"You're right, in fact, I'm on my way to Europe." Ma Whistle said, and then asked, "Mayo, you are from England, I wonder if you can be my guide in Europe?" ”

"Now?" Mayo was stunned.

Ma Whistle: "First I'm going to Oaxaca, and then I'm going to Europe." But pretty much the same, I can't go to Boston and take a boat. So you can think that I'm already on my way to Europe. ”

"Okay." Mayo didn't think much of it, and nodded in response.

After a day in Clarketown, the sentry gathered the crowd and prepared to continue on his way.

There was one more person in the team, Mayo, and some more cargo—the team would ostensibly be a caravan.

It can't be said that on the surface, these goods do make some money, such as the products of the Clark Garment Factory.

The Clark garment factory, whose main product is jeans, has become quite famous.

Even though there are a lot of knockoffs on the market, Clark Garment Factory, as the origin of jeans, is still the most popular in the market.

Leaving Clarktown, Ma Whistle and the others headed south into Mexico.

Much of the so-called territory of Mexico is already U.S. territory, and northern Mexico has fallen to a large area during the war, with U.S. troops stationed.

It wasn't until about a month later that they entered veritable Mexican territory.

As the ranks progressed, the crowds gradually became denser and less desolate than the Midwest.

Every now and then, they can see some villages and towns or even cities.

In addition to whites, there are also many Indians in Mexico.

Compared to the Midwest of the United States, the Indians of Mexico are much more developed, and this has been the case since ancient times.

The horse-sentry procession would often stop at the Indian settlements to rest and trade.

March.

He led the crowd to an Indian village in San Luis Poto, where he rested, traded goods, and inquired about news.

"Welcome, children of the sky of Apache." The Indians here had apparently also heard of the reputation of the horse whistle, and when he arrived, an old Indian came out to greet him.

The old man smiled and continued, "I am the chief here, you can call me 'Lucas'. ”

He spoke not very native Spanish, and was dressed very differently from a typical Native American, with no feathers tied on his head and no paint on his face.

"Hello, Chief Lucas." The horse whistle also greeted him in Spanish and called for an interpreter.

After exchanging a few polite words, Ma Whistle first asked the people to bring some jeans: "Chief Lucas, this is one of our pants there, they are very strong and durable, we want to exchange some pants for something with you, what do you think?" ”

Chief Lucas took the jeans and looked at them: "It looks good, it's really sturdy, I think it should be good for farm work." ”

"That's right." Ma Whistle nodded, "It's called Clark cargo pants, and it's very popular in the Midwest, and workers and farmers like it for being sturdy and reliable. ”

"What do you want to trade it for?" Chief Lucas asked.

Ma Whistle: "Some supplies, or some specialties." ”

After exchanging some goods, he added: "My people and I are on our way to the south, and I wonder how the war is going there?" ”

Chief Lucas: "I heard not long ago that the Americans have hit Mexico City. ”

"When?"

"Well, it should have been a week ago." Chief Lucas thought for a moment, "I don't know what to do now, maybe Mexico City has been breached, or maybe the fighting is going on, I haven't heard the latest news yet." ”

The horse sentry looked at the map in his hand.

San Luis Poto is not far from Mexico City, and a little further south of Mexico City is the destination of his trip, Oaxaca.

If the war is over, the horse sentry can choose to go south through the State of Mexico.

But now that the war seems to be going on, it seems like he would do well to take a detour, southwest of San Luis Poto to Oaxaca.

They rested for the night in Chief Lucas's village and had a small evening party, sharing food and singing and dancing with each other.

"Son of the Sky, people are saying that Sleeping Bear City has defeated the plague, and I think this should be true." Chief Lucas asked expectantly, "How exactly did you do that?" Is it God's blessing? ”

"Not really." "The lessons of our ancestors with blood have taught us that the gods do not care about human suffering. Everything is on our own. ”

Chief Lucas: "But...... How can man overcome the plague? ”

Horse whistle: "Discipline, and hygiene." ”

"Discipline and hygiene?" Chief Lucas frowned, clearly unable to understand.

"With the help of strict management and hygiene measures, we have cut off everything that can be contaminated with the plague, and then when the people who have already fallen ill have recovered themselves, the plague will naturally end," Ma explained. ”

Chief Lucas was silent for a moment, but finally said, "That sounds too simple. I think you're still blessed by God. ”

Ma Sentry didn't say much, and the conversation changed: "What god do you believe in?" ”

"Of course it's God, most people believe in Catholicism, not just us, but in Mexico and the whole world," said Chief Lucas. ”

Ma Whistle asked again, "What about your traditional gods?" ”

"Believe it too." Chief Lucas's answer was not unexpected, and many of the congregants did not have strict beliefs.

Ma Whistle smiled and didn't say anything.

"Son of the Sky, I've heard that Sleeping Bear City is willing to accept all Indians?" It was a middle-aged man sitting next to Chief Lucas, who spoke a little more in Spanish, and he leaned closer.

Ma Whistle: "Yes, in fact, not only the aborigines, but also people of other nationalities can be accepted as long as they are willing to obey the laws of the Apaches. What, do you want to move to Sleeping Bear City to live? ”

The other party obviously had such thoughts, but after hesitating for a moment, he still shook his head: "It's too far, farther than Saltiyo." ”

"Aren't we coming here no further?" "If you want to come, Sleeping Bear City is always welcome." ”

……

At dusk, Mexico City.

As the capital of Mexico, it is a bustling place, but at this moment, there is an oppressive atmosphere in the air in Mexico City.

The light and shadow of dusk add a bit of twilight, and most of the pedestrians on the road are in a hurry, and acquaintances will not say much when they meet.

"Boom...... Boom ......"

The sound of artillery fire could be heard faintly in the distance.

The people followed the sound of the cannons, but they came from a low hill outside the city, where there was a castle.

"Is the battle at Chapultepec Castle still going on?" Some Mexicans in the city thought so.

And at the same time, the presidential palace of Mexico.

Santa Anna paced anxiously around the room, his left leg, which had been replaced by a prosthetic, made him limp when he walked, making the pace seem like a luxury to him.

But he was still pacing.

Until a general hurried in from outside.

"How's it going, Carrera?" Santa Anna hurriedly asked.

"Mr. President...... We lost, we lost Chapultepec Castle, and our Military Academy. Carrera gasped.

Hearing this, Santa Anna couldn't help but be stunned for a moment, as if this was very unexpected news.

But in fact, most people expected this, including himself.

It's just that he's a little hard to accept.

Santa Anna managed to make a comeback and became president of Mexico for the tenth time, and now it seems that his tenth term is over, and it will be another few months of rush.

Prior to that, Santa Anna lived in exile in the United States for many years.

When the war broke out, U.S. President James Polk approached him and helped him return to Mexico, naturally in the hope that he would "mediate".

When facing Polk, Santa Anna promised that she would definitely be a good mediator.

However, as soon as he returned to Mexico and became president, this self-proclaimed Napoleon man immediately turned around and turned around and fought with the United States with his army.

His military talents and resources clearly did not match his ambitions.

So the war continues to this day, and the American army has reached the Mexican capital and captured the seat of the Mexican Military Academy, Chapultepec Castle.

With the loss of Chapultepec Castle, there seems to be little suspense about the war that follows.

General Carrera continued to report on the battle at Chapultepec Castle: "...... There were some brave cadets who fought to the end and sacrificed their lives for the country. Juan Escutia, who at the last moment wrapped the flag of Mexico around himself and jumped off the castle to his death. ”

"They're heroes......" Santa Anna said in a half-hour silence, her face cloudy.

General Carrera asked, "Mr. President, what are we going to do next?" ”

Santa Anna didn't speak.

Carrera hesitated for a moment, then finally took a deep breath: "I think we should retreat, Mr. President." ”

"Retreat." Santa Anna muttered, "Leaving our capital? ”

Carrera: "That's all there is to it now, if Chapultepec Castle is lost, it's almost impossible for us to win against the Americans again, at least not here." For us now, the best thing to do is to take the main force of the army, evacuate Mexico City as soon as possible, and then come back to the counteroffensive later. ”

Santa Anna was still hesitating.

Carrera continued: "Mr. President, if you don't withdraw, it may be too late, and the Americans may call tonight!" ”

Santa Anna finally made up her mind and sighed, "Okay, you go and prepare, and then you will evacuate Mexico City with the army later." ”

"Yes." General Carrera turned and walked away.

"Wait a minute." Santa Anna remembered something again, and suddenly said.

Carrera: "What else do you have to say, Mr. President?" ”

Santa Anna hesitated: "Before we evacuate, release the prisoners into the streets." ”

Carrera was stunned: "Why?" ”

"After the Americans occupy Mexico City, these prisoners will definitely give them a headache for a while!" Santa Anna said hatefully, "They don't want to take this place easily!" ”

As he said, the Mexican army released all the prisoners, and then retreated at night, leaving the Mexican capital.

Despite the concealment of the night, it was an army of 10,000 people after all, and it was impossible to hide the movement no matter what.

As soon as Santa Anna left, the streets of Mexico City began to be filled with riots.

"The president ran away!"

"Santa Anna is gone!"

Panic pervades the people.

But not everyone panicked, some people rushed into the National Palace as soon as they learned the news and opened a zero-yuan purchase.

Looting and looting spread in Mexico City, which was already in chaos before the U.S. army could enter.

There is no doubt that at this point, the curtain has come down on this war.

Later in the evening, American troops arrived in Mexico City.

They soon discovered that Santa Anna had abandoned the city, leaving them with a capital at their fingertips.

So the next day, a large force of American troops officially entered Mexico City.

Thousands of them marched in a procession, armed with weapons, from outside the city, and in the face of the terrified inhabitants, their faces all written with arrogance and arrogance.

However, in some corners of the city, there are also many people with weapons in hand, secretly observing the American troops entering the city.

Some of them weren't Mexicans, at least not before, but they were fighting for Mexico at this time.

"That's William Wirth, and John Garland...... I've seen them before! A young man armed with a rifle looked at the two generals in the U.S. army and said angrily.

"Where have you seen them?" Someone asked.

"In the barracks." The youth replied, "The barracks of the American army." ”

He was a deserter from the U.S. Army, and after defecting from the U.S. Army, he joined St. Patrick's Battalion.

Although he was a deserter from the American army, he was not an American, but an Irishman.

Many of the members of St. Patrick's Battalion were in a similar situation, and after the outbreak of the Great Famine in Ireland, they first came to the United States to listen to American propaganda and promises to join the American army.

However, they soon realized that the propaganda of the Americans was fake, and the benefits of joining the army were not realized.

The reason for the failure is that, from the very beginning, the Protestants in the United States did not treat these Catholics from Europe as human beings, and discrimination, deception, and insult were commonplace.

Fed up, these European Catholics eventually defected to the U.S. Army and joined St. Patrick's Battalion to fight for Mexico, becoming the bravest of the men, fighting the Americans even more fiercely than the native Mexicans.

Following Santa Anna, Mexican government forces largely withdrew from Mexico City.

But these remaining St. Patrick's Battalion fighters did not intend to be captured.

"Look at these Yankees, we're going to have to blow their heads out!"

"That's right, blow up these Protestants!"

The fighters of St. Patrick's Battalion, as well as the stragglers and militias of Mexico City, quickly made their decision.

"Bang!"

The natural artist who fired the first shot was bold, and with the sound of a gunshot, the American Army General John Garlandon screamed and fell off his horse!

(End of chapter)