My absurd experiences in North America over the years

At dusk, New York City was packed with cars and pedestrians, and the main roads were extremely congested.

Thompson drove a new Audi A8 and took a longer route, bypassing the Queens Bridge and instead crossing the Williamsburg Bridge, passing through Brooklyn, and then heading east along Belt Park Avenue.

The destination displayed on the car's GPS was Suffolk County, Long Island.

However, he made three unnecessary turns and slowed down twice to make sure that no car appeared at more than three intersections in a row in his rearview mirror before re-entering Highway 495.

Li Fu taught Thompson counter-surveillance techniques, so he was at ease and kept his eyes closed to rest.

The Manhattan skyline is gradually shrinking in the rearview mirror, replaced by the long coastline of Long Island's north shore, where the trees are getting denser and the words "private road" are beginning to appear on the roadside signs.

He didn't have a fixed address in New York before, either staying in a high-end apartment in Trump Tower or a more private hotel. This was his first time visiting Long Island.

He wouldn't have been able to find it at all if Ivanka hadn't sent him the detailed address.

"Turn left at that oak tree ahead; that should be the second fork in the road," Li Fu had an excellent memory and memorized the specific route after only looking at the map once.

Thompson turned the steering wheel, and the car entered a tree-lined road, then slowed down considerably.

The oak branches on both sides intertwine to form an archway, and the canopy turns golden in late autumn.

The light from the streetlights pierced through the gaps in the branches and leaves, falling onto the road and breaking into tiny spots of light. Occasionally, one or two leaves would drift slowly onto the hood of the car and be carried away by the wind.

At the end of the road was a rather imposing gate, flanked by low walls about a meter high, covered with ivy.

After the license plate was recognized, the gate slid open silently to both sides. They drove along the driveway for about two more minutes before a Tudor-style mansion slowly came into view.

The villa was so large that even Li Fu, who had seen the world, was astonished.

A rough estimate puts it at twice the size of that mountain and ocean view villa in Malibu; a estate of this caliber would probably cost over $3000 million in New York.

When Li Fu and CP were buying up New York real estate at rock-bottom prices in 2008, this land on the North Shore of Long Island was part of an asset package being auctioned by a bank, and at the time the valuation was so low it was almost like a clearance sale.

CP set aside a few of the best plots of land and turned them into this manor community.

The entire community consists of only sixteen villas, each with its own private road and coastline. It is also planned to open its own police station, making it a world-class estate villa community.

The target customer group is the top billionaires in the United States, as well as some old money families.

The old money family prefers this kind of manor villa.

The entire community has just begun sales, and only two or three buildings have been reserved.

The villa that Ivanka chose is the largest and most private of these villas.

The main building's exterior walls are covered with dark gray stone, and the facade has simple yet substantial lines, with several chimneys on top reaching towards the sky in a staggered manner.

The front yard is a wide lawn, trimmed almost without any blemishes, with tall conifers planted on both sides, their lush foliage providing shade for the neighbors in the distance.

As the car stopped in front of the main building, the evening breeze swept across the lawn, carrying a refreshing scent of pine and earth.

If the main building were any taller, this place would resemble one of those medieval castles in Europe.

Li Fu pushed open the car door and walked up the stone steps to the porch. Just as he raised his hand to ring the doorbell, the door opened from the inside.

Ivanka stood inside the door, wearing a beige cashmere sweater, her long hair cascading loosely over her shoulders, a slight smile playing on her lips. "You're twenty minutes later than expected."

"We deliberately circled around several times, just for safety." Li Fu held her in his arms and took a deep, greedy breath.

The two entered the house. Beyond the entrance hall was a living room with a six- or seven-meter-high ceiling. A custom-made brass chandelier hung from the ceiling, and dark wood flooring and a light gray carpet were underfoot.

The fire in the fireplace was already burning, the firewood crackling, a sound that felt warm and relaxing in the quiet room.

It's late autumn now, so it's definitely a bit early to put a fireplace in Nashville, but the weather in New York gets ridiculously cold when it gets cold air; it's not unusual for it to snow in October sometimes.

That's actually just right.

In the center of the living room stood a set of dark leather sofas and a marble coffee table. On the coffee table was a copper tray with a silver teapot and two porcelain cups, all of the finest quality.

Li Fu took off his coat and casually draped it over the armrest of the sofa. Then he sat down on the armchair in front of the fireplace. The firelight illuminated his profile, softening his features.

Ivanka sat on the sofa opposite him, picked up the teapot, poured two glasses of water, and pushed one towards him. "How are the talks with Jackson going?"

"The framework has been drafted," Li Fu said, taking a sip of his teacup. "JPMorgan Chase is willing to participate in the first phase, contributing 40%, but each subsequent phase will require separate financing, so they are still somewhat skeptical."

"I think what they're really worried about isn't the projects themselves," Ivanka said after a moment's thought, "but rather the investment environment."

"The investment environment in the Great Lakes Rust Belt is indeed not very good," Li Fu frankly admitted.

"No, that's not what I meant," Ivanka shook her head. "The Asia-Pacific rebalancing strategy has stalled, and the Democratic lawmakers and the president's cabinet must hate you. Most of the governors in the Rust Belt are Democrats."

Li Fu raised an eyebrow. "Would they stop this kind of public works project?"

He was certainly aware of this, but a $200 billion investment would obviously be very beneficial to the local area, both in terms of tax revenue and political achievements. He thought it was unlikely that the Democratic governor would openly obstruct it.

"Normally not, but..." Ivanka changed the subject, "but now it's widely believed that Dad will run in the 2012 election."

Forrest Capital is promoting CP; anyone with eyes can see that.

This is no longer an ordinary business investment, nor is it an ordinary partisan struggle; it may evolve into a political battle involving the next general election.

The CCP has indeed been making quite a splash lately. He turned a book signing event for "The Country Folk's Lament" into a political rally with thousands of people. The level of inflammatory rhetoric was something Democrats had never seen or heard of before.

The book signing in Pennsylvania has been moved to a spacious suburb, and it will likely attract tens of thousands of people.

"I think your concerns are valid. JPMorgan Chase certainly has these concerns," Li Fu had to admit that Ivanka's perspective was very insightful.

CP is likely to capitalize on the Tea Party's populism to ignite the MAGA craze even earlier, with the 200 billion investment serving as a catalyst.

The Democrats are scared. The more he invests and the larger the scale of his investment, the more scared the Democrats become.

Conversely, the more the enemy fears, the more we should act.

Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the sea off the north coast of Long Island shimmered with a deep blue glow in the twilight, and a cargo ship in the distance was slowly sailing along the channel toward the eastern night.

The firelight in the fireplace was still flickering, casting the shadows of the two people on the wall... overlapping each other.