American Strategic Deception Bureau

　——Although Kunlun Island looks quite desolate now, it is facing the exit of the Mekong Delta, similar to the relationship between Crete and Egypt, and is also located on a key waterway in the South China Sea. As early as the beginning of the eighteenth century, the British East India Company set up a trading post here.

　If the South Vietnamese boat people in the Vietcong-controlled area wanted to "escape by crossing the East Sea" (the Vietnamese call the South China Sea the East Sea), their first stop after sailing down the Mekong River would probably be Con Dao.

　Furthermore, war refugees from any country, having lived in an environment of rampant violence, insecurity, and a breakdown of order for too long, will inevitably develop psychological problems, and may even be infected with malignant infectious diseases. Therefore, it is not advisable to directly admit them to the United States.

　It would be safer to let them spend some time in a refugee shelter before allowing them to enter the country and re-adapt to a civilized life with rules.

　During this period, placing refugee shelters on outlying islands far away from human habitation is obviously the safest option.

　——This is just like how European and American countries like to imprison serious criminals in island prisons, and how Australia later threw stowaways onto Nauru Island.

　(Refer to the French classic "The Count of Monte Cristo", where the protagonist is imprisoned at the Chateau d'If prison.)

　In short, Firi took the Xuefeng to Kunlun Island for an inspection and found that the local situation seemed to be quite good.

　While Kunlun Island isn't large—counting only the main island, it's only about one-tenth the size of Saipan or Guam—it's located near the equator, enjoys a humid and rainy climate, and has an abundant supply of fresh water. As long as food and medicine are available, it could easily accommodate tens of thousands of people for short periods of time.

　As for housing for the refugees? Well, while the island's only town, Kunlun Town, has only 2,000 permanent residents, and the other fishing villages are small and run-down with few decent houses... doesn't the Kunlun Island Prison already exist here? Could it be converted into a refugee camp?

　If they released all the Vietcong prisoners, pardoned the political prisoners who could be pardoned, and executed the unpardonable, and completely emptied the prisons, there would be enough cells to accommodate thousands of people, ready for refugees to move in. If they cleaned out the unused torture chambers and dungeons, they could probably fit in a few hundred more.

　——In order to prevent important political prisoners from rioting or escaping, the houses in Kunlun Island Prison are definitely built strong enough!

　Well, it's okay if there are a lot of snakes on the island. Even if the snakes are fierce, how can humans be fiercer? Most of the overseas Chinese in Vietnam are from Fujian and Guangdong, and have a long tradition of eating snakes. And it's not necessarily true that the local Vietnamese don't eat snakes... Once tens of thousands of refugees arrive on the island, they will eat up all the snakes, no matter how many there are!

　The only thing that made Fili feel a little bit of a complaint was that it had been more than a month since the US military took over Kunlun Island. Why was the prison still full? Why hadn't these Vietcong political prisoners been released and exchanged with American prisoners trapped in Saigon?

　If he didn't empty the prison on Kunlun Island, how could he transform it into a refugee camp, a transit point for Vietnamese refugees heading to the United States?

　So, Firi found the U.S. Marine captain in charge of the custody and the former South Vietnamese warden who was temporarily retained to inquire about the matter. He then learned that the prisoner exchange had not been initiated at all, none of the political prisoners on Kunlun Island had been released, and no cells had been vacated.

　Moreover, the warden also complained that since the US military took over the Kunlun Island prison, they stopped all torture and hard labor of the prisoners, and made the damned red bandits eat standard US military rations in prison every day, eating and sleeping all day, and they all grew fat. It was really outrageous.

　According to the Vietnamese warden with a face full of flesh, at least interrogation and forced labor must be restored before it can function like a prison.

　Otherwise, these die-hard Vietcong would become itchy and disobedient, bringing a bad influence to the new prisoners...

　"Oh my God, this prison will be abolished soon, where will new political prisoners be sent in?

　Besides, Saigon had already fallen. What was the point of interrogating these Vietcong prisoners now? Even if they gave us a list of informants and the location of their intelligence stations, where would we find them? As for forced labor? We had no shortage of labor! And if the prisoners died of exhaustion, who would be responsible?

　Do you know that all the Vietcong in the Cong prison on Kunlun Island who survive can be used as bargaining chips to exchange for American prisoners? "

　Fili shook his head and scolded them, saying, "There are currently 10,000 Americans captured in Vietnam, while there are only 5,000 to 6,000 Viet Cong prisoners held on Kunlun Island, and only 1,000 to 2,000 Viet Cong captured elsewhere. This is not enough for an equal exchange!

　In this case, the more prisoners die on Kunlun Island, the fewer American citizens can be exchanged for them, and the more politically passive the White House will be!

　So, you just need to raise them like pigs, and let them live until you need them! Don't do anything unnecessary!

　In a few days, maybe the Red Cross and journalists from various countries will come to visit. You should hurry up and clean up. Paint over those offensive slogans and destroy all the inhumane-looking torture instruments. Anyway, there's no need to torture anyone here anymore.

　If you do well, I'll prioritize allowing the prison guards to continue working in future refugee camps, giving them stable jobs, and even giving their families priority for immigration to the United States! But if you cause any trouble in front of the media, expect to be collectively expelled..."

　Next, Fili took Zhao Qiuniang, a female Vietnamese Communist who had fled to Hong Kong, on a tour of the Conglun Island prison. He particularly took in the blood-stained instruments of torture, the terrifying interrogation chambers, and the tiger cages that had tortured countless prisoners.

　After coming out, the Vietcong woman, Zhao Qiuniang, was extremely pale and trembling as she walked. Fili comforted her, saying, "No matter how bloody and cruel things had happened here, it was over now. As long as the Vietcong were willing to release the American prisoners, these Vietcong prisoners would be exchanged and released."

　In fact, a few days ago, when Vice President Johnson met with Prince Sihanouk, he asked Prince Sihanouk to act as a mediator between the United States and North Vietnam to reach an agreement on the hostage exchange. Prince Sihanouk confidently agreed.

　However, what puzzled Firi was that until he boarded the Snow Wind and escorted Mrs. Chen Lichun across the Pacific Ocean again, the exchange of Viet Cong political prisoners on Kunlun Island and American prisoners of war in the hands of the Vietnamese army had not begun, and even the Viet Cong had not made any response to the matter!

　What the hell, Ho Chi Minh was still alive, and the style of painting the Viet Cong was already so anthropomorphic, did they abandon their comrades in distress?

　-

　What Firi didn't know was that the "increase in nuclear fuel strategy" he and Dr. Kissinger presented to President Kennedy, a "reverse nuclear blackmail" by exaggerating the amount of lost nuclear fuel, would cause tremendous unrest within the Viet Cong and the entire socialist camp across the Iron Curtain.

　——美国官方宣布在大叨一共丢失了256根核燃料棒，内含大约26公斤的铀-235；但实际上丢失的核燃料棒只有96根，含有的铀-235不到11公斤。即使全部提纯，也不够生产一枚原子弹。

　However, Nguyen Huu Tho, the Prime Minister of the Republic of South Vietnam and the "Chief of the Southern Viet Cong," only saw 59 nuclear fuel rods in Saigon...

　Hmm? Where did the remaining 100-plus (actually, 30-plus) nuclear fuel rods go?

　Nguyen Huu Tho, Le Duan and Ho Chi Minh all expressed that they were confused, and they suspected each other and conducted their own investigations, causing a panic and uproar.

　In addition, upon learning that the Viet Cong had seized so many nuclear fuel rods, both the Soviet Union and China expressed extraordinary concern, saying that Vietnam was a frontline country embroiled in war and had backward conditions, making it unsuitable for storing dangerous nuclear fuel. It would be better to transport it to China and the Soviet Union for storage.

　Since the beginning of the Cold War, the world has been plagued by a climate of nuclear fear. Sixty years later, Nigeria's mere possession of a single kilogram of enriched uranium was enough to force China, the US, and Russia to temporarily put aside their differences and join forces with the UK to seize Nigeria's limited supply of uranium-235.

　The Vietcong now had access to so many uranium fuel rods at once. Although they were not enriched, they were enough to arouse the great concern of the allies.

　The North Vietnamese Workers' Party was caught in a dilemma regarding this "concern" from China and the Soviet Union. They were reluctant to part with the nuclear fuel they had so luckily acquired, yet they were also wary of offending both China and the Soviet Union. They didn't know which side they should hand the fuel to.

　Ho Chi Minh advocated simply handing over the uranium fuel rods to the United Nations. But Le Duan adamantly opposed it. Furthermore, the amount of nuclear fuel didn't match, and there was no explanation to the outside world. Due to their blind spots, they didn't consider for a long time that the United States might have lied about its nuclear fuel losses.

　In addition, after Prince Sihanouk achieved significant results on Phu Quoc Island and returned to Phnom Penh triumphantly as a victor, he was surprised to receive a piece of bad news that made him furious: the officials he sent to take over the disputed border territories and erect new boundary markers were driven back by the Viet Cong!

　The Viet Cong reluctantly ceded the disputed territory to Cambodia on maps and documents, but they made no real move to relinquish any of the territory. Instead, North Vietnamese troops, secretly advancing southward via the Ho Chi Minh Trail, occupied a large portion of Cambodian border territory.

　On one side was the glorious map of expanding territory, and on the other side was the actual cession of territory in shame and humiliation... How incompetent and furious did this make Prince Sihanouk!

　Moreover, although half of South Vietnam had already raised the red flag and theoretically no longer needed to rely on the Ho Chi Minh Trail for transporting supplies, the troops stationed in Cambodia

　The North Vietnamese troops in the village showed no intention of retreating, which naturally aroused the Cambodians' high vigilance.

　Three hundred years ago, the ancient Vietnamese also used the excuse of sending troops to help Cambodia quell the rebellion. Once the troops entered the country, they refused to leave. Later, armed immigrants followed up and swallowed up tens of thousands of square kilometers of fertile land in "Water Chenla" or "Lower Cambodia".

　Could it be that North Vietnam is now trying to repeat its old tricks and take away a large piece of land from eastern Cambodia?

　Therefore, Prince Sihanouk has been busy arguing with Hanoi over territorial issues these days and has completely ignored the prisoner exchange between the United States and Vietnam.

　Author's Note: PS: Since 20, the yen has plummeted from over 1 to the dollar to 154 yen to the dollar. At the same time, the Nikkei index has soared from 1.6 to 4.1. Considering that there has been no good news about the Japanese economy in the past two years, is this another bubble about to burst?

　Chapter 268: Monroe's Hawaiian Photos

　Oahu, Hawaii

　"Hey! Hugh Hefner! When did you, a bunny girl farmer, end up in Hawaii? Eh? Miss Monroe, you're here too?"

　In the officers' club of the United States Pacific Fleet, Phili, who took advantage of the time when the Yukikaze stopped for supplies to get off the ship and stroll around, was pleasantly surprised to see two old acquaintances in a booth: Marilyn Monroe with big wavy blonde hair and Hugh Hefner, the owner of Playboy!

　Uh, another old acquaintance, Marilyn Monroe's ex-husband Mr. DiMaggio, was also sitting on the side at this time.

　In addition, there were several unfamiliar handsome men and beautiful women, perhaps Monroe's assistant and agent, and Hugh Hefner's secretary?

　"Oh, Fili, that's awesome! I didn't expect to see you here! My handsome little hero!"

　Before the Playboy boss could even open his mouth to greet him, the enthusiastic blond Monroe stood up and gave Fili a firm hug. "You've been really amazing lately! You've become so famous! It's been all over the newspapers back home! Last year you conquered Cuba, and this year you defeated the Viet Cong!"

　I heard that you and Dr. Kissinger served me for most of last year. All the Hollywood actresses were so envious of me!"

　Well, Ms. Monroe, if you could live to see Kissinger become Secretary of State, you could brag everywhere that a Secretary of State once served as your agent (chief of staff) for half a year... Wouldn't you feel more impressive then?

　Fili thought so in his heart while enjoying the feeling of the blond beauty's magnificent breasts.

　In fact, Monroe was being quite modest. Ever since the news broke that the commander of the US Army in Vietnam, who led the army to defeat the Viet Cong in Asia this year, had served as Marilyn Monroe's attendant and bodyguard for most of the previous year, Hollywood actresses have been more than just envious of this fiery red-lipped, blonde beauty. They're jealous to the point of exploding!

　Think about it, Marilyn Monroe, an orphan who came from an orphanage and even stayed in a mental hospital, what kind of treatment did she receive after she became famous?

　At the age of thirty-five or thirty-six, she can still be the president's mistress, her personal bodyguard is a "war hero", her agent is the future Secretary of State and a master of Cold War international strategy, and her ex-husbands are each more famous than the last... Her star journey has reached this point, and she is no longer just becoming a celebrity, but a god!

　No matter how high the salary or how many Oscars other Hollywood stars get, they can never reach her level.

　Fortunately, no matter how colorful and dazzling Marilyn Monroe's star journey was, it is now coming to an end.

　——Currently, a piece of news is circulating in the Hollywood entertainment circle: Monroe is expected to retire from the screen this year!

　This also made all the actresses who were suppressed by her breathe a sigh of relief...

　Anyway, after exchanging greetings, Fieri sat down at the table and asked Monroe why she was in Hawaii.

　"The dubbing for the puppet film that the company assigned to me was completed in March. After that, I had nothing to do!"

　Monroe waved her hand dismissively. "The company's energy and financial resources are all focused on this huge project, 'Cleopatra'!"

　Phiri, who lives in Hollywood, immediately understood what he was saying: 20th Century Fox spent a whopping $44 million and six years to produce the film's historically iconic "Cleopatra," which had just been released in June of this year. The production of this epic film, along with the accompanying promotional campaign, stretched 20th Century Fox's finances to the limit, to the point where they could barely pay salaries.

　Moreover, due to the market's poor box office expectations for "Cleopatra", it is currently difficult for the company to raise funds and obtain loans.

　It wasn't that everyone thought Cleopatra would flop at the box office. On the contrary, everyone thought Elizabeth Taylor's Cleopatra would be a global hit. The problem was, the film's budget was so high that no matter how much it sold, it wouldn't recoup its investment.

　In this almost penniless situation, 20th Century Fox naturally had no money to make a new movie for Miss Monroe.

　"So, Miss Monroe and Mr. DiMaggio, are they newlyweds on their honeymoon in Hawaii?"

　After listening to Monroe's description of the recent situation at her workplace, Ferry's eyes rolled and he naturally guessed.

　——As early as last year, Firi and Kissin

　When Geraldine was still following Monroe around, Monroe and DiMaggio had already been planning to remarry. Now that he had been to Vietnam and fought the Vietcong, could it be that Monroe and DiMaggio had quietly and discreetly married during this time?

　After all, in a remote place like Vietnam, a lot of information is definitely not as smooth as in China - especially gossip in the entertainment industry.

　Therefore, it is normal that Philly, who was on the other side of the ocean, did not receive the news of Monroe and DiMaggio's remarriage...

　Wait, even though he was in Vietnam, Marita stayed in Los Angeles the whole time! And she maintained instant long-distance magical communication with him!

　Moreover, Marita is a huge fan of Monroe!

　If Monroe and DiMaggio remarried, unless they kept it as secret as a spy operation, without even having a wedding, the paparazzi would surely find out. Could his fiancée Marita be so obtuse as to be completely unaware of it?

　As Fieri pondered this, DiMaggio, once a legendary baseball player, coughed dryly and revealed the answer: "Ahem, Marilyn and I do have a wedding date. It's in September, and we haven't started sending out invitations yet. This time we're in Hawaii to film a movie for Marilyn, as her 'final project' before retirement."

　At this point, DiMaggio couldn't help but grasp Monroe's delicate hand, his face showing a trace of affectionate expression, "Monroe said that after marrying me, she would say goodbye to the world of fame and fortune in Hollywood and enjoy a peaceful family life..."

　Philip had heard Monroe say before that she was going to retire from the screen, and now that she is 37 years old, it is indeed time for her to leave Hollywood. Generally speaking, actresses of her age, even if they can still get film contracts, find it difficult to get the role of the heroine. Most of them can only play some older supporting female roles, such as mothers in children's dramas, old-fashioned female teachers in school movies, witches in fantasy dramas, etc.

　If it were an ordinary actress who had never made much of a name for herself in her life, this might be acceptable. But for a porn star like Monroe, who conquered millions of audiences on screen with her beauty, it was somewhat unacceptable for her to play such an "older woman" role.

　Moreover, according to the general social concept in the United States today, it is common for Hollywood female stars to fade out of the entertainment industry after getting married.

　But since 20th Century Fox has no money to make new movies, and the owner of Playboy is sitting here...

　Ferry looked around and couldn't help but make a bold guess: "Well, since Mr. Hugh Hefner is here, could it be that Miss Monroe is going to make a Playboy movie?"

　"Yes, it's Playboy's first photo film foray into the film market. It's a Hawaiian music video with Monroe as the model."

　Hugh Hefner smiled and nodded. "I'm a very nostalgic person. Ten years ago, it was Miss Monroe's photos that made the first issue of Playboy magazine a success. Ten years later, Miss Monroe was about to retire from acting, and Playboy wanted to try its hand at film and television production. Given the success of ten years ago, my first thought was to invite Miss Monroe to play the leading role."

　Hey, I also know that Marilyn Monroe is already very popular now. I originally just wanted to give it a try, but I didn't expect Miss Monroe to agree immediately. I am really flattered! Our entire company is very grateful to Miss Monroe for giving Playboy this opportunity..."

　Oh, let Monroe be the model for Playboy’s first Hawaiian-themed photo film!

　I just don't know if Hugh Hefner plans to have Monroe shoot a relatively conservative bikini photo this time?

　Or let Monroe take off all her clothes and shoot a real PLAYBOY temptation video?

　Given that her ex-husband (and big bootlicker) DiMaggio was also there, Fieri thought it was probably just a sexy bikini-fueled erotica in the vein of "Charlie's Angels." But then, considering this was Marilyn Monroe's final film before her retirement, and the American tradition of having one last, indulgent "bachelorette party" before marriage...

　Maybe, Marilyn Monroe would really make a bold attempt and take off all her clothes for the first time on the screen to show off her proud figure!

　- Although Marilyn Monroe is currently the most popular porn star in Hollywood, and can even be called the epitome of sexiness and charm, due to the generally conservative social atmosphere in the United States, Monroe has never actually taken off all her clothes in a movie, and at most she has only been half-naked.

　On the other hand, although she has never appeared naked in a movie, she has been naked in photos for a long time.

　As early as 1949, Marilyn Monroe took a series of nude photos due to lack of money, and also worked as a nude model for a painter. The nude photos she sold to the inaugural issue of Playboy in 1953 were actually not taken at that time, but were old photos taken four years earlier in 1949.

　However, in 1949, these nude photos only sold for $50, but by 1953, Monroe's nude photos could be sold for $500.

　So, if Marilyn Monroe was going to take a bold step and go nude on screen before her retirement...

　Well, it doesn’t seem to be something that is incomprehensible?

　One look.

　What's hilarious is that instead of continuing to praise America, domestic intellectuals have been lashing out at this realistic masterpiece with negative reviews, even accusing the film's production company, 24A, of collaborating with the Communist Party. Alas, what a bunch of Americans who love America to their core.

　Chapter 269: Monroe's Retirement Plan

　Although Fili was very curious about whether Marilyn Monroe took off her clothes in her first Playboy photo shoot, when he arrived in Hawaii, most of the film had already been shot, so it was too late to visit the set even if he wanted to take a look.

　So, we can only wait patiently until the movie is released to have a chance to find out.

　The reason why Miss Monroe and her group appear in Pearl Harbor now is because the director wants to shoot a few more shots with the military port and battleships as the background.

　It just so happens that today is not the open day of the naval port, so this matter requires permission from the relevant departments.

　So Hugh Hefner asked his assistant to run errands and get the stamp, while he brought his group to the bar to have fun and wait.

　As the owner of Playboy, Hugh Hefner wasn't originally required to accompany the crew on set. However, Marilyn Monroe, known as "America's Sweetheart," was such a prominent figure, and Hugh Hefner happened to be a huge fan (historically, he was supposed to be buried next to her after his death). Furthermore, this photoshoot was Monroe's final film, so he attentively accompanied the crew throughout.

　After hearing this, Fili was thinking about whether to help speed up the progress, but he saw the weather outside the window suddenly change color, dark clouds pressed down, and a tropical rainstorm poured down on him... Well, even if the filming permit was obtained, there was no need to be afraid of this weather for a while!

　So, Fili continued chatting with them in the bar, asking about Monroe's wedding date and honeymoon plans, and then learned that because it was a second marriage, DiMaggio and Monroe had planned a simple wedding, just like any other "ordinary family," inviting hundreds of friends and family, holding the ceremony in a nondescript church, and then throwing a party to celebrate.

　The next honeymoon was also planned to be simple - nine years ago, when she and DiMaggio first got married, their honeymoon trip to Japan was abandoned halfway due to some unexpected reasons. In the past year, DiMaggio and Monroe had already traveled around the Pacific Ocean once and a half, and now they didn't want to go through the trouble again.

　According to Monroe, she had traveled almost all over the world in the ten years since she became famous and was already exhausted. She simply found a place in her hometown of California to rest quietly for a while and adjust her mentality to adapt to the peaceful life in the future after leaving the Hollywood fame and fortune.