Chapter 39: Dragging Oil Bottles (Recommended, Collected)

  H·S company's weapon manufacturing has always been in alliance with FN (Herstal National Factory in Liege) US branch, the 6 12.7mm machine guns on F4U aircraft were all manufactured by FN. Sun Xiang asked Hughes about some well-known weapons manufacturers in a car, and then Hughes took Sun Xiang and Shirley to a villa for rest.

  That evening, Sun Xiang and Hughes came to the Empire Hotel together. A welcome banquet was specially held for Sun Xiang here. Sheri was resting in the villa because she was too tired.

  The banquet has begun, and the magnificent hall is filled with countless men and women dressed in suits and evening gowns. Hughes rushed Sun Xiang all the way to a large sofa, where six middle-aged men were seated, each with an air of elegance and refinement.

  "Hughes gave a sly smile as he introduced to the crowd, "Folks, good evening. This is Steve Sun, our newly-minted national hero." He then whispered into Sun's ear, "These people are blood-sucking vampires who won't hesitate to devour you whole. Don't be polite to them; in their eyes, you're God."

  Sun Xiang didn't understand what was going on, and Hughes loudly said while hugging Sun Xiang: "Steve, this Mr. Bart is the person in charge of FN America; this is Mr. Baldi, the person in charge of Colt Company; this is Chris Stoic, the person in charge of Springfield Armory; this is Alberto Locher, the person in charge of SIG Arms Manufacturing...".

  Sun Xiang was suddenly moved to tears, apparently because Sun Xiang's question in the car made this old friend bring all the arms manufacturers he could think of.

  After exchanging pleasantries with these people in charge, they immediately got down to business; Sun Xiang found the person in charge of FN's US branch and proposed purchasing Browning light machine guns and Browning M2HB 12.7mm heavy machine guns from him. After getting a reply, he immediately turned to the Springfield Armory (also known as the Garand and Springfield Arsenal) to order M1 Garand semi-automatic rifles and M1911 .45 caliber pistols from the person in charge of the company. These classic American firearms carefully selected by Sun Xiang will be the sharp tools against the Japanese army.

  Sun Xiang finally had some free time after dealing with this bunch of things, but it was clear that Hughes wouldn't let him off so easily. Seeing Sun Xiang finish using those guys, he pulled him along and started walking away. Hughes turned back to the others and said: "Alright everyone, now that we've finished our business, it's time to start enjoying ourselves! There are many girls here who admire Steve, this great hero, I'm going to take my old friend to comfort their empty hearts. You all go find some pretty girls to pass the time with." With that, he left, leaving behind six people with their mouths agape.

  Sun Xiang's face was awkward: "You did this, don't those few people hate you?"

  "Hate? Ha! They love me, but they can't even keep up. Remember this, friend: in their eyes, as long as there's money to be made, even family can be sold out. Arms dealers? Ha! A bunch of crap."

  Sun Xiang looked puzzled: "Why do you hate them so much?"

  Hughes said indignantly, "You know my H-1 plane? Before bidding for military orders, these people were scrambling to do business with me. After the H-1 lost the competition, this group of bastards directly tore up the contract and went to curry favor with Lockheed. Humph! This time our F4U is making a big splash, and now they're coming back to offer us a contract again. Pfft!" He spat on the carpet. Sun Xiang felt a pang in his heart as he looked at it - this was a high-quality Indian woolen carpet.

  Sun Xiang helplessly said: "Isn't this just business? Everyone thinks of themselves, it's human nature. These guys are just a bit too much. Alright, Hughes, I even saw your gossip news in Spain. What's going on between you and Katharine Hepburn?"

  Hus changed his expression from anger to a sly smile, and said to Sun Xiang: "Hehe, buddy! Although you're invincible on the battlefield, in the arena of love, hehe, you're just a small rookie. The Love Saint only needs to flutter his sleeves, and beauties will flock into my arms." After finishing, he even winked at Sun Xiang, with an extremely arrogant attitude that made Sun Xiang's teeth ache with hatred.

  The combined charm of the two handsome men was terrifying, and the two young, wealthy, and heroic-looking men were like magnets attracting the attention of all the women present as they walked towards the main hall of the banquet. The beauties who had been waiting for a long time suddenly surrounded them, with a beautiful girl hugging Hughes' arm first, Sun Xiang looked at her with some familiarity, and the mechanical voice in his ear rang out, it turned out that she was Catherine Hepburn!!

  Heben had fiery red hair, delicate features, and was quite tall. Standing next to Hughes, they indeed made a perfect match. The surrounding beauties saw that Hughes already had someone, so they quickly shifted their gaze to Sun Xiang, with a large patch of fiery eyes making Sun Xiang feel uneasy. At this time, a soft body leaned against Sun Xiang, and an arm naturally wrapped around his. Sun Xiang's body stiffened, wanting to lean away, but the softness followed him like a shadow. Sun Xiang lowered his head and smiled wryly, having no choice but to tolerate the behavior of the person beside him.

  The beautiful women around obviously didn't want to leave like this, waiting for the woman who took a step ahead to give an explanation. The blonde beauty remained silent, turning her head to look at Sun Xiang.

  "Alright, alright! Ladies and gentlemen, this is my good friend, she will accompany me through this pleasant night." Sun Xiang had to respond. Seeing Hughes' puzzled eyes, Sun Xiang turned his head to Hughes and Catherine and said: "Miss Catherine, hello, this is Rita Hayworth, Miss Catherine's colleague."

  Lita tiptoed and whispered to Sun Xiang: "This time you can't get rid of me." After that, Lita gave Hughes a British-style salute: "Hello Mr. Howard, I was introduced by Steve to film at your company."

  "Hugh's face was shocked: "How did I not know about this? Why didn't Paul, the general manager of the film company, tell me about this? That damn guy!"

  Rita: "It was me who told Paul not to say anything. Steve has already helped me enough, it's my business after all?"

  Hues asked with a sly smile: "So you're Steve's...?"

  Rita smiled mysteriously: "Very close friends, yes, very close."

  Catherine covered her mouth and giggled, Hughes had an understanding expression, Sun Xiang had a black line on his head, Haiwosi had a pure and innocent face.

  Beautiful women and handsome, wealthy men are always attracted to each other. The four of them chatted happily, with the women's topics revolving around fashion and cosmetics.

  The men were discussing recent politics and war. This was the first time Sun Xiang had a long conversation with Hughes since he went to Spain, and Sun Xiang told Hughes his thoughts in detail.

  Originally, Hepburn and Rita were worried that they would neglect Sun Xiang and Hughes while chatting, but unexpectedly the two wooden people started talking and directly forgot them. So the girls started discussing their private topics, and the two big beauties were both stars, obviously giving rise to a feeling of mutual appreciation. Before long, they addressed each other as sisters.

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  "Hughes said: "Are you ready to make a big splash in China this time? I'm also planning to plan a round-the-world flight with you, Steve. Now that there's no large-scale war breaking out in China, you must create history with me! You know, my goal for creating the Hughes Aircraft Institute is to fly around the world, it's my dream! You're also a pilot, can't this change your mind? Come on, buddy, let's complete this epoch-making flight together. I think that with our two abilities, this great flight will surely shock the world!"

  Sun Xiang hesitated, indeed, leaving a name in history is everyone's dream, and everyone hopes to create history. As a pilot, being able to participate in such a milestone flight is indeed the greatest temptation for oneself!!

  Hues saw Sun Xiang hesitate and immediately said: "Alright, alright, this flight won't take too much time!"

  "After hesitating for a while, Sun Xiang said: 'Okay, Hughes, but I really don't have much time. Today is May 13th, and by June at the latest, I will set off to China. If you can handle all the pre-flight preparation issues before then, I will definitely leave my name in flight history.'"

  "Hughes sprang up after hearing that: "Hey! Buddy! It's settled then! Leave the preparation to me, wait for my news!" After finishing speaking, he ran out without looking back, leaving three people staring in shock."

  Sun Xiang regretted it to death, facing two little girls alone, and one of them kept blaming him.

  "Hepburn's face was full of grievances: "Steve, it's not easy to spend a good holiday with Howard, and you've messed everything up. Last time he prepared for the All-American flight for half a month, can you complete the preparations for this round-the-world flight in such a short time?"

  Xun Xiang chuckled and said, "Katherine, don't be angry. I saw your scandal in Spain. After Hughes' successful transcontinental flight, the first telegram he sent out was to express his heartfelt feelings to you. You two are already sweethearts, so stop being so coy."

  Hepburn's face was sweet and smiling: "At that time, I was always praying for him. You know, Hughes is an adventurous madman who never puts his own life at heart in order to achieve his goals. But I really didn't expect that the first thing he did after completing his round-the-world flight was to say that he missed me. I felt like my heart was grasped by him, and this feeling is really unforgettable! He's really my sweetheart."

  Lita's left hand was propped under her chin, her right hand holding a glass of red wine, her eyes unfocused as she muttered to herself: "When will you ever look at me like that, Steve?"

  Sun Xiang felt extremely embarrassed, Rita's voice floated into his ears and he didn't know what to do. If he said he had no feelings for Rita at all, that would be a pure lie. The sexy woman on screen was actually a very quiet person in private, as an authentic American, she never lacked passion, and she also had stunning beauty that made her stand out from the crowd. However, the ideology instilled by the country over 20 years couldn't be changed so easily, Rita's enthusiasm put Sun Xiang in a dilemma.

  Under Rita's melancholic gaze, Sun Xiang retreated. After the dinner party ended, he first sent Herb to Hughes' residence in Boston and then took Rita, this 'drag', back to the villa.