readytorunbook Chapter 208 The Big Chess Game
Chapter 208 The Big Chess Game
On January 24, in a high-end club in the foggy city, the capital of the United Kingdom.
The smoking room was filled with the faint aroma of cigars. An old gentleman with silver hair but a vigorous look was holding a glass of sherry and chatting with the middle-aged gentleman Arnold opposite him.
The conversation seemed casual and relaxed on the surface, but it was actually carefully calculated.
"Our Prime Minister has invested heavily in the upcoming counterattack. One hundred thousand Australian and New Zealand Army Corps and the armored division from the Maple Leaf Colony. It's such a familiar scene." The old gentleman spoke in a nonchalant tone with a sarcastic smile on his face.
Arnold almost laughed out loud when he heard this.
He was well aware of the old gentleman's insinuation - the Battle of Garibaldi in World War I was a prime example of a failure to which the current Prime Minister had contributed.
The Prime Minister, who was only the First Lord of the Admiralty at the time, sent the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps and other colonial troops to the battlefield, which resulted in nearly 40,000 casualties in the two Oceania colonies of Southern Cross and Kangaroo.
The Prime Minister single-handedly dealt a heavy blow to the two already small colonies, and after the war the United Kingdom was forced to grant the colonies more autonomy.
Thinking of the issue of autonomy, Arnold, the middle-aged man in a suit who was working in the cabinet, immediately realized what the old man meant: "You mean... many of our colleagues are going to be unemployed again?"
The old gentleman gently swirled his glass, as if observing the ripples in the wine. “At the rate this gentleman is acting, we may soon lose control of even the white colonies.”
Arnold's smile froze, and after a moment of silence, he slowly nodded.
The colonial troops shed blood for the United Kingdom and naturally demanded more power after the war.
These countries are now semi-independent, and it seems only a matter of time before they become fully independent.
Thinking of this, Arnold was shocked because he was working in the Colonial Affairs Office. If all the white colonies were gone, he would most likely be sent to work in Asian colonies such as Sindhu, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
There is no doubt that this change of circumstances is a career disaster.
He graduated from Eton School, graduated with first-class honors from Oxford University, and worked in the civil service system for more than 10 years, but he did not go to a remote area on the other side of the world to dedicate his youth to His Majesty the King.
Just as Arnold was feeling confused, the old gentleman spoke slowly:
"The kingdom currently has a lot of property in Pegu. Those properties were previously occupied by the Fuso people, but are now in the hands of Mr. Zhang. Our Ministry of Finance needs a smart and capable representative to talk to him."
"Are you interested, my dear Arnold?" The old gentleman raised his glass and looked at Arnold.
Arnold naturally understood that the so-called talks meant recognizing the other party's control over Pegu in exchange for some benefits, so as to prevent the king, nobles and capitalists from losing all their money.
"But I heard that the Prime Minister received certain promises at the Sextant Conference. He plans to fight Zhang again after the war and retake that area." Arnold asked doubtfully.
The old gentleman sneered: "Then he has to win the next election first."
This understated statement holds profound meaning.
Arnold knew it well: this old gentleman, who had extensive connections in both the House of Lords and the House of Commons, had apparently received reliable intelligence that the Prime Minister's chances of re-election were slim.
In an instant, Arnold realized that he was being pulled into a chess game by the old gentleman, but he did not refuse.
Regardless of the other party's purpose, this is a rare opportunity in his career.
He raised his glass, his tone calm but unable to conceal the excitement in his heart: "I am honored to serve you."
Arnold greeted the other party and drank the amber wine in the glass.
-----
On the other hand, the Spring Festival is coming.
Although the trend of westernization has been going on for many years, and even for a few years during the Republic of China, the Lunar New Year was banned and only the New Year was allowed.
But the desire to celebrate the Spring Festival has long been deeply buried in the bones of all Chinese people and cannot be given up.
Zhang Chi naturally knew about this situation, so all holding companies with names starting with Nanhua were given holidays and an additional batch of subsidies were issued.
With the establishment of the industrial system, various newly produced light industrial products flooded the market in Myitkyina. In addition, people had wages and allowances, which naturally triggered a great desire to consume.
For a time, the people's livelihood market centered on Myitkyina prospered greatly.
As for the military, it is impossible for the front-line troops to take a direct holiday, after all, the Japanese do not celebrate the Spring Festival (they celebrate New Year's Day).
However, Zhang Chi still prepared more sumptuous meals for the front-line troops than during the last Christmas to boost morale and bring holiday blessings to the soldiers who were confronting the Japanese in the front-line trenches.
At the same time, the second-line troops also had the opportunity to take turns on leave, but since many soldiers' families immigrated to Pegu, not many soldiers actually returned to Qianguo.
-----
Unlike the Pegu region which was celebrating the New Year and victory, Europe on the other side of the earth was still caught in the flames of war.
But for the romantic and scattered Italians in the southern part of the Apennine Peninsula, their war was over.
This gave Zhang Chi an opportunity, an opportunity to directly obtain a large number of scientific research and industrial personnel.
After the last system authority upgrade, Zhang Chi spent gold to exchange for several spy-type synths from the system and came here with the tasks he assigned.
Thanks to the white faces and language skills given by the system, the big knife music given by Zhang Chi, and the documents obtained through the connections of Stevenson and James, these synthetic spies came to Casablanca in North Africa without any obstacles.
At this time, in this neutral spy city, a large number of Europeans who wanted to escape from their war-torn homeland and head to the New World gathered here, looking for a ticket.
At the same time, a large number of businessmen also gathered here. On the one hand, they sold the materials controlled by the Allies to Hans, and on the other hand, they helped Hans exchange the property plundered through the war into hard currency.
The war brought about abnormal prosperity, and naturally also brought about spies.
This small seaside town is filled with spies from countries such as Hans, Faguo, Maoxiong, John, Franji, and White Eagle.
The synthetic spies led by Bruce are hidden among them, inconspicuous.
In the city's sea breeze, the air in a tavern called "Captain and Fishing Rod" is particularly turbid.
Inside the tavern, a few Italians were wearing tattered suits, their faces filled with the frustration of losers.
They were gathered around a small table, their whiskey glasses almost empty.
"To Mo Xli X's ass!" A tipsy Italian raised his glass.
Another person responded with a mocking laugh: "Cheers to him, at least he made our train run on time."
"Boss, give these gentlemen another glass of whiskey, it's my treat." Bruce said as he walked towards the Italians. "Gentlemen, my name is Bruce, I'm a broker. How can I help you?"
Before he finished speaking, several stunned engineers looked at the uninvited white man in a windbreaker, with a slender figure and blond hair, who walked to their table, raised the whiskey glass in his hand, and had a perfect smile on his lips.
"We want to sell warships, do you dare to buy them?" A drunk Italian shouted to Bruce in poor English, immediately attracting the attention of many people around.