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Bright sunlight pushed through the curtains.
Birds chirped outside.
I opened my eyes with difficulty, clutching my pounding head as if it had been crushed in a press.
“Ugh… water…”
Looking around, I spotted a glass beside the bed and gulped it down in one go.
Slowly, my senses returned.
“…I’m screwed.”
Damn it.
I was alone in a wide bed.
But the unmistakable signs of… intense close combat were impossible to ignore, no matter how blind I pretended to be.
What the hell did I do last night?
Dorothy had seemed excited just to have someone listen to her.
This era was harsh.
Just as my skin color was a constant disadvantage, being a woman and of mixed heritage must have been its own burden.
“So according to you, the most important thing right now is establishing a foundation for firearms production?”
“The guns themselves are secondary.
I am certain a war will come.
What I need is the reputation of having prepared innovations for that war in advance.”
“Then should I speak to my father?
He already thinks highly of you.”
“…I am not sure.
Whether I accept help from the Chinese or from your father, it ultimately leads to the same place.”
But she shook her head.
“That is not true.
That man you mentioned, Charlie Soong, you said he supports Sun Yat-sen, correct?
I have heard of him.”
“Yes?”
“My father calls him a revolutionary agitator.
A red.”
That was bad.
If a man like Charles Curtis labeled someone a radical, then in Washington, that label stuck.
And if I wanted to rise in the military, I could never be associated with anything remotely “red.” Not even by accident.
I nearly walked straight into disaster.
Relief washed over me.
Naturally, I reached for a cigarette.
“May I smoke?”
“My father smokes cigars around me all the time.
Go ahead.”
I lit one.
She watched me strangely.
“Would you like one?”
“…Really?”
“In this era, is that allowed?”
Right.
This was still a time when women smoking was frowned upon.
Instead of answering, I handed her one.
She hesitated, then accepted it.
Her fingers brushed mine lightly.
She held it awkwardly.
Clearly inexperienced.
Snap.
It broke.
“…That was the last one.”
“Come here.”
She gestured.
I stepped closer.
And…
“Ah… ahhh…”
I grabbed my head.
I was losing my mind.
Did I really need to remember that?
I was completely screwed.
I had gotten involved with the daughter of a powerful politician.
In my mind, I could already see Senator Charles Curtis arriving with a shotgun.
Even my father would probably bow and apologize for my existence.
I left the room, needing a light for a cigarette.
“Finally awake?”
“Yeah.
My head’s killing me.”
“…Hmm.”
“…Hmmmm.”
Why were they staring at me like that?
“Stop staring and give me a light.”
“Why didn’t you come back last night?”
“…Last night?”
“I woke up in the garden.
Must have passed out.”
Eisenhower smirked.
“Funny.
You smell like perfume.”
“And wipe that lipstick off your face before you talk.”
Damn it.
Their grins widened instantly.
“Pay up.”
“You bastard!”
They burst out laughing.
“Tell us everything.”
“Shut up.”
Then I noticed something.
“You guys smell like perfume too.”
“…Well.”
“Actually…”
“You idiots!”
“Hey, you’re the only one who had a proper first night.”
“Damn you all!”
James rolled on the floor laughing, while Dwight David Eisenhower and Omar Bradley struggled to hold him down.
What kind of friends were these?
“Excuse me?
He already left?”
After breakfast, I hurried to find Curtis, hoping to avoid disaster.
But he had already departed for his next engagement.
Dorothy smiled brightly. Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
“He didn’t even ask if you slept well.”
That made my head hurt again.
“My siblings have their own schedules.
I’m the only one here now.”
“…Then…”
“You wouldn’t leave me alone, would you?”
“…I will accompany you.”
Right.
In a country this vast, with so few Korean women, turning down a beautiful, wealthy girl interested in me would be madness.
Once I accepted that, the world seemed brighter.
Even the sunlight felt like a blessing.
“Then let’s go out.”
“Where to?”
Anything was better than returning to my friends and being interrogated.
This was an opportunity.
A powerful connection.
If I succeeded in the future, even Rhee Syngman would become irrelevant.
Of course…
That assumed I survived the shotgun.
The rest of the leave was… enjoyable.
Dorothy and I got along better than expected.
Naturally, we became a couple.
We spent days together, inseparable.
And for the first time, I shared my ambitions openly.
“My father’s goal is the White House.” She said.
“…Impressive.”
“So if your goal were just to become a general, I would have scolded you.”
This family was unbelievable.
Instead of being shocked, she encouraged me.
“Army leadership?
Why not the presidency?”
Having someone who understood and supported me made everything feel easier.
“Watch him carefully.”
“Tell us if he looks at another woman.”
“Understood.”
My friends treated her like family.
Time passed quickly.
1912 ended.
1913 began.
Back at West Point, I immediately sent a rejection to Soong Ching-ling.
Then I focused on Dorothy.
Letters came frequently.
I replied to every one.
At the same time, I continued working with Ahn Chang-ho on my plans.
The firearms project stalled, but the barbed wire business progressed.
My design for improved wire was patented under my brother’s name, and small-scale production began.
It was a start.
In the end, as a minority, I could never abandon the Korean community.
Unlike Rhee Syngman, I would not betray it.
Step by step, my preparations continued.
Then, in October 1913, after returning to classes.
I launched my second major move.