ps: The exam is coming soon, and the shift will be interrupted for three days.

The German Emperor Wilhelm I nodded in approval of Father Fabley's proposal to expand his overseas colonies, so some differences in the dealings with the Han government were quickly resolved.

On 12 July, German Chancellor Bismarck signed an agreement on the exchange of colonies between the two countries on behalf of German Huaki.

The main contents of the agreement are as follows:

The Han Kingdom transferred control of Cameroon's aluminum mines and affiliated colonial bases to the German Empire, recognizing the German Empire's claim to Cameroon's colonial sovereignty.

The Han Dynasty sold quinine and other drugs for the prevention and treatment of tropical diseases to the German Empire at a price 15 percent below the market price.

3. Germany recognized the Han government's occupation of the Congo, Kismayo and other African colonies, and allowed the Han emigrant fleet to use the German Empire's stronghold in Zanzibar for supplies.

Fourth, Germany handed over control of Zilu Island to the Han government, and the chamber of commerce bases in Samoa and Tonga were transferred to the Han Ocean Shipping Company, which was handed over two years later.

The contents of the four agreements were all within the bottom line set by Li Mingyuan, and the delay in the transfer of control of several German islands and strongholds in the Pacific Ocean was due to the imminent war of unification of Argentina.

Argentina is a white country in South America, and the direct annexation of Argentina may lead to hostility to the Han state by some Western countries, so the postponement of the reception of several islands and strongholds in the Pacific Ocean is beneficial to the future development of the Han state.

After signing the colonial exchange agreement, Hu Yaqi stayed in Germany for a few days, then left Germany to join Li Han and others, who received the warships, and left the European continent on 19 July.

After sailing at sea for more than 10 days, on July 30, facing the hot sea breeze, Hu Yaki and Li Han arrived at Kismayo, a colonial stronghold established by the Han State in Somalia.

It had been two years since the end of the war between the Chinese forces in Kismayo and the Italian colonists, but as they disembarked from the warship and walked to the port on the coast, Huyaki and Li Han could still see the traces of the war.

"Battalion Commander Cai, two years ago, you defeated the attacking Italian army with this castle?"

Li Han asked, pointing to a low and humble castle in front of him.

"To be honest, when the Italians were at war, Kismayo's fortifications were even more rudimentary than they are now."

Cai Jiu, the commander of the Kismayo stronghold, approached the castle and explained in the direction of the city gate, "General Li, please see, the yellow part of the city wall above the castle was newly added after the war, before the war, the castle of the Kismayo stronghold was less than five meters high, 200 meters in circumference, 50 meters wide, and could accommodate no more than 400 people.

At that time, the Italian army sent several mountain cannons to bombard the castle, and the western wall of the castle collapsed a hole more than three meters wide, and it was the subordinate who personally led a group of militia to surround the gap, so as to resist the Italian army outside the castle, otherwise Kismayo was likely to fall into the hands of the Italians on the first day of the battle. ”

"I remember that two years ago, there were only a few dozen regular soldiers in Kismayo, and the militia and adult Chinese men combined were only two or three hundred, and it was not easy for Battalion Commander Cai to defeat the Italian colonial army with these people."

"There are a lot of difficulties." Cai Jiu led everyone towards the castle and said, "However, after the first day of the Italian attack, the subordinates quickly found that the Italian colonial army was not as difficult to deal with as imagined, they attacked the castle by artillery bombardment, and then a wave of infantry impact two-handed tricks, and when the artillery bombardment and infantry attack failed, the threat of the Italian colonial army to the castle was reduced by half." ”

"Hehe, at that time, Battalion Commander Cai found out that the Italian colonial army was useless?" Li Han asked with a smile.

"The Italians still had momentum in their first attack, but after the failure of the first day of attacking the castle, their morale declined quickly, and the troops' sense of precaution was insufficient, and they were finally defeated by the militia in the castle who led them out of the city at night."

Although he defeated the Italians, Cai Jiu did not completely despise them, and as a region bordering the Italian colonial powers, Cai Jiu paid more attention to gathering intelligence about the Italian side.

"Two lords, according to the information obtained by the subordinates, the Italians have been increasing their forces in Africa in the past two years, and now the number of colonial troops in the Marka stronghold alone is more than 700 people, and the subordinates believe that the Italians are very likely to annex central and southern Somalia in the next three or four years, so we need to take precautions in advance against the ambitions of the Italians."

"Kismayo is far from home, and the Royal Navy can't help you much, so if you want to hold the Han colonial stronghold in Somalia, you still have to rely on your efforts."

Li Han said a word, turned his head to Hu Yaji and said, "Lord Hu, the Africa Department is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs must have made suitable arrangements for Kismayo's support. ”

"It's not that this official shirks his responsibilities and is unwilling to help the brothers in the Kismayo base, but it is true that although the Africa Department is affiliated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the actual management work is directly under the responsibility of Lord Huang, the director of the Africa Department, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has no authority to meddle in the internal affairs of the Africa Department.

Therefore, if Battalion Commander Cai wants to continue to receive support, he still has to apply to Director Huang, but the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is not suitable for overstepping management. ”

Hu Yaqi politely rejected Cai Jiu's request, and continued, "On the way to Europe to receive warships, the fleet brought six gunboats and seventy sailors to support Kismayo, and the defense capability of Kismayo's stronghold should be greatly improved compared to before."

Battalion Commander Cai doesn't need to worry too much about the situation in Kismayo, His Majesty has already personally seen the report submitted by the Africa Division last time, and I believe that it won't be long before another batch of supplies and troops to support Kismayo will arrive soon. ”

"It's because I'm anxious, and I want to thank Master Hu for solving my doubts." Cai Jiu arched his hand at Hu Yaji and thanked him.

"It's okay, I've been at sea for more than ten days, and my body and bones are a little tired, so let's go and rest first."

Hu Yaji smiled and walked into the castle hall with Li Han and the others.

The next day, after a night's sleep in the Kismayo stronghold, Huyaki was woken up by a voice outside the door before he could get up.

"My lord, this is a telegram from China, please read it."

After tidying up his clothes, Hu Yaji took the telegram handed by the guards, read it carefully for five or six minutes, and then ordered, "Tell General Li and Battalion Commander Cai that there is an order from the country, let them wait in the castle hall, and I will be there later." ”

"Yes, sir." ………

The morning dawns early in Kismayo, and the temperature in the castle is hot at seven o'clock in the morning.

"Battalion Commander Cai, let me tell you a good news, the two gunboats and a hundred regular troops of the Wehrmay will be able to arrive in half a month after the domestic reinforcement of Kismayo, and His Majesty personally approved the expansion of Kismayo Castle, and the task of building the castle is in charge of the Chinese immigrants from the mainland transported by the ocean-going fleet, and after completing the task of building the castle, the immigrants will be placed in Kismayo as a reserve militia force for the Kismayo stronghold.

Hehe, Battalion Commander Cai's fear of insufficient troops can be solved, and now you don't have to worry about the threat of the Italians anymore. ”

Hu Yaqi said with a smile.

"How many weapons and ammunition supplies?"

Cai Jiu couldn't wait to ask.

"300 Wehrmacht standard rifles, 800 old rifles, five Gatling machine guns, three 75-mm field guns, 100,000 rounds of ammunition for matching rifles, 10,000 rounds of ammunition for machine guns, and 300 rounds of field artillery shells."

Hu Yaqi read the telegram aloud, and then smiled, "Well, Your Majesty didn't treat the troops of the Kismayo stronghold badly. ”

"No, no, Your Majesty's support for Kismayo is very timely, and with the reinforcements and material resources sent by Your Majesty, my post guarantees that Kismayo will be firmly controlled by the Wehrmacht."

Cai Jiu said happily.

"Don't worry, Camp Commander Cai, Your Majesty has given Kismayo so much support, there will definitely be a time when you can exert your ability." Hu Yaji reminded the other party meaningfully, then skipped the incident and introduced another thing in the telegram to the two of them.

"Both, Your Majesty has agreed to marry the daughter of the lord of Songkhla as the queen, and now the fleet escorting the future queen has just set off, we need to stay in Kismayo for a while, and wait until we join the fleet escorting Miss Wu before returning to the country."

After preaching the contents of the telegram, Hu Yaqi said seriously: "The safety of the future queen is very important to Your Majesty, so I think we can't just stay in Kismayo and wait for the escort fleet to arrive, we should send a detachment to meet the escort fleet to ensure the safety of the future queen, what do you think?" ”

"As it should be." Li Han nodded and said, "The two 3,200-ton cruisers received from France are performing well, and I suggest that I personally lead the two ironclad ships to sail to escort the convoy, and Lord Hu and Battalion Commander Cai will stay behind in Kismayo to wait for news." ”

"I am familiar with the situation in the waters near the Indian Ocean to the South Sea, why don't you accompany General Li to the escort fleet, what do you think of the two adults?"

"Yes, I agree with Camp Commander Cai." Li Han made a decisive decision and arranged, "Lord Hu, the Chaoyang and the Dawn will stay in Kismayo, the deputy commander of the Second Fleet will assist you in defending Kismayo, and Lord Hu can stay in the stronghold with peace of mind, and after we meet with the escort fleet, we will rush back to join Master Hu immediately." ”

"Hu doesn't know anything about military affairs, so I'll ask the two of you." Hu Yaji arched his hand at the two and agreed to their suggestion.