My absurd experiences in North America over the years

One night in mid-October, the Forrest family manor was brightly lit.

Thomas sat in his study with a somber expression, a glass of cold whiskey in front of him.

The night outside the window in Nashville was calm and deep, with lights in the distance appearing and disappearing among the shadows of the trees, like starlight hidden in the dark clouds.

His phone screen still showed two unread messages, from two different numbers, different names, and even different political parties.

But they all point in the same direction.

The first source came from a political broker he had known for many years, who had worked on Capitol Hill and was now an independent consultant.

The message was long and tactfully worded, indicating that it had been carefully considered before being sent.

Thomas watched it three times before putting down his phone. On the last watch, his eyebrows were furrowed, as if he had encountered a very difficult situation.

The second one, from a senior senator in Florida, is more direct, shorter, and ends with a tone that falls somewhere between a reminder and a warning.

Thomas tilted his head back and finished the whiskey, then slammed the glass down on the table, the two clinking together with a crisp sound, as if to vent his inner emotions.

He had been sitting alone in that study for over an hour. The lingering warmth of the alcohol was dissipating. The leaves outside the window rustled softly in the night wind, a sound that irritated him so much that he wished someone would remove all the leaves.

The matter that makes him so hesitant and so thorny is, of course, related to Li Fu at this stage.

People in Washington began to formally or indirectly contact him, expressing, both openly and covertly, their hope that he would consider relinquishing his protection of Li Fu.

The interests of the Forrest family will be protected, and they can further divide up the portion belonging to Li Fu.

Thomas sat silently at his desk. After reading the messages, he roughly deduced who was behind them.

But what he was really thinking about at that moment was which direction the Forrest family should go next. This was not a matter of his personal attitude toward Li Fu, but rather a comprehensive consideration of the family's future.

In fact, he greatly admired Li Fu, and if Li Fu were white, he would not hesitate to marry Lucy to him.

In that case, the problem Li Fu is facing now will no longer be a problem.

There will be no gossip if the son-in-law holds 70% of the shares, the Forrest family's reputation will not be damaged, and he himself can accept it.

But, well, Li Fu isn't one of them!

The next day at noon, Thomas called Cole back to the manor.

When Cole returned from the state legislature, he was still in a suit, his tie half-loose. As he entered the study, he saw his father standing by the window, his back to the door, with a solemn expression.

“Some people have suggested that I give up my asylum over Li Fu,” Thomas said, turning to his son. “You probably know the reason: he may become a political burden in the coming years. In fact, he’s not just a burden; some people have already started using his identity as a pretext for attacking him.”

As the head of a top political and business family, he has far better access to information in Washington than Fang Li.

Many politicians now describe the Forrest family as an old-money family that has handed over its future to a Chinese strategist, a traditional family that is slowly losing control.

Cole paused for a moment. "Dad, who contacted you?"

"There are several channels, but the root cause is Washington. The president's cabinet and the national security department have decided to regard competition with major powers as a major threat. You know who he is..."

Thomas paused for a moment, then suddenly said, "Why didn't you make Lucy an American when she came to you?"

If Cole had handled a change of nationality instead of a green card, things wouldn't be so complicated now.

Lucy did help Li Fu get his identity sorted out through Cole in the beginning, but Cole at that time never imagined that this day would come.

At the time, Li Fu was just a bodyguard.

"What are you planning to do?" Cole sighed.

Time cannot be turned back. If he had changed his nationality back then, Li Futong could not have changed it even if he disagreed. He couldn't just go back to being an unregistered person!

"I'm still thinking about it," Thomas sighed.

Cole walked to the desk, but instead of sitting down, he placed his hands on the edge of the desk and leaned forward slightly. "Dad, why are you hesitating? We definitely need to protect Lee! If all else fails, we can give up some benefits and let him return to Nashville."

States rights and union rights are often in conflict, and the Forrest family is now gaining prestige for its role in driving the economic recovery of Nashville and Tennessee.

As long as the Forrest family doesn't let up, it won't be easy for Li Fu to undergo various investigations.

"You're just going to give up like that? There are so many collaborative projects in New York, and that joint fund..."

Thomas became even angrier at this point, "I admit that Lee has exceptional talent, and he has helped us gain another pillar of support besides the medical industry over the past three years. But Lee has ceded so many benefits to the CP family, do you think he will come back just because you ask him to?"

He had objections to the composition of the joint fund.

"I think he's been bewitched by CP's daughter... that Ivanka," Thomas slammed his fist on the table in anger.

Cole didn't dare to say anything now, afraid of further angering his father.

The study remained quiet for a while.

"Dad, I think the root of this problem is..."

"The root cause? I know what you're trying to say. You mean I tacitly approved of Lee and Lucy's relationship, but never allowed them to go public, which is tantamount to telling Lee that I would never marry Lucy to him, right?" Thomas looked at his son and decided to clarify this matter that had never been brought to the table before.

Cole remained silent. He didn't actually want to say these things, but they were facts nonetheless.

Humans are not machines; they have emotions.

If he were Li Fu, would he still be so fixated on one person when he knew Lucy could never marry him?

The answer is obvious!

"Cole, you've been in the state government for many years. I think you should understand that wealth needs the protection of power. Old-money families like ours, in the traditional medical industry, can't possibly give up politics," Thomas said earnestly. "Do you think I don't want Lee to become our son-in-law?"

The price of doing this was that the Forrest family relinquished some of its political interests.

Even setting aside diplomatic adjustments in Washington, the Forrest family represents traditional white families in Tennessee, their voter base. If Lucy and Lee were to marry, they would likely lose a significant amount of support.

Tradition implies conservatism, and may also mean clinging to the old ways and xenophobia.

He didn't need to tell Cole these things; Cole understood.

"But Dad, even so, Lee is still our most important ally! We can't abandon him," Cole still tried to speak up for Lee.

"Protecting him carries significant political risks," Thomas said, looking out the window. "It's still difficult to determine what harsh measures those people are prepared to take. What if they try to frame him for endangering national security?"

“If we don’t get involved, this charge is indeed easy to establish, but if we do get involved, they will have to have solid evidence,” Cole argued. “Dad, this matter does have political risks, but if you abandon Lee, you will lose more than just the family’s most important partner…”

He paused, then emphasized, "And there's the trust that everyone connected to you has placed in you. If we abandon Li, everyone will think twice in the future. Given time, will we end up working with the enemy... against them?"

Thomas was stunned upon hearing this.