The so-called person who will come tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, Antonio knows very well, it is the German delegation, which on the surface is mainly business, but in fact Sickert will come in person.

Contini had a tacit agreement with Sickert last year, promising that Germany could not only send its armaments to Italy for development, but also send non-commissioned officers to Italy for training. Judging from the situation of the first year of operation, Sickert was still very satisfied: German engineers used Italian funds and Italian artillery and tank training to help the United Group rebuild 12 majestic train guns, accumulating rich experience.

After the construction of the Italian Army obtained half of them, the United Group left two, the other three were exported to Turkey and Bulgaria, and one was originally intended to be disposed of according to the army's scrap steel to Zhang Dashuai, but Yang Yuting and others did not know the goods, thinking that it was too expensive, and the power was excessive, and it was better to buy a few more 105mm howitzers with this money, so it was finally included in the category of the Volunteers - but the Volunteers with more than 3,000 people actually had 3 train guns and 2 305mm naval guns guarding the gate at the base, In addition, there are more than 20 76mm rapid-fire guns, which are deformed no matter how you look at the formation, but this is not difficult for Contini, he can use the Club of Rome to recruit trainers.

So the German side sent the first batch of artillery non-commissioned officers - leaving the domestic Krupp not to learn, all of them came to Italy to toss naval guns.

In addition, the German side opened a submarine manufacturing base at the United Shipyard to prepare for the study of a new generation of submarines - this news was not hidden from the Italian Navy, they were equally interested, and the two sides hit it off. As a result, United Power has a new goal, to produce and imitate the diesel engine of MAN company, and is ready to go all out to open the diesel engine technology tree.

According to Contini, diesel engines are valuable: trucks are useful, submarines and other surface ships are useful, tanks are also useful, and they are highly efficient. The reason why Germany used gasoline engine tanks in World War II was because the supply of diesel fuel could not keep up at all - coal-fired oil could be turned into gasoline, but it could not produce diesel, and Germany's limited diesel fuel could only be used for submarine forces, and it could no longer supply army armored forces at all. But what if there is United Oil? The path is subject to change, but it also offers a wealth of possibilities. At the very least, the entry point of the joint automobile established in cooperation with General Motors is trucks and buses, which happen to be the effective application areas of diesel engines.

He explained to Antonio: "Going to North Africa to fight against bandits, on the one hand, you can maintain law and order, on the other hand, you can also accumulate experience in actual combat and new weapons verification, I think Libya and Algeria are good, they are a good training base, I think it should not be a problem to put a team of 1,000 German officers with 5,000 Italian officers and soldiers, the name is very unpleasant - it can only be called the African Oil Guard, but the types are complete, the army's rapid troops, the air force and paratroopers, and the navy will have them." ”

Both the army and the air force Antonio can understand that in order to track down the tribal forces that come and go without a trace, the army and the air force need to cooperate, but why is the navy used?

"Who knows if the British will hire Somali pirates against us? Be careful...... "Contini shrugged, "transporting supplies, landings, escorts all need the navy – no!" Coast Guard! In addition, the floating marine airport can also be used. ”

Well, the overbearing president is ready to release the Afrika Korps 15 years ahead of schedule.

Hearing this, Antonio suddenly remembered the unrecognizable Roma that had been transformed into a "bath ship", and snickered.

"One more thing, the Navy said hello to me, and next year they plan to dispose of the Dante to us, and then they are going to start construction of a second Caracciolo-class in 1927, and then leave a sum of money for the Navy's purchase of ships, and then the money for renovation - how about Dante dismantle the main armament and change it into a fast anti-smuggling boat?"

"A 20,000-ton fast anti-smuggling boat?" Antonio breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that the Dante wasn't going to be converted into a bath boat, but the word anti-smuggling boat made him frown again - what was it?

"Let's see, it's just an idea...... Contini didn't explain much: the 20,000-ton anti-smuggling boat can be hollowed out and transformed into an armored force transport ship, and this thing has a standard term - amphibious assault ship, and His Excellency the President is no longer satisfied with playing naval aviation, and is ready to reach out to the Marine Corps again.

"I don't think there's a problem with the introduction of German mercenaries on the whole, the key is the leader." Antonio whispered, "Now we have more than 3,000 volunteers, more than 1,000 Roman guards, and then we are ready to mount 6,000 African oil guards, and the total strength will soon exceed 10,000...... If ......"

"Leader, I'm basically settled here." Contini made a gesture with his hand to count the bills, "Now the valuation of United Oil is 500 million, right?" The leader's stake has tripled! He has 60 million lira of United Petroleum original shares! When I came back from the Soviet Union that day, I reported to him what I had seen and heard, and finally he eagerly asked me if I wanted to sell my shares that had doubled, and I said that I would double it again...... He was a little skeptical at first, and he doesn't doubt it today...... He is now ready to rise to 300 million lira and make another move! In the end, can his shares rise to 300 million, and the oil guard has a great contribution, why should he oppose it? What's more, military cooperation with Germany is also the unanimous opinion of the top brass of the War Department and the Admiralty, and he is not alone in making his own decisions, so there is no need to worry! ”

This is what Antonio admires about Contini: although the young master is not serious many times, he has a big pattern, a big heart and courage, and is willing to spend a lot of money. Last year's 42 million order saved Hitler, although it seems to cost more money, but it closes and closes the relationship with the German military, otherwise how can mercenaries be so convenient? Mussolini was stunned with 60 million lire of raw shares before this year's trip, and now he is in the same boat. He is now constantly bringing in the power of foreign consortia and diluting the stake of the United Group in the United Oil, also hoping to have more power to check and balance the French government - it may not be difficult to deal with a United Group of French, but at the same time to deal with the world's most famous three or four oil companies, two or three of the banking giants, the French government also has to weigh the consequences of its own actions.

In fact, Sickert's visit was originally only to secretly see the development of armaments, and he did not expect personnel transportation at all, but as soon as Contini said the idea of "oil guards", he immediately became excited—more than 1,000 officers are a big opening, and he is now facing the problem of difficult personnel arrangement.

Last year, the Entente allowed the German Wehrmacht to expand its establishment to 125,000, an increase of 25,000 troops, and the army could be replenished by 20,000 troops, plus the men and horses lost in Munich needed to be replaced, and the army could absorb 21,000 more troops. But the last 3,000 people couldn't be cut down anyway - cutting any one of them was like a crime. Sickett racked his brains to accommodate the 3,000 men without breaking the Entente's rigid rules, and when he was suddenly told that he could absorb 1,000 people and hinted that more could be added, his brain immediately came alive.

"Can you arrange 1,500 people? You just pay by 1,000 people. ”

"Don't say 1500, 3000 can be ...... But not the first time, take your time. "I have countless eyes on me here, and I can only expand the army further if I really realize the seriousness of the situation in North Africa, because I am not the Minister of War." ”

"Listening to your tone, it seems that I wish Libya was as chaotic as possible."

Contini shrugged: "It's not something I can control...... According to credible information, the British are already inciting the Horde to fight, and we will soon have a storm. ”

Incitement to arms—to provide armaments—to encourage independence—to annex or incorporate into the protectorate is a consistent routine of Great Britain, and it has been the case for hundreds of years, and Contini is not afraid that the British will use these means to make trouble for him, he is worried that the British will go directly regardless of their appearance, and now that the intelligence has made it clear that they will not end up in person, then it will be much easier to deal with it.

"My logic is that you stuff all 1,500 people, I'll throw 1,000 people to Africa, and 500 people will continue training in Italy, and they can go to the Club of Rome as instructors - I'll cover all the costs......"

"What else are the conditions?"

"That friend of mine has been in prison for almost 2 years, you see, do you want him to breathe some free air? Like parole or early release around Christmas this year? ”

Sickert glanced at Contini angrily: "Now you know how to protect him?" Why didn't you think so much about helping him? The reason why he has suffered so much is largely due to you! ”

Contini spread his hands: "I've stressed it many times...... I'm just a knife seller, I didn't expect it to be such a big fuss. ”

"Put 2,000 people in prison before they are released!" Sickert held out 2 fingers.

"Deal!" Contini readily agreed, money is a small matter, and the thought of having 2,000 elite German officers almost made him laugh from ear to ear. In this kind of actual combat situation, you can still lead troops, and Sickert will definitely send the best officers, and the Germans still have this kind of integrity.

"What will you visit tomorrow?" I won't look at submarines and train guns. ”

"Three: rifles - one semi-automatic, one manual; machine gun - one light machine gun, one heavy machine gun; Airplane - a fighter with a 9-cylinder air-cooled engine that can take off on deck! ”

As soon as Sickert heard this, he became interested: "Very well, I will see tomorrow to see if your ability in selecting armaments is as outstanding as your ability to do business." ”

After settling Sickert, Contini frowned, and asked Goering and Goebbels to be called, and they were very happy to hear that Hitler would be released in a few months, and Goering was even more overjoyed.

"I've got an important task for you." Contini said in a serious tone, "We must do everything possible to cooperate with the Youth Union to use the three banners of the important ideological armed forces, to train activists, and to build branches at the company level!" ”