Chapter 189 Chinese in New York
Chapter 189 Chinese in New York
Central Park, New York.
The sturdy Zhang Siwen stood up from the bench, put the New York Times in his hand into his backpack, and seemed to be thinking about something.
The New York Times is not a newspaper as most Chinese people know it. It has more than 90 pages, and 140 pages on Sundays, which amazed Zhang Siwen.
He is a country bumpkin, and this is just the beginning. He didn’t know that in the future, the New York Times in 1983 reached 1,572 pages and weighed nine kilograms…
However, Zhang Siwen's current dress is not at all rustic. He has a very "modern" short hair, which is very trendy even in New York.
Nowadays, authentic Americans all cut their hair short, but it is similar to the slicked back style that Yung Wing had.
As for New York, it no longer looks like a true American city.
A quarter of the people on the street were Prussians and a quarter were Irish, all of whom had just fled from Europe because of the war in Prussia and the great famine in Ireland.
These refugees, who make up half of New York's population, still have long European-style hair. In their eyes, Zhang Siwen, who has been in the United States for more than three years, is a true native.
It is April in the Gregorian calendar. The Qingming Festival has just passed in China, but the daytime temperature in New York is 15 degrees Celsius, which is still a bit cool.
Zhang Siwen wore a long windbreaker, trousers, big leather shoes, and a pair of sunglasses. With his sturdy figure and short hair, he basically looked like Schwarzenegger, and had the tough guy vibe that Americans admire.
He cut his hair short not because he was against the Qing Dynasty. In fact, he was not against the Qing Dynasty. If the Qing Dynasty could allow the poor and the rich to have the same development opportunities, he would support it without hesitation.
He was dressed in typical American style, he just didn't like being stared at because of his strange clothes.
He doesn't wear sunglasses just to look cool. When people see his dark oriental eyes, they often wonder why he doesn't have braids, but he doesn't have to worry about that when he wears sunglasses.
Now Zhang Siwen has a serious face, and he looks more like a tough guy.
The newspaper headline was a large photograph of General Lee surrendering to the Union, marking the end of the American Civil War.
He was the nominal leader of a division and a brigade of Taiping mercenaries going to the United States. He had to make the decision on the future direction of these nearly 20,000 people.
Chen Cheng and Shi Laosan were the de facto leaders of the mercenaries, but after they went to the United States, they had been fighting and lived a very isolated life, making it difficult for them to make decisions on their own.
During the telegram communication, the two generals seemed to want to stay in the United States, seize a state in the West, and establish an independent kingdom.
This is impossible. There are less than 20,000 mercenaries, and the US military has just reconciled the North and the South, which now has 3.5 million soldiers. They will not tolerate you Chinese people establishing a country within a country, and they cannot defeat you.
The streets were filled with people cheering and celebrating; the war was finally over.
A large group of people gathered in front. The tall Zhang Siwen looked easily over the heads of the crowd and saw two people being watched in the middle of the crowd.
A well-mannered man was holding a shelf with a hand-drawn design on it.
The design shows a statue wearing a crown, holding a torch in his raised right hand and a book in his left hand.
Another foreigner was giving a passionate speech.
"I am Edouard de Labre. As a Frenchman, I admire the American spirit of freedom. The United States is actively promoting abolition of slavery. It is a great country."
Pointing to the artist next to him, he said, "This is my companion, the sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi. To celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, we have decided to create a huge statue as a gift from the French to the United States to express our respect for this great country. The statue will be erected on Manhattan Island and become a landmark here. I hope everyone will donate enthusiastically." Well, it's a fundraising, asking for money along the street. Looking at the height marked on the design, it's over 300 feet. How long will it take to raise enough money?
But is this a great country? Yes. But after Zhang Siwen came to the United States, he found that this was not the ideal country in his mind.
How should I put it? Well, it’s much better than the Qing Dynasty. Those who are capable and willing to work hard can indeed succeed.
However, as Zhang Zhidong's younger brother, he is not really a fool. Through the prosperous appearance, he can see the "invisible ceiling" here.
Not to mention the slavery system that was about to be eliminated, even in the North, the top 100 families who immigrated here firmly controlled all the key and critical departments. It was easy for ordinary people to have enough food and clothing after hard work, and they could get a small fortune. Don't even think about rushing to the top.
"Maybe the world I want doesn't exist at all, but that's fine."
Zhang Siwen talked to himself and donated a dollar to the donation box.
The current US dollar is a silver coin, with 0.77 taels per dollar, which is still worth a lot of money. But considering Zhang Siwen's worth, this is nothing.
The one-dollar donation represents Zhang Siwen's mentality. If there is really no better model to realize his ideal, the American model will do...
"Sir, please stay. Can you give me a few minutes to talk to you?"
Zhang Siwen, who had just squeezed out of the crowd, was stunned. When he turned around, he saw a red-haired girl in front of him, whom he didn't recognize.
Irish immigrants account for 25% of New York's population, and the streets are full of red-haired people.
The woman who spoke to me looked Irish, but she was wearing an expensive dress, had delicate skin, and was dazzlingly beautiful. She didn't look like her fellow refugees at all.
This can't be a prostitute who is here to pick up girls. No one is wearing such nice clothes with the door half-closed. Who would be a prostitute with so much money?
The red-haired beauty looked up at the tall oriental man. Zhang Siwen's tough aura made her heart beat faster.
"Hello, my name is Jessica Lynch, an Irish immigrant from Paris. I know you, your name is Sven Zhang, a leader of 20,000 Eastern mercenaries. Now that the American Civil War is over, are your mercenaries going back home?"
Zhang Siwen was immediately interested, and the corners of his mouth curved upwards, "Why? Madam, can you provide me with a place where I need mercenaries?"
Zhang Siwen smiled, revealing a row of white teeth. Such a strong man full of hormones simply fascinated Jessica, and she became hesitant for a moment.
"Well, yes, yes. My sister, Elisa Lynch, married Francisco Lopez, who was studying in Paris. Later, my brother-in-law returned to Paraguay, succeeded his father as president, and is now the dictator of Paraguay."
Uh, can the presidency be inherited? It seems that South American students don’t learn from the United States.
The families that really have the final say in the United States are also hereditary, but they are behind the scenes. President Lincoln, who was pushed to the front stage to manage, was just a hard-working shopkeeper.
The small South American countries are straightforward in doing things, not as sophisticated as America.
"Paraguay has a territorial dispute with Brazil and Argentina over the estuary of the Rio de la Plata. Now the conflict is intensifying and a war is about to break out. My brother-in-law, that lunatic, wants to declare war on both Brazil and Argentina at the same time, which makes my sister very worried."
When it came to business, Jessica's nervousness disappeared.
She shook her red hair and gave Zhang Siwen a bright smile, "I would like to ask you, if I want to hire your army, what are the conditions?"
(End of this chapter)