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"You seem like a crazy bastard. How long has it been since the war ended and we are already preparing for war? "Does this guy even have thoughts?"
Dewey hit the table with his fist without realizing it. As a result, the cup spilled and the water spread on the desk, but it did not reach Dewey, who was on the verge of rolling his eyes in anger.
The world Dewey envisioned was one in which countries from Asia, Oceania, and South America came together under the leadership of the United States to fight against the Axis powers led by Germany.
Therefore, Dewey provided food and weapons to the ideologically opposing Soviet Union, formed an alliance with Vietnam, also a communist country, and did not spare aid to China.
Although China is not usually close to Germany, separating China from Germany through continued aid could solidify America's dominance in the Asia-Pacific.
If war breaks out between Germany and the Soviet Union, China will support the Soviet Union and use it as a shield to protect America's interests from Germany's ambition to invade Asia. This was Dewey's popular plan.
But Chiang Kai-shek was running in exactly the opposite direction.
Instead of being friendly with the Soviet Union, they are preparing to invade Mongolia. Mongolia is a protectorate of the Soviet Union, so if China attacks Mongolia, wouldn't the Soviet Union naturally take action? Even Chiang Kai-shek would not know this.
In other words, it was clear that Chiang Kai-shek had decided to be hostile to the Soviet Union. It was not just simple hostility, but to the point of being willing to go to war.
"Oh my head… … ."
Dewey laid back, feeling his temples throbbing.
If a war breaks out between China and the Soviet Union, it is Hitler's Germany that naturally benefits.
Could this also be something Hitler instigated behind the scenes?
Chiang Kai-shek was originally close to Hitler, so it made sense.
He encouraged Chiang Kai-shek to provide support to help China regain its former territories lost in the past, and Chiang Kai-shek, who went over to China, prepared to invade Mongolia.
Naturally, America's attention will be focused on the Far East, and when the United States is preoccupied with the Far East, Germany will run wild.
where? Africa? Or South America?
Now that I think about it, I heard that Argentina is also suspicious recently... … .
Dewey came to his senses. First, the China issue had to be dealt with clearly.
He called and summoned the marshal.
"Did you call me, Your Excellency?"
"Welcome, Minister. I was waiting."
Marshall, who received special trust from Roosevelt, received attention from the political world even after the change of administration. Dewey, impressed by his abilities, offered him the position of Secretary of State, and the Senate also unanimously nominated Marshall as Secretary of State.
As a man of the principle that soldiers should not be involved in politics and should only be faithful to their duties, Marshall quietly did his job even in the Republican government.
Dewey wanted to entrust him with a new mission.
"You should go to China."
"You mean in China?"
Marshall drank his coffee quietly. There was no change in his expression, as if he had expected this to happen.
"What can I do if I go?"
Despite what he said, Marshall seemed to know in advance what he was going to do.
"Go to China and tell Chiang Kai-shek. The United States is watching China closely and hopes for the development of Sino-Soviet relations. Even Chiang Kai-shek will understand this much."
"I understand, Your Excellency."
***
January 18, 1949
Presidential Office in Chongqing, China
After receiving Dewey's instructions, Marshall hurriedly flew to China and met with Chiang Kai-shek.
A grand event was held to welcome the US Secretary of State, and there was a photo opportunity. At least Marshall kept a smiling face with Chiang Kai-shek in front of reporters.
However, as soon as the surrounding gaze disappeared, the two returned to cold reality.
"Please explain."
"What explanation are you talking about?"
"What are you planning, President?"
The following meaning was hidden in Marshall's words:
I know what you're planning. This is just a courtesy.
It would be better to tell everything honestly now.
"Marshal Marshall, no, Minister Marshall."
Chiang Kai-shek, who sensed Marshall's intentions, had no choice but to tell him everything. It was going to happen someday anyway.
Rather than dragging it out until the end, it would be better for the future to tell everything now and ask for consent.
"Mongolia was originally a part of China like Manchuria. But those Russians came in and forcibly took it away. I plan on putting it back where it was. That's all."
"But, President. Mongolia is a completely independent country with its own government. And Mongolia is allied with the Soviet Union."
While Marshall spoke, Chiang Kai-shek quietly savored the tea. Today, the tea tasted particularly bitter.
"The Soviet Union is also an ally of the United States. Washington is not happy with allies going to war with each other."
summary.
Wake up from your dream.
Washington's message to Chiang Kai-shek was truly succinct.
However, Chiang Kai-shek also had no intention of backing down easily.
I've been waiting for this moment for so long, and now I'm telling you to give it all up? Are you saying that China, which helped win the war by holding the Japanese army in central China at the cost of the lives of 16 million Chinese people, is no better than the communists to the Yankees?
Nonsense.
China sacrificed more than Britain and the Soviet Union to win World War II, and had a greater stake in victory than either of them. So even now, it was necessary to reclaim what should have been China's original share.
Even if Tibet was abandoned due to Germany's disapproval, Mongolia had to be regained.
But at least Chiang Kai-shek was a man who knew how to hide his emotions in front of others. He tried to suppress his boiling anger and spoke in a calm tone.
"I also understand your country's position. But Minister, Mongolia is a puppet state established by Russia by stealing Chinese territory. It is no different from Manchukuo established by Japan. And unlike the United States, China was not an ally with the Soviet Union. Rather, it was a potential enemy that cooperated with Japan to destroy China. "I hope you know this."
"Still, since American aid materials were supplied to China through the Soviet Union, I think the Soviet Union also contributed to China's victory to some extent. Above all, China's urgent problem now is not territory, but civilian and military issues. Let's start by solving rampant corruption."
As Chiang Kai-shek showed no signs of backing down, Marshall took out a card he had prepared in advance.
"The United States pours out a huge amount of aid to the Chinese people every year, but it is said that much of the food and medicine provided by the United States does not reach the starving Chinese people, but ends up on the black market and is sold at high prices, enriching corrupt officials and soldiers. The White House's message is that if these issues are not resolved, we will have no choice but to reconsider public assistance."
Chiang Kai-shek's face was infinitely distorted by Marshall's warning.
***
January 22, 1949
Natural History Museum, Munich, Germany
The newly reopened Munich Natural History Museum exudes a very grand yet old-fashioned atmosphere.
The huge fossils of dinosaurs that appeared immediately after passing through the entrance were enough to arouse awe and admiration in those who saw them.
I now understand why people in the past looked at dinosaur fossils and mistook them for dragon bones. Large land animals such as elephants and giraffes boast enormous sizes, but were dinosaurs even more majestic?
It was a time when the existence of dinosaurs was not yet known, so it would not have been possible to think of any other animal other than dragons.
"I understand why people are so crazy about dinosaurs. These things that are nothing more than bones still make people dream."
"As expected, the President thinks so too. "There is no creature that captures people's attention and sparks their imagination more than dinosaurs."
Carl Buren, a paleontologist and director of the Natural History Museum in Munich, smiled and continued to rub his hands.
Perhaps because he was determined to use this opportunity to make a mark, or perhaps because he was a member of the Nazi Party, Buren was the only museum employee and scholar wearing a Nazi armband on his arm.
While looking around the museum while chatting with Burren, I stopped in front of a dinosaur fossil.
A neur-dorsal process reminiscent of a fan and an elongated jawbone like a crocodile.
It was the famous Spinosaurus fossil. This is the guy who fought and won against the Tyrannosaurus in .
One of the most common questions asked by paleontologists after the movie was released was who would win if a Tyrannosaurus and Spinosaurus fought? In fact, the two lived in different places at different times and had never encountered each other in their lives.
In front of the Spinosaurus fossil, the fossil's first discoverer, Baron Ernst Freiher Stromer von Reichenbach, stood with a nervous look on his face.
I approached him, who was nervous about the visit of a celebrity, and smiled and held out my hand.
"You were the first to discover this monster. "You left a great mark on the history of German science and paleontology."
"Well, it's an honor… … !"
Stromer was thrilled and took my hand.
"I heard that there was a lot of hardship when excavating fossils in Egypt."
"It wasn't usually hard work."
Stromer nodded repeatedly and recalled the events that occurred when he was excavating Spino.
Stromer, who discovered Spinosaurus in Egypt in 1912, excavated Spino for a total of four years, but as World War I broke out during the excavation, support from his home country was cut off and he had to spend his personal funds.
Because he was a citizen of Germany, an enemy country, he not only interfered with fossil excavations in England, but also suffered greatly, including breaking his leg in an accident during the excavation and surviving and dying from an infectious disease.
After many twists and turns, he brought the excavated fossils to Germany, but in actual history, all the dinosaur fossils he excavated were completely destroyed in the Allied air raid on Munich in 1944.
Not only this, he suffered the tragedy of two of his three sons being killed in battle.
The one who survived became a prisoner of the Soviet army and returned to Germany only five years after the end of the war. Stromer's life was extremely difficult and miserable, not befitting his title as a baron.
Still, Germany won the war here, and the fossils he excavated remained intact, so Stromer personally felt very fortunate.
In addition to Spinosaurus, the museum displayed several dinosaur fossils unearthed by Stromer: Carcharodontosaurus, Aegyptosaurus, Bachariasaurus, etc. Throughout the museum, Stromer eagerly explained the fossils he had discovered.
Just as people cannot live by eating alone, they need things to enjoy in order to enjoy life.
In the 20th century, when things to enjoy are somewhat scarce compared to the 21st century, museums are an important cultural space that can provide a little stimulation to boring daily life and at the same time a place for learning.
When high-ranking people like me come, the number of people visiting the museum will increase, and the museum's income will naturally increase, which will revitalize related fields.
In fact, Hitler's hobbies were going to art museums and watching opera performances, but as someone who was not interested in such things, going to museums or zoos was more to my taste.
To be honest, there are more things to see in museums and zoos.
however… … It's all good, but there's one thing that bothers my eyes.
It can't be helped because it's a limitation of the times, but as someone who was used to seeing Bokgudo carrying his tail, the old-fashioned Bokgudo dragging his tail was quite annoying.
It's like watching comedians who force a positive response by telling jokes that won't work even in the next 8 years.
However, there is no point in pretending to know anything. In this era, it was widely believed that dinosaurs dragged their tails to maintain their center of gravity.
The established theory was that Stromer's Spinosaurus lived only on land at this time, that Tyrannosaurus dragged its tail on the ground like Godzilla and moved close to upright walking, and that Brachiosaurus was an aquatic animal that ate water plants and other plants in lakes.
I couldn't even imagine that birds were a type of theropod.
Even if I, a non-expert, tried to say that dinosaurs would have carried their tails, I would only be told that it was impossible due to their structure.
"Mr. President? "Is there anything that makes you uncomfortable?"
Himmler, perhaps my closest aide, caught the subtle changes in my expression.
Looking at things like this, this guy is really amazing. What should I do with that damn occult game?
"You looked like something bothered you a while ago."
"That's it. "I'm just getting a little short of breath as I get older."
"I don't even know that! "I'll take you to the parlor right away!"
Buren and Stromer were astonished as if I had been accused of high treason, and they carried me on their backs and led me into the living room.
When I came to my senses, I found myself sitting on a soft leather chair, sipping cocoa. There was no need for this.
Actually, I was just at the point where I felt like taking a break after walking around for a long time, so I decided to take a break.
While I was quietly sipping cocoa and relieving my leg fatigue, Himmler spoke about recent trends in China.
"I heard Marshall went to China a few days ago."
"I heard. Do you know anything about the conversation between Chiang Kai-shek and Marshall?"
"I don't know yet, but it looks like they didn't just exchange good words. I only heard from the SD agent who was part of the military advisory group that the meeting between the two ended earlier than scheduled."
The fact that the meeting ended sooner than expected probably means that something happened. It is still unknown what conversation took place between Chiang Kai-shek and Marshall, but it is clear that at least the atmosphere was not cordial.
"Isn't it because of the Mongolian problem?"
When it comes to reasons for conflict between China and the United States, the only thing that comes to mind is Mongolia.
Chiang Kai-shek probably tried to get approval from the United States before the war, and the United States probably rejected Chiang Kai-shek's request because it would be like allies fighting each other.
Of course, Chiang Kai-shek was furious. The meeting is pato... … I thought it might be. Common sense suggests that this is the most likely.
"Do you really think China will invade Mongolia?"
"I met with Chiang Kai-shek and talked to him, and he was sincere. However, I don't know what will happen since the United States opposes it."
"No matter what happens, isn't it a loss for us? This is the profit that comes from selling weapons to China, and it means that there is one less place for communists on the planet. "I hope that Chiang Kai-shek will use this opportunity to completely wipe out the communists. Although he may not have the ability to do so."
If China conquers Mongolia as Himmler said, the Soviet Union's already narrow position will become even narrower.
Even now, rule by the Communist Party is not as strong as it used to be, and if the remaining allies and puppet states disappeared, it would be a huge blow to the Soviet Union and the Communist Party.
Therefore, it was clear that the Soviet Union would definitely try to protect Mongolia.
"If China goes beyond Mongolia and enters a state of war with the Soviet Union, shouldn't we also do something?"
Hearing Himmler's words, I put down my cup of cocoa. This sounds scary again.
"What the United States is most wary of is our movements. Are they planning to start a war again? "Don't be so vague."
Just in case, I should tell Vlasov not to think nonsense.
It would be a different story if the other side started a war first, but now Europe needed peace more than war.
Even without that damn fight, we can still make a living, so there is absolutely no reason to go to war and take on all kinds of risks.
However, our friend Chiang Kai-shek did not seem to understand that simple fact yet.
Even now, just look at how they are not satisfied with China, which has a large land mass, and even covet Mongolia.
Originally, the endings of leaders who were blinded by territorial greed were mostly bad endings.