Moving the capital to avoid war is not uncommon in history, but Huifu obviously ignored one point. Yi Zhishu said bluntly: "Chile has a long and narrow territory, lacks depth, and is a small country itself, which is not the same as my country, even if you want to move the capital to avoid war, you can't move." As he spoke, he looked at Yi Zhengxing,

Because the war in South America is directly related to the situation in the northwest, Yi Zhengxing was very concerned, and he groaned slightly, and said: "Although Chile is a small country and a small people, it is rich in minerals and can be called rich, and it is also willing to invest in national defense and military, whether it is the navy or the army, the combat power is first-class in South America."

In this war, Chile relies on nothing more than powerful force, but Chile can only be a corner of the country, which is a world of difference compared with China.

After China sent a fleet to Peru and signed a protection treaty with Peru and Poland, Chile's attitude was still arrogant and arrogant, which is somewhat intriguing.

I pondered that there were nothing more than two possibilities, one was the civil strife in the northwest of my country, and Chile expected that it would be impossible for my country to enter the war in South America, so there was no fear, and the other was that there were people behind Chile who supported or instigated it, which should be England.

The latter is more likely, so in the face of the current situation, Chile is very likely to resist stubbornly, in fact, if our country does not send more land, only the two armies of the two countries are afraid that it will not be the opponent of the Chilean army. ”

Speaking of this, he asked rhetorically: "If the Secret Bo coalition forces attack Santiago and suffer a crushing defeat, or a stalemate is formed, how should our country respond?" ”

Yi Zhizhi smiled contentedly, "If you don't make a move, you have to win!" ”

After a pause, he continued: "I said a long time ago that with the continuous development of industry, resources will become the main target of competition among countries, because industry is heavily dependent on resources, and future wars will revolve around resources.

South America is an important source of copper and saltpeter in the world, both of which are important war resources, and guano is also a sought-after commodity, in short, we cannot give up South America easily.

It is completely foreseeable that if Chile wins this war, most of the main mineral lands of the two countries will be ceded, and in that case, our interests in South America will suffer huge losses, and it is more likely that we will eventually be driven out of South America.

Therefore, since we have sent troops to fight, we must win the war, thoroughly consolidate our position in South America, establish our prestige in South America, and seize more benefits, even if it is worth paying a certain price.

However, this battle may involve the situation in the northwest, so we don't have to be in a hurry, if the secret Bo coalition forces attack Santiago, if they can win, it will naturally be better, and the quick victory can be said to be a great joy for everyone.

If the Secret Bolivarian coalition is defeated, we will send more land forces, and if there is a stalemate that is invincible and undefeated, we will continue to wait and see, and it will be beneficial and harmless for our country to weaken the strength of Chile and Peru Bolivar.

In addition, the stalemate in South America may stimulate European countries to send troops to intervene in the northwest. ”

As he spoke, he paused, "Call Zaizhao and tell him what it means." ”

South America, Chile, Santiago, English Legation in Chile.

A gorgeous four-wheeled carriage drove into the gate and slowly stopped in front of the embassy building, and the Chilean President Anibal Pinto Gamondia, who was in his fifties, severely bald, and bearded, stepped out of the carriage with a serious face, and the British Minister Pitel walked forward with a smile on his face, and stretched out his hand a few steps away.

Pinto completely ignored the other party's enthusiasm and said with a calm face: "Didn't your country judge that it was impossible for the Qing country to enter the war?" ”

"It was an absolute accident." Pitt withdrew his hand without feeling embarrassed, still with a smile on his face, "Your Excellency, please." ”

Entering the living room, Petel said slowly: "The two northwestern provinces of the Qing country are in rebellion, and they are too busy to take care of themselves, it stands to reason that at this time, it is absolutely impossible to get involved in the war between your country and the two countries, judging from the current situation, the Qing fleet does not help the two countries of the Qing country to recover the lost territory, but directly attacks Valparaiso, obviously planning to attack Santiago, force your country to negotiate, and quickly end the war."

This shows that the previous judgment is basically correct, the Qing country is unstable at home, and does not dare to send troops to intervene on a large scale, and does not dare to fall into a long-term war, as long as your country can hold on tenaciously for a period of time, the situation will definitely be reversed. ”

Chile provoked the war, naturally by the British government and capitalists strongly encouraged and supported, not only in terms of funds and armaments, but also in the territorial dispute with Argentina support, Pinto originally thought that the Qing State sent troops to intervene is unlikely, after the outbreak of the Qing civil strife in the northwest, he was even more firm in this view, but did not expect the Qing Congress to blatantly send troops to intervene, and the troops were directed at Santiago.

In the case of the Qing navy gaining sea supremacy, the situation has been completely reversed, and Chile is now completely in a situation of being passively beaten, stubbornly holding on, and putting it lightly, how much price does this have to pay?

He asked in a muffled voice, "How long do you need to hold on?" Three months, half a year? Or a year? ”

"Up to three months." Petel said in a firm tone.

"Are you sure?" Pinto looked at him suspiciously, he had served as the Minister of War and the Navy He was very clear about the combat power of the Secret Glass Alliance, as long as the Qing State did not send additional troops to participate in the war, with the Secret Glass Alliance, let alone three months, even if it was a year, it would not be able to capture Santiago.

"Pretty sure." Pitter said confidently: "I can tell Your Excellency clearly that China, Russia, and the Persian Empire are preparing to send troops to support the independence of Central Asia, and it will not take three months for the Qing State to shift its main energy to Central Asia, and not care about South America at all." ”

Pinto said with some surprise: "Russia has a good relationship with the Qing Dynasty, and I heard that the Eurasian Railway is about to open to traffic, so will it send troops to interfere in the internal affairs of the Qing Dynasty?" ”

"Bismarck has a very brilliant saying, between countries, there are no eternal enemies, and there are no eternal friends." Pitter said: "Russia and the Qing State were still hostile forty years ago, and Central Asia was forcibly seized by the Qing State from Russia by taking advantage of the defeat of Russia's Crimea.

The Russians have an almost fanatical obsession with territorial expansion, and the opening of warm water ports in the Indian Ocean in the south has been the lifelong pursuit of several generations of Russian emperors. ”

Pinto was a little skeptical about this, and if the British were really willing to make such a big concession, the Russians really couldn't refuse, but they had to confirm it with the British Prime Minister.

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