"Watt, are you teaseing me again...... Or maybe it's just an April Fool's joke, and if it's true, then why not shoot me in the head. Colonel Pellini was mad, waving his hands in the air in a frenzy.

After all, in a conflict (the Italian side firmly denied the use of the word "war"), the Italian army suffered the most, and in his opinion, as long as excessive demands were not made, it was easy to reach a secret agreement in private.

Not to mention that so many black natives have been captured by this group of hateful mercenaries, which is a lot of wealth.

Seriously, thanks to Colonel Pelini, who personally arranged for a letter to be sent to the native chieftains, agreeing to attack the town of Eder together as a protector.

Facing the angry Colonel Pelini, Li Yong's rare old face turned red, this kind of excessive request was really a bit unspeakable, but he had to comply with it.

"Mr. Colonel, this is only a piece of land in Morgada, and we are willing to compromise on all fronts, including allowing your lightly and seriously wounded to recuperate in Edtown, releasing dozens of captured cavalry company officers and soldiers, keeping secrets and completely forgetting all details about this conflict, but in any case we will get Morgada, needless to say, this is a death order from above."

"It's impossible, the Italians have been operating in Morghada for more than six years, building roads, bridges and port facilities, it is an important town in the entire eastern region, and there are more than 600 families of Italian expatriates here, God, your appetite is amazing, I have no right to do it, even if I kill it, I can't do it."

Li Yong made a gesture of calm and calm, and said slowly; "Mr. Colonel, let's analyze the problem rationally, from a tactical point of view, the mountains of Morghada are a natural geographical barrier, we must take Morghada and block the threat that may come from the west, otherwise your army is stationed in the Eritrean region, which is a huge threat that no one can ignore, and it will be difficult for people to sleep."

"No way, don't be delusional." Colonel Pellini flatly refused, and he stood up with a cold expression, took his military hat from the negotiating table, and prepared to leave; "If you insist on the lion's mouth, the secret meeting will surely break, and when the lid cannot be closed, it will be a complete catastrophe for you and for us, and everyone will be reduced to ashes in the wrath of His Majesty, including everything here."

"If that's the case, then we can only choose to accept it." Li Yong sat calmly at the negotiation table, not intimidated by the other party's words, but said in a deep voice;

"Mr. Colonel, I also agree with you in good faith that if you really don't have the right to make decisions, then let those who have the power to make decisions talk.

We can make sufficient concessions, provide sufficient convenience for the treatment of hundreds of minor and serious wounded, and make certain compensation, and many aspects can be discussed.

As for the more than 600 Italian immigrants in the town of Molgada, they will not be an obstacle, because from today onwards, they will be attacked by the nomadic black natives, and the panic will soon spread throughout the town, so I don't need to say more about what to do, right?

According to our information;

It is possible for you to take a large part of the northern part of the Kingdom of Ethiopia so that you will not be unable to settle these Italian expatriates, and besides, this is only a small area, and who cares except for the African Expeditionary Force of the Kingdom of Italy? ”

Colonel Pellini said angrily; "Shut up, put away your greedy faces, it's an Italian colony for many years, and it's impossible to give it up."

"Please don't let your emotions dominate your sanity, nothing is impossible in this world, Mr. Colonel, you can go and ask the noble Earl, when it comes to the reputation of nobility, a dilapidated town in Africa is not so important." Li Yong thought for a while, rubbed his teeth a little distressed, and said; "I can personally compensate you for a batch of spices worth 15,000 pounds, and if they are shipped back to Italy, they will be worth at least 40,000 pounds or more, which is my greatest sincerity."

"Hmph, stop daydreaming." Colonel Pellini angrily slammed the door and left.

Li Yong shouted in the back; "Wait for your good news, man." Unfortunately, he didn't get any response, only heard a sharp sound of horses' hooves fading away,

There was silence in the room

Li Yong's thoughtful fingers tapped lightly on the tabletop, repeatedly speculating in his heart about the possibility of reaching an agreement.

The Italian side is undoubtedly desperate for the town of Ed, not to mention that hundreds of lightly and seriously wounded people urgently need to be properly treated, and sending them to the nearby town of Ed to recuperate is the best way.

Morghada is still more than 100 kilometers away, and in the middle is a deserted hilly mountain road, which is impassable even by horse-drawn carriages, and it is obviously not feasible to send the lightly and seriously injured back.

What's more, the Italian army did not have enough mules and horses and animal power, and did not have the basic conditions for long-distance evacuation.

Considering that the desire of the Italian upper-level officers to deliberately cover up the fiasco was very strong, Li Yong felt that it was really possible for the other party to agree to this outrageous request, and the certainty was at least 50%.

Morghada is a small town surrounded by mountains, bordering the Red Sea, with an average altitude of 1300~2 kilometers, most of the pastures and arable land in the area are between hills and valleys, and the south is the Ethiopian plateau, and there is only one road that can be meandered through the mountains by horse-drawn carriage, connecting with the central region of Eritrea.

Therefore, the area is a natural geographical barrier.

The Italians took over the area before the Queenslanders, building a lot of Italian-style stone buildings, paving stone roads, and even building a road to the wharf, which is about 4.6 kilometers long.

A few years down

The town of Morghada has grown in size and now has a permanent population of more than 2,700 people, mostly from Italy, with a small number of Chinese and Arabs, and a much larger number of black slave laborers working in quarries, pastures and plantations.

Occupying this place, the Italian army could be supplied on the spot, and it was easy to attack Ed and Assab to the east, and from Assab to the southeast, they could reach Xi'an-City unimpeded.

If the Somali Provincial Militia were to occupy it, it would be possible to turn it into an impassable fortress and a safe backyard for the entire slender strip of eastern Red Sea coast (340 km long, 85 to 102 km wide, with a total area of about 32,000 sq km).

The Italians are the biggest threat, with 14,000 troops stationed in western and central Eritrea, and can quadruple or more that number in a short period of time.

Taking Morghada into its own hands is undoubtedly a wise move by the Somali province.

Italian army valley camp

Rows of new cemeteries appeared next to the camp, all of which were hastily buried by fallen officers and soldiers, and the whole camp was shrouded in a bitter rain.

in the military tent

Colonel Pelini gave a heavy report on the preliminary talks, saying that the Somali provincial side was very resolute and that Morghada was a prerequisite for reaching a secret agreement and could not be changed.

"Give them what you want, there's nothing hesitating about." The Count de Santis readily agreed.

This caught Colonel Pelini off guard, and said subconsciously; "No...... Your Excellency, we can't explain this. ”

"What is there to explain, as long as we don't say who knows?" The Count de Santis glanced sternly at Colonel Pelini, and when he saw him bow his head in horror, he said in a deep voice;

"I would like to remind you, Mr. Colonel, that the most important thing now is to settle the sick and wounded, so that they can recover from their wounds in a warm room, with hot water and soft beds, which is the most important thing to calm the hearts of the army.

Only when the army is stabilized can we talk about the next step.

We must get out of the current predicament, there is not just a small town in Morghada in the Eastern Zone, and I will communicate this issue privately with His Excellency the Commander.

All you have to do is go back at once and accede to the other side's demands, on the condition that all of our wounded officers and men enter Ed's town before nightfall to settle properly, the situation here is already terrible, and there is a possibility of mutiny at any time.

Don't forget...... We are grasshoppers tied to a rope. ”

"That'...... So what about the future? Colonel Pellini remained skeptical.

A trace of ruthlessness flashed on Count de Santis's face, and he no longer had the elegant and calm aristocratic demeanor he had before, and said in a cold tone; "As soon as I get through this difficult time, I will go to Asmara, where the headquarters is located, to meet privately with His Excellency General Balatieri and face the current predicament.

For the African Expeditionary Force Command, which is about to have a vast area in the northern part of the Kingdom of Ethiopia, it is not a big deal to cross the name of a small town on the colonial map.

As for the country, no one cares about any bullshit Molgada.

All you have to do is seal off Morghada's only access to the central region while I'm away, and no one will be allowed to pass through it, and no one will be killed.

Mr. Colonel, can I trust you? ”

"Yes, Your Excellency."

Under the aggressive questioning of the Count de Santis, Colonel Pelini nodded with difficulty, as if he had lost some strength in his chair.

Does he know what that means?

The two sides will tacitly cooperate to create a game of terror by burning, looting and looting in the surrounding pastures, so that the Italians who have settled here will leave in panic, and any Italian expatriates who have not evacuated Morghada will be abandoned.

Colonel Pelini knew that he had become the de facto accomplice of the thief ship, but it was too late to regret it.

Count de Santis nodded with satisfaction and said; "Very good, you can't rest yet, the camp will immediately organize the transfer of the wounded and sick to Ed Town, your task is to get there in advance, reach an agreement with the other party as soon as possible, and then be ready to accept the wounded and sick, we need enough medicine, beds and hot water, we also need food, tents and a sufficient number of mules and horses, hurry up and arrange all this, there is no time to delay."

"It will be as you wish, Your Excellency."