thought, was that the hard lessons were the ones that really did teach you something. Maybe even the Chinese.
What did that capitalist diao ren say?” Zhang asked. Shen told him what Xue had relayed, word-for-word. ”And what does he represent?”
“We is personal assistant to the American Treasury Minister. Therefore we think he has the ear of both his minister and the American president,” Shen explained. “He has not taken an active part in the talks, but after every session he speaks privately with Vice Minister Rutledge. Exactly what their relationship is, we do not know for certain, and clearly he is not an experienced diplomat. He talks like an arrogant capitalist, to insult us in so crude a way, but I fear he represents the American position more forthrightly than Rutledge does. I think he gives Rutledge the policy he must follow. Rutledge is an experienced diplomat, and the positions he takes are not his own, obviously. He wants to give us some concessions. I am sure of that, but Washington is dictating his words, and this Gant fellow is probably the conduit to Washington.”
“Then you were right to adjourn the talks. We will give them a chance to reconsider their position. If they think they can dictate to us, then they are mistaken. You canceled the airplane order?”
“Of course, as we agreed last week.”
“Then that will give them something to think about,” Zhang observed smugly.
“If they do not walk out of the talks.”
“They wouldn’t dare.” Walk away from the Middle Kingdom? Absurd.
“There is one other thing that Gant man said. He said, not in so many words, that we need them—their money, that is—more than they need us. And he is not entirely wrong in that, is he?”
“We do not need their dollars more than we need our sovereignty. Do they really think they can dictate our domestic laws to us?”
“Yes, Zhang, they do. They apply an astounding degree of importance to this incident.”
“Those two policemen ought to be shot for what they did, but we cannot allow the Americans to dictate that sort of thing to us.” The embarrassment of the incident was one thing—and embarrassing the state was often a capital offense in the People’s Republic—but China had to make such a decision on its own, not at the order of an outsider.
“They call it barbaric,” Shen added.
“Barbaric? They say that to us?”
“You know that Americans have tender sensibilities. We often forget that. And their religious leaders have some influence in their country. Our ambassador in Washington has cabled some warnings to us about this. It would be better if we had some time to let things settle down, and truly it would be better to punish those two policemen just to assuage American sensibilities, but I agree we cannot allow them to dictate domestic policy to us.”
“And this Gant man says his ji is bigger than ours, does he?”
“So Xue tells me. Our file on him says that he’s a stock trader, that he’s worked closely with Minister Winston for many years. He’s a Jew, like lots of them are—”
“Their Foreign Minister is also a Jew, isn’t he?”
“Minister Adler? Yes, he is,” Shen confirmed after a moment’s thought.
“So, this Gant really does tell us their position, then?”
“Probably,” Foreign Minister Shen said.
Zhang leaned forward in his chair. “Then you will make them clear on ours. The next time you see this Gant, tell him chou ni ma de bi.” Which was rather a strong imprecation, best said to someone in China if you had a gun already in your hand.
“I understand,” Shen replied, knowing that he’d never say anything like that except to a particularly humble underling in his own office.
Zhang left. He had to talk this one over with his friend Fang Gan.
CHAPTER 34
Hits
Over the last week Ryan had come to expect bad news upon waking up, and as a result so had his family. He knew that he was taking it too seriously when his children started asking him about it over breakfast.
“What’s happening with China, Dad?” Sally asked, giving Ryan one more thing to lament. Sally didn’t say “daddy” anymore, and that was a title far more precious to Jack than “Mr. President.” You expected it from your sons, but not from your daughter. He’d discussed it with Cathy, but she’d told him that he just had to roll with the punch.
“We don’t know, Sally.”
“But you’re supposed to know everything!” And besides, her friends asked her about it at school.
“Sally, the President doesn’t know