(Thanks to the book friend Guanghui's Charter for his reward! Thanks to the book friend Wen Su, San Daofeng, Judgor Gundam, and Little Lee for his monthly tickets!)

On December 6, 1898, the Presidential Palace, Pretoria, Republic of Transvaal.

President of the Transvaal Republic Paul Kruger is discussing the crisis they are facing now with General Pieter Jober, General Meier, General Delare and General Cronye.

"Generals, since the government announced in 1890 that foreign diaspora settled in Johannesburg would be paid full taxes, but they are not allowed to participate in presidential and Legislative Council elections, unless they live in Transvaal for 14 years and naturalize their nationality. In addition, all foreigners cannot hold government offices and their children cannot go to government-funded schools. This law was protested by Britain, because most of the foreigners in Transvaal were British. The trade war and tariff barriers between Transvaal and British South African colonies, Transvaal's high taxes on domestic British mining companies and

Economic restrictions have become the three main reasons for the deterioration of tensions between Transvaal and Britain. At the beginning of the month, Sir Alfred Milner, the Prime Minister of the British Cape Colonial, once again demanded that our country abolish the laws previously promulgated, otherwise, the UK would use any cost to protect the interests of the British. According to the news we have received, the British have intended to resolve the dispute with us through force!" Paul Kruger said with some concern. Now Britain is the most powerful country, and the Boers absolutely have no strength to confront the British.

"His Excellency the President, the British were unable to defeat us in the war 18 years ago. This time, even if the war started again, we would not lose!" said General Pieter Jober, commander-in-chief of the army.

"So, generals? Are our troops ready?" asked President Paul Kruger.

"His Excellency President, our army is ready. Once a war breaks out, we can mobilize up to 40,000 troops to join the war. The Orange people also promised to cooperate with us with all their might. As long as the British dare to start a war, we will definitely make them pay a heavy price!" said General Piet Jober, commander-in-chief. Although Britain is powerful, South Africa is far away from the British mainland. At the same time, the powerful British navy is useless, so General Piet Jober has great confidence.

"That's good. Dear generals, we have no way out. The British wanted to annex us, which was already clear in the war more than ten years ago. With the discovery of a large number of gold mines, the British had greater ambitions. These gold mines belong to us Boers. If the British wanted to take them away, they would kill all of us Boers!" President Paul Kruger said loudly.

"Yes, we are going to fight the British to the end!" the generals shouted loudly.

"So, generals, what do you need me to do for you?" asked President Paul Kruger.

"His Excellency President, our army is a huge gap compared to the British. The weapons we use now are old-fashioned rifles, and lack cannons and heavy machine guns. We must equip some of these weapons as soon as possible!" General Pieter Jober suggested.

"There is no problem with funding. However, under the pressure of the British, Europe has cut off our weapons import channels. Where can we get these weapons?" President Paul Kruger said in a dilemma. The mining of gold and diamond mines has brought huge wealth to the Transvaal Republic. However, in industry, the Transvaal Republic is poor and all weapons, including bullets, need to be imported from abroad. Once the war breaks out and the British cuts off their trade channels, these Boer troops will be completely over.

"His Excellency President, we have found new sellers. Their weapons are not behind the European powers, and they even win. The key is that they are cheap and we can buy in large quantities. Once the war breaks out, we will have enough weapons and equipment to fight the British!" General Pieter Jober said.

"Oh? Are they Americans? Do they dare to offend the British?" asked President Paul Kruger.

"No, it's not Americans, it's Chinese! They have a lot of idle weapons and equipment in their hands! including new rifles, artillery, etc. The Chinese now have very tense relationships with the British, so they are the only ones who dare not to abide by the British ban and sell weapons to us!" General Pieter Jober said.

"Chinese? Well, as long as their weapons are of the quality, purchase theirs. And try to purchase as much as possible and store them so that we can continue to fight the British after the trade channel is cut off by the British!" said President Paul Kruger.

"Yes, Your Excellency the President!" General Pieter Ruber took the order.

That night, a middle-aged man with dark skin entered the villa from behind in the villa of General Pieter Jober, the commander-in-chief of the Republic of Transvaal.

"Welcome, Mr. Zhou." General Pieter Jobert met the man in his study.

"General Pieter Jober, what are your country thinking about? Did you decide to buy weapons and equipment from our country? Our country can provide you with all the weapons and equipment you need. Even if your country wants a battleship, there is no problem at all. However, the construction cycle of the battleship is a bit long, and your country may have to wait for a while!" said the visitor. His name is Zhou Yuan, an intelligence officer stationed in the south of the China Intelligence Bureau, and his external identity is a diamond trader in Pretoria. In fact, he is responsible for collecting various intelligence from southern Africa, such as supporting the Boers and the British to compete, etc.

"Battleship? It seems that China has indeed risen, and even battleships can be sold. However, now we do not have a coastline, and the navy is in a blank space. It is useless to have a battleship!" General Pieter Jober said, shook his head and said.

"Okay, General, how many weapons do you need? I have asked for instructions in China, and we will sell it to you at the best price!" Zhou Yuan said.

"We need fifty thousand rifles, two hundred heavy machine guns, and two hundred artillery pieces," said General Pieter Jober.

"OK, there is no problem with these. But what caliber do you need for artillery? Our Type 82 infantry cannon is light in weight and powerful, which is very suitable for you. In addition, the 105mm light howitzer is also very suitable for combat on the South African grasslands!" Zhou Yuan suggested.

"That's it! Two hundred Type 82 infantry cannons, plus fifty 105mm caliber light howitzers. The more bullets, the better, and the same goes for shells. So, how much does these weapons cost?" General Pieter Jober asked.

"General Pieter Jober, I must speed you in advance. The weapons we sell to your country are all the weapons replaced by my team. However, with my personality, these weapons are as new as they are, and there will be no problems in performance. At the same time, the prices are much cheaper than weapons in European countries. A rifle, we sell for fifteen pounds, heavy machine guns are eight hundred pounds, and the 82 infantry cannon is priced at

Three thousand pounds, the guardian of the 105mm light howitzer is 8,000 pounds. In addition, you will give you 50 million rifle bullets, you will give you 20 million heavy machine gun bullets, you will give you 100,000 Type 82 infantry artillery shells, and you will give you 20,000 pounds. The total price is 6.5 million pounds." Zhou Yuan said with a bright smile. Six hundred and fifty pounds! It is enough for the Navy to build three "Chinese-class" battleships.

"Mr. Zhou, is the price too expensive? It is even more expensive than the Germans! In addition, there are too many bullets and shells!" General Pieter Jober said with a frown.

"General, it's not expensive at all. Our weapons are guaranteed. In addition, if you don't reserve more ammunition, it will be difficult for you to get supplies once the war breaks out. You don't want to lose this war in the end!" Zhou Yuan said.

General Pieter Ruber nodded, but he insisted: "Mr. Zhou, I'm afraid it's hard for me to obtain the consent of President Paul Kruger!"

"Let's do you think we are friends? It was originally 6.5 million pounds, you only need to pay 6 million pounds. In addition, this is the hard work fee for the general!" Zhou Yuan took out a check from the British HSBC bank from his pocket and handed it to General Pieter Ruber. The denomination on it was 100,000 pounds.

"General, if you succeed, you will have so much hard work to pay for you!" Zhou Yuan said.

General Pieter Ruber took the check calmly and said, "Mr. Zhou, just wait for my good news!"

A few days later, General Pieter Jober convinced Paul Kruger to agree to the arms deal. The Transvaal Republic did not have that much money, and it was paid with gold and diamonds, which made China a big profit.

Afterwards, Zhou Yuan contacted the Orange people through General Pieter Ruber and successfully sold arms worth 4 million pounds. A total of tens of millions of trade allowed the Chinese team to deal with a large number of replaced weapons. The funds returned were enough to support the Chinese team's operations in one month during the war.

However, because of the British Navy's blockade of South Africa, the arms transaction between the Chinese and the Boers wasted by a lot of effort. Chinese transport ships had to dock in Maputo, Mozambique, at night, and then the Boers found ways to transport these weapons back little by little.

When the Second Boer War broke out, the British suddenly discovered that the weapons equipped by the Boer were not inferior to them at all, which made the British pay a heavy price in this war.
Chapter completed!