Talleyrand's suggestion was completely unexpected by Juan. So Juan deserves to tell Talleyrand that he needs to study this separately with the country.

When sending Ambassador Juan out, Talleyrand said to him: "Ambassador Juan, I will not hide it from you, and you also know that in our country, not long ago, we successfully developed a steam locomotive. Its carrying capacity is not inferior to that of a sea vessel, and in some respects even stronger. If we have access to the Panama region, we are interested in investing there to build a railway line that connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. It is almost impossible for such a railway line not to make money. Not to mention, there are fewer and fewer whales in the Atlantic Ocean nowadays, and if you want to hunt whales, you have to go to the other side of the Pacific Ocean, to the Bering Sea. And then to go to the Pacific, you have to go around the Strait of Magellan, around the whole of America, and the same goes for bringing whale oil back. The long journey consumes a lot of time and the cost rises significantly.

In addition, the Strait of Magellan is quite dangerous, and quite a few ships capsize there every year, which is another big cost. In order to adapt to the Strait of Magellan, they also had to sacrifice a lot of economy when building ships.

Now, if we have a railway in Panama that goes from the east bank to the west bank. The whole situation is completely different. All sorts of Pacific goods can cross the Americas from here, and this alone can save a lot of costs, and controlling one such railway, whale oil from the Bering Sea, copper and saltpeter from Peru, will all pass through here, you think, well, is there any interest in Mr. Ambassador to invest in it as well? ”

Back at the embassy, Ambassador Juan immediately began drafting the report, and then carefully checked the ciphered text and made the document into a ciphered version, although it was almost useless, but Juan did not know it.

Before Spain could reply, a new message reached Napoleon's ears.

"What? How could the Spaniards be so stupid? As I remember, we were very restrained, we really only sold them some civilian weapons! Are you sure this news is correct, Lucien? Surely nothing went wrong? ”

"Of course that's right. No problem for sure. This is what our intelligence officers saw with their own eyes. Napoleon, you don't substitute the Spanish army for the French army! In particular, do not substitute the Spanish colonial army for the French army. It's not a level thing. Among other things, the Spanish army in Mexico is still using the weapons and tactics of the enemy we encountered in Valmy. They are already a generation behind.

On the rebel side, they were all civilian guns bought from Louisiana. Although it is a civilian firearm, it is also a new rifled rifle. And then the morale is not at the same level, hit the hair! I think if I change you, you will ......

Unfortunately, it was almost twenty days ago. I don't know if Mexico City is still in the hands of the Spaniards. Lucien said.

"Replaced me? Hehe......" Napoleon just hehe, and did not refute Lucien too seriously. On military matters, Napoleon simply did not bother to argue with Lucien. When it came to dealing with the layman, Napoleon always admired a quote from Joseph: "For example, a fellow said to me: 'Your little melon, you don't use explosives, you have to use black powder, you can't use nitrocellulose, and it's better to add a little lime or sand to it to ensure its power.'" I'm not going to argue with him, and even if I just look at him with my eyes, I'll lose." ”

"Theoretically, the rebel army simply did not have heavy weapons, and almost had the ability to attack fortifications. It shouldn't be so easy to take Mexico City. But...... Well, Joseph, you're an expert in defensive warfare, if that's you, how are you going to hold Mexico City at this time? Napoleon abruptly turned to his eldest brother.

"Hold Mexico City? the fart! It's all in this situation, what are you going to keep? If it were me, of course, I would have packed up my things, blown up all the cannons, and led the people to Veracruz as soon as possible! The rebels did not have many heavy weapons, but, Napoleon, I ask you, do you think that at this time, the defenders of Mexico City still have the will to fight? ”

"If you have the will to fight, you won't be beaten like that by an insurgent army that is no more than one-fifth of your own number in the field battle ahead! Even if there is a generational difference in weapons, it will not be like this. ”

"Is the situation in Mexico City stable? Won't there be any moths? Joseph asked again.

"Hehe, Mexico City is full of native-born whites, who are they on?" Napoleon laughed, "Joseph, what you say is very reasonable. At this point, the best thing to do is to retreat to Veracruz first. However, the decision to run away in the blink of an eye is really your style, Joseph. ”

"I'm not running away, I'm turning in!" Joseph said, "Since ancient times, no matter how strong a fortress is, as long as there is a problem inside, it cannot be defended. So Mr. Mencius tells us: 'In war, geographical superiority is more important than meteorological superiority, and unity within the army is more important than geographical superiority.' Now, the rebels are clearly more united, and they have an advantage in strength and equipment. Still not running? Are you still waiting to go to the guillotine? ”

"Joseph, the Spaniards have guillotines from time to time, they are very traditional, and they still use the gallows." Lucien Road.

"It's not as good as a guillotine!" Joseph pouted. That's true, if you had to choose between the gallows and the guillotine, the guillotine would theoretically be a little more comfortable.

"So if they retreat, what will happen next?" Napoleon asked.

"It's hard to say." Joseph shook his head first, "If that priest ......"

"Pastor Hidalgo," Lucien reminded.

"Hmm." Joseph nodded and continued, "If Pastor Hidalgo had received special training in the Toulon training class and had enough time to prepare, the scum of Spain would not be worth mentioning at all. However, Father Hidalgo received only theological training, not military training. And his supporters also lack basic military capabilities. From the battle mentioned in the intelligence, it can be seen that they actually won the battle in the form of skirmishers. But in the beginning, they also tried to get the militias to clear the dense array, and almost collapsed under the shelling of the Spanish army. If it weren't for the fact that everyone didn't listen to the command, took the initiative to attack, and fired indiscriminately, it was really impossible to tell who would win this battle. In short, the rebel side was very poor in military technology. They were just lucky enough to meet those lovely Spaniards.

Of course, this is not the most fatal problem, it doesn't matter if there is no war, and the Spaniards will not anyway. They have absolutely the time to learn war in war. But they have a bigger problem, which is that their organization is expanding too quickly. Well, Lucien, I remember that you had information about those people in Mexico before. It seems that it has only been a few months since Father Hidalgo actually started to build their organization.

Moreover, our revolutionary priest did not receive professional training on how to build an organization, and he really regarded the establishment of a revolutionary organization as a missionary. His ranks were expanding too quickly, and he hadn't been able to prepare enough cadres before, so he had to use a lot of unreliable people. Also, I feel that Father Hidalgo is more suited to be a propagandist than a revolutionary.

So, Father Hidalgo's army will soon occupy Mexico City. But the question is what will happen after the capture of Mexico City. The people who joined his team had their own demands and goals. Whether or not Father Hidalgo can complete the reorganization and indoctrination of his team in a short period of time will be crucial. If he can do this quickly, then the Spaniard should think about how he can get out of North America with dignity.

But if Father Hidalgo fails to do this, then the Spaniards really have a little more hope. ”

"Do you think he can do it?" Napoleon asked.

"I don't think so. Because there is a glaring flaw in what is taught at the Revolutionary Theological Seminary. Of course, this defect is also deliberately led by us. Lucien interjected, "Those fellows who studied in the 'Revolutionary Theological Academy' always felt that they could convince others with reason. This is also normal, there are not many of them who have really experienced the revolution. They lacked awareness of the brutality of the revolution. We also deliberately helped them reinforce this concept, so ...... Hehe...... I reckon Father Hidalgo will be constrained and waste a lot of time when it comes to putting his interior in order. ”

"Revolution is not a dinner party, it is not a fuss, it is not a painting and embroidery, it cannot be so elegant, so calm, so polite, so modest, patient, tolerant, and humble. A revolution is an insurrection, a violent action by a class to overthrow a class. If he can't decisively integrate the internals, then the problems behind it will indeed be very troublesome. Joseph said.

"Maybe there will be divisions and struggles within themselves. Moreover, their victory was not won because of the solidarity organization, but on the contrary, because they did not obey orders and went their own way. This victory will even encourage them to disobey the unified command and command, thus reducing their organization. In a sense, this kind of victory is sometimes fatal than defeat. "But it's in our favor." If the Spaniards see no hope, they will not be honest and obedient to us. And if necessary, we only need to release a certain message, and we can expect to deal them a heavy blow immediately. And they can't blame us yet. ”

So everyone laughed together.

"It will be a while before the Spaniards know the news. After all, they don't have high-speed communication boats. By then, they will probably be ...... Well, I think our appetite could be a little bigger. Napoleon said again.