Chapter 206: The Lower Class Overthrows the Higher Class
Putting down the newspaper that reported the successful landing of the 8th Army of the American Expeditionary Force in the Philippines, Sheffield slowly spoke to Sato Keio, "Mr. Sato, as an outstanding representative of Japanese businessmen, I am honored by your invitation."
After saying this, Sheffield looked at the house full of Japanese architectural style, then retracted his gaze and said, "This is like a house from the Edo period, it's fascinating."
"Oh, Mr. William, this is amazing. You actually have such an understanding of our Japanese culture." Sato Jiexiong was surprised, but he kept a pot of tea in his hand and asked, "I wonder if Mr. William likes tea or coffee?"
"Oh, I personally don't have any particulars about what I drink, but out of family tradition, since someone has brought up this matter, my answer is that I want them all." Sheffield calmly reached out and took the tea handed over by Sato Sukeo, then answered with a smile.
"Ask the lady to prepare a cup of coffee." Sato Jiexiong ordered the servant behind him. His expression remained unchanged, but he had already formed a certain degree of evaluation of Sheffield in his heart.
This American is a very cautious person, but he has a big appetite. He is cautious because he brings a large team with him almost every time he travels, as if he is ready to deal with any unexpected situation. His appetite can be seen from this sentence just now. He just arrived at his residence and held a newspaper about the successful landing of the US Army in the Philippines. This should be a very straightforward deterrent. This person is very vigilant against the Japanese community.
Sheffield lowered his head and picked up his tea, thinking about the Japanese in front of him. Given the Japanese government's long-standing ambitions for Hawaii, and the large Japanese community on the island, as a leading figure in the Japanese community? In theory, this person should have a relationship with the Japanese government, at least under normal circumstances, it should be like this.
Even though they were just a few polite words, the two of them had already entered into a state of intrigue and were ready to tentatively get to the point.
Sato Keio spoke first, "The United Company seems to have a strong interest in Hawaii."
"It's obvious. United Company has a strong interest in every place. We are an international comprehensive enterprise. We are interested in anything that can make money." Slowly putting down the tea, taking a closer look, he saw that nothing was missing. Sheffield replied calmly, "Hawaii is a magical place for most citizens of the United States. Since they think so, they will be curious and want to come here. From a personal perspective, domestic competition is fierce. Naturally, my company wants to look for undeveloped virgin land. This is completely understandable."
"Oh!" While Sato Keio was hesitating, a woman in a light-colored kimono walked up cautiously, and with the unique small steps of Japanese women, she slowly placed the coffee on the low table, then backed away little by little and left the hall.
Sheffield's eyes returned only after the woman left. Although the traditional kimono made it hard to see her inner beauty, she was a great beauty. She also had a unique oriental temperament, and according to the conventional European and American terms, she was exotic...
It didn't take long for Sheffield to suppress the greed in his eyes and said calmly, "You Orientals have a characteristic, that is, you can't tell how old you are from your appearance. Mr. Sato's wife is really young."
Pretending to be face-blind, Sato Jiexiong let down his guard and said with a smile, "Mr. William, thank you for the compliment. My wife is only in her thirties. Mr. William is also very young."
"Huh? I'm not even twenty years old!" Sheffield's eyes lit up when he heard Mrs. Sato's age, but he immediately said modestly that you Orientals are really young, and Americans age faster. If he hadn't added that they are almost catching up with black people, Sato Sukeo might have been very happy, but who can blame him for having the ability to kill a conversation.
After a long period of embarrassment, Sato Jiexiong talked about Japanese culture and his admiration for Western civilization. He even said that there is a trend of thought in Japan to leave Asia and join Europe. Sheffield sat up straight, unmoved by the other party's flattery, and even wanted to laugh. Leave Asia and join Europe? If it were an ordinary American businessman, he would be so confused after being flattered.
If Japan's departure from Asia and joining Europe were to take place a hundred years later, when the United States had already subtly controlled Japan for decades, it would still be worth analyzing. But at this moment in time, it is a very straightforward lie.
Did Japan not consciously leave Asia and join Europe? The Imperial Rescript on Education and the Imperial Rescript to Soldiers and Soldiers are both Eastern civilizations. Moreover, even at the end of the 19th century, there was already a trend of resisting Westernization in Japan. Many newspapers and celebrities advocated maintaining the fine traditions of the Japanese and preventing the infiltration of Western civilization.
Japanese culture is actually related to Eastern culture, but not that much. Although many traditions were passed down from the mainland, the initiative to accept or not is in the hands of the Japanese themselves. This practice of identification and absorption is normal. If you say that Japanese culture is copied from the mainland, this statement is probably similar to the Indian saying that Chinese Buddhism is the influence of India on China. It is purely a consolation.
"It's better for the Japanese to maintain their own traditions!" Although Sheffield was disdainful of leaving Asia and joining Europe, he just listened to what others said.
"I also want to cooperate with the United Company, but I don't know how long Mr. William plans to stay in Hawaii?" Sato Jiexiong slowly got to the point and asked about Sheffield's itinerary seemingly unintentionally.
"It won't take long. I'll be going to the Philippines next month." Sheffield glanced at him and smiled kindly. "The Philippines was my destination in the first place."
Afterwards, Sato Sukeo expressed his admiration for the powerful strength of the US Navy, which actually defeated the Spaniards who had been rampant in the world for hundreds of years. Sheffield also just listened to this compliment casually. If the United States did not take action, Japan might have done so. He was well aware of Japan's sale of arms to the Philippine rebels.
Again, this kind of sneaky behavior is useless in front of real imperialist robbers, just like the United States annexing Hawaii, Japan can only stare and be dissatisfied, what can it do? Come and rob if you have the guts?
As for the compliment from the other party, Sheffield also did not listen. The battle of the US military in the Philippines has just begun. It is good enough to be able to control the city. Next, there will be a long period of guerrilla warfare. No one can do anything about this. If it is a region with clear cold and hot areas, such as the Northeast, he has a way to deal with the guerrilla warfare.
Just wait until winter comes, and then send out a large army to start a sweep, burning down all the houses that can keep warm in the mountains. In the long winter, without heating, the weather will help you kill any strong-willed guerrillas. So why didn't the Soviet Union have spontaneous guerrillas? This is the reason.
But in the climate of the Philippines, this trick is useless, and the US military still has to hide in the forest and play hide-and-seek.
When they left Sato Sukeo's residence, the male host came out to see them off. It was just after school in Hawaii. A carriage arrived at the gate of the house, stopped, and a girl got off. She looked around and saw that the bodyguards who were waiting for Sheffield to come out were slowly coming out. Her eyes were full of fear.
"Is this Mr. Sato's daughter?" Sheffield said exaggeratedly, pretending to be very surprised. "He may have been scared by my bodyguards. Please don't be afraid. They will not attack anyone on their own initiative."
"Mr. William, my daughter has never seen such a scene." Sato Jiexiong said with a smile, "But it's good to see the world. If we have time, we can get together."
"That's great, of course. With Mr. Sato's help, I believe Hawaii will be stable." Sheffield stretched out his hand and shook it with the other party, then got on the carriage and disappeared from the sight of the father and daughter.
"In fact, as I recall, the surname with the word 藤 should be a Japanese noble surname." Sheffield squinted his eyes and suddenly said in the shaking carriage, "Although Japan is trying to learn from the West to a certain extent, with the current social structure, people with this surname should not immigrate to Hawaii. There are plenty of positions for them in the navy and the army. This person may have connections with the Japanese government."
"The boss means that we kill him." Jesla, who was in the same car, said, "Leave it to me."
"Hmm?" Sheffield was not sure. If he took action just based on a surname, wouldn't it be a bit cruel? But this reason seemed to be enough. "Let's plan it out and see how the Japanese community reacts."
A few days after their first meeting, Sheffield invited Sato Sukeo and his family to visit his temporary residence, and at the same time created public opinion that the United Company was preparing to join forces with the Japanese Chamber of Commerce to develop Hawaii.
For a time, the atmosphere of friendship between the United States and Japan rose in the Hawaiian Islands, but the proposal to raise the threshold for Japanese immigration was still being finalized. These two pieces of news were circulated among the Japanese community at the same time. It caused great mental torture. Many people also believed that Sato Jiexiong, as the president of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce, seemed to have surrendered to the foreign devils.
"Let me tell you, there is a trend of the lower classes rebelling against the upper classes in Japanese society, so we don't necessarily need to do some things ourselves, but we can manipulate them." Sheffield crossed his fingers, and his two index fingers kept shaking, as if to express his master's joy. "It is very, very logical for patriots to eradicate Japanese traitors."
(End of this chapter)
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