"Ah sneeze......" Qi Rui sneezed a little, rubbed his nose, and then said to the military postman who delivered the letter, "Thank you!" ”

When the postman saw that Qi Rui had signed the receipt with his name and the date of receipt on November 13, 1889, he accepted the receipt, said "goodbye", and hurried to the next office. Qi Rui rubbed his nose again and rubbed his hands. Portland has a Mediterranean climate, with some hot summers and warm, humid winters. However, compared with Nanjing, it is not warm enough.

Heading into November, it's been raining in the Portland area. This place is not in China for a month or two, and it is still a long way from the general level of Chinese cities. For example, Qi Rui hasn't used the heating of his father Wei Ze's house for several years, there is rain outside, and the heating in the house exudes heat, and there is no smell from burning coal or firewood for heating, and he still misses that kind of thing very much.

In front of Qi Rui were two mails, a telegram and a letter. The telegram was taken by his mother, Qi Rui opened it and saw that there were six words written on it, the second brother went to work in East Africa. This is what the civil telegraph looks like, the money is calculated by the number of words, and there is a limit on the number of words. The education department of the Republic of China added a telegraph writing course to junior and senior high schools with practical guidelines. The wisdom of the people is endless, and the popularization of the telegraph gave birth to the most famous joke "money is stupid and quick to come".

Of course, Qi Rui knew that his mother was not a joker. The second brother goes to work in East Africa, which on the surface is a normal introduction to family changes, but in fact it is a warning to Qi Rui. Qi Rui was born on January 1, 1862, and he turned 28 a little more than a month later. Qi Rui knew very well what his mother Qi Hong was worried about, and Qi Rui knew very well what his mother Qi Hong wanted to say. So Qi Rui only felt bored for a while.

Daddy Wei Ze is a person who has insight into things and distinguishes right from wrong in Qi Rui's eyes, if Wei Kun is working in East Africa and then overrides Qi Rui, Qi Rui will feel extremely funny. There were too many official duties that annoyed Qi Rui, so Qi Rui threw his mother's telegram aside in an instant, he really didn't want to add some meaningless troubles to himself. The sender of the unopened envelope was Chu Xue, and Qi Rui pressed his finger on the unopened letter, and he was a little hesitant.

Every time he read Chu Xue's letter, Qi Rui felt an indescribable emotion, reading the content of the letter word by word, feeling some kind of communication with Chu Xue, he was very comfortable. Qi Rui was in a good mood when he read the letter, and every time after reading the letter, Qi Rui would clearly realize the fact that he had no way to be with Chu Xue. At such a time, Qi Rui would clearly recall the words of his father Wei Ze.

"You know I have a lot of power, I have a lot of influence. As your father, I am willing to help you. I can go to his house to propose, not to mention that Chu Xue is not married now, even if I get the certificate, I can change this fact. As long as you sincerely ask me for this, I will help you. ”

Qi Rui once thought that his father's behavior was a gross interference in love, and even a blasphemy of feelings. Now Qi Rui often can't help but think about how good it would have been if he honestly bowed his head to his father and pleaded at that time. This time is no exception, the regret for the past made Qi Rui go through such a round of introspection and regret in his heart again. Then Qi Rui smiled bitterly, he found that he had really changed.

It looks like I'm getting old! Qi Rui's heart came up with a thought unique to young people. In other words, he didn't believe it himself, but he couldn't help but use this reason to explain the problem he faced. When the idea of "I love you" was replaced by the desire to "want to be with you", Qi Rui, who had no emotional experience, was at a loss.

And a very realistic thing is in front of Qi Rui, after reading Chu Xue's letter, Qi Rui will feel unhappy in his heart, and Qi Rui's patience for this unhappiness is getting lower and lower. So his fingers slid lightly along the edge of the envelope, just not to tear it open. Then Qi Rui's eyes fell on his mother's telegram, and his thoughts involuntarily turned to the content of this telegram.

Mother Qi Hongyi was worried that Qi Rui's "inheritance advantage" would be taken away by Qi Rui's half-brother Wei Kun. Qi Rui is very curious, his father Wei Ze has not let his wife understand for so many years, doesn't he want to engage in bloodline inheritance at all? And Qi Rui, a person in his twenties, already understands this matter. If among the two qualified people, father Wei Ze will definitely choose his son Qi Rui, but if Qi Rui is an incompetent person, then he will never covet the pinnacle of power.

The country put the burden of training motorized infantry on Qi Rui's shoulders, which is a heavy and painstaking job, and it can even be said to be a job beyond Qi Rui's ability. Qi Rui knew very well that the knowledge he was showing now had been borrowed from his father Wei Ze, and there were so many outstanding talents among the people who worked with Qi Rui. Many comrades who are not good-looking and can't see what they have are have shown in their work are admirable abilities, which make Qi Rui feel ashamed. Therefore, Qi Rui's arrogance was dispelled, and the heavy work and excellent colleagues forced Qi Rui to learn to communicate with others comprehensively, cooperate with others, and share with others.

With such a cognition, Qi Rui no longer thinks that his younger brother Wei Kun is much worse than himself in terms of intelligence. Qi Rui believes that the biggest gap between himself and Wei Kun is that Qi Rui already has his own position, he is serving the system and serving the country. In the same way, this kind of effectiveness will be transformed into a high official and a rich reward after the achievement of the strategic level. If you have to describe it, Qi Rui just relied on his own sweat to float himself, and even if his younger brother Wei Kun could soar, he relied on the balloons that others had raised.

Therefore, Qi Rui's competitor is not his younger brother, but these outstanding young people around him. Qi Rui found that he didn't even think about how to complete the army-wide motorized infantry construction, he was able to complete the training course of the troops assembled in Portland at the moment, and he had already achieved a great feat on top of Qi Rui's ability.

Thinking of this, Qi Rui felt a sense of urgency in his heart. He put the telegram away, and he wanted to put the letter away. But I couldn't let go of the content of the letter in my heart.

"Maybe Chu Xue has something to ask me to help with?" Finding a reason for himself, Qi Rui finally opened the letter in a fairly calm mental posture and read it.

“…… A few days ago, I went to the rooftop restaurant for dinner, and I remembered you......" Just reading this sentence, Qi Rui felt sad in his heart, more than a year ago, after that meal, Qi Rui knew that Chu Xue was about to get married.

“…… I didn't expect the foreman of the restaurant to remember you, and he even remembered the meal I had with you at that time,...... "Qi Rui felt melancholy in his heart, I always remember you."

“…… The foreman came over with the newspaper and asked if it was you who came last time. That's when I realized that you were promoted to major general. Over the years, I feel like you've always been able to do what you want to do. Admitted to the Nanjing Army Academy, he made contributions in the war and was constantly promoted. Qi Rui, every time I see you, I feel that what you need should be a very stable and easy life, but you have been tirelessly pursuing those very difficult goals. I can't understand what you want to achieve, these goals that I can't even think of have been achieved by you one by one, I think you are amazing. And after the foreman confirmed that the person in the newspaper was indeed you, he gave me a discount so that I could also get your ......."

Looking at it, Qi Rui suddenly smiled, and then he hurriedly took out a handkerchief and wiped his eyes. While being amused by Chu Xue's "discounted and stained" thing, tears rolled down Qi Rui's eyes uncontrollably. It's not just a small discount, Qi Rui really wants to take Chu Xue's hand now and say that what he wants to share with Chu Xue is life, not only the life of the lieutenant colonel more than a year ago, including the colonel, colonel, and even the current major general who have experienced it for more than a year. There are also future lieutenant generals, admirals, generals, and possibly even marshals. There is also Qi Rui who is moving forward and has the opportunity to reach the peak of power in the Republic of China, what Qi Rui wants to share with Chu Xue is life, which is the future of the two of them......

Sweet and bitter feelings came up at the same time, making Qi Rui unable to read. He put the letter away, unwilling to read it again. Experience tells Qi Rui that if he continues to read, especially after reading all the content, he will irreversibly enter a state of heartache. It is better to stop in such a relaxed and joyful department, and wait until the mood is very low and needs to be comforted before reading the letter.

In addition to these psychological factors, Qi Rui's imminent departure to class is also the reason why he must put down the letter at this time. Qi Rui put the letter back in the envelope and carefully put it in the corner of a drawer. I got up and wiped my face a little, and then went to the teaching building. So Qi Rui didn't see the words on the last page of the letter, "...... Qi Rui, I still want a child after thinking about it. So you have to take care of yourself, and when you come back safely, you'll probably see that I'm a mother......"

Qi Rui didn't read the letter after class, and immediately after class, he was called to a meeting by the person in charge here, the vice principal of the Xinxiang Army Academy. The referendum in California has entered a critical moment, and the United States has suddenly sent a considerable number of cavalry into California. It seems that there is a plan to disrupt the California referendum, so a part of the motorized troops must go south, and the North American Theater Command has given an order, and Qi Rui himself must follow this part of the troops south. Even if there is a war, teaching cannot be slackened in the slightest.

So Qi Rui went back to the dormitory and took some clothes with him, and spent a lot of effort to classify the various teaching materials he wanted to take away. It wasn't until he jumped into the truck at the port, arrived at the port, and got on the boat, that he remembered that he hadn't finished reading the letter. However, Qi Rui felt relaxed, this time the action team Qi Rui was a "temporary business trip", and the dormitory and office were reserved for him, and no one would move. It's good not to read that letter now, but if you read it again in a few months, you probably will feel something else.

Shen Xin, the political commissar of the North American Command, breathed a sigh of relief after learning the news that the troops were successfully moving south, and North America in winter was not suitable for large-scale wars. The mountainous terrain was impassable for large troops, and the snow in the Great Lakes region was too thick for motorized troops, let alone men or horses. The war of 1889 was over, and it will only be more intense next year, in 1890. The Command hoped to be able to legally establish the West Coast as Chinese territory before the war began next year, and to annex the area west of the Mississippi River in 1890. In 1891 seized all of the areas west of the mountains of Alabachia. So a thorough cleansing of California is a very important job.

Shen Xin's eyes fell on the map of North America, the Liberation Army completed the campaign goal of destroying Chicago in 1889, and in 1890, the Liberation Army also had an extremely important campaign goal, that is, Pittsburgh. About half of the steel in the United States is produced in Pittsburgh, and a large portion of American machinery is manufactured in Pittsburgh. Destroying Pittsburgh is equivalent to destroying the industrial capacity of the United States, and losing the possibility of turning the tables around. If the Americans are willing to fight the Liberation Army with European-made rifles and artillery, let them do it. The motorized infantry of the Liberation Army of 1890 was destined to be stronger than the one of 1889, and it was good for the Yankees to prove it with their lives.

Just as Qi Rui stepped on the southbound steamer, Wei Kun also boarded a ship to East Africa at the port of Nanjing. Neither brother knew each other's itinerary, nor did they think much about each other. What is still in the minds of the two of them is the problem they are about to face, and the dilemma they are about to face. And both men think they can solve the problem and win.

The father of the two brothers, Wei Ze, still has a calm face, which makes it impossible to easily judge the leader's calculations. Of course, according to the system, the Republic of China did not engage in any secret politics. Weeser told the comrades directly about his plans.

In 1889, the preliminary work for the relocation of the capital was done, and in 1890, the relocation of the capital was officially launched. I will lead some units to Beijing in 1890, and twenty years have passed, and there will probably be very little left of the Husao in Beijing, if not completely eradicated, and the capital will probably be at its minimum. What I want to tell comrades is that the central authorities have not given up on the Yangtze River basin, still less have they intended to let the Pearl River valley and the South China Sea graze sheep. The relocation of the capital means that the central government should regard the development of the Yellow River basin as its main task while not relaxing the Pearl River and the Yangtze River. The north has also entered the stage of comprehensive planning and rapid development! This is harder work, don't slack off, and don't think you can herd sheep! ……”

“…… As for our war in North America, which is related to China's national fortunes for the next few hundred or even thousands of years, we must enter the war with the confidence of victory and win the war. At that time, in addition to celebrating our achievements, we are also likely to be rewarded, that is, the Chinese army will never have to fight abroad in the future, and we will only fight to defend our homeland! ……”

Since the Republic of China did not engage in secret politics, this kind of government report was naturally public. Foreign correspondents began to transmit the document to Europe as soon as they received it, and a dozen hours later, the Times published the first translation in full, and within 20 hours, dignitaries from various countries got the "Times" and began to read it, or received the translation of the Chinese language after the full text of the "Times".

The Minister of Commerce and Industry of the Kingdom of Portugal, John 61 Farrell, was sitting in the living room of his fiancée's house, holding a copy of The Times and reading it carefully. His fiancée was the daughter of the Foreign Secretary, so she politely kept silent and did not simply interrupt the Secretary of Commerce and Industry from reading. And the foreign secretary watched his son-in-law-to-be once again display the skill of "reading like no one reading under the gaze of a beautiful woman", and he was really unhappy in his heart. The Foreign Minister's wife, the future mother-in-law and senior sister of the Minister of Commerce and Industry, watched the Minister of Commerce and Industry's reading work with an expression of "the mother-in-law looks at her son-in-law, and the more she looks at it, the more she likes it."

Fortunately, the Secretary of State for Commerce and Industry, John 61 Farrell, read quickly, and before the Foreign Secretary could interrupt, he had already raised his head himself. The document was placed on a clip, so the price of the newspaper did not increase. This can be regarded as a manifestation of the fact that the Times itself is interesting enough to do business.

"The Chinese do not mention the war at all." John 61 Farrell said, "We must be careful, if the British are defeated, Angola is afraid that it will not be safe." ”

"Will they do it against us after the victory over the British?" The Foreign Secretary frowned and spoke. Much to the displeasure of the Minister of Commerce and Industry, John 61 Farrell, who showed the average level of government officials in the Kingdom of Portugal as a whole.

"All they have to do is send troops to wipe out the armed forces of our colonies. As for the declaration of war, they will not do that. They would have preferred that we, the Portuguese, would have declared war on them first. At that time, China will be able to take over Angola. John 61 Farrell explained.

The Foreign Secretary seemed to have failed to understand the Minister of Commerce and Industry's judgment for the time being, and he blinked his eyes with a confused expression. This forced the Minister of Commerce and Industry, John 61 Farrell, to explain to the Foreign Secretary the diplomatic means, "If China directly declares war on Portugal, it will only seize the Portuguese colonies." But if China had taken it away first and engaged in a diplomatic confrontation with Portugal, China would have been able to figure out who was supporting them and who was opposing them. And using Portugal as an introduction, they launched some of their diplomatic actions. After all, after China defeated the United States and substantially defeated Britain, it would encounter a diplomatic dilemma. ”

It's okay not to explain, this explanation, Portugal's foreign secretary is completely confused. Just when the Minister of Commerce and Industry, John 61 Farrell, did not know how to proceed, he listened to his mother-in-law-to-be smirk, and then said in a crisp voice: "The Chinese want to let a country like Portugal know that if they are enemies, there will be no good end, and even the wrong team will be in danger." But as long as it can abide by the new order set by China, China will probably still give these countries a way to live. John, didn't you say that before? ”

Listening to his mother-in-law's words, John 61 Farrell nodded repeatedly. He found himself really dazed, and in order to give the foreign secretary a lecture on diplomacy, he confused his own thoughts. China's goal is not to conquer the world, but to dominate it. But in the eyes of some Europeans, or rather in the eyes of a considerable number of Europeans. The Chinese will inevitably dominate the world with the same aggressive suppression of heretics as European countries.

Looking at the expression of his father-in-law-to-be, John 61 Farrell felt very sorry in his heart, these Europeans didn't understand. The Chinese do not have a state religion, and for a group of materialists or atheists, there is no such thing as a heretic.