After several years of silence, the Bass-Burma Iron Shipyard in Maine was once again lively, and although the shipowner, the Chinese Navy, and the shipyard owner, Zhou Maobai, repeatedly asked the workers to keep it secret, the workers still celebrated the launch of the training aircraft carrier with joy. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 According to the arrangement of the Chinese, the dockyard of the Tongji formed a wall on three sides, except for the end of the stern leading to the Kennebek River, and the rostrum was directly opposite the bow.

In the past, according to the tradition of the launching ceremony of the Chinese Navy, there must have been a huge photo of Sun Yat-sen hanging on the central wall of the rostrum, and there were some slogans praising the merits of the party and national anthem on both sides, but today these are gone, and the bow of the ship is facing a Mazu shrine, and on both sides of the shrine are the captains of the Chinese Navy who have died in all battles since the Battle of Majiang. Because of their age, most of the captains on the left are portraits, and there were no black-and-white yellowed photos until the first noon.

Not many guests attended the launching ceremony, except for naval officers in the United States and some key members of the New China Defense Company. At four o'clock in the morning at the high tide of the Kennebek River, Chen Jiliang presided over the launching ceremony. He stood on the rostrum in high spirits and neatly dressed in a navy dress, and before he baptized the Tongji, he must, as is customary, give a speech.

"Today is the day when the aircraft carrier Tongji was launched, originally, I shouldn't have said much, after all, this is a secret launching ceremony, but some things that have happened recently have made me a little unhappy.

Since Colonel Li Hansheng mentioned to Minister Chen Lin at the Berlin Hotel two years ago that the Navy would build an aircraft carrier, we, from Minister Chen to the bottom of the naval cadets who went to Germany, had only one goal, that is, to build an aircraft carrier fleet so that our motherland could win the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. This goal has been set since then and has never changed. Today, the Admiralty has been abolished and the Navy no longer exists, but we are still the target.

After all, the navy is the navy of the country and the navy of 40,000,000 compatriots. These people ......" Chen Jiliang turned to look at the portraits and photos behind him, and paused for a long time before saying, "Is there anyone who sacrificed for the country?" Defending the country, protecting the people, fulfilling the duty of a soldier, and fighting to the death against the enemy is the spirit of the navy. I ask you to uphold the spirit of the Navy and fulfill your duties to build a new Navy. Thank you. ”

Chen Jiliang's words ended here, he turned around and first saluted the shrine, and then walked to the bow of the ship under the gaze of everyone, the dazzling light made the copper buckle and saber on his body shine, he calmly picked up two champagne bottles tied with red silk, and did not use much strength, the wine bottle slammed into the bow of the ship between his raised hands, and in an instant the bottle shattered and the champagne overflowed. Amid the cheers and applause of the audience, the Tongji slowly glided towards the surface of the Kennebek River.

Without whistles and firecrackers, the 8,000-ton training aircraft carrier only stirred up huge waves when launched. Chen Jiliang, who had been watching the launch of the aircraft carrier, only then retracted his gaze and glanced at Lin Xiangxin on the side, and the two eyes briefly intersected and then avoided each other.

The Tongji training aircraft carrier was launched at the Bathbury Iron Shipyard, but it would take about a month or so for her outfitting before she could use it. In order to circumvent some legal issues, the ship was not equipped with any weapons, and it was just a yacht with a huge deck belonging to the New China Defense Company. In order to ensure the safety of the 'yacht', she will return to the Great Lakes region and hand it over to the San Francisco Flying Club, although before that she will be a test bed for carrier-based aircraft.

In the days when the war broke out in Europe, the launch of the Tongji training aircraft carrier did not cause much trouble, and it was not even as influential as the disappearance of the cruise ship Scharnhot, but this incident has long passed -- the Scharnhott cruise ship flying the blue sky and white sun flag appeared off the coast of Tan in Hawaii a few days later, and Colonel Ouyang Ji of the Chinese Navy told reporters that when the navy announced the inspection, the captain of the ship refused to stop and accelerated its escape, and the Chinese Navy submarine launched a training torpedo attack on it, and then took control of the ship. After presenting the telegram sent by the German Admiralty to the Scharnholt cruise ship to be diverted to Yokohama, Japan, Ouyang Ji presented the cruise ship's waybill, and then announced that the Chinese Navy had lawfully confiscated the ship in accordance with international law.

Against the backdrop of the outbreak of war in Europe, both Britain and France admired the heroic actions of the Chinese Navy, while the American newspapers were inconsistent, and some believed that such actions were Luhmann's, because some of the passengers rescued by the Chinese submarine were treated unfairly, of course, they did not say that these people were Japanese. The German ambassador to the United States strongly denounced this as a barbaric act of piracy and demanded that the US government refuse to allow the two cruise ships to enter the United States. However, this was in vain, as newspapers such as the New York Times and the Washington Times, citing international law experts, argued that the Chinese navy's capture of the two cruise ships was in full compliance with international law, and the Chinese navy expressed its willingness to accept arbitration before the Hague International Court of Justice.

In fact, not many Americans were interested in these two German cruise ships, the outbreak of the European war made the United States, which was suffering from economic depression, extremely excited, the stock market rose sharply on the day of the German invasion of Poland, and even soared beyond control after Britain and France declared war on Germany.

The international situation is changing, but Major General Huang Baitao, who has been in Hong Kong for nearly half a month, has only swept away the news. He was invited by the Navy to Hong Kong to hold detailed talks with the Navy. What he knew was that the navy would be rebuilt with the support of the Americans, and the size of the Marine Corps would be at least one corps, and as the war expanded, it would be expanded to at least three armies of more than 100,000 men. To do this, the Navy needs a best commander to train and command this force.

After the abolition of the Sixth Theater, Huang Baitao had nothing to do in the rear, and the lobbying of Zhou Yingcong and Zhong Qiangong made him feel excited, but he also knew that joining the Marine Corps was equivalent to cutting off the road to advancement in the national capital, and the Navy was saying so well now, when the time came, he would just make up an excuse to say that the Marine Corps would not be rebuilt, wouldn't he delay his life, and for this reason, he asked to see the important officers of the Navy before he needed a guarantee that would convince him.

It was very easy for a dispensable 'general' like him to come to Hong Kong, but Zhou Yingcong and Zhong Qiangong were not allowed to leave Chongqing, so he went to Hong Kong and was received by Zeng Guosheng. Zeng Guosheng didn't know the purpose of his career, and he didn't know anything about Huang Baitao's question, but he just said kind words to keep him patient. He waited from September to October, and just as he decided to wait another week before leaving, one autumn afternoon, Li Kongrong arrived.

"Brother Huanran, look up for a long time." Li Kongrong, who was dressed in a suit, greeted him with a smile without Zeng Guosheng's introduction. This is a clear-eyed but rigorous soldier, although the military uniform is old, but it is straight, which is a different kind of neatness.

"This is ......" Huang Baitao glanced at Li Kongrong up and down, and then asked Zeng Guosheng, who accompanied him. He didn't know Li Kongrong, and he didn't think there was anything special about this man in his thirties.

"This is ......" Zeng Guosheng was about to introduce, Li Kongrong preemptively said: "I am Li Hansheng of the Navy, one of the traitors. ”

"You're Li Hansheng?!" Huang Baitao shook hands and looked at Li Kongrong again. He has a northern accent, and his accent makes Li Kongrong feel friendly.

"Yes, I'm Li Hansheng. Let Brother Huan Ran wait for a long time. After Li Kongrong finished speaking, he asked him to sit down, and then said, "Because of the delay of some things, I am late, I am really sorry." Huang Baitao was about to be polite, but Li Kongrong stopped him, and he said: "They are all soldiers, so I'll get straight to the point." The naval fleet has been rebuilt, but the Marine Corps no longer exists because of some measures taken by the national government, and it is impossible to have a fleet without the Marine Corps, so among the generals in the country, I think only Brother Huan Ran can take on this role.

The three generations of Brother Huan Ran are really the generals of the Humen, and the experience in the army is also from the position of the head of the shed step by step, I don't think there is anything wrong with handing over the Marine Corps to Brother Huanran, the Marine Corps is also the Army, although the battlefield is often an island bay. Before I came, I heard Brother Gongbei say something, and I guess Brother Huanran has only one concern: Can the Navy really rebuild the Marine Corps? I think this problem is easy to solve......"

Speaking of this, Li Kongrongjie pointed to the foreigner who came with him but did not speak, "This is Li Goman, a lawyer from Hong Kong's Alice Law Firm, and I asked him to draft a document, that is, the Navy deposited a deposit of 300,000 US dollars in the HSBC Bank of Hong Kong and listed the Marine Corps reconstruction plan, and the goal was not reached within three years, and the money belonged to Brother Huanran." I think for a talent like Brother Huanran, $100,000 a year is not a disadvantage. ”

Li Kongrong promised to make Huang Baitao stunned, but the foreigner lawyer handed him the bank deposit certificate and notarial deed, and handed him a fountain pen for him to sign. Huang Baitao was stunned and then pushed these things away, he said: "Brother Hansheng can drive the warship back from Germany, and he is also an extraordinary person, why do you have to guarantee it so much?" ”

"There is no basis for words, I can only promise this." Li Kongrong's reaction to him did not imply, "This is the quickest and most practical way." All I can take out now is money, I don't use this money to smash Brother Huan Ran or think that Brother Huan Ran values money, I want to prove that the Navy has no worries about military spending in the formation of the Marine Corps, and what is lacking now is talent. In addition, the people in the navy who understand the army are all in the country, and they are required by the government not to leave their posts, and they cannot come out temporarily; Those who are abroad do not understand the army, so I really have no other way than this method. Anyway, my purpose is to ask Brother Huanran to trust me and shoulder the heavy responsibility of rebuilding the Marine Corps. ”

After Li Kongrong finished speaking straightforwardly, Zeng Guosheng said again: "Brother Huanran, you also know the current situation of Hansheng, Japan is looking for him all over the sea, and the government is also looking for him everywhere, it is my surprise that he can come to Hong Kong." If you are not in the navy, you naturally don't know about the navy, in fact, the reconstruction of the navy is all planned by Hansheng, and the military expenses of the navy are also raised by Hansheng. Previously we were worried that the Navy would run out of money, but after last month, this is no longer a problem.

The Navy will definitely rebuild the Marine Corps and join forces with the US Navy in the Gulf of Tonkin within a few years, and this trend is not yet obvious, but the attitude of the United States is extremely clear, and the Navy can build warships and obtain loans in the United States for this reason. ”

Zeng Guosheng said that Li Kongrong was not easy to say, he named Li Kongrong's identity in the navy and explained that the military expenditure was worry-free, in order to reassure Huang Baitao, but Huang Baitao said, "It's just that I can't take on this big responsibility alone." ”

"Then recruit people." Li Kongrong asked the foreigner lawyer to go down and get to the point. "As long as Brother Huan Ran thinks he is a qualified officer, he can recruit him. My idea is to first hold a training course for officers, train enough officers, and then start recruiting troops at the end of next year. At that time, the whole army began to train, and a year later, at the end of 1941, we began to fight, and from this time on, we fought until the surrender of the Japanese. ”

"It's not enough to be an officer...... Li Kongrong roughly outlined the plan for building the army, but Huang Baitao fell into his own thinking about the army, an army officer is important, but the lack of qualified low-level officers and sergeants still lacks combat effectiveness.

"Then find someone from the country." Li Kongrong said. "In the early stage, the size of the Marine Corps is three or two divisions of one army, and it is best to organize and train three armies in the later stage, and if the source of overseas Chinese soldiers is not enough, then they will be recruited from the country, and the monthly salary of ordinary soldiers will start at five US dollars, and food will not be counted. There is another thing that Brother Huanran should know, the Navy has dealt with the 28th Army and the 10th Army in Jinshanwei, and everyone has a deep friendship. ”

"Hunan Army?!" Huang Baitao's eyes flashed. The 10th Group Army fought well in the Battle of Songhu, and he had heard of it.

"Yes, Xiangjun." Li Kongrong nodded, "The 28th Army now occupies Tianmu Mountain in western Zhejiang, and the 10th Group Army is all over Zhejiang. The Navy can exchange arms for officers, and some officers can be drawn out from them. The former Marine Corps officers will also come from China one after another, and they will come to Hong Kong one after another in the next two months. In order to cover the training of officers, the navy bought a hospital in Hong Kong, and everyone will attend classes as sick at that time, so as not to attract attention. ”

"Sick number ......" Huang Baitao suddenly laughed, and after laughing, he felt that the navy had thought about it thoroughly, or it would not attract the attention of others, the hospital was indeed a good place, and the only regret was that he couldn't shoot.

"Brother Hansheng, can this hospital accept patient numbers?" Huang Baitao said, "There are many wounded soldiers in every major battle in the rear, and most of these wounded soldiers are left to fend for themselves because of lack of medical treatment and medicine. If only ......"

"This is good, this can be done." Li Kongrong was suddenly overjoyed, "The Navy has developed a new drug called penicillin, which is now mass-produced. Its healing effect is better than sulfonamide, it's ......" Li Kongrong smiled and laughed, he was happy that the long-troubled problem of low-cost mass production of penicillin was actually solved in the early stage of the European war, and sure enough, Godzilla had a miraculous effect, plus the income of the stock market, and the early funds for the reconstruction of the navy were basically worry-free. "It's just that there are some problems with production for the time being, but the Navy is making every effort to expand production capacity, and it will be able to supply it in full capacity early next year." (To be continued.) )