Eight Sovereign-class battleships sailed out of Scapa Bay toward the Mediterranean, the most powerful British fleet to date, with a total tonnage of nearly 120,000 tons. At this time, the combined military and civilian vessels owned by most countries were less than 120,000 tons.

Just as the warships were heading toward the battlefield, the Chinese ambassador to the United Kingdom, Lu Cheng, met with the British foreign minister. At this time, China and Britain resumed a state of war, and Britain's de facto trade blockade against China remained in place for seven years. Since there is nothing left for the two sides to make things difficult for each other in terms of economic and people-to-people exchanges, the talks were extraordinarily straightforward.

Ambassador Lu Cheng said seriously: "Your Excellency, when your country's latest fleet is severely damaged, I wonder if Britain will uphold a rational and serious attitude to hold peace talks with our country. ”

The British foreign minister is too lazy to make any judgment on Lu Cheng's attitude, diplomacy can be very simple, and the diplomats on both sides simply exist as a mouthpiece. Diplomacy can also be very humane, and more exchanges can establish relatively good personal relationships. Although diplomacy is a complete representation of the country, trust in the individual can play a very important role in many cases.

After many contacts, Lu Cheng was considered by the British diplomatic community to be a very straightforward person, a man who truly regarded diplomacy as his profession. After receiving such an evaluation, it is natural that there is treatment that matches this evaluation. Lu Cheng's words were at least listened to by the British Foreign Minister, who did not completely regard Lu Cheng's words as a shameless blackmail or deception as before.

The British Foreign Minister asked: "Who told you about the new fleet we are building?" And who told you about the sorties of our fleet? ”

Ambassador Lu Cheng replied: "Our country has been working hard to build a new fleet, and we have been waiting for war with your new fleet. Although war is cruel, at least it can teach us the importance of peace. In fact, our country is looking forward to peace more than Britain, so we have to look forward to war even more. ”

This dialectic-imbued discourse sounds quite profound, and when spoken in Chinese-style English, it is even a little poetic. The British Foreign Minister somewhat believed that Lu Cheng's words truly represented China's attitude and position. The dominant side, and even the one with a high probability of victory, always hopes that the war will end quickly. The end of the war meant that they were able to taste and digest the fruits of victory with ease.

China already had de facto control over Canada and southern Tibet, which to the British belonged to the category of rabbits and were a benefit of carrying them in their pockets on the march of expansion. In a sense, there are not many more of these plots of land, and a lot of less of these plots of land. But once these territories fall into the hands of the Chinese, they have another meaning. That would not only mean the end of the march, but also that China could attack Britain from these territories.

Even though Ambassador Lu Cheng and the British Foreign Minister had seriously discussed the conflict between the two sides, the British still did not agree with China getting these lands so easily.

"That means you're content with these lands?" The British Foreign Minister asked.

Lu Cheng nodded greatly, "Yes, we will be satisfied with these lands." And as I have said before, His Majesty the Emperor considers Britain to be a great country, so China is willing to maintain a genuine peace with Britain and to cooperate more in trade liberalization. ”

"Is war used to promote peace?" Every time he heard Lu Cheng's arrogant speech, the British foreign minister couldn't help but want to make sarcastic remarks.

Lu Cheng still had the attitude of not being able to hear the mockery at all, and he nodded appreciatively, "That's it, use war to promote peace." His Majesty the Emperor of our country has said that if you seek peace through struggle, you will live in peace, and if you seek peace through compromise, you will die in peace. My country is ready to make strenuous efforts to bring peace to life. When peace comes, we will also communicate with you in a frank and serious manner to clarify the differences between our two countries and resolve them by peaceful means. In Sudan, for example, instead of allowing the war to continue to expand, we let the war advance peace. ”

When it comes to Sudan, the British foreign minister is even more upset. After China infiltrated Sudan, Britain could not go up the Nile. But the Sultan was the territory of the Ottoman Empire, and Britain could not officially send troops. In 1880, the British sent 10,000 troops to join forces with the Ali dynasty of Egypt to launch an attack on Bi Qingshan, the current governor of Sudan.

The British of course knew about the Pleven Fortress, which was now famous in Europe, and they even sent people to visit the Pleven Fortress and asked the Ottoman Jihadist hero Osman 61 Nuri Pasha about the war. There were too many pro-British factions in the Ottoman Empire, and through the information provided by these people, the British finally figured it out. The Ottoman 61 Nuri Pasha commanded the entire war, and it was the Chinese Li Weiren Pasha who built and operated the fortress.

In the offensive and defensive battles in Sudan, the fortress built entirely by China was stronger than the improvised fortress of Pleven, and the Chinese also used barbed wire heavily in the scorching heat of the arid desert. These seemingly simple tricks, combined with machine guns and trenches, made the 30,000 Anglo-Egyptian troops pay a huge price and still froze.

Britain originally believed that China's new arrival in Sudan would only rely on its own troops. Unexpectedly, China actually subdued a large number of Sudanese natives, and when the British were blocked by the Chinese defense line, more than 50,000 Chinese and Soviet troops went around the back of the Anglo-Egyptian coalition forces to encircle. The 30,000 Anglo-Egyptian troops suddenly found themselves firmly surrounded by an extra-long "fence" made of barbed wire.

The Soviets and Chinese forces launched several fierce and brutal battles for control of the water source, and when the Anglo-Egyptian forces ran out of water to drink, the Chinese and Soviet forces implemented complete siege tactics.

On the battlefield, the thirsty British launched several desperate breakouts. The Chinese machine guns and magazine rifles were most effective in the flat desert, and the Anglo-Egyptian forces suffered heavy losses. The Soviet army was only besieged, but did not launch the final annihilation. Unable to resist the thirst, the Anglo-Egyptian coalition sent peace talks, and finally had to accept the "weapons for food" agreement in humiliation.

Negotiations between China and Britain also took place, and the result was that China allowed the Anglo-Egyptian forces to return to Egypt, and the war that could have escalated dramatically was over. Now Lu Cheng mentions this matter to prove that China has no intention of escalating the war. The British foreign minister was impressed by the fact that as soon as the war ended, China began to build a large-scale defense system on the border between Egypt and Sudan. Seeing a large number of Arabs and Black Uncle on the construction site in China, Britain had to admit that China did gain a foothold in Sudan.

"Since your country is so confident in its own strength, we can only wait for the outcome of the matter to come out." This was stated by the British Foreign Minister.

"I think so too." Lu Cheng nodded and replied.

The British fleet avoided all ships on its way to India, and the best route to India was the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. Immediately after the passage of the Grand Fleet of the British Navy through the Suez Canal, it quickly moved south. Their wishful thinking was simple, taking advantage of the time of information circulation to quickly cross the Red Sea into the Indian Ocean. The Red Sea and the Indian Ocean are narrow, and if the Chinese fleet were to appear here, the British Navy would not even have the possibility of avoiding war. With the tradition of fighting in the face of the enemy, it is impossible for the Royal Navy to just slap its ass and leave.

Really afraid of something, when the Royal Navy of the British Empire sailed out of the Red Sea and into the Gulf of Aden. The observer suddenly reported, "A warship flying the Chinese flag appeared ahead, with a tonnage of more than 10,000 tons!" ”

HMS Revenge, the flagship of the British Royal Navy, hoisted the signal flag, "Ready for battle!" ”

The Chinese navy on the opposite side was specially designed to block the British navy, and the fleet was already ready for battle after seeing the enemy. Vice Admiral Ding Ruchang didn't care that the British Navy might escape, and with their speed, they couldn't escape.

"Prepare for battle!" The Chinese Navy's flagship Anqing also hoisted a signal flag with the same content as the British Royal Navy.