A nation's industrial development begins with junior engineers.

Chapter 1084 You've Already Seeked Your Own Path to Death!

While Jack of the Adams family was pondering his goal,

Inside the white palace, the current leader of the Bald Eagle was rubbing his forehead in exasperation.

"Coffee! I need coffee! And some cigars, too..."

The heavy oak door closed gently behind the president's chief of staff, shutting out the noise of the corridor. Inside the Oval Office, afternoon sunlight streamed through the tall windows, casting geometric patterns of light on the expensive carpet, but it couldn't dispel the somber atmosphere.

"We no longer need to harbor unrealistic fantasies about the three A-sans, Mr. President."

"The latest intelligence indicates that they are urgently sending peace signals through Moscow and several Far Eastern countries with traditional ties to Beijing. Given the Easterners' consistent style of 'taking profits when they can and using war to promote peace,' the possibility of them sitting down at the negotiating table is... very high."

"Moreover, as early as May, the Chinese began to show goodwill. They returned all the captured weapons and supplies to India, and more than 3,000 prisoners of war were repatriated..."

The leader behind the desk looked up at the huge world map on the wall, his focus on the South Asian subcontinent, his eyes filled with undisguised frustration and disappointment.

“A checkpoint…we had hoped they could at least serve as an effective checkpoint.”

"But in just over twenty days, from border conflict to the siege of the city... the Easterners precisely achieved their strategic goals, seized the absolute initiative, and even took advantage of New Delhi's foolishness and rashness in diplomacy and its military incompetence, delivering a heavy blow to India's domestic politics."

“It is indeed regrettable, sir.” The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, sitting to the side, took over the conversation, his military bluntness making his tone even colder.

"While we were focusing our efforts on dealing with Cigar Country, it was all over. More than 20,000 people were killed, wounded, or captured, and the entire front collapsed."

In front of Easterners, the Indians acted like children, whether in military command, tactical execution, or political and diplomatic skills.

They misjudged their own strength and, even more so, misjudged their opponent's determination and ability.

Taking advantage of the "window of opportunity" when global attention was diverted, they acted rashly, ultimately provoking a devastating attack from an adversary they were utterly unable to handle.

"It is ineffective and unwise to invest more resources in trying to salvage a fait accompli." The chief of staff spoke again, shifting the topic to a more practical matter. "I suggest that the batch of military aid supplies currently at sea, originally destined for India, be immediately diverted to other more urgently needed and strategically valuable locations—such as southern Vietnam!"

His gaze swept over the crowd before finally meeting the president's eyes: "The pressure on the Ngo Dinh Diem regime is increasing daily, and the situation is deteriorating. These weapons are useless to the Indians now, but for Saigon, they may be a timely boost to stabilize the front and morale."

Everyone present understood immediately.

For Washington policymakers, India is like a huge but difficult-to-control elephant; no matter how much they invest, the results may be less than expected, and its value lies more in strategic containment.

South Jiaozhi, on the other hand, was seen as a key and "docile" link in the East Asian containment chain, just like South Korea.

They are "hounds" that can be effectively controlled, used to tear apart opponents, and can be sacrificed when necessary.

In particular, its geographical location, situated to the north and south of South Korea, means that if it can be firmly controlled, it can form an encirclement with the island chain, constructing a "complete chain" to blockade the eastern mainland.

“The idea is good,” a general said with a furrowed brow and undisguised disdain, “but the performance of the South Vietnamese army often reminds me of the South Korean army at the beginning of the war in the north—equally inefficient, or perhaps even worse.”

We've deployed a large number of advisors, and special forces are frequently active, but the results have been minimal in improving their overall combat effectiveness and reversing the passive situation on the battlefield.

“If local forces are insufficient,” the leader of the Bald Eagles said, slumped in his chair with great interest.

"Then let's increase our direct involvement. Can't our special forces and military advisors play a more decisive role?"

Hearing the leader ask this question, the general inexplicably wanted to laugh: Oh, so you want to use the fourth class again, huh?

That's right. Now that Congress doesn't agree to send troops, the only ones this leader can mobilize are those fourth-class soldiers who are called Marines but are actually called Marines.

"But the problem is..."

A military intelligence officer in charge of Southeast Asian affairs replied in a deep voice, his face showing difficulty: "Our personnel are limited in number and cannot play a decisive role on a vast battlefield. Moreover..."

He paused, knowing that what followed would not be pleasant: "Moreover, the northern border region is receiving increasing amounts of weaponry and equipment from their northern allies."

Some of these new weapons are very powerful and pose a significant threat to our reliance on air mobility!

"Find out exactly which weapons they are! Let our military industry enterprises find ways to counter them! We must maintain our technological advantage!"

Upon hearing about the northern ally of North Vietnam, the Bald Eagle leader immediately thought of a Russian bear that was arm wrestling with him.

The CIA director, who had been silent all along, slowly spoke up: "Sir, what we are worried about may be more than just the weapons we have already seen."

What we really need to be wary of is the kind of weapon used by East Asians in the Himalayas...

The 'special bomb' that caused catastrophic losses to the Indian army. If, and I mean if, they provided Hanoi with the technology, or even the finished product, of that weapon…”

"Give them weapons like that?" The bald eagle leader almost instinctively retorted, with the logic typical of Western political thinking:

“Such powerful equipment would undoubtedly be a strategic-level secret, and no rational nation would easily transfer it, let alone hand it over to an ally for use in regional conflicts. This is not in line with…”

“Sir!” the CIA director calmly interrupted him.

“Recall their ideology and the almost gratuitous, non-compensatory model of aid they provided to Asia, Africa and Latin America, especially to national liberation movements.”

Their logic of action may be completely different from our logic, which is based on the cost-benefit calculations of capitalism.

What we see as utterly impossible and self-defeating yet beneficial, they might see as a "natural" act of support for a greater "internationalist" goal.

"Oh, you mean the Chinese... I thought you meant that Russian bear..."

"Hey, aren't they struggling to even afford food? How do they have the ability to create something like this? Are you sure they're not using nuclear energy?"

"Since they used nuclear weapons, shouldn't we also..."

"Sir! Please abandon this absurd idea. The gentlemen on Capitol Hill will not agree to such a crazy idea!"

"Don't forget, the Chinese also have nuclear weapons! And, you just said they didn't have delivery capabilities, and the next thing you know, they sent their precious daughter into a Tu-16!"

"Okay, okay. I just meant it..."

The leader gave an awkward laugh and, under the wary gazes of the crowd, withdrew his hand from a black leather suitcase.

"Hey! They have delivery capabilities now, but their delivery range is too short!"

The CIA director looked at the leader's unconsciously clenched hands, his eyes somewhat obscure.

We haven't had enough of the good days yet.

How could I possibly let you press that deadly button!

To move...

Rather than...