Rumors of ghost ships in the Atlantic Ocean have become more and more mysterious, and today ghost ships are still haunting the Azores, but they appeared in Bermuda the next day, and the day after tomorrow they actually went to the Bahamas.

Various versions are dazzling, some say it is the ghost ship Golden Deer led by Lord Drake, others say it is the dead Spanish pirate queen Caterina, and even more said it is the ghost ship of the tragic death of Edward Blackbeard......

The most glorious era of the Atlantic pirates has long passed, since entering the 18th century, when Britain has gradually laid the prototype of the empire on which the sun never sets, pirates have become a thorn in the side of European countries, under the continuous oppression of various countries, the pirates at the end of the 19th century have long lost the past scenery, except for picking some small merchant ships that are easy to bully, no one dares to attack the golden shipping route on a large scale.

The era of piracy has declined, and people do not believe that there is such a powerful pirate force in the Pacific Ocean that can make 9 merchant ships disappear inexplicably in a row in just one month, and not a single one is left alive.

Gradually, public opinion began to move closer to the ghost ship, because only that kind of explanation could make sense. Who can attack a merchant ship in a storm and fight at his own risk? How can a warship of that country have the power of a shore defense cannon and a sonic boom that soars into the sky?

What's even more surprising is the bizarre trajectory of this pirate ship, completely ignoring the influence of the monsoon belt, and in the Atlantic Ocean he is like an unrestrained ghost, even moving quickly from island to island against the wind, hunting down innocent merchant ships.

It only takes three people's mouths to change anything, and there are always people who exaggerate or mix in some cranky stories in their conversations, and gradually various versions of the legend of this ghost ship appeared, which provided endless talking points for European newspapers.

For ordinary people, the ghost ship is nothing more than an after-dinner story, but for European governments, it is a real threat, especially for France.

Napoleon III in the Hall of Mirrors has never been so angry, since he became emperor in 1852, he has now ruled France for 16 years, during which he has been scolded by countless French people as a monoman tyrant, and even other European royal families are polite to him but contemptuous in their hearts.

He endured it all, and he proved with victory after victory that the Napoleonic family was a well-deserved royal family in Europe, and that they were no worse than those thousand-year-old royal families.

The Crimean War was won, as was the war against Italy, and the expedition to Mexico did not achieve the desired goal, but it also propped up a pro-French government.

Of course, we must not forget the victories in Africa, Asia, and the Indian Ocean, although Annam of the Great Qing State still nominally belonged to the Qing State, but the French colonial forces had already controlled the southern plains of Annam, and the Great Qing Dynasty did not even dare to protest.

What made Napoleon III happiest was the Oriental expedition with the United Kingdom, which was so wonderful that the mighty dreamlike China could not even protect the capital, and the Qing Dynasty summer palace in the Garden of Ten Thousand Gardens became a playground for French soldiers, and the raging fire burned the last vestiges of the dignity of that ancient empire.

All this is wonderful, and the continuous victories have allowed Napoleon III to hold the throne firmly and firmly as a rock despite countless protests.

But everything has changed, since the Chinese came to Europe, France's national fortunes seem to have gone the wrong way all of a sudden, and although the repeated failures are not at all painful for France, the feeling of shame is real.

For countless sleepless nights, it was as if he could hear the whole European whisper from his bed at Versailles, mocking Napoleon's defeat and plotting to overthrow the Third Reich...... That's right, Napoleon III could hear it, hear it clearly.

This is a mental illness, which he himself knows very well, but there is no cure, and for people who are too obsessed with power, the suspicion is very serious.

"France needs victory, my government needs victory, the French who have experienced the Revolution are the most difficult people in the world to rule, if it is not for the blessing of victory on me, how many days can I rule this country?"

"Can anyone tell me why? Why is that...... Prussia dared to intervene in the struggle for the Spanish succession? Why did the battered warships of the British smarck dare to confront France in Dover? Why did a ghostly ship appear in the Atlantic and take the knife against the French ship? Who told me why ...... this?"

The horror brought by the low roar is far greater than the hoarse roar, the attendants and guards in the Hall of Mirrors are almost frightened, none of them dare to take this conversation, His Majesty the Emperor has become more and more moody in the past two years, and no one can figure out his temper.

At this moment, a familiar footstep sounded, and the attendants and guards all breathed a sigh of relief in their hearts, and the anger of His Majesty the Emperor could be calmed when he came.

"Your Majesty, the knight Molière asks to see you!" the squire looked up and saw that Napoleon III did not speak but waved his hand, and quickly turned his head to invite Molière into the Hall of Mirrors, and the court knight, who had returned from defeat in Asia, walked in front of the emperor.

In the aristocratic circles of Paris, there is a lot of gossip about the suspicious intimacy between the emperor and Molière, and it is said that the empress once vowed to kill Molière more than once, but who dares to touch the emperor's favorite retainers? The fiasco of the expedition to the Ryukyus was only in exchange for a scolding, and there was no actual punishment at all.

"I gave you plenty of time, manpower, and money, and I took most of the pressure off your shoulders...... Now tell me what you've found, and you'd better give me some valuable information, or I'll never give you the slightest protection!"

Molière respectfully saluted and said, "As you wish, dear Your Majesty...... Your protection of me has been rewarded, and through my tireless efforts, the fog has gradually faded......"

"Based on the analysis of various intelligences, I think that the mysterious ghost ship in the Atlantic Ocean should belong to the Ryukyus and Xiao Letian!"

"Oh, why ......," the Emperor finally calmed down, "Chinese, would they have such invincible warships, and if they really had such strength, how could they be so miserable in foreign battles?"

Molière's expression was very calm, and the failure of the expedition to the Ryukyus was like a file that removed all the edges and corners of his body, and the failures and setbacks actually sublimated him.

"No, no, no...... It's not Chinese, that once excellent nation has long been ruined by the slave rule of the Manchus, and all that remains is greed, stupidity, and short-sightedness...... I'm talking about Xiao Letian, such a secret weapon can only be Xiao Letian!"