American Strategic Deception Bureau

　With the melodious Christmas carols floating in the streets and alleys, the festival symbolized by a white-bearded old man is about to come to this city of angels.

　Los Angeles, with its desert climate, is still sunny and warm like spring at the end of December, with no frost or snow, making it difficult to feel the winter atmosphere.

　But the excited citizens of Los Angeles still erected Christmas trees of various sizes in the streets and alleys of the City of Angels, and painstakingly decorated the trees, door frames and window frames with beautiful ribbons, lights, bells, dolls and gifts wrapped in colorful paper.

　Although there are no snowflakes or reindeer in Los Angeles, the aroma of turkey dinner and the Christmas tree decorated with ornaments still create a festive feeling.

　Young men with raging hormones dream of kissing beautiful girls under the mistletoe, while children happily hug and take photos with the Santa Clauses standing at the store entrances. Then, they happily accept cheap and worthless gifts from these fake old men wearing fake beards, not caring at all whether the fake white beard hides an alcoholic, a released criminal, or a fool who can't even do addition and subtraction correctly.

　This is the miracle of Christmas, a miracle that belongs only to this day.

　Well, some people who are more familiar with Western religions may know that Jesus Christ was actually born around the spring equinox. But this does not prevent Christians around the world from making the best of it and enjoying this biggest festival every year.

　In short, on this Christmas Eve, the whole city of Los Angeles was filled with a joyful and peaceful atmosphere, as well as the warmth of family reunions, as if an angel had really descended to this city of angels, which is usually materialistic, impetuous, and bizarre.

　In Hollywood, the most eye-catching area in Los Angeles, next to the bustling Sunset Boulevard, a lively family gathering is also being held in an old Mediterranean-style house with white walls, red tiles and surrounded by hedges and green walls.

　"Merry Christmas! Dad! Mom! I'm back!"

　Captain Ferry King, dusty and exhausted, had just returned from Florida after a long journey across the United States. Sitting on the lawn of his old house, he smiled and greeted his stepfather and stepmother, "Is everything going well at home lately? Are my eldest brother and the others back yet?"

　"The whole family is here, except for you, my Fili. Anthony and Maria are having a blast!"

　Fili's cheap dad, Patrick King, a senior Hollywood producer, was wearing a sky blue robe with a pattern of stars and moons. He smiled and took Fili's suitcase, handed it to the maids behind him, and asked them to carry it into the house.

　Kate, his mother, patted Ferry's chest and sighed, "Work has been tough lately, hasn't it? You've gotten a tan!"

　Huh? This is considered a tan? Ferry was stunned for a moment, then looked down at the back of his hand. It wasn't even a wheat color, just a slight yellowish tint.

　But compare it to my mother Kate, who is over 50 and still has such a charming look. Her skin is so well-maintained that it is so white that it almost glows...

　Well, compared to my naturally beautiful mother, my skin is indeed in stark contrast, as if it were covered with charcoal ash.

　"Yeah, I just took a business trip to the rain forest in Guatemala this month, and then I went to Florida."

　Fili answered, taking out a box of cigars and handing them to his father. "These are genuine Cuban cigars, said to be the finest quality. Try them!"

　Patrick's father took the cigar box with a smile and was about to take out a cigarette to put in his mouth. Unexpectedly, his cheap mother Kate reached out and snatched it away. "Honey, how many times have I told you that for the sake of your lungs, you can only smoke three cigarettes a day! You finished your share this morning!"

　Faced with his strong wife, Patrick's father shrugged his shoulders without any resistance. He just muttered a few words like "Smoking cigars doesn't count as smoking" and "Cuban cigars are not as choking as Camel cigarettes", and then followed his wife back to the house timidly.

　At first glance, these two really look like a loving old couple.

　Well, if Phili hadn't seen a naked woman suddenly emerge from under Patrick's father's desk when he occasionally sneaked into his father's company to play... maybe he really thought his father was a model husband!

　Of course, despite the above behaviors, by Hollywood standards, Patrick's father is really a very good man.

　At least, he never divorced after getting married. No matter how many times he cheated, at least he managed to "keep the red flag flying at home and the colorful flags fluttering outside."

　After all, as an Irish immigrant who wanted to enter the upper class, a happy family was the most important thing for Patrick.

　It is a basic need.

　How should I put it? Whether Catholic or Protestant, the value of family has always been prevalent in American upper class society. No matter how many women or affairs a wealthy man has, he or she always wants to appear to have a happy family. The image of a wealthy bachelor is not popular.

　For a "superior person", having a wife and children and a happy family are the basic configuration for a higher level and more social value.

　American men who are interested in participating in elections and politics should get married and have children early to give people the impression that they are "reliable" - according to traditional American concepts, men who are not married and have no children are "unstable" and it is difficult to convince people that they have the qualifications to be a leader.

　So, Ferry's father, Patrick, the old playboy, after hanging out in various red-light districts until he was in his thirties and even had a mixed-race illegitimate daughter, finally restrained his playful nature and married his cheap mother Kate, who was fifteen years younger than him, and had three sons and one daughter.

　However, even after getting married and starting a family, Patrick did not completely stop cheating outside and would occasionally sleep with a few young stars - after all, in the Hollywood entertainment industry, which is at the forefront of the trend of boldness, such things are not considered moral flaws at all, but just ordinary daily interactions.

　The entertainment industry these days is even more outspoken than it has become. The offices of Hollywood producers and directors are often filled with red sofas where actresses are invited to succumb to their sexuality. Even in the decadent world of Hollywood, it's not uncommon for unscrupulous women to sleep with the entire crew just to get a role.

　Of course, today is Christmas Eve when the whole family is reunited, so let’s not dwell on these old things that spoil the fun.

　As Fili thought about this, he followed his parents and stepped into the old Jin family house left by his grandfather's generation...

　Author's words: PS: Joke from hell: Today's activities of learning from Lei Feng are no longer perfunctory, but should be taken as a warning.

　Because children all say that if Lei Feng’s story were told today, it would probably just be “Lei Feng went on a business trip of a thousand miles and got involved in a lot of lawsuits.”

　Chapter 22: The Poor Dining Table in the 1960s

　Following his parents into the house, accompanied by the aroma of food, Ferry saw his sister-in-law Barbara holding the baby in her arms while directing the maid and the housekeeper to decorate the dining room, covering the dining table with a linen tablecloth and setting out snow-white bone china plates and shiny silver carved knives and forks.

　The eldest brother Bernard was sitting on the sofa, frowning as he was talking on the phone. When he saw Ferry come in, he just nodded slightly and continued to talk on the phone.

　Unlike his father, Patrick, who was a playboy and married late, Ferry's eldest brother, Bernard, was a model gentleman. Shortly after graduating from university, he married his classmate, Barbara. Now, at such a young age, he already has a son, which is a perfect family.

　Bernard King's career has also been smooth sailing. Not only did he successfully run for city council a few years ago, but he also joined John F. Kennedy's campaign committee alongside his father, Patrick. Now, riding the wave of his election success, his meteoric rise to fame seems imminent.

　Therefore, driven by power, even though today is Christmas Eve, December 24, Bernard is still immersed in various tedious official duties.

　At the same time, Fieri's second brother Anthony King, who is in the Hollywood entertainment circle and directs movies, has become like a child who has not grown up. He wears a furry and bulky puppet costume, dresses up as a reindeer pulling a sled, and runs around the backyard laughing.

　And on the toy sleigh with hidden wheels towed by the "puppet reindeer" stands Maria King, Santa Claus's little sister, dressed in a bright red robe. She wears fake white hair and a fake beard, and makes all kinds of funny poses.

　In addition, there were two young maids hired by the Jin family, standing nearby, throwing colorful scraps of paper and cheering.

　"Maria! Anthony! Have you had enough fun? Come in and eat! Ferry is back!"

　Mother Kate put her hands on her hips and yelled at her second son and youngest daughter, urging them to hurry into the house with the maid.

　Maria and Anthony, who had had enough of the fun, giggled and took off their reindeer puppet masks and fake beards, and immediately a smell of sweat filled the air: well, even in winter, jumping around in puppet costumes in Los Angeles is still an intense sport that can make people sweat profusely and heat to death.

　It's probably just better than playing Santa Claus in Australia (Christmas in Australia falls during the height of summer in the Southern Hemisphere, with temperatures sometimes reaching 40 degrees Celsius).

　But this is also Los Angeles's advantage - compared to the cold and humid New York, the most attractive thing about Los Angeles, the City of Angels, is its warm and dry Mediterranean climate all year round. Even in winter, the lowest temperature can reach 15 or 16 degrees Celsius, which is a paradise for patients with rheumatism.

　Therefore, American homeless people and retired elderly people are flocking to this sunny city on the edge of the desert...

　-

　The Kim family's old house on Sunset Boulevard was a two-and-a-half-story villa with front and back yards. However, the front yard was too small to accommodate even a single car. The garage was designed for horse-drawn carriages, so cars had to be specially selected small models to back in. The rest of the facilities were also mostly old.

　For the Jin family, who already had some wealth and were beginning to enter the upper class, this old house had long seemed a bit cramped.

　In fact, Kate's mother and Patrick's father have a mansion in Beverly Hills that is at least four or five times the size.

　Bernard, the eldest brother who is already married, and Anthony, the second brother who is not yet married, also have their own residences in Los Angeles.

　But every year for the Christmas party, everyone still gathers at the old house on Sunset Boulevard.

　Because this house, which seems outdated now, was built brick by brick by Fieri's late grandfather John and his father Patrick, who was still a child. It is full of family memories and even immersed in the development history of the early Hollywood film industry.

　Compared with the mansions in Beverly Hills, this old house on Sunset Boulevard has a stronger sense of history, as well as the warmth and vitality of the family.

　As wealthy families, the Jin family's Christmas dinner was naturally very sumptuous. On the long table covered with a snow-white linen tablecloth, there were fragrant roast chicken, delicious black pepper steak, a castle-like three-layer cream cake, and a dazzling array of sparkling wine and red wine...

　There are also various canned tropical fruits and dried fruits as desserts.

　Well, it’s not that the Jin family is too stingy and reluctant to buy out-of-season fresh tropical fruits, but because they can’t be bought even if they spend money right now!

　——In 1960, even in the United States, which was at its peak, the variety of fruits people could taste was far less than what they would have been able to enjoy fifty years later.

　Many fruits that are commonly seen in large supermarkets in the 21st century were once delicacies that only the rich and powerful could enjoy.

　For example, bananas, now so cheap at Walmart that they could be eaten as a meal, were once an expensive fruit only available in July and August, unaffordable for ordinary people. A young student with limited funds who wanted to treat his girlfriend to banana ice cream would have to shell out a fortune.

　As for other times except summer, people are lucky to have banana jam and dried bananas to eat.

　While pineapples are just a common fruit these days, they were once considered a luxury item in Europe and America, like bear paws and shark fins. Nobles considered having a pineapple at a banquet a symbol of wealth. Simply having a pineapple on the table elevated the entire banquet to a higher level.

　——For this reason, there are even companies in Europe and the United States that specialize in renting pineapples for the petty bourgeoisie to show off.

　It is exactly the same as those modern companies that rent out sports cars, luxury houses, famous watches, evening gowns, etc., allowing people to experience high-society life.

　Of course, by the 1950s and 1960s, the price of pineapples in the United States, close to its origin in the Americas, was certainly no longer so terrible.

　However, until recently, pineapples had not been able to bear fruit year-round, and could only be harvested in April and May. The rest of the time, everyone from high-ranking officials to fruit farmers had only canned pineapples to eat.

　In short, facing the pile of opened canned fruit and dried fruit on the table, the whole family ate happily with their forks after dinner. Ferry casually talked about his experiences during his business trip to Guatemala, and Bernard also boasted about the glorious scene when he followed Kennedy to meet important people.

　However, after the happy dinner, Ferry whispered a few words to his eldest brother and father, and then sent his second brother and youngest sister to take the maid out to set off fireworks, and asked his mother Kate to watch them and not let them play too crazy.

　Then, the three "Mr. Jin" went into the study with serious expressions and held a family meeting concerning national affairs.

　"I'm sorry to hear that on this day when the whole family should be happy, I have to bring you some unpleasant news. Brother, Father, I just discovered that in order to "welcome" President Kennedy's inauguration and cover up a series of past scandals, the CIA seems to have made a big move..."

　Chapter 23: When the Human Stars Shine (Weekend Update)

　"That's basically the situation. Nixon's defeat had left the Pluto plan, the Cuban invasion, in tatters. But the CIA didn't want to let this mess get to them, so they wanted to pass it on to the future President Kennedy, even adding a lot of ulterior motives to the plan..."

　In the slightly dim study of the King family's old house, Captain Ferry King, Congressman Bernard King and Boss Patrick King, the three "Mr. Kings" who were new to American politics, gathered around a map of Central America and the Caribbean spread out on a round table, pondering the shocking news told by Ferry.

　Well, specifically, some explosive news surrounding the "Pluto Project", the assassination of Castro and the Cuba Raiders.

　What? This violates the confidentiality agreement?

　Come on, what politician would keep his most trusted family members completely secret—unless his family members are actually not trustworthy at all...

　"What? Eisenhower and Nixon allocated less than $30 million and asked the CIA to recruit five brigades to fight in Cuba?

　God, are all Republicans cheapskates? I've never run a mercenary company, but I know real war isn't like a war movie. Five brigades, 15,000 troops, for just over 20 million? Did Nixon think America was some impoverished African country?

　Patrick complained as he puffed on a mini pipe he had secretly hidden away, blowing smoke rings.

　"This amount of money in the United States is only enough to organize 15,000 Boy Scouts to go to Cuba to hold a party with Castro and run a tropical summer camp!"

　Uh, Cheap Dad’s complaints are still as sharp as ever.

　"In fact, even the 20 million dollars couldn't all be used for the war. Even without taking into account corruption and embezzlement, the money still had to be deducted from the CIA's support for various anti-Castro groups in Cuba.

　financial assistance to the United States and the assassination funds for Castro.

　The remaining funds certainly weren't enough to launch a war to conquer Cuba. However, Project Pluto was supposed to have further funding, and weapons and ammunition could be obtained on credit from the Pentagon. It might even be possible to directly mobilize troops from other Caribbean countries through connections in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

　Fili explained to his father and brother, "For example, Trujillo, the 'benefactor of the country,' the Dominican Republic, once contacted the CIA and expressed his interest in sending troops to intervene in the Cuban communist regime. He always claimed that his air force could bomb Havana within 72 hours."

　"Huh? Trujillo? The Dominican dictator? The man who changed his name like a Caesar?"

　Brother Bernard seemed a little disdainful of this. "Does this Caesar who rules half the island really dare to send troops to Cuba to fight?"

　Alas, my brother hasn’t even entered Capitol Hill yet, but he has already picked up the bad habits of the congressmen!

　The same arrogance and ignorance, the same lack of grounding, the same habit of looking down on others...

　"Brother, don't underestimate this warlord. Although the Dominican Republic is smaller than Cuba, if you exclude the US Navy and Air Force, the Dominican Republic's military strength is now first-tier in Central America. It can even fight Mexico, not to mention Cuba."

　Fili sighed and said seriously, "The Dominican Republic's Air Force is now the most powerful air force in the entire Caribbean and Central America, with more than 200 aircraft, including B-17 Flying Fortress bombers, P-51 Mustang fighters, and so on.

　In contrast, Castro's Cuban Air Force had only ten pilots left and was no match for the Dominican Air Force!

　According to the original first version of "Pluto Plan," the Cuban brigade was supposed to march alongside Trujillo's Dominican army...

　Unfortunately, plans cannot keep up with changes!"

　Speaking of this, Ferry couldn't help but sigh secretly: Since joining the CIA, I'm afraid I will have to deal with these humanoid insects frequently in the future!

　——Looking back at the entire 20th century, the series of comprador "allies" fostered by the Western "free world" of Europe and the United States in the Third World of Asia, Africa and Latin America were truly bizarre, and generally lacked moral integrity, or had serious mental problems. It can be described as "a time when human stars shined."

　Of course, in 1960, most of the rulers of "friendly countries" supported by the United States looked like human beings, at most they were bad guys.

　For example, Trujillo, the Dominican Republic's "benefactor," was corrupt, boastful, and even fond of changing names on maps—renaming the capital Ciudad Trujillo and the country's highest mountain, Trujillo Peak. But overall, he was just an ordinary, unremarkable comprador.

　Then there was South Vietnam's President Ngo Dinh Diem, who, while not exactly a king, was at least a devout Catholic and a master of political maneuvering. He even had a friendship with Ho Chi Minh in his early years, and was equally adept at maneuvering.

　By the standards of medieval monarchs, they were barely normal people.

　Even Duvalier, the "voodoo president" elected in Haiti in 1957, has not yet revealed his true colors.

　In September 1960, Mobutu, the "Congolese tyrant" who had just relied on the support of the CIA to overthrow the founding father Lumumba and seize power, was also the most "anthropomorphic" of all African tyrants during the Cold War. His early political achievements were decent, and he persisted until the 9s before he began to go crazy.

　In short, this group of early "human-like" leaders seems to have a relatively high degree of anthropomorphism.

　By the late 1960s, several insect tyrants from Africa, including the "Central African Emperor" Bokassa, the "Mad President" Massie, and the "Ogre Boxer" Amin, had successively emerged on the world stage and had accomplished many things that normal carbon-based creatures could never do...

　This immediately lowered the bar for being a "national leader", even to the point where Paradox players felt inferior.

　Haiti's voodoo charlatan President Duvalier will also go completely crazy at that time, and start openly carrying out various bloody human sacrifices, and personally skin and eat human flesh, just like the emperor of the ancient Aztec Empire, turning the capital into a human slaughterhouse.

　Compared to these bizarre "anthropomorphic creatures", even Trujillo and Ngo Dinh Diem seem less hideous.

　"At this point, no matter how many planes Trujillo has in the Dominican Air Force, or how interested he is in intervening in Cuba, the CIA can no longer borrow troops from this lunatic after what he did in Venezuela in June."

　Firi continued with a hint of regret – if they could get a few thousand cannon fodder from the Dominican Republic, the Cuban invasion wouldn’t be so difficult.

　However, like any aging dictator, after ruling the Dominican Republic for thirty years, Trujillo, the once shrewd and cautious military and political strongman, began to become confused and arrogant. Finally, he had a total explosion in 1960 and completely isolated himself from the Americas.

　In this year, Trujillo first ordered the persecution of domestic priests and fell out with the Vatican because the Catholic Church refused to grant him the title of "Blessed One of the Churches".

　The Pope then issued the "Canon of the Church", formally breaking with Trujillo - roughly equivalent to the medieval pope issuing a "law of excommunication" to European monarchs, stripping them of their Christian identity and all allegiance, and encouraging the nobles and civilians in their country to rebel.

　At the same time, Trujillo also sent people to Columbia University in New York to kill the entire family of an American professor who wrote an article criticizing him in the newspaper, which violated the taboo of the US government.

　In June 1960, Trujillo, who was becoming increasingly arrogant, sent people to assassinate the Venezuelan president who had once scolded him. Not only did the assassination fail, but it also aroused public anger after it was exposed, causing the Organization of American States to issue a statement, severing diplomatic ties with the Dominican Republic and imposing sanctions and blockades.