is for the activity funds."

"I understand, Mr. Zheng."

After saying that, Zheng Yi turned around and asked Li Jiazhi, "Look, isn't this a solution? Black people are going to steal white people's jobs, so there will definitely be fighting. As long as New York starts a fight and wins, it will be easier to organize black people in other cities."

"I bet you that the KKK will definitely rise again, but at least in these industrial cities in the North, who will win or lose is uncertain. But no matter who wins or loses, I have to make the Democrats give up one of the unions and the blacks."

"Doesn't President Du support black people? I want to see whether those white voters who have had their jobs taken away by black people, or even been beaten by black people, will still vote for him. More importantly, who will those Democratic congressmen support?"

"Plus, we're simultaneously hyping up the fact that President Du once joined the KKK. I want to see if those black people will still really support the Democratic Party."

To put it bluntly, it doesn't matter how many jobs blacks can replace. In fact, in the industrial field, there may not be many jobs that blacks can replace white people. Foreign workers still have to rely on the Japanese.

Fighting is the most important thing!!
All Zheng Yi wants is to fight.

Collins obviously understood what Zheng Yi meant. Thirty million US dollars was just for picking a fight, and he had to start a fight with him.

In the future, when he uses Japanese workers, these blacks will also have to fight with the white unions, and it is even very likely that the Chinese will join in the fight.

As long as a war breaks out, the Democrats' chances of winning will drop sharply.

It is impossible to want both the white union vote and the black vote.

As for whether doing so will cause war and chaos in the United States, and how many people will lose their lives in the riots.

What does it have to do with him?

He doesn't really consider himself an American.

(End of this chapter)