Go back in time and be a chaebol

Chapter 2736 Opportunity for the Bystanders (Second Update, Please Subscribe)

How do people in SEA spend their weekends?
I mostly spend time with my family, in places like parks, shopping malls, and amusement parks.

Therefore, these places are always crowded during holidays, especially seaside parks. The beaches are bustling with people, and the grass is much the same, with sunlight filtering through the branches of camphor trees and casting dappled shadows on the grass.

Song Shiyuan and Su Wanyun sat on a picnic mat, enjoying the gentle breeze blowing from the sea, which ruffled Su Wanyun's hair. Not far away, young couples played with their children, their laughter carried on the wind.

Some couples sat side by side, watching their children run and chase each other on the grass, while other children flew kites. Several children chased after soap bubbles, their innocent laughter ringing out sweetly.

Watching all this quietly, Su Wanyun's face was filled with a gentle smile. She leaned on Song Shiyuan's shoulder and asked softly:
"Shiyuan, if we have children in the future, how many do you want?"

His girlfriend's question startled Song Shiyuan for a moment. He thought for a moment and replied:

Four is just right, no more, no less, just enough to make it lively.

Upon hearing this, Su Wanyun immediately shook her head slightly, sat up a little straighter, and looked intently at Song Shiyuan:
"Four is too few,"

Her voice carried a hint of coquettish dissatisfaction, yet her tone was full of anticipation:
“I want six children, three boys and three girls. You see, just like over there, the brothers can protect their sisters, and the sisters will stick to their brothers. They run around and play together all the time. During holidays, the whole family gathers together. How lively and happy that would be!”

As she spoke, as if worried that her boyfriend might be unwilling, she emphasized again:

"Many children bring many blessings, don't you think? And it's our responsibility to have many children and fill this land."

His girlfriend's words almost made Song Shiyuan burst out laughing. "To have many children and fill the land" is a civic responsibility that SEA has emphasized since its inception. For many SEA members, having many children is not only a civic duty, but also the continuation of the nation and the glory of the family.

Not having children and not getting married are culturally considered "incomplete life trajectories".

Because SEA is an immigrant nation, facing a much larger population in the surrounding world, the entire society has developed a subconscious belief from the outset that population size is equivalent to the strategic necessity of national security. This grand narrative reinforces the "legitimacy" and "sense of mission" regarding procreation. Therefore, population is not only a "family choice" but also a "national strategic resource."

To this end, more than 30 years ago, SEA gradually established the world's strongest system of fertility support. Although SEA is not a Nordic welfare state, it is exceptionally generous in terms of pregnancy, childbirth, childcare, medical care, and subsidies.

With official support, SEA's medical institutions successfully developed in-vitro fertilization (IVF) technology as early as ten years ago. Once the technology matured, the government immediately passed a resolution to provide every woman in need with free, unlimited IVF treatments until she gives birth to two children. This is unprecedented globally. The result is that even women with fertility difficulties can easily achieve pregnancy.

Furthermore, SEA residents live in close-knit communities with highly developed neighborhood life, where children are everywhere and the communities are extremely child-friendly. Interpersonal relationships are strong and supportive, and in this environment, many people have three or four children, making having a third child a social norm. Having a child is not seen as "sacrificing oneself," but rather as joining a community with a very strong support system.

Therefore, women in SEA have a very strong desire to have children, even more so than men.

Therefore, Su Wanyun's answer was quite normal.
Just as Song Shiyuan was about to tease her, his cell phone suddenly rang in his bag. He picked up the phone and said to his girlfriend:

"Excuse me, I need to take this call."

After the call was connected, the section chief's anxious voice came from the other end.

"Shiyuan, come to the ministry immediately, something terrible has happened!"

When Song Shiyuan drove to the department, he found many people looking at him. Upon seeing familiar colleagues, before he could even speak, one of them said:
"Shiyuan, you're amazing!"

"what?"

"The US embassy in Tehran has been occupied!"

……

Iranian hostage crisis.

And so it broke out. Li Yi'an learned of this news just after 4 p.m., about half an hour after the incident, basically in sync with Washington. Of course, this was not a message from Washington, since Washington certainly wouldn't be able to attend to such matters at this time.

"There must be complete chaos over there now. I never expected the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' prediction to be so accurate."

The prediction Li Yixuan mentioned was naturally Song Shiyuan's analysis report, which had been delivered to his desk several days ago. That's why he was praising it so highly now.

"Fortunately, we withdrew from Tehran early on, otherwise, given the current tense situation between us, it might have fallen on our side."

While feeling fortunate, Li Yixuan's gaze towards his father also changed. Thanks to his father's forward-looking planning, the SEA representative office in Tehran is now just an empty shell. In fact, due to the influence of the SEA, the embassies of several Commonwealth countries, including the British Embassy, ​​are also just empty shells.

Therefore, the Iranian hostage crisis ultimately fell on the Americans, and was not transferred to the SEA simply because of the SEA's tough stance on Iran.

"Actually, whether this matter will fall on SEA is still questionable." Li Yi'an shook his head and said:
"After all, the Iranian hostage crisis itself was caused by the United States agreeing to allow Pahlavi to go to the United States for medical treatment."

This news led to the occupation of the Tehran embassy by Khomeini, a consequence entirely of the United States' own actions.

At this moment, another thought even flashed through Li Yi'an's mind—what if Pahlavi suddenly turned to SEA for treatment after being rejected by the United States?

This is actually unlikely, because Pahlavi had been receiving treatment in the United States and would naturally want to continue his treatment in American hospitals.

Moreover, New York hospitals are among the best in the world in terms of medical standards. This hospital is part of New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Will Cornell Medical Center, and it remains one of the most renowned medical institutions in the world even in the 21st century.

Although the SEA boasts world-leading medical standards thanks to the support of a group of German-American doctors, it does not mean that the United States is lagging behind; both sides have their own strengths.

Thinking of this, Li Yi'an looked at his son and asked:

"Yixuan, how do you think this matter will end?"

"Um……"

Recalling the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' prediction, Li Yixuan thought for a moment and said:

"It should last for a few days or ten days, and then end with the intervention of the Iranian authorities. After all, their embassy was occupied once in February this year."

That's right, this is the second time. Nine months earlier, on February 14th, just a month after Iran's Shah Pahlavi fled, the embassy was attacked. In that attack, a group of guerrillas armed with guns stormed the embassy and held staff hostage for four hours.

After the attack on the embassy, ​​the provisional government organized a motley crew and drove out the occupants. The protection of the embassy was then handed over to the guards.

"Those people occupied the embassy simply to send a signal to the United States, of course, to make the United States lose face on the world stage, and to divert attention from Iran's internal affairs, and also..."

Li Yixuan frowned, paused slightly, and said:
"If that's the case, it probably won't end anytime soon. The Grand Master needs to use this incident to strike at the United States, and at the same time, he needs to use it to strike at the moderates within the country. Most importantly, he needs to consolidate his power. In that case, they won't be able to withdraw in the short term!"

Li Yi'an nodded slightly in agreement with his son's analysis:
"That's pretty much it, so it won't end anytime soon, maybe ten days or so."

It took ten or eight days there, and it didn't end until more than four hundred days later. The crisis was only resolved after Reagan took office by Iran releasing the hostages.

The Iranian hostage crisis also completely changed the landscape of the US presidential election, allowing Reagan to win by a landslide, because unlike Carter's weakness, Reagan chose a tough stance.

Thinking of this, Li Yi'an wanted to hear what his son thought.

Faced with his father's question, Li Yixuan fell into deep thought. He did not answer immediately, but pondered in his mind the series of arrangements his father had made after the political crisis in Iran.

What is the most crucial step?
It was the Imperial Air Force in Iraq!

Those defectors from the Iranian Imperial Air Force were not disbanded, but were incorporated into the Iraqi Air Force as a special formation.

What else?
There is another very important person – Sadar.

When Li Yixuan thought of that brother, he didn't think of his father's intimate relationships with many women, something they had long been used to. Instead, he thought of another possibility.

Will his father take this opportunity to help Sadar seize the throne of Iran?

Theoretically, the Shah of Iran is Pahlavi, but as is well known, even though he expressed his willingness to abdicate and let his son, Pahlavi Jr., succeed him, he still faced opposition from the people. In other words, the Iranian people had already made their choice—they rejected Pahlavi and his son.

In this context, what are the chances of Pahlavi returning to Iran?

Of course, if he could gain the support of a major power and launch a military attack, then the possibility of him restoring the throne would be 100%.

The question is, will the United States support Pahlavi's return to Iran?

Obviously not. If they wanted to support him, they would have done so already. So what about the father?

Will my father support Pahlavi and help him restore the Iranian empire, just like he did with Iraq?
But the King of Iraq... that's his own brother!
Having thought this through, everything became clear. Li Yixuan looked at his father and said:

"Iraq."

(End of this chapter)