Mediterranean hegemon

Late at night, poor old Ciano was tossing and turning in bed and lost sleep. His wife asked him: "Is there something on your mind?"

Old Ciano nodded, and with lingering fear said the two key words "seize the power of troops" and "300,000 tons", but the latter had no reaction after hearing it.

"You think it's normal?" Old Ciano was shocked. "A 20-year-old young man bluntly said in front of me that he had the right to seize soldiers - even if I were his father, he should not be so bold. He has already There are more than 300 brave men and the Second Air Force wants to seize military power again. What does he want to do? Also, do you know what 300,000 tons of steel means?”

The lady rolled her eyes: "Isn't it just 300,000 tons of steel..."

"What do you know!" Old Ciano shook his head and sighed. "Italy's annual steel production is currently only more than 1.2 million tons. He wants to produce 300,000 tons in one breath. He also said that he will expand to 2 million tons in the future and improve transportation. Don’t you think this ambition is scary to eat up all the orders for construction materials?”

"I know, I know everything. We in Calais not only want to be prime minister, but also a steel tycoon! In other words, his ideal is much loftier than you think, and a steel tycoon is far from satisfying his appetite. I I went to United House to see it, and learned more about the group’s plans and ideas, and even registered as a member—waiting to buy a motorcycle when it’s available!” Madam smiled wildly, “But I didn’t expect him to do this. A little ideal can scare his father so much that he can’t sleep at night! Do you think it’s the son who is too promising or the father who is too hopeless?”

Old Ciano's face turned livid at these words.

"I'm really not intimidated by 300,000 tons of steel. What happened to 300,000 tons? I usually read "Youth Daily" to learn about international politics and economics, and also listen to the radio. Germany, a defeated country, had tens of millions of tons, right? Who is famous? German steel companies don’t have an output of 300,000 tons or even 2 million tons?” Mrs. Ciano curled her lips in dissatisfaction, “Which one of Britain, the United States, and France is not much better than Italy? If you all follow your small ideas, when will Italy develop? Thank you for talking about the power of the country every day."

This was a direct slap in the face. Although the Ministry of Industry and Commerce was not under the control of old Ciano, he still felt his face was burning.

"Okay, okay, I'm kidding you... It's a good thing for a son to be promising. I don't think there is any young man in Italy who is more promising than him. It seems that Calais can't run away as Prime Minister. I don't know how many years it will have to wait." . Whether it’s to seize the military power or to make steel, why don’t you help him stabilize it? I think he has a good relationship with the leader. If he takes the military power, he won’t oppose the leader. Just don’t want to be the prime minister, son. You always want to help, right?" Mrs. Ciano said with a smile, "Besides, courage can be cultivated. When you planned to set up a joint group in Calais and lose tens of millions of lire, you were frightened and felt that it was too unreliable. Now he has been unable to do so for a year. I plan to lose 100 million lire, but I don’t see you unable to sleep or eat. Whether it’s a military power or a steel tycoon, it’s all a matter of taking your time. Don’t you men always keep saying something? Rome was not built in a day. Wouldn’t it be nice to achieve these goals slowly? Could you have imagined the situation today? ”

Old Ciano smiled awkwardly: "Madam, it would be a pity if you don't go into politics."

"I'm not interested in going into politics, but if I were 25 years younger, I would go to the radio station to compete for the chief anchor..." Mrs. Ciano chuckled, "Did you know that Calais has made two women famous? The anchor now costs 10,000 lire to attend any commercial event, and his worth is basically the same as that of a top-tier model in Milan. Even though they are very reserved, it is hard to invite them, let alone accompany celebrities to dinner. "

Hearing his wife talk about these gossips, old Ciano suddenly lost interest and responded casually: "Oh...yeah..."

The lady muttered dissatisfiedly: "Are you listening to what I'm saying?"

"Yes, yes..." He said yes, but the old Ciano was obviously absent-minded.

"I asked Isabella, and she said that no girls have stayed in Calais' house outside, and there are even very few people who visit... But!" Mrs. Ciano raised her voice, "These two anchors The young lady came and went on certain afternoons and left after dinner in the evening. The relationship seemed very close. According to the information I learned from other channels, they only had dinner with Calais a few times. "

"...The son is their immediate boss, that's normal." Old Ciano responded in a daze. He didn't think there was anything wrong here, but now he felt a little sleepy.

"You don't care about your son at all. I have already asked about it. Both girls have publicly expressed their intention to pursue Calais and will not marry him unless he is..."

"What?" The drowsy old Ciano suddenly had a bright idea, "No, no, no!"

"You know someone is bad without seeing him?"

"I've seen them before, including at the United Motorcycle Milan premiere. They're both very beautiful, but this marriage won't work, and neither will work."

"Vivian's father is a banker in Naples, and Adriana's father is the deputy mayor..."

"So no!" Old Ciano's eyes widened and he said helplessly, "Do you know what the leader and I talked about yesterday?"

"What did you say?"

"He said that Ada is already 13 years old and will be married in 5-6 years. He half-jokingly and half-seriously told me to find a suitable time for the two children to meet and cultivate their relationship. He also asked about the future of our two families. How about getting married?"

Ada is Mussolini's eldest daughter and the apple of his eye. Although she still lives with her mother in her hometown and has not come to Rome, everyone knows that Mussolini values ​​this daughter very much. What he said is obviously not true. It was a casual joke, but now it was Mrs. Ciano's turn to glare. After a while, she said: "How did you reply?"

"What can I say? I said it depends on the children's own ideas. I don't object to it - it's a joke. Can I object?" Old Ciano said distressedly, "This matter can't be made public. If it spreads, people will He thought that if I followed the trend, my position would be very embarrassing and unfair to Calais. He didn't even recognize a girl who was only 13 years old, and she was still young. How could he fall in love with her? If word of love on other occasions reaches the leader's ears, there is no guarantee that the latter will have other ideas. If he is dissatisfied with Calais' behavior and cannot speak out, there is no guarantee that he will not suffer. "

The lady became nervous: "What should I do?"

"Fortunately, Calais is more cautious. I don't think there have been any scandals about him, so he is still relatively reassuring. I haven't been able to talk to him about this crucial part yet. Alas... I'll leave it to the leader to talk to him." Ciano sighed heavily, "Let Isabella pay attention. If there is any situation, let us know in time to avoid being caught off guard."

This sudden second cold arrow made the couple unable to sleep well...