In a spacious office in a villa in the center of Manila, Slow sighed at the nameplate on the table, took out a white cloth from the drawer and carefully wiped it up, until the silver nameplate inlaid with a few bronze words "Philippine Trading Company" was recognizable, and then he stopped with satisfaction and took out a cigar from the cigar box next to him.

There was a snap and the match lit.

When the flame lit the cigar, his hand trembled inexplicably, and finally lit the cigar with great difficulty.

As the smoke swirled a few times in his mouth, he calmed down a little, and although he knew that these cigars were hand-picked by himself, he would never have a problem, but every time he lit them, he felt terrified.

Walking to the window, lifting the curtains, looking downstairs at the guards with batons and revolvers, and at the oversized gemstone ring on his finger that sparkled most people in the sunlight, the brief panic that had risen at that moment vanished in an instant.

Slow knew very well when his sequelae began, since his uncle was made by that kind of cigar to make people not like ghosts, he knew that he would not be able to get rid of his student in this life, especially when the news of the Pacific Army defeating Ryumoto and occupying Ryukyu came, which made him understand that Li Mo was no longer an ordinary student, but a strongman in charge of changing the situation in the region.

No one is more sensitive to some things than he is to the man who travels around the world by lip service and abduction, and he knows better than anyone the mind of the student who is now called the arsonist of the Far East by the countries of Europe.

He doesn't want Hawaii, his ambition is enough to wrap around the next half of the world!

Oh, God.

For such a person, it is far better to choose cooperation than confrontation, so when Li Mo asked him to be the boss of this secretly opened company, he agreed without hesitation.

He knew why he chose himself, because he had the title of nephew of the governor of Guam, Spain, and this identity did play its role, at least at this moment in Luzon, whether it was the acquisition of mines, or plantations, or even the forcible occupation of other people's factory property, there would be no problem.

At the beginning, he didn't have time to think and hesitate, but now he doesn't want to hesitate at all, because today's Slow has not only become a real upper-class person, but also can not be described as super-rich, and even the current governor of Luzon is polite when he sees him!

And now he has a large number of mines, dozens of large plantations and more than a dozen factories under his name, and some assets are not even clear to him. He only knew that with the help of some people or mysterious forces, this trading company under his name was expanding at an astonishing rate, and not long ago it completely monopolized the Luzon iron ore, controlling more than 100 plantations of all sizes, and extending its tentacles to Vietnam, Borneo, Siam, which are not controlled by Spain.

Although there are always some people around him who are secretly monitoring him every time he goes in and out, and even the bodyguards are specially arranged, as long as he is loyal to Li Mo, then these people are no different from the decorations, but they make him look more super-rich.

To tell the truth, compared with the precarious days before, he likes this kind of life, and Master Li is also good to himself, and he will give a huge amount of dividends every month, which is enough to make many domestic nobles jealous!

As the cigar burned out, Slow gradually retracted his thoughts, whether it was for the sake of the more and more powerful student, or for his own bulging pocket, he had to work hard to make the former crook who roamed the streets disappear!

Slow grabbed the neatly arranged papers on his desk, a plan for expanding the rubber plantation.

Rubber is grown in Brazil, and since the Spanish occupation of Luzon, some rubber plantations have developed here, but compared to the long-term figures provided by Honolulu, the current scale of rubber plantations in Luzon is so small that it seems necessary to visit the Governor General again and grab some land from the locals!

Thinking of this, Slow laughed even more heartily, it seemed that this kind of bullying men and women and taking property could make him get back to the fun of cheating on the streets back then, no, it should be said that it was more interesting than that time.

After thinking about what gifts to give and how to speak when he saw the governor, Slow immediately packed his things and prepared to go out. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

As Slow spoke, a young man of mixed race with glasses and a somewhat Chinese face walked into the room.

"Dear Jiang, is there something wrong?" Slow looked at the young man with a smile and asked, he didn't dare to underestimate this guy, not only because the other party was a person sent by Honolulu to supervise him, but also because he was an assistant in his own business, and he was indispensable for helping him with advice.

"Mr. Slow, a telegram from Honolulu."

As soon as he heard the telegram from Honolulu, Slow didn't dare to slack off, and hurriedly took the telegram, and after looking at it twice, the whole person was stunned, and only raised his eyelids after half a ring, and asked as if he couldn't believe it: "Nemo is in Guam now?" ”――

"Hey, why did you forget to take them out!"

As soon as he finished eating a big meal with the Governor of Guam, Young Master Li began to sigh again, and he didn't seem to have the slightest interest in the vibrant Guam outside.

Yan Fu looked at the young master Li who was bored with his feet on his feet, and then looked at the Spanish Governor in Guam who was cowering on the other side, Kamaz, he really couldn't control the corners of his mouth, and he was busy not turning his head.

From the beginning of accompanying Li Mo to Nanyang to the first stop Guam, the former chief teacher of the Beiyang Naval Master School, the whole person seemed to be in an inexplicable excitement.

When this small island in the depths of the Pacific Ocean appeared in front of him, when the huge scale of Apra Harbor jumped into view, when the factory area with similar plans in Hawaii, when the tall chimneys bloomed in front of him, he knew what strategic vision was!

Today's Apra Harbor has been built with a lot of money from Young Master Li, and it has finally taken on the appearance of the most important Pacific base of the United States in the future, with rows of factories extending inward along the bay, and the most important shipyard is naturally the front.

Since Guam is located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, it is very uneconomical to maintain a shipbuilding production line, so Master Li did not pursue high and complete this place like he did with Hawaii and the Ryukyus, but only built two dry docks and added two floating docks for maintenance.

Whether it is the total tonnage or the level of construction, it is far inferior to the Hawaii and Ryukyu shipyards, and this is not a base for shipbuilding in the future planning of Master Li, and the main role of the dock is to do maintenance and repair for the fleet stationed here in the future, so the factories supporting the shipyard here are not so comprehensive.

Although it is now producing components for the 10,000-ton oil tankers of the Pacific Freight Company and for the eight light cruisers in the Jinghai plan, the price of the Hawaii shipyard and the newly built Ryukyu shipyard has increased by 10 percent compared with the previous year, which is extremely uneconomical in the large-scale shipbuilding that needs to control costs.

But even this has been an eye-opener for him!

At this time, he realized how superficial the so-called reformists in China were, making a fuss about advocating the reform and shouting slogans to support reform, but they were far less down-to-earth than Li Mo!

Really!

When all parts of the Great Qing Kingdom were engaged in the Westernization Movement, were implementing new policies, and were calling for reforms, but they were always scattered, this Young Master Li had already led the overseas descendants who were regarded as outcasts by the Great Qing Dynasty to move forward silently, his back looked a little lonely, and the road he walked was full of thorns, but he did not complain at all!

When he was desperately trying to expand the navy and the Qing Dynasty was unable to deal with it, he had already laid an ambush in Chile and prepared carefully! When the combined fleet attacked the Beiyang Naval Division, causing the Beiyang to lose troops, his fleet had already laid out its pockets, dug traps, and finally completely destroyed all his naval forces!

Now, when everyone's eyes are still focused on the mess of Korea, Yueben, the Qing Dynasty, and Russia, his gaze has surpassed everyone and is projected to the entire Pacific Ocean!

Guam.

This small island, located in the depths of the ocean, is just a small black dot on the map, and has not been paid attention to at all, is completely controlled by him! When he heard that his first stop was here, he looked at the map for three days before he realized how important this place was!

God!

When he connected Hawaii, the Ogasawara Islands, and the Mariana Islands like a string of beads, he found that this was simply an important strategic fulcrum for entering the southwest Pacific Ocean and containing the South Sea.

And this place has now been controlled by Li Mo in another way! What kind of means and vision are needed for this?

Such a person, such a team! How many difficulties do you need to face to get to where you are today, and how much perseverance does it take! It's ridiculous that I hesitated for a long time in order to join others, but now I know that compared with others, I am simply a stupid fish who only knows how to make himself high in the small river ditch!

As for a few gossips from those pedantic people in the country, time will prove their ignorance!

Thinking of this, the corners of Yan Fu's mouth became serious again, but in the eyes of Young Master Li, he thought that he was saying that it was not good for him to make the tripod so high in front of the family, so he hurriedly put down his feet and beckoned to Duan Fei, who was accompanying him, who immediately asked people to bring in a pair of white-born blue and white, simple and exquisite porcelain vases.

"This is my gift to you, Mr. Governor, and these are your personal compensations." At the same time as Duan Fei handed over the vase, he also handed over a large check!

"One hundred thousand pounds!" Looking at the series of zeros on the check, and the vase like mutton fat and white jade, Kamath swallowed violently, and his eyes suddenly became snowy.

As the governor of the Kingdom of Spain, although he was killed by his nephew and now he is not like a ghost, although he finally quit his drug addiction, but under the threat of the other party's life and the offensive of Jin Yuan, he finally chose to give up.

After all, although he claimed to be the governor, the nearby and more fertile Mariana Islands were not under his jurisdiction, let alone the resource-rich and lucrative Luzon Islands.

Every Spanish nobleman knew that the Governor of Guam was more of a penal colony than a penal colony for down-and-out nobles, and that on this deserted island, there were only a few small fishing boats left except for the damned waters, and even the nautical coaling station was rarely open for a few days a year, and many shipowners preferred to go to Luzon and the Mariana Islands to coal.

There is no wine, no women, no delicious food, and no wide world, this is a big prison!

Fortunately, some people are now interested in this place, although he once made himself unable to survive and die, but with the huge amount of money, Guam is undergoing great changes!

For the first time in history, there was a shipyard, a smelter, a fish cannery, and a power station! In the future, there will be a refinery and a series of other factories under construction!

Not to mention the completion of the dredging construction, the construction of a new port that will be known to the domestic aristocracy.

Although these things were only superficially in his name and those of his nephew, it did not make Kamath despair, because since the construction of the first factory, he began to receive a certain amount of money every month, which he could not get back even if he was governor for ten years!

And now the string of zero cheques in his hand, and the vase that was priceless at first glance in front of him, really made his eyes red, and he knew that as long as he nodded, these things would be completely his own!

The price is to completely betray his country, hide everything for the young man in front of him, and live in his shadow forever!

With a life of abundance and limited freedom on the one hand, and a betrayal without any price, Kamath nodded almost without hesitation for a man who had been ostracized at home, had been reduced to a third-rate family, and had spent the last peso on the basis of a little relationship with the Empress, to become the ridiculed governor of Guam.

"Dear Royal Highness, I pledge in the name of God that no one will be able to take your place here until you rule here directly!"

Looking at Kamaz who bowed down and saluted in front of him, Li Mo laughed, suddenly pulled out the pistol from his waist, withdrew the bullets one by one in front of him, and said with a smile: "Dear Your Excellency Governor Kamaz, you have made the right choice, and I can assure you that you and your family will have a better future. ”

Looking at the bullets that were withdrawn from the magazine, Kamaz broke out in a cold sweat on his back, secretly glad that he had finally made the right bet this time!

"Your Excellency the Governor, there is one more thing I need to discuss with you." Looking at Kamaz who was trembling slightly, Li Mo knew that this guy had been frightened by himself, and he also knew that he was too late, so he told Da Zhuang to put away his gun before squinting his eyes: "From next month, this will become the base of our escort fleet, I hope you can prepare early." ”

Escort fleet bases!

Although Li Mo's words were simple, they made Duan Fei, who was familiar with the inside story, feel a shock in his heart, which indicated that the young master was about to officially activate this Southwest Pacific base, which was still out of everyone's sight! Do you want to focus on your future work?

Kamath next to him widened his eyes even more, if it weren't for the fact that the force value was too different, he really wanted to smash the vase directly in Li Mo's face! Is this a consultation or an order?

As long as he doesn't garrison troops, no matter how Guam tosses, he can use his nephew and his identity to plug what mouths, but if a third country is allowed to garrison troops, it will be completely two problems!

You must know that at this moment in Luzon, there are still nearly 10,000 Spanish troops and the Far East Fleet, if there are other forces stationed in Guam, I am afraid that those nobles in the country will immediately demand that they be killed!

Unless he, Young Master Li, takes over this place in name and sends a sufficient number of security troops, it is impossible for him to resist the joint efforts of the other governors in the country with his strength!

But looking at the appearance of the young man sitting in front of him, he knew that this guy would definitely not risk war with the kingdom right now to declare the occupation of this place, and in this case, it is simply impossible to let himself gag other people's mouths and prevent the secret from being discovered!

"But can you say no?" Looking at the strong man playing with a pistol beside Li Mo, Kamath swallowed the words that came to his lips again.

As if seeing Kamaz's embarrassment, Li Mo got up with a smile and walked to his side, saying, "Your Excellency, I know your difficulties, and I also know that this is a very difficult task, but you can rest assured, as long as you can delay for half a year, I have a way to make the kingdom no longer take care of Guam." ”

Half?!

Although he didn't know why Li Mo dared to guarantee like this, if he only concealed it for half a year, he still had some way, so after thinking about it again, he gritted his teeth and nodded: "Your Royal Highness the Duke, don't worry, no one will suspect you in half a year." ”

"Thank you so much." Li Mo Xie said: "Please rest assured, I will try my best to restrain the troops stationed there, and they will not cause trouble for you." ”

"That's great." Kamath wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and hurriedly said, "Your Highness, I still have some things, you see." ”

Knowing that Kamath was frightened, Li Mo nodded hurriedly, and finally did not forget to add: "Mr. Kamath, I found this pair of vases from the Qing Imperial Palace, you should be careful not to break them." ”

"Qingguo Imperial Palace?!" Kamath's eyes lit up again, and he hurriedly picked up the vase and tiptoed out.

Seeing Kamath's cautious appearance, Li Mo laughed suddenly, only Du Dazhuang seemed to be a little dissatisfied with giving such a precious gift, and muttered: "Young master, isn't it too valuable to give the treasures of the palace to foreign devils?" You haven't even yet! ”

"Huh." Seeing that Kamath had already left, Duan Fei finally couldn't help laughing: "Don't worry, it was the young master who took care of me and deliberately found someone to imitate it in Yanjing Liulifang." ”

"I've got a whole bunch of them there, if you like."

Fake?!

A whole bunch?!

Du Dazhuang opened his mouth wide in disbelief, even Yan Fu's eyes widened, and he turned his head to look at Li Mo, with stars in his eyes. Feelings, Young Master Li, is also particular about gifts!

This is also too despicable, too shameless!

What's more, the person who accepts the gift does not dare to question it at all, even if he knows that it is a fake in the future, he has to be enshrined like a treasure!

It seems that I still need to deepen my learning!

(To be continued)