Rise of the Argentine Empire

Saint Hesser gave the order for nearly three hundred sets of factory uniforms for the cannery and soda factory to a newly established small workshop.

The owner of the small workshop was Lin Yun, a neighbor of Old Chen who was skilled in tailoring. Saint Hesser met her when he was buying beer.

This story begins with a meal Saint Hesser freeloaded on last week.

That noon, he ate in the army cafeteria and almost broke a tooth on a grain of sand. It nearly sent him to the afterlife. He even found a small white worm in the thick vegetable soup as an extra course. Not caring about wasting food, he dumped the remaining two clumps of greens and finished the spaghetti.

He consoled himself, thinking that vegetables with worms meant they weren't sprayed with pesticides, and that greens with meat were delicious. Still, he felt a bit disgusted and even considered complaining to the cafeteria. However, when he thought about the cafeteria manager, a giant weighing over three hundred pounds, he decided against it, imagining a sumo wrestler from Japan.

"The food has been getting worse and worse lately. Should I start bringing my own food in the future?" he thought to himself, as his hand unconsciously reached for the few remaining leave slips in his drawer.

That afternoon, he really didn't want to cause any trouble. He quickly wrote Saint Hesser's name and the current date, handed it to the front desk of the military camp's administration office, and walked out of the camp amidst the envious gazes of the other captains. This kid was taking leave again.

He wanted to have a good meal again, but he didn't want to cook himself, nor did he want to go to a restaurant. So, he decided to freeload at Old Chen's house. He didn't know anyone else in the city; they were either in the military camp or elsewhere.

First, he went to the vegetable market, but Old Chen wasn't there. He probably closed up shop early. Then, he happily bought some vegetables and meat, but forgot to buy alcohol. He happened to see someone running a small shop at the entrance of the alley, so he went in to buy some beer.

To be honest, although Saint Hesser was from northern Argentina, he had the appetite of a southerner. Cordoba's local cuisine was spicy, and it wasn't always convenient to eat out. However, the food in the military camp cafeteria was terrible. After getting to know Old Chen, Saint Hesser often bought groceries and freeloaded on meals, which somewhat spoiled his appetite.

Saint Hesser jokingly said that Old Chen's ancestors must have been chefs because his cooking was really good. If he didn't want to sell vegetables anymore, he could open a Chinese restaurant in Cordoba, and he would definitely be a frequent customer.

Old Chen said in conversation that his ancestors had indeed worked as cooks for the troops of the national hero Zuo Zongtang, but he didn't know if it was true or not. The chicken that Old Chen cooked was indeed very delicious, with the skill of a great chef. He said that when his sons came to Argentina, they might really try to open a restaurant.

Old Chen had four sons and three daughters, all of whom were married and had families, so he could be considered to have a house full of children and grandchildren.

Lin Yun, Old Chen's neighbor, happened to open a small convenience store at the entrance of the alley. During a casual conversation, she said that her ancestors came from Wenquan City in Zhejiang Province, China. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, they moved to Siam at that time, later renamed Thailand, and then came to Argentina after many twists and turns, almost crossing the Pacific Ocean, tens of thousands of miles by sea.

Their original destination was not Argentina, but they wanted to go to New Zealand. As a result, the policies there were tightened, and later, relatives came to Argentina and followed them to Ledesma City, and even took the train to the capital.

Because they were not very adapted to the atmosphere of Buenos Aires, they moved to Cordoba City in the central interior and settled down.

This Lin Yun was a very good tailor. She set up a sewing machine in front of the convenience store and did some sewing and mending work. Many poor families in the city who couldn't sew or mend would send their clothes here.

Saint Hesser initially wanted to find a clothing factory in the city to customize the factory uniforms, but the people at the clothing factory disliked the small order and demanded a high price. Saint Hesser contacted several factories.

The prices were almost several times higher, exceeding Saint Hesser's bottom line, so he got angry and gave up directly.

After asking several factories and not being satisfied, Saint Hesser even planned to give up. In his opinion, this thing was not a necessity. It was just to strengthen the sense of belonging and other additional functions. It wasn't an irreplaceable thing like a machine, so he simply wouldn't do it.

One day, after Saint Hesser finished military training, he wanted to eat some food from his hometown, so he went to the vegetable market alone, bought vegetables and fruits, and went to Old Chen's house to freeload on a meal. He passed by Lin Yun's convenience store and bought some daily necessities like oil and rice.

Saint Hesser's military uniform happened to have a hole torn during training. Seeing a sewing machine at the entrance with a sign in Spanish that said "Clothing Mending", this woman mended the hole in a few strokes, perfectly. So, he had an idea and asked the woman if she could make clothes.

"Are there any other people with good skills like you? I see that there are many people in our Chinatown who don't have jobs. Can you have them work together? I can help you ask about sewing machines. It's possible to buy a few in the city," Saint Hesser lit a cigarette and took a deep puff.

"That's not a problem, I can ask around. It shouldn't be an issue," said Sister Lin Yun, a woman with a broad vision. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to build up a convenience store and take up tailoring. Besides, these sisters have no work and are indeed a bit bored. If they can make clothes, they can also earn some income for the family, killing two birds with one stone.

Saint Hesser was not only concerned about the work clothes. He also realized that in Chinatown, it's not just the men who have difficulty finding work. Very few people like Uncle Chen start their own small businesses; most go to do hard labor, like washing dishes in restaurants.

Besides Cordoba's poor economy and high unemployment rate, job opportunities for women are even fewer. The cannery's demand might be an opportunity for these fellow villagers to establish a clothing workshop, allowing them to do some part-time work.

Argentina's service industry is also relatively backward. Opportunities like working as waiters are mostly taken by local white people. There are no chain stores like KFC, McDonald's, or Starbucks.

As the saying goes, 'Rely on friends when abroad.' Saint Hesser naturally wanted to help. The clothing industry is relatively easy to get started in, and making clothes is a traditional skill of the Chinese. Making shoes and clothes was a piece of cake for our ancestors.

Moreover, during the era of 'three forms of import processing and compensation trade' in China, the garment manufacturing industry was also one of the important industries undertaking industrial transfer. Saint Hesser followed suit, hoping it would work.

No sooner said than done, Saint Hesser went to the second-hand market in the city that day and purchased sewing thread and sewing machines. The next day, Saint Hesser bought 10 sewing machines from the city's flea market and transported them to Sister Lin Yun's place, and also purchased cotton cloth from the city market.

Sister Lin Yun mobilized the fellow villagers who were idle at home to learn how to make clothes. Saint Hesser gave the sizes from the factory to the sisters, and the results were indeed good.

With Saint Hesser's support, all kinds of work uniform orders were placed with the garment workshop, allowing them to expand their part-time work. Later, they even took on small-scale orders in the city, even making jeans and clothes, which were very popular.

This workshop with only eleven sewing machines also had orders to survive and got on the right track.

Saint Hesser placed orders for 600 work uniforms before and after, and the quality of completion was quite good.

Later, it was not only Uncle Chen's family that he freeloaded from, but also other fellow villagers who would invite him to join them. They were quite united and had also been to Li Qingyun's house and Sister Lin Yun's house.

Sometimes, several families would each contribute a few dishes and eat and gather together in the yard, creating a happy and harmonious feeling.

At this time, Saint Hesser was only focused on eating and enjoying the dishes. There was no other reason; the food was really delicious.

The feeling of eating heartily was very satisfying.

Saint Hesser's help later made Cordoba an important Chinatown gathering place in Argentina. They not only opened supermarkets but also vegetable markets, and some even became farmers by cultivating land, while others opened clothing factories, and so on.

The small Chinatown alley later truly became a unique Chinatown.

......

The City Guard finally won the championship with the Ninth Brigade, and Saint Hesser was also commended.

The Ninth Brigade deserved to be the result of Saint Hesser's improved training methods. They were full of morale and had a solid foundation, while also paying attention to confrontational strategies and tactics.

Aragón also commanded well. Not only in ordinary confrontation matches, but also in new-style projects such as live ammunition shooting, the Ninth Brigade scored A+, while the National Defense Force only scored A-, which made Commander Thompson very satisfied.

In the weight-bearing cross-country race, the City Guard's Ninth Brigade took the lead, running fast and steadily, and no soldier fell behind, successfully reaching the finish line first.

On the last day of the competition, the weather was clear and it was a rare good day. Saint Hesser left the stands to cheer for the soldiers.

"Brothers, perseverance is victory. Let us play the glory of the City Guard. This is also the glory passed down from the La Plata era. From the Andes to Cordoba, from Celta to Tierra del Fuego, we are fearless," Saint Hesser said loudly, wearing his captain's uniform, his slightly white shirt gleaming.

"The City Guard is invincible, long live great Argentina!"

"The City Guard is invincible, long live great Argentina!"

This time, no one looked down on Saint Hesser anymore, and no one looked down on the Cordoba City Guard anymore.

Facts have proved that Saint Hesser's training is indeed very effective. Even if it is just an enhanced version of university military training, it is not a joke. Millions of people gather for military training every year, and the soldiers of the Ninth Brigade are becoming more and more confident and proud.

The National Defense Force, on the other hand, was stunned by the Ninth Brigade's competition methods. With the same physical fitness, these animals were united and supportive, and they really couldn't beat them.

The two troops totaled more than 10,000 people, which can be described as a sea of people. Unlike the beginning, this time it was completely reversed. The City Guard's morale was high, and the National Defense Force's morale was low and depressed.

Among them, there was a project that was not actually the City Guard's strong point, which was horse racing. However, this was an old tradition of the Gauchos. The Gauchos are the equestrian people of Argentina, and Saint Hesser is even a master of it. He had his own pony when he was five years old and was known as the little prince of prairie horse racing.

Saint Hesser taught horse racing skills and let the Gauchos of the City Guard form a horse racing team, and this time they also won the first place in the horse racing project.

This bilateral test ended with the victory of City Guard Commander Thompson and finally came to a successful conclusion.

Thompson also had a private chat with Saint Hesser, and his appreciation was beyond words. He repeatedly said that Saint Hesser was a great contributor to this military exercise and that his vision was correct.