September 24, Desai, temporary base camp of the Ethiopian Army.

Menelik II, the "King of Kings", sat on his throne studded with golden lions, staring fiercely at the generals below.

"Now, there are two groups of enemies in the south, the Italians on our left flank, the Germans on our right flank, let's talk about it, what should we do now?"

The commander of the First Legion, Duke Katemar, stood up with his waist crossed and said, "I think that we should concentrate our forces and defeat one of the enemy forces first. ”

Menelik II nodded, "That's what I mean, but which one is better to hit first?" ”

Military Minister Hubt Giorgis twisted his gray goatee and said: "I think that the German army on the western flank of the southern front can only threaten our capital by the Nagley-Ondo route, and this road will cross the 'Great Rift Valley', the terrain is very rugged, and as long as we defend several important passes, the enemy will not be able to attack it for a while. However, the Italian army on the eastern flank of the southern front can take a relatively flat route to the area from Harar to Dredeva in the east of the capital, completely cut off our foreign aid channel, and can also use the local untamed Muslim tribes against us, which is the most dangerous. Therefore, the minister suggested that the weak Italians on the eastern flank should be attacked first, and then deal with the rumored stronger German army. ”

Menelik II gave a majestic "grace" and turned to Wen Yu, the head of the Chinese military advisory group standing beside the military minister: "Wen, what do you think?" ”

Wen Yu bent down slightly and said, "Your Majesty, I agree with Your Excellency the Minister of War, but I hope that Your Majesty will properly maintain your focus on the east while deciding to march south......"

"What do you mean?"

"We must not believe the guarantees of neutrality of Britain and France, and according to the reports of intelligence officers stationed in the ports of Djibouti and Zella in France, in recent months, Britain and France have been bringing in troops on a large scale into their respective Somali possessions, and Your Majesty cannot afford to be on guard."

Menelik II stroked his beard thoughtfully: "In the last Great Patriotic War, Britain and France gave us a lot of help, even when the war was at its most intense, the arms ordered from them could still arrive on time, but this time, the embargo was declared at the beginning of the war, and the border was blocked...... It does seem that there is a problem. Minister of War, how many troops are stationed on the eastern border now? ”

"Your Majesty, only the 2,000 regular troops of the Eastern Frontier under the command of Count Adik Alpha and the 20,000 private soldiers of the Alpha family have been mobilized."

His Majesty the Emperor narrowed his eyes and thought about it, and then beat the armrest of the throne and ordered loudly: "From now on, I will personally lead the base camp and the Praetorian Guard Legion to the east, the base camp will be stationed in the eastern important town of Dredeva, and the main force of the First Legion commanded by the Duke of Katemar and the Praetorian Guard Legion will form the main army to advance southward, and quickly move south along the Dredawa-Harar-Degpur road, striving to fight the enemy in the area of Kebridhar-Gord, defeat the enemy, and drive them back to their hometown!" I personally led another part of the Praetorian Guard as a reserve, guarding the Dere Dava, monitoring the British and French, and supporting the Duke of Katemar's southward march at any time. After the destruction of the Italians, the Duke of Katema's southward army will quickly turn westward and strike at the Germans from the flank, and I will lead the reserve back to the capital and counterattack the enemy head-on from Ondo-Naglay all the way, flanking from both sides, and completely crushing the enemy! ”

"Long live the Emperor!" The ministers cheered heartily.

At this moment, they clearly see the victory ahead, just as they have seen the second Adua victory not long ago, and they are convinced that the final victory will be theirs.

Although Wen Yu doesn't have to say long live, he can deeply feel the burning enthusiasm in the hearts of these people of different races and colors around him - for the motherland, for the emperor, for faith!

Wen Yu couldn't help but be infected by this enthusiasm, but he clearly realized that at this moment, the country could only save itself on its own, and there was no one and no organization to help them—including Wen Yu's motherland, which actively promoted "royal doctrine".

Yes, at the very beginning of the war, aid from China was completely cut off. Since Italy occupied the coastal zone of Eritrea, which was formerly part of Ethiopia, Ethiopia no longer had its own access to the sea, and its trade abroad and foreign aid were largely dependent on the ports of the Anglo-French Somali possessions (especially the ports of Djibouti and Zela).

Before departing from Desai, several senior members of the advisory group gathered in the captain's temporary residence, a separate cabin.

"It looks like everyone is still intact, come on, come on, replace the wine with this foreign tea, and have a toast." The head of the group, Wen Yu, raised his glass first, and everyone smiled and toasted - toasting with coffee is also a must.

As soon as he sat down, Huang Yan, an adviser to the Royal Ethiopian Air Force, pounded his chair and said, "The Italians are too vegetable, when I think of those Italian cavalrymen waving white underwear at my plane...... Hahaha...... I can't laugh ......."

The deputy head of the regiment, Yin Tian, also smiled: "Do you know what Duke Katema said? He said that the European powers had their own characteristics, Britain was famous for its warships, Germany was outstanding for its cannons, the Russian cavalry was fierce, the French prostitutes were lascivious, the Austro-Hungarian music was too beautiful, and the Italian noodles were not bad. ”

Intelligence advisor Gu Dao shook his head again and again: "Italian noodles? No, no, when it comes to noodles, we are still the first in China, all-inclusive, what beautiful practices are not? What kind of stuff is that Italian cold mezza......"

"But this Duke of Katemar really sees the Europeans very thoroughly." Li Ruishi said.

Yin Tiandao: "He, every once in a while, invite Europeans to play at home, and ministers, wealthy businessmen, missionaries, and military officers will please go home when they see it, eat, drink, dance, and make trouble all night." This time he told me privately that he actually studied Europeans as wild animals......"

"What about us? How do you know that he didn't treat us like animals? Gu Dao asked.

"He didn't say it, and I didn't see it, but if he really treats us as beasts, wouldn't it be better if he treated us as beasts?" Yintian said with a smile.

Wen Yu pulled up his face and reprimanded: "This is not good, after all, I am standing in a boat now, and I must have a minimum of respect for my comrades, not to mention that people are still noble princes......"

Yintian lowered his head and said, "Yes, it was just a joke...... That is, to talk about it in front of the brothers......"

"This kind of thing can't be said casually, and you have to pay more attention to it in the future...... Speaking of which, I don't know what happened to Lu Dao Xiuping, it's been so long, and I don't bring a letter. ”

Captain Li Xiuping, an important member of the advisory group, had previously gone south with the West Road Detachment of Duke Matafaria's Second Army to resist the enemy, but due to the accidental breakdown of the radio station carried by the detachment on the way, the communication between the detachment and the base camp could only rely on Pegasus to transmit messages, and there was no news of Li Xiuping during this period.

"That kid is clever, he shouldn't be fine." Yintian poured a spoonful of sugar into the coffee cup, "We're going south anyway, and then we'll defeat the Italians and then flank the Germans westward, maybe I'll meet him again." ”

"That's good, that's good...... This time, I would like to emphasize one more thing to you. ”

Wen Yu said, lifted the spoon and pointed in the direction of Li Ruishi: "Ruishi, the last battle of Makangnan Pass, I heard that you still insisted on staying in the line of fire after the battle, this is not good, the empire sent us, not to take our lives to be heroes, we have no need to work hard for this country." ”

Li Ruishi hurriedly bowed his head: "Yes, I was humble and followed the teachings, and it was indeed my inconsiderate thinking at that time." ”

Wen Yu took a sip of coffee and continued: "The experience of fighting with the Europeans, everyone should record it well, not only on paper, but also firmly engraved in their minds. Although the empire is temporarily peaceful, you cannot ignore military affairs, you soldiers who have gained first-hand combat experience overseas in peacetime, are the precious wealth of the empire, and the future development is limitless, so the empire will not allow you to be carried away by the nihilistic romanticism of war, and do those stupid things that damage the interests of the empire and waste your lives in vain! ”

Everyone immediately straightened their chests: "Follow the instructions of the chief!" ”

"Okay, okay, I'm all for your good, you must remember, no one can die! No matter what the outcome of this war is, I want none of you to return alive, the empire needs you, and your families are waiting for you! Wen Yu's words were obviously too tragic, and he couldn't help but arouse the associations of his subordinates.

"Chief Wen...... Do you think this war can be won? Lieutenant Gu Dao, who looked the most tender in the crowd, asked cautiously.

Wen Yu didn't hesitate too much: "It depends on how much the great powers can bear, so far, the Italian side has paid twice as much as the losses in the last war, but it has no intention of stopping." The Germans fought the Ethiopian army for the first time, and they had the reputation of being the most elite army in Europe, not as psychological pressure as the Italians, and they had recently conquered Tanganyika (that is, Tanzania) and southern Somalia, and now it seems that it is still easy to fight, and it should be the most dangerous enemy of Ethiopia. ”

Britain and France can not be underestimated, Britain had 41 years ago raised 32,000 troops to invade Ethiopia, when Ethiopia's 'King of Kings' Theodore II after burning the capital Gundar, and the British army in Magdala Fortress decisive battle, the result of defeat and suicide, its queen and prince were also captured by the British, resulting in the collapse of the dynasty, Ethiopia fell into civil war again. So, the British have a psychological advantage. And the French had already obtained the right to build the railway from Djibouti to Addis Ababa, so naturally they would not watch Germany and Italy divide Ethiopia. ”

Li Ruishi folded his arms and said: "I think that if France wants to protect its railway interests, it is also a suitable choice to cooperate with China, so that we can supply arms through his port......"

"That's a state-to-state deal, and diplomats like Ye Hua are also busy with it. Of course, the country does not want to see Ethiopia fall like this, and the defeat of Ethiopia means a great failure of the empire to implement kingship, which is difficult for the top to bear. ”

As he spoke, Wen Yu had already gotten up and put on his military hat.

"Everyone, it's not too early, it's time to leave, before leaving, as long as you keep in mind my last words, give me back alive!"

"Obey the Commander's Teachings!"