Chapter 643: Even More Obscene
"Are you a chef? Why do you look at me like that?" the wretched old man asked Xiao Peng.
Xiao Peng said, "The way you eat looks a lot like those people sitting by the subway station in the 11th arrondissement of Paris!"
"You said I'm a beggar?" The wretched old man understood Xiao Peng's meaning: "Have you ever seen a beggar as handsome as me?"
"...Do you have any misunderstanding about the word 'handsome'?" Xiao Peng complained.
The wretched old man suddenly asked, "Wait, don't you know who I am?"
"Aren't you Amy's father?" Xiao Peng asked in confusion. "In fact, I only recognized you by the bruise on your head."
The old man laughed after hearing this, but that smile made Xiao Peng feel that he was even more despicable.
"What's your name?" the old man asked suddenly.
Xiao Peng frowned: "Before asking someone's name, you should first introduce yourself, right?"
"Ah? Yes, my name is William, and you?" said the wretched old man.
"That's a common name." Xiao Peng complained, "Then you can call me Peng."
Why should I tell you my last name if you didn't tell me yours?
"Peng?" William thought for a moment and asked, "Does the single-character name sound Chinese?"
Xiao Peng nodded: "Yes! Do you know China?"
William said, "Of course. I just came back from China, a country beyond imagination, the future core of the world! I visited China forty years ago, twenty years ago, and last year. I felt three different worlds each time I went there. Your development speed is truly amazing! And everything is moving in the right direction. Although there are still many minor problems, as long as you stick to the right general direction, these minor issues seem insignificant."
"You have good eyes!" After hearing what William said, Xiao Peng felt a little better, and he didn't look at him so disgustedly anymore!
William suddenly said, "I feel relieved knowing that you are Chinese!"
"Huh? What do you mean?" Xiao Peng asked in confusion.
William said: "If you are from Japan, I will never let you and Abby continue to have contact even if you kill me!"
After hearing this, Xiao Peng didn't think he was mean at all. Instead, he thought he was quite handsome. He asked curiously, "Why do you hate Japanese people so much? Don't all French people like Japanese people?"
But William said, "Who said I'm French? I'm Dutch!"
After hearing this, Xiao Peng really wanted to ask Amy's mother: How much do you like the Dutch? William is Dutch, and Amy's stepfather is also Dutch...
But he was a little confused: "Don't the Dutch like Japanese people?"
William picked up the wine glass and took a sip and said, “At least I don’t like it.”
"Why?" Xiao Peng asked curiously.
William said, "My 'neighborhood nanny' when I was a kid was Renee Harteveldt. Have you heard of that name?"
A popular form of childcare in the West is the "neighborhood nanny." When parents are working and unable to look after their children, they pay a fee to a neighbor's older child to babysit. This is a low-cost option that fosters neighborhood ties. Furthermore, since the children are close in age, they can serve as playmates. Consequently, many families, even those who can afford a full-time nanny, opt for a "neighborhood nanny."
Xiao Peng thought for a moment: "Renee Harteveldt? Why does this name sound so familiar... Wait, are you talking about that Renee Harteveldt? She's your neighbor's nanny?"
William nodded: “That’s her.”
Xiao Peng instantly understood why William hated the Japanese.
Few people know the name Renée Harteveldt, but over thirty years ago, it was universally known, along with a Japanese name: Issei Sagawa. In those days of undeveloped communications, the fact that both names were known worldwide demonstrates the magnitude of the impact of what happened.
The story is very simple. Issei Sagawa from Japan and Renée from the Netherlands were both international students at the Sorbonne University in Paris. Issei Sagawa shot and killed Renée, ate part of her body, and then dismembered and abandoned the corpse.
If it were just a murder case, it would not have caused such a sensation. What happened later was the key to the matter: with all the evidence of murder and the person confessing, Issei Sagawa was acquitted.
Don't be fooled by Issei Sagawa's unattractive appearance—to be more precise, he was extremely ugly. He was arrested because the witness who saw him disposing of the body said he was "dwarf and bald" and was recognized at a glance.
In fact, what the eyewitness said was not exaggerated at all. Issei Sagawa was 151cm tall, weighed less than 100kg, and had a bald forehead...
But even though Issei Sagawa is ugly, he was born into a good family. Who is his father? Akira Sagawa, an executive of Itochu Corporation.
Just how powerful is Itochu Corporation in Japan? They were behind the First Sino-Japanese War, the Russo-Japanese War, and the Sino-Japanese War! It's no exaggeration to say that they can influence the course of Japanese politics! Akira Sagawa, a senior executive there, is also the president of Kurita Industries, Japan's largest manufacturer of drainage systems. They're responsible for all of Tokyo's sewage. Could he have just watched his son die?
So, under Akira Sagawa's manipulation: First, Sagawa Issei was sentenced to three years in a mental hospital for severe mental illness. Then, using his connections and money, Sagawa brought Sagawa Issei back to Japan for treatment in a Japanese mental hospital. Two years later, Sagawa Issei was released from the mental hospital and became a free man.
However, this incident likely deeply regretted the actions of Issei Sagawa's father, Akira Sagawa. Reputation was highly valued in Japan, and Akira's exploitation of legal loopholes in both countries to exonerate his son sparked public outrage. The company soon went bankrupt, and the Sagawa family went from wealthy to deeply in debt. Despite holding two master's degrees from prestigious universities, Issei Sagawa couldn't find a job. Upon his death, Akira explicitly stated that Issei Sagawa was forbidden from attending his funeral.
But as Xiao Peng said, "A person with talent can thrive anywhere." Sagawa Issei transformed himself into a writer, writing eighteen perverse novels about cannibalism. One of them, "In the Mist," depicts a scenario almost identical to how he murdered Reni.
These books were incredibly popular with Japanese people, and Issei Sagawa became a bestselling author, earning a fortune. He even appeared on a TV cooking show, sharing his culinary expertise—what was that? Wasn't it just about cooking people? He even found time to film romantic action films, specifically playing perverted characters. When his two co-stars learned the lead actor was the "cannibal" Issei Sagawa, they were practically pissed...
The victim was William's neighbor's nanny. How could he not hate the Japanese?
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