What you think, what you want!

this day

On the offshore liner that arrived in Kuwait, a dozen well-dressed guests came down, led by tall and straight people, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, with a handful of excellent beards, and looking heroic at the age of about twenty-eight or nineteen.

There were several horse-drawn carriages waiting on the docks, and after loading the luggage, the people quickly got into the carriages and merged into the traffic into the city......

This person is Colonel Lei Xiao, who is now well-known in the world army circles, and is well-known in various countries for his book "Theory of Army Armored Weapons Operations", and has been praised by the Tang Imperial press as "a pioneer in the field of armored forces" and a "practitioner of new military theory......

This group was part of a royal delegation that accompanied His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of Qin, Tang Li Gan, to the United Kingdom to attend the grand celebration of the 60th anniversary of Queen Victoria's accession to the throne.

In particular, the Royal Navy of Great Britain discharged a grand lineup of 20-mile-long ironclad capital ships, and the ironclad giants that could not be seen from the head to the tail sailed mightily, and the thick black smoke spewed from the huge chimneys covered the sky, which was really breathtaking.

Colonel Lei Xiao and his entourage arrived in Europe in April, just in time for the Greco-Turkish War, so as a member of the international observation team, they observed the defeat of the Greek army up close.

In view of the battle situation, they substituted the newly developed "Assault Wolf armored vehicle" for simulation, and obtained gratifying results, which have the ability to greatly change the situation on the local battlefield.

The Assault Wolf tracked armored vehicle is a light armored vehicle developed over many years, with a total weight of 2.85 tons, a semi-open upper perimeter of the armored chassis, and an off-road speed of up to 18 kilometers per hour.

It can be equipped with a hand-cranked Storm seven-barreled heavy machine gun, or a Colt self-correcting 9-pounder breech gun, with a crew of 4 people, and the Royal Army procurement price is 5,700 Tang Yuan (Note; Naked car, without weapons. ）

So far, the Royal Army of the Tang Empire has been equipped with 166 assault wolf tracked armored vehicles, and there are still 54 new orders to be completed, a total of 220 vehicles, which will cost a total of about 1.2 million Tang Yuan in allocation.

This money is about the purchase cost of a British-made 6,800-ton ironclad ship.

In addition, the Royal Janissary allocated funds for the purchase of 126 vehicles, of which 84 were wheeled armoured vehicles and 42 were tracked armoured vehicles.

True, a total of two models of the Assault Wolf armored vehicle were developed, sharing a common chassis, one is tracked and the other is wheeled.

The Royal Janissaries are more likely to carry out tasks in cities or on paved roads, and can use wheeled armored vehicles in more scenarios, so most of them purchase wheeled armored vehicles.

Wheeled armored vehicles are also cheaper, less than half the price of the former.

After attending the ceremony in the United Kingdom, Colonel Lei Xiao and his entourage once again left the royal delegation and traveled to the Near East and North Africa alone, while His Royal Highness King Qin led a large group back to the empire.

As the 71st prince at the bottom of the ranking, the pseudonym Colonel Lei Xiao is not valued by His Royal Highness King Qin, and he has only seen two or three sides. With the permission of His Royal Highness the King of Qin, the itinerary can be relatively free.

This is the reality of today's Tang royal family, and it is also very helpless.

The group stayed at a Chinese-style manor house in Kuwait City, where lush vines were planted in this desert border city, and the cool breeze on the shore made people feel comfortable.

"Okay, thank you Mr. Zheng for your thoughtful arrangement, and I will contact you again if necessary." Major Pan Zhixin greeted politely and sent the people who were greeted at the pier to the gate of the manor.

These people belonged to the branch of the Colonial Department stationed in Kuwait City, and they did not know the identity of Colonel Lei Xiao, and they did not even know that this group of people were soldiers, only that they had to receive a group of distinguished guests.

While talking

Two black cars drove one after the other to the gate of the manor and stopped, and several strong gunmen crowded around the rear car, vigilantly guarding, and one of them opened the door.

After Sir Mak Guangming got out of the car, he looked at Major Pan Zhixin, who was not far away, with an unhappy look on his face, and quickly smiled, and quickly ordered; "Stay here and wait, don't harass your guests."

"Yes, Lord Sir."

Sir Mak Guangmin took a few steps, stretched out his hands with a smile on his face from afar, and said; "I'm sorry to be presumptuous, but please bear with me. I am Sir Mak Kwong Man of the Kuwait Maritime Transport Association, a local squire, dare to ask your distinguished guest's name? ”

Between words

Major Tan Fusheng, Lieutenant Pan Zhicheng, Lieutenant Lin Liu'er and others had already walked out, their eyes vigilantly circled in a half-circle, looking up and down at this middle-aged businessman who had come uninvited and had already gained a little fat, with some disdain in their expressions.

The Tang Empire was highly hierarchical, and the commoner class could never be integrated into the aristocratic class, which were two distinct circles.

Feeling the strong distrust, Sir Mak Guangmin hurriedly saluted again with his hands crossed, and said;

"Don't worry about it, I am one of the most well-known squires in the area, and a former retired soldier of the Imperial Army, who served in the famous 201st Division.

Kuwait City is located in the middle of nowhere, and there are very few distinguished guests from the empire itself.

I am a landlord, I am very happy to hear that the guests have come from afar, and I am willing to make the friendship of the landlord a little bit, so that the guests feel at home and feel the enthusiasm of our poor country.

His Majesty the Holy Emperor once said; The Tang people in the world are one family.

We and other overseas remnants have united our compatriots in accordance with the will of His Majesty the Holy Emperor, and have gone through countless hardships to create the current foundation......"

Hearing Sir Mak Guangmin's crepe words, "Adhering to the will of His Majesty the Holy Emperor," Major Pan Zhixin couldn't help but laugh "fluttering," and the faces of several officers around him also softened, with an invisible smile on their faces.

It is really a remnant of the alien, and he does not know fear.

Even a mere grass folk dare to say "uphold the will of His Majesty the Holy Emperor", how much glory does that have? What kind of noble status can receive the decree of gratitude in front of the emperor?

Colonel Lei Xiao and his party, including His Royal Highness Tang Li Yi, the 71st son of the emperor under the pseudonym Colonel Lei Xiao, did not have the honor to receive the decree in front of His Majesty.

"Let him in, just alone."

Major Pan Zhixin listened to the instructions in the courtyard for a while, his face was straight, and he said; "Okay, don't talk nonsense, for the sake of your sincerity, I can allow you to come in and meet your nobles. But you have reminded me that you are not allowed to talk nonsense without permission, and your attitude must be respectful and polite. I'm Major Pan Zhixin, and you can call me Sir. ”

"Yes, Shangguan."

"Then come with me, remember to be respectful." Major Pan Zhixin glanced at the others, meaning to tell them to look at the strong gunmen outside the door.

He led Sir Mak through a doorway and into the backyard.

In the backyard

The tall Colonel Lei Xiao was wearing a white shirt with sleeves up to his elbows, and he was slowly playing a set of boxing.

There is a degree of relaxation between movement and stillness, and it seems that he has at least ten years of skill.

He didn't pay attention to the two people who walked into the yard, but focused on the boxing movements in his hands, opening and closing like a rabbit, quiet as a virgin, and his fists progressed between his footsteps......

Entered the courtyard

Sir Mak Guangmin's heart jumped violently, without it, Colonel Lei Xiao's tall and straight body was too recognizable, and his body contained indescribable nobility, and his expression was very much like a person on a banknote.

The statues and portraits of His Majesty the Holy Emperor are all over the Empire, and they are admired by people day and night, and it is all too familiar.

As a subject of the Tang Empire living in a remote corner of the country, Sir Mak Guangmin is also one of the ardent admirers of His Majesty the Emperor, when this tall and straight figure slowly withdrew his fist and turned around......

Sir Mak Guangmin could no longer suppress the excitement in his heart, and knelt down tremblingly, and said respectfully; "Just a grass people to see His Highness, I don't know which one of His Highnesses is in person, how fortunate the grass people are in this life! has the opportunity to serve His Royal Highness, although there is no regret in death. ”

"Huh!"

Colonel Lei Xiao sighed in surprise, reached out and took the hot towel presented by the attendant on the side, wiped a layer of fine sweat from his forehead, and casually put the white towel on the tray.

Major Pan Zhixin, who was standing on the side, was not a little surprised, because the 71st prince looked cool and his father Xiao, which could be seen from his eyebrows and eyes, plus this tall figure was too recognizable, and his extravagance was extraordinary, did it seem strange to think of?

Principal Lei Xiao has long arms and legs, and is 1.91 meters tall, the tallest of his royal brothers is more than two meters, and the shortest is 1.77 meters, he is only a little taller than average.

He did not directly answer Mai Guangmin's words, but commanded lightly;

"Well, he is indeed an alert man, and he has a lot of imagination.

Remember to call me Mr. Colonel Lei Xiao or Sir in front of outsiders, and call me Your Excellency Lord when no one is around, and remember to keep my identity secret and don't divulge anything to outsiders. ”

The conjecture in his heart was verified, and Sir Mak Guangmin couldn't stop trembling with excitement, and simply kowtowed his head twice with a "snap", and said; "Without the permission of His Excellency the Lord, I will not dare to divulge the slightest bit of information if I am killed. The grass people have a total of 4 daughters, the eldest one has been married, and the other three daughters are quite acceptable-looking, with clever hands and feet, rough and coarse writing and ink, and are willing to serve in front of the Lord, and please ask the Lord for his permission. ”

"It's too aggressive, so we don't have to, we're just staying in Kuwait City for a while."

"How can there be no people around Your Excellency Lord, those rough men can't do it, and please Lord Lord's sincerity to fulfill the grass people."

"Well, it's rare for you to have a piece of your mind, just send one over to serve, you don't have to bother."

"The grass people take the order."

"Don't kneel, the Empire doesn't have a kneel salute, stand up and speak." Colonel Lei Xiao waved his hand, a warm color appeared on his face.

For this kind of snake-like character, he just looked at it and accepted it, and didn't take it seriously.

Putting things to good use, and leaving them to fend for themselves if they are useless, this is the common attitude of the aristocracy towards the local merchants and magnates who deliberately welcome them, and the same is generally true of the royal family.

After a brief understanding of the situation, Colonel Lei Xiao was also greatly surprised by the profound strength of a small local snake like Mai Guangmin, who actually had three trading firms, hundreds of shops in the city, 1/3 of the equity of Kuwait's largest wharf, and 7 offshore steamers and a private armed force of more than 320 people under his command.

This is a well-known strength in the Gulf region.

These 320-strong private armed forces refer to the people who all follow Sir Mak Guangmin for dinner and dinner, and many of them have military experience and rich combat experience, and belong to the local retired officers and soldiers of Yunzhong Province.

Some people like to live a stable life, and some people like to take risks, and these people who come to Kuwait City to eat bloody rice belong to the latter category.

Otherwise, the empire has a good resettlement policy for retired soldiers, and does not expect to get rich overnight, but it is no problem to support their families in peace and stability, so why take risks here?

Sir Mak Kwong-man's smuggling business was still very risky, and he usually approached the coast by sea by steamboat at night, traded with local tribes or magnates, unloaded the goods, and transported the smuggled goods inland by camel caravans.

If it is better to trade directly at the terminal, but some of them are borrowed, then the risk rises sharply.

Transporting smuggled goods inland for sale is undoubtedly much more lucrative, but the dangers are no less steep. Not only will they be attacked by red-eyed tribal forces, but they will also sometimes run into Ottoman military patrols and the troops of the Kingdom of Iran, and it is inevitable that a fierce battle will be fierce.

Without strong combat effectiveness, it is difficult to survive in the region.

Sir Mak had seven sons, all three of whom died in dangerous caravans. There are also two sons who are minors, and only two sons are his right-hand men, who are responsible for the smuggling and transportation of dangerous overland camel caravans.

The smuggling tycoons in Kuwait City have experienced a similar experience, don't look at the scenery on the surface, in fact, they all have their own history of blood and tears.

The smuggling channels that flowed with gold and silver were all fought for, and they also created the strong and warlike prestige of the Tang cavalry.

After a small half day of hard work

Sir Mak returned with him, bringing not only his three charming daughters, but also 60 gunmen for the manor's guards, led by his second son, Mak Dang-hung, a young man with a fierce face.

Along with this group of people, there were more than 20 horse-drawn carriages, filled with French cheeses, wines and champagnes, English whiskeys, Spanish hams, precious porcelain from the Great Qing Kingdom, tea, silk brocades.

There are also all kinds of exquisite Tang-style furniture, 12 young maids, and various things such as pen, ink, paper, inkstone, etc., almost everything.

You can see it

Sir Mak Guangmin really devoted all his life to Colonel Lei Xiao, and the family was indeed extremely wealthy, with all three daughters, the youngest of whom was only 12 years old.

For this respect, Colonel Lei Xiao felt very satisfied, and accepted the materials and personnel with a wave of his hand, with the luxury of the Tang royal family, this little filial piety can still be afforded.

But insisted on returning Sir Mak Guangmin's youngest daughter, the little girl was too small, and she was jumping up and down with a questioning face, like a curious baby who wanted to ask anything.

It's been a while

annoyed Colonel Lei Xiao, and quickly sent the little girl home with her father, don't make a fuss here.

(End of chapter)