Lincoln had just won the election, and before he could open a bottle of wine to celebrate, seven states in the South declared their independence. First South Carolina, and then the other states, they quickly gained control of all the federal forts and properties within their borders, including some military installations that were formerly part of the Union. And the current president, Buchanan, who came from the South, only protested slightly.

Of course, the South also showed some goodwill, for example, they said that they could hunt down fugitive slaves in the North according to the laws of the United States, but now they magnanimously said that we would not pursue that matter; For example, they also said that they would not object to the United States now intending to increase tariffs. Because they have already organized a country together, the Confederate States of America, and elected a president of the line, President Jefferson 61 Davis, they have to show respect for the internal affairs of other countries......

The Union army is also in disarray. For a long time, the army of the United States was a very Southern army. From the time of the War of Independence, the Southerners have been the main force of the United States army. Later, the North surpassed the South in all aspects, but in terms of the tradition of joining the army, it was still stronger in the South. So, in the army of the United States, a whole bunch of officers were Southerners, and now they were faced with a problem. That's which side they're loyal to.

Most of the Southern officers did not hesitate to choose the South, in their opinion, the army of the United States was originally just a union of the armies of the various states, and they were the soldiers of a certain state first, and then the soldiers of the United States. Now that they are going to split up, of course they still have to be loyal to their state.

The U.S. Constitution does not stipulate whether a state that joins the United States can secede from the Union, neither saying yes nor no. So Buchanan, the caretaker president of the United States, did nothing, watching the states become independent, and watching the 16,000-strong federal army almost disperse.

By the time Lincoln was officially sworn in, the situation was almost out of control. His army was full of recruits, and there was a shortage of officers. for they all ran south. Of the armies of the United States, only one remained fully combat-ready and stood firmly on Lincoln's side. This army is the U.S. Navy.

Lincoln knew that he could never let the South become independent like this, and the people of the North, especially the wealthy people of the North, would never agree. The industries of the North also need raw materials and markets from the South. However, Lincoln knew that his army was simply unprepared, so he reorganized his army and called on the South to stop the rebellion. At the same time, he also sent out the only truly operational force in his hands at this time, the U.S. Navy, to patrol the southern coast, ready to carry out the task of blockading the south at any time.

……

A small, lightweight clipper bow splits the waves and sps across the twilight sea at a speed close to 15 knots. It was a small boat of no more than two hundred tons, with only a few sailors, a passenger, and some of his cargo. Now, the sailors and passengers alike looked nervously in the direction of the stern, where a United States warship was chasing.

"Don't worry, the warships can't catch up with us." Seeing the nervous look on the young passenger, a sailor comforted him in this way.

"Mr. Roy, our speed is nearly two knots faster than that warship per hour, and even in the average ocean, we can throw it out of sight for a few hours at most. In addition, there are many shallows in the sea area ahead, and they don't dare to really chase after them. So, there will be no danger. ”

"Thank you, First Officer Tár. It's ...... for you to take such a risk."

"Ah, Mr. Roy, you are not right, we are Southerners like you. We are all in the service of the Union States. Well, what did you bring back from England? Ah, I'm just just curious. This shipment is a lot lighter than the last gun you brought back. ”

"Ah, it's nothing, it's just some medicine. Mainly some sulfonamides and heroin, well, once the North goes to war with us, these things that we can't produce on our own, are too important. While the north is not very closely watched, we have to make a few more trips. Bring in more. Roy said.

During his time in England, Roy's horizons were greatly broadened, and his studies at Cambridge made him aware of the importance of industry to the power of the country. He knew better than most of his Southern friends about the balance of power between North and South. Therefore, he has always opposed the secession of the South from the Union. Because he knew that secession from the Union meant war. And it was too difficult for the South, with its disparity in industrial power, to win the war.

However, the least desirable situation has emerged. Lincoln won, and the North and South broke up. Although he opposed secession from the Union, as a Southerner, Roy still stood by the side of his hometown without hesitation. While he was in England, he met some aristocratic classmates, and through their connections, he was able to buy some of the most urgently needed supplies for the war from the British: guns, medicines, and gunpowder.

So, he gave up his studies for a while and kept busy traveling between the two sides of the Atlantic.

"Mr. Roy, we're going to run England again in a week, would you like to come with us?" First Officer Tal asked. This young man who brought back important supplies for the South again and again made him like it very much.

"No, Mr. Tár." Roy replied, "I'll take these things with me and donate them to the state of Mississippi, and then I'll join the Mississippi army." ”

"Good lad!" First mate Tal patted Roy on the shoulder, then sighed, turned his head to look at the stern, and sure enough, the warship did not dare to follow this complicated sea area, and had given up the pursuit.

……

"The guys in the south finally couldn't take it anymore and they declared their independence. Mr. MacDonald, you have been absolutely correct in your previous predictions. President Lincoln could not have recognized the independence of the South, and the South could not have retreated from their present position, war was already inevitable. At the door of his villa by the sea, Morgan said to Scrooge with a young lady in one hand and a Havana cigar in the other, "The question now is, how long do you think the war will last?" ”

"What do you think?" Scrooge said with a smile.

"A lot of guys say that we are much stronger than the South, and that it is easy to conquer the South as long as we send a part of the army in each state. What do you think? ”

"Well, if I were facing the media, I would say the same thing." Scrooge replied. Obviously, if you tell the common people that this battle will take several years, and millions or more people will die (because of Scrooge's influence, the number of casualties will be almost predictable than in the original history), and then a million people will be crippled, and by the way, a whole lot of stories will be created, and maybe the unenlightened people will say, "Ah, the price is so great? Why don't you just let them be independent? "Therefore, in any case, before the war begins, the common people must not know what kind of war it will be.

Morgan smiled too, he understood exactly what Scrooge meant. "President Lincoln's situation is too difficult." Morgan sympathetically said, "His predecessor let those guys mess around, and when he came to power, the country didn't even have a decent army." I dare to say that the army in the hands of President Lincoln the Fairy, if you don't count the numbers, is probably not as effective as your 'black water'. ”

Morgan's statement was not an exaggeration, as the United States had only 16,000 troops at the time. And because there is basically no threat on land, the military service of the United States is only a short three months, and what can those soldiers learn from three months? In contrast, the mercenaries of the "Blackwater" far outperformed the infantry of the United States in terms of training time and equipment level (except for the lack of heavy weapons such as artillery), and the combat effectiveness of the same number should naturally be stronger than that of the Federal Army.

"The warships of the Federal Navy should be basically in place." Scrooge looked at the seagulls flying over the sea and said, "President Lincoln can't just make a mouthpiece, it's time to do something, right?" ”

"Something? That depends on the south. Morgan said, "The last time President Lincoln was ...... Ah, what did you just say? Mouth cannon? That's an interesting word. The last time President Lincoln only verbally threatened to call up the volunteers, Virginia ran to the side of the Union. ”

"It's not a bad thing that Virginia ran over, is it?" "Rather than having a half-hearted ally to watch out for, it's better to have one more enemy on the other side." ”

At this time, a man flew towards Scrooge and them. As he ran, he shouted, "Mr. Morgan, Mr. MacDonald, it's war!" It's war! Union troops shelled the fortress of Sumter! The war has begun! ”

Scrooge and Morgan looked at each other, and they both saw the flames burning in each other's eyes.

By this time, the man had already run to him. The man, who was Morgan's coachman, called Villa or Beria, ran out of breath and said to Morgan and Scrooge, "Just ...... It's ...... It's ...... At 4 o'clock this morning, the Union launched an attack on the fortress of Sumter, and the war ...... The war has begun! I'm here...... There are newspapers. ”

Morgan grabbed the newspaper, and Scrooge stuck his head out to read it. He saw that the headline of the newspaper was the words "Union shelling of Sumter Fortress" in large black letters.

"Hooray! The war has finally begun! Morgan exclaimed excitedly, threw the newspaper into the sky, and then took the girl next to him into his arms, kissed him hard, and shouted, "Quick, go to the cellar and get out my bottle of champagne!" I'm going to celebrate with Mr. MacDonald! ”