NOVEL NEXT Chapter 99: Want to Bomb Tokyo?
"Oh, so that's how it is," Roosevelt said without hesitation.
"That's absolutely no problem. Just coordinate with the military, and I don't think Ike would mind someone helping him solve a few problems."
So it was just about following behind the Allied forces and picking up scraps!
Thinking of the upcoming "Operation Overlord"...
Once the plan succeeded, they would certainly capture a huge amount of supplies. As for all that German scrap metal, the military had no real interest in it—at most, they'd ship some back for testing. If someone was willing to haul all that junk away, it would actually save the military some trouble.
As for the cost of collection and transportation, it would definitely be much cheaper than producing new equipment.
After agreeing readily, Roosevelt smiled and asked, "Does he have any other requests?"
As a politician, Roosevelt knew very well that such a small request couldn't possibly be worth several hundred million dollars in reputation. The other party's true demands must go further. But with demands, there was no need to worry—after all, the exchange of interests is mutual, and that's also a guarantee for both sides.
"Transport ships," Truman said, looking at the President. "He hopes the US government can provide 50 Liberty ships to the North Borneo Shipping Company under the Lend-Lease Act."
Instantly, the Oval Office fell silent. The smile on Roosevelt's face slowly disappeared, and his brow furrowed.
After Truman made that suggestion, he had immediately sent people to investigate Pierre: originally from Lile, he fled to Indochina to escape the war, then went back to France, but was stranded there due to the conflict, and only escaped to Britain last year. After that, his life seemed to take off—he bought up several companies, including North Borneo Company, at low prices and became a supplier to the Pentagon. Among all his companies, North Borneo Company was the most special.
Roosevelt's frown wasn't because 50 Liberty ships were worth a hundred million dollars, but because of what it signified.
"Sir, North Borneo Company is a British chartered company with administrative powers. If we provide merchant ships to it under the Lend-Lease Act, we are, in effect, indirectly acknowledging his control over North Borneo. This will certainly provoke Churchill's displeasure," Hopkins reminded from the side.
The Oval Office.
The air conditioner hummed, the cool air pleasant, but the mood in the room was unsettled.
"So, he wants to provide merchant ships to the North Borneo Shipping Company, not the North Borneo Company itself."
In reality, everyone knew this was just wordplay. As long as merchant ships were provided under the Lend-Lease Act, it was a clear statement of America's position—recognizing the North Borneo Company and, by extension, his ownership of it.
Roosevelt's brow furrowed even tighter.
In fact, he knew that this matter would definitely require paying a certain price...
…but he never expected that what the man was after was actually a colony.
Would this affect relations with Britain?
It would certainly arouse Churchill's displeasure.
As Roosevelt pondered the possible consequences in his mind, he realized he was caught in a dilemma.
He even subconsciously wanted to refuse, or perhaps find some other way to offer greater compensation.
However…
Roosevelt stared at Truman, thinking it over.
"Harry, do you think we should agree to his terms?"
"Among the recipients of the Lend-Lease Act, there are both French and British colonies, Mr. President. No matter what we give them now, it won't affect Britain's or France's postwar policies toward their colonies."
Roosevelt glanced up at Truman, understanding his meaning, but then turned his gaze to Hopkins.
"Mr. President, I think Prime Minister Churchill will understand, especially at a time like this."
By "a time like this," he meant Operation Overlord. The operation was already in the implementation stage, and at such a critical moment, Churchill would not let anything jeopardize it.
North Borneo… was just a patch of tropical rainforest far away in Asia.
Roosevelt fell silent for a moment.
The office was unusually quiet.
Then he waved his hand and smiled.
"He really is an excellent negotiator—he knows how to propose the right terms at the right time. Harry, if you have the chance, invite him to the White House as a guest."
As the President's proxy, how could he not visit the White House?
Everything that followed was simple enough. Arranged by the White House, Pierre gave an interview, during which he revealed the inside story of the arms donation—it had been a covert operation orchestrated by the President.
The President.
A secret operation.
These words alone were enough to catch the public's attention. When several major newspapers covered the interview, their reporters naturally "dug up" even more details through various channels.
Stories emerged about intelligence agencies intercepting Japanese military communications, about the President circumventing bureaucracy by using a "fake friend" to covertly provide large quantities of arms to China under the guise of a donation, and even the Italian pilots were credited to the President's far-sightedness.
In short, contrary to what the public had believed, the President had not been idle—he had done a great deal, only much of it was unknown to the outside world.
With careful planning and packaging, the rumor of "Europe first, ignoring the Japanese" collapsed on its own, and Roosevelt weathered the crisis with ease.
As the President's proxy, Pierre naturally appeared at the White House reception, chatting amiably with Roosevelt. Of course, it was all a show—a performance for outsiders.
Pierre, as a participant, understood this well, but the other guests at the reception did not. The imperial uncle, who expressed his gratitude to the President, certainly didn't know, nor did the British ambassador, who even approached Pierre to say he hoped to discuss North Borneo with him at an appropriate time. He also indicated that the Colonial Office considered Li's acquisition of North Borneo to be in accordance with British law.
This was the power of "the tiger's skin"—Britain had acknowledged his control over North Borneo. The result was within Pierre expectations, because of the timing—now it was May, and the Anglo-Americans would launch Operation Overlord next month. At this point, Churchill's greatest fear was any unexpected complication.
He would never let a North Borneo company jeopardize his grand plan to retake continental Europe. When first formulating his plan, Pierre had already counted Churchill in, just as he had with Roosevelt—one wanted to win a fourth term, the other to launch the counterattack on Europe!
Timing… the timing was perfect!
After chatting with the British ambassador for a while, the Russian ambassador came over, so the former excused himself, leaving space for them. But there was little common ground, and only polite greetings were exchanged.
At the White House banquet, Pierre was certainly not the main character—the real star was Roosevelt, sitting in his wheelchair, surrounded by admirers, with Truman quietly standing in a corner, unnoticed.
Who would have thought that the real winner would be someone else?
Thinking of this, Pierre glanced at Truman and smiled slightly. This man was the true winner.
As for himself, all he needed was to stand with the victors—that was enough.
But for now, the real winner was still Roosevelt. With this thought, wine glass in hand, Pierre walked over to Roosevelt. As Roosevelt greeted him with a broad smile, Pierre quietly asked:
"Mr. President, do you want to bomb Tokyo? Right now!"