Li Shaoyou and Tang Ruowang looked at each other and sighed at the same time.

If Cromwell Sr. did not die, Cromwell Jr. would not have made peace with Spain, because Cromwell Jr. was a staunch Puritans and hated Spanish Catholics the most.

But old Cromwell died...... Little Cromwell is a filial son! Of course he didn't have the heart to fight the Catholics, and he had to be sad for a while?

Moreover, Cromwell Jr.'s Puritan soldiers could understand that the old lord was dead, and the remnants of Catholicism lurking in England would definitely jump, so the little lord had to concentrate on quelling the civil strife—a very convincing truce for the main war faction within the New Model Army.

At the same time, the signing of an armistice satisfied the bourgeoisie at home – they could finally stop worrying about the Spanish privateering fleet.

For Cromwell Jr., an armistice with Spain was also a necessary means of stabilizing domestic rule. So he will definitely seize this opportunity and get out of the quagmire of the European war.

"There will soon be a truce between Britain and Spain!" "Then came France and Spain...... The war with Spain had been fought for too long, both sides were a little exhausted, and neither of them had the strength to completely defeat their opponents. ”

"But we can't stop fighting with Spain!" Li Shaoyou sighed, "I have to go to Paris and discuss it with Prince Condé...... Maybe you can get some useful information. ”

"Ambassador," said Gibbs, "will you go straight to Calais after you go to Paris?" I'll go and prepare the ship for you. ”

"Then there will be labor." Li Shaoyou nodded, he went to Calais to go to England.

Since France and Spain were likely to co-rule, it was imperative to strengthen relations with Great Britain. In the event that Sino-French relations cannot be maintained, then Sino-British relations are particularly important – the Ming must maintain trade and technological exchanges with Europe. The "trade attributes" of France and Spain are very poor, and they may not necessarily maintain relations with the Ming Dynasty for trade.

The two capitalist countries, Britain and the Netherlands, are buyers and sellers, and they are very dependent on international trade, so it is very advantageous to maintain close relations with these two countries when the Ming Dynasty may be hostile to France and Spain.

......

"Mr. Ambassador, the peace negotiations between France and Spain are going very well, and Philip IV has agreed to cede to us Roussillon, Foix, Artois and most of Lorraine...... Now wait for Maria to be finalized. Princess Teresa's dowry. Prime Minister Mazarin wanted 500,000 ecs as compensation for the Spanish princess to give up the right to inherit the throne, but King Philip couldn't come up with this small amount of money. ”

In a luxurious mansion in the city of Paris, the Prince of Condé was confessing to the visiting Li Shaohua.

The death of Cromwell Sr. has clearly become an important event that moves the wheels of history forward! Even the Franco-Spanish peace talks, which had stalled for a while, were accelerated.

"500,000 Escu no?" Li Shaohua was very surprised by the "poverty" of the Spanish royal family, "That's equivalent to 700,000 taels of silver, right?" ”

"Almost," said Huang Jiang, a banker who came with Li Shaohua, shaking his head, "your king should not be able to get this money...... The current Spanish court is heavily in debt, and it is estimated that it will soon declare bankruptcy. Philip for Maria. It would be nice for Teresa to have a decent wedding. ”

Kong Dai smiled: "If you can't get it, it's a 'dowry receivable'...... But Louis will still Hamaria. Teresa got married, and she was a very beautiful princess! ”

"Oh? King Louis had already seen her? Li Shaohua was a little surprised, he had been in Europe for many years, and he had long known that the Habsburgs had a special plan for crooked melons and inferior dates...... Anyway, when he was in the HRE, he didn't see a person from the Habsburg family who was still relatively dignified.

"Of course I haven't," said Prince Condé...... who was also ugly himself, "and if he did, perhaps King Louis would have to reconsider this family business." ”

"No matter how ugly you are, you have to marry!" Huang Jiang interjected, "Maybe you can marry a Spanish kingdom!" ”

Prince Condé shook his head and said, "It's not that easy," his tone was lower, "and I can tell you a secret. But I want you to make sure you don't leak it out! ”

"I promise!" Li Shaoyou said, "I promise to God." ”

Huang Jiang said: "I promise the God of Wealth!" ”

Prince Condé nodded and said, "If Philip dies and there is no male heir, then King Louis will make a claim to the Spanish throne!"

There will be a war of succession then, so Maria. Teresa is just an excuse to start a war! ”

"Is this true?" Li Shaohua was taken aback and asked again: "Then what if King Philip's son didn't die?" Didn't King Louis's plan fall through? ”

Prince Condé looked at Li Shaohua, was silent for a while, and then said, "It's just a partial failure...... Maria. Princess Teresa only gave up the Spanish throne, but not the other inheritance! Philip was not only the king of Spain, but also the king of New Spain, the king of Naples, the Duke of Milan, the Duke of the Netherlands! ”

A man of low intelligence is indeed not fit to be a king!

The clumsy Philip IV was deceived by two clever men, Louis XIV and Mazarin. Teresa's relinquished inheritance was negotiated between Philip and Mazarin, and somehow only the Spanish throne was stipulated, and other things were omitted.

That's why Louis XIV had the righteousness to wage the Inheritance War - Philip had so much inheritance, why should he only give it to his son and not to his daughter! That's not fair!

Li Shaoyou, who was still a little depressed before, immediately became energetic, "His Royal Highness...... If King Louis goes to war with Spain over the succession to the throne or inheritance, the Ming Empire will definitely support King Louis! ”

Huang Jiang also said: "If King Louis marches into the Spanish Netherlands, Shenou Bank is willing to provide a low-interest loan!" ”

He was very interested in the French seizure of the Spanish Netherlands, because the Spanish Netherlands, the territory of Belgium in later generations, was more suitable as a financial center than mainland France. It has a more developed economy, more prosperous trade, and closer proximity to the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, the two economic centers of Europe.

Prince Condé smiled and said, "King Louis asked me to convey to Mr. Ambassador that if he becomes King of Spain, he will recognize that the West Coast of the New World north of California belongs to the Ming Empire." ”

It turned out that these things that the prince said with Li Shaoyou and Huang Jiang were all things that Mazarin cared about. Before Louis XIV got the crown of Spain, France still needed the Ming Dynasty!

......

At the same time, the king of Spain, who had been intellectually deficient when he was young and even more confused when he got old, was summoning Cardinal Li Yufan from Japan in his palace in Madrid.

"Your Majesty, you must be vigilant against the Ming Empire...... Because in the Manchurian War that ended not long ago, the army of the Ming Dynasty showed unprecedented combat effectiveness! More than 10,000 of them actually defeated Doni Khan's army of 70,000 cleanly in a series of night raids! ”

"That's because Doni Khan's army is too weak, right?" The King of Spain said disdainfully, "Our soldiers in Japan are fighting well!" ”

"No, no, it's not that Doni's army is weak," Li Yufan said, "but that the Ming army is strong...... As far as I know, it was an army similar to the Janissaries that defeated Doni Khan, and they called it the Nine-Sided Boys. Some of the strongest boys were selected from the frontier areas of the Ming Dynasty, and they were sent to the capital of the Ming Dynasty, where they underwent rigorous training and screening for up to 6 years under the personal supervision of the emperor, and finally formed a particularly powerful elite army. ”

"Really?" The King of Spain frowned, "It's just an army, and it doesn't pose any threat to us. ”

"Your Majesty," Li Yufan shook his head, "I think this army will be used in the New World in the near future!" ”