Nanyang 1931: From piglets to giants

Chapter 276 The Democratic Party Takes Action

Waldorf Astoria New York.

"True hero or hypocrite? Mr. Zheng actually attended the Rockefeller family luncheon!"

Still hungover early in the morning, Zheng Yi found this headline in the newspaper in the guest room.

I couldn't help but laugh and curse: "Damn, the Democrats are so fucking fast, and their timing is so fucking accurate."

Throughout yesterday, Zheng Yi, introduced by Nelson, made friends with political and business celebrities in New York, and promoted his neoliberal globalization ideas in a very high-profile manner, which was recognized by many people. He also openly advocated that the United States and the Soviet Union were not enemies, which was a treasonous idea.

(McCarthyism was not introduced until Duterte’s second term, and it was not so evil at that time)
Everything went smoothly, and Zheng Yi couldn't help but drink a little more. After returning to the hotel, he went to bed.

He even rejected the Rockefellers' kindness and did not stay in the hotel they arranged, but instead stayed in the presidential suite of the Waldorf.

"Sir, have a cup of sobering tea first. You were quite drunk last night." Yamamoto Fujiko, her personal secretary, handed over a sobering soup of just the right temperature.

"Is there any noise outside the window?"

"Yes, there was a mass demonstration protesting your collaboration with the Rockefeller family. The leaders were all Chinese. The hotel didn't know whether to stop them, so they just let them protest from a distance and didn't drive them away."

"Chinese?"

Zheng Yi thought about it and nodded. "It's right not to drive them away. Driving them away will cause a lot of trouble. Let them make trouble. What's the specific reason?"

"They don't want you to form an alliance with the Rockefeller family. They are even more opposed to your proposal to have Mr. John Rockefeller serve as the vice-leader of the Southern Alliance. They think you have betrayed... betrayed the Southern Alliance."

Zheng Yi narrowed his eyes slightly when he heard this: "The Democratic Party really has a bunch of good dogs."

I originally thought that the Democrats would find loopholes in his globalization stance to make trouble, but I never expected that they would actually start with his relationship with Rockefeller.

What a fucking hooligan.

To put it bluntly, the American elite, both in politics and business, would not be at all surprised that Zheng Yi would cooperate with John Jr. There was almost no other suitable candidate for the chairman of the American branch of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) except John Rockefeller. This was a typical combination of two powerful forces.

There's nothing wrong with it.

However, for many people, it is not ruled out that some people will be surprised.

Simply put, John Jr.'s reputation in the United States is really too bad. He is a representative of the rich and unkind.

Specifically, this was the thing that once called in the National Guard to shoot striking workers with submachine guns.

They treat American workers even more harshly than they treat colonial workers.

Moreover, by the time of John Jr., the Rockefeller family's business was no longer limited to oil, but also included railways, steel, various minerals, and most importantly, real estate.

All over the world, there are almost no wealthy people who make money from real estate without being criticized.

There are indeed few people who do human work.

So although they have great power in both the political and business circles, their reputation is indeed very bad.

Although John Jr. has tried his best to whitewash himself, he has done charity work all over the world, including in China, and Tsinghua University is a charity project funded by him.

However, the American people really hate him, and the inherent impression is indeed difficult to change. The Democratic Party always adds fuel to the fire and does not get along with his family.

This is actually the reason why Nelson was elected three times in a row but never got the party nomination.

People are annoyed by his surname, even hate him, and are unwilling to vote for him, no matter how deep his circle of friends in parliament is.

As for Zheng Yi’s character, well... he’s quite a gentleman.

Although he has not specifically cultivated his own persona in the United States over the years, he has always given people the impression of being polite. He has been working hard to rescue the poor natives in the colonies overseas. He fights wars in a disciplined manner and is also a scientist.

Anyway, although he was rich, he was very kind and righteous in the eyes of the masses. Countless books had been written about his deeds, and many people praised him.

A native from the Third World, relying on his own intelligence and talent, without colonization or plundering, relying on technology and vision, he led the Nanyang Chinese who were oppressed by British colonists to rise, and allied with the United States to fight the Japanese devils. Some time ago, he even helped the natives enslaved by French colonization to gain freedom and national liberation.

Moreover, SAARC's labor laws are very famous even in the United States, so many people think that Zheng Yi, a wealthy man, looks like a pro-Democratic Party tycoon no matter how you look at him.

In fact, the two major parties in the United States during this period did not have such great differences in political views, and the relationship between them was not clear-cut. But generally speaking, the Republican Party did have more support from the financial tycoons, but it was also because of the financial tycoons' unhuman behavior that a large number of people were unhappy, making the Democratic Party look like the good guys in contrast.

Democratic politicians are generally better at pretending.

This move really caused Zheng Yi some trouble. After all, he came to the United States to support the Republican Party and even publicly campaigned for Dewey. Of course, he did not come to donate money to Dewey. In fact, Dewey was not short of money. With Nelson helping him, money was nothing to him.

You have to know that the fund account that Nelson is currently using to stir up trouble in the United States is just four months' pocket money that the other four brothers of the younger generation contributed to him.

The greatest value of his campaigning to Dewey is actually moral, relying on his fame, which is actually what Dewey lacks. He comes from the inspection system and deals with gangs all day long, so it is impossible for him to have no shit on his butt.

This is even crucial to the entire Republican Party. This is one of the reasons why John Rockefeller Jr. attaches so much importance to him. His family really wants to whitewash themselves.

The Democrats' move was quite effective. Instead of finding trouble with Zheng Yi's neoliberal policies, they first found fault with his character and came up with a slogan like "betraying SAARC" to deal with him.

After all, the slogan of SAARC has always been anti-colonialism and anti-feudalism, and the Rockefeller family has done many immoral things in the vast Third World, especially in Latin America, so this slogan is indeed consistent with the situation.

The Democrats acted steadily, accurately and ruthlessly. By the way, they were able to bring up all the bad things Rockefeller had done before, and also crack Zheng Yi's moral image. From a moral perspective, they exposed Zheng Yi's narrative structure of globalization and neoliberalism.

Moreover, they deliberately recruited some Chinese people to protest. This had almost no actual impact on him, but it was indeed a bit disgusting.

"Don't bother with them, just let them make a scene. I estimate at least 80% of them are paid to do this, hired by the Democrats to stir up trouble. The more we deal with them now, the more likely they'll make the news, and that way they'll actually achieve their goal."

"By the way, I asked you to find someone to help me buy an apartment in Manhattan. Did you do it?"

Fujiko: "I sent someone to ask yesterday. There are six apartment buildings that meet your requirements. But sir, why do you want to live in an apartment?"

"It's nothing, just a show. The Republican Party is called the party of bigwigs because there are too many bigwigs in the party. Although I am now an American citizen, Penang is my homeland, so I have to establish a more people-friendly image."

Zheng Yi doesn't like living in Long Island. There is no need for that. He doesn't have many family members, and it is even unknown how many days he can stay in the United States in the future. Since he is interested in politics, it is better for him to live in a more popular place.

After all, that place is closer to Wall Street, making it more convenient for performances.

"Just ask Ma Kui to come with you. Don't bring too many people. Keep a low profile and accompany me to buy an apartment first."

"Yes."

Yamamoto Fujiko helped Zheng Yi put on his clothes. Just as he was about to leave, the phone in the room rang. The hotel manager said, "Mr. Zheng, Mr. Lawrence Rockefeller is waiting in the lobby and wants to see you."

"Lawrence? Please ask him to come up."

Lawrence Rockefeller, the third son of the Rockefeller family and Nelson's younger brother, is an extremely low-key person and the outside world knows very little about him.

Zheng Yi only knew that this man was the owner of the New York Stock Exchange, an investor in Eastern Airlines, and the one with the most strategic investment vision among the three generations of the Rockefeller family.

This person was later called the father of venture capital. When he was in the financial industry, he never invested in more stable large enterprises. Instead, he only invested in small start-ups. No one knows how many companies he has invested in. At least hundreds of them have been successfully listed. The most famous ones are Apple and Intel, both of which did angel rounds of investment when they were first established.

The concept of venture capital originated from him. In fact, no one knows how much money he has. The Forbes list itself admits that the specific asset status of the Rockefeller family is difficult to calculate, or the part that can be calculated is likely just the tip of the iceberg.

After a while, Lawrence came up in a very elegant suit. Zheng Yi invited him to the conference room. The hotel staff had already prepared drinks, snacks, cigars and other things for him, and then left tactfully.

"Mr. Zheng Yi, it's my honor to finally have the opportunity to meet you."

"You're welcome, Mr. Lawrence, you're also a role model in the business world. Are you here to discuss the data issue between the New York Stock Exchange and the Penang Stock Exchange?"

"Yes. Oh, and also, there's the matter of your loan. I'm here to ask on behalf of my uncle's family what you're borrowing it for. Of course, you don't need to be too detailed, but the most important thing is that I hope to formally get to know you, Mr. Zheng. You're my idol, and I've always admired you."

His uncle is from the Morgan family. It's the same all over the world. After many generations of intermarriage, the top tycoons will be intertwined.

Zheng Yi nodded: "Haha, I've always wanted to meet you."

If New York wants to join the SAARC, it is impossible for all the listed companies on the NYSE to withdraw and go to Penang to list. The only option is to merge all the companies listed on the NYSE into the SAARC. This naturally raises the issue of asset ratio, which needs to be discussed.

Moreover, some companies were split up and listed in both Penang and New York. Rockefeller's Standard Oil and U.S. Steel were among them. They were split into two companies and listed in New York and Penang respectively.

Now that the New York Stock Exchange and the Penang Stock Exchange are merging, whether these split exchanges should be merged back together naturally needs to be discussed.

"Mr. Zheng, regarding the SAARC loan, after discussions with the Federal Reserve, we all agree that it is necessary to provide SAARC with a loan of US$20 billion. SAARC is an important ally of ours, and we cannot afford to receive less than the UK."

Zheng Yi: "Thank you, but President Du, will those people from the Democratic Party agree?"

Lawrence: "Indeed, they disagree with this. In fact, this has become the core contradiction in our current US diplomacy: who is our most important ally? Basically, all pro-Republican people agree that SAARC is our core ally."

Zheng Yi nodded, not at all surprised by this.

To be honest, if New York can really join SAARC, SAARC is essentially the United States, and the United States is SAARC. Helping SAARC is actually helping the United States itself. SAARC is actually a ship that American companies use to go overseas and snatch food from Britain and France.

A loan of 20 billion was allocated to the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, and more than half of it may have been allocated to American companies.

Of course, this would be a great damage to the interests of Britain and France. The first goal of SAARC's going out to sea was to completely disintegrate the British and French colonies.

As for the Republicans, especially the Rockefeller faction now that it is so powerful, the biggest characteristic of this faction is that they talk about ideology but think about business.

The Democratic Party obviously believes that Britain is the most important ally because the British can help them deal with the Soviet Union. After all, the Democratic Party lacks the support of the financial tycoons, but has the support of the intelligence agencies.

Of course, this was also meant to demonstrate strength. It was a more tactful way of telling him that their Rockefeller family still had great influence in the Federal Reserve. They might be afraid that Zheng Yi would be affected by the troubles outside and cut off ties with their family.

After all, maybe even the Rockefeller family believes that Zheng Yi is a good gentleman?

"Honestly, I haven't asked about overly specific matters in a long time. I can only offer general advice. Regarding the Penang Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange, I personally hope they can be separated. Although Penang currently has almost no foreign exchange controls, we do have the Saarbruck currency. Furthermore, we will introduce financial management measures tailored to our local conditions based on our cultural heritage."

"As for whether your company should delist from Penang and merge with New York, I personally think it's your freedom. Of course, as I said before, I haven't been involved in specific matters for a long time. The details still need to be discussed with the lower-level management. Hmm... who should I talk to you about this..."

For a moment, he was in a dilemma. This matter involved quite a high level of involvement. Furthermore, people like Tan Kah Kee and Qian Qiwen were currently stationed in Penang and couldn't leave. If this matter were to be discussed in detail, it wouldn't take more than a month or two to reach a conclusion. Zheng Yi was genuinely concerned if Penang were to be away from them for a month or two. Lawrence said, "Mr. Zheng, you don't have to worry about that. My fourth brother, David, has decided to go to Penang himself and, on behalf of our Rockefeller family, to be permanently stationed there. He will also invest and establish an office there."

"Oh? David will be stationed in Penang in the future? That's good, that's good. Hey~, the Rockefeller family is really full of talented people."

David Rockefeller, the chief instructor of the "Rich Boys" in World War II, was a very outstanding spy intelligence worker. He later joined Chase Bank, which was his uncle's bank, and later became the chairman of Chase Manhattan Bank in history.

The twin towers that were hit by planes during 911/ were his.

By the way, Chase Manhattan Bank is the agency bank of Bank of China in New York. This bank has had very good relations with China in history and is one of the old friends of the Chinese people. He was also one of the entourage when Kissinger came for the first time.

It is said that he has connections not only in China, but all over the world. Even during the most intense period of conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union, David could still travel freely among all the Soviet republics to meet with any leader, including the Soviet leaders and the Cuban leaders, and David was always a guest of honor.

Thinking of this, Zheng Yi couldn't help but feel jealous. This family was really full of talents. In the political arena, they had the second brother Nelson, the father of venture capital, the third brother Lawrence, the fourth brother David, a big international banker, and the fifth brother had relatively small achievements, but he also served as governor for two years. The traditional industry was later inherited by the eldest brother John. The brothers joined hands to form a big network.

If you add in their respective marriages, friends, and networks, Zheng Yi couldn't help but think of a word: covering the sky with one hand.

Think again about yourself.

He has to handle everything by himself, and relies on his wives for help. He doesn't dare to marry more wives because it will lead to palace fighting. And to be honest, he is not as capable as his wives.

Hey ~
I'm jealous.

The family background is still not enough.

Although Zheng Yi himself had already had this idea, it was only at this moment that he began to understand why the more prosperous and prominent a family was, the more it cared about having a large family and having many children.

He couldn't help but wonder if he could really consider having more illegitimate children. His three wives were already quite old, so was there any need to find younger ones?

Of course, the Rockefeller family also had a good education from a young age. It is said that little John grew up wearing his sister's skirts. In order to train him, the old John lied to him from a young age, saying that his family was poor and let him pick up garbage to make money. It was not until he was almost an adult that he told him: "Son, in fact, our family is the richest in the United States. Surprising?"

If someone is not well educated, such as the equally famous Koch brothers in the United States, they can also influence the US election. After the black president came to power, they openly discussed how to deal with the young president. The four brothers fought a lawsuit for more than 30 years to grab the inheritance, which became a big joke in the United States.

This child is from the same mother, but my own... it feels so troublesome when I think about it.

However, in the current situation, Zheng Yi is indeed facing a huge dilemma, that is, he really has no one to use. John Jr. can send David to Penang as the representative of the Rockefeller family, and even represent the entire United States to manage Penang affairs.

Who could he send to America?

It's impossible for him to stay in the United States all year round.

Even if he could, he lacks a mature, stable and reliable team in the United States.

Among the Chinese in Southeast Asia, there are only a few who are qualified and trusted to represent him in negotiations with the Americans. To be honest, Zheng Yi also believes that they are far inferior to David Rockefeller in terms of ability.

The main reason is that I have never managed such a big business before and I don’t have enough experience. In most cases, I will not be able to beat those old foxes on Wall Street.

He shook his head, putting these thoughts aside for the time being. He hadn't yet decided whether or not he wanted to marry more and have more children. He said to Lawrence, "As for the purpose of the loan, I'm thinking of using part of it for the development of Tunisia, and lending it to American companies that are willing to develop in Tunisia."

"In addition, railways need to be built to connect land transportation with Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Morocco, and even Egypt."

"A portion will be used to invest in Nanyang. Nanyang also needs large-scale railway construction. At the same time, it also needs larger-scale industrial production and the corresponding necessary research and development."

"Shipbuilding, the development of Borneo and other places, the development of Burma, and the development of Calcutta after India's independence all require this money. To be honest, these are things I've wanted to do for a long time, but I just didn't have the money, so I put them on hold."

“Of course, American companies are also welcome to invest in Southeast Asia.”

It is foreseeable that once the 20 billion US dollars are implemented, there may be a discount, no matter how much. There will definitely be inflation in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, and the purchasing power of the US dollar will inevitably decline. After all, the money is not for him. After all, the United Kingdom and France also have more than 10 billion, and other European countries also have billions.

Other countries that could not get this loan but still had to use the US dollar were actually robbed. In fact, it was this loan that directly laid the dividing line between developed and developing countries in the next few decades.

Even though countries like Japan and South Korea later caught up and became developed countries, they always gave people the impression that they were working as high-level employees for the Western world. This is why Zheng Yi did not want to miss the opportunity to get on board.

Lawrence didn't mind it at all. He smiled and said, "That's fine. We absolutely approve of your business acumen, Mr. Zheng. However... Mr. Zheng, I came to you this time because I actually have something I want to discuss with you."

Zheng Yi: "You say."

"As far as I know, the CIA is investigating you on suspicion of national security. They might... make things difficult for you."

Zheng Yi frowned and asked, "Does President Du know about this?"

Lawrence: "The investigation document was signed by President Du himself, and I heard that the UK has already taken action and formed a lobbying group to come."

Zheng Yi said nonchalantly, "I'm a new American citizen who's only been a citizen for less than two weeks. What evidence can I have against the CIA? It's just groundless talk. How can it affect me?"

Lawrence: "Just groundless speculation... I'm afraid that's not necessarily true. My friend in the CIA told me that your Bincheng mayor, Mr. Tan Kah Kee, has published many inappropriate articles and has extremely serious political issues. He also has strong sympathy for XXX."

Zheng Yi: “…………”

For a moment, he really didn't know how to refute.

Is the Democratic Party's investigation so fast?

In all likelihood, these investigations have already been conducted, and it is indeed not difficult to investigate these matters.

This is indeed true. There are actually quite a few Chinese in Southeast Asia who are loyal to our party, such as Yang Shaomin from Alor Setar.

"Mr. Zheng, do you have anything to explain?"

Upon hearing this, Zheng Yi crossed his legs, showing a slightly defensive attitude and frowned, but he also found that it was indeed a bit difficult for him to explain.

In fact, it is not just Tan Kah Kee and Yang Shaomin. He himself, at least on domestic issues, has a relatively obvious tendency. Those who are familiar with the Southern Asian Association for Regional Cooperation and Zheng Yi know that Zheng Yi has never said anything bad about our party, and has even provided it with real financial help.

This actually seems to be the usual nature of the Democratic Party, which is to try every possible means to drag you into the quagmire of ideology, and then defeat you with their rich ideological ideas.

After thinking it over, Zheng Yi realized that explaining was pointless, so he simply said, "So what? We in the Southern Alliance don't advocate a fierce confrontation with the Soviet Union. The US-Soviet conflict is essentially a conflict of human civilization, isn't it?"

"This is the first time in human history that there's been healthy competition to explore which system is better for humanity, isn't it? I don't think there's anything wrong with it. Even if we're rivals, I think we should approach them with an attitude of learning from each other, trying to draw on each other's strengths and weaknesses, rather than blindly confronting them. What? Medieval witch hunts?"

"If the Democrats want to use this to make a fuss, then let them do it. What do they want to do to me? Arrest my mayor on trumped-up charges? Or just arrest me?"

"I actually think that the Soviet Union could actually be approached. As I said, we should have healthy competition, not vicious competition. In fact, I'm not afraid to tell you that we in Penang have a formal invitation, hoping that the Bank of Moscow can open a branch in Penang. What do the Democratic Party think? What does President Toh think?"

"Let the American people decide who is right and who is wrong. The outcome will be determined in next year's election."

Lawrence: "Moscow Bank? Well, Penang would be a good place for that."

Historically, the Bank of Moscow was opened in Singapore. This was the path Singapore took under Lee's leadership. Many people believe that Lee was completely pro-American and was determined to be a dog, which is why Singapore became prosperous and wealthy.

This actually underestimates Li's political wisdom and overestimates the United States.

Li even invited the Soviet Navy to visit Singapore.

In general, they are pro-American, but they have never shied away from playing small tricks with the Soviet Union, occasionally shaking hands or something. This has also been Singapore's diplomatic positioning: a bridge and buffer zone for communication between major powers.

With such a good example, Zheng Yi naturally hopes that Penang and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation can also replicate Singapore’s historical operations.

It is only Duterte's first term, there is no McCarthyism yet, and American society has not yet become crazy.

Besides, even if McCarthyism came to the fore, McCarthy was nothing compared to him. He really didn't believe that anyone in American politics had the courage and ability to arrest him for such a trumped-up crime.

After all, New York is a stronghold of the Republican Party, the territory of the Dewey and Rockefeller families, and their partners.

In a capitalist country, it is always necessary to make it clear who serves whom.

Lawrence: "But you still have to be careful. From what I know about the Democratic Party, they will definitely use this to make a big fuss."

Zheng Yi: "Of course. Please pass a message to them. Come if you want. Even if they want to play ideological games, I will accompany them to the end."

Lawrence nodded and said, "But if your position is... well, in this case, maybe the Koch family will choose to support the Democrats this year, which could be troublesome."

"Koch..."

The Koch here refers to the first generation of the Koch family, Fred Koch, the founder of Koch Industries. In a sense, this person is quite similar to him, and Zheng Yi's rise to power also largely copied Fred Koch's rise to power.

This man was a chemist at MIT. He invented a method of fissioning oil, which allowed him to create small refineries for refining. However, in the United States, he was suppressed by oil tycoons led by the Rockefeller family. He was unable to develop his business and had to move to Europe.

He founded the oil industries of the Soviet Union and Germany, and earned his first fortune from patent fees. Koch Industries' main business is also related to oil refining.

It can be said that he is Zheng Yi's direct competitor.

Although it is not as good as the one built by Zheng Yi later in terms of technology, they each have their own advantages and disadvantages. Zheng Yi's technology is only suitable for large or even super-large petrochemicals, while Koch's technology is indeed more suitable for small-scale refining. It has not been completely eliminated so far, but has a certain degree of complementarity with Zheng Yi's technology.

However, it is said that the Soviets were careless in their work. Others built a complete chemical industry system for the Soviet Union, and it was agreed that he would continue to get a share of the profits based on the patented technology. However, the share was only given for a few years. The Soviet technical engineers learned the skills by stealing them, so they kicked him out and stopped paying him.

So after the end of World War II, Fred Koch could not swallow this humiliation, so he returned to the United States and spent money to establish the most anti-Soviet lobbying organization in the United States.

The reason why McCarthyism prevailed in the United States throughout history is inseparable from Fred Koch. It can be said that he was one of the driving forces behind the entire Cold War.

Logically speaking, the Koch family should be more pro-Republican, but Fred Koch is also an anti-Soviet maniac. Zheng Yi advocates not being anti-Soviet, but advocating healthy competition and globalization, and liberating British and French colonies. What if this maniac runs to the Democratic camp because of this?
Although the Koch family of this era is not yet one of the financial tycoons with the greatest influence on American politics that can influence the US election and confront the president in the future, its influence should not be underestimated.

This guy is really willing to spend money on anti-Soviet issues.

This involves personal grudges and is not just a matter of interests.

"Mr. Lawrence, could you please arrange a time for me to meet with him and have a talk? I'll try to persuade him to join our camp. If I can, everyone will be happy. If not, I'll have to take action against their business. We're all in the oil refining business, and he doesn't want to be destroyed by me."

"As for the Democrats...it doesn't matter. They can say whatever they want. Tell them for me that if they dare to attack me, I will definitely make them regret it."

(End of this chapter)