The Italian foreign minister did not know that his recommendation had worked well. After receiving Wei Ze's instructions, Wang Mingshan first used the relationship of the Marquise of G to acquire the Marquis of G and several small Florentine banks with the strength of a quick knife, and soon established the first stronghold of the Bank of China in Europe. Three days later, preparations began for the construction of a second base in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, a major customer of Chinese forage. One in the Mediterranean and one in the Atlantic. Bank pivots across most of Europe began to be established at a rapid pace. If Mr. Foreign Minister really knew this, he would be happy.

At the Berlin Conference of 1885, the tasks of the Italian foreign minister had nothing to do with the Chinese. Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy, and the three countries had quite in-depth discussions on strengthening the alliance.

The Triple Emperor Alliance between Russia, Germany, and Austria-Hungary was aimed at isolating France. For Germany, however, the only real ally was Austria. The Habsburgs and Hohenzollern were both electors of the Holy Roman Empire. The French writer Voltaire ridiculed the Holy Roman Empire, which was neither sacred, nor Roman, nor imperial. This joke is a very accurate mockery of the Holy Roman Empire, which was not in fact a unified empire, nor did it include Rome, nor did it have the recognition of the Holy Church.

However, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy, once the Triple Alliance can be established, in addition to the Gaul region of ancient Rome and the old Byzantine territory of Eastern Rome, the main regions of ancient Rome are within this alliance. In a sense, the Holy Roman Empire really had a faint smell of reconstruction.

On the map, Romania and Austria-Hungary had signed a treaty to defend against the Russian attack, and if these four countries could be fully bound together, they would form a vast area in the heart of Europe, bounding the Baltic Sea to the north, the North Atlantic to the west, the Black Sea coast to the east, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Russia to the north and France to the south. It is also divided into two separate places by this alliance. Although Britain was eyeing the west, Britain was strong enough for the navy, and although the army was strong enough, it was not strong enough to completely overwhelm the German army, which was in the limelight in the Franco-Prussian War.

Men have a hobby of drawing maps, and just looking at the map, the future of this alliance looks pretty good. The situation is very good, not a small good, but a big good. Therefore, the foreign ministers of the three countries were very relaxed, especially the foreign ministers of Austria-Hungary, and they were even more determined to win this meeting. The foreign minister of the Austro-Hungarian Empire said his opinion sonorously, "The Grand Duke of Bulgaria must be agreed by the Austro-Hungarian Empire, otherwise any so-called Bulgarian leader is illegal!" ”

Italy did not have a favorable opinion of France, and both Italy's independence and Germany's founding were based on France's crushing defeat in the Franco-Prussian War. And the mighty France itself was a great threat to Italy. Although Italy did not have the ability to really influence Bulgaria, it did not delay the Italian Foreign Minister from using the matter to Italy's advantage.

"If Britain had declared war on Germany and Austria-Hungary, Italy would not have been able to fulfill its obligations to the Triple Alliance. I would like to ask you gentlemen to make sure of this. The Italian Foreign Minister said.

Before Germany and Austria-Hungary could reply, the Italian Foreign Minister continued: "We ask Germany and Austria-Hungary to respond in good faith to Italy's expansion in Africa. ”

Prime Minister Bismarck was well aware of Italy's coveting of Ethiopia, and at this time the frenzy for the partition of Africa was surging. At this time, the big countries with ocean-going capabilities are all frantically planting flags in Africa, and Belgium, a big country, occupies nearly a million square kilometers of central Africa. China, at the eastern end of the World Island, has followed up on its previous actions, seizing vast territories in East Africa, leaving only Tunisia for Italy. And the Chinese did things strangely, they did not invade Ethiopia, but reached an agreement with the Ethiopian court and completed the preliminary border demarcation.

The British did not dare to spread the Indian Ocean and China any longer, and the Italian Navy was even less likely. So Italy's goal turned to Ethiopia, the only independent African country in Africa, or the only African country that has been independent for thousands of years.

Looking at the impatient appearance of the Italian Foreign Minister, the Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister smiled and said: "Could it be that China has given Italy any clear guarantees?" ”

The new battleships of the British Grand Fleet could not pass through the Suez Canal, and the Red Sea was almost turned into a bathtub for China. Although China has not imposed any blockade in its own bathtubs, foreign ships have been able to pass freely and even safely under the system that China has established. However, it is unrealistic for Italy to kill Ethiopia without China's acquiescence.

The Italian foreign minister only smiled confidently, China did not give Italy any public commitments, and the two sides did not discuss the issue of Ethiopia. Overall, however, Italy does not believe that China will send troops to stop Italy's actions. Moreover, the cooperation between His Excellency the Foreign Minister and Wang Mingshan, Governor of the People's Bank of China, is also aimed at having a good relationship with China.

After the completion of this preliminary work, the meeting was quickly convened. Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy, all of them were silent. The main convener of this meeting was actually the United Kingdom, and Prime Minister Bismarck simply made a speech and then stopped talking. The Russian Foreign Minister immediately popped out to speak, "Now that Bulgaria has elected its own Grand Duke, we demand that the countries of Europe recognize the legitimacy of Grand Duke Milosevic of Bulgaria. ”

Britain did not say anything immediately, the British foreign minister looked at the Ottoman foreign minister sitting next to him, and the Ottoman foreign minister immediately stood up and retorted, "Bulgaria is a subject state of the Ottoman Empire, and it must be decided by the Ottoman Empire who will be the Grand Duke of Bulgaria." No other country had the right to bypass the Ottoman Empire in doing so. ”

Although the voice was loud, no one from other major European countries responded. As the sick man of Europe, it didn't matter what the Ottoman Empire said. Without the support of Britain, both Austria-Hungary and Germany believed that they could level the Ottoman Empire alone. Among the European powers, Russia and Italy were probably the only ones who could not defeat the Ottoman Empire alone.

The Russian Foreign Minister had no choice but to give an explanation in favor of Russia about the democratically elected Grand Duke of Bulgaria. This gave the venue a feeling that bordered on joy. The Russians talk about being elected, and it's almost time for the sun to come out of the west.

The Ottoman Empire insisted that "Bulgaria is the territory of the Ottoman Empire, and the national unity and sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire are inviolable." ”

The foreign ministers of the great powers looked at the foreign ministers of the Ottoman Empire with a different kind of joy. In the same way that Russia talks about democracy, the Ottoman Empire talks about national sovereignty and territorial integrity.