Go back in time and be a chaebol

Chapter 1038 Nanyang is a big trouble (Second update, two in one)

"This is war!"

On November 11th, the whole world, both in Europe and in America, was in extreme shock.

On this day, Nanyang's response to the Soviet note made the world feel the threat of "World War III" for the first time. On all TV programs, the hosts analyzed the consequences of the diplomatic notes between the two countries in a tense and serious tone.

What is the most direct consequence?

The 17 divisions of the Soviet army stopped in Budapest and began negotiations in a formal manner. The rd Armored Brigade in Nanyang and the nd Mixed Brigade, which had just arrived in Suez by plane, continued to march northward, unstoppable all the way, and looked like they were ready to take Cairo at any time.

At the same time, the various parties were engaged in a war of words at the United Nations. Southeast Asia accused Russia of being an aggressor, a warmonger, and a butcher, while Russia responded to Southeast Asia with the same words. As for the representatives of Hungary and Egypt, they called on all parties to withdraw their troops.

The United States, as the leader of the Western world, seemed helpless. On the one hand, there was the reality of the Soviet Union's invasion of Hungary, and on the other hand, there was the fact that Britain, Southern France and Israel invaded Egypt. Although the United States has repeatedly asked all countries to withdraw their troops and ceasefire, the development of the situation has now exceeded Washington's expectations.

But surprisingly, in the eyes of the American public opinion, Nanyang’s fierce reaction was not “crazy” but rather a defense of the free world.

"We can't help but ask the White House, when Hungary was invaded and needed assistance, and when Radio Free Europe was saying that "the force of the United States assisting freedom fighters and sending troops to put pressure on the government will be so great that it will be irresistible", what was the White House doing?
Perhaps, for Ike, maintaining the free world is far less important than his election. Defending international business norms is far less important than flirting with the Russians, or even attacking allies. "When the staff read the content of the Washington Post, Eisenhower immediately said angrily.

"Damn it, this must be that guy Stevenson's doing!"

Stevenson was his rival in the last election, and four years later, Stevenson once again defeated several candidates to win the nomination, so the two faced off again.

Originally, Eisenhower was full of confidence in this election. After all, the US economy had been growing rapidly in the past four years. With this answer, he would definitely be able to defeat Stevenson.

However, the sudden "nuclear crisis" made the problem more complicated.

Events in Egypt and Hungary gave Stevenson ammunition with which to attack him.

"They accuse us of not helping Hungary and instead attacking our allies. Don't they know that the British are invading Egypt? Are international business rules an invasion?"

For Eisenhower, who was already in his seventies, he was really a little broken, at least on this issue.

After Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal, the State Department's legal team concluded that Egypt was legally exercising its rights in seizing the canal, and he agreed with that view, not because it was "legal" but because it was an opportunity to strike a blow against Britain.

"It is impossible to doubt that any sovereign state has an inherent right to exercise the right of eminent domain over private property within its own territory!"

Once again, Eisenhower said:
“As long as the owners who were dispossessed are compensated.”

But the problem is... Egypt has not mentioned any compensation at all.
"Mr. President, that's true, but you should understand that many large companies have investments abroad. Many oil companies, including Aramco, and companies like United Fruit, have said they can't understand what the White House means by 'inherent rights'. Does it mean that the White House will ignore the overseas interests of companies?"

Dulles, as Secretary of State, reminded.

"Mr. President, just last night at the banquet, Stevenson gave a speech to the business community saying that it is the government's unshirkable responsibility to protect the overseas investments of domestic companies. No government should curry favor with other countries at the expense of its own overseas investments."

There was no need for Dulles to remind them of this. The newspapers had already written that Stevenson's statement was more popular with the business community than the White House's support for Egypt's "nationalization". After all, those multinational companies have a lot of investments in many countries, and they certainly hope that the White House can play a role and protect their property with a clear attitude. Therefore, the support for Stevenson is understandable.

This even led many companies to divert donations originally intended for Eisenhower to Stevenson, and even some newspapers and radio stations influenced by large companies now tended to support Stevenson.

Thinking of this, Eisenhower became angry.

"Stevenson doesn't know what the Cold War is. Are we going to push the entire Arab world into the arms of the Russians just for the Suez Canal? Do they really want us to fight a world war with the Russians in Europe just for a small Hungary?"

"Of course they don't want to."

Dulles said to the somewhat angry president.

"But Mr. President, London, Paris and Chang'an are all extremely dissatisfied. Members of Congress who support Tel Aviv are also extremely dissatisfied with the White House's choice. McCarthy not only accused the White House of sacrificing the interests of its allies to please the Russians, but he is even pushing for an emergency bill with other members of Congress to provide military assistance to Chang'an and Tel Aviv to help them fight against Russia and defend the free world."

Slightly different from history, under Li Yian's persuasion, McCarthy did not attack the military, but targeted Hollywood. Actors... don't have big backers. Although McCarthy is no longer as charming as he was yesterday, he is still active on Capitol Hill.

Eisenhower put it bluntly:

"Defending the free world, that guy McCarthy is protecting his old friend!"

"But the problem is... many people believe him and believe that Nanyang is defending the free world. McCarthy even claimed that Nanyang is the shield of freedom! Mr. President."

Dulles said somewhat helplessly.

"Perhaps we misjudged the issues of Egypt and Hungary, or we did not realize the interconnectedness of the two issues at the beginning. Looking back now, even if we forced Britain to make concessions on the Suez issue, would the Russians make concessions on Hungary?"

Dulles's question made Eisenhower fall into silence. He thought for a moment and then said:
"The Russians will never give in on the Hungarian issue, even if we help Egypt."

"Yes, Mr. President, the world will only see that the Russians won Hungary, but what about us? Apart from verbal morality, we will gain nothing. Perhaps we can make Britain and France face up to reality and recognize their position, but it will also arouse their dissatisfaction. Mr. President, Britain and France have expressed their dissatisfaction. The British representative to NATO even questioned us - what role does NATO play! Is it blackmailing Europe together with the Russians?"

Although he, like the president, believed that the British should be taught a lesson to let them know who is the boss in this world, Dulles had already sensitively realized a very realistic problem - their plan had failed!
"Mr. President, our attempt to sell off the pound has actually failed since the day Chang'an provided London with a loan of $5 million. Not only that, our actions have also made Britain realize the vulnerability of the pound. Intelligence points out that they are planning to implement the "Indian Ocean Pound" plan in the colonies and even the dominions, that is, to establish their pound system outside the "Bredesen System", just like the French CFA franc. This is not good news for us. If the British succeed, they are likely to establish a separate pound settlement system within the Commonwealth, and this system completely excludes the US dollar."

Although the negotiations between South Africa and Britain on the "Indian Ocean Bank" had just begun, Washington had already obtained the corresponding intelligence. Both Dulles and Eisenhower were very vigilant about this. They knew the importance of the "Bredesen System" to the United States - it was a dollar settlement system, a symbol of the United States taking over the British financial hegemony, and the United States' biggest gain in World War II. But now, this achievement has been destroyed!

Eisenhower walked slowly in his office. The reason why he was extremely sensitive to the actions of Britain and France against Egypt was because his military intuition told him that the actions of Britain and France were challenging the leading position of the United States, a position that the United States had won in World War II.

Of course, he couldn't send troops to London and Paris to re-establish his position as the big brother like Moscow did. So, he chose to attack Britain financially and sell off the pound, but the problem was... Nanyang!
With the help of Nanyang, Britain not only survived the crisis, but also chose to fight back in another way.

And what is the most troublesome thing?
Although they knew clearly that Britain was doing this, there were not many ways to stop it, so they could only threaten with aid. However, the "Marshall Plan" had been terminated by Eisenhower as early as when he came to power. Annual foreign aid is one of the few weapons the United States can use now.

"The core of the problem now is Nanyang!"

Eisenhower stopped and frowned.
"Nanyang provided Britain with a large loan to help stabilize the exchange rate, and at the same time tied the Egyptian issue to the Hungarian issue. This made the problem extremely complicated. The Russians would not give in on the Hungarian issue. After all, for Russia, Hungary is related to their security. But what about the Suez Canal? It's nothing more than money..."

Looking at Dulles, Eisenhower asked:
"Now Nanyang has put itself in a difficult position. To be honest, I really don't understand what they are doing. Does Li really want to start a world war?"

Everything is Nanyang, and Nanyang is the key to all problems!
Now Eisenhower even felt that Nanyang... was just a trouble that Truman had thrown at him! Who would have thought that a small Nanyang could bring so many troubles!
The president's question caused Dulles to remain silent for a moment before he spoke.

"Mr. President, we must prevent this possibility from happening... But I don't think Nanyang will give in."

The Secretary of State's words made Eisenhower frown. He was really troubled. No, he should say he regretted it. If the United States stood on the side of its allies on the Egyptian issue, there wouldn't be so many problems! But what should he do now?

"You go to Nanyang in person. Just like you said, we must stop this from happening!"

Eisenhower looked at Dulles and said.

"We can't start another war just ten years after the end of World War II!"

When saying this, Eisenhower's heart was filled with bitterness, and he even had a thought - does that guy Li Yian really not know what diplomacy is?
That note was a threat, but it was not a war!
But now Li Yian's answer makes it possible for the note to turn into a war.

Could it be that Nanyang is really planning to go to war?
Just as this thought came to Eisenhower's mind, the door of his office was pushed open again, and the chief of staff walked in, holding a telegram and saying.

"Mr. President, there is a new situation."

"New situation?"

Eisenhower's heart tightened and he asked quickly.

"Hungary?"

"No, Mr. President, it's Sweden. Our ambassador to Sweden sent a telegram saying that the Nobel Prize Committee has made a decision and will nominate Li Yian for this year's Nobel..."

Before the chief of staff could finish, Eisenhower broke down and said loudly:
"Damn the Swedes, are they crazy? That guy is invading Egypt and he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize. This is the biggest irony of the Nobel Prize. My God, is there anything more ironic than this?"

Why did Eisenhower break the defense?
Because he also longed for this award in his heart. For example, when the ceasefire on the Korean Peninsula was signed, he even fantasized about whether he would win the Nobel Peace Prize for ending the war on the Peninsula. Before him, only President Roosevelt Sr. had won this honor for mediating the Russo-Japanese War.

Money is not important, what is important is honor!
As the commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces in Europe, he commanded millions of Allied troops to liberate half of Europe, but... he did not win the Nobel Peace Prize for this because he was a general and the actual commander of the war, not a mediator.

But what about the peninsula?
He was the one who personally facilitated the ceasefire on the peninsula!

It is for this reason that Eisenhower longed for the Nobel Peace Prize deep in his heart.

But what?

It's just a thought.

Remember, he wasn't even nominated that year.

For Eisenhower, who was already 70 years old, he had even accepted the reality that he would never be able to win the Nobel Peace Prize in his lifetime.

So when he learned that Li Yian won the Nobel Prize, he was shocked, especially since that guy's army was invading a country right now! Just because that country wanted to take back its things!

How could the Swedes do this?

Is it true that the only way to win the Nobel Peace Prize is to start a war?

The president's reaction made the chief of staff stand there in a daze, not even knowing what to say for a moment. As for Dulles, he also had a dejected and indignant look on his face.

God...this isn't fair!
Why that guy!

As for stopping the war, I, Dulles, also stopped it. I was the one who presided over the Geneva Talks. Under my leadership, the war in Vietnam was stopped and tens of millions of people resumed their peaceful lives. Logically speaking, I, Dulles, should also be eligible for the nomination!

Even if it's just a nomination, it's an honor!

At least there will be a sentence in my future obituaries - I was nominated for the Nobel Prize in **.

Why am I not here?

Dulles' defense was also broken... He was just a little bit away from being exposed. There was nothing we could do, because the president was the first to be broken.
What happened to the president?
The chief of staff looked at the furious president in astonishment, not realizing at all that one of his words could cause the president to lose his composure like this!
After a while, when he saw that the president had calmed down a little, he spoke.

"No, Mr. President, I think you may have misunderstood,"

The Chief of Staff continued to explain.

"He did not receive the Nobel Peace Prize, but the Physics Prize, in recognition of his idea of ​​the transistor PN structure. Yes, he shared the Nobel Prize with Professor Matare of Taiping University, who developed the world's first transistor..."

The chief of staff's answer made Eisenhower open his eyes and freeze in place.

what!
What did this guy say?
Then Eisenhower fell into silence, his expression was embarrassed!

In fact, as early as a few months ago, there were rumors that Li Yian would be nominated for the Nobel Prize in Physics, but Eisenhower didn't care about it at all. After all, he was not a scientist. In fact, all politicians would simply ignore it on this issue.

After all, who would compare their own shortcomings with the strengths of others? Look, their president is a Nobel Prize winner, while our president doesn't even know what physics is.

Therefore, even if we know about such things, we will selectively forget them.

The defense was breached previously because of a misunderstanding. That guy definitely can't win the Nobel Peace Prize!
Fortunately, fortunately, he did not win this award, which is a good thing!
However, as a professional politician and general, he quickly adjusted his mood, covered up his embarrassment with a smile, and then said:
"Who would have thought that a scientist could be a politician? Compared to politics, Li Yian should be a scientist. Perhaps in this way, his contribution to mankind will be far greater than it is now!"

Obviously, Eisenhower's words have another meaning - Li Yian is not a competent politician at all.

A competent politician needs to learn to compromise.

But despite this, Eisenhower said.

"Well, send him a telegram in my name to congratulate him. After all, it's the Nobel Prize!"

Until the very end, Eisenhower still did not give up the idea of ​​making fun of Li Yian, and added something specifically.

"Also, tell him in the telegram - peace. The most precious thing in the world is peace, and this is also the fundamental reason why Mr. Nobel established the Nobel Prize!"

Sometimes, people are always stingy. Even though Eisenhower was the commander-in-chief, he was actually... very petty!

(End of this chapter)