Dragon and Eagle
At the height of the Cold War, the world was split between Communism and Capitalist-Democracy. Nations were wary of one another, fearing of the next day if they would be attacked during those days. It would take either a hero or a fool to break this cold atmosphere of things.
By the 1970s, President Nixon ascended the Presidency in the United States. He had a talk with America on his newest job.
"You want me to do what?" exclaimed America.
"You heard me," Nixon said, "I want you to go make friends with China, and I mean the People's Republic of China."
"But he's a freaking Commie!" America exclaimed, "He's just another running dog for the Soviets!"
"America, quiet down!" ordered Nixon, "after that Sino-Soviet split, China can be a useful partner to crush Russia. Furthermore, they share a vast land border that can help us a lot."
"Mr President, please!" America cried, "Can't I go to Pakistan or Japan?"
"They are already our allies to begin with," Nixon said, "Mr China will be waiting for you in Beijing, and you will meet me on Air Force One."
The news of America going to China soon drove waves of emotions across the world.
"America that reckless git… he better be careful," England remarked, "I won't be bailing him out if he flops this."
"I would never think that those two would…" Canada exclaimed.
"Will he abandon me for Chugoku-san?" Japan wondered.
"Times have changed… again…" Sweden thought.
"Will he still support me?" Saigon (South Vietnam) wondered, "Lon chi will soon take over my vital regions."
"America and China… feels like some secret illicit relationship to me…" Hungary laughed.
"America, you're trying to steal my China da~" Russia commented.
Against his wishes, America was forced to take a flight into Mainland China.
America was onboard the Air Force One with the CIA and Nixon, looking downward at the scenery in China and deep in his thoughts.
"This is the land I lost to those Commies…" America thought, "if only back then I could pour in more forces there, but Arthur… and Europe… they needed me more…"
"Mr America, Mr America…" called a CIA officer.
Suddenly, America woke up from his thoughts. By then, the President and most of the officers had left the plane.
"We have arrived in China sir," the officer stated, "the Chinese delegation is waiting for us."
America quickly rushed out of Air Force One and encountered the Chinese delegation. Among the Chinese there, America would even recognise the man in those Mao suits and his black hair tied in a ponytail.
"Yao, long time no see!" America called.
"America, we are at work right now," China said, "we should not be so informal with each other right now."
"But we were allies back at World War II," America said, "remember the days in the Asia-Pacific Front."
"That… was in the past…" China said, "come on, we got a line of programmes for you. I will entertain you personally."
"And America, don't aggravate China," Nixon said, "He's your new friend in Asia."
Soon, China brought America into the outskirts of Beijing. Within the wilderness of the hills, they soon came upon the vast Great Wall.
"America, welcome to the Great Wall of China!" proclaimed China.
"What's with this old road?" America asked, "I don't see why you need to build this thing here."
"Firstly, this is a wall," China said, "around two hundred years before that Christ person was born; my house was always attacked by the Xiongnu barbarians. So my boss has commissioned a wall to be built in order to keep them away."
"Wait a sec, now I remember this old thing," America said, "I once saw it from the Moon with Armstrong."
"It can be seen from outer space!" China exclaimed, "I am very amazed indeed. Do you know that this is the longest graveyard in the world?"
"Why?" asked America.
"Many people died while building the Great Wall," China explained, "We held these bricks here with sticky rice, and they prove to…"
"I'M KING OF THE WORLD!" yelled America, and the echo repeated itself.
"有趣的家伙," China remarked calmly.
After the Great Wall, China took America for a boat ride on the West Lake in Hangzhou.
"And this is the West Lake…" China explained, "America! What are you doing?"
On that same boat, America was already stripped down to a pair of navy blue swimming trunks.
"I am swimming duh," America replied.
"You can't just swim in there!" China yelled, "Our waters are quite dirty!"
"Don't worry about me, I once swam in the Great Lakes back home and even in Scotland's moats," America said, "I will just alright. See you by the shores later, old man."
"But America…" China tried to warn, but America had already jumped into the lake.
In a few seconds in the water, America's cries for help were heard. China was already prepared and had a net ready to catch America. When he reeled in the American, other sea creatures were caught and even biting at the American "bait".
"Thank you, America!" China cried, "I was planning to give you an authentic seafood dinner."
"Glad…I can…help…" America said, "Now… can you get the crab stuck in toes out please…"
As evening fell on China, China was cooking the caught food with his wok over a campfire. America was lying down near China, with bandages wrapping up parts of his body.
"America, you're certain I don't need to call up your boss about this," China asked, "we need you to do a full body check-up lest you got poisoned."
"I will be fine, but what are we having tonight?" America asked.
China scooped up the food from the wok and put it on the two bowls. He then handed one to America, along with a pair of chopsticks.
"Wait, I'm supposed to eat with these!" America exclaimed, "How do you work these things?"
America then tried to hold the chopsticks and stabbed into a piece of fish in the bowl. China let out a cry at once.
"America! You can't do that!" yelled China, "and your chopsticks should not stick out of the bowl like that. It's bad luck! Do you want a nuclear war with Russia?"
"C'mon, standing chopsticks don't trigger global Holocaust," America said.
"Last time I did that, and Japan attacked Nanjing," China said, "who knows if Russia will have your Washington D.C. burnt down?"
"No way, only one who did that was Canada," America promptly replied.
"Who?" China asked.
"My twin bro of course and that was right after I got independent," America said, "as a hero, I wanted to rescue Canada from Iggy, but he fought back. Even got the White House burnt to nail the point."
"So… I wasn't the only one…" China said, "I too was attacked by a good brother. I taught him everything, and then he just…"
The Chinese turned around and felt his back.
"It was Japan right?" America said, "He told me about you two when I visit his house every now and then."
"Well, I won't be forgiving him anytime soon!" China said, "Besides, you don't know how it feels. You also did that to England once…"
"The Revolutionary War was a tragic incident, but UK and I got through it," America said, "you seen it too, the both of us working together to save the world. Of course, I am the hero and Iggy is the sidekick."
"Because you weren't the one who suffered the betrayal," China lectured, "trying to explain any further would be pointless to an insensitive jerk like you, so let's just eat."
"But China…" America said.
"America, eat your food!" China scolded, "I will get even with you… after this. And don't cross your chopsticks!"
"Geez, you're more of a mother than England," America said, "guess Korea was correct for once."
"Korea… South Korea… he spoke of me…" China thought.
After eating, the two Nations were trekking the mountainous paths of China to China's next destination.
"China, where are we going to?" America asked, "Can't we take the car instead?"
"This is a sacred pilgrimage to virgin grounds. Many have trekked here on foot for countless years," China said, "to drive a vehicle here would disrespect their spirits!"
"China, we're… in the 20th century…" America said, "And…we have…invented… the car…"
As America continued to walk, he bumped into China who had stopped before a huge temple.
"What gives?" he asked.
"America, we have arrived at our destination," China said, "welcome to the Shaolin Temple!"
"China, hate to break it to you… but I've seen things like these in Hong Kong's house, Taiwan's house and in those Chinatowns you planted on my soil," America said.
"America, do you know what kung-fu is?" China asked.
"Yah, you mean like karate and taekwondo and judo and…" America answered.
"They are very different, you ignorant bastard!" China snapped, "But they all originate from here, the Shaolin Kung-Fu."
However listening, America quickly opened up the doors to the place.
"Wait America, you can't just barge in…" Chian cried.
When inside, they found the temple to be barren and it had signs of some attack there.
"What happened?" asked America.
"The Shaolin Temple had been under attack many times, the most recent one…" China explained, "… the Red Guards have gotten to the Temple too… I see…"
"China, if kung-fu is truly from you, you should be proud of your culture," America said.
"But my boss said that it was counterproductive to my progress…" China said.
"But it was not crap too, like the chopsticks thing that came true," America said, "You know, I like to do archaeology. Know what that is?"
China shook his head.
"It's like digging up old places like the ones in Mexico, Peru, Greece and Egypt, and then we find out about old things," America said, "you are the oldest Nation around, you bound to have a lot of old things."
"America… is it okay to keep old things?" asked China.
"Of course!" replied the American, "I would love to do an evacuation on your place one day. Who knows what other interesting things you have here?"
As it was getting darker, they decided to stay in the Temple for the night. The two Nations were awkwardly quiet as they lay down in the mats they were using as beds.
"So China… I've been seeing some city signs and I was wondering," America said, "what do they really mean? I can't understand how you form words with them."
"Each Chinese character carries its own individual meaning," China explained, "take my human name for example, it is Wang Yao."
China took out a paintbrush and wrote on the temple floor the words "王耀"
"The fist one here means king in Chinese," China continued, "and the second one here refers to shining."
"So… your name translates to…Shining King. Your English name can be Regis then," America said, "I wish I had a cool human name like yours…"
"What can it be?" China asked, "I see nothing wrong with Alfred F. Jones."
"Alfred actually means 'one who is counselled by elves'," America explained, "Trust England to give weird names, but he said I was named in honour of his king, Alfred the Great."
"Who is he?" asked China.
"England told me he was a king in England who repelled the Vikings attacking his homeland," America said, "in fact; he was the only English monarch who was called 'the Great'."
"Maybe England wanted you to be great like his king," China said, "and look at you, you are a superpower. Names are given to bless people; you were well-blessed by the name Alfred."
"That's… a way of looking at my name I never thought of before," America said, "I still prefer USA since it sounded like a hero's name."
"Alfred Jones… hmm, I can write you a Chinese version of that," China said.
The Chinese grabbed his paintbrush and made fine strokes on the temple tiles, making up the words "阿尔弗雷德 .F. 琼斯"
"That's… I don't know what to say…" America said.
"Just transliteration, but I wish I could find you before England did," China wished, "then I could have given you a true Chinese name like mine."
"Yao, what is Chinese for hero?" America asked, "Can you write it down?"
Hearing the American's words, China swiftly wrote down the words "英雄"
"Good, now let me have that brush," America said.
America took the paintbrush from China and added "王" in front of "英雄"
"There you have it, my awesome Chinese name!" America proclaimed.
"I'm amazed that you actually liked it here," China remarked, "I thought you would be like the rest and see China as… well inferior to your own country."
"Well of course America is the top country of the world, why else would everyone wants to go there," America said, "I grew up thinking only the White people are the best, but many things happened."
"Like the Holocaust and the other madness in World War II," China said.
"Yup, that got me thinking about equality and how I let it all happen while I'm stuck in isolation and expanding to the Wild West," America said, "so I tried to change the world."
"And without understanding the consequences of your actions," China stated, "France is still deluding himself as the empire he used to be, and the Arab countries are still mad at you for Israel."
"What had I done wrong?" America asked.
"You just can't please everybody at one go," China said, "all of us, human and Nation, got different wishes and ambitions that often clash with one another."
"But don't all of us want a peaceful co-existence with one another?" America asked.
"Then under whose flag, yours or Russia's?" remarked the Chinese, "I tried that once, but they all ran away…"
"Gomennasai, I only wanted to become stronger…"
"I'm coming to live with Japan now. You deserve to die an old lonely man!"
"China-hyung, tragic circumstances have occurred and Joseon-hyung and I are now going to Japan-hyung's house."
"If only you were stronger, my brother and I would never fall under Japanese rule…"
"China, Hong Kong is henceforth British territory now!"
"So does that I can take Macau with me?"
"Em gai and I will be living with Laos and Cambodia as French Indochina now."
"Come to think of it, England wanted me to stay with him badly," America noted.
"And declaring independence actually contradicts your desire for a peaceful co-existence," China said, "you were not oppressed by the tea-drinking imperialist, yet you…"
"Oka, I get it now!" America snapped, "I may not perfect, but I will still be the hero and fight my way for that happy ending."
"It's getting late now, so good night America," yawned China.
"Good night, China," America said, "but what do you think our bosses are doing right now?"
"Most likely arguing about politics," China said, "night…zzz"
After days of quality time, it was parting time for the two former WWII allies.
"See ya, China!" cried America as he got on the Air Force One, "hope to see ya in the U.S. some day!"
"Wait America!" yelled back China, "I still have to give you a parting gift!"
The American stopped and waited only a footstep's way into his flight home. China signalled some guards and they pushed in a cage with two giant pandas onto the plane.
"My national animal, the panda!" said China, "I am giving them to you!"
"But why two of them?" asked America.
"Because two is more complete," China yelled, "good bye!"
"See ya, China!" America said, entering his flight.
In a few weeks' time,
China was having a home-cooked dinner with his Premier Zhou Enlai and his wife.
"China, you have learnt a lot from America I presume?" asked Enlai.
"He was not that monster Russia painted him as," China said, "I wonder what would happen if my travels with Zheng He took me to him back then…"
Suddenly, there was knock on the door. China quickly went out to get it, and a mailman was standing behind the door. A distance away, there was a huge parcel.
"你就是王耀先生吗？" asked the mailman.
"我就是他，" China replied.
"这是从美国寄的，" the mailman said.
Curious, China quickly went up to the parcel and untied it. Underneath the colourful wrappings, it was a cage with two bison inside. There was a note attached to the cage itself, which China took out to read.
Hey Wang Yao
People's Republic of China
Thanks for the swell time you gave me! Japan told me that I should be giving you a present in return, so these two are my gifts to you. Bet you can't find those in China! Your pandas are doing great with my whale and Tony, but they won't eat anything. Can you tell what they would eat?
From the most awesome country, Alfred F. Jones
United States of America
By then, Enlai and his wife had also come out to see the two bison China received.
"I believe this marks a new era in international relations," Enlai remarked.
"That so…" China remarked, "That so…"
The trip itself was brief, but it was the first step to international policies. Soon, China would replace Taiwan's place in the UN and China grew into the modern superpower it always had the potential for.
Translations
Lon chi – Vietnamese for big sister (in reference to North Vietnam)
有趣的家伙 – What an interesting fella
Em gai – Vietnamese for little sister (referring to South Vietnam)
"你就是王耀先生吗？" - Are you Mr. Wang Yao?
"我就是他，" - Yes, I am.
"这是从美国寄的，" – This is delivered from the United States