Chapter 1353: Fierce Battle

To hold onto this mineral vein with astonishing gold content, France dispatched a large number of troops to garrison it.

Just at this time, Britain also sent out troops, attempting to seize this gold mine back from the hands of the French.

The two armies had not yet engaged in battle.

At this moment, Longyan City, City Lord Mansion.

Qin Zhangfeng was currently running back and forth; today he was in Longyan City.

Qingyang Shuo received the battle report; the massive armies of France and Britain had already set out.

"Qingyang Xiansheng, this strategy of yours is truly formidable," Qin Zhangfeng praised.

He looked at the battle report and moved the flags representing France and Britain onto the map of the gold mine.

It was foreseeable that a great battle would inevitably erupt in that place, and it was destined to be a Protracted War.

But Qingyang Shuo was frowning tightly, without a shred of the joy Qin Zhangfeng had, as he looked at the map of Longyan City.

Qin Zhangfeng also noticed that Qingyang Shuo's expression was wrong; he was stunned for a moment in his heart and asked, "Xiansheng, the grand plan is already achieved, what else are you worried about?"

Qingyang Shuo did not answer Qin Zhangfeng, but instead tapped the battle report on the table.

Qin Zhangfeng picked up the battle report, opened it, and scanned it a few times; his expression instantly turned grave.

"They, Britain, still dare to send troops over? I will go out right now and wipe them out!" Qin Zhangfeng grabbed his saber and was about to leave.

Just at this moment, Qingyang Shuo's voice rang out.

"Come back, do not be impulsive."

Qin Zhangfeng's footsteps paused; he looked at the doorway, sighed, turned back, and slapped his saber onto the table.

"Qingyang Xiansheng, our Longyan City is easy to defend and hard to attack; if this group of British guards enters the city, what should we do?"

"There is no Method; Britain has our people in their hands, the reason is legitimate, and we currently have a cooperative relationship, so we can only let them in," Qingyang Shuo sighed and said.

"But..."

Qin Zhangfeng clapped his hands, his face full of anxiety: "Then we cannot let them enter our Longyan City carrying weapons!"

Qingyang Shuo shook his head: "It won't do; this time, even if Longyan City doesn't want to let them in, it won't work."

"If you are going to act, you must act convincingly."

Qin Zhangfeng had no other Method; he sat in a chair and took a sip of tea. He understood what Qingyang Shuo meant.

To avoid arousing British suspicion, Longyan City first had to put them at ease so that Britain would attack France without any misgivings.

Only then would Britain and France focus their attention on the mineral vein, and only in this way would Longyan City have the opportunity to sit back and reap the rewards.

"Pass down my order: in order to welcome our British friends and have our Longyan merchants sent back, Longyan City has decided to hold a grand banquet for three days."

"Implement a curfew during this special period and increase the patrol frequency of the Longyan troops."

Qin Zhangfeng knew these orders were just a delaying tactic; if those British guards didn't take the bait, there was no other way.

"General Qin, how is the progress of the factory you are building in Yun City?"

Yun City was the name of Longyan's second city in America, although the entire city had not yet been built.

But it had already begun to take shape.

"The progress is stable; I am hiring those Indians to work with food, and they are very willing."

Qingyang Shuo expressed approval. They had also brought extremely advanced agricultural technology from Longyan, which already had a foundation in Longyan City, and the grain output was now enough to cope with the expenses of two cities.

The Panama Isthmus was a place overgrown with forests and had not yet been reclaimed for farming, so for now, they could only rely on Longyan City to supply some essential materials.

"I will allocate some more grain to you; your progress must be accelerated."

Qin Zhangfeng nodded, and he reported on the current status of the troop training.

These Indians originally lived in the jungle, and basically, every one of them was a skilled hunter.

But now, the Indians there were suffering persecution by the Spanish, and for those whose survival was already difficult, things were now even worse.

Qin Zhangfeng also used food as military pay, attracting many Indians to join the army.

"Such troops are not yet able to form combat effectiveness."

"Rest assured, Qingyang Xiansheng, I will definitely make these Indians into an effective fighting force," Qin Zhangfeng guaranteed, patting his chest.

Qingyang Shuo was still at ease regarding Qin Zhangfeng's ability to train troops.

The only concern in Qingyang Shuo's heart regarding Yun City now was the Panama Canal.

"Is there any progress on the Canal?" Qingyang Shuo asked, even though he already knew the answer.

"There is no major progress; our current level simply cannot chisel through forty-meter-deep rock."

The Panama Canal was a very important move Liu Zheng had made in America.

This move was directly related to Longyan's development in America.

But so much time had passed, and there was not the slightest progress, so Qingyang Shuo could not help but feel secretly anxious.

Just at this time, a servant entered.

"A reply from the Chief Councilor."

Qingyang Shuo's eyes lit up, and he took Liu Zheng's letter from the servant's hand.

However, he did not hold much hope; after all, Liu Zheng had never surveyed the situation of the Panama Isthmus.

In the letter, Qingyang Shuo had only attached a map of the Panama Isthmus; there was no way to explain the full picture of the Panama Isthmus to Liu Zheng in the letter without any omissions.

Qin Zhangfeng also had no hope; he was the one who had explored it and knew well the difficulty of this canal.

Qingyang Shuo tore open the envelope, looked at the contents inside, and his eyes lit up: "Brilliant!"

Qin Zhangfeng was stunned and immediately asked: "Does the Chief Councilor have a Method?"

Qingyang Shuo nodded and handed this letter to Qin Zhangfeng; he looked at the diagram Liu Zheng had drawn in the letter.

He understood Liu Zheng's meaning at once.

In his heart, he felt even more admiration for their Longyan Chief Councilor, Liu Zheng.

"Ship locks, Gatun Lake, artificial canal..."

"Impressive, this plan is designed specifically for the Panama Isthmus."

This plan utilizes the terrain of the Panama Isthmus, from high to low, designing Gatun Lake at the high point and installing ship locks at the low points.

When a ship arrives, the rear ship lock at the low point is closed, and the property of water flowing to lower ground is used to raise the water level at the low point.

After raising it to the high level, the ship lock is opened to let the ship pass through Gatun Lake, and on the other side of the artificial canal, it is let through by using ship locks to control the change in water level.

"Using this plan, the Panama Canal will definitely be no problem."

"Mm, go prepare quickly, this matter must be put on the agenda!"

"Very well, sir, regarding Longyan City..."

Qingyang waved his hand and said, "It is of no concern, do you still not trust me?"

Qin Zhangfeng nodded, immediately took Liu Zheng's blueprints, and flew back to Yun City.

The matter of the Panama Canal is their top priority right now.

But at this moment, the once powerful and arrogant Spanish Empire is staring covetously at this city that the Longyan are building in Panama.

The Panama Isthmus is their Spanish colonial territory; how could they possibly hand it over to the Longyan!

The Spanish leader Babite watched the night fall, his eyes cold: "Brothers, prepare to charge! Those detestable Longyan must absolutely not be allowed to build a city on our territory!"