Rise of the Argentine Empire

After completing the internal cleansing of Maria Town, Saint Heth reorganized the Thunder Cross Squad Three, promoting the more reliable Constantine as the person in charge.

The Maria Town militia company, as an auxiliary force to the police department, also underwent a wave of Argentine-style patriotic education, while removing some obviously problematic people from the team.

The various policies of the militia company were further improved, and the management structure was optimized, including strict management of firearms and ammunition to prevent loss.

He also optimized the management of several factories, telling some ungrateful people to get lost, making them spit out what they had eaten, and simply sending away those who wanted to deny it; he was merciful not to send them to jail.

Then, the rest of the time was spent running to Rosa's house every day, accompanying the two little ones for the winter vacation, and not returning at night.

… …

The next day,

Saint Heth followed Guerrero's convoy, preparing to go to Oran City.

Mayor Cavo, a group of factory directors, and Rosa also waved goodbye to him, their relationship having sublimated a lot during this time.

Only then did he leave Maria Town and head to the Potassium Triangle. The scenery along the way was not bad, and the total journey would take about three days and two nights, not driving at night, and finding a city nearby to stay in.

Oran City is the capital of Oran County and one of the largest cities in the upper reaches of the Bermejo River, belonging to Salta Province.

The north of Oran County is Bolivia. This is a small border county town with a larger population than Maria Town.

The climate of Oran City is completely different from that of Maria Town. It mainly belongs to a subtropical ecological environment, and its jungle structure is more complex, with more species, rivers, trees, and grass, making the situation more complicated than grasslands and deserts.

Saint Heth even saw various strange wild animals, including crocodiles, squirrel monkeys, and giant rodent capybaras, as well as various birds.

This is also a transition zone from mountainous grassland, with a hotter climate and simultaneous rain and heat.

At the same time, it is a transition between subtropical humid climate and plateau alpine climate, and transportation is very convenient. There are also many grape plantings. Saint Heth also saw many grape planting estates on the road.

In the manor, there are many bare cement piles, entwined with many grape vines. Because it is autumn, the leaves have fallen.

This seems very suitable for building a winery. There are many grapes and the quality is good.

Traveling all the way, the road conditions in the remote areas of Argentina are generally equivalent to the level of village roads in the previous life, and some places are even dirt roads, which are very bumpy, experiencing a roller coaster ride.

“Boss, the road conditions here are relatively poor, and there are even people setting up posts to rob.”

Saint Heth also experienced what is called "simple folk customs", armed robbery. Most of the checkpoints were given some tolls, and in serious cases, they had to show their weapons.

“Guerrero, the folk customs here are indeed quite simple.” Saint Heth saw many types of weapons.

“Unless necessary, conflicts rarely occur for this, after all, it's just a toll, and they are not willing to kill people indiscriminately,” Saint Heth explained.

“Hell, is that an AK47?” Saint Heth saw a familiar gun, a little unbelievable. Does South America already have Soviet arms? It shouldn't be.

“Gatuso, stop the car and ask that guy where he got the gun.” Saint Heth ordered. He hasn't even gotten an AK47, and a bunch of village tyrants have gotten one, amazing.

“Boss, their guns are smuggled goods, it seems to be from a country called Yugoslavia? He doesn't know exactly, saying it's not very easy to use, if you want one, they'll sell it to us for 500 US dollars.”

The temperature here is still a bit hot, and the streets are still colorful and vibrant. Winter here rarely drops below zero.

Saint Heth also saw some open and aboveboard betting shops. In each betting shop, there were many girls working as waitresses, laughing and scolding.

“Boss, this is Oran City, with an estimated population of seventy to eighty thousand. The distribution of power is very complex. Our Thunder Group has already gained a firm foothold.”

Guerrero said from the side. In the past few months, Saint Heth has gone from letting things go at the beginning to supporting them wholeheartedly, expanding greatly and quickly.

“The Potassium Triangle still needs to go to the plateau. We will rest here temporarily for the next two days, and replenish supplies at the same time. Boss, you can also walk around and see, but be sure to bring security personnel.” Guerrero said solemnly, boss's safety first.

“Yes, I still value my little life very much. Can you carry guns here?”

“Yes, most of the time they turn a blind eye. There are some gunfights every day. We, Thunder Cross, generally don't get involved in these messes.”

“Oran City is the smuggling city of Argentina. There are not only Argentinians here, but also Chileans, Bolivians, and Paraguayans, Americans, and British.” Guerrero continued to introduce. Saint Heth remembered the canned food production line he imported at the beginning, wondering if they had a base here.

“There are gangs, guerrillas, government troops, smuggling companies, mining companies, tribal armies, and mercenaries here.”

“What is the situation of the government troops here?” Although Saint Heth has sent people to transport supplies many times, he doesn't know much about Oran, mainly because he didn't have the time to understand.

“Very weak, they are not very willing to manage things. The government troops here have very low wages, mainly due to tax issues. The Oran government cannot collect taxes, and few people are willing to join the army. They are more willing to join gangs and these forces.”

Guerrero shook his head, not optimistic about the government troops here.

“I didn't expect there to be such a city in the country. The world is so big, there are all kinds of magical things.”

In the Potassium Triangle, Thunder Cross and Thunder Mining are integrated and developed, they are combined.

There must be strong security personnel to protect the wealth here, a proper South American jungle law.

The Thunder Mining company itself was also born out of Thunder Cross. In order to facilitate the mining of salt mines here, Saint Heth's inland river transport fleet will also use river transportation every month to replenish the Thunder Group with supplies that are not available locally, and then escort back the raw materials necessary for fireworks factories and gunpowder factories.

As soon as Saint Heth got out of the car, he felt the fanatical South American atmosphere. There were many Indians walking on the road, and many who obviously weren't from this country, and some who were clearly dressed as gaucho cowboys.

“Boss, the Indians in Oran City are mainly Incas and Guaranis. They also speak simple Spanish, and there are armed tribes.”

“The Guaranis are typical tropical forest Indians. Men hunt and fish, and women plant corn, cassava, and sweet potatoes.”

“We live in the West District, where there are more Indians. The East and North Districts are mostly black areas, which we just passed by. The security conditions in the West District are relatively better, and there are more supplies.”

“There are very few Incas.” Saint Heth himself is a gaucho, a mixed-race of Indians and whites, and vaguely shows some Indian ancestry.

The Spanish whites who had no land wandered around, and some married indigenous women. Gauchos are their mixed-race descendants. Gauchos also mean vagrants and prodigals. Most gauchos' ancestors were poor.

Gaucho soldiers are mostly idle and often get drunk. The strong stimulation of alcohol makes them have stomach pains and nausea, and sleepless nights.

Saint Heth suspects that he was influenced by the previous owner. The previous owner drank very heavily, but his alcohol tolerance was really not good. After quitting alcohol, there have been no problems.

Originally, every time he got drunk, there would always be various problems, rambling, a lot of nonsense, and even saying strange things the next day, completely uncontrollable.

It may also be because he doesn't drink yerba mate after getting drunk. Yerba mate has a good sobering effect.

Mainly because the soul now is a bit unaccustomed to drinking it, he has only drunk it two or three times, and is very resistant to it, and slowly stopped drinking it.

He prefers to drink green tea, black tea, oolong tea, etc., which are more health-preserving and peaceful, without so many additives.

In fact, drinking yerba mate often can protect the liver and kidneys, strongly strengthen the brain, eliminate fatigue, promote blood circulation, and also solve the problems of frequent insomnia and excessive sweating. Washing wounds with boiled yerba mate water can also help kill viruses.

“Yerba mate looks a bit like an energy drink.” This is also one of the reasons why he rejects yerba mate.

He feels that the previous owner was a bit addicted to yerba mate, so he is vaguely resistant to it. Unless necessary, he doesn't drink it most of the time, preferring to drink some soda.

A group of people also showed their weapons, looking like they were not to be trifled with. Pedestrians on the road avoided them one after another. After walking for a minute from the gate, they arrived at a small manor.

“Boss, this is our small manor base in Oran City. We will stay here tonight. It is relatively safe here.” Guerrero explained.

Only then did Saint Heth take a look at this small manor. The environment is quite elegant, and the surrounding trees are relatively lush.

Because these trees are quite large, it is not so hot, and it is quite cool.

G Guerrero arranged for the cook to prepare a meal of local specialties, but San Jose had a poor appetite and only took a few bites before putting down his chopsticks. At Guerrero's signal, the cleaning staff took away the tableware, and Guerrero left. He had to go outside to do some things and prepare supplies; it would be a waste to go back empty.

San Jose idly read the newspaper for a while before settling into the small manor.

He had spent two or three days on the road this time and hadn't rested well. He had just fallen asleep when a burst of noise suddenly came from outside.

"Boss, there's a venomous snake that crawled in. Please be careful," a shout from outside startled San Jose, and he jumped out of bed.

"Damn, what's going on?" San Jose thought speechlessly.

A two-meter-long black and white patterned viper was moving quickly on the ground, and it looked like it was about to run in front of San Jose.

In the blink of an eye, San Jose quickly reached out and grabbed the viper's tail, frantically slamming it against the ground until it was dead, and then he was still in shock.

"Who are you? Don't come in." Then he heard a girl's voice, but he could only understand a few words.

Many people may never have seen a real snake since they were little. The city environment is good.

Even if they have seen one in a zoo, it's behind glass, and they can't feel the snake's coldness and scariness.

It's also strange that most people have an innate fear of snakes. In his previous life, he had only seen various snakes in zoos.

Whether it's the highly venomous king cobra or the emerald green bamboo viper, if you put it in front of most people, they would feel fear in their hearts, a conditioned reflex from their genes.

San Jose was also a little shaken. He could still feel the slippery and cold viper's tail in his hand.

He wondered if he should skin it and cook snake porridge, but then he thought he was crazy. This kind of snake probably has a lot of parasites.

To be honest, he was also afraid of snakes. It was the first time he had grabbed a big snake. He tried to calm his racing heart, and the hand holding it gradually loosened.

At this time, an Indian woman came in. When she saw the viper in San Jose's hand, her face immediately changed. She babbled a lot, and it looked like she was scolding him, which made San Jose speechless.

"Hey, can you speak something I can understand?" San Jose said in Spanish, assuming they would all know some.

After gesturing for a long time, he learned that the Inca beauty was called Nora Mesandes. She lived nearby, and the viper was her pet. It accidentally ran out and was killed by San Jose.

She wanted him to pay her money, or she would have her brother come and beat him up.

Only then did he realize that such a ridiculous thing could happen to him. Damn, this woman must be crazy. Keeping a viper as a pet? She's got a screw loose.

He was about to curse, but he took a closer look and decided against it. A good man doesn't argue with a woman, especially a beautiful woman. They get preferential treatment.

This Indian girl had a tall, perfect figure, with long, straight legs, dressed scantily.

With those sharp black eyes and sexy little lips,

her personality seemed a bit self-centered. She was probably a pampered child.

Her cheeks were painted with some blue and white camouflage, and her hair was braided into two pigtails, full of wildness. She probably wasn't too old.

In his impression, most Indian women didn't quite fit his aesthetic. Their skin was relatively dark and rough, and they had a somewhat masculine look. This Nora was indeed very beautiful, and he didn't know if she was mixed or something.

At this time, Guerrero also came in from outside and happened to see Nora and the boss, with a viper that had been beaten to death on the ground. He breathed a sigh of relief. Damn, the boss was frightened on the first day. It's really annoying, things have been going wrong lately.

San Jose picked up the snake and handed it to the girl, but she threw it on the ground again and stepped on it.

San Jose was stunned and speechless again.

"Guerrero, send this crazy woman out. I want to sleep. Pay her for the venomous snake and tell her to get lost. Oh, the snake is dead, throw it away," San Jose yawned and ordered. He was too sleepy. He had just broken out in a cold sweat. As for people who came from nowhere, who cares what she does? He's not a pushover.

"Yes, boss," Guerrero bowed and said to Nora,

"You've disturbed our boss's rest. Please leave. I'll take care of the money matter." Guerrero seemed to know some Indian language.

The girl then walked away cursing, probably cursing San Jose a lot.

Only then did San Jose lock the door and sleep peacefully. Oran was really too dangerous, with things like vipers. Even if it was someone else's pet, getting bitten would probably be the end of him.

"That kind of woman is really sick. Her brain is waterlogged."

In the next two days, San Jose also experienced what it meant to have a complicated situation, with all kinds of people. Bolivian guerrillas obtained supplies and ammunition here. Foreign monopoly forces and mining companies set up branches here to buy and sell resources.

There were mineral exhibition halls, spinach underground cities, town farmers' markets, brothels, armed Indian villages, and gangs selling cocoa powder, trading with guns.

It was full of prosperity and chaos, and it was also a criminal paradise, a den of extravagance, with all kinds of illegal workers and miners. It was also an important population transfer station, with many people smuggling through here and then heading to Rosario and Buenos Aires.

......

Eight years ago, the Greater Andes Administrative Region was re-divided into three provinces: Catamarca, Jujuy, and Salta.

The Greater Andes Administrative Region was land annexed by Argentina from Bolivia, so there were many separatist forces here. In order to prevent them from becoming too powerful, it was divided into four small provinces. This is also one of the reasons why the Potassium Triangle region is relatively chaotic.

Among them, the small province of Tucumán was called the Republic of Tucumán more than a hundred years ago. At that time, Salta Province had a strong separatist force, attempting to secede from the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata and become an independent country, but most of them were suppressed.

In 1872, the Triple Alliance, the Brazilian Empire, Argentina, and Uruguay, fought Paraguay. Paraguay was completely defeated, became a landlocked country, and fell into decline.

In this war, Paraguay lost 40% of its territory, a total of 154,000 square kilometers.

Among them, Argentina occupied the Chaco region and changed it to the Chaco Territory. Later, the Formosa Territory was separated from the Chaco Territory.

The original Chaco Territory was changed to the Chaco Territory, and last year it was named the Juan Perón Presidential Territory, and the conditions for setting up a province have basically matured.

There are now several administrative regions in the country that are not provinces, just to slowly digest the acquired territories. This is from Law No. 28 passed by Argentina in 1862.

Administrative regions are established outside the provinces, and then changed to provinces when conditions are ripe, to strengthen centralization. From the current point of view, it is still doing well. The only thing that is more narcissistic is that Perón established an administrative region in his own name.

Starting in 1932, the Chaco War between Bolivia and Paraguay for the northern part of the Gran Chaco again brought the poor and backward Bolivia and Paraguay to a low point.

This also gave Argentina a stable external environment, but the intervention of the Americans also made the South American region begin to become their backyard.

The Americans drove two nails in the center of South America, which can contain and remotely control the development here, and lock up some of the development potential of Argentina and Brazil, but Argentina and Brazil are unable to do anything about it.

The Chaco War was a war with no victors.

Of course, Bolivia suffered even more. Since its independence, it has been bullied by Chile, Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay many times, and this time it failed to win.

This war caused the deaths of more than 100,000 people on both sides of Bolivia and Paraguay, and the economies of the two countries were almost bankrupt, and it caused domestic political turmoil and suffered heavy losses. The famous Bolivian guerrillas also began to appear.

In order to win the war, the two countries did not hesitate to borrow heavily, with Bolivia borrowing as much as 228 million US dollars.

As the creditor, multinational companies such as Standard Oil deepened their control over the economies of the two countries after the war, and international arms dealers such as Vickers directly profited from the war.

At that time, Argentina, the United States, and other countries, as the core of mediation, took the opportunity to establish prestige in South America.

In 1935, Bolivia and Paraguay held ceasefire negotiations and signed the Treaty of Buenos Aires in the Argentine capital in 1938.

More than ten years ago, Argentina had a greater influence in South America than Brazil. At present, it can still compete with Brazil and is at its historical peak. However, some of Juan Perón's bad moves have caused Argentina to continue to decline, coupled with the Americans' continuous investment in South America and the activities of agencies such as the Central Intelligence Agency.

The relatively chaotic Bolivia, Chile, the more distant Paraguayans, and these border lines have created a Potassium Triangle border area.

San Jose also smelled the opportunity after Guerrero got a part of the territory, and did not hesitate to invest heavily, adding to the power of Thunder Mining and Thunder Cross in the Potassium Triangle and Oran City.

He hoped that in the long term, he would have the opportunity to challenge Standard Oil's hegemonic position in the two countries, truly have a stable rear, and continuously obtain labor resources from the two countries to help the development of its factories.

He needs to contact Lucifer's Cohen Company to set up a branch as soon as possible. The town of Maria needs to continue to expand, and he must find more workers.