Fang Lang's sudden scolding scared Shigemitsu Aoki. He didn't expect that this guy was not only arrogant and greedy, but also a moody bastard. In his opinion, the relationship between him and Fang Lang was originally a mutually cooperative one, and he didn't think there was anything wrong with the war launched by Japan.
Everything is just to get himself back into politics. If admitting Japan's mistakes is politically correct now, then of course he will choose side without hesitation.
But he didn't expect that something that he took for granted would actually cause strong dissatisfaction from the other party. Yi Yi was a little overwhelmed, and quickly stood up from the chair, bowed deeply to Fang Lang respectfully, and said:
"General, calm down! You are right. This is all my own wish. It has nothing to do with you. I accidentally misunderstood your meaning!"
Fang Lang saw Shigemitsu Aoki's immediate surrender as a premeditated test, so he of course counterattacked without hesitation.
"I don't care whether you did it intentionally or unintentionally, I want to make it clear to you that my position has not changed from the beginning to the end. In my eyes, you are all a bunch of damned war criminals.
If you want me to help you, first of all, you have to show enough value, and at the same time, you have to bring me enough benefits, otherwise why should I help you. Is it because of your lame leg?
I remind you again that my help is never free. Even if it is the amnesty that you want most, I will clearly mark the price. I don’t care whether you can afford the price I offer or not.
All I can control is who I am willing to sell it to! "
...
...
Fang Lang stared at Shigemitsu Aoki's lame right leg with a cold gaze, and spoke in a vicious tone, ruthlessly and directly attacking the former Japanese foreign minister's increasingly weak self-esteem.
His meaning was very clear. There was no friendship between us at all. Whatever you wanted to get from me, you had to exchange it with benefits. The price was decided by me, and whether the transaction would be made was also decided by me. You had no room for bargaining at all.
Shigemitsu Aoi was so angry at Fang Lang's words that he was shaking all over. He clenched his crutches so tightly that his knuckles turned white, but he could not make any rebuttal. Because what the other party said was right, he had no choice at all, unless he was willing to give up returning to politics.
But this is obviously impossible. If he is willing to give up these, he will not even think about coming out of Sugamo Prison. At the same time, after he comes out, not only he, but also Kodama Yoshio actually has few ways out, because getting him out of Sugamo Prison has already cost them a huge price.
They can't give up so easily. Even if Shigemitsu Aoki chooses to give up, Kodama Yoshio will never allow it. They will only continue to push everything in the direction they need at all costs.
Originally, they might have been able to take it slow and achieve this goal bit by bit, but Fang Lang's appearance gave them an opportunity to achieve it quickly, and they would never give up easily under such circumstances.
As they invest more and more, their abandonment cost will become higher and higher, and they will no longer be able to control the direction of their progress. Until one day, when they can no longer provide enough value to Fang Lang, they will be kicked off the boat.
It is impossible for old foxes like them not to understand this, but they simply cannot resist the temptation of success, and they have been unable to stop since Kodama Yoshio got Shigemitsu Aoi out of Sugamo Prison.
Therefore, no matter how vicious Fang Lang's words were, or how bad his attitude towards them was, they had no choice but to bear it, because this was a shortcut to achieving their goals.
After figuring all this out, Shigemitsu Aoi slowly relaxed the fingers that were gripping the cane, and the color of her knuckles quickly returned to its normal red color visibly.
"Hey! General, it's Chongguang who is being rude! Please forgive me and don't hold it against Chongguang.
Don't worry! I know what to do. The first thing I have to do is to transport all the Chinese cultural relics we can find to the dock within the last three days, waiting for your acceptance.
At the same time, I will begin to use the power of the media to directly express my position to the outside world and let everyone know that this war of aggression launched by Japan is fundamentally wrong.
If I have the chance, I will publicly kowtow and apologize to all the victimized countries and seek their forgiveness!
At that time, please help me to say a few good words to the US government. If there is a chance to get a pardon from the US government and exempt me from the restrictions of the public office release order, I will not only pay for all the operating expenses, but also express my gratitude to the general. "
Fang Lang nodded in satisfaction at Shigemitsu Mamoru's attitude at this moment. This is the attitude of admitting one's mistakes obediently! These damn Japanese really don't know how to be honest unless they are severely punished.
"Very good! This is the attitude you should have. I will have someone watch your performance from now on. Sit down and talk!"
When Shigemitsu Aoi saw Fang Lang's attitude change, he breathed a sigh of relief. At this time, he was really afraid that Fang Lang would get angry and abandon him. Although he would not suffer much loss in this way, he would regret losing such an opportunity to return to politics.
"Hey! Thank you for your generosity, General!"
After bowing deeply to Fang Lang again, Shigemitsu Aoi slowly sat back opposite Fang Lang, leaning on his cane. Next, Shigemitsu Aoi did not rush to continue talking about business, but began to greet the izakaya owner and his wife who had been hiding in the back room to start serving food and wine.
Fang Lang had been to this kind of izakaya in his previous life. There were usually some specialties there. Soon, a middle-aged woman in a simple Japanese kimono came up in small steps, carrying a tray of food.
Judging from her appearance, clothing, and walking posture, Fang Lang was sure that this woman must have lived a carefree life before the war. The reason why she was reduced to running this small izakaya with her husband now showed that they must have been affected after the war.
But being able to open this izakaya near the naval base is not bad. As long as their taste is not bad, the business of this place should be acceptable.
The dishes served on the table were all ones Fang Lang had eaten in later lives. They were nothing more than some sushi and exquisite sashimi platters, as well as a plate of eel rice that looked very appetizing.
After all the food was served, the woman bowed deeply, gestured to the two men to start, and said:
"Thank you for your care! Please enjoy it slowly!"
The person who spoke was actually English. Judging from his fluency in English, the other party should have received a good education. In response, Fang Lang just nodded at him nonchalantly to express his gratitude!
Although he didn't like the Japanese, he was not stingy about showing kindness to a Japanese woman. As for whether the Japanese would poison him when he ate here, Fang Lang was not worried at all.
Now the other party is begging me, and he is too busy protecting himself to do something that would harm others and not benefit himself.
Shigemitsu Aoki took a bottle of sake that had just been delivered and poured a glass for Fang Lang, indicating that Fang Lang should drink while chatting. Fang Lang simply waved his hand to refuse. He did have things to do this afternoon. The cooperation between the group and Alexander Dodge, the US economic adviser to Japan, still needed him to explain in person.
Joseph Clark's progress in Japan also needed attention, and a series of matters such as the fleet's supplies were waiting for him to deal with personally. He was in no mood to drink and chat with this Japanese war criminal with whom he had no real relationship.
Seeing Fang Lang's refusal, Shigemitsu Aoki did not force it. It must be said that after all, he was a former Japanese Foreign Minister. When he wanted to seriously curry favor with someone, it was really like a spring breeze. If Fang Lang had not been highly vigilant towards him from beginning to end, he might have been fooled by him with just a few words and regarded him as a true friend.
But Fang Lang understood that his real purpose of asking him out this time had not been achieved yet, and he would definitely take the opportunity to ask again, so Fang Lang did not act too indifferent, he just wanted to see how long the other party could endure.
The situation was exactly as Fang Lang expected. When he was about 70% full, Shigemitsu Aoi couldn't help but test him again:
"General, I heard that at the dinner welcoming General Clark last night, Mr. Dodge took the initiative to talk to you for a long time. I wonder if you and Mr. Dodge..."
Shigemitsu Aoi stopped talking halfway through his words. Upon hearing this, Fang Lang glanced at him calmly, and he already understood what he meant!
He smiled and did not answer the other party's question, but asked back:
"It seems that Mr. Chongguang is very concerned about my situation! You knew what happened last night right away? How come you arranged someone to monitor me?"
Seeing that Fang Lang did not deny this question, Shigemitsu Aoi knew that the other party did not mind discussing this topic with him, and he quickly flattered with a smile on his face:
"No, no, how dare I spy on you! Last night, we hosted Mr. Joseph Clark from the Whip of God military contracting company. It was such a big event. In addition, we invited several Japanese officials to attend. Naturally, I would have heard something about it."
Shigemitsu Aoki did not say how he knew about Dodge's communication with him, but Fang Lang did not want to delve into this issue. He was not from the intelligence department and was not interested in the channels of these people. What he was interested in now was the other party's purpose in raising this topic.
"That's right! Why? Does it have anything to do with you?"
Fang Lang slowly picked up a piece of fat tuna meat and put it into his mouth, and asked with an indifferent attitude.
Shigemitsu Aoi had no complaints about Fang Lang's attitude. Since Fang Lang did not directly refuse to discuss this issue with him, it was the best situation for him.
"No, no, I didn't expect you to be so close to such a big shot."
Fang Lang, who already had a guess about the other party's purpose, deliberately showed a disdainful smile and said in a contemptuous tone:
"What a big shot he is!"
This tone of voice, which was seven parts pride and three parts coldness, showed his disdain for Shigemitsu Aoki's way of looking at people, and made them worthless.
Upon hearing this, Shigemitsu Aoi's eyes lit up and he immediately said:
"Mr. Dodge is a big shot who represents the United States in guiding our economic reforms. Our entire Ministry of International Trade and Industry must work under his guidance. Such a person is not considered a big shot!"
Fang Lang simply couldn't bear to watch Shigemitsu Mamoru's poor performance. With your level of flattery, you can't even fool an elementary school student. If he wasn't deliberately cooperating with his performance, Fang Lang would have spit a mouthful of thick phlegm in his face.
But in order to cooperate with his performance, he had to continue to be an actor.
"Isn't he just a pawn of the Morgan Consortium? He barely managed to get the title of economic expert. Replacing him is just a matter of a word for me."
Fang Lang's words were extremely arrogant, but his purpose was only to continue to show his strength to Shigemitsu Aoi. As for whether these words would have any adverse effects on Alexander Dodge's ears, he didn't care at all.
He and Alexander Dodge had a cooperative relationship. No matter who the advisor sent by the United States to Japan for economic guidance was, it would not affect his layout for Japan. The presence of this guy would only make the implementation of his plan smoother.
But these words were like thunder in Shigemitsu Mamoru's ears, because he heard the name of the Morgan Consortium. As a former Japanese foreign minister, he was of course quite familiar with the situation in the United States. He had of course heard of the two largest consortiums behind the US government. He did not expect to hear from Fang Lang today about the real boss behind Alexander Dodge.
This made him feel that his trip today was not in vain. What was more important was Fang Lang's attitude towards the other party. He was so excited that he trembled a little just thinking about what kind of background a guy who could look at the Morgan Consortium on an equal footing would have.
Of course, he had thought that Fang Lang was just bragging, but based on what he had learned about the banquet, it was indeed Mr. Alexander Dodge who took the initiative to greet Fang Lang and communicate with him. What did this indicate?
This means that the other party knows Fang Lang, and his status is indeed lower than Fang Lang's. This fully proves that the identity of this inconspicuous Brazilian Navy rear admiral in front of him is not simple.
In addition, when he said that he would ask the Whip of God military contracting company to open a branch in Japan, the other party's CEO immediately flew to Japan. Doesn't this make sense?
Therefore, at this moment, he no longer had the slightest doubt about Fang Lang's strength. All that was left was to think about how to convince the other party, gain his support, and allow him to return to Japanese politics.
Suppressing the excitement in his heart, Shigemitsu Aoi took a deep breath to calm himself down. After he calmed down, he slowly stood up again and bowed deeply to Fang Lang, saying:
"Please forgive me, General! I am short-sighted and failed to recognize you as the real Buddha. I am sorry for the offense I caused you before. I hope you will forgive me.
Don't worry, I will be your most loyal partner in Japan from now on. If you need anything, as long as it is within my ability, I will do my best to satisfy you."
Seeing this guy's arrogant and respectful appearance, Fang Lang couldn't help but curl his lips. He spoke beautifully, but he still considered himself his partner. He was kneeling down, but he still had to pretend to be so.
Moreover, he also said that it was within his ability. Wasn't this a typical hint that he was pushing the other person to a higher position? If he didn't really need such a person, he would have wanted to kick the other person to the ground and spit a mouthful of phlegm on his face.
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