On June 6, 2019, at the Sperm Whale Hotel in the Port of Ceuta, Cai Zhenguo, the plenipotentiary of the East Coast Republic of China to Europe, had just finished breakfast when his secretary brewed a pot of high-quality green tea and handed it to his desk with the latest information sent.

The original owner of the Sperm Whale Hotel was Spanish, but after Port Ceuta was actually controlled by the East Coast people, the hotel changed its ownership and was bought by a local merchant from the East Coast. The transaction price was astonishingly low as 600 yuan. I wonder how many thrilling stories happened behind the scenes.

Due to the war, too many people have flocked to the small Port of Ceuta, including those who stayed behind in the army, people from the intelligence community, all kinds of businessmen, and diplomats who are planning to contact the Moroccan government. In short, there are so many that they have ordered a few decent hotel rooms in Port of Ceuta.

Cai Zhenguo arrived in such a context. They set off from the port of Cadiz, Spain on an ordinary merchant ship, headed south along the coastline, then crossed the Strait of Gibraltar, and finally docked at the port of Ceuta. It should be said that his behavior took some risks, because the Mediterranean Moorish pirates who were broken by the Italian navy a while ago still appeared in this sea area from time to time. Their ship was loaded with dried fruits, cured meat, seafood, cheese, wine and other labor supplies purchased from Spain. They had a deep drift and were obviously a high-value target of robbery. It was indeed a bit of a risk to travel to Ceuta in such a grand manner. For this reason, they were strongly criticized by the naval officials who accompanied Cai.

But the problem is that it is not realistic to have the navy equipped with a warship for Cai Zhenguo to use, and the cost is too high. The same is true for renting a warship from Portugal or Italian (with personnel, weapons). In other words, either you, Cai, reduce the number of times you are on the outside, or convince the Ottoman Empire to put pressure on the pirates in Algiers and Tunisia, and let them go home quickly. Cai Zhenguo tends to use the second method, but he does not intend to pass the Ottoman Empire. Istanbul's influence on North African warlords has become increasingly declining in recent years. On the contrary, the East Coast people have had some friendship with those warlords who recognize money and not people through close trade ties. As for whether these friendships work or not, they have to try to find out.

"The Sperm Whale Hotel is OK, it is decorated quite elegantly, but the room is a little smaller." After taking a sip of tea, Cai Zhenguo looked at the room and said with a smile.

"The envoy, Ceuta's area is too small, and it can only be built of such a large hotel. If its area is hundreds of square kilometers, it will not be like this." The secretary respectfully handed a document to Cai Zhenguo and said, "I don't know what the Spaniards thought at the beginning. They obviously won the war but did not expand the land."

"They are petty and think that a small town is enough for them to live in. In fact, it is not just the Spanish, but their neighbors, the Portuguese, are also almost as virtuous as a place. Macau, Diu, and Mozambique, are not the size of a booze, but they still live happily, and they never seemed to have thought about expanding the area of ​​the city. It's hard to say that, in short, it's a matter of structure, and they only want to do business, not colonize. In this regard, the British and French have much more courage than them, and this may be one of the reasons for the success of these two countries."

"Encourt, your wish will be realized immediately, and the trouble of insufficient area of ​​Port Ceuta will be completely resolved." The secretary signaled the document and smiled: "It was just delivered in the middle of yesterday and the second night."

"Haha, the army's battle report seems to be good news." Cai Zhenguo opened the military newspaper calmly, first glanced up, then sat upright, read it carefully twice, and finally sighed, "It made those warriors proud again. Not to mention that they fought well, they did not make any fame, but helped the Hague government to impose heavy taxes. This time, the Sixth Mixed Regiment defeated the main force of the enemy, killing and injuring three or four thousand people, which is really amazing. Hey, someone told me that Bai Chuanping was a general who was very mediocre in all aspects. He only knew how to follow the script and adapted to the situation. Now it seems that he has achieved better results than those more famous regiment commanders and detachment leaders. It seems that the rumors are not trustworthy."

The secretary did not speak. As a thoughtful person who spent time studying the information related to the army and navy, his evaluation was actually the same as those professionals. He believed that even if Bai Chuanping could not be called mediocre, he was too rigid in war, and was not sufficient in moderation. These were the truth. However, under the cover of the strong strength of the East Coast Army, he, an officer who had no personal characteristics but strictly implemented the army's teachings, was also considered to be full of talents and was more applicable. Anyway, the East Coast Army was well-trained, with high morale, well-equipped and strong firepower. Just fight according to the Cao Dian. If you have a strong craftsmanship, you should be very craftsmanship. As long as you can win, you should be very craftsmanship.

"Send a newspaper to the Army to commend the army. As their nominal boss, I cannot remain indifferent." Cai Zhenguo said: "By the way, take the map and see, where are they going to hit?"

The secretary took out a map from his briefcase as if he was a magician, spread it out and placed it on the table, then pointed to one of the small dots marked "Meknes" and said, "The army has a big heart. They plan to fight all the way to Meknes, the capital of the Moroccans, and force them to sign the underworld alliance."

"So great courage?" Cai Zhenguo was a little surprised: "The distance from Port Ceuta to Meknes is nearly 300 kilometers. The further south, the more plains and fewer mountains, the more useful the enemy's cavalry can play, and the greater the pressure we face. Moreover, can we maintain such a long supply line? The Berber cavalry has always been famous for being brave and good at fighting. With them raiding the supply line in the rear, does Bai Chuanping want the entire army to run out of ammunition and food?"

"No, I don't think Captain Bai is so stupid." Cai Zhenguo quickly denied this idea. After thinking about it, he slowly said: "I guess, they said this mostly to put gold on their faces, and in addition, they naturally took money from my pocket. These grandsons! It was too risky to hit Meknes. Even with the help of Italians and Portuguese, it was a bit dangerous. I don't want to take this risk. What should I do? The Sixth Mixed Group is the backbone of the Eagle Nest Fortress. If you lose too many people in Morocco, how can you stop the French's ambitions?"

"The special envoy, but if you don't act as an attack on Meknes, it's probably not easy for the Moroccans to surrender. If you want to obtain the land north of 34 degrees and 30 minutes north latitude, it will be a bit difficult to achieve it." The secretary reminded.

According to Cai Zhenguo's idea before the war, after the Sixth Mixed Regiment entered Morocco, it would choose the opportunity to fight several major battles. The purpose was to annihilate the enemy's living forces, create a strong momentum, and lay a solid foundation for the East Coast government to obtain more land in the north of Morocco. The current Port of Ceuta is too small to become a large port and military fortress at all. However, the geographical location here is extremely important, and it is a place that any country that is determined to fight for world hegemony will find ways to take it down.

As long as the East Coast people take Tangier and Ceuta and then occupy Gibraltar, the natural port of the Spanish Kingdom across the strait, this golden waterway that connects the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean will be completely controlled by the East Coast people. Think about it, how much benefit and how much influence this is! Not to mention civil servants like Cai Zhenguo, Dan Navy coveted these two places and must try to seize them quickly!

Therefore, there are actually two steps. The first step is to find a way to expand the depth of the inland hinterland of the Port of Ceuta and take down the Port of Tangier, which is already in a semi-aborted state. The two, one on the left and one on the right, become an important fortress to protect the south bank of the Strait of Gibraltar. Forcing the Moroccans to cede the land north of 34 degrees and 30 minutes north latitude was also Cai Zhenguo's thoughts after careful consideration. Because in this way, the inland hinterland of the two ports of Tangier and Ceuta will have more than 2,000 square kilometers. In the future, two counties will be set up on one on the left and one on the right, and the boundary is almost just right.

If possible, these two counties should try to attract East Coast people to settle, and it is best to eventually form a scale of more than 100,000 people. In Cai Zhenguo's view, 100,000 East Coast people settled in Tangier and Ceuta, and the main ethnic groups have been changed. In the future, the Moroccans will find it difficult to retake these places, which is crucial to the interests of the East Coast Republic.

The second step is actually somewhat similar to the first step, which is to control a circle of land along the coast of Gibraltar Bay, and the best area can be expanded to more than 1,000 square kilometers. In the next twenty years, tens of thousands of people will be moved to settle down and become a stronghold for the East Coast people.

Based on this idea, we can understand Cai Zhenguo's current idea, that is, he hopes that the army can win a big victory and make the Moroccans more painful. But at the same time, he is particularly worried that the East Coast army, with the Sixth Mixed Regiment as the main body, will encounter setbacks, such as siegeing its capital by 300 kilometers deep into the enemy's territory, exposing the long logistics supply line to the scimitar of the Berber cavalry who are coming and going, resulting in a global collapse.

Therefore, he actually had the idea of ​​stopping as soon as possible. Anyway, most of the army's military training was achieved. The Sixth Mixed Regiment destroyed thousands of enemy troops in one battle and then advanced rapidly to the south. This proud look was enough to allow the vast majority of the recruits in the unit to establish psychological advantages. It is possible to make an attacking posture to the south, but the pace should slow down and focus on echoing the Italians on both wings. If possible, it is best for both sides to advance together, so that the army can be safe.

"Let's do this, immediately send someone to the Sixth Mixed Group to find Commander Bai, find out his true thoughts, and tell him about my concerns. Forget it, this matter is more important, it's more reliable for you to go there in person." Cai Zhenguo stood up and took two steps, and suddenly said: "In addition, send a few people with suitable identities to Algiers, find local officials, ask them to help be intermediaries, contact Morocco, and test their ideas. The battle cannot be fought all the time, and they will eventually return to the negotiating table. Just two things, hurry up and do it."
Chapter completed!