by Ed Nelson
“China has enough problems with its leadership currently. Empress Ping has asked me to help buy peace within the north and south, and between them. Once the Chinese leadership issues are settled, she doesn’t care if this country tears itself up.”
“I do because ultimately it is my money that is at risk in the development of your ports and even the aid money that will be available from China comes from me.”
“What do we have to do to bring peace to South Vietnam without killing all the other faction’s members.”
“Pay the Army. The government is always behind on paying its soldiers. If you pay them the army will be yours. I’m not talking about anyone above the level of Colonel. They are all thieves. It is the junior officers and soldiers that are always hungry.”
“This causes them to take from the villages. Pay them and you will bring peace to the country.”
“How much would this cost me every week?”
“The average pay for all ranks is ten American dollars a month. There are 100,000 soldiers.”
“So, it would be a million dollars a month?”
“Yes.”
“How would we ensure that the money got to the ranks.”
“We would ask the Australians to distribute it.”
We spent the next week ironing out details. Newly appointed President Trần announced that soldiers would be paid in American dollars and that they would receive two months back pay even though his government hadn’t incurred the debt.
He had the entire South Vietnamese General Staff arrested and their home and bank accounts seized. It netted enough to make the back pay payments.
I contacted my American bank and had pallets of one, five, ten, and twenty-dollar bills flown in.
Chapter 52
The Australians flew in a cadre of ranking officers to temporarily lead the South Vietnamese army. I wondered how temporary it would be. That wasn’t my worry. My worry was not to be identified as the leader of the army.
I was paying them and doing so better than anyone before me. If I wanted to take over the country I probably could. That was the last thing I needed. I would probably be assassinated the first week.
So, any suggestions I had were made through Trần, the civil authority to the army command. My thoughts were basic. Build infrastructure and train the army to be real soldiers.
A school system was needed. The French would have been ideal as they had set up the original system and it had worked. There was no way that the French would ever be invited back.
The British had a lot of experience in setting up colonial systems, so I suggested to Trần that he contact the British Ministry of Education for help on that front. He did and received an enthusiastic reception. It might have been because I suggested that he used the Palace as an intermediary.
They needed several types of police forces. There were ones in place, but they were so corrupt they had to be disbanded and started over.
For their equivalent of the FBI, I suggested he go with either the FBI or MI5. For city police, I recommended the London police or NYPD. For a sheriff's department in the rural area, I only knew George Burrell, so I recommended him.
Trần went with the MI5, the London police, and George.
To rebuild roads and bridges I had no ideas as to who to contact. In a meeting which the American Ambassador stood in on, he suggested South Vietnam put it out to bid. That worked well. The bids were on roads, sewage plants, clean water systems, and a telephone system.
Trần had his new Minister of Health, a doctor whose name I could never remember, contact the World Health Organization to do a survey to recommend what was needed to have a true health care system.
At the same time, they advertised internationally for Doctors to come to South Vietnam to man government-run clinics. The same offer was made for nurses. The pay was good enough they attracted a well-trained group. New doctors could earn enough in two years to start their practices.
All these efforts were publicized in the papers and on the radio. Trần took to making a weekly radio broadcast like FDR's fireside chats. The public loved him. They could see the physical results of his actions. He was working for them.
This all occurred over several months and was not as easy as I may have portrayed it. Trần and I would never be friends. The age and cultural differences assured that. But we were colleagues in rebuilding a nation.
We gained a deep and abiding respect for the other. Once he realized that I expected nothing from South Vietnam he was willing to listen and work with me.
I did truly little, almost none, of the real work. It was not all sweetness and light. The corruption in the country had run deep and had to be rooted out.
There were trials, but not like American, long technical affairs, this was more like ninety days, next case. Except it was more likely to be up against the wall, next case.
I had thought I was getting cynical. After this experience, I knew that I was still a babe in the woods.
Week three I received a summons. There was no other way to put it. Queen Elizabeth and Empress Ping had arranged to meet in Hong Kong, and I was to be present.
Flying to Hong Kong was my first chance to stop and clear my head and try to process what had occurred in the last few weeks. I had been sent to the Vietnams to use my company’s influence to build ports.
The ports were not the real objective. The real objective was to develop a set of conditions that would prevent a war between the north and south.
Not that the north and south particularly wanted a war. The Soviets were pushing the north into it, knowing that the United States would be forced into an unwinnable land war in Asia.
The Americans seemed to be oblivious to this fact and were taking no actions other than trying to support the previous governments which by their very nature were doomed to failure.
China was trying to prevent the war because they didn’t want external distractions occurring as they settled their internal issues. The external distractions being the Soviets gaining more influence in the region while they concentrated on creating stability in China.
I didn’t even want to think about what was going on in China, there would be no guilty finding, up against the wall. It would be, up against the wall.
I thought about North Vietnam. All I had done there was broker a deal for peace in exchange for modernizing their harbor.
They would remain a communist government under the new leaders, however, that might shake out. All I could hope is that between the updated harbor and stronger South Vietnamese army is that war wouldn’t occur.
I wondered if the North’s leaders were communist or were frustrated capitalists like the Chinese. Maybe if they got a taste of the modern world and trade, they would shift away from the communist party hardline and Soviet influence.
It certainly wasn’t going to work out in the short term.
In Hong Kong, I was met at the airport and taken to the Peninsula Hotel to freshen up. My 707 with Harold and my clothes on board caught up with me so I was able to put on a good suit and tie. If I was meeting with a Queen and an Empress, I had better dress the part.
Another Rolls Royce ride and I was at Government House. The security was tight and obvious. In your face obvious.
I had to show my passport, my British diplomatic one, to get in. That was even after my name was found on the list.
I was escorted into the august presence of the royal and imperial ladies. Whoever said men held all the power had never met these two. Between them, they ruled most of the world's population. Granted the Queen was head of a constitutional monarchy, but recent events had shown she had more power than they thought she did.
A good part of that was my fault. Parliament held sway over the Queen because they controlled the purse. I had been acting as Her Royal Majesty’s purse for some time now.
Empress Ping was now for all purposes a God in China. She controlled everything.
With these thoughts in mind, I went to be
nded knee to the two ladies.
“Oh, Richard, give it up. You have earned the right to give a minor bow of the head,” spoke Elizabeth.
Empress Ping came back with, “I don’t know, I kind of like the bended knee, maybe we could have him do both?”
“Hmm, that is a possibility, or maybe we could have him crawl in on his belly.”
You know that wonderful moment when you realize you have been had? This was mine.
“Have your, whatever you want to be called today, summoned me for a reason other than to mock me.”
“Richard mocking can be fun, there are so few times we can do that without creating an incident.”
“Well then, mock away.”
“We have a better idea,” said Elizabeth.
Empress Ping continued, “You have done wonderful things for both our countries in the last few months. We both tried to award you with a Dukedom. You refused us both. Now we will make you an offer that you can’t refuse.”
Why did I picture a decapitated horse's head in my bed? They waited for me to ask what it was, but I wasn’t going to give them that pleasure.
Queen Elizabeth turned to the Empress, “You win I thought he would cave and ask. Here is your shilling.”
She handed a coin over!
“Come with us.”
We went into a much larger audience room left over from the heyday of the British Empire.
There was a crowd of people waiting to include my whole family.
Queen Elizabeth started it, “Richard Edward Jackson, I name you Duke of Hong Kong. It has neither land nor income attached, just the honor of the title and responsibility for the well-being of the people of Hong Kong.”
The Empress had her turn, “Richard Edward Jackson, I name you Duke of Hong Kong, it has neither land nor income attached, just the honor and the title and a responsibility for the well-being of the people of Hong Kong.”
“While at this time Hong Kong is under British rule on July 1st, 1997 it will be turned over to China. Part of your responsibility will be to see that the turnover is such that the people of Hong Kong do not suffer.”
Queen Elizabeth said, “Kneel, Duke Richard of Hong Kong.”
I did and she tapped me on both shoulders with a sword that seemly appeared from nowhere. She then handed the sword to the Empress who did the same.
There was great applause in the background.
I bowed a full and deep bow to both ladies and back out of the room. I was so proud, I didn’t turn and run like hell.
Mum, Dad, and my siblings joined me. They were excited for me; they knew what was happening. There were official photographers there to capture the event but thank goodness no press.
Mum said, “There is one other person who would like to congratulate you.”
She turned and a young lady was standing there. She looked worn, underweight, pale, and scared.
I noted all these in a heartbeat and must have teleported to her because she was in my arms.
It was Nina.
Done for now.
The Richard Jackson Saga will continue in Book 12.
Visit my author page at Ed Nelson Author
