The Joseon Prince Went To America And Didn’t Return – 18



< Debut (3) >

The mansion where the banquet was being held has three floors in total.

Currently most of the guests were staying on the first floor and they were all chatting away while enjoying snacks and wine.

But unlike them I followed John up the stairs to the second floor.

Because the governor and other key guests were staying upstairs.

“I am George Pardi the 21st Governor of California.”

A fairly tall white man greeted me in the reception room just off the stairs.

I also walked towards the governor introducing myself in a calm voice.

“My name is Lee Kang. I come from the Korean Empire across the Pacific.”

George Pardee smiled and closed the distance between us a little more.

He didn’t show the same expression as Jane when he first met her saying ‘Where is the Korean Empire?’

Perhaps it was because as a professional politician he had already checked my background.

“Nice to meet you.”

George Pardee quickly extended his right hand.

I asked for a handshake which was a Western-style greeting.

“Let me say what I have to say first. Thank you for inviting me Governor. It is a real pleasure to meet you.”

After crossing each other’s hands once they exchanged glances.

Then the governor pointed me to another room where people were gathered.

“This way Prince Kang.”

As soon as the governor finished speaking John Maxwell who had been guiding me cautiously stepped between us.

Then he approached the governor and whispered softly to him.

“As you know Your Majesty unlike us in the East we speak of the family name first. That is why the prince here’s family name is Lee not Kang.”

John corrected my information to the governor.

“omg!”

The governor looked slightly surprised at this.

Because calling someone by their wrong name is extremely rude.

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“I apologize Your Highness. I am ignorant of Eastern culture so I have offended you.”

The governor was momentarily taken aback.

At the same time a look of surprise appeared on his face as if to say ‘Do real Koreans introduce themselves starting with their last name?’

But soon he regained his composure and his expression changed to a smile.

“No that could be the case.”

“Thank you for your understanding. Then please come this way. I will introduce you to the others.”

Now this mistake was not caused by the governor’s rudeness or ignorance.

Because I got people to call my name wrong.

‘I’m sure you were told in advance. How can you remember all that?’

When I introduced myself in an oriental way you probably thought my real last name was ‘Kang’.

‘It’s a good start.’

Guiding the other party into making mistakes is also a common practice in negotiations.

This is just a very small tip.

Think about it.

Politicians are people too.

When debts pile up in your heart there are times when you make a request and the offer is rejected like a snake climbing over a wall.

Of course the governor would be extremely apologetic for calling me by a different last name and there’s no way he’d grant me a request when we first met.

My plan was to slowly pile up debt in his heart like clothes getting wet in the drizzle.

‘What happens next is important.’

It whetted my appetite.

I had to really meet people and have conversations so I wet my dry lips with saliva.

“This is the mayor of San Francisco. This is the prince. I told you about last time.”

“Ah! Hello Your Highness! I am Eugene Schmidt. I am the mayor of San Francisco.”

“I am also truly happy to meet you like this.”

“No. I am more honored. I heard you have become a strong friend of the governor.”

John Padi’s secretary quickly intervened between Eugene and me and added:

“This prince donated another $20000 to the governor’s campaign today. Adding the $30000 he donated last time to this $20000 donation he donated a whopping $50000.”

Originally investment required good timing and timing.

Just as when Biden visited Korea large Korean companies poured out their investment plans in the US that they had been planning in front of Biden.

You should do this just before meeting that person in an important situation.

Wouldn’t that be the way to make it memorable and bring it to life?

“Fifty thousand dollars at the beginning of the election… Thank you very much.”

Governor Padi thanked me again for this.

Then I continued with what I had prepared.

“I heard that unlike the Korean Empire the United States elects its leader through voting.”

“Yes.”

“Then shouldn’t someone with the right beliefs and talent be the leader? That’s how this place will become prosperous. I too am planning to start a new second life in California so I’m very interested in the upcoming election.”

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He didn’t say he would give more campaign contributions.

But I made my intention to stay here for a long time clear to the governor and the mayor.

“Oh! Is that so?”

“Yes… That’s why I really wanted to meet the governor. Fortunately he seems to be as capable and kind as I expected.”

To summarize you can pay a little more.

Of course as I get to know him better I will give it to him based on how much help he can be to me.

The governor must have understood what I was saying because he started to treat me with a face full of laughter.

Then the mayor of San Francisco who was nearby spoke up.

“This… I’m jealous. I also have an election coming up soon.”

Eugene Schmidt sends envious glances at me.

So I took Eugene Schmidt’s business card and pretended to know him.

“Oh! I was thinking of donating to the mayor’s campaign as well. I’ll have my secretary give instructions soon.”

“This… You don’t have to do that. I feel like I brought up a burdensome topic for no reason.”

“no.”

“Ahem.”

That was when.

There was a cough next to me.

“Ouch. Get out of my mind. I forgot to introduce the others while I was talking to the prince.”

The governor began introducing other people in the room.

“This is Jack Milo the so-called Gold King. He is the owner of the largest gold mine in California and my best friend.”

We must interpret politicians’ words carefully.

A close friend is not literally a best friend.

That probably means the best sponsor.

“The tall gentleman here is the richest landowner in California. He owns the Western Bank…”

They were all famous people in California.

I looked at their faces.

‘Unlike the first floor the second floor is completely a pepper field. Of course blue eyes and yellow hair are a given.’

It’s to the point where I doubt if it’s the same place as the banquet hall on the first floor.

The atmosphere was also different.

It was quite serious.

There was no one who really picked a fight with me.

‘This is a place where I come to take care of my own interests.’

There was no unpleasant situation as this was not a place to come and badmouth anyone.

‘Of course… if I become their enemy.’

They might talk bad about me behind my back or openly.

But since I was a newbie who had just entered this market there weren’t really any people who were hostile to me.

“Come this way. Ah! You! You are the distinguished guest from the East that I mentioned last time. Your Majesty this way is….”

* * *

The governor looked delighted.

Because he always carried me around and introduced me to people.

‘Am I the governor’s trophy?’

Because I am so capable and famous even a foreign ‘prince’ came to this place.

I am this great.

It seemed like they were using me for this purpose.

‘I’ll be happy to be used.’

Not bad for me either.

In fact the governor and I have been using each other.

The governor is promoting his influence.

I’ve made acquaintances with several notable figures through the governor.

Especially since you are being introduced as an official guest of the governor you will definitely make a better first impression than if you had met him separately.

“I heard that Prince Lee Kang recently established an agricultural corporation.”

We were called here and there and talked about many things.

Since it was my first time talking to someone I had met we basically just chatted.

Most of the stories are not very interesting.

But there were some nutritious conversations.

“I heard you’re also buying land? I guess you’re very interested in agriculture.”

There is no reason to hide it.

Rather it would be better to reveal it here.

I nodded and joined in on their story.

“I am very interested in many things. I am especially interested in rice farming.”

“Why is that so?”

“Because my people are experts at growing rice.”

“Are the Korean Empire immigrants that good at growing rice?”

“Yes I would say it’s the best.”

“I should make a note of this.”

A man who owned quite a bit of land began to write something down.

‘Okay.’

The more my people move to California the stronger I become.

Because I was currently serving as the head of the Korean community.

‘If there are more people willing to sponsor immigration it’s good for me.’

I smiled and continued to promote how good our Korean people are at rice farming.

“I heard that the federal government is going to start the flood control project next year… I should hire them when I get the chance.”

Recently land has suddenly become unavailable for purchase.

Was it all because of this?

I thought back to the conversation that just came up and compared it to recent events.

That was when.

“Ah… I heard the prince bought quite a bit of land this time.”

“Yes.”

“Did you get any word from someone high up in Washington?”

“….”

What are you talking about?

There was silence for a while.

“As expected… the prince is different. To think that he has a connection with someone of high rank.”

“Yes. Where did you buy the land?”

Everyone thinks I asked for information in advance and bought the land.

Of course I didn’t bother to correct the mistake.

“I bought some land in the nearby Sacramento Basin.”

“Sacramento Basin…..”

The group’s expressions became unpleasant.

He made a pitiful face when I told him I had bought land in the heart of the Sacramento Basin not even on the outskirts of the Delta.

“Come to me next time. I’ll introduce you to a conscientious broker.”

They treat me as if I was a victim of fraud by a real estate development company.

but.

That’s what it would look like to them.

The Sacramento Basin is now a wasteland.

“Doctor have you been going to the bathroom for a while?”

I’ve been talking to the coffin on the ground for a while now.

New faces have arrived.

Naturally the governor came up to me and introduced me to them.

“Oh! Say hello. My name is Dr. Franklin Hiram King. I am an official with the Department of Agriculture.”

He is said to be the head of the Bureau of Land Management under the Department of Agriculture.

“This is Aiden. I am an officer working for the Bureau of Land Management. Your Majesty.”

“Nice to meet you.”

A man named Aiden came up to me and asked.

“I happened to be passing by and overheard their conversation.”

“yes.”

“Your Majesty are you interested in rice farming?”

“That’s right.”

“I am also very interested. That is why I proposed to the director that we conduct a deep soil exploration in California.”

A man standing next to him interrupted Aiden.

“Your Majesty I may soon be on a business trip to Japan or Joseon.”

At the federal level?

I tilted my head and asked them why they were doing such a thing.

“Why are you so interested?”

“that is….”

Aiden scratched his head and opened his mouth again.

“It is to keep Japan in check.”

“Japan?”

“Yes. Hasn’t Japan been eating rice as its staple food since ancient times? Recently with the population exploding and urbanization progressing there seems to be a serious food shortage.”

“If rice can be grown there and exported to Japan it would be like taking out an insurance policy.”

Aiden agreed as I countered.

“Yes. If Japan were to have ambitions in Manchuria… wouldn’t we be able to control them with the rice we were exporting?”

At this exclamations erupted from the surroundings.

“Sergeant Aiden too.”

“Japan is our friend not our enemy.”

okay.

That’s exactly the sentiment in the American mainstream right now.

It must be because Japan is still only interested in Joseon.

But what if we look beyond Joseon to Manchuria and China?

Aiden seemed to be preparing for that future.

“But just in case don’t you know? We need to actively foster the rice industry in preparation for that.”

“Tsk tsk. Are you still talking about that?”

Despite the criticism from people I felt like I had found a hidden pearl.

‘Look at this guy.’

I found one that’s worth using.

There is someone in the central government who says such things.

‘If I raise him properly he will grow into a person who can be of help to me right?’

I’m a Department of Agriculture employee… and I also care about foreign relations.

If you give them funding they might be able to get into the world of central politics.

‘The sprout was discovered…’

I was waiting for someone with an anxious heart.

This is because there is still no one who can be called the main character of the party.

“Is something wrong?”

That was when.

The banquet hall suddenly became noisy.

“Your Majesty.”

A stranger came to me and whispered.

I thought he was from the federal government since he hadn’t been introduced to the governor.

“Tell me.”

“The Minister says he is not feeling well. He will probably not be able to attend.”

her….

So what about subsidies?

“But the minister said he really wanted to meet the prince. So…..”

He said to contact me the next time I visit Washington?

If we do this well it seems like we might be able to meet the Minister of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs or even someone higher up.

But Woo Hyun-sik couldn’t avoid seeing his face.

“Are you okay?”

Woo Hyun-sik kept crying until he left the party.

“Why are you doing that?”

Woo Hyun-sik swallows for a moment.

I have something I want to say but I can’t seem to get the words to come out.

* * *

“Why are you like that? Are you upset because things didn’t go as you expected?”

“…yes.”

I was thinking of bringing up the subsidy issue when I met with the Secretary of Agriculture…

He didn’t show up at the banquet hall under the pretense of being sick.

It’s not a common occurrence though.

Since such an emergency could happen at any time I patted Woo Hyun-sik on the shoulder and comforted him.

“This guy too… Do you think I would be involved in something like this?”

“….”

“If it doesn’t work this time I can try next time. If it doesn’t work next time I can try the day after next. What do I have in my favor compared to those old guys? It’s time.”

Lobbying never works overnight.

I had to approach it as if it were at least a mid-term project.

‘It’s going to be tough unless I’m the son of the President of the United States.’

This is especially true when it comes to subsidies.

The United States today is a capitalist world.

Subsidies are a policy that is considered to be something only discussed in socialist circles.

‘Still… there are results.’

Once you get to Washington can’t you meet with the Secretary of Agriculture?

There must have been a reason why James Wilson sent someone to me and insisted on meeting me.

‘I brought up the subsidy issue to the governor.’

In recent years natural disasters such as droughts and floods have continued to hit the United States.

I have talked about disaster relief and the idea of ​​a program that would provide temporary support to affected farmers.

‘The governor said he thought positively for now.’

Because it’s not distributed it’s a one-time thing.

In particular there seemed to be no particular resistance because the support was provided in a roundabout way such as through fire insurance support rather than in cash.

‘Furthermore I got to know many people around California. I became close enough with some of them to make future appointments.’

Additionally we learned that the federal government is interested in growing rice in California.

Was it Aiden?

Now that we know the name of the person leading this it will be easier to plan the next step.

‘What I need to do now is to increase my influence. Of course the seed money in my hand needs to grow as well.’

That day is coming.

A day that is a disaster for everyone but an opportunity for me.

It’s almost December.

In just one month it will be 1906.

That means there’s less than half a year left.

‘I will never forget.’

When I lived as the modern-day Park Byung-jun San Francisco was my hometown.

Americans have always loved their homeland and cherished their history.

Since it had been less than 300 years since their founding they taught their history in great detail.

‘That day is coming.’

It will bring about tremendous change.

There will come a time when the axis of the earth will shake in all directions.

‘I need to use this as an opportunity to grow further.’

I clenched my fists and made a firm resolution.

<Debut (3)> End