按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！
〃Seven…thirty；〃 SURGEON told them。 〃Dress is casual。〃 It was a shame they were no longer regular people。 This would have been a good chance for Jack to do steaks on the grill； something he remained very good at； and she hadn't made her spinach salad in months。 Damn the Presidency anyway！ 〃And； Andrea； you are allowed two drinks tonight to celebrate。 After that； one or two a week。〃
Mrs。 O'Day nodded。 〃Dr。 North told me。〃
〃Madge is a real stickler on the alcohol issue。〃 Cathy wasn't sure about the data on that； but then； she wasn't an OB…GYN； and she'd followed Dr。 North's rules with Kyle and Katie。 You just didn't fool around when you were pregnant。 Life was too precious to risk。
CHAPTER 38
Developments
It's all handled electronically。 Once a country's treasury was in its collection of gold bricks； which were kept in a secure； well…guarded place； or else traveled in a crate with the chief of state wherever he went。 In the nineteenth century； paper currency had gained wide acceptance。 At first； it had to be redeemable for gold or silver… something whose weight told you its worth…but gradually this； too； was discarded； because precious metals were just too damned heavy to lug around。 But soon enough even paper currency became too bulky to drag about； as well。 For ordinary citizens； the next step was plastic cards with magnetic strips on the back； which moved your theoretical currency from your account to someone else's when you made a purchase。 For major corporations and nations； it meant something even more theoretical。 It became an electronic expression。 A nation determined the value of its currency by estimating what quantity of goods and services its citizens generated with their daily toil； and that became the volume of its monetary wealth； which was generally agreed upon by the other nations and citizens of the world。 Thus it could be traded across national boundaries by fiber…optic or copper cables； or even by satellite transmissions； and so billions of dollars； pounds； yen； or the new euros moved from place to place via simple keystrokes。 It was a lot easier and faster than shipping gold bricks； but； for all the convenience； the system that determined a persons or a nation's wealth was no less rigid； and at certain central banks of the world； a country's net collection of those monetary units was calculated down to a fraction of a percentage point。 There was some leeway built into the system； to account for trades in process and so forth； hut that leeway was also closely calculated electronically。 What resulted was no different in its effect from the numbering of the bricks of King Croesus of Lydia。 In fact； if anything； the new system that depended on the movement of electrons or photons from one puter to another was even more exact； and even less forgiving。 Once upon a time； one could paint lead bricks yellow and so fool a casual inspector； but lying to a puterized accounting system required a lot more than that。
In China； the lying was handled by the Ministry of Finance； a bastard orphan child in a Marxist country peopled by bureaucrats who struggled on a daily basis to do all manner of impossible things。 The first and easiest impossibility…because it had to be done…was for its senior members to cast aside everything they'd learned in their universities and munist Party meetings。 To operate in the world financial system； they had to understand and play by…and within…the world monetary rules； instead of the Holy Writ of Karl Marx。
The Ministry of Finance； therefore； was placed in the unenviable position of having to explain to the munist clergy that their god was a false one； that their perfect theoretical model just didn't play in the real world； and that therefore they had to bend to a reality which they had rejected。 The bureaucrats in the ministry were for the most part observers； rather like children playing a puter game that they didn't believe in but enjoyed anyway。 Some of the bureaucrats were actually quite clever； and played the game well； sometimes even making a profit on their trades and transactions。 Those who did so won promotions and status within the ministry。 Some even drove their own automobiles to work and were befriended by the new class of local industrialists who had shed their ideological straitjackets and operated as capitalists within a munist society。 That brought wealth into their nation； and earned the tepid gratitude； if not the respect； of their political masters； rather as a good sheepdog might。 This crop of industrialists worked closely with the Ministry of Finance； and along the way influenced the bureaucracy that managed the ine that they brought into their country。
One result of all this activity was that the Ministry of Finance was surely and not so slowly drifting away from the True Faith of Marxism into the shadowy in…between world of socialist capitalism…a world with no real name or identity。 In fact； every Minister of Finance had drifted away from Marxism to some greater or lesser extent； whatever his previous religious fervor； because one by one they had all seen that their country needed to play on this particular international playground； and to do that； had to play by the rules； and； oh； by the way； this game was bringing prosperity to the People's Republic in a way that fifty years of Marx and Mao had singularly failed to do。
As a direct result of this inexorable process； the Minister of Finance was a candidate； not a full member of the Politburo。 He had a voice at the table； but not a vote； and his words were judged by those who had never really troubled themselves to understand his words or the world in which he operated。
This minister was surnamed Qian； which； appropriately； meant coins or money； and he'd been in the job for six years。 His background was in engineering。 He'd built railroads in the northeastern part of his country for twenty years； and done so well enough to merit a change in posting。 He'd actually handled his ministerial job quite well； the international munity judged； but Qian Kun was often the one who had to explain to the Politburo that the Politburo couldn't do everything it wanted to do； which meant he was often about as wele in the room as a plague rat。 This would be one more such day； he feared； sitting in the back of his ministerial car on the way to the morning meeting。
Eleven hours away； on Park Avenue in New York； another meeting was under way。 Butterfly was the name of a burgeoning chain of clothing stores which marketed to prosperous American women。 It had bined new microfiber textiles with a brilliant young designer from Florence； Italy； into fully a six percent share of its market； and in America that was big money indeed。
Except for one thing。 Its textiles were all made in the People's Republic； at a factory just outside the great port city of Shanghai； and then cut and sewn into clothing at yet another plant in the nearby city of Yancheng。
The chairman of Butterfly was just thirty…two； and after ten years of hustling； he figured he was about to cash in on a dream he'd had from all the way back in Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn。 He'd spent nearly every day since graduating P