At seven o'clock in the morning, Bruce left the house on time and rode his bicycle to work at Favalt's research institute in Xuanji City.

Bicycles are a very common means of transportation for urban residents in southern Africa, and compared with cars and motorcycles, bicycle travel is healthier, more environmentally friendly, no noise, and cheaper to use, low cost of use, no need to refuel, and is very popular in southern Africa.

In Europe, cycling to the countryside is now the most fashionable leisure way for aristocratic youth, and in southern Africa it is the common means of transportation.

The early morning scenery of Xuanji City is pleasant, the air is fresh and natural with the refreshing breath of early morning dewdrops, the landscape trees on both sides of the road are lush and vibrant, the bluestone slabs on the ground are clean and you can see the texture of the stone, the flower cat sleeps lazily on the windowsill, the hound squats behind the fence gate and vigilantly stares at every passing passerby, and occasionally there are people wearing white flannel underwear and sports jackets who get up early for morning exercise and run sweating profusely, leaving a kind smile to every passerby.

It doesn't matter if it's an acquaintance or a stranger.

As he crossed the intersection past the breakfast shop, Bruce bought two steaming buns and a cup of freshly cooked soy milk for breakfast, and bought a Southern African edition of The Times that had just been delivered to the newsstand.

The headline on the front page is still the familiar bold bold "Beware of careerists from the evil clique!! 》。

Bruce shook his head and rolled up the newspaper and put it in the basket of his bicycle, a German from Germany who had now become a citizen of southern Africa, and who had promised Nyasaland not to impose any restrictive acts on any group during the war, but Bruce was still worried.

On this issue, European countries are not doing well, and even if they have similar commitments, they will be reversed at any time, and everything will be subject to the actual implementation of policies.

The "evil clique" is a more polite synonym, and in Britain itself, the Times uses the headline "Beware of Germany's Massive Military Build-up!! 》。

This cannot be blamed on Germany, Britain has already begun to expand its army, and Germany must also prepare early.

Bruce was in charge of improving the multi-purpose shovel at the institute, and his team consisted of fifteen people, in addition to Bruce, there was a German named Daniel, the others were all British and Chinese, and nearly half of the members graduated from the University of Nyasaland, including Bruce.

Southern Africa is sorting and consolidating military supplies, and with a unified standard, soldiers need all kinds of supplies on the front line, the Johannesburg Textile Company is developing portable equipment that carries bullets, grenades, pistols, and daggers, and Henry's steel company is beginning to research steel helmets and multi-functional military shovels with better protection, upgrading existing equipment at the same time, trying to integrate different functions into a single military shovel, all enterprises are racing against time for the war.

"Good morning, Bruce—" At the entrance of the institute, Bruce met Daniel, whose eyes were red and his hair was messy.

"Good morning, Daniel, what's wrong with you? Looks a little embarrassed - "Bruce and Daniel have a good relationship, not all because Bruce and Daniel are German, Bruce has a good relationship with almost everyone.

"I'm going crazy, I got into a fight with that damn neighbor yesterday and he's a bastard and I'm going to take a leave of absence to report it to the police later." Daniel is aggressive, and Bruce knows that neighbor of Daniel, a racist from France.

The French and Germans are irreconcilable, and although Nyasaland treats everyone equally, and most French and German people are able to keep to themselves, there are always those who do not follow the rules and discriminate against others, which is a serious crime in Nyasaland.

"I'm rooting for you Daniel, it's better to send that guy to jail." Bruce was indignant that whites were already a minority in Nyasaland, and Germans were a minority in the white community, so most Germans were united.

Bruce left his bicycle in a carport next to the office building, where several cars, one of which was given to Edmond, the director of the institute, in a three-story building with a yard in the three-story building with a yard, a permanent marble building.

"Good morning, Bruce-"

"Good morning, Daniel, have you been bitten by a dog?"

"Wow, Daniel, you're looking so cool today-"

"Daniel, the boss wants your plan, you'd better be prepared."

The atmosphere in the institute was harmonious, everyone would greet each other warmly, and the embarrassed Daniel received a lot of good-natured ridicule.

In the director's office at the end of the third floor, Edmund was evaluating the capabilities of the new shovel with Lieutenant Colonel Herta, an instructor at the Army Academy.

"The multifunctional shovels we use now are expensive and generally cannot be afforded by European countries, so the cost of new shovels must be reduced so that it is more conducive to mass production." Edmund is not a simple technician, the combination of production and research has always been the goal of Roque's requirements.

"No matter how you reduce the cost, there must be a function, the simplified version can be sold to Europe, and our own use must be of excellent quality and perfect functions." Lieutenant Colonel Herta doesn't care about anything else, southern Africa has the most manganese and chromium in the world, the United States has to import a large amount of special ore from southern Africa, and Favart Steel Company is very profitable, and the little equipment needed by professional soldiers in southern Africa can still be satisfied.

"Then we'll get rid of all the unnecessary features and keep only the most basic digging and chopping." Edmund crossed out most of the less common functions and replaced the natural rubber triangular handle with a short wooden shank, which further reduced costs.

At the same time that Britain ordered two million rifles, it also ordered a million shovels, which were simplified versions and could be ordered within three months.

Daniel came knocking on the door.

"—That bastard is a repeat offender, he often swears, he discriminates against me unmistakably, and last night I came home from work to find that there was garbage in the yard, and it was obvious that the bastard threw it over through the fence, and I threw it back at him, and then we scolded each other—" Daniel's body was shaking, and he looked angry.

"It's too much, you should have gone to the police!" Edmund was also angry, the quality of the residents of Xuanji City is still relatively high, but racial discrimination is inevitable, it is only the beginning, and this will become more and more after the outbreak of war.

"I went, but the police were so busy that no one had come to deal with it yet." It is estimated that this is the real reason for Daniel's anger, this kind of thing is not common in Xuanji City.

"Yesterday there was a joint exercise between the military and the police, about the control of emergencies, so the police department is also estimated to be understaffed-" Lieutenant Colonel Herta knows the situation, every year the military and police have joint exercises, and the recent ones are a bit too much.

"Our scientists deserve better protection." Edmund does not agree with this excuse, although southern Africa is also advertised as "fair and free", but if there is a major incident, the institute's researchers are still the focus of protection, and these are all planned.

Lieutenant Colonel Hertha nodded and didn't speak, most of the residents of Xuanji City worked for scientific research institutions and the University of Nyasaland, and the city only appeared around the University of Nyasaland, so no one could enjoy the privilege, and Edmund also felt too good about himself.

"Who is your neighbor? Where to work? Edmund is also aware of this problem, so let's understand the other party's background first.

"White, with an Irish accent, seems to be an executive of the RAND Bank—" Daniel didn't know very well, Favart Steel Company was not easy to mess with, and the RAND Bank was even more difficult to mess with, and it was definitely senior executives who could own independent homes in Xuanji City, and ordinary employees of the RAND Bank also had to live in apartments.

At this time, even Edmund began to frown, and after a deep sigh, he picked up the phone and prepared to call George Bell, the manager of the RAND Bank in Xuanji City, that the relationship between Favart Steel Company and the RAND Bank was still very good.

"I'll wait a minute, and I'll take my leave—" Lieutenant Colonel Herta didn't get involved in these disputes, and now knows why the police haven't come to the door until now.

Back in his office, Daniel was in a state of unease, Edmund did not agree to Daniel's request for leave, but he took care of the matter, and he still had the responsibility he deserved.

"Don't worry, Daniel, it's not your fault." Bruce comforts Daniel, which is why Bruce is popular.

"Either way, I'm going to make that bastard pay." Daniel now also realizes that the problem may not be easy to solve, after all, there are no serious consequences, and considering the background and strength of the RAND Bank, I am afraid that Favart Steel Company will not be able to do it.

"Don't be afraid of Daniel, we support you, if not, we can find the newspaper, I know a reporter from The Times-"

"We don't need to find a reporter, we go straight to a lawyer and sue that bastard for racism."

"Call the mayor's hotline, and if you can't, go to Eagle Castle to find the Lord to complain—"

"Thank you, brothers, you really touched me." Daniel's colleagues were enthusiastic and came up with ideas, and Daniel finally had a smile on his face.

I don't know how Edmund negotiated with George Bell, but when Daniel got home from work in the evening, he found his neighbor, who had been in a grumpy mood yesterday, waiting in front of his fence with a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

Seeing Daniel, the neighbor's expression was slightly embarrassed, and he came over to apologize to Daniel: "I'm sorry Daniel, my work didn't go well yesterday, so my emotions were out of control-"

Daniel was dumbfounded, and it took a long time to react: "Oh, Erwin, I'm also wrong, I'm not in a good mood these days-"

It doesn't matter if it's a sincere apology or not, just have this attitude, Daniel's requirements are not high.