The Joseon Prince Went To America And Didn’t Return – 171



< Separately but together (2) >

My father-in-law William Rockefeller recently returned the peerage title he received from the Korean Empire.

After I got this information I continued to hang around Ethel to try and get a feel for her.

“….”

“….”

But Ethel had been cleverly avoiding my gaze for a while now and was pretending to be absorbed in the flower arrangement she was doing her eyes rolling around.

It’s so awesome to see that sight.

‘As expected… you’re more perceptive than me.’

I don’t completely hate that kind of Ethel.

I like a woman who is more like a fox than a bear.

‘It’s enough to feel the stuffiness just from the outside.’

She continues to prove that my choice was not wrong.

Even without saying anything.

Aren’t you constantly putting things that are helpful to you first?

‘The Vogue photo shoot was also a part of the house cleaning this time.’

ah!

Suddenly one fact flashed through my mind.

It was a memory about Japan’s new prime minister.

‘I thought you were living quietly but you were plotting something behind my back.’

The new prime minister seems to resemble Ito more than Katsura and he seems to be quite intelligent.

Very cleverly trying to drive a wedge between me and the Rockefeller family.

Look at the action of offering the title of baron to the craftsman and his brother-in-law.

‘It’s top-notch. It didn’t stop there it went one step further.’

Japan offered my father-in-law the title of Baron.

However no title was given to John Rockefeller and his son Rockefeller Jr. who were actually from the Rockefeller family.

It was an intentional discrimination between the main family and the collateral family.

Get notified for updates: https://discord.gg/93rmBjgP6B

‘Perhaps they made such a move to provoke internal strife.’

There are many instances in history books where conflicts arise when a collateral line is more successful than the main line.

Fortunately Japan’s attempt ends with Ethel’s line but caution is advised as we do not know when or how such an attempt could separate our two families.

“Would you like your fourth child to be a boy or a girl?”

Ethel who had been avoiding eye contact for a while smiled brightly and spoke to me.

Seeing her still complaining about her children even after giving birth to triplets I think she is truly an amazing woman.

“I… like both.”

“Huh? You want me to have twins again?”

What are you talking about?

I don’t care about sons or daughters I just want them to be healthy.

“Ethel… that’s not it.”

With those words “Or what?” Ethel came into my arms.

And to top it all off giving birth to twins is hard.

‘Oh good.’

Maybe it was because she had just taken a shower but the smell of soap on her scalp was really nice.

So much so that the lower body feels strong again.

* * *

“Welcome Mr. Rockefeller.”

Is it because the positions are different?

John Rockefeller returned to New York two weeks after my father-in-law William Rockefeller.

“You look very tired. Let’s go to sleep. Let’s have a cup of tea to relax.”

As was the case with his younger brother William John Rockefeller who was older and had a chronic illness seemed to have been hit especially hard by the storms of time.

I offered him some young leaf green tea picked from Jirisan and told him to relax for a moment.

“This prince.”

“Tell me.”

“This is… a feeling that is within reach but not quite there.”

Rockefeller with an expression on his face as if he had seen a mirage in the desert told me about his time in Washington.

“That’s how the judiciary is. It’s their specialty to talk vaguely about anything until the verdict is made.”

If the answer had been given easily Rockefeller would have been able to prepare for the next step with peace of mind.

The legal community that Rockefeller usually supported is just waiting for Rockefeller to speak to them and observing public opinion.

“Ha! I regret who I was in the past.”

I know.

The judiciary should have been well-oiled.

If you’re ambiguous it’s better than not doing anything.

usually.

“Even if we don’t commit sins those of us who have much like us should prepare in advance for any eventuality.”

“I see. So didn’t you create a line for me not only in the Supreme Court but also in the Ministry of Justice?”

Join our discord and ping me to update more chapters. Discord: https://discord.gg/93rmBjgP6B

Again vague connections don’t help much in a crisis.

Only my reliable side can provide a lifeline that will not rot in a crisis.

‘Come to think of it Rockefeller you are truly a lucky man.’

Because he definitely has one close by.

“Representative Rockefeller.”

“Yes Prince. Go ahead.”

“I have some exciting news for you. What do you think? Are you curious?”

I looked at Rockefeller with a smirk.

Rockefeller narrowed his eyes at her knowing expression.

“What’s the news?”

“This is information we can look forward to.”

After taking a sip of the green tea in front of me I leaned back on the sofa.

After that after fully appreciating Rockefeller’s yearning expression he opened his mouth.

“My people tell me that the outcome of this lawsuit will likely not be until this coming winter at the latest.”

“Is it winter?”

“okay.”

I quickly continued speaking.

“They say the lawsuit will be resolved by Easter at the latest. It’s cross-checked information so I can trust it. I think it’ll be out by then.”

I explained to Rockefeller why the lawsuit had to be resolved by Easter.

“The presidential election will be held in two years. The current president Roosevelt has served three consecutive terms so he cannot run this time.”

“Yes.”

“That means there will be a new presidential candidate at this convention. Roosevelt will try to nominate his own man next.”

“That’s right. Oh! To do that we need to finish the anti-monopoly law that is currently being implemented. To offer it as a sacrifice.”

“okay.”

under-

Rockefeller sighed deeply and rubbed his temples with his hands.

This is because I was suffering from migraines which were one of my chronic illnesses.

“It’s not just the Democratic Party that has the problem. There are many things to watch out for within the party as well.”

“yes.”

“This guy and that guy they’re all busy begging for votes from beggars. What the hell. It’s unbelievable.”

Rockefeller decried the recent wave of progressivism in the Roosevelt faction.

He was originally a self-made capitalist.

That’s why I had the belief that I shouldn’t give even a single piece of bread to someone who doesn’t put in the effort.

‘People don’t have the determination or sense of adventure that you Rockefeller have.’

It takes a lot of effort to escape poverty.

Successful people like Rockefeller tend to take this lightly.

So I thought about it for a moment then took note of it and said what I had been keeping inside.

“Election slogans tend to adapt to the needs of the times. I’ll say it again this election will be hot on the issues of labor rights and wage increases. The Democratic Party is also taking advantage of this so the Republican Party can’t just sit back and do nothing.”

“I know. Also isn’t the issue of the governance structure of large financial trusts constantly being brought up?”

“Yes. The current repertoire will continue to dominate the elections for the next ten years.”

“That long?”

The term ‘economic democratization’ was once popular in Korea.

It’s not exactly the same but it’s popular here in the US too.

Roosevelt’s antitrust lawsuits to force the breakup of corporations can also be seen as part of this larger trend.

“How is there no way to overcome this Your Majesty?”

Rockefeller and Morgan were swept away by that huge wave and almost died.

He asked me for help again.

“If everyone lives well that’s fine. If workers’ wages go up and their working conditions improve the topic will naturally move on to other grand discourses. But until that happens it’s impossible.”

“Yes? Isn’t that almost impossible?”

Poverty cannot be saved by God.

A society where everyone lives well.

When this slogan came out of my mouth Rockefeller snorted and said it was nonsense.

‘America accomplished that difficult task ten years later?’

The effects of World War II caused the American middle class to surpass that of other European middle classes.

in result.

In Europe there is chaos with people talking about fascists and communists.

Only the United States continues to grow and blossom with the beautiful flower of liberal democracy.

Rockefeller unaware of this future looked horrified and disgusted at my words.

“Anyway… a major event that will determine the next ten years is coming up. Won’t the Federal Reserve Act be passed during the next presidential term?”

“Yes.”

“So you have to be especially careful.”

I emphasized the last statement and suggested one thing to Rockefeller.

“Would you like to do some business with me?”

* * *

“What kind of business are you talking about?”

“I’m thinking of jumping into the public opinion poll market in earnest.”

Is it because of the antitrust lawsuit?

Rockefeller readily accepted my surprising offer without a second’s hesitation.

“Well there is no other means of swaying public opinion as effectively as statistics. Good.”

Rockefeller began to reminisce and then listed his business holdings.

“Ah! Prince I already own several polling agencies.”

“I know. But isn’t there a national company other than a regional company?”

Rockefeller looked slightly surprised.

“Do you plan to expand across the United States and even into Europe and Asia?”

“okay.”

I made a slightly mean and sinister expression.

“First let’s both establish our own companies and grow them until we have a certain degree of market dominance. After that we can either merge the two companies or leave them as they are and let the two of us dominate this market.”

“It seems like a good idea. The polling market will continue to grow. I’m all for it.”

“okay.”

I think I’ve almost finished what I wanted to say.

I ended our long conversation by asking Rockefeller one last favor.

“Ah! I have to stay here in New York until the end of the year because of the upcoming meeting of the Council of Seven. If you have some time could you introduce me to some people in the military?”

“Are you talking about military personnel? Why are you asking for such a favor?”

Why is that?

Isn’t there going to be a world war soon?

America was a country that didn’t have any major wars except for the Indians.

In the course of history the United States also gets sucked into this huge whirlpool.

This history may change but we must prepare in advance.

I made an excuse and asked Rockefeller to provide me with the military and the ladder.

“The political situation in Mexico which can be seen as America’s backyard is unstable.”

“Are you from Mexico?”

“Yes. It seems that the end is near for Diaz who has been president for twenty years. He seems to be trying all sorts of methods to keep his position… The other side seems to be gnashing its teeth.”

Mexico is the backyard of American capitalists.

If that place falls into chaos New York capitalists who have invested heavily in Mexico will also be in trouble.

“I didn’t know that. Thank you for sharing such great information.”

Is it because it focuses on anti-monopoly laws?

Rockefeller responded that he had no idea what was going on in Mexico his backyard.

“No matter how close you are you can’t receive favors with just your mouth. So here’s one more thing I’ve prepared.”

I gave Rockefeller one of the reports I had.

“It’s a report containing predictions from various polling agencies. Ten out of ten predicted a Woodrow Wilson victory. And they were within the margin of error.”

Rockefeller looked displeased.

He is a true Republican.

He was the one who hated more than anyone else the sight of Democratic politicians doing well.

“Damn. We have a strong chance of having a Democratic governor in New Jersey.”

“You should start preparing too.”

Standard Oil’s headquarters is in New Jersey.

it’s me.

Since I work primarily in California it doesn’t matter whether Wilson becomes governor or not.

Rockefeller didn’t.

“I saved it just in case. Use it when you need it.”

He secretly passed on to Rockefeller a collection of Woodrow Wilson’s weaknesses that he had been collecting.

Rockefeller looked quite moved by this.

“Wilson is a very smart man. He is a lover and a man of many faces… but he was also the president of Princeton so he is not someone to be taken lightly.”

“When the prince says this I feel a little scared.”

Rockefeller quickly adapted to reality.

He seemed to hesitate for a moment about what kind of relationship he should have with Wilson.

“Thank you. I will put it to good use.”

After quickly receiving the documents Rockefeller took a moment to recall the faces of the military figures he knew.

“Hmm. Who could it be? The Prince’s work would be helpful to me so I should introduce you to someone good. The only person who comes to mind right away is Army Chief of Staff Leonard Wood.”

“Oh Leonard Wood! Good. Good.”

Rockefeller pondered for a moment wondering if Leonard Wood whom he had mentioned earlier was a little lacking.

“Or how about stopping by West Point near New York?”

“To West Point?”

“Yes. I have some connections with the new dean who just took office. I think it wouldn’t be a bad idea to stop by.”

< Separately but Together (2) > End