.“ I'm fine, those conspirators' bullets don't like me at all! ”

When talking to Hoffman, Chen Tian always unconsciously chooses optimistic and funny language, and he never thinks about why this is the case. Now it seems that the atmosphere is indeed good, at least it does not feel oppressive.

This sentence really made Hoffman sweep away the gloom on his face.

"I heard that Rainey ......" At this point, Hoffman noticed that Chentian's face had darkened again.

"There is always a death!" Chentian said in a deep voice that although Rainey had such a huge secret, Chentian never thought of asking him to die in order to keep the secret. I remember that shortly after the death of Wilhelm II, an Austrian journalist discovered this shocking secret from the photos he took at that dinner, but he did not make the photos public, but demanded a huge amount of cover money from Chen Tian in a way that was akin to blackmail. Due to the stealthy and cunning of the other party's actions, Chentian's intelligence officers were never able to find him, at that time Rennie offered to put himself to death and declare himself to be a Japanese gap to avoid possible catastrophic consequences, but Chentian resolutely refused his request, and told him that "no matter what the future holds, we will fight side by side."

Eventually, Chen Tian transferred 50 million marks to the Austrian journalist's bank account in Switzerland, and the intelligence officers he sent continued to track down the man's whereabouts in extreme secrecy out of an abundance of caution, and secretly arrested him in the small Swiss city of Arbon two months later, and the crisis was completely resolved.

"Your Majesty, I really regret it! He was a very brave and loyal man, and I hope he will be happy in heaven! Hoffman comforted Chentian with this, even though they didn't know where heaven was.

Chen Tian was silent, and the two immediately mourned the deceased in silence for several minutes.

After a few minutes, Hoffman took the lead in changing his optimistic expression, "This guy is completely relieved, and now we are still fighting in this world!" ”

"So we have to be stronger and harder!" Chen Tian said in response.

When the frozen atmosphere dissolves, it is as if the sun is shining again after a long cloudy day.

"How's it been these days?" The mood was soothed. Chen Tian also turned the topic to business.

"It's worth the trip!" Hoffman replied in a rather satisfied tone, "Only when you see it in person do you know how different countries are!" ”

"Oh? Did you find that the Americans have a strong military potential, but a weak military strength? "What Chen Tian is talking about is the real situation in the United States before the two wars in another world.

Hoffman was not surprised by Chentian's accurate prediction: "Yes, Your Majesty, the intelligence is true! According to our preliminary assessment, it will take at least half a year for the Americans to complete the most basic preparations for war, and one to two years to fully enter the state of war! In other words, the country would be a terrible war machine when it was launched. But at the very beginning of the war, it was just a poor mouse! ”

"If our country and the United States go to war at this time, how sure do you think we are?" Chentian's bold words were only uttered by him and Hoffman within a radius of fifty meters, and if the Americans heard it, they would have been shocked into a cold sweat and began to rebuild their armaments.

"I don't dare to assert the situation of the navy, but the army only needs to dispatch a full-strength army group to sweep the entire United States in two months!" Hoffman said confidently, "First landing on the east coast of the United States, then sweeping across the continent, and then entering the Pacific Ocean to receive the American colonies, the whole process will take up to half a year!" ”

"What if I told you that our fleet was able to send the entire US Navy to the bottom of the sea without much effort?" Chen Tian asked again.

"That can only be a moment of silence for the Americans!" The more Hoffman spoke, the more excited he became, "It shows that our previous predictions were completely correct. The new Schlieffen project could well be another great success! ”

Chentian's face was far less excited than Hoffman's. He took two steps forward with his hands behind his back, "I've been wondering why the British lost to the American militia, who were so poorly equipped and trained. They can set fire to Washington. You can blockade American ports, you can even attack any city you want to attack, and finally you can flee back to your homeland in disgrace! ”

"Your Majesty!" Hoffman followed, "That was more than a hundred years ago!" The British had an unrivaled navy, but the army was not their strong point! Coupled with the limited logistical supply conditions at that time and the assistance of the French to the Americans behind their backs, Britain would have lost two wars between the United States and Great Britain! ”

"You're only partially right, the British Army has never been very good!" Chen Tian continued to walk forward as he spoke, "If the United States is geographically the same as France, or even the United Kingdom, then there will be no suspense about the war between our two countries!" But. Now that we are separated from the United States by a vast Atlantic Ocean, you know what worries me the most? ”

"What is it? Your Majesty! ”

"It's a submarine!" Chen Tian replied in the affirmative.

"Submarines?"

"Yes, submarines! The Americans have now had nearly 50 submarines in their navy, the most advanced of which is the K-type that has the ability to sail to the sea, and more types of ships are being developed, and the US government has set up a special naval submarine planning and budgeting department for this purpose! Although the Americans promised to announce the abandonment of the original naval expansion plan at this international naval conference, their naval leaders turned their attention to submarine hunters. They believe. The reason why the German Navy, which was inferior before the war, was able to defeat the British was due to the great contribution of new weapons such as aircraft carriers, aircraft, tanks, and submarines, and submarines were undoubtedly the best choice in terms of the geographical location and strategic situation of the United States.

"Why haven't you heard from the Admiralty before?" Hoffman was a little surprised, although he was from the army, his current identity had allowed him to learn more and more about the navy, of course, he did not have the ability to participate in naval discussions and planning, at best he was only a naval recruit.

"The report sent only before yesterday was jointly summarized by the Naval Intelligence Department and the General Staff Department after a detailed study of the US Navy, and some of the information needs to be further verified!" Chen Tian could only tell Hoffman helplessly that although this era is not closed to information, the breadth and speed of transnational intelligence collection are still very limited, and many intelligence pieces have the defects of lag and inaccuracy.

"So it's possible for the Americans to engage in unrestricted submarine warfare?" Hoffman still seems to be aware of the significance and power of the "unrestricted submarine" battlefield.

"If the situation calls for it. I think the US Navy will do it! The current situation is that the United States is no longer far away from the threat of war, and powerful forces have emerged in Europe and Asia that can threaten the security of the United States, but no matter where the invaders come from, the vast Pacific and Atlantic Ocean are still their first and most important line of defense! Chen Tian stopped and turned to face Hoffman, "Is there an international naval conference, the Americans know that their surface ships are difficult to compete with the German Navy or the Japanese Navy, let alone the combined fleet of the two!" ”

I thought about it for a while. Hoffman offers his opinion:

"Your Majesty, our new Schlieffen plan is to attack the United States by land through Mexico and Canada, plus naval blockades and raids to reach the goal of the final defeat of the United States. Even without the surface blockade of the Navy, I think it would be no problem at all to defeat the Americans with the Army! If the Americans are ready to aggressively develop submarines, we will shift our strategic focus to a land offensive! ”

"Unless we can force the United States to surrender in a very short period of time, whether it is an attack on land or at sea, it depends on effective logistical supplies, and if supplies cannot be transported from the mainland to the Americas, will the Army be able to produce its own ammunition?" Chen Tian calmly asked Hoffman.

"Ground is true! Even if the war only lasts for a week, the consumption of all kinds of materials is amazing! Hoffmann had to admit what the Kaiser had said, even if Germany could co-opt Mexico and capture Canada as planned. The main supplies were also to be brought in from distant Germany proper. It is not practical to establish sufficient production bases or storage warehouses in Mexico or Canada.

Chen Tian further suggested other possibilities: "If Mexico is unwilling to cooperate with us, or if the United States enters the war when we attack Canada, then our navy will have to fight a naval battle first!" In the North Sea we were practically not threatened by British submarines. But it's hard to say on American's doorstep! A small negligence, an inconspicuous torpedo, we can lose a destroyer, or a battleship, or an aircraft carrier, and lose a battle, a campaign, or even a war! ”

Such a fierce prediction made Hoffman silent for a while, and it is no wonder that the factors of war are extremely complex, so the previous Schlieffen plan would be revised once a year or even every six months according to the actual situation, and by the time the war broke out, it had been revised no less than ten times in total!

Chen Tian patted Hoffman on the right shoulder. It seems that this genius staff officer needs to make some important corrections to his battle plan.

As it got dark, Chen Tian and Hoffman walked back to the villa side by side. There were six people at dinner, Lisa, Pol, and Hoffman were regulars, and three new faces were U.S. Secretary of State Ryan, U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Tim Brown, and U.S. Chief of Police Matt Wood.

"Your Majesty the Emperor and Your Majesty the Empress, please allow me to make this toast, wish the friendship between our two countries to be eternal, and hope that we can cooperate happily in the upcoming naval conference!" Ryan raised his wine glass, and Brown, who was full of silver hair, and Wood, who was a little bald, followed suit.

After listening to the translator's translation beside him, Chen Tian picked up the wine glass unhurriedly. However, he did not believe that there was an "eternal friendship" between countries, nor did he believe that there would be real cooperation between the two countries at the naval conference.

"Thank you for your friendly hospitality, it made me feel at home!" Chen Tian said this in a cold and sarcastic tone, and what happened yesterday made him deeply appreciate the "hospitality" of the Americans, and also made him more determined to fight a transoceanic war.

The three Americans were smiling as if they weren't on the planet yesterday.

Lisa raised her glass with pride on her face.

Bol raised his glass with disdain on his face.

Hoffman raised his glass with contempt on his face.

"Cheers!"

After sitting down again, Ryan glanced at Wood, and the slightly bald guy stood up.

"Your Majesty, please accept my sincerest apologies, I am deeply ashamed of the mistakes of the New York Police Department!"

Blunder?

Chen Tian sneered in his heart, I am afraid that giving Americans a hundred more chances will still be the same result, and that can only be attributed to the incompetence of some people. What puzzled him even more was that most of the police chiefs in his impression were bald, and even the current Berlin police chief was no exception. Is it possible that people are prone to losing their hair as soon as they sit in the seat of the police chief?

Chen Tian did not accept Wood's apology, but only gave him a small step:

"Gentlemen, let us stand and observe a moment of silence for those brave men who have died!"

There was a three-minute silence as usual, after which Wood sat down in a daze.

Then Speaker Brown spoke, "Your Majesty the Emperor, it is my honor to inform you and Madame that we have decided to confer upon two honorary citizens of the United States. This means that the United States will become your second home! The United States will open its doors to welcome you at any time in the future! ”

There is no prevarication. Chentian and Lisa politely accepted the title, but in Chentian's view, it would be a great irony for the U.S. government to become an enemy of the people with the title of honorary citizen.

Brown sat down happily, and then Chentian motioned for the squire next to him to start dinner.

Chentian's imperial chef seemed to have quickly adapted to the new kitchen here, and every dish on the table suited his appetite, and his mood changed, and he focused his attention on the plate with very little breakfast and lunch. However, the Americans don't seem to have come to eat, and Ryan has clearly become the protagonist of the table.

"I heard from Director Wood when I came here. Yesterday in New York he assassinated a gang organized by the British. These people usually do some bad things such as killing people and setting fires, but I didn't expect that now they dare to attack our German guests, and this time they must all be cleaned up! Ryan had a knife and fork in his hand, and cursed the assassins with an angry face.

"That's right. It's a gangster organization called the British Free Army! Wood hurriedly added.

"The Free Army of Britain? Interesting! Chen Tian stopped the knife and fork in his hand. The ancients said that there must be brave men under heavy rewards. Now that the Americans are under heavy pressure, it seems that it is not a problem to find the murderer in three days, and it seems that it has something to do with the Edward government in exile in Canada.

"These Englishmen are thinking about revenge and revenge all day long. It's just a bunch of guys who don't know the sky! Ryan was still indignant, as we all know that the US government is inextricably linked with the British government-in-exile, and before the German delegation visited, the US secretary of state made a special trip to Ottawa and personally held talks with British Prime Minister Lloyd and others. After several days of bargaining, the British finally agreed not to carry out any assassination of the German representatives during this international naval conference, and the US government would provide them with a significant amount of money and weapons assistance. Although it was not known at this time whether it was the British government-in-exile or not. But Ryan had already scolded those restless and self-conscious guys a thousand times in his heart.

"That's it!" Wood echoed from the sidelines, "We've wanted to clean them up for a long time, a bunch of garbage, scum!" ”

"Caught a suspect?" Chen Tian asked expressionlessly.

Hearing this, Wood was a little nervous, and he almost choked on a piece of meat.

"Not yet, but I think there will be results soon. Right, our Mr. Chief of Police! Ryan gave the incompetent guy a blank look, and helped him out of the way.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Wood can only even claim yes. "There should be results tomorrow!"

"Hmmm! I'm looking forward to seeing how your country's police department performs! Chen Tian said this, but in his heart he wanted to watch the good show of the Americans, of course, what he wanted most now was to enjoy a good dinner.

"Your Majesty, Your Excellency Marshal, before I come, the Minister of the Navy asked you a question about the number that our two countries had previously agreed upon...... Your country will not change again! Ryan's question contains what the naval delegations would most like to know. And he immediately received an affirmative reply from the Kaiser:

"Of course, this figure is well thought out and can ensure the balance of power among countries and even world peace, and if there are no accidents, the results of the conference will not be too far from this figure!"

"That's good! That's good! Ryan said twice that he had not let the Admiralty generals come with him to-day, in order to keep the Germans from being overly sensitive to the issue, and it seemed wise to do so now.

Field Marshal Pol sat in his place and did not speak, and there were no American admirals present, which gave him the feeling that he could not find an opponent.

As for Hoffman, he was even more immersed in the food, and he had no interest in the hypocritical conversation here, he had to recharge his body with energy, and then devote his energy to unfinished reports and plans. For such a middle-aged staff officer, his greatest goal would be to draw up a great strategic plan that bears his name, and to be as famous as Count Schlieffen.

Of course, Hofmann is not alone in the new Schlieffen project at the moment, and his fame may be in the future.

"I seem to have met this General Hoffman before, in ......," Speaker Brown interjected suddenly, followed by a look of bitter reminiscence. When they introduced each other before dinner, he didn't look at the seemingly ordinary German general.

Hoffman looked up at him, and it was true that he had seen Speaker Brown during a visit to a vehicle engine manufacturing plant in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., but he did not know Brown's identity at the time, and Brown did not speak to them and quickly drove away. As for why the dignified speaker of the US House of Representatives appeared there, Hoffman is a little curious now.

"That's right, it's at an engine manufacturing branch of Ford Motor Company, the one in the northern suburbs of Washington!" Brown also remembered, and he said happily: "Our Brown family has some shares in Ford Motors, so I sometimes go down there as well!" ”

"Yes, Ford Motor Company is very good, the size and technology are better than our Daimler!" Hoffman said and gave Chen Tian a meaningful look - the advantage of the American auto industry is also part of the country's vast war potential.