America: A Prodigy of Stereotypes

“Aunt May said that her client would be coming over for dinner tonight. Originally, the client wanted to invite Aunt May to a hotel restaurant to thank her, but Aunt May invited her to her home instead,” Peter said.

"Aunt Mei is a very good person."

Chapter 61 is about Jonathan, also known as John.

"Peter, are you going to use the microwave to defrost this vacuum-packed premium steak?"

"Is it not allowed?"

Peter turned around in front of the microwave and saw Li Qun shaking his head at him.

"You should use cold water to thaw the steak, changing the water every thirty minutes. It will be thawed in about one or two hours. This method of thawing will prevent the steak from losing its texture," Li Qun said.

"I'll listen to you."

Peter filled a pot with cold water and placed the frozen premium steak in it.

"Peter, you haven't had lunch yet, have you?"

"I definitely didn't eat it. If I had, I would have already seen Aunt Mei's note."

Peter opened the refrigerator and took out several food containers from the crisper drawer. These were lunches Aunt May had prepared for him. Peter only needed to heat them up in the microwave.

"If you eat lunch now, how much will you be able to eat for dinner two hours later?"

"I'll eat less now."

Peter opened the food container, glanced at it, and his appetite decreased.

"Liqun, take me with you. I'm already missing your uncle's cooking."

"You still need to defrost the steak."

“I should probably head back soon,” Li Qun said.

"Bye-bye, Liqun."

Peter sat at the dining table, keeping watch over the alarm clock and holding "The Great Gatsby," performing his task of changing the cold water every half hour.

His mind wasn't on the book in his hands; he was imagining the guests Aunt Mei had invited to their home that evening.

Could it be an elderly couple?

I moved to New York from another state for medical treatment due to health issues and need to stay in New York long-term.

Could it be a family of three?

Like Mary Jane's family, where the mother is sick and the father works?

He had insomnia last night because he vaguely heard arguing coming from Mary Jane's house. He hoped that everything was alright at Mary Jane's house.

After changing the cold water three times, the frozen premium steak was basically thawed. Peter breathed a sigh of relief; Aunt May's task was complete.

After a while, Peter heard a car stop in the driveway outside and knew that Aunt May and her guests had arrived. He got up to open the door.

Aunt May got out of the car, and Peter also saw the two guests for the evening.

Completely different from what Peter had imagined, the other party appeared to be a newlywed couple; the man was tall and handsome, and the woman was gentle and charming.

“Peter, let me introduce you. This is Mr. Jonathan, and his wife Helen,” Aunt May said to Peter.

“You are May’s nephew Peter. You can call me John.”

Peter extended his hand to shake hands with John, a man with medium-length black hair parted in the middle, a meticulously trimmed beard, and an elegant demeanor. John's handshake was rather firm.

Hello Peter.

"Hello, Ms. Helen."

Peter then shook hands with John's wife, Helen, whose hands were a little cold, like the cold water he used to thaw the steak.

“Your hands are so warm,” Helen smiled at Peter.

The four of them entered the house, and Peter discovered that Mr. John was actually the head chef for tonight's family dinner. Aunt May and Mr. John's wife were watching Mr. John preside over dinner in the kitchen, just like he watched Li Qun take charge of the kitchen when he was with Gwen and Li Qun.

Peter waited, his stomach growling, but he didn't touch the lunch in the food container.

……

……

On the new day, Dad completed the transaction between his used car and the used car dealership. The check arrived, and Dad asked Liqun to accompany him to the bank to handle the business and, while he was there, to pick out a "new" used car.

After leaving the bank and walking a block, Liqun and his father exchanged a glance.

They all sensed that someone was watching them from the shadows.

"Someone is trying to rob us."

“Dad, we’re the perfect targets for a robbery. An elderly Asian man with completely white hair and an Asian kid wearing glasses.” Li Qun smiled.

"The guys watching us definitely have guns," Dad warned.

"Let's take a taxi," Li Qun said.

"This is the only way."

The old man and Liqun stood by the roadside waving at passing taxis, and waited for more than forty minutes before they finally encountered a taxi that could pick up passengers.

Thanks to the efforts of current New York City Mayor William Schaffner in combating crime, the crime rate in New York City has been declining year by year during his term from 1994 to the present. With his support, the New York Police Department has been very tough in enforcing the law.

In his first year in office, Mayor William created the Police Accountability System, a crime prevention mechanism in New York City. This system uses statistical methods to analyze criminal activity and methods in each borough of New York, using charts to calculate police efficiency and case handling numbers. The Police Accountability System granted law enforcement agencies in each borough greater authority and leeway. This system was later extended to other states and cities across the United States.

Three years ago, Mayor William even wiped out five major crime families that had been entrenched in New York. The heads of the Gambino, Genovese, Colombo, Lucchese, and Buano families were sent to prison and sentenced to up to three hundred years in prison. More than a dozen other defendants were also convicted by the court and sentenced to prison terms of up to one hundred years.

Mayor William, however, seemed dissatisfied with the outcome. He was a proponent of the death penalty and demanded that all serious criminals be sentenced to death.

No one knows what happened during the downfall of the Five Families. All that is known to the public is that the police officers who participated in the arrest of the criminals from the Five Families of New York were promoted, and the New York Police Department added 7,000 new positions.

For a city of ten million people like New York, adding just over seven thousand police positions seems a bit too few.

New York City mayors have term limits; Mayor William's term will end in 2001, which is the following year.

Liqun and his father got off at the Chinatown intersection. His father looked at the taxi fare, which was a whopping 100 dollars, and felt heartbroken.

"Dad, it seems that my going to the bank with you didn't help much."

"Where is it not useful? If I go alone, I'll be dragged away by those people as soon as I walk five meters from the bank. With you there, they'll have to think twice about how to act."

"What, you want to fight those criminals again?" the old man asked Li Qun.

“How could I? Dad, you’re still here with me. I wouldn’t take such a risk,” Li Qun replied.

"now it's right."

"What if you brought a gun, Liqun?" the old man asked again.

“I carry a gun, but I won’t rely on it to fight the robbers head-on. Maybe they are all carrying guns, and I only have one gun, so I can’t possibly shoot three people at the same time.”

"Very good." The old man nodded in satisfaction.

“Liqun, you need to remember, don’t try to be a hero in New York. The consequences are usually unpredictable. This is based on my experience,” the old man advised.

"I know."

Back in Chinatown, even when unfamiliar white faces on the street sized up Li Qun and Old Man, they didn't feel like potential criminals as they had when they came out of the bank.

The stereotype in American cities is that areas with a larger Chinese population are safer.

Chapter 62 Used Car Sales Consultant

After getting rid of the trouble by taxi, Liqun and his father set off again from Chinatown to a used car dealership. They were aiming for the largest used car dealership in New York, which could provide them with the most comprehensive and worry-free service and a wide selection of models.

"Hello, my name is Wade, Wade Wilson, it's a pleasure to serve you."

When Li Qun saw Wade's face, his expression instantly turned serious. He carefully checked Wade's name on the name tag on the chest of Wade's blue work uniform, while the old man maintained his kind and friendly smile.

"Sales consultant, Mr. Wade Wilson..."

Li Qun read out the name on the ID card.

Just call me Wade.

Wade extended his hand to shake hands with his father and Li Qun respectively. When shaking hands, Li Qun felt the other's palm and found that it was covered with calluses.

Wenwu taught Liqun to observe other people's palms; this Wade was an experienced gunman.

"Who wants to buy the car?"

"Is it you, sir, or your grandson?" Wade asked his father.

“It’s me.” The old man gestured to himself.

"Yes, yes. This kid looks like he doesn't have a driver's license. I was overthinking it."

“Actually, I was planning to buy a car to teach this kid how to drive. He’s already 16 and just got his learner’s permit,” the father said.

Wade gave an awkward laugh.

"Okay, please come this way with me."

"The cars parked here are all Japanese cars. They have low fuel consumption, are easy to maintain, and are relatively small, so they don't require much parking space."

"An 88% new car..."

Wade opened the door of a white Toyota and let his father get into the driver's seat. Wade himself got into the passenger seat, while Li Qun sat in the back.

“See? The space inside the car is just right,” Wade said.

"really?"

The old man glanced at Wade, who was hunched over.

"You don't think we're Japanese, do you?" the old man asked.

“You don’t really look like it. Are you of Korean descent?” Wade’s smile gradually froze.

“We are of Chinese descent.”

“Oh, Fuck, you guys don’t like Japanese cars,” Wade said.

“Hey, you just swore, and there are kids here,” the old man said.

"Please don't complain about my problem. Just pretend it never happened, otherwise they'll dock my pay," Wade said anxiously.