afterglow

Chapter 595: In ancient times there was the eunuch party and now there is the coward party; the dumpling-level attack is coming!

Historically, Sergei's death was the fuse for the massive purge, and now Zhou Changfeng's attack has become the direct inducement for the Ming Dynasty to begin to rectify its internal affairs.

Zhu Lingjing issued an edict declaring martial law in Yingtian Prefecture in the capital, and agents from outside the factory arrested members of the Advisory Council and court officials indiscriminately based on the list.

The garrison headquarters issued an order that all troops in the capital should close their camp gates, put their weapons into storage, and not be allowed to leave their garrisons.

The imperial guards, armed with live ammunition, set up checkpoints at major traffic arteries, or patrolled back and forth on sidecar motorcycles, and armored vehicles were even parked outside the Senate.

Hundreds of people were jailed in just half a day. The scope and intensity of the crackdown were unprecedented, and everyone was in danger for a while.

As the sun set in the west, the car Zhou Changfeng was riding in slowly passed through Zhengyang Gate, then turned left onto Chongli Avenue, and happened to encounter an oncoming Type 40 wheeled armored reconnaissance vehicle and two trucks full of soldiers.

"This posture, tsk tsk, is to catch them all in one fell swoop."

Seeing this scene, he subconsciously began to daydream - what would Zhu Lingjing's reaction be when she suddenly learned that she had been attacked? She must have been so angry that she gnashed her teeth, right?
He has no plans to enter the palace for now, and the instructions he received before leaving specifically told him to go home and rest first.

Xia Xiaoshi waited anxiously until she heard the familiar sound of a car engine, which stopped outside her house.

Then, there was a knock on the door, and her heartstrings tightened.

Lin Xi reacted very quickly and ran over to open the door in two steps.

The door opened, and Zhou Changfeng, dressed in a blue-green uniform, was standing at the door, holding a sword in his left hand, a bag in his right hand, and a shoulder bag slung across his body.

"General!"

"Zhou...Zhou Kexing..."

Xia Xiaoshi, who was a few steps slower, had tears in her eyes in an instant. She opened her mouth to speak but didn't know what to say.

Zhou Changfeng handed the sword to Lin Xi, took two steps forward and hugged his wife, smiling and comforting her: "You must have been scared these past two days. You are so stupid, Xiaoshi. I've already told you that I'm tough and I won't die."

"It's so scary..." Xia Xiaoshi sobbed a few times, trying to calm herself down.

"Look at this." Zhou Changfeng patted her shoulder and raised the bag in his right hand a little higher. "This is a large pineapple that is a specialty of Lanai Island. This is a winter pineapple, so the quality is a little worse."

"I'll get some salt water." Lin Xi bowed slightly and went straight to the east wing.

It has to be said that Xia Xiaoshi was very curious. After entering the room, she kept asking Zhou about the situation at that time.

The latter gave a brief account and then casually explained, "It's not as thrilling as you think. Well, it's actually quite thrilling. But I'm different from others. When I travel far away, I usually take a fast-flying fighter plane like this, so it's not easy to be caught."

Xia Xiaoshi said with great relief: "Being different does have its advantages..."

"Hawaii is too far away, 20,000 miles. I want to order a special plane in the future."

"Well, those guys are really vicious. They actually used the enemy's hands to harm you."

"If normal methods can't win, then we can only resort to using someone else's knife to kill. Some are due to political differences, some are...power struggles, and some are simply resentful because their financial resources have been cut off."

"All of you will die a miserable death!" Xia Xiaoshi clenched her fist and said angrily, "The whole family will be exiled to Hawaii."

Exile to Hawaii?
That would be like crying out to heaven and earth for help but no one can help. I'm afraid I'll be eaten alive by the 1st Marine Brigade.

The two then spent a peaceful night chatting while entertaining their children and enjoying the large pineapples, a specialty of Lanai Island.

This is very different from the terrifying situation in the outside world. Many people spent a terrible night in anxiety.

Zhu Lingjing deliberately used one to fight against one, and the public opinion was directed at dissidents, who were labeled as "the weak party."

Anyone who sings a different tune is a coward - weak and cowardly, greedy and despicable, fierce on the outside but weak on the inside, and the enemy of the country and the people!
It feels a bit like hundreds of years ago when the eunuch party was doomed and everyone was calling for their destruction.

Under her push, the Ming Dynasty's carriage turned to the right.

The Sun and Moon Society, the Chinese Party, and the Radical Development Society applauded and celebrated the storm that swept across the country with great fanfare.

Early the next morning.

The dawns come very late in winter, and it is almost noon with only dim morning light. A phone call interrupts Zhou's leisure time after he returns home.

"My Lord, something bad has happened. Several people from Shuntian's First Machine Group's tank research and development team have been taken away for questioning!"

"Huh? When did it happen?"

"The night before yesterday. And yesterday at noon, I heard that the deputy designer of the R&D Division 2 of Uplink Company was also taken away. I can't find any information anywhere. The plane is scheduled to take off for the first time next month, and they need people right now."

"I know, don't worry."

Zhou Changfeng, who was in pajamas, hung up the phone and then called the Foreign Investigation Bureau directly, asking them to release the person immediately.

"This... We went to arrest people according to the requirements of our superiors. It would be difficult for us to release them without investigating them thoroughly. How about..."

"Don't explain. Let Shen Yu answer the phone."

"Sorry, Mr. Zhou, he's not here."

Zhou Changfeng felt his blood pressure soar. He patiently said word by word, "Leave a message: Release all scientific researchers immediately and do not interfere with their work."

Half an hour later, Shen Yu, who learned of the situation, was helpless and hurriedly notified the Shuntian branch to release the implicated scientific researchers.

The scale of this rectification is becoming more and more intense, far beyond Zhou's imagination.

He was worried that this would have a negative impact on key research and development plans, so he hurried to the palace to express his concerns to the emperor.

"This storm will not stop. Let's wait for half a year." Zhu Lingjing frowned and said indifferently: "Some people have lost their heads and really think they have the world in their hands. Why do they still have heads?"

"But your majesty, this cannot hinder scientific work. The impact is too great."

“It can be limited to reduce obstruction.”

“I suggest that we ban any involvement in any R&D projects and completely eliminate any interference.”

"No." Zhu Lingjing refused flatly.

Helpless Zhou Changfeng thought about it and asked again: "Then I at least want some notes that can pardon me."

"You're welcome."

"I'm just worried about delaying the progress of those key things."

"Oh, if you don't clean the house, you will trip over the threshold when you go out." As she said that, Zhu Lingjing took out a stack of exquisite notes from the cabinet behind her, and then opened the drawer to take out the seal.

She opened her folding fan and shook it, saying casually, "Write it yourself and stamp it yourself."

"Ahem, this..." Zhou Changfeng coughed dryly a few times, "Your Majesty, please stamp it yourself." "I'm tired and don't want to move." She picked up the teacup and took a sip.

"Let's talk about it later." Zhou Changfeng really didn't have the time to talk about love with her now.

"Oh, just fill in the words first. Stamp it... We'll talk about it after dinner."

Zhu Lingjing generously treated Zhou Changfeng to a meal, and he had no choice but to stay for lunch.

During this period, he learned that a draft of this year's industrial capacity statistics had been released. Although December had not yet ended, the estimate could be roughly accurate.

According to estimated data, Ming Dynasty's steel output in 1720 reached 14 million tons, an increase of % over the previous year.

Germany's production was 2415 million tons, almost stagnant; Britain's production was 1230 million tons, a slight decrease; and the United States' production was 7474 million tons, with a particularly significant increase.

In terms of aluminum production, Daming reached 11.5 tons, a huge increase of 38% over last year.

Such a large amount of aluminum is something to be proud of. You should know that the British Empire only produced 4.8 tons that year, but it pales in comparison with the 37.5 tons produced by the United States.

As for the important acid and alkali industry, Daming's sulfuric acid output this year was 238 million tons, an increase of 16% over last year.

Germany's output was 244 million tons; the United Kingdom's output was 128 million tons; and the United States' output was 605 million tons.

The gaps in these industrial production capacities are relatively small, and there is no difference in order of magnitude. The most terrifying ones are automobile production and oil production.

The United States produced 19550 million tons of oil that year, far exceeding the rest of the countries - Ming Dynasty produced 1132 million tons; Germany produced 2880 million tons.

The oil fields controlled by the Ming Dynasty and Deshe suffered a reduction in production due to air raids, but Deshe also made a breakthrough in coal-to-oil technology, which greatly increased production, and this basically offset the losses of the oil fields.

As for the production of cars and aircraft, it can be summed up in four words: "one country is far ahead, while the rest are just fighting each other."

Therefore, the federal government's determination to fight the war remained unshaken.

On the Iberian Peninsula and the Apennine Peninsula in Europe, the rugged mountains greatly restricted the German army's movements.

The U.S. military summed up the lessons of several failures at the hands of the German army since the beginning of the war, and found that as long as they did not underestimate the enemy and advance rashly, but simply advanced step by step and steadily, the German army would actually be helpless.

This situation strengthened the federal government's determination to continue the war.

Both sides have been dragged into a war of attrition where it is difficult to expand the results of the battle. So which side will win in the end?

Compared with steel, explosives, and oil, the federal government is more concerned about casualties, so they plan to pull other countries in the Americas into the same front to replace the casualties of the war of attrition.

Their war demands in the direction of Europe remain unchanged - the United States is no longer the country bumpkin upstart it was decades ago, and it must establish its own influence in Europe, occupy the market, and attract talent.

According to the assessment of General HQ, the most reasonable allocation of U.S. war resources should be as follows:
85% of the Army and 75% of the Army Air Force were deployed to the European theater.

10% of the Army and 15% of the Army Air Force were deployed to the Pacific Theater.

5% of the Army and 10% of the Army Air Force were deployed to the Australian battlefield.

100% of the Navy's fleet carriers and 85% of the Navy's air forces are deployed to the Pacific.

70% of the Navy's escort carriers and 15% of the Navy's air forces were deployed to the Atlantic.

The United States' attitude towards the Ming Dynasty has changed slightly. Some people believe that the conflict with the Ming Dynasty should be terminated and that resources and lives should not continue to be wasted.

The federal government has adjusted its demands on the Pacific and made many concessions.

The highest demand became the restoration of the sphere of influence to the Marshall Islands and the enjoyment of tariff privileges over Australia and New Zealand; the lowest demand became the restoration of only control over Midway Island and the Hawaiian Islands.

"This is a memorandum submitted by the American envoy regarding war demands. If there is a desire, peace talks can begin at any time."

Zhu Lingjing wiped her mouth elegantly with her handkerchief - she wasn't so particular when dining alone.

Zhou Changfeng took the booklet from a female attendant and read it carefully.

"You've given in so much?" He chuckled. "The law of the jungle is so true. In this world, only those with strong fists can have room for negotiation."

"This is a good sign." Zhu Lingjing pondered, "But it is impossible to abandon Midway Island and Hawaii. We must ensure the existence of the bridgehead."

Zhou Changfeng nodded thoughtfully and said, "Your Majesty, if we want to end the war through normal negotiations, the Americans will not agree to it while we occupy Hawaii. This is equivalent to building a bunker at their doorstep."

"Yes, this is equivalent to them holding on to Ryukyu and asking us to agree to peace talks."

"It's a pity that there is no country in this world that is bound to keep its word."

If evacuating Hawaii can be exchanged for peace talks and the United States keeps its promise, then the Ming Dynasty can focus on conquering the South Asian subcontinent and Australia. The pressure will be greatly reduced, and it can even be said that it can fight with its eyes closed.

However, the Ming Dynasty could not pin its hopes on others - if the United States tore up the treaty after evacuating Hawaii, wouldn't the strategic advantage that had been hard-won be wasted?

So there was no possibility that the Ming Dynasty would agree.

Correspondingly, it is impossible for the United States to voluntarily give up Hawaii - this means that the west coast is directly exposed to the threat of the Ming Navy. To exaggerate, the Pacific Fleet is almost equivalent to becoming a green-water navy.

Since they don't trust each other, the only option left is to use war to promote talks.

Zhu Lingjing stroked the cat lying on her knees and sighed softly, "Ending a war gracefully is much more troublesome than starting one."

"Next, we will seize Maui Island, and we can also take the Aleutian Islands in the north." Zhou Changfeng glanced at the leftovers on the table and said calmly, "Press the situation on the battlefield and see if we can reach an agreement."

"So good."

Molokai Island was less important, so it was skipped. Zhou Changfeng planned the route as: Lanai Island → Maui Island → Big Island.

Once Maui is captured, the Big Island will be under direct threat and the United States may completely lose the Hawaiian Islands at any time. That would be a more suitable opportunity for negotiations.

It is foreseeable that there is a high probability that a war between the two sides will break out on Maui without any concessions.

In the last ten days of the first year of Jinghe, several warships were delivered from the other side of the ocean.

At Bethlehem's Fall River Shipyard, another Essex-class ship (CV-16) was officially delivered. She still inherited the name of the Lexington and used a blue paint scheme that had never been used before.

The Americans were also helpless. Logically speaking, a captured warship was not worthy of inheriting the ship name. Unfortunately, Lexington was an exception and was too special.

A week later, the third Essex-class ship, USS Bunker Hill (CV-17), began final sea trials before acceptance.

At the same time, the Independence (CV-22) light aircraft carrier, which was converted from a Cleveland-class light cruiser, was also ready for delivery.

At this point, the Pacific Fleet has three Essex-class ships and one Independence-class ship, and three more Essex-class ships and three Independence-class ships will be completed in the next six months.

Dumpling-level attack!
【Picture】

(End of this chapter)