Chapter 238 A Trip to the Dragon Kingdom!
Upon returning to The White House, the President had long been anxiously waiting for news in the conference room. As soon as he saw the Secretary of State enter, he asked impatiently:
"Has the Dragon Kingdom responded?"
The Secretary of State nodded slightly and said:
"They responded!"
"However, they used some excuses to refuse our state visit."
Upon hearing this, everyone was immediately furious. Someone slammed the table in anger and roared:
"This Dragon Kingdom is too much!"
"We cannot just let this slide. I want to use public opinion to condemn them, to condemn them severely!"
"Let the whole world see how selfish they are!"
Others echoed his sentiments, and for a moment, the conference room was filled with anger.
The Secretary of State hurriedly tried to calm them down: "Don't get excited yet; things aren't as bad as you think."
"Although they refused our state visit, they did agree to let me attend their Spring Festival Gala."
"In this way, we can still gather some information about them!"
Hearing the Secretary of State's words, everyone calmed down a little. After thinking for a moment, someone said:
"Regardless, as long as the Dragon Kingdom agrees to let us go, that's all that matters!"
"Looking at it this way, our scheme is still quite useful."
"In name, it's for cooperation, but in reality, we mainly just hope to get into their country!"
"Whether it's a visit or attending the so-called Spring Festival Gala, it doesn't matter!"
"This move is called 'building the boardwalk in the open while crossing the Chencang passage in secret.' It's actually a strategy from the Dragon Kingdom itself; I didn't expect them to fall for it this time."
Someone laughed triumphantly, and the others followed suit. The laughter was filled with the smugness of their scheme succeeding.
After they finished laughing, the Secretary of State spoke again:
"However, although we can attend the Spring Festival Gala in their country this time, there are conditions."
The President waved his hand indifferently and said nonchalantly:
"It doesn't matter what the conditions are, as long as we can achieve our goal."
In his view, as long as they could send someone into the Dragon Kingdom and obtain valuable intelligence, paying some price was worth it.
When the Secretary of State heard this, he immediately smiled and said:
"I think so too, so I agreed to give them 300 billion USD as a condition for the cooperation funds!"
"Once they were happy, they invited me to attend their Spring Festival Gala."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone present widened their eyes. The smiles on their faces vanished instantly, replaced by utter astonishment.
"Wha...t????"
Someone shouted in disbelief!
"300 billion USD? Are you crazy? That is not a small amount!"
The others also looked at the Secretary of State in shock, as if they had heard the most absurd thing in the world.
...
On the side of the Dragon Kingdom, the conference room was filled with happy laughter.
"I didn't expect the USA to be the real The Oil Tycoon. They really won't stop until they reach their goal. They gave 300 billion USD just like that; what a talent!"
Someone joked with a smile.
In fact, this also involved many detailed games of strategy!
In this regard, Representative Gu Chuanwen deserves much of the credit!
If it weren't for his meticulous operation, it might not have been possible to get the US Secretary of State to take the bait!"
Elder Qin said at this moment: "From this, we can also see that the USA is full of obsession about being able to come to the Dragon Kingdom!"
"I don't know what they are obsessed with..."
Someone said, feeling puzzled.
Elder Qin narrowed his eyes slightly, his expression becoming serious, and said:
"Regardless of what they are obsessed with, or what kind of conspiracy they have, when the day of the Spring Festival Gala comes, it will completely shatter their Dao hearts!"
His tone carried a powerful confidence, as if everything was under control.
Everyone listened and nodded, their eyes filled with expectation, adding a bit more mysterious anticipation for the upcoming Lunar New Year's Eve Spring Festival Gala.
...
With Lunar New Year's Eve approaching, the whole world seemed immersed in an atmosphere of joy and peace.
Whether it was in the Dragon Kingdom itself or Chinatown in the USA, everything was decorated with lanterns and streamers, bustling with excitement. The strong atmosphere of the New Year permeated everywhere, and people were celebrating the upcoming New Year.
On this day, the US Secretary of State also boarded a special plane to return to the Dragon Kingdom with Ambassador Representative Gu Chuanwen.
The atmosphere inside the special plane was somewhat awkward, mainly because the Secretary of State felt more and more that something was wrong the more he thought about it. He gradually realized that he seemed to have fallen into some kind of trap set by the Dragon Kingdom.
Just to attend a Spring Festival Gala, he had actually spent 300 billion USD!
Although this 300 billion USD was nominally for cooperation, he knew clearly in his heart that this cooperation was just a cover!
However, thinking about it carefully, if he hadn't coughed up this money, he might not have had the chance to visit the Dragon Kingdom in person to find out the truth.
He could only comfort himself in his heart, trying to make this 300 billion worth it.
Therefore, even on the plane, he was already impatient to start fishing for some information from Representative Gu Chuanwen.
He cleared his throat and spoke as if making small talk:
"Thank you again for inviting us to attend the Spring Festival Gala!"
"Actually, this is my first time attending this kind of gala of yours. I'm afraid of not understanding things and making a fool of myself, so I've crammed a lot of knowledge about the programs!"
"I really like one of the programs!"
Representative Gu Chuanwen asked politely: "Which program?"
The Secretary of State continued: "I forgot the specifics, but there was a line that was very profound! It's called 'Big hammer eighty, small hammer forty,' it was exceptionally funny!"
The US Secretary of State tried hard to make his expression look more natural!
Continuing with a tone that tried to build rapport, he said:
"To be honest, the Spring Festival Gala programs from previous years were really interesting!"
"Those wonderful songs and dances, hilarious sketches, and magical tricks—each one was like a meticulously crafted piece of art, making people watch with great relish."
The Secretary of State narrowed his eyes slightly, as if lost in memories of those wonderful programs.
"However, the programs in later years felt more inclined towards preaching, with less pure joy."
The Secretary of State paused for a moment, looking at Representative Gu Chuanwen, seemingly wanting to get some agreement from his expression, and continued:
"Also, I discovered that you Dragon Kingdom people really like to eat a food called dumplings!"
"I saw in the materials that these dumplings have a special meaning in your culture. Every time an important holiday arrives, the whole family gathers together to make dumplings and eat them. It's truly warm and has a traditional charm."
"If I have the chance, I must taste this legendary delicacy."
Representative Gu Chuanwen smiled calmly and replied:
"It can be seen that Mr. Secretary of State has really crammed a lot of knowledge about our Spring Festival Gala programs and has also gained a certain understanding of our Dragon Kingdom's culture."
"To be honest, I also feel the later programs have been a bit dull, but I can assure you..."
"This year's Spring Festival Gala will absolutely not disappoint you."