Chapter 1833 South America Trip-Chile
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On the second Monday of 2017, the day before Yang Cheng was about to leave for South America, a piece of news ignited public opinion in half of the United States.
Why half?
Because Big Mouth showed up again, I didn’t bother to talk about him, lest the chapter be blocked.
The news was first broken by the New York Times - the U.S. Department of Justice formally indicted Kevin McCarthy, a heavyweight member of the U.S. House of Representatives, on 14 counts of bribery, fraud, and false statements. Among them, there were eight charges of bribery alone. If these bribery facts are proven, he faces the prospect of 15 years in prison for each bribery crime. How much does it add up to? Multiplication within a hundred is not difficult to calculate!
There was no warning before the whole thing was revealed, but the announcement of this prosecution was like a bombshell that shocked all social platforms in the United States.
After the New York Times news broke, online media across the United States reported the case prominently on their front pages, believing that this was the first time in recent decades that the U.S. federal government had formally prosecuted a current heavyweight congressman. .
As a result, the New York Times has returned to its throne in the media world. I believe there will be no suspense about this year's Pulitzer Prize.
The Times devoted two full pages to exposing the rampant "money lords" in the United States and the ugly side of the undercurrent of power-money transactions.
In the news, 58-year-old Kevin McCarthy has undoubtedly become the biggest villain. He has repeatedly used his power to "take care of" the details of the business and private lives of ZZ donors. While deeply disgusting the public, he also felt a sense of comfort.
The accusations against Kevin McCarthy are mostly related to a beautiful woman named Marina in New Jersey and a ZZ donor.
Marina is the owner of a New Jersey gallery and one of Kevin McCarthy's mistresses and a donor to Kevin McCarthy. She has repeatedly bribed Kevin McCarthy by purchasing low-end paintings in the gallery.
According to charges, between 2009 and 2016, Marina handled a total of $17 million worth of donations, not including the cost of more than five free private or charter flights a year to resorts such as Florida and the Dominican Republic.
Kevin often brings a "guest" with him, either Marina or his personal secretary, to stay in a luxury hotel suite in Paris for $1,000 a night; to buy watches worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, etc., in the news All are recorded in detail.
In return, Kevin has repeatedly used his power to "take care" of the donor's business. For example, he has put pressure on relevant organizations,
Open the door to facilitate energy transportation under the donor company;
Or use his subordinates to put pressure on U.S. Customs to release goods that have not gone through inspection procedures.
All kinds of misdeeds were reported one by one by the New York Times, and now Kevin's reputation was really infamous.
In fact, two days before the news broke, the relevant departments completed the arrest and evidence collection of Kevin McCarthy with frightening efficiency, thanks to the close cooperation of Yang Cheng and Richard Debin.
After the conversation in the cigar bar that day, Yang Cheng spent two days checking Kevin McCarthy's family background, and the person who broke all this, including all the criminal evidence, was Kevin McCarthy's female secretary.
Yang Cheng promised to give her a sum of money. After the incident was completed, Richard Debin would be responsible for helping her exonerate her. After the news passed, Yang Cheng would send her to any country in the world except the United States, anyway, she would be alone. One person could live the rest of his life without any worries, but the female secretary chose betrayal without hesitation.
In fact, there is no betrayal, it's just that someone bought her own value at a higher price, and this money is something her boss will never be able to afford. A smart person will naturally know how to choose.
After the information was handed over to Richard Debin, Yang Cheng didn't have to worry about the rest.
Sure enough, after a few days, Richard told Yang Cheng that it was time to publish the newspaper.
It was still the same cigar bar a week ago. The two masterminds behind the Kevin case were sitting opposite each other. Their faces were ordinary. They were not excited at all about defeating an opponent, and they had nothing to be proud of. .
Yang Cheng shook his wine glass and asked, "Is the sound in the party loud?"
Like a dozing lion, Richard blinked feebly, "Sound? There will be no sound. This is a cold world, and no one will sympathize with a loser~"
"That's true, but after seeing your reaction, did they give up their plan to replace you?"
"I don't know, probably, I guess~"
Yang Cheng was a little confused. When had Richard used such ambiguous words? Isn't he sure?
"Are there any other hidden dangers? Tell us and we will solve them together~"
Richard smiled slightly, "The hidden danger is gone, but accidents happen every day. Who can guarantee that accidents will not happen to their head?"
Yang Cheng didn't believe it, "Brother comeon, if you have any problems, tell us and we will solve them together. Don't forget that we are on the same boat~"
Richard was helpless and felt a hint of warmth. Although the two were united because of interests and might separate in the future because of interests, at this moment, Yang Cheng's words and deeds were like a match, giving him a warm feeling in the ice cellar. A trace of warmth, even if the warmth is very weak, even if it is fleeting.
"It's nothing really, I'm just a little tired~"
Yang Cheng frowned slightly. Logically speaking, Richard should be able to do this kind of thing easily.
But he didn't want to say that Yang Cheng couldn't pry his mouth open.
"Leaving to South America tomorrow?" Richard took the initiative to change the subject.
"Well~ Let's go to Chile first, then to Peru~"
"I heard that Chile is planning to use 10% of its copper mine revenue to replace modern equipment~"
Yang Cheng sat up straight, "Are you kidding?"
Richard deliberately glanced at the calendar on his watch and made an American joke, "Today is not April Fools' Day~"
The implication was that he wasn't joking.
"Are the Chileans crazy? Trading stable income for arms?"
"There is nothing we can do. Copper prices have fallen sharply. How can we buy arms if we don't have foreign exchange income?"
"Shit, the timing of my visit is perfect this time. I must get this order~"
"Ha, I hope you can succeed~"
. . .
With excitement and anticipation, Yang Cheng took the Xin Yuan Shan to fly to Santiago, the capital of Chile.
As one of the most famous tourist destinations in the world, Chile has many attractions full of history, culture and natural landscapes that will definitely make tourists linger, such as the famous Easter Island.
However, as the capital and largest city, Santiago seems a bit monotonous. This was Yang Cheng's first impression after the plane passed over the Andes Mountains and overlooked this South American metropolis.
Santiago is the fifth largest city in South America. It is located in the middle of Chile's narrow territory, on the banks of the Mapocho River, with the Andes Mountains to the east and about 100 kilometers from Valparaiso Port to the west.
The land here is fertile, the climate is warm, and the marine resources are rich. The Indians make a living here by farming, fishing, and hunting.
European explorers came here in the 16th and 17th centuries, disrupting the lives of the Indians and beginning the period of European colonial rule.
The summer here is dry and mild, and the winter is cool and rainy. The sparkling Mapocho River flows slowly from the city. The Andes, covered with snow all year round, is like a shining silver crown. The natural landscape adds to the charming charm.
It was on such a dry summer day that a Boeing 787 aircraft painted in the golden color of the Andes sunset slowly landed at Santiago Benitez Airport.
The person who came to pick him up was Richard's old friend, the former ambassador to the United States, an Indo-European mixed-race grandfather with a long beard.
Yes, Yang Cheng thinks it is more reliable to call him grandpa. He looks more than ten years older than Richard.
The grandfather's name is nothing special. Like most Spanish-speaking countries, Chilean names are divided into four parts - two first names and two surnames.
Chileans have very few names to choose from. Although their parents will choose any combination of two good-sounding names when choosing a name, the ones that come back and forth are just "Juan", "José" and "Maria".
Anyway, if you shout "Huan" on the street, half the people on the street will turn around and agree.
We have no choice but to suffer the consequences of lack of culture. For example, in women’s names, many women have “Mary” in their names. This is related to the far-reaching influence of the Catholic Virgin Mary.
Of course, there are also those who feel that this name is called too much and are unhappy, so they can change the name, such as Cecilia, which is one of the most popular names for intelligent women today.
Chileans attach great importance to the culture of the Spanish-speaking world, but many times, because they are in the Americas, people will associate their names with Americans. This is something that Chileans are quite resistant to, so when you meet someone who insists on being persistent When you have two Chileans with two first names, don't fight with them, just let them be.
However, Chilean names are not that simple. The surname of a Chilean actually hides his ancestral home. To put it bluntly, it is easy to see where his ancestors came from.
Chile's first colonists came from the Andalusia region in southern Spain, and more Spaniards came from the north.
After World War II, a large number of Germans and French people fled to southern Chile. Today, the descendants of these people have lost the blond appearance and blue eyes of their ancestors, but a lot of information can be seen from the various surnames, such as Molina. More than 95% of the names come from southern Spain, and Hans's ancestors must be German.
Chilean surnames not only reveal family origins, but many times also indicate a person's social class.
The surnames of some European countries are "noble surnames" in Chile, such as Barchester, which is definitely a descendant of France. The reason for the quality of the surname is nothing more than the wealth of the original colonists.
Many people with mediocre qualifications but a "noble surname" are often respected in society and have an easier chance of success. This is indeed a strange place in Chile.
It is somewhat similar to the upper castes and lower castes in India, but not so discriminatory.
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