Istanbul, which has just survived a major earthquake, stands at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, and the former capital of the Eastern Roman Empire still retains its former glory and glory.

On a scorching summer day, the thousand-year-old capital doesn't look dull because of the scorching heat, with crowds outside Istanbul's train station and black, white and red German flags fluttering in the breeze from the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara.

Today, a very distinguished guest was welcomed here, when Jochen stepped out of the carriage decorated with the family crest of the Hohenzollern family, he saw the Ottoman Sultan Abdulhamid II who took the initiative to greet him with a smile on his face, and looking at the old face of Hamid II with a flattering meaning, Jochen was even more determined in his plan.

In fact, it cannot be said that Hamid II was spineless, but the arrival of the German Emperor was too important for him at this time, and it was only 21 days from the raising of the anti-flag on July 3 to the arrival of the rebel army in Thessaloniki against Istanbul.

In just 21 days, the monarch of this ancient empire across Europe and Asia was gone, and he had to meet the demands of the rebellious party, announce the restoration of the constitution, and reconvene the parliament. Not only that, but the Ottoman Empire, a strategically located but decrepit empire, was struggling with Britain and Russia to survive, and now there was internal turmoil that made the surrounding countries look at each other. Under these circumstances, the arrival of the monarch of Germany, a European power, was undoubtedly a shot in the arm.

The attitude of the German Empire can undoubtedly deter the small people around him, and the German Emperor can regain power if he can support himself.

This was a lifesaver for Hamid II, who feared that his power might be overridden by the chancellor and parliament, as was the case in the Koprulu period. In such a situation, how could Hamid II put on an attitude of equal treatment?

"Your Majesty the Emperor, on behalf of all the Ottoman people, I extend my sincerest respect and blessings to you, and the 300 million Muslim brothers will pray for you every day. May you be protected by Allah. Hamid II said.

After listening to the translator's paraphrase, Jochen replied with a smile on his face: "Thanks to His Majesty the Sultan's care, 30 years ago, in Berlin, the two countries forged a deep friendship. His Excellency Bismarck, the outstanding Chancellor of the Empire, has made a great contribution to the promotion of friendly relations between the two countries, and I am here today. I would also like to extend my sincere greetings to His Majesty Xià and sincerely hope that the friendly relations between the two countries will last forever. ”

Listening to the retelling of the translator, Hamid II's eyes brightened more and more, what did the German emperor mean when he mentioned the Berlin Conference 30 years ago in front of him? The meeting in which Germany had intervened to trap Russia had led the Ottomans to discover a savior who could save themselves from the threat of the polar bear, and from that day on, the Ottomans had been trying to move closer to Germany.

And the iron-blooded prime minister, who single-handedly created the empire that is now extremely powerful in Europe, was also very interested in the olive branch handed by the Ottomans. However, when the third monarch of the Reich came to power, Germany's attitude towards the Ottomans began to become unsalty and indifferent.

Although the cooperation in trade and military is still very close, it almost completely ignores itself in politics, on the contrary, it is very frightening to play with its sworn enemies, the Russians. But now. Did the German emperor make such a statement in front of him that Germany began to attach importance to the Ottomans and himself, and decided to deepen the cooperation between the two countries and form a closer relationship?

It's just that even though he has a thousand ideas in his heart, Hamid II can only play the image of a hospitable host, and intrigues and intrigues cannot be carried out in public, especially his own monarch, who is now hollowed out by the parliament.

So, under the guidance of Hamid II, I got on the bus and went to the Dolmabahce Palace.

Dolmabahce Palace is a Western-style building, tall and wide. The opulence is far from being comparable to the cramped and quaint old palace of Topkapi. Step inside the new palace of the Ottoman Empire, completed in 1856. With an air of luxury, the palace is exquisite and opulent, not to mention the beautiful sculptures inlaid with diamonds, jewels, ivory, and the mere 14 tons of gold leaf that adorns the ceiling of the palace.

At a time when the glory of the Ottoman Empire was gone, the palace was built at a cost of 5 million Ottoman gold pounds, equivalent to 35 tons of gold, which was tantamount to a glimmer of glory for the empire.

And yet to spend a huge amount of money on such an afterglow. Jochen lamented the richness of the aging empire, but also lamented its decay and depravity.

However, the power of this aging empire is still much stronger than that of the Manchus, who are in a similar situation, and it should be difficult to use it to contain the equally decaying Tsarist Russia.

After returning to the palace, Hamid II was finally able to let go, after another polite exchange. Hamid began to try to divert the conversation to the Berlin Conference of that year, trying to get Jochen to continue on the issue of German-Turkish friendship that he had previously mentioned. After all, friendship can't just be lip service, it's still something practical.

However, Jochen did not intend to do what he wanted: "Your Majesty Hamid, in order to show that the friendship between the two countries will last forever, I have decided to donate a Muslim washbasin to the Venerable Blue Mosque as a sign of friendship and mutual understanding between the two countries. However, as a Christian, it would be a pity not to be able to enter the main hall of this great building, so I hope that His Majesty will inscribe a text on this basin to record the reverence expressed by a Christian monarch. ”

"Your Majesty Joachim, this is an incomparable gift." Hamid II lamented: "A gift from a great monarch like you will add to the glory of the Blue Mosque, and it is difficult for me to come up with a gift of such value that is commensurate with it." ”

"Your Majesty Hamid, this is just a small tribute for me, you don't have to be like this, I don't dare to accept too expensive gifts." Jochen smiled politely.

"Your Majesty's respect is already an extremely valuable gift to the Ottoman Empire." Hamid II said: "In return, please accept more than 100 acres of land under Mount Sinai as a tribute to the Ottoman Empire." ”

"It's an incredible honor." Jochen exclaimed without pretense: "Your Majesty Hamid Xià, your gift will be a sensation throughout Europe. ”

The gift would make him the first Christian monarch to acquire land in Istanbul since the Crusades, and Mount Sinai is rumored to be the home of the Virgin Mary, and it was inevitable that it would be a sensation throughout Europe.

Naturally, Hamid II also intended to use a gift that caused a sensation throughout Europe to announce the relationship with the German Empire to the outside world, and at the same time bring great satisfaction and vanity to the German emperor in the prime of life, so that his situation would be better helped. At least judging by the reaction of the German emperor in front of him, the gift he gave did have an effect.

Seeing that Jochen had accepted the gift, Hamid II was relieved.

After the difference between the false and the wrong, Jochen finally brought the topic back to the right track: "I can't hide it, Your Majesty Hamid, there was such a shock in your country before, and as a friendly partner of your country, the German side is very worried about the situation in your country. Will such turmoil be affected by changes in the political situation in your country?

Can the various types of cooperation that we have had with your country continue in the past? Especially now that we have a major project going on, we wanted to go directly from Berlin to Istanbul, but now we have to go to Vienna first. ”

Jochen secretly pointed out that he was dissatisfied with the speed of construction of the 3B railway, in fact, after the Kingdom of Austria was already part of the German Empire, and the railway network had been merged with Germany, Jochen's journey was completely unhindered, that is, it took a little detour in the journey.

But Jochen cared about the economic and military value of the 3B railway, after all, the direct connection from Berlin to Istanbul and the bypass to Vienna were completely different, and in the event of war, Germany could provide support to the Ottomans through the Guò3B railway if they had the spare resources, and the Ottomans could also provide Germany with the resources it needed. But a detour to Vienna would squeeze out Germany's capacity to support the southeast.

After the construction of the section of the 3B railway in Germany has long been completed, it is normal for Jochen to be dissatisfied when the section of the Ottoman territory is still grinding and delaying completion.

After all, the section from Baghdad to the Persian Gulf was originally handed over to the British, and it is normal for you to stumble, but the section from Baghdad to the east is German-Turkish cooperation, and the result of such a delay is naturally due to the lack of cooperation of the Ottomans.

Of course, there are reasons for the British to get in the way, but Jochen doesn't care about that, and now you Turks can either concentrate on cooperating with my German work, or you can just mix with the British, provided that the British are willing to accept you, especially at such a critical juncture in the courting of Russia.

In response to Jochen's displeasure, Hamid II immediately responded: "Please rest assured that the cooperation between your country and the Ottoman Empire will continue and will not change due to any change in the situation, and this cooperation will continue to deepen." As for the issue of the Baghdad railway, I will order to speed up the construction and fully cooperate with your country's work. ”

At this time, he was still preaching that he had the absolute leadership of the Ottoman Empire, Jochen nodded with a smile, but he didn't think so, although the Turkish Shabaab was content with the position of "overseer", but Hamid II, do you really think you can still command this empire? (To be continued......)