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墨書 Inktalez
After Zhang Qiu finished speaking, there was a deathly silence in the room, even Lucia stared at Zhang Qiu with her mouth agape.
Prince Banan was silent for a moment before suddenly realizing something. Zhang Qiu's words were deafening, and to everyone's surprise, Prince Banan began to cry right there in front of everyone. He ran to the stairs, helping those who were crouching on the ground to their feet, repeatedly bending down to apologize to them.
The still panicking people saw Prince Banan bowing and hurriedly knelt down on the stairs. Unable to assist everyone, Zhang Qiu and Lucia exchanged glances and stepped forward to help. Prince Banan helped an elderly woman up, continuously apologizing: "Please feel safe staying here; no one can drive you away. I assure you that such a situation will never happen again in Tanzania!"
As Prince Banan became emotional, he stood by the stairs and gave a passionate speech. The content of his speech was grand, and Zhang Qiu wondered if the people could truly understand it. Fortunately, they returned to their rooms afterward. While watching them go back, Zhang Qiu noticed that several officials had a glimmer of light in their eyes during Prince Banan's speech.
The plan to occupy the hotel as a temporary camp changed; Prince Banan ordered the entire army to set out in search of a more suitable location. Zhang Qiu stopped Prince Banan and said, "I have a suggestion."
"Go ahead!" Prince Banan looked at Zhang Qiu excitedly. If it weren't for Zhang Qiu's reminder, he would have continued down the wrong path.
"Our camp remains unchanged; it is still the hotel."
"What?" Zhang Qiu's words surprised Prince Banan. Just moments ago, Zhang Qiu had opposed using the hotel as a military camp, and now he was suggesting setting up camp there.
"Prince Banan, you heard me correctly." Zhang Qiu looked around; after the crisis was resolved, soldiers were walking out of the courtyard. "Since they chose this place as their camp, there must be a reason for it. Right now, there are heavy troops guarding the streets outside; safety is not a concern. We can endure a little hardship and use the courtyard as our camp; I think it's quite spacious. The priority now is to contact other units and communicate with Wang Jin."
"Alright, we will set up camp in the courtyard." Prince Banan decisively instructed several officers to establish camp in the hotel's courtyard. Learning from previous lessons, Prince Banan issued several orders prohibiting soldiers from disturbing the residents; this order was also sent out while contacting other units. Little did he know that his unintentional remark would become the headline of the second newspaper.
After some time, this hotel became Prince Banan's first camp in the south, serving as a transit hub connecting the palace with the king. After the war ended, this hotel was renamed Prince Hotel and became a famous tourist attraction, included by Prince Banan as part of national planning development strategies for patriotic education.
In the evening, a large iron pot was set up in the courtyard with firewood burning fiercely underneath it, making popping sounds. The hotel boss came several times to invite Prince Banan inside for dinner but was politely declined each time. Finally, the hotel boss brought out some ingredients from the restaurant for Prince Banan to taste. Zhang Qiu smiled and said, "Prince Banan, accept this small gesture from the people. Once our meal is ready, we will send some over for Boss to try."
Only then did Prince Banan accept the food offered by the hotel boss and distributed it among Zhang Qiu and Lucia. After receiving food from Prince Banan, Azure Hawk waved his hand at his subordinates and said, "Let's show off our skills."
The members of the White Wolf Special Assault Team walked cheerfully towards the large pot, pouring the cooked dough into a big aluminum basin. The soldiers reluctantly took out their lunch boxes and approached, but Azure Hawk waved his hand, saying, "Wait a moment, we'll eat in a bit."
The soldiers looked unwilling but had no choice; they put away their lunch boxes and stared longingly at the dough in the pot.
Prince Banan felt curious and asked Zhang Qiu, "What is Azure Hawk planning to do?"
"Cooking," Zhang Qiu replied. Knowing that Azure Hawk was about to show off his skills and that they would eat soon, he understood what was happening.
Azure Hawk took two people to grab several military coats from the truck and walked into the inn. Before long, Azure Hawk and two team members came out carrying two large crates of potatoes, with Azure Hawk also holding a piece of hard frozen beef. He looked at Prince Banan and said as he walked, "These were exchanged for the coats. The soldiers have worked hard; we need to improve their meals. I promised the shopkeeper I would pay him extra, so Your Highness will cover it."
"Sure, no problem," Prince Banan replied with a smile.
The White Wolf Special Forces members quickly transformed into chefs. Six of them pulled out knives and gathered around the two large crates of potatoes to peel them. The Boss came running out with a helper, grinning widely while holding a cleaver and a pile of seasonings. He placed the items in front of Azure Hawk and said, "I brought you what you asked for."
"Thank you."
Azure Hawk took the cleaver and looked at the frozen beef, making several indentations on its hard surface. He shook his head and asked the Boss, "Do you have an axe here?"
"Yes, yes," the Boss replied, already sending a helper to fetch one.
Azure Hawk swung the axe vigorously, chopping the frozen beef into irregular pieces.
He poured olive oil into the bottom of the pot, which quickly began sizzling. Then he added crushed dried chili peppers, onions, turmeric, and garlic, stir-frying them all together. Finally, Azure Hawk added some liquid seasoning that smelled good but was unknown to him, saying, "All done; add water."
One team member poured half a bucket of water into the pot until it was about two-thirds full. The two lifted the large iron basin and dumped in the cleaned and cut potato chunks. Azure Hawk then tossed in the cleaned frozen beef before finally closing the lid.
The innkeeper watched with great interest and said, "May I ask what you are making?"
"Beef Stew with Potatoes." Azure Hawk wanted to add a descriptive word—authentic Beef Stew with Potatoes—but changed his mind at the last moment, considering that many spices were missing and he had used other substitutes, so he couldn't guarantee the taste would be authentic.
Prince Banan was also intrigued by Azure Hawk's creation; he certainly knew that Azure Hawk was cooking. "Will just boiling a bunch of meat and potatoes really taste good?" Prince Banan expressed his doubts to Zhang Qiu, as he believed that grilling potatoes and beef was the best way to enjoy them.
Zhang Qiu was confident in Azure Hawk's dish and smiled, saying, "You'll find out for yourself soon enough; I promise you won't be disappointed."
Half an hour later, the aroma of Beef Stew with Potatoes wafted from the large iron pot. The scent spread with the gentle breeze, reaching a wide area around the inn. Prince Banan sniffed the air and looked in surprise at the steaming pot in the center of the courtyard, saying, "Zhang Qiu, I'm starting to feel a bit excited."
Just as Zhang Qiu was about to respond, a soldier ran over to report to the prince: "Your Highness, a telegram has arrived from the king!"
Prince Banan became serious as he took the decoded telegram paper and read it carefully line by line. Zhang Qiu watched as Prince Banan's expression shifted from tense to relaxed, finally turning to joy. When Prince Banan looked at Zhang Qiu after putting down the telegram paper, Zhang Qiu spoke first: "Good news."
"That's right, Zhang Qiu, it really is good news." Prince Banan exclaimed excitedly as he grabbed Zhang Qiu's arm and handed him the telegram paper. "Look!"
Zhang Qiu took the telegram paper in hand and went to read it with Lucia. The king expressed great anger regarding Your Highness's assassination attempt and, after thorough investigation, understood the whole situation. Zhang Qiu never expected that those who attempted to assassinate the prince were War Maniacs. They decisively sided with the king when relations between him and the prince soured for their own benefit.
When national defense suffered defeats in war and defeat seemed inevitable, the War Maniacs figured that the prince would no longer cooperate with them. Thus, they devised a plan to assassinate him. If Prince Banan were killed during his journey to Southeast for peace talks with the king, it would undoubtedly halt those negotiations. Once the prince was dead, in a dual-monarch constitutional system like Tanzania Kingdom, who besides the king could control the situation? By then, the War Maniacs' business would still be secure.
What the War Maniacs did not anticipate was that it was not any Tanzanian soldier responsible for protecting Prince Banan's safety but rather an elite unit—the White Wolf Special Assault Team. In the split second before bullets were fired, battle-hardened Azure Hawk sensed danger and pushed the prince out of harm's way just in time. A few seconds later could have led to an entirely different outcome.
After reading through the telegram, Zhang Qiu's emotions remained unsettled for a long time. Lucia sighed beside him: "My God, this is simply a shocking conspiracy."
"Zhang Qiu, thank you all." Prince Banan looked at everyone with emotion. "You saved me and saved all of Tanzania."
"For me, the best way to show gratitude is to fulfill your promises. I look forward to seeing a prosperous Tanzania."
Qiu Wan raised his right hand, and Prince Banan tightly clasped hands with Zhang Qiu.
"Time to eat!"
By the large iron pot in the center of the yard, a member of the White Wolf Special Assault Team lifted the lid and shouted while holding a spoon. The soldiers, who had long been hungry, rushed over with their lunch boxes, forming a long line. The aroma attracted other troops arriving later, and those who had already eaten also came back for more.
After all, with so many people and so little food, everyone received only a small portion. Some didn't even get a piece of meat, just two or three pieces of potatoes and some meat broth. Nevertheless, the soldiers who got Beef Stew with Potatoes all gave a thumbs up as they scooped the thick mixture into their lunch boxes and poured the broth over it.
Azure Hawk brought a bowl of Beef Stew with Potatoes to Prince Banan and said, "These are for us; come eat."
Prince Banan shook his head. "The soldiers have worked hard; let's give it to them."
Azure Hawk shrugged. "There’s still some here for the hotel Boss; let’s eat together."
"Are we not working hard?" Zhang Qiu pushed Prince Banan playfully and said with a smile, "Come on, let’s go; I’m starving."
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