Manchester City's North End, from the moment it appeared on the planning drawings, was far from the life of ordinary citizens. It is not located in the immediate vicinity of the southern part of Manchester City, but is separated by at least a kilometre of primeval forest. In many cases, with the exception of the National Cemetery near the Song River to the west, even the Crossing Crowd rarely sees it as a separate urban area and more like an extension of the northern suburbs.

A wooded trail guarded by snow-white railings runs straight through the trees on the northern outskirts of the Southern District before arriving at an upscale community surrounded by tall deciduous trees and shrubs. Forests, small lakes, man-made streams and large lawns cut the vast northern part of Manchester into a number of staggered pieces, each of which is home to a number of large villas of different shapes. In a sense, Manchester North is a city-level super-large real estate project independently invested and contracted by the state-owned construction engineering group.

On the periphery of the ultra-upscale neighborhoods, new business districts and municipal streets are slowly being built without damaging the original vegetation and landforms. According to the plan of the state-owned construction engineering group, it will undoubtedly become the top urban area in China, even the outermost and most ordinary villas, covering an area of at least 500 square meters, and the lowest price has reached 30 US dollars per square meter.

However, since the completion of the first villa estates in 1634, less than 100 households have purchased them, and with the elegant and gorgeous modern style, this place looks like a remote, out-of-the-world paradise, a tourist destination where play and vacation are higher than life and settlement.

“…… I think this is precisely the country's contempt for South Africa's development, and if I did something wrong, it should be that I did it too late! We beg our dad to tell our grandmother to show favor to Europe, and this feeling is really good? The more we depend on Europe, the more we will limit our development! ”

In the manor of Wu Yuanyi, the governor of Nanshan, a large-scale private party is underway. Wu Yuanyi, who had been rushed from the Nanshan Governor to attend the hearing half a month ago, was standing on a small platform in the middle of the garden and talking, all around him. At the high-end oak tables, a crowd of people in suits and leather shoes or long skirts were listening.

“…… Almost anything we lack, Africa can produce for us, where tens of millions of blacks need our matches, candles, cloth, salt, sugar, food, and weapons. Are colonialism and plunder evil, and if they are unforgivable, then why do Europeans live like paradise? ”

Wu Yuan took the teacup and moistened his throat, looking at the guests with a rosy face, and a team of manor servants appeared in the garden at the right time, serving a dazzling array of snacks or drinks to the guests again.

The applause below was sparse, and most of them were perfunctory Wu Yuanyi's excitement with a kind of sleepiness. A small number of people stared intently at the tall billboard behind Wu Yuanyi, thinking about the contents of some of the tiles outlined on it, only to see the theme of "South African Development Forum" written in large blue letters on the billboard.

"Today, Lao Wu's pomp and circumstance are not small, and it seems that he is very unhappy with the dissatisfaction and accusations against him in the last congressional hearing. Lao Wu seems to be making excuses for his mistakes. Yan Xiaosong, who was invited to participate in this South African forum, clapped his hands lightly, and turned his head to whisper to Su Zining beside him.

"You don't look at who's attending...... I bet that during the preparation of the OUCC Group, there was no such order of magnitude. Su Zining drank orange juice and looked at the sprawling garden again. The corners of his mouth couldn't help but smile slightly. Although very few of those present were members of the Senate and the House of Representatives, at least two-thirds were executives of major state-owned corporations.

“…… Our development in the country may have to consider many issues and be subject to many constraints. But Africa is different, and we can do it without any burden! In fact, in the Caribbean islands of Guadeloupe, Dominica and Martinique. We did it very right, and history has long proven it! ”

Wu Yuanyi did not lower his enthusiasm because the applause was not enthusiastic enough, but raised his hand. He gestured with a number of gestures: "Because Africa is so big and there are many blacks that we don't want to accept, then we should throw away those fig leafs and do what we should do for the sake of the future of this country." If we don't do it, history will choose someone else to do it! ”

This time, there was more applause in response to Wu Yuanyi, and there were even some exchanges of ears. With the advancement of time, many people gradually understood Wu Yuanyi's meaning, and their expressions changed from boring to serious and solemn.

"There has only suffered a lot of losses, and many of them are invested by these people in the local area, so it's inappropriate for him to find a reason to excuse himself in front of a group of victims......" Yan Xiaosong frowned, showing a vigilant expression.

"No, quite the opposite. If we had more and greater interests in Africa, perhaps there would not have been such a massive loss, because the state would have invested enough force there to suppress any resistance, like our native North American treasures...... Lao Wu's statement, from another point of view, is correct. ”

"He wants to straighten out the Governor of Nanshan? Or do you want to do something......"

Glancing at the Governor of Nanshan, who was still spitting on the podium, Yan Xiaosong finally couldn't help but stand up, glanced at Su Zining, and took out his cigarette and walked out of the garden. The action of the two foreign ministers getting up attracted the attention of several people at the nearby table.

The sound of the natural forest gradually regained in his ears, walking on the quiet forest path, Yan Xiaosong, who had quit smoking countless times, inhaled the smoke greedily, in contrast, Su Zining had completely given up cigarettes many years ago.

"At a time when the Thirty Years' War in Europe is still over and the new European order has not yet been cut into, it is a bit unrealistic to rely on European proxies like Spain and Portugal to create our interests in South America and Africa on a large scale. Lao Wu obviously wanted to win over a group of people and encourage the state to participate in it personally. Su Zining pointed to the guide surface, his expression was a little unnatural, "Pandora's box, in fact, has been opened since the Atlantic Checkers program...... The Caribbean was purged, the Foreign Legion was formed, the Foreign Labor Importation Act was sent, the Eastern Expeditionary Fleet was sent, and then the OUCC Group. The solution we have adopted for each of these troubles is moving towards today's theme: it will give birth to an interest group with its own political propositions aimed at a series of foreign colonial expansions. ”

"You mean political parties? This was just a gathering of Wu trying to persuade the National Assembly and the Cabinet to start the development of South Africa. That's why I said you are the biggest culprit, and you look innocent all day long, are you going to do it? Yan Xiaosong was stunned. The ash from the cigarette butt in his mouth fell on the collar.

"Well, isn't it like? In the process of interest reorganization, some people join, some withdraw, some go and return, and some wait and see...... Eventually, a group of people with a common policy of economic and military diplomacy was born, taking the initial economic interests as the starting point, and then holding their own ideas about the direction of the whole country. Su Zining exhaled lightly, but was relieved, "I have gained and lost." Or rather, I still don't want to see this kind of gathering. A South African Development Forum, or rather a club, will eventually give rise to evolution? Although I know that sooner or later it will appear. And our political system is also calling for them infinitely. ”

Looking at his friend's tangled expression, Yan Xiaosong could only nod slightly: "I understand, these people have their own private companies or industries, and they usually rely on various state-owned groups to do business, and they are rejected by Ren Changle." They have the capital, but they lack direction, ideas, and leaders...... According to you, I guess it won't be long before there will be an "African bloc" like the OUCC in Asia. The way of doing things will also be more explicit than that of the Oriental Union Group, which is interesting......"

"It will take at least 15 years for us to eventually open up land west and south of the Alabachian Mountains to solve the resource bottleneck for our native development. But now. We do need a stronger, more controllable external feedstock input channel or market to meet our needs at this stage. Ren Changle and the others took a fancy to the Far East, while Lao Wu bet on Africa closer to him. ”

“…… The Oriental Union has already tasted the sweetness, and the envy far outweighs the supporters. So. Maybe Lao Wu really chose the right time and the right person. Let the country have to look at the current crisis of the Governor of Nanshan from a different angle when facing the 'shackles of dependence' in Europe, which is just the right attempt, the second opportunity for strategic adjustment of national development! Just like Lao Wu said: we want to use this to open a broader horizon! This is already one of the favorite tones in the country. ”

Su Zining and Yan Xiaosong said goodbye, but in the Wu family garden, the applause at the scene finally reached a new height, and many people were smiling and looking at each other frequently......

……

Friday, September 7, 1635, Governor of Nanshan.

On the edge of the mountainous area several dozen kilometers east of Nanshan Port, on the slope of a pasture hill, surrounded by a circle of sandbag fortifications, black and shiny rifles, stout revolvers, mortar muzzles facing the sky, and slightly restless war horses, more than 1,000 officers and men of the Chinese and US Army in two battalions were on standby.

With abundant rainfall and fertile land, it was once the easternmost agricultural reclamation area under the command of the governor of Nanshan, half of which belonged to the Nanshan Agricultural Reclamation Company under the state-owned Agriculture, Forestry, Fishery and Animal Husbandry Group, as well as a large number of private farms. Under a policy of unbridled expansion, the slopes of the plains and surrounding areas were once densely populated with olive trees, grapes, sisals, fruit trees, and sheep farms, but they were all destroyed by the natives a few months ago, and they were the places where the immigrants had suffered the most casualties before.

Farther east, in the mountains and valleys, a "small-scale" encirclement battle involving three reinforced army battalions had just ended. After careful preparation, the officers and men of the African Brigade of the Chinese Army, who came from several directions, gathered and annihilated thousands of indigenous black people in the place called Sanpo Village on the map.

The lush valley was littered with half-naked black corpses, red viscous blood congealing on the black limb wounds, mixed with the original white tattoos, outlining suffocating markings. In the woods and bushes, scattered are all kinds of primitive weapons, broken white oval wooden shields painted with patterns, broken wooden spears, broken small hunting bows, and even smoothed stone chips.

The sparse sound of gunfire still fluctuated here and there in the woodland, and occasionally a few cavalry passed through the valley, and groups of Chinese Army soldiers searched carefully in the corners, and the seriously wounded black native wounded were often killed on the spot, while many more were surrounded by heavily loaded Chinese soldiers trembling in the clearing.

Chinese and American officers and soldiers lined up in an undulating armed passage between the mountains, watching with great antiquity as the black native prisoners of war who survived the catastrophe poured out. All black people, young and old, were tied up with anger, fear, or distraction on their faces. The rope dug deep into the flesh, like a string of black grasshoppers, slowly heading west.

In the rear, on the hill position, Scott, the commander-in-chief of the African Brigade, was watching with a cadre of officers to decide whether to expand the scope of the clearance operation in the periphery.

"A union of several tribes, all sorts of feathers. The only thing that has in common is that there is only a little fig leaf on the lower body...... Lieutenant Colonel Scott, why would they stupidly choose to resist here? Lieutenant Colonel Tang Wei, commander of the cavalry battalion and chief of staff of the African Brigade, held a telescope and looked around the mountains in the distance, with a victory smile on the corner of his mouth.

"There is a cavalry battalion, and they have no way to escape on the Nanshan Plain to the west." Scott had long understood the daily habits and styles of the black tribes in this area, and it was difficult for such a temporary indigenous army to achieve the coordination of operations in the complex mountains, not to mention the large number of migratory livestock and old and young families.

"So we've done it?" Tang Wei still had a feeling of unfinished.

"Further east, there are mountainous areas with complex terrain. Beyond the scope of the current Nanshan Governor's Territory, that is, this is the current border. ”

Scott glanced at the group of prisoners of war from afar, and shook his head slightly, not knowing whether he was satisfied with the battle, which dragged on for almost two hours, or whether he rejected the plan to continue deep into the mountains to the east to clear the natives.

"Hehe, Lieutenant Colonel Scott, you're still cautious...... However, it is said that the Governor of Namsan had an opinion in the Diet that the entire eastern mountains and valleys should be enclosed. Tang Wei rode his horse to the side. Looking at the hundreds of Chinese Army cavalry who had withdrawn from the battle behind the grassy knoll to recuperate, they showed expressions of nonchalance.

"To do that, we need two full African brigades. Or rather, as with the Iroquois. It will take several years to gradually remove all the indigenous people here...... Now the threats to the south and north still exist, and follow-up actions are needed. Let the troops speed up the cleaning of the battlefield, starting tomorrow. A battalion was left to establish defensive support points in order to consolidate the current gains and restore local agricultural production. ”

Scott finished. Sent away the binoculars, turned around and walked towards the command camp, leaving only the chief of staff Tang Wei still careless.

……

On the hillside, the gorgeous officers and soldiers lined up in a skirmish line slowly descended like a sieve. In this group of officers and soldiers who only entered the core battlefield area after the war, Ren Xingzhong held a rifle and looked around cautiously.

Smoke craters from mortar shells can be seen everywhere, and occasionally broken clothing or even a half-bloodied black stump can be seen in the grass.

Perhaps it had previously been used as a makeshift firing position by the 32A Rotary Tube Machine Gun Group, and the boots stepped on a large area of bullet casings. Looking up into the depths of the mountains, smoke and fire can be seen everywhere, scattered corpses are being collected, and a large pit is still being excavated.

"Ren Xingzhong, don't you think it's a bit boring to not catch up with the general attack just now?" Yu Shan walked over from behind, patted the shoulder of the private, pulled the other party aside quite affectionately, and pointed to the depths of the valley to the east with a smile: "Actually, this is a good thing, I heard that there is an unlucky ghost in front, the black man who woke up after being stunned by a shell while cleaning the battlefield was sneak attacked, and his stomach was stabbed on the spot, as if the spearhead was still poisonous, and he hung up before he was carried to the medical station." Poor fellow, became the only casualty in this battle. ”

"Sergeant Major, where are they going?" Ren Xingzhong didn't seem to listen to what Yu Shan said, but pointed his gun at a string of bound blacks walking under the hillside.

"The old business of the Army Command and the Department of Defense, like the Iroquois, they will be sold somewhere else, maybe Butterfly Island, maybe Cuba, maybe Brazil, and they won't stay here anyway." Yu Shan sat on the ground, pulled off his military boots, pinched his toes, and let out a comfortable moan, "I heard that black people are about the same height, short, fat and thin, and it is difficult to see their age, so when someone selects goods, they look at their teeth, tsk, and feel like livestock." ”

The black captives came closer, men and women, old and young. Among them, several black women who were still breastfeeding were particularly conspicuous, the black baby in her arms did not know her fate, and she was still sucking on her mother's hanging breasts, and Ren Xingzhong could even smell the special body odor on each other's bodies.

From time to time, the Chinese officers and soldiers who escorted the captives used their rifles to push the few black women who were grinding with their feet, and one of them stumbled and almost fell, kneeling only a few meters away from Ren Xingzhong with the baby in his hand, screaming in panic, and looking up at the hillside.

Looking at each other, a look of horror and grief just shot into his eyes, and Ren Xingzhong couldn't help but take a small step back.

……

"Daddy! Mother! I want a mother! ”

"Kid! Give back my baby! ”

The chaotic crowd moved silently, but the hoarse cries of children and women were unusually clear. The whip in the hands of the bearded Dutch soldier struck a tattered Ming woman on her body, head and arms, almost every blow brought out a shocking bloodstain, but the Ming woman still reached out and called out to the two sons and daughters who were stuffing into the cabin deck.

"Don't sell my children!" The Daming woman desperately pulled the sleeves of the red-haired soldiers beside her, revealing a desperate look.

"Folks, these red-haired ghosts are going to sell us to Nanyang, and we will fight with them today!" A middle-aged man finally broke free from the rope on his body and pounced directly on the Dutch mercenary beside the ship.

Rows of arquebuses or flintlock pistols emitted gunsmoke, blood splattered in the crowded crowd of Ming refugees, countless figures who rose up were torn apart by lead bullets, and the middle-aged man who fought first with his bare hands was shot several times.

"Daddy, kid!" The Ming women broke free from the Dutch soldiers, threw themselves on the corpse of their husbands, and began to cry.

Another group of Dutch soldiers ran over, this time directly raising a long iron spear, and stabbed directly at the chaotic Ming refugees, regardless of men, women, and children......

……

A crisp gunshot rang out from the deep valley in the distance, and it seemed that another fish had been cleared. Ren Xingzhong came back to his senses with a cold shudder, and looked around again, the group of black prisoners just now had disappeared, and several 32A rotary machine guns were being dragged up the hill by a team of army officers and soldiers.

A fire had already ignited in the pit where the bodies were buried in the distance, and the peculiar smell of burning had penetrated into the nostrils. The number of black prisoners of war captured and taken to the rear is gradually decreasing, and more troops are gradually withdrawing from the mountains, and the clean-up operation of the battlefield has entered its final stage.

"Am I protecting the country, protecting my parents, and protecting my sister......" Looking at the twilight sky, Ren Xingzhong showed a deep confusion. (To be continued......)