Between the blue sea and blue sky, a milky white four-engine plane made a smooth and fast long-distance flight. In 1942, this large passenger aircraft made in Ireland was considered the world's best transoceanic aircraft, thanks to the monolithically pressurized cabin, which could also carry out high-speed cruising at an altitude of 10,000 meters if necessary.www.biquge.info

When the plane crossed the Atlantic Ocean at a speed of more than 400 kilometers per hour, some of the passengers sitting in the cabin were closing their eyes and recuperating, and some were reading books and newspapers, and in the compartment near the bow, an officer in the uniform of the Irish Army introduced to the old man at the folding table in a deep voice: "These are the photographs secretly taken by German intelligence officers in the desert area of Tennessee. According to the investigation, two indigenous tribes living within a radius of 100 miles had been forcibly relocated, and the construction of these facilities began in late 1941, based on the time of their relocation! ”

Irish Prime Minister Patrick Pearce, who is in his sixties, did not show fatigue at the beginning of this long journey, staring at the black-and-white photographs with great intent: "Spending hundreds of millions of dollars just to make a superbomb? Forgive me for my shallowness of knowledge and difficulty in understanding its value and prospects. ”

The officer replied: "We have consulted the physicists at the University of Limerick on this subject, and their opinion is basically the same as the information we have received from the Germans: this bomb can be called the modern 'Pandora's box', which, if developed, will change the laws of war that have been followed for thousands of years." ”

Pierce nodded slightly: "Hmm...... Otherwise, His Majesty would not have sent me to visit the United States and try to get the Americans to accept our cooperation on this project...... However, I still have a question, it is said that Germany's military scientific and technological strength is second to none, do they not realize the extraordinary nature of this weapon technology? ”

"As far as I know, the Kaiser Wilhelm Society's Institute of Physics proposed a theoretical framework for the development of this superweapon more than ten years ago and recommended it to the German military, but the German military reacted lukewarmly, perhaps they were not willing to invest a huge amount of money in a weapon project that they could not understand!"

Pierce pouted and smiled: "The vision of the German military is indeed far inferior to that of our majesty!" In that case, let's talk to the Americans to see if we can achieve a happy outcome for all. ”

As summer approached, at the invitation of the U.S. government, Irish Prime Minister Patrick Pierce came across the ocean with a delegation to pay a state visit to the United States. During the 11-day visit to the United States, the Irish traveled to Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, New York, Boston, San Francisco, Los Angeles and other representative cities and ports. As I have seen countless times in newspapers and video materials, just four years after the end of the war, the United States has recovered with astonishing vitality, and cities full of modernity have regained their brilliance......

Whether it was the East Coast, which was once attacked by the Western Allies, or the West Coast, which was once intimidated by the Japanese army, whether in the cities or in the countryside, the fear and depression caused by the war have quietly disappeared. War, the most feared and inescapable thing of mankind, has brought unprecedented prosperity to the country. Out of the need for large-scale assistance to Soviet Russia and the strengthening of its Asia-Pacific strongholds, the modern assembly lines of many factories in the United States are producing all kinds of military materials day and night, and a large number of guns and ammunition, airplanes and combat vehicles, and canned food are constantly leaving the production line.

During the Irish Prime Minister's visit to the United States, the major newspapers and periodicals put aside their attention on the Soviet-Japanese war for the time being, and followed up on every move of the Irish delegation -- although the elderly Irish Prime Minister did not have cordial conversations with American workers and soldiers, did not visit the widows of the war in welfare homes, and did not even watch the traditional Broadway performances with the people, but after a short period of more than a week, There has been an optimistic discussion about the possibility of closer military cooperation between the United States and Ireland.

The last dinner before the departure was personally hosted by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt, which was attended by US military and political dignitaries, celebrities, and diplomats from various countries in the United States. As host, Roosevelt opened with a wistful speech praising the development of relations between the United States and Ireland, calling the first visit of the Irish head of government to the United States since 1927 a diplomatic event of "extraordinary significance."

Roosevelt's praise did not discourage Pierce, who was well aware that the United States had quickly emerged from the trough of losing the war, and had even entered a period of rapid post-war development -- the resilience of the American economy was due on the one hand to its abundant natural resources, including its population base and educational base, and on the other hand, the sanctions imposed on Japan by Europe and the United States, which led to a significant increase in trade between European countries and the United States.

In his subsequent speech, Pierce praised the Americans' tenacity in the wartime and their indomitable spirit after losing the war, and suggested that the Americans should resolutely defend the great power position that they had gradually built up in the Pacific over the past century.

Both leaders responded with enthusiastic applause, but both sides knew how much of these words were empty and how much was counter-talking. During the dinner, Roosevelt casually asked Pierce about the progress of Ireland's development of rockets and jet aircraft, to which Pierce replied: "There is no doubt that rocket technology will usher in a whole new era, imagine that we can sit in Limerick and press a button, those rockets with a whole ton of high explosives will be able to fly thousands of kilometers, we will no longer be bothered by the death or capture of pilots, and the cost of rockets is not much more expensive than the large bombers in service!" ”

Roosevelt's reaction was relatively calm: "It's really enviable to have this new weapon, but it's a pity that the vast Pacific Ocean often calculates the distance by more than 1,000 kilometers, and the United States is still completely in its infancy in rocket technology!" ”

After half a glass of red wine, Pierce pretended to be proud: "As long as there is sufficient manpower and material resources, everything is not a problem!" ”

"Of course!" Roosevelt held his glass and asked, "Listen to our experts, jets will also usher in a new era of aviation?" ”

"Maybe!" Pierce shrugged his shoulders and lowered his voice and said, "We now have two epoch-making new aircraft that are in the late stages of testing, one with a rocket engine and one with a jet engine. As it stands, the former is progressing relatively quickly and is expected to be put into active service in 1943, while the latter is more technically complex, and we have already lost one of our test machines, but hopefully it will be put into service by 1944! ”

"Ireland is indeed the world's leading in aviation technology, and in my opinion, even surpasses Germany in some cutting-edge technology!" Roosevelt did not hesitate to praise him, and asked in an interviewing manner: "Is it feasible for our two countries to jointly develop these new types of equipment?" ”

"What's this......" Pierce smiled, "You also know that Ireland has always been a separation of military and political affairs, and the government is not allowed to interfere in the specific affairs of the army, and I can't answer you directly now!" However, I think it could well be on the agenda for our next meeting, when I am waiting for you in Limerick! ”

"Then it's a deal!" Roosevelt replied cheerfully.

The topic had already begun, and Pierce seized the moment: "By the way, when it comes to weapon technology, I heard ...... The United States is vigorously developing a weapon of extremely powerful power, which is said to be epoch-making as well? ”

"Oh? I wonder where the Prime Minister heard this news? Roosevelt asked rhetorically, unfazed.

"What the hell is this...... Pierce smiled, "I heard a foreign friend talk about it during the League of Nations Council last month, and he didn't care, and felt that there was no weapon that could replace the army!" ”

"Really?" Roosevelt frowned slightly, obviously thinking about the other party's intentions.

"I also heard that this weapon uses nuclear transformation technology, and many physics experts have been discussing it theoretically as early as the twenties!"

"Maybe it's because I'm lonely and unheard, but I've never heard of it!" Roosevelt said without hesitation, but the slight worry in his eyes made Pierce see why.

Pierce said with feigned regret: "Alas! I was still thinking of sharing the US government's new weapons program in exchange for Irish rockets, jet engines, or guided bombs! ”

Roosevelt laughed: "Yes, it's a pity it's just a rumor!" But perhaps the U.S. ultra-long-range bomber technology and light airborne radar technology will Ireland want to share? ”

"Really?" Pierce pursed his lips and smiled, leaned close to Roosevelt's ear, and said with a snort of wine: "Your Excellency the President may not have received the news that Ireland's first practical carrier-based aircraft early warning radar has been put into service. ”

Hearing this, although Roosevelt was still sitting steadily, his face was a little stiff, as if he was shocked by the leading degree of military technology in Ireland, a "small country" with a population of less than 10 million--Helplessly, affected by the defeat in the war, the US intelligence services at this time not only did not carry out active operations around the world, but even in Europe there were only a small number of liaison stations, and they were able to rely on the intelligence sharing provided by the British army in the past, but now they can only rely on their own strength to find out the actual situation of their competitors. The inefficiency is completely unworthy of its status as an industrial and economic power. It was precisely out of dissatisfaction with the status quo that the US government would make a desperate gamble to develop a new weapon that no one had ever seen with a huge amount of money enough to bankrupt them, and because of the weaknesses of human nature, Roosevelt's strong Manhattan Project was questioned by many congressmen from the beginning, which often kept him awake at night, and he needed to find a way to reduce the financial pressure and the risk of failure.

(End of chapter)