In Hopkins' small, slightly backlit office, John met the legendary "shadow president" for the first time. The long face, the brain gate, and thin lips are somewhat pale, the dark circles under the eyes are heavy, and the face is unhealthy grayish-white. The Hopkins person is thinner than the photo, fluttering in a gray shirt that resembles a scarecrow.

"Hello, Colonel Vanderbilt. I've finally got you here. Although it is difficult to hide the fatigue on his body, Hopkins's slightly feminine eyes are still sharp and full of life. He churned his lips, which were increasingly crooked towards the lower left corner, and greeted John warmly.

"Hello, Mr. Hopkins." John gave a military salute to his "new boss."

"Sit down." Hopkins walked out from behind his desk and sat down with John on the couch. Perhaps noticing John's oversized shirt, Hopkins explained with a smile: "When people get older, they always forget things." I left my shirt at the embassy on my departure from London and had to cheat a few at Stalin's. ”

"It looks like the quality is not bad. The textile industry of the Russians is also not as bad as the legend says. ”。

"We know too little about the Russians, and a lot of it is just hearsay." Hopkins is clearly sentimental about the topic: "I walked around Moscow this time and saw a lot of unexpected situations. John, those Russians will blow your mind. ”

"Mr. Hopkins, how is the situation in Russia now?" John took the initiative to turn the conversation to the Soviet-German war situation, which he was more concerned about.

"The Russians can withstand it. Of course it's a desperate thing, so they need help. "When I flew from Arkhangelsk to Moscow (Hopkins secretly arrived in Arkhangelsk in the Soviet Union via northern Europe in a British Catalina patrol bomber, and then to Moscow) for several hours, there was green forest and brown swamps below, and there was not a single village in sight from one side to the other. Russia is too big, and although Hitler has bitten a big bite this time, they still have enough capital. ”

"Strategic depth is indeed a great advantage for the Russians, but it is not enough, Mr. Hopkins."

"Yes, but John, what do you think Stalin is most anxious to ask us for?"

"Airplanes." Without thinking about it, John immediately replied: "A lot of planes. Just like the British called out last year. ”

"It's aluminum, the aluminium that is used to make airplanes. They are carrying out an amazing plan to produce from 1800 to 2200 hundred aircraft of various types per month. Hopkins made an exaggerated gesture: "Stalin told me that as long as there was enough aluminum, he was confident that in 1942 he would allow Russia to surpass Germany in air power." ”

"That's not really good news for me." If the Soviets only wanted aluminum and didn't want airplanes, how could John make money.

Hopkins laughed, he certainly knew what a big capitalist like John thought. It is clearly in their interest to export industrial products than to export raw materials. "Don't worry, John. We'll have a way to make the Russians like our planes. ”

"Well, let's not talk about the Russians. I've said enough in the media lately (Hopkins has been fighting with the right-wing media lately over aid to the Soviet Union). Let's talk about the next few days. "After a few brief exchanges on the situation in the Soviet Union, Hopkins finally got to the point." I think Chief of Staff Marshall must have explained some of this to you. The President will have a secret meeting with Prime Minister Churchill on the 8th, and we have a lot of work to do before that. ”

"What do you need me to do, Mr. Hopkins?" John pulled out his notebook. Unlike the previous two expeditions, this time he will really step onto the international diplomatic stage, and there is a lot to learn.

"There's a lot that needs to be done for you. But before we do that, we must first clarify the objectives of this meeting. Churchill was not an easy person to negotiate with, and you should know something about him if you have been in contact with him before. Hopkins took off his reading glasses and wiped them as he asked, "What do you think he wants from us this time by risking a German submarine attack?" ”

"First of all, of course, urging us to declare war on Germany immediately." Without hesitation, John replied, "I reckon he knows it's unlikely." But he's sure to take it out and dwell on us, because it will pave the way for their other demands. ”

"That's right." Hopkins was pleased with John's political sense and nodded appreciatively, "Then what could be their real purpose?" ”

"I think they might ask the United States to give a clear warning to the Axis powers. Especially for Japan, whose empire is so fragile at this point, needs such a warning to hold it up. They had to come up with something to convince Japan that any dangerous move against their Far Eastern colonies could lead to war with us. John pondered for a moment and gave his guess: "There is also the demand that we increase our assistance to support their war in Egypt and the Middle East." Because if Hitler had intervened there and blocked the canal, Britain would have suffocated. They will even ask us to make a clear promise that they will receive aid first than the Russians. ”

"Do you think we might be able to promise them?" Hopkins asked rhetorically.

"I'm afraid not." John carefully recalls the eight-point consensus of the Atlantic Charter, and it seems that there is no such thing in it.

"Yes, no. The current domestic public opinion does not allow us to make any clear statement on the issue of going to war, neither to Germany nor to Japan. Even if the president wanted to, he couldn't. What's more, neither the president nor the generals think it's a good time to go to war. As for the priority of aid, it should be clear to John that the war between the British in the Middle East and the Russian one is now going on is not at all comparable. ”

"How big is the fighting in the Middle East, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands? And in Russia, the scale of the war there is simply unimaginable. Millions of people fought on several battlefields, John. At least seven million, perhaps more. Hopkins stretched out his emaciated finger and slowly uttered the number: "The Russians are still being beaten, but they are not afraid, they are going to drive the Germans out." This is the war now. This is where supplies should go now. ”

"I understand that the battle in Russia is the key to the war. If Hitler had won, he would have been able to dominate the world. If he is defeated, then Germany is not far from the end, and even if the Japanese act, it will be useful. John agreed with Hopkins, or Roosevelt.

Hopkins was also pleased to be able to agree with John on this issue so easily. Before the meeting, his greatest fear was that John would oppose increased aid to the Soviet Union because of his ties with the British, or because of the capitalists' natural rejection of the Red regime.

"But I have one more question. In this case, is there any point in this meeting? That's what John really wanted to ask. He saw it when he had dinner with Crawford at noon. There could only be one reason for Marshall's personality to keep him silent about Hopkins' outrageous actions on military strategy issues. That is, Hopkins' view is favorable for the Army. And it is very likely to be related to the dispute between the army and navy over Europe or Asia.

Only then will Churchill hold his nose and finally sign the Atlantic Charter. However, it seems that the Charter does not make this clear. How did Roosevelt make Churchill, the "bulldog", succumb?