Go back in time and be a chaebol

Chapter 2734 I Predicted Your Prediction (Third Update, Please Subscribe)
The world is always changing.

In the final year of the 1970s, as the year drew to a close, the world was in turmoil.

The world is in constant flux, with some countries moving to the left, some to the right, and some backward. This is perhaps an inevitable consequence of this unstoppable trend.

Recently, Song Shiyuan has probably been the busiest person in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The 26-year-old had only been with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for three years. A lover of art and philosophy, he served as an official within the ministry. For the past three years, he had been involved in the SEA's foreign policy formulation regarding Iran. He was originally scheduled to travel to Tehran this year, but due to the closure of the representative office at the beginning of the year, his trip was cancelled.

However, this does not mean the end of his work. In the past few months, as the situation in Iran has begun to escalate, Song Shiyuan has not had a single day off, working from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day.

Although Chang'an and Tehran are currently in a de facto state of diplomatic severance, it does not mean that they are not paying attention to Iran; in fact, they are paying more attention now than ever before.

After all, it is well known that sanctions are not everything, and further escalation of sanctions will inevitably lead to something.

What exactly are they trying to do?

Once again, Song Shiyuan, who was working overtime in the office, looked at the photos on the whiteboard with her brows furrowed.

The main subjects in the photo are still fervent Iranian students.

At this very moment, angry Iranian students in Tehran continue their protests, surrounding the US embassy and demanding the extradition of Pahlavi.

Taking a drag of his cigarette, Song Shiyuan muttered to himself:
"They're bound to do something."

At 9 p.m., most of the staff in the Foreign Affairs Department, except for those on duty, had already left work.

When Shen Yuanhui came out of the office, he saw Song Shiyuan still inside and went over to her, saying:
"What's wrong? Still having a headache over the situation in Tehran?"

Nodding, Song Shiyuan said:

"Section Chief, they must be up to something, but it's been so many days now, and it seems like they're..."

"You didn't do anything, did you?"

Shen Yuanhui glanced at the photo and a word written on the whiteboard, then turned his gaze to Song Shiyuan.

"So, you think it's abnormal?"

"Yes,"

Song Shiyuan nodded, and then he said:
"They're definitely going to do something about this place."

Walking up to the whiteboard, Song Shiyuan pointed at the photo of the US embassy, ​​his tone becoming somewhat agitated:
"The Master and his men saw through Washington's weakness long ago. Now that the internal situation is so dire, they will definitely create some trouble to distract from internal issues!"

"weak?"

Shen Yuanhui smiled. "Why do you think that?"

"Isn't that right? Otherwise, how could Iran have become such a mess?"

Looking at the section chief, Song Shiyuan's tone was full of sarcasm:
"When the situation in Iran was turbulent last year, Pahlavi sought support from Washington. What did Carter do? He hinted that it would be impossible to get US support if he took a hard line. What did Vance say?"
American foreign policy should reflect American morality. This was also true of Carter; if it were just empty talk about morality, the United States would probably have perished long ago.

His reason for such criticism is that Washington's attitude during the Iranian revolution was "terribly naive."

"It turns out that Sullivan was a brainless idiot. If Carter had listened to the views of National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski back then, the situation in Iran would probably have been restored by now."

"Um,"

Shen Yuanhui nodded and said:

"It is indeed possible that Brzezinski was a realist."

Unlike Carter and Vance, Brzezinski was a realist, unlike Carter and his ilk who engaged in empty talk about morality and power. During the turmoil in Iran, Brzezinski felt that the Shah was an ally of the United States and deserved support. Of course, the US should urge him to stop using torture, but now was not the time to do so. His regime was precarious, and at this time, control could not be relaxed.

However, Vance's side not only did not support Brzezinski's suggestion, but also criticized the King for never showing any inclination towards "pigification." Brzezinski's response was equally blunt—does the Middle East have a government of "pigification"?
At the time, the White House was debating whether to give the King his support.

The Carter administration, especially Ambassador to Iran Sullivan, even declared that foreign policy was meaningless without U.S. support for Iran. But this view was too extreme, so they turned to a more pragmatic perspective: the Iranian people had reached their limit of tolerance for the Shah and would overthrow him, regardless of what Washington thought.

Brzezinski's response to Vance's words was equally succinct—bullshit!
Then Brzezinski made Vance read history!

Song titles only succeed when the ruler concedes; under the ruler's iron fist, they often fail. The Iranian army of 400,000 men could easily quell a rebellion.

"But so what? Vance disagreed with Brzezinski's view, and Carter also supported Vance. In the end, what happened? The United States did nothing. At the end of last year, when the situation was at its most critical, the U.S. State Department drafted a telegram to be sent to Ambassador Sullivan, instructing him to urge the King to form a coalition government with broad popular support. But Brzezinski rejected the telegram."

Later, Brzezinski called the King to assure him that President Carter supported him, and the King requested a confirmation telegram, but the State Department did not send one.

Even Vance and Brzezinski engaged in mutual accusations through the media, and the whole world knew that Washington's policy toward Iran was wavering due to internal strife, which was the fundamental reason for the Shah's choice to go into exile.

Recalling the internal strife in Washington during the Iranian revolution, Song Shiyuan pointed to the embassy in the photo and gave it a sharp tap:
"The dispute and division between Vance and Brzezinski not only gave the patriarch and his followers an opportunity, but also revealed Washington's weakness. This weakness is precisely the root cause of their willingness to take risks again, because they believe that even if they do something, the United States will not take strong action."

After saying that, Song Shiyuan turned his gaze to the section chief, his tone becoming even more serious.

"So they'll definitely do it!"

Shen Yuanhui raised an eyebrow and asked in return:
"You think they'll occupy the US embassy in Tehran, right?"

"I do not know."

Song Shiyuan shook his head.
“I don’t know what they’ll do, but I know they must want to do something in order to divert attention from the domestic situation. The embassy… seems like a good target.”

"Occupy the embassy..."

Shen Yuanhui, who was originally planning to go home after get off work, frowned. He lit another cigarette, took two puffs, and after thinking for a moment, his tone was full of doubt:

"The security of any embassy in the world is the responsibility of the host country's government, and embassies are considered an extension of the sending country's territory. Even the most insane person wouldn't do that..."

“We’re dealing with an even crazier group now, Section Chief.”

Song Shiyuan looked at the section chief, his tone becoming serious:
“We’ve all seen what they’ve done since that patriarch took power. We’re not dealing with a group of modern people, but with someone who lived over a thousand years ago. They’re conservative and fanatical, and it’s impossible to predict what they’ll do.”

For them, the occupation of the US embassy was an act of profound symbolic significance; for the Iranians, it was an unprecedented victory—a victory they could describe as never before seen.

At the end of his sentence, Song Shiyuan emphasized again, speaking earnestly:

"The embassy, ​​in a sense, is American territory. They have essentially occupied American territory, delivering a resounding slap to the face of the United States in front of the whole world. Faced with such a victory, the Iranian people will surely temporarily forget the scarcity of resources and the hardships of life, and become fanatical once again. The Imam's prestige will not only be maintained, but even the interim government that advocates détente with the United States will surely be hit, and the Imam..."

After a brief pause, Song Shiyuan made his judgment directly:
"We can use this to launch a illegitimate but legitimate operation! After the provisional government collapses, he will definitely seize all power!"

Looking at Song Shiyuan's solemn expression and listening to his judgment and prediction, Shen Yuanhui silently took a puff of his cigarette, remained silent for a long time, and then turned his gaze to Song Shiyuan and said.

"But this is tantamount to starting a war! The United States may be weak, but they will definitely retaliate against such an attack!"

"Retaliation? But what if it's not the military? What reason would the United States have to retaliate?"

While objecting, Song Shiyuan took a photo off the whiteboard and said to the section chief:
"These people, these students in front of the embassy, ​​are the best choice. They are even more useful than the army. If Iran withdraws the guards protecting the embassy, ​​or tells them not to stop the students and let them rush into the embassy and occupy it, then for the world, this will not be a military operation, but a spontaneous act of the people. At that time, will the United States still have the possibility of going to war?"

Song Shiyuan's explanation startled Shen Yuanhui. After a moment, he said:

"They... really can't do anything, just like us. We're the same; we can't do anything either."

"Yes, we're the same... there's nothing we can do."

Slowly sitting down, Song Shiyuan felt a mix of emotions. Although he felt he had seemingly anticipated Iran's possible actions, what did it matter?

There's nothing they can do!
But what needs to be done?

It seems like it's not so bad to let the US lose face in front of the whole world like this.

Suddenly, Song Shiyuan had the idea of ​​wanting to be a bystander.

Just then, he saw the section chief silently light a cigarette. He lit one too.

Neither of them spoke, but they seemed to know what the other wanted to say. They just silently smoked, a slight smile playing on their lips.

At this moment, he heard the section chief say:

"Sometimes there are things that we can't control, but... it's not so bad if they happen."

Although the section chief's tone was calm, it carried a hint of schadenfreude!
Okay, it seems like I am one of them...

(End of this chapter)