The Mexican Minister of Commerce did not immediately respond to Bai Chongxi's request. Diplomacy is an interesting game; before engaging in this seemingly broad and strangely targeted conversation, the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs had already learned through various channels that Bai Chongxi possessed extensive authorization.

The Minister was considering how to tactfully decline China's request to purchase refined oil and crude. As a neighbor long bullied by the United States, the Mexican government was unwilling to provoke Washington. While Bai's request would be a normal commercial transaction in peacetime, during a world war, it was a trade in critical strategic materials.

For China, this would undoubtedly save massive amounts of time and transport costs. For the United States, however, it would be concrete evidence of Mexican betrayal. The U.S. might very well launch military strikes against Mexico. Mexico could afford to offend neither the U.S. nor China. The U.S. could send troops across the border; so could China.

At that moment, Bai Chongxi smiled and asked, "Mr. Minister, have you heard that the American fleet has passed through the Panama Canal and returned to the Caribbean?"

The Minister was stunned. He hadn't even known the Great Fleet had reached the Pacific, and now he was hearing from Bai that it had already left. For a moment, he felt an urgent need to verify this information.

Bai Chongxi’s diplomatic mission was an attempt to pull the Mexican government away from the American orbit. Even if Mexico didn't join China's side, he wanted them to at least stop providing strategic materials to the U.S.

Of course, if Mexico provided oil and crude to China, that would be ideal. China could send refined oil from Mexico to the North American theater—a distance of only about 3,000 kilometers, far faster than shipping from Japan or the Chinese mainland. Crude oil could be sent to Hawaii, processed, and shipped back to North America; the total transport route of 9,000 kilometers was still only the distance of a one-way trip from Japan to North America.

Currently, China was engaged in a massive infrastructure push in North America to increase port capacity. Part of that precious capacity was being used to transport high-pollution, low-efficiency small-scale refining equipment to the continent. If China could establish a refining capacity of 2 million tons per year in North America, combined with current shipping, it would be enough to launch large-scale campaigns at will. That would spell the end for the Anglo-American forces. If Mexico cooperated, the time required for China to achieve total victory would be significantly shortened.

Seeing the Minister’s look of astonishment, Bai Chongxi pushed further to undermine his confidence in the U.S. "Mr. Minister, the United States has already abandoned its West Coast. They are in such a hurry because the U.S. East Coast is facing a massive threat from the World People's Liberation Army. By the way, you might be aware that many Mexican citizens, out of personal conviction in the cause of global liberation, have volunteered for the WPLA."

The Minister replied quickly, "Those are individual actions, not the stance of the Mexican government."

Bai Chongxi nodded. "I am well aware of that. But the WPLA contains not only Mexican volunteers but American ones as well. In today's world, the total destruction of colonialism and the establishment of a brand-new international order has become the desire of the vast majority of the world's people. As of now, the only countries stubbornly clinging to colonialism and White Supremacy are in Europe and America."

These words made the Minister nervous. Since China had helped several indigenous groups in North America establish their own nations, both South and North America had been deeply unsettled. Although he knew he shouldn't ask questions meant for the Foreign Minister, he couldn't help himself: "Mr. Bai, does China support independence for the Indians?"

Bai Chongxi knew the nations of the Americas were terrified. Indigenous populations still existed in significant numbers across the continent, often facing systemic discrimination. China's actions in establishing indigenous states were seen as a signal of intent to forcefully intervene in internal affairs. Following the logic of European colonialism, they feared China would use "liberating indigenous peoples" as a pretext for war.

"Mr. Minister, do you believe the indigenous peoples are human beings?" Bai Chongxi asked.

The Minister, his nerves frayed, answered carefully, "They are certainly human."

"Then should Mexican indigenous people possess Mexican citizenship and enjoy the legal rights that Mexican citizens deserve?" Bai continued.

At this, the Minister began to sweat, thinking of Mexico's past persecution and current neglect of its indigenous people. He hurried to respond: "Mexico's new constitution stipulates that all Mexican people, including the Indians, enjoy complete equality."

"Since the indigenous people are not being persecuted, what is there to worry about?" Bai asked.

The Minister was not reassured by Bai's clear logic. In Mexico's eyes, China—capable of crossing the vast Pacific to wage war against a power like the United States—was undoubtedly the most powerful imperialist nation in the world. Moreover, this "imperialist" power had demonstrated terrifying combat capability in the Pacific War, killing millions of British and American troops.

Now, in the name of liberation, China was directing the WPLA across the vast African continent, seizing colonies that had belonged to the Western powers.

If the Great Powers were being beaten into the dirt, Mexico had no hope of resisting. Thus, even though he received a relatively benign answer, the Minister quickly found an excuse to end the meeting.

Bai Chongxi was not disappointed. If Mexico had immediately requested to join the Chinese camp, he would have been surprised. After the meeting, he went to a dinner hosted by a local Mexican chamber of commerce. As long as he continued to appear in public, it would signal to the U.S. that China was aggressively courting Mexico. If the U.S. sent a harsh warning to Mexico, China would be delighted. If the U.S. sent troops into Mexico, Bai would receive an immediate commendation from the Foreign Ministry.

However, the U.S. was not focused on Mexico. Although American diplomats there reported Bai's activities back home, the State Department had no time for it.

In the White House, MacArthur was briefing the new President, Henry Wallace, on the recently concluded battle. Wallace was not cheered by MacArthur’s self-congratulatory tone, as the White House had received a report on Anglo-American casualties.

In this battle, China had deployed 24 brigades—about 300,000 troops—to fight a brutal engagement against 600,000 Anglo-American soldiers. Although Chinese forces had indeed withdrawn after the operation, the casualty reports were stark: China had lost 1,600 tanks, while the Anglo-Americans had lost 2,800.

Furthermore, internal statistics showed that China’s actual permanent losses were likely around 1,000 tanks. The other 600 had been seen withdrawing from the battlefield under their own power; whether they were truly "destroyed" was highly questionable.

After months of combat, the White House had grown tired of the military's rhetoric about "Chinese human wave tactics." The White House had sent its own observers to the front, and every report from those who had witnessed the fighting indicated that the Anglo-Americans used at least twice as many troops as the Chinese in every engagement. Attacks with three to four times the numbers were common.

Even with "human wave tactics" on their side, the Anglo-Americans were still being hammered. The Chinese troops in the mountains were like demons, appearing and disappearing supported by powerful air and artillery strikes. Peaks that seemed impossible for men to scale were crossed by Chinese troops as if they were level ground. Chinese forces would suddenly appear on the front, rear, or flanks of the Anglo-American lines, launching ferocious assaults on weak points.

As for this recent plains battle, the White House had many observers. Their accounts differed wildly from MacArthur’s report. Throughout the campaign, the Chinese forces had almost seemed to let victory slip through their fingers. The well-prepared Anglo-American defensive lines had been shattered one by one by Chinese armor, rather than being abandoned according to a plan.

MacArthur had more than once ordered American units into forced counterattacks, engaging Chinese armored units head-on on the plains without any prepared fortifications. These included elite units like the 1st Cavalry Division and the 1st Infantry Division (the "Big Red One").

These two ace divisions had fought the Chinese Army on equal terms with fierce determination. In the most desperate moments, even rear-echelon supply units had been thrown into the fray. Now, the 1st Infantry and the fully armored 1st Cavalry had been ordered back to the U.S. for replenishment. Eighty percent of their combat troops had been destroyed. The remaining twenty percent were mostly logisticians and headquarters staff.

"Replenishment" was a euphemism for reconstruction. If they hadn't been elite units, their designations would have been struck from the rolls entirely.

In the final stage of the battle, the U.S. had paid a massive price to hold the line. The Type 59 tanks equipped by Chinese armored units were ferocious, possessing a distinct advantage in duels with the American M4 Sherman. Had MacArthur not ordered the Air Force to intervene at any cost, the Chinese air cover would have remained unchallenged. The Chinese offensive likely would have punctured the defensive lines entirely, collapsing the Anglo-American front.

It was only after the British rushed four elite armored divisions, just arrived in North America, to the front for a violent counterattack that the massive gaps in the line were plugged.

Despite a two-to-one advantage in manpower and equipment, the Anglo-American pincer movement had failed. The Chinese attacked with ferocity and withdrew with speed. They inflicted heavy casualties even while retreating, slipping out of the trap before the circle could be closed.

Failing to annihilate a major Chinese force on the plains despite a two-to-one advantage and suffering nearly triple the casualties left Wallace with little confidence in his military. Not just the President, but his entire cabinet shared this profound skepticism.

MacArthur, ever the shrewd politician, saw the distrust on their faces. However, he felt no unease.

From a military perspective, MacArthur’s plan had been to use superior numbers to lure the enemy deep and then surround and destroy them. The objective was to strike a heavy blow to the probing Chinese armored units and dampen their spirit.

The objective had been met. As for the Chinese escape, MacArthur didn't see it as a failure of his command. Instead, it was the British armored units—forming half of the pincer—that had failed. Those fools had thought victory was assured and sent armored divisions equipped with high-speed, light tanks to block the gap.

Furthermore, the British command seemed to have completely forgotten the common sense that a cornered beast fights hardest, assuming the rapidly withdrawing Chinese had lost their will to fight. In contrast, the American armored divisions had been much more cautious, sticking to MacArthur's orders to cling to the retreating Chinese like "sticky candy."

The result was that the Chinese Army simply formed up and steamrolled over the British lines. Those British cruisers were indeed fast, but their armor was as brittle as glass. The 100mm guns of the Chinese Type 59s destroyed them with a single shot. By the time the Americans arrived at the planned closure point, the British divisions had been literally pulverized.

One side of the iron pincer had shattered, and the Chinese poured through the gap. MacArthur’s meticulously crafted plan and the tireless efforts of the entire U.S. General Staff had come to naught.

If such a result was still considered a failure of command, MacArthur felt the Wallace cabinet was simply being unreasonable. In any normal military assessment, MacArthur had won.

As for the high U.S. losses, MacArthur didn't even care to explain. Analysis of captured Type 59s revealed a tank that was nearly perfect in firepower, armor, and mobility. Interrogations of Chinese prisoners showed that China had begun large-scale deployment of the Type 59 six years ago. Six years ago, Germany was just establishing its armored doctrine with the now-laughable Panzer I and II. While China’s Type 59 had been upgraded, that 100mm gun had been standardized six years prior.

Beyond the gap in equipment and training, the Chinese Army had won every battle for the past two years, accumulating vast experience. The U.S. Army’s overseas forces had been annihilated. If Roosevelt hadn't had the foresight to rush experienced officers like MacArthur back to the States, the 1st Infantry and 1st Cavalry would have been led by paper-pushing armchair generals, and the U.S. would have lost its last shred of dignity by now.

Seeing that the cabinet wanted to question him but lacked the courage, MacArthur didn't want to waste more time. Suppressing his contempt, he said, "Mr. President, if there is nothing else, I must return to headquarters to command the upcoming defensive operations."

Seeing him turn to leave, Wallace wanted to say something but didn't know what, glancing at his cabinet. They were equally silent. This was the first large-scale American victory so far. MacArthur’s reputation had been salvaged; his previous defeats were overlooked. The American public generally believed the U.S. Army could indeed defeat the Chinese.

If they said something cross now, MacArthur might very well resign. He might be a son of a bitch, but until they found another senior commander capable of facing the Chinese, they couldn't afford to offend him. If a conflict broke out and he resigned, any subsequent defeats would be blamed on the Wallace administration's interference.

The cabinet members were all sharp operators; not one spoke up to criticize him. Seeing this, President Wallace had to graciously agree to MacArthur's departure, adding with a complicated mix of emotions, "I wish you further victories."

MacArthur ignored the President’s underlying tone, gave a breezy thank-you, and strode out of the Oval Office.

Breathing the relatively fresh air on the White House lawn, MacArthur felt magnificent. The most important benefactor in his life had been the elder President Roosevelt, the uncle of the recently deceased FDR. During MacArthur's time at the academy, he had served as a military aide to the elder Roosevelt. In a country where regional factions competed for power, MacArthur’s ties to the Roosevelt family defined his standing.

Now that FDR was dead and a weakling like Wallace had taken over, there was no one left to suppress him. MacArthur felt he was finally free. From now on, he would no longer be seen as a subordinate to other Great Men; MacArthur himself was a Great Man, standing equal to any other!

Walking toward his car, he thought of Eisenhower, whom FDR had thought could replace him. The previous string of failures had been based on plans drawn up by Eisenhower, the Chief of Operations.

But this campaign had been planned and personally directed by MacArthur. If not for that coward Wallace giving the British so much say in the command, MacArthur would have achieved a total victory.

MacArthur felt that with Eisenhower’s intelligence, the man surely realized the gap in their abilities and would be much more humble from now on.

Just as MacArthur thought, Eisenhower was currently reviewing the battle with his staff. Although they all detested MacArthur, as senior officers, they had to admit he was far more capable than other American generals.

Take the deployment of the 1st Infantry and 1st Cavalry. They had been nearly annihilated because they possessed a sense of honor far exceeding other units; they had truly risked their lives to defend that honor. Because of this, even though the remnants of those divisions could only be called "army skeletons," they had fulfilled their mission, holding the line against the fierce Chinese offensive at the critical moment.

Any other units would have collapsed, and their collapse would have bankrupted the entire military plan. Knowing how to use men—that was everything.

While Eisenhower was discouraged, he was also somewhat relieved. Under MacArthur’s command, the U.S. Army could at least keep fighting.

The review had just finished when a report arrived from the domestic propaganda department. As Chief of Operations, Eisenhower was responsible not only for battle plans but also for overseeing internal propaganda and morale. He took this part of the job very seriously.

Opening the report, Eisenhower’s expression darkened. The latest internal propaganda revolved around the idea that White People were the chosen instruments of God to manifest His holiness and glory, the race destined to lead the world. Therefore, White People must remember God's glory and take it upon themselves to lead other races into civilization, fighting to the end against God's enemies—the "evil Chinese race" that sought to rule the world.

While Eisenhower himself believed in White Superiority, he could not accept this propaganda. China’s international message was, quite simply: "All humans are equal; all humans enjoy the same rights."

The American message had shifted to "fighting to the death for White Supremacy." To Eisenhower, this was a clear admission of being ideologically overwhelmed by China.

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**Translator's Note:** The term "Human Wave Tactics" (人海战术) is used here with heavy irony by the narrator, contrasting the American perception of the Chinese military with the reality that the Americans were the ones using overwhelming numbers to compensate for tactical and technological inferiority.