It's better to conquer them than to command the steel torrent

Chapter 26｜Homecoming

Haozhou and Suzhou are still hundreds of kilometers apart, so Shang Ke spent the second half of his journey transferring to another train.

The Grand Unified Federation has not experienced the chaotic and bizarre abolition of prefectures and the establishment of cities in history, and its administrative divisions are more traditional and straightforward.

That afternoon, the train entered the territory of Gusu Prefecture. After submitting the three files to the National Defense Army Office, Shang's part-time job was officially completed.

Since we want to avoid getting involved in civil affairs in the name of protecting military and political documents, we still have to go through the necessary procedures.

He detailed the unexpected situation he encountered along the way and left only after signing and confirming it.

Shang Ke's home is close to the core area of ​​the city and is under the jurisdiction of Yuanhe County.

He hasn't moved out yet, firstly because he's not married yet, and secondly because he's usually away from home for a long time.

After taking a taxi through the streets for a quarter of an hour, and then circling the neighborhood... or the community for a few minutes, he finally arrived downstairs of his home in this life.

Only five stories? Brick-concrete structure? One apartment per floor? In the heart of the city? This kind of residential building might seem peculiar to future generations, but it's not uncommon today, roughly like a youthful version of a large flat.

He walked up the stairs to the third floor and stood in front of the door for a long time before knocking on it.

Shang Ke's father, Shang Yuxiu, was initially an unsuccessful econometrician, previously serving as a consultant to the Hangzhou prefecture, a largely unknown figure. However, as the saying goes, "East is dark, West is bright." Unwilling to resign himself to this, Shang Yuxiu entered politics by joining the People's Livelihood Party, where he was successfully elected as one of the 100 members of the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Regional Advisory Council.

In Shang Ke's opinion, his cheap father in this life does have some ability and luck.

As for her mother, Wei Shuhua, she is a pharmacist and runs a small Chinese medicine pharmacy.

Huh? Why is there no response when I knock?
Shang Ke quickly realized that it was still afternoon and his parents might not have returned home yet. He fumbled all over his body for a while but couldn't find the key.

Such a funny situation actually happened. I returned to my home after being away for more than half a year, but was locked outside the door just a few steps away.

He had no choice but to stay at his neighbor's house downstairs for a while.

Shang only officially returned home when it was completely dark.

Because he was afraid that his wife would worry too much, Shang Yuxiu had never told Wei Shuhua about Shang Ke's trip to the northwestern border until now.

Shang Ke's return did not make his parents too happy, everything seemed to be going on naturally.

However, Wei Shuhua was dissatisfied with her husband's concealment and was a little angry all night. Shang Yuxiu pretended not to notice and kept changing the subject.

After learning about the series of events that had taken place in the past few days, Wei Shuhua said with lingering fear: "Could it be that my luck has been bad recently? Why have I encountered so many dangerous things? I should go to the temple before the New Year to get rid of the bad luck."

Shang Yuxiu was more concerned about the despicable actions of the Chang'an County Police Department. He frowned and said, "Though those officials have achieved remarkable results in the past few years, they have become overly redundant and filled with a mixed bag of officials. If you had given in, you would have ruined your family's legacy."

He is confident that Minsheng will win the election at the end of the year - the challenges currently facing the Grand Union are gradually shifting from internal to external, but the diplomatic performance of the joint construction in the past two years has not been active enough and is not pleasing.

Compared with the centrist Minsheng, Renhe, as a right-wing party, is also a strong opponent, but this cannot shake Shang Yuxiu's confidence at all.

In fact, Shang Ke personally appreciates the latter more. On the eve of this impending storm, it is definitely right to make every effort to strengthen national defense.

Because they had not prepared in advance, the dinner was simple, but this did not reduce the joy of the reunion. After dinner, Shang Ke and his father discussed the general situation in the world. He urgently needed to understand the mainstream views of politicians.

Although he was an unknown econometrician in the first half of his life, Shang Yuxiu still likes to look at problems from an economic perspective.

"Politics and economics are inseparable, and foreign trade is a barometer of the economy!"

When they arrived at the study, Shang and Xiu started chatting enthusiastically.

"Anyone with a discerning eye can see the conflict between Varland and Ivan Ross. The game between the two never stops. Most people in the court believe it will take another three to five years before a war breaks out, but such things... are unpredictable."

"Wallland's largest trading partner last year was the Netherlands, primarily in terms of exports. Sweden, Marianna, and America were all equally matched, with similar import and export totals. Then there was my country, importing nearly 500 million marks from my country, but exporting less than 300 million marks."

"Looking at Russia, its largest trading partner is the United Kingdom, with imports exceeding 700 billion rubles and exports around 400 billion. The relationship between Britain and Russia is truly like a honeymoon. Next on the list is America, with a trade deficit of 360 million."

Shank mused, "Britain and Russia are indeed deeply bound economically, proving their invisible alliance."

"Russia has had bumper harvests year after year, and its oil production is also quite abundant. Both food and oil are in short supply in the British Isles. Naturally, the Russians would buy as much British machinery and equipment as possible." Shang Yuxiu put his pencil back on the table, his hands on his hips, and said, "This is the economic situation. Then, let's look at the military. The British Navy and the Russian Army are both second to none, and they complement each other perfectly."

"Uh..." Shang Ke pondered, pointed upward, and asked, "What do the higher-ups think of the current situation? What if Britain and Russia form an alliance and resort to force?"

"It's impossible to accurately predict this. We can only confirm that Valland will bear the brunt of the attack, but they are capable of protecting themselves and should be able to hold out for six or seven years. Furthermore, Britain and Marianna are drifting further and further apart, so a repeat of the European war situation is unlikely."

"Ah."

People today have no idea of ​​the subversive changes in warfare, especially politicians whose impression of war is still stuck in the trench warfare model.

If that were the case, the Varland Empire would be able to hold its own even if it were to fight two enemies at once.

However, the role of armored forces and aviation in coordinated operations is completely different.

No one can predict who will win or lose in the clash between the two major land powers, Varland and Ivan Rus, but the only thing that is certain is that it is impossible to fall into a long and protracted war like the European War, and the war will never last long.

Six or seven years? I'm afraid the outcome will be decided in one or two years.

What is more interesting is that after the end of the European War, the relationship between Britain and Marianna became increasingly cold, especially after Britain and Ivan Ross became close, the Marianna Republic gradually realized the potential threat.

Theoretically, the best solution is for Vallande and Marianne to work together and help each other. Unfortunately, the brutal fighting of the European War has just ended not long ago, and looking back on history, the two countries have harmed each other a lot. There is a huge gap in putting aside the past grudges.

The politicians' strategic vision must be wrong! Shang Ke thought so.

He hesitated for a moment, then asked his father, "The war situation is different now. Victory won't be dragged out by a powerful nation like it was before. What if one side collapses quickly after the battle? Has the higher-ups considered this?"

"Fast?" Shang Yuxiu turned to look at him and asked, "How fast?"

Shang Ke thought for several seconds, and finally asked tentatively: "A year? Half a year?"

　annotation:
　　A region refers to a local electoral district, which is usually composed of one or two provinces. For example, the Jiangsu-Zhejiang region, as the name suggests, is Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)