Spark

a certain port.

Feng Ping stood on the bow of the Zhongyi No. 1 semi-submersible barge, looking at the many ships continuously entering the port from a distance, with a relaxed expression.

And standing beside him was Feng Ru, the first mate he brought out in the past few years—or rather, his own son.

Just half a month ago, he received a mysterious call. The man on the other end of the phone asked him to meet at the Fishery Bureau and conveyed an important task to him.

The content of the mission was very simple. It could even be said that before going to the Fishery Bureau, he had roughly guessed what they wanted him to do.

But what surprised him was that the mission lasted as long as 18 months.

He was puzzled.

It's just to build an island, and it's not like I haven't done such a thing before.

Does it really take that long?

Or to put it another way, it takes so long, so how big is the island I want to build this time?

No way, bigger than the Yongxia Island built before, right?

You know, more than ten years ago, when they built an 8,000-square-meter island on Yongxia Reef, it took only 6 months.

And this time. 18 months?

He posed his question to the man at the interface, but the latter didn't answer him.

He just told Feng Ping that this task was very difficult and dangerous, if he didn't want to go, he could ask someone else to take Feng Ping's place.

This proposal was rejected by Feng Ping on the spot.

What are you kidding? Do you look like a person who is afraid of death?

Since he is the captain of Zhongren No. 1, he has to take on the heavy responsibility.

Not only him, but also his own son, can't hide behind.

Therefore, no matter what his wife persuaded, Feng Ping still took his son Feng Ru with him, hoping to take this opportunity for him to exercise well, so that he could truly take over his burden in the future.

And Feng Ru's performance also made him quite satisfied. Not only did he not evade, but he immediately took the whole ship's sailors to inspect and repair the ship after receiving the mission, just to make the ship in the best condition, go to the Meet the challenges of the next full 18 months.

At this time, he had already completed all the inspections, and there was only one night left before the official departure.

Thinking of this, Feng Ping turned around, patted Feng Ru on the shoulder and said:

"Good boy, you have worked hard for the past ten days-but you are a bit like a captain."

"How is it? Is everything going well?"

Feng Ru nodded and replied:

"Successfully, all the equipment has been loaded onto the ship. The hidden dangers I told you about have been eliminated. I have also prepared additional repair materials. When the time comes, I will unload them there first. In case of damage to the ship, I will repair it on the spot." good."

"Yes, very thoughtful."

Feng Ping smiled gratifiedly, and then asked again:

"How about it, are you afraid?"

"Afraid?"

Feng Ru repeated in doubt.

"Why are you afraid? Going to build an island is not going to fight a war."

Feng Ping rolled his eyes, and said in a slightly hateful tone:

"Do you think that building an island is not a war? Do you think that when we built it in the past, they really let you build it under their noses?"

"This time we are going to Treasure Island!"

"It's hard to put it bluntly, it's their territory, and their warships are patrolling everywhere, maybe there will be fights every day!"

"Fighting is not fighting"

Feng Ru muttered, but after seeing his father's dissatisfied eyes, he hurriedly said:

"I know, I know, I will pay attention to safety. But you, if you really can't do it, why don't you go? It's too late to regret it now."

"I won't go, so I can rest assured just letting you go? Anyway, I still have some experience, you stupid young man, what can you do if you go?"

Feng Ping knocked Feng Ru on the head hard, and said in a stern tone.

"What you can do, I can do!"

At this moment, Feng Ru became hardened. In fact, he wasn't bragging.

Technically speaking, he is indeed fully qualified for the captain's job, the only thing he lacks is experience.

——

However, this is also what Feng Ping is most worried about.

He frowned slightly, hesitated for a moment, and then said:

"Our tasks this time are different from those we usually do at our own doorstep."

"This time, it's the same as when we were on Yongxia Island."

"In the final analysis, the work itself is not difficult, what is difficult is how to do it."

Hearing this, Feng Ru instantly became interested.

He turned to Feng Ping and asked:

"So what did you guys do there back then? I've never heard you say it, so tell me this time?"

Looking at his son's expectant eyes, Feng Ping hesitated for a moment, and finally spoke.

"Actually, there's nothing you can't say about that matter. The reason why I didn't tell you about it before is that I don't think it's time for you to worry about it."

"However, now that we have reached this point, it doesn't hurt to talk about it."

Feng Ping's eyes gradually became blurred, as if he was recalling the thrilling six months ago more than ten years ago.

After a full two minutes, he continued to speak:

"At that time, that island was not called Yongxia Island, but Yongxia Reef."

"In May 1987, I received the task of building an island there, but it was not until January 1988 that our ship officially left the port."

"On the first day we arrived there, the monkey's boat chased us."

"I remember that day two armed ships, carrying building materials and their sailors, rammed straight into our convoy."

"I just arrived at that time, just like you are now, still a stunned young man."

"Where have I ever seen such a situation? I was frightened and stupid. Seeing those monkeys holding up guns, I thought it was going to war, and I even thought about my last words."

"But fortunately, our escort formation was also there, and within half an hour, we drove them back."

"I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that this is the end of the matter."

"But I didn't expect that in the first two months we were there, things like this happened almost every day."

"Monkeys don't care whether you are a soldier or not. For them, killing you and stopping your project is already a big profit."

"So, most of the time we are worried and can't sleep well, for fear that they will bombard us with cannons that night."

"What's more terrible is that we had bad luck in those two months. The weather was very bad, the wind and waves were strong, and the work could not start for a long time."

"We even thought at the time that this project was probably going to die."

"It wasn't until the end of February that the superiors finally made a decision. They couldn't wait. Even if they were desperate, they had to work hard."

"We use dynamite to blow up the reefs that the reef dredgers can't dig out; we use small boats to transport the water that the barges can't get into."

"Even in places with shallow water, building materials are carried up by people on their shoulders."

"They are all stupid. They never thought that we have already been harassed like this, and we can still do it."

"So, they are also crazy. As our progress increases, their warships also increase."

"The situation is critical, it's not a joke."

Having said that, Feng Ping paused for a moment, and Feng Ru's expression also became serious.

From his father's words, he could fully hear how difficult and dangerous the environment was at that time.

It's really hard for them to build that island in such an environment.

No wonder my mother didn't want me to go this time, it seems that this is indeed a terrible job.

"So what happened later? How did it get built again later?"

Feng Ru asked.

"Later... later at Johnson Reef, we fought them."

"March 14, 1988, I remember it very clearly."

"They sank at least 3 ships, and one person on our side was slightly injured."

"Since then, they have been honest. They didn't come back until June, when we finished the work."

"That's right!"

Hearing this, Feng Ru's confidence increased greatly.

"You just have to teach them a lesson! Since you like to make trouble so much, it's over if you fight, and if you're subdued, why don't things go smoothly?!"

Feng Ping gave him a blank look, and said:

"Do you think it's still that time?"

Feng Ru scratched her head, and asked inexplicably:

"Huh? What's the matter? Is there a difference?"

Feng Ping sighed, his tone lowered.

"Now, if we really fight, what we want to fight is not monkeys, but eagles."

Feng Ru was stunned for a moment, and then he also fell silent.

yes.

In this year, our opponent is no longer in the south.

What is eyeing him is another more powerful opponent.

If you are not careful, the final result may be doomed.

But shall we not go?

He looked at Feng Ping, stared for a moment, and suddenly laughed again.

In his father's eyes, he had already found the answer.

the other side of the sea.

On the deck of the aircraft carrier, Carl Thomas sat in the bridge command room, tightly holding the order document he had just received, with a serious expression.

Standing beside him was Michael Gilday, the commander of the carrier-based aircraft formation. He held the same document in his hand, but compared to Thomas, his expression was much more relaxed.

".So, the mission this time has basically been determined. We are going to the ship port, where we will resupply?"

Gilday asked.

Thomas nodded solemnly and replied:

"That's right. For this sailing route, we need to bypass the Philippines, go west through Bandar Seri Begawan, and then go north along the coastline to reach the ship port."

"Our goal is to curb the island-making operations, but try not to have a frontal conflict with them."

"That is to say, the main thing is still to be done by Annan."

"However, if conflict breaks out, then we can step in and start playing our part."

Hearing Thomas' words, Gilday nodded slightly.

There was a look of emotion on his face, and then he said:

"Unexpectedly, we were enemies with Annan decades ago, but now we have become their friends."

"This should be the first time we have had such a military exchange with them, right? Even Japan and South Korea, we haven't been there yet."

Thomas frowned, and replied after thinking for a moment:

"In my impression, it should be."

"It's no big deal, though."

"There are no permanent friends or permanent enemies in the world, only permanent interests."

"We also had a honeymoon period with our opponents."

"It's just that their development has gradually exceeded our expectations, so we have to change our attitude towards them."

"Indeed it is."

Gilday laughed, then changed the subject and asked:

"However, can our actions this time really have a deterrent effect on them? Will they really give up their island-building plan because of our presence?"

"Judging from the intelligence information, this time, they are very determined and have made preparations in all aspects."

"If it's just 'deterrence', I'm afraid it won't achieve our goal?"

"have no idea."

Thomas replied bluntly.

"Actually, none of us is clear about the consequences of this strategy—of course, including those so-called experts in China."

"The reason why we dare to take such risks is nothing more than one point: no matter which direction the situation develops, we will not suffer."

"So, they are willing to take a gamble."

"Anyway, it's someone else who put the chips on the table, so what does it have to do with us?"

Hearing Thomas' words, Gilday couldn't help being a little puzzled.

He asked:

"However, you just said that if there is a conflict between them, we will intervene."

"You mean, this kind of intervention does not include military intervention?"

"That depends on the specific development of the situation."

Thomas leaned back on the command chair, with his hands hanging casually by his sides, and while he was swaying leisurely, he continued:

"We certainly don't want military involvement because that would have unmanageable consequences."

"But at the same time, we have to communicate our determination to intervene."

"It's a very simple truth, if your neighbors don't believe you will shoot, then what's the point of your so-called threats?"

"So, we're not only going to have the gun up, we're going to have to load it, put the safety on, and point the gun at them."

"Only in this case will our threat be convincing."

"As for whether to shoot in the end, it depends on whether the benefits we can obtain exceed the value of the bullets."

"From the current situation, our bullets are still very expensive."

Hearing this, Gilday had fully understood what Thomas meant.

Obviously, the action of raising the gun is not just for this side to see.

More importantly, it is for Annan to see.

Only when they believe from the bottom of their hearts that there is someone standing behind them, will they provoke and collide unscrupulously.

In this way, one's own strategy can be regarded as being implemented.

Thinking of this, Gildy sighed deeply.

"Unexpectedly, our relationship with them will come to this point so soon."

"Even three years ago, when I first boarded the Ronald Reagan, it was impossible to predict that I would one day be on a mission like this."

"At that time, I probably felt that they were no different from Vietnam, right?"

Thomas shook his head with a smile, and replied:

"It's not just you, I actually think the same way."

"It's just that their development has indeed far exceeded our expectations."

"But that's okay too."

"We have the most powerful force in the world. Don't talk about fighting us, even if they look at us, they will be so scared that their legs will go weak."