"Have the Chinese comrades replied yet?" Uncle Steel asked with a serious expression, smoking his pipe, inquiring about the news he cared about.

"They have not yet replied regarding whether they will expand the war in the Indian Ocean," Comrade Belkov replied. As the number two figure in the People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs, Comrade Belkov could be considered to have officially promoted from a senior clerk responsible for Sino-Soviet trade liaison to the leadership level. Although this position still didn't carry much special speaking weight.

There was nothing too strange about strategic considerations. Uncle Steel shared the same view on the Polish campaign as Little Mustache, believing this wasn't a problem of Poland, but of Britain and France. The most ideal state would be for Britain and France to pour their full strength into attacking China, have all their warships destroyed by China, suffer tens of millions of casualties in Asia, and henceforth be unable to participate in a European war.

However, the current situation was that France only supported Britain in spirit, and Britain was unable to bear two wars. Even if the ideal state did not occur, if China fought tooth and nail against Britain in the Indian Ocean, it would be greatly useful for reducing the pressure on the Soviet Union in Europe.

Able to mix into the People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs, Comrade Belkov didn't rely on luck; he also had a certain level of grasp on strategy. The "ideal state" was merely a joke. Before China easily beat the British forces in Southeast Asia into flowing water, the Soviet Union had thought China would fight a protracted war. The victory in the previous stage was so easy that the Soviet side naturally hoped China could "go up a flight of stairs".

"Comrade Stalin, should I go to China personally?" Comrade Belkov asked.

Slowly knocking the ash of the burnt tobacco out of his pipe, Comrade Stalin replied, "No, contact the comrades in Spain and tell them to hold on a little longer."

The Spanish Civil War was still being fought very fiercely. The stances of Britain, France, Germany, and Italy, which had once supported Franco, had now undergone great changes. After the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, the Soviet Union demanded that Germany withdraw from Spain. Germany temporarily agreed to this request.

Britain's concerns about Germany and Italy also caused Britain to change its stance. A Spain in continuous civil war offered too many opportunities for a shit-stirring country like Britain to manipulate. Originally in early '39, Britain and France were preparing to recognize the Franco rebels, but now Britain and France continued to distinctly support the Republican government. They also relaxed the embargo on the Spanish Republican government. After a considerable amount of weapons and ammunition, and even International Brigade personnel, joined the tottering Spanish Republic government, the bloody civil war not only did not end but intensified again under the changing stances of various forces.

Comrade Belkov quickly understood Comrade Stalin's thoughts. If the Spanish Republican government could hold on, the Soviet Union would still have some influence in Southern Europe. It was just that the key to prying the world situation now was still China. If China could beat the British soundly, the entire world situation would be different. He tentatively asked, "Should we send another telegram to the Chinese comrades?"

Uncle Steel began smoking his pipe again. The chaos of the world situation had exceeded his initial imagination. In such a total chaos, China's performance was quite unique. A few years ago, when Chen Ke visited Moscow, Uncle Steel could still clearly remember the frank smile on that young face that looked only thirty-something. Chen Ke had spoken extremely "unserious" words with a serious expression. "We will strike Britain in Asia; what plans do the Soviet comrades have?"

At that time, no Soviet comrade took Chen Ke's ideas seriously. Daring to be the first to challenge the world hegemon required immense courage and would trigger unimaginable chain reactions. Now that things had really progressed to this extent, Uncle Steel found that the backlash China encountered was surprisingly small. Britain had no ability to organize a global alliance against China; every major country had its own calculations. At this stage, the war between China and Britain was even gradually being overshadowed by other contradictions.

The West Pacific was too far away for forces other than China, so distant that other major countries would consider this region last. China's actions affected the world but did not change the world. From this perspective, the Chinese comrades had indeed grasped the root of the contradiction. Countries aiming for world hegemony might consider fighting to the death with China in this region, but for countries pursuing their own national interests, their priority was definitely not the West Pacific region.

"Send a telegram to the Chinese comrades, inviting them to send someone to discuss with us," Uncle Steel suddenly put down his pipe and said.

The speed of change was simply beyond Uncle Steel's grasp. By the time the Chinese comrades traveled thousands of miles by plane to Moscow, Uncle Steel had already ordered troops to advance into Poland, carving it up with Little Mustache. Military operations to march into the three Baltic states had also begun comprehensive deployment.

In such a tense period, Uncle Steel still made time to meet with China's special envoy.

"Comrade Stalin, Chairman Chen asked me to send his regards," the envoy said very politely.

Uncle Steel pointed to the seat next to him and immediately lit a pipe for himself.

"Our country is preparing to cross the sea to liberate Ceylon," the envoy didn't waste time. Even after flying continuously for dozens of hours, he just smeared some cooling balm under his nose, relying on the stimulating scent to maintain his spirit.

After explaining over the map for a moment, Uncle Steel understood China's plan. If the British refused to fight a decisive battle with China at sea, China would force the British to have a major battle with China in the Indian Ocean. Ceylon faced the southernmost tip of the Indian peninsula across the sea. Strategically, China could use Ceylon as a springboard to strike directly into India. While Uncle Steel was calculating China's strategic deployment, the Chinese special envoy said, "Comrade Stalin, our country believes that now is a good time to liberate the world from the colonial system. At this stage, as long as our country obtains Australia and New Zealand, in other areas enslaved by Britain, our country will allow the people of these areas to be liberated. This is not liberation under Chinese occupation, but an equal liberation to establish their own countries."

Politically, these words had very profound implications. China wanted to destroy the colonial system, which meant China required that the Soviet Union also could not establish its own colonial system in the regions identified by China. Of course, after clearly stating its ultimate ownership of Australia and New Zealand, China was also probing the Soviet Union's stance.

Uncle Steel immediately replied, "Territories lost due to unequal treaties, the Soviet Union intends to take back. But our country also opposes the colonial system. The world colonial system dominated by Britain must be broken."

After establishing each other's positions, both sides exchanged views on the future strategic situation. China and the Soviet Union were now fighting back-to-back, and their basic strategic heights were highly consistent. So the Chinese envoy asked Uncle Steel a question, "Has the Soviet Union determined its plan for war against Germany?"

This question silenced Uncle Steel again. The Soviet Union had indeed formulated the "Big Storm" plan, but the strategic basis of this plan was temporarily built on Germany and France falling into a long war of attrition. In the Soviet Union's multiple strategic considerations, the best scenario was for China to beat Britain soundly, dealing a heavy blow to the British Royal Navy. Germany and France would fall into a long war of attrition like in WWI. Under the condition that the United States did not enter the war, the Soviet Union would gather powerful forces to liberate Europe all the way. But the three conditions in the best scenario had not yet been met, so the Soviet side could only wait for now.

"To what extent have the Chinese comrades considered future strategy?" Uncle Steel asked.

"Our country hopes to resolve the West Pacific issue before the United States finally enters the war, attempting to complete the defense system of the West Pacific when the United States decides to enter the war. In the Indian Ocean, our greatest goal is to restore oil trade with the Middle East. Especially oil trade with Iran." The Chinese special envoy did not deceive Uncle Steel. At this stage, it was no longer possible for China to do business with British oil companies in the Middle East; the only remaining partner for cooperation was Iran. Fortunately, Iran maintained an independent stance. As long as China did not force Iran into the anti-British camp, Iran had a stance of cooperating with China in oil trade. Of course, the premise was that China drove the British out of the Indian Ocean.

"Do the Chinese comrades have no strategic plans further west?" Uncle Steel was somewhat unbelieving.

"We believe the Soviet comrades have the ability to liberate Europe." The Chinese special envoy looked more confident than the Soviet comrades.

If cutting out the nonsense, Uncle Steel was actually quite easy to get along with; the two only needed to talk about business. Of course, this might also be because the envoy was Chinese and not under Uncle Steel's control. Moreover, the atmosphere inside the People's Party was very tolerant; everyone was a smart person, and those who messed around found it hard to fit in.

But in any country, the King of Hell is easy to see, but the little devils are hard to deal with. After the Chinese special envoy finished talking with Uncle Steel, a bunch of Soviet bureaucrats came up to talk business with the Chinese special envoy.

"Please, could the Chinese comrades temporarily stop pursuing previous debts..."

"Please, could the Chinese comrades send an additional portion of equipment..."

"Please, could the Chinese comrades have more exchanges with the Soviet Union on military technology..."

Various requests to delay payment and demands for supplies annoyed the Chinese special envoy to no end. Recently, the People's Party had been conducting a study session internally, the main content naturally being the consistent anti-feudalism and anti-bureaucracy. The study content mentioned a matter of "two sets of books" and "layer-by-layer quota increasing."

For the People's Party, the country's macro-economic regulation was naturally indispensable, but how to conduct macro-regulation, and the implementation of macro-regulation at the grassroots level, were all matters with many techniques. Chairman Chen Ke, like a crow announcing death, had predicted many things, and these things happened without the slightest deviation. For example, this issue of "layer-by-layer quota increasing."

After the Central Committee formulated a plan, if the subordinates patted their chests and said they would definitely over-fulfill it, this contained huge problems. The People's Party internally discussed and refuted this many times, but these things still emerged one after another below. The most ridiculous thing was that some climbers found they couldn't get valued or promoted by "over-fulfilling tasks," so they simply criticized the Central Committee's attitude, "Being able to do it but not letting us do it, this is striking at production enthusiasm!"

These guys were still okay; some simply played at being lazy. Dragging out their essential work of serving the laborers as much as possible, only completing the tasks assigned by superiors.

Both types of guys faced severe criticism within the Party; those who should be removed were removed, those who should get out got out. It was just that with so many units and so many personnel in the country... It was truly a case of pushing down the gourd only for the ladle to float up, with a strong momentum of "wildfires cannot burn it out, the spring breeze blows it to life again." In short, all aims were for promotion. Making these people learn to reflect on themselves, temper themselves, and transform themselves was harder than killing them.

Fortunately, the People's Party had put great effort into human behavioral science and had relatively systematic research on these behaviors. So everyone at most said "they are sick" and didn't fuss too much. It was finally a bit quieter domestically, but after arriving in the Soviet Union, the envoy found that the bureaucratic habits of the Soviet comrades, and their lack of self-awareness as the ruling class, were truly jaw-dropping.

Comparing the Soviet comrades' credit-seeking with that in China, the envoy felt that the People's Party and its bureaucratic system were already close to "gentlemen," or at least "hypocrites." Some of the requests made by the Soviet comrades were clearly under orders from Comrade Stalin, which the envoy could distinguish. For example, not repaying debts.

But there was some content that was undoubtedly done by the bureaucrats on their own initiative to seek credit. For example, the part probing for the latest technology of China's military industry, and some greedy demands on details. And in some areas where they seemingly had authority but where real power was completely controlled by Comrade Stalin, the boldness of these people, the "bigness of their mouths," made the envoy truly not know whether to laugh or cry.

Finally, the envoy met Comrade Belkov. The two had been in contact many times and were acquaintances. The Chinese special envoy simply asked Comrade Belkov what Comrade Stalin would do with these officials if he told Comrade Stalin about their nonsense.

Comrade Belkov's face changed, and he said seriously, "Please do not do that."

"Why?" The envoy wanted to put Comrade Belkov on the spot a bit.

Clearly, Comrade Belkov was a very honest person. Having been in contact with Chinese comrades for a long time, Comrade Belkov also knew China's style. He replied, "We use criminal law to deal with sabotage and messing around. I think it's better for you not to take these things to heart. All major foreign affairs are decided by Comrade Stalin; what others say doesn't count."

The Chinese special envoy was silent for a moment and replied, "Comrade Stalin is truly working too hard."

Comrade Belkov could naturally hear the criticism in these words. He replied, "Every country has its own national conditions and historical traditions. I very much admire the style of the Chinese comrades in some matters. But the Soviet Union and China have different histories, and China's natural conditions and cultural traditions are better than our Russia's."

To make Comrade Belkov say such humble words, the Chinese special envoy knew how tricky these matters were. He offered Comrade Belkov a cigarette and took the opportunity to cut off the conversation in this regard. Of course, Comrade Belkov wasn't just there to complain. He formally made a request: the Soviet Union was very interested in China's high-power aircraft engines and hoped to import a batch from China. The Soviet Air Force had a fatal problem: the range of their aircraft was too short. In exchanges with China, Soviet comrades found that China's various fighter jets were larger than Soviet planes, carried more and heavier equipment, and had longer ranges. This showed that China's aircraft engines were better than the Soviet Union's.

This formal request exceeded the envoy's authority. The envoy could only state that he would report this issue to the Central Committee of the People's Party after returning. Comrade Belkov completed his mission, and when leaving, he couldn't help but turn around to specifically remind, "Please do not take some things to heart, Chinese comrade."

"Rest assured, I won't say anything to Comrade Stalin," the Chinese special envoy replied.

After resting for a night, the envoy went to see Comrade Stalin again the next day. Comrade Stalin was not as optimistic as China. He expressed that he couldn't predict too far into the future and very subtly made a request to China. "The enemies around the Chinese comrades are very weak and have no strength. In the future war, the Chinese comrades have the obligation to take up the world communist movement."

The Chinese special envoy didn't dislike Comrade Stalin's straightforward extortion; at least there wasn't much nonsense. As for whether the enemies around China were very weak, the Chinese special envoy felt in his heart that from China's perspective, the Soviet Union was also very weak. Of course, the Chinese special envoy naturally wouldn't say such words directly.

China and the Soviet Union discussed China's attitude towards Iran if China could expel British forces from the Indian Ocean. The Chinese side firmly could not accept the Soviet Union taking any posture of military invasion against Iran. The Chinese side expressed the hope of maintaining nations and polities chosen by the people themselves in the Middle East. Of course, the premise was that these countries must do business with China.

Uncle Steel didn't care much about this little matter. The Soviet Union and Iran were neighbors; if they wanted to deal with Iran, they could move at any time. Why butt heads with China at this time?

After the exchange ended, the envoy didn't even rest but went directly to the airport to fly back to China. When he rushed back to China and met Chen Ke, Chen Ke didn't speak after listening to the envoy's report. Instead, the envoy couldn't help but bring up the issue regarding the bureaucratic system. "I feel the Soviet comrades have gone down an evil path."

Chen Ke smiled helplessly. "In such a world, the severe winter of the feudal system is ending, and the spring of the bureaucratic system will arrive very soon. The Soviet comrades are just getting started."

In history after World War II, let alone the Soviet Union, almost all industrial countries, including Western Europe and the United States, saw the good days of bureaucratic glory. The popularization of modern communication means triggered by industrialization made the power of bureaucrats unprecedentedly strong. Without a bureaucratic system, the United States would have had no way to eventually overtake the Soviet Union in the space race.

The envoy was very smart. In Chen Ke's words, he smelled a hint of chill that seemed to be blowing towards China's bureaucratic system. Of course, the envoy said nothing about this.