May at 2 p.m. sharp, London, West Bank of the River Thames, British Parliament House Westminster Palace. (800) Novel/

Churchill was in the centre, and the Commons were on the left and right.

Churchill stood, and the Commons sit.

Churchill did not say a word, and the members of parliament exchanged heads and whispered to each other.

Churchill stared at the ground in front of the podium, his gaze unturned.

From time to time, the bright eyes of the deputies fell on Churchill, either sympathetic, hateful, or gloating.

On the seat on the left, a man with curly brown hair, thin lips and a pointed chin was the first to stand up.

Seeing the man's movements, the parliamentarians suddenly fell silent, and the corner of Churchill's eyes turned in this direction.

They all recognized the man as Churchill's old rival, Chairman of the Conservative Finance Committee, John Churchill. Wardlow.

Waldlow's chin is slightly raised, and the right side of his face is upward, giving the impression that he is always slanting his eyes and not looking at people directly.

"Mr. Prime Minister, are you ready to be questioned? Can I speak? Waldlow asked.

"Absolutely, Councillor Waldlow." Churchill said.

"I have two questions for you, first, how do you explain the defeat of the Royal Navy's home fleet? If the Eighth Army had been defeated in East Africa, or the Middle East Army had suffered defeat in Yemen, we would all have understood it, because their supply lines were long and the Axis armies, especially the German Army, were too strong.

However, to the surprise of all of us, it was not at all. It was the Royal Navy, which we are so proud of, that suffered a shameful defeat.

According to the battle reports, although the forces we invested in this naval battle cannot be said to be far superior to the enemy, at least we have a certain advantage. But what are the results? Four battleships and battle cruisers were sunk, while the enemy's capital ship suffered only some minor damage, why did the combat qualities of the Royal Navy under your command drop to such a terrible course? Please give a reasonable explanation to all the gentlemen present. ”

Churchill was indifferent to Wardlow's accusations, as if he were not the one being questioned.

"I also want to know why the outcome of this battle is the way it is, but we have to wait, the Admiralty has formed a commission of inquiry. Admiral Forbes will be interrogated in conjunction with a court-martial, investigating whether he had been guilty of malfeasance or other negligence in his duties as commander of the Home Fleet. led to this crushing defeat for the Royal Navy.

There is only one thing we have to do now, and that is to wait for the outcome of the trial and investigation. Churchill said lightly.

As soon as Churchill finished speaking, there was a slight boo from the seats on either side.

Waldlow sneered disdainfully: "The defeat of the Mediterranean fleet is the responsibility of Admiral Cunningham, and the defeat of the Native fleet is the responsibility of Admiral Forbes." Doesn't Mr. Prime Minister have a little responsibility? ”

"As Prime Minister, of course, I have to bear some responsibility, but the main responsibility must be borne by a specific person in charge, I don't think there is anything wrong with this division of responsibility, what do you think?" Churchill asked rhetorically.

With a look on Wardlowe's face that I knew you would say, he asked, "Of course I don't have a problem, I just hope you can really step up and take your part of the responsibility."

Let's turn to the second issue, which is also a matter of life and death for Britain, the home fleet has suffered heavy losses. The novel's current strength does not guarantee the safety of the sea transportation lines.

I don't say how to guarantee the transportation of military supplies, I just say grain. We have a population of nearly 480,000 people, and we can only meet a fraction of the food supply on our own soil. Losing sea transport lines, even with the existing rationing system, our food will not be able to last long, the British Empire is starving, how are you going to solve this dilemma? ”

"This state of affairs will not last long, and the safety of the sea transportation line will be guaranteed soon." Churchill said.

The lawmakers let out another muffled boo. Wardlow smiled smugly and said, "What guarantee are you going to use?" Is it just a word from you? ”

"I'm not going to make insincere promises, the solution to the problem is simple. We all know that. The Germans openly offered us peace talks, and they also invited the Japanese as peace messengers from afar, and we had to prove to the people of the world that the British were not war maniacs, so I decided to accept the Germans' request to negotiate peace with them. Churchill said.

The boos did not return, but were replaced by silence.

All the councillors, including Wardlowe, were dumbfounded.

Isn't that his style of doing things? Could it be that under a series of blows, his brain finally opened up?

With his mouth opening and opening, Wardlow said, "You want to be with the Germans"

Churchill coldly interrupted Wardlow.

"Dear Mr. Wardlow, I'm not done yet.

First of all, I assure you that the peace talks between Britain and Germany are conditional, and I will not let the world think that Britain is going to Germany.

Second, I am the prime minister of the wartime cabinet, and if the peace talks are successful, it will be equivalent to the completion of the historical mission of the wartime cabinet, and there is no need for it to exist anymore, and I must relinquish the post of prime minister. I think the House of Commons should start preparing for a general election in advance and elect a new Prime Minister to take my place. I'm done, what do you want to say? ”

Wardlow was speechless for a moment, this scene seemed familiar.

At the beginning of the year, he set off an impeachment against Churchill, but it was Churchill who threatened him with resignation to overturn the tables.

Seeing that Waldlow did not speak, Churchill asked, "Is there any other way for Mr. Waldlow to solve the present crisis than to negotiate peace?" If so, please share it with us, maybe your proposed solution will solve the problem, and then you will be the savior of Britain. ”

Waldlow pretended not to hear the ridicule and sarcasm in Churchill's words, and hurriedly defended: "I just feel sorry for you, you have done your best to fulfill the duties of prime minister, but the enemy is too cunning, so it is for you, and it has brought a lot of setbacks to the British Empire, I hope you can cheer up"

Wardlaw babbled on and on and on with a bunch of high-sounding words. The other lawmakers pouted, disapproving at Wardlow's reassurance.

Churchill calmly listened to Wardlowe's insincere reassurance, and said equally insincerely: "Thank you." ”

Waldlow sat down. Churchill asked, "What other gentleman would like to question?" ”

A Labour MP stood up

At ten o'clock in the morning of May 5, the Peace Palace on the outskirts of The Hague City, the neutral Netherlands, this brown-red palace-like building attracted the attention of the world.

German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoyo Matsuoka, the "Angel of Peace," attended the talks.

Britain was attended by Churchill's sworn friend, Anthony Churchill, who had just been transferred from Secretary of War to Foreign Secretary. Aiden.

As soon as the two sides met, a violent spark erupted.

Tall and handsome, the handsome Dent met Matsuoka Yoyo. The brow furrowed slightly.

"Mr. Ribbentrop, on the list of participants proposed by your country. There is no name of Mr. Matsuoka. The war between our two countries should be resolved by our two countries alone, Japan did not participate in this war, and the affairs of Europe did not need the Japanese to mediate. In my opinion, Mr. Matsuoka did not have the right place to stay here. He should be recused. ”

Ribbentrop replied: "Mr. Matsuoka came all the way to Europe, and with the entrustment of the Emperor of Japan, he worked for peace in Europe.

Today, his hard work has finally paid off and I think he deserves to be part of this meeting. ”

"Mr. Eden, as His Majesty's special envoy to the Emperor, I must attend this meeting, and I will reconcile the contradictions between your country and Germany and make the negotiations successful. To fulfill the important task entrusted to me by His Majesty the Emperor, please do not refuse my kindness, please. Matsuoka said and bowed to Aiden.

Aiden's brow furrowed even tighter.

"It's a pity. Mr. Matsuoka, you should know that what you are doing is not in accordance with diplomatic etiquette. Although I sincerely thank you for your efforts to bring peace to Europe, this peace negotiation has nothing to do with Japan, and you are really not fit to participate in this meeting. If you insist on attending the meeting, I can only propose that the meeting be suspended. When the British Empire finds a neutral friend on your side, we'll resum. ”

Aiden is condescending. Staring at the diminutive Matsuoka Yoyou, there was a regretful expression, and there was a determination that only one of the two people could be left.

Matsuoka raised his neck to the right and looked at Aiden, and the eyes of the two collided with countless electric lights in the air.

"Again, I have come with the goodwill of His Majesty the Emperor to mediate the war in Europe." Matsuoka said.

"We can do this, one negotiation will definitely not lead to results, you can participate in the next negotiation, and I will also invite a gentleman of your status to the next meeting." Aiden said.

Matsuoka Yoyo finally chose to back down under Aiden's forced gaze.

"I'm here to mediate the war, and if I delay the negotiation process because of my presence, it goes against my original purpose of coming to Europe, and I choose to withdraw."

Matsuoka stood up as he spoke, bowed to Aiden and Ribbentrop, and left the conference room with heavy steps.

Ribbentrop tried to keep him, but was rejected by Matsuoka Yoyo in the name of the overall situation, and could only watch him leave.

Looking at the back chair that Songgang had sat on, the contempt in Aiden's eyes was undisguised.

The affairs of the Europeans, when it will be the turn of the yellow-skinned monkey to dictate, is ridiculous.

Ousting Matsuoka Yoyo and achieving a slim victory, Aiden looked at Ribbentrop with a victor's smile.

Negotiations began immediately.

Eden's peace talks were conditional on Germany withdrawing from the existing occupation zones and restoring the sovereignty and integrity of the occupying powers such as France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Poland, and even Czechoslovakia, before Britain would consider ending the war with Germany.

Ribbentrop unhesitantly rejected Aiden's terms, and then proposed that Britain must first declare an armistice with Germany and agree to pay war reparations to Norway.

As for the independence and sovereign integrity of the occupied powers, Ribbentrop bluntly stated that these countries had nothing to do with Britain and were not grounds for Britain to refuse an armistice.

The two sides held their own views and did not back down, and after a peace talk lasted less than an hour and a half, and after meeting for two days to hold talks at the same place again, the two sides broke up unhappily.

The next day, the German National Socialist Party newspaper and the daily newspaper "People's Observer" carried a striking headline on the front page: "Messenger of Peace - Special Envoy of the Japanese Emperor Receives Cold Reception."

The newspaper devoted an entire page to detailing the scene described by Ribbentrop and the negotiators, criticizing Aiden for how rudely Matsuoka Yoyo, and how Matsuoka Yoyo put the overall situation first, begged to swallow his grievances, and then left the scene gloomily.

The Axis group, as well as all the national media concerned about the talks, picked up the news, as well as the news of the failure of the first round of German-British talks, which occupied the second page.

The Japanese reporter and the embassy sent the news back to Japan as soon as possible, and almost overnight, Matsuoka became a man of the hour on the planet.

At 10 o'clock in the morning of May 7, the second round of talks began, and the conditions put forward by Ribbentrop and Aiden remained unchanged, and both said that they could not make concessions, and the negotiations broke down again.

At two o'clock in the afternoon of the same day, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced that he would occupy Iceland instead of the British army at the invitation of the British.

Since the US military service law prohibits the use of conscripted Americans stationed in non-US territories outside the American continent, the US military adopted the method of recruiting volunteers and organized a 4,400-strong Marine brigade-level unit to land in Iceland at one o'clock in the afternoon of the same day.

At 4 p.m. on the same day, the Japanese ambassador to Britain again presented his credentials to the British Government, demanding that the British Government apologize for Aiden's insult to Matsuoka Yoyo, on the grounds that Matsuoka Yoyoshi was a special envoy of the Japanese emperor, and to insult him was to insult the Japanese emperor, and the Japanese Government could not tolerate such rude acts.

Churchill accepted the credentials and immediately said that what Eden had done was in accordance with diplomatic etiquette and that there was no rudeness, and asked the Japanese friends not to make a big fuss.

At 10 o'clock in the morning of 9 May, the first round of talks between Germany and Britain was held, and Ribbentrop and Eden repeated their old words and broke up unhappily as usual.

When the two men were arguing without any new ideas, the US government issued another statement announcing restrictions on the export of strategic materials such as oil, steel, and cotton to Japan.

Two days later, Roosevelt ordered a full escort of ships on the North American-Icelandic route, and at a press conference, he called the German submarine a rattlesnake hiding in the Atlantic Ocean that should be killed if it saw it

Southern of the Apennine Peninsula, the military port of Taranto, Italy.

After reading the top-secret materials sent by the Goering adjutants, Chen Dao knew the changes in the international situation well.

"First, the United States sells weapons and lets Britain fight on its own; Then the United States passed the Lend-Lease Act, lent weapons to Britain, or Britain itself had to fight;

I don't think it will be long before the United States dispatches warships to protect American merchant ships and ship American weapons for Britain to fight.

They also used strategic materials to put pressure on Japan, forcing Japan to declare war on them, and giving them a reason to enter the war. Chen Dao said to Lu Teyans.

"Tomorrow is the last round of negotiations, and there will definitely be no results, so it is better to go to war directly."

"The Japanese are dead, they always have to find an excuse, and we have to understand." Chen Dao said with a smile.

On the afternoon of 10 May, Chen Dao heard a radio saying that the last round of negotiations between Germany and Britain had been completed and that the peace talks had failed. (To be continued)