Texas City, Texas, Mexico.

This port city is located in the northern Gulf of Mexico, east of Texas, just 1120 kilometers from the border line of Louisiana, which Napoleon sold to the United States, on the western shore of a stretch of water officially named the Texas Lagoon. In another timeline, Houston, the largest metropolis in Texas, is nearby.

This body of water can be called a lagoon because it is separated from the open sea by two slender sand bars (sandbanks), leaving only a narrow inlet. Beyond the lagoon is the turquoise Gulf of Mexico, and inside the lagoon is an excellent sheltered anchorage.

At the entrance to the Texas Lagoon is a sandbar that was originally occupied by pirates and a small island next to it, which was chosen by Zhuge Weidao as the site for the construction of forts and coastal defense positions. After several years of construction, the fort on the island has begun to take shape, and the island itself is also called "Battery Island". The sandbar that was once occupied by pirates is now known as "Haiphong Island", with concealed positions built on the lagoon-facing side of the island, as well as torpedo boats and gunboat docks.

The city of Dezhou is built on the north side of Haiphong Island, less than 10 kilometers from the nearest point of Haiphong Island, and the whole city is centered on a peninsula. A wall about three meters high and five or six meters thick stretches across the northern part of the peninsula, enclosing the small peninsula into a relatively safe area. To the south of the city wall is the core of Dezhou City, although the site is not large, but it looks like a Chinese-style new industrial city. Wharves, shipyards, warehouses, schools, government offices, and residential buildings all have a strong "Tang style".

The dock is very annoying, the brand-new cranes are densely arranged, with white belts on their heads and shorts on their bottoms, looking at the short and strong dock workers, who are shuttling back and forth carrying small goods.

The port docks are full of cargo stacks, and it is clear that this place has become a shipping and trade center in Texas. However, there are no merchant ships from various countries visiting the sea, only the warships belonging to the Royal Navy of the Mexican Empire and the Texas Sea, as well as the merchant ships flying the Ming flag, and some fishing boats of the Japanese overseas Chinese in Texas.

A large dockyard that could be used to build warships stood in the corner of the harbor of Texas City, with black smoke and soot dust everywhere on the tall chimneys. On the slipway, two Guogong-class ships of more than 3,000 tons are undergoing overhaul in the dock. The sound of clanging rivets and the unique sound of Japanese workers' labor trumpets are in harmony with each other, making it seem particularly busy.

Sailors dressed in the uniforms of the Ming Navy and the Mexican Navy were huddled on the warships that had just sailed into the Texas Lagoon, looking curiously at the city that had only appeared for a short time and had already shown a momentum of rapid advance.

The whole of Texas now showed a vigorous vigor that the Mexican Empire, which nominally ruled it, did not have.

The Hero-class battleship "Bolivar" with a standard displacement of up to 18,500 tons and the Zhuangshi-class second-class protection cruiser "Jiangyin" with a standard displacement of 6,500 tons slowly passed through the channel and headed for the anchorage. Zhuge Weidao and Emperor Agustín I of Mexico stood side by side in front of the bridge window of the flagship of the Royal Mexican Navy, the USS Bolívar, looking at everything in front of them.

The speed at which this samurai city was built is truly astonishing! Probably only the infrastructure maniac in another timeline can match the speed, right? Although the city has received a huge investment from the Zhuge family (in exchange for Texas oil exploration rights), it is only a miracle that so many infrastructure and buildings have been erected in such a short period of time...... It is no wonder that the Americans are so afraid of this "city of the East" that they will not hesitate to send the Texas militia they support to attack it.

It's a pity that the Texas cowboys, who everyone has guns, met the most anti-American Texan samurai and crashed headlong into the steel plate.....

Looking at the city of Texas in front of you, which has been run like a barrel by Japanese expatriates, and then think about U.S. President Andrew . Jackson's face turned blue with anger when he learned of the rout of his Texas militia, and he was even more excited about the next performance of the Mexican-Texas Combined Fleet.

Although these Japanese devils are not a good thing, they are the only ones who can be used to strengthen the Mexican Empire and help the Mexican Empire to consume the American imperialists...... Daming himself will not go so far to Texas, even if they have a dream of gold rush, just go to California, in a few years there will be Australian gold, and there may be South Africa in the future. If you want to dig for oil, the gates of the Persian Gulf have been blocked for them!

Moreover, Dutch Sumatra was already under the de facto control of the Ming Nanyang Fleet after the British withdrew from Malaya. Oil on the island of Sumatra, now dug up.

So the only people who can come to Texas to take risks are these Japanese devils who can't enter the Great Tomorrow Dynasty system for the time being......

And the Mexican Emperor Agustin saw the city of Texas rising in front of him, but his heart was full of ups and downs. The United States is a tiger, the Ming is a dragon, and Japan is a wolf...... Tigers want to eat people, and the dragon has a great appetite, and Agustin has to lure the wolf into the house in order not to be swallowed by the American tiger.

Thinking of this, the Emperor of Mexico misses his Spanish homeland a little...... Before the Spanish Empire was dismantled by these rebellious ministers and thieves, it was possible to wrestle with the United States, and it could also firmly block the Ming to the north of California.

But now...... Even the only old man who is really willing to help Emperor Agustin, the great hero of South America, Bolívar, died of illness a few months ago (the "Bolívar" in Mexico was named in his honor), so Agustín wants to huddle together to keep warm, and he doesn't know who to hug?

The frustration in the heart of Agustin I, that was growing stronger. Just then, a colonel of the Royal Mexican Navy walked in, handed a copy of the telegram in both hands, and muttered a bunch of words in quick and urgent Spanish before giving a military salute and leaving.

Then I saw the Emperor of Mexico looking down at the copy of the telegram in his hand, and then said to Zhuge Weidao: "Your Excellency, our opportunity may come...... My friend, the Governor of Cuba in the Kingdom of Spain, sent me a secret telegram in which a reconnaissance airship he sent had spotted the main force of the American Atlantic Fleet passing through the Windward Channel into the Caribbean Sea. ”

"The main force of the US Atlantic Fleet passes through the Wind Direction Strait?" Zhuge was stunned for Dao, "Can you be sure that it is the main force?" ”

"Yes!" The Mexican emperor said, "Observers on the airship identified six United States-class battleships...... I think they were the U.S. fleet that had been hiding in Mobile Bay. Their target should be the construction site of the Nicaragua Canal! The Americans have always been most opposed to this project, and have used various methods to force or induce me to give up this project, but I have never done the same. Now they are directly using force! ”

"Your Majesty the Emperor," Zhuge Wei asked, "When did the 6 United States-class ships pass through the Wind Direction Strait?" ”

"6 hours ago...... It should have been hundreds of nautical miles by now! "We won't have time to come to the aid anyway..... But it's not too much of a problem, I've had thousands of mines laid in North San Juan Bay outside the eastern exit of the canal, and if the Americans are willing to break in, the loss of a few United States-class is possible. ”

"That's good!" Zhuge nodded for Dao, "Your Majesty the Emperor...... Looks like we're going to be back to Mexico City by land! ”

Agustin I shook his head and said with a smile: "No, I will sit in Texas City and personally command the invasion of the United States!" ”

Invasion of the United States!

These words actually came from the mouth of a Mexican head of state...... This Mexico looks like it's going to take the plunge!