The German government is very happy that it can dispose of 20,000 Gew.81, 20 million rounds of ammunition, after all, these things are also new eight years ago, and many of them are immediately sealed in warehouses after they are produced. And the elimination of a large number of bullets is a headache for the German government. Destroyed? What a waste, right? Sale? Everyone in Europe is slowly switching to smokeless gunpowder bullets, who buys you these things?

The same is true of the two field guns, the German Army is on the verge of upgrading, and how to deal with the old goods has become a big problem. Now Chile is willing to ask for it, and it has asked for a lot of it all at once, and it has made 220,000 pounds from dealing with unsalable goods, so why not do it.

However, the Germans were not united in their request to hire German troops.

Diplomats, led by Caprivey, believed that a direct military dispatch might send a signal that would displease Britain; The naval officers, led by Montz, thought that their Marines could be pulled out to meet people; And the army officers led by Schlieffen said that if there is money to take, then let the army and the navy stop joining in the fun. So the three of them quarreled in front of His Majesty the Emperor again

Caprivi's reason is very good: "Your Majesty, if you only send an advisory group, because after all, it is only a small group of people, so it will not attract the attention of the British. But if we send troops directly. Then it would be direct interference in Chile's internal affairs. It also means that we can get more out of Chile. Faced with the possibility of damage to their own interests, the British will not sit idly by. ”

"Sending an advisory mission is just as good as it is for us to get benefits in Chile. And when Monte becomes president of Chile and fulfills his agreement with us, the British will know what we have gained. There is no point in secrecy like that. If the British don't like it, let them send their troops. Until now, we have not made a clear statement, do you want to blame us for being one step ahead? Schlieffen's argument is also very convincing.

"The man who asked to hire our army is the Admiral of Chile, and his Marines are also going to fight, so for better cooperation, of course it should be our people who are also Marines." Muntz's reasons are good and strong.

Please, how can a Spanish-speaking Chilean work with a German-speaking German? Except for some English-speaking officers, everyone else is completely chicken-and-duck, okay? And now the discussion is whether to send troops or not, Montz, you have already decided to send troops, now everyone is discussing who should go, what is the attitude?

Schlieffen also unceremoniously pushed back in the face of Muntz's scoundrel: "Monte's marines are only 2,000 people, and the parliamentary faction mainly relies on recruited armed militia and a small number of army units to support them. So there's nothing to do with your navy here, and it's more suitable for our army to go. "Schlieffen, you didn't spit on the slot when you complained.

Caprivi on the side couldn't stand it anymore: "Two generals, we haven't decided whether to accept the Chilean's request or not." If you want to discuss who should go, please convince us first. The collective opinion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is that the dispatch of an advisory mission is already the maximum support. ”

"Your Excellency, you see, the Chileans want to hire our troops, and they don't have to take into account the attitude of the British. If the British are unwilling, then let Parliament send the British to make the same request. And the British can now take the lion's share of Chilean interests without doing anything, and the soldiers of the empire who go to fight in a foreign land can only get a fraction of the British from the hands of the British, and what do they have to be dissatisfied with. Schlieffen said disdainfully.

"And we can get a lot of money by hiring Chileans, isn't the government now worrying about funding for large-scale infrastructure? Chileans have plenty of money for the saltpeter trade, so we can take advantage of this opportunity to earn commissions and solve the government's financial difficulties. And the boys can also get a chance to train in actual combat, so they kill two birds with one stone. Muntz lured him to the sidelines.

"Training? The Chilean Army was poorly equipped and tactically poor, and it is said that it was even using platoon gun formations. If the combat capability is not as good as that of Austria in 1866, what effect can you have in training in the face of such an opponent? And the government's investment in infrastructure projects is hundreds of millions of marks, so what can you do with that commission? I'll deduct a little bit of this money from your military spending. Caprivi was rather dissatisfied.

As soon as they heard that the prime minister was going to deduct military spending, Schlieffen and Muntz immediately shut up. Also, Caprivy was a cavalryman in the army, and the Minister of the Navy had also worked for a few years, and Schlieffen and Muntz's little tricks were meaningless in front of him.

Seeing that Caprivi was in town, Frederick III spoke: "Your Excellency the Prime Minister is right, I also think that a large-scale dispatch of troops may provoke the British, and we do not predict what kind of reaction it will have. And in the face of the Chilean Army, which is an opponent, it is indeed not much of a training effect. As for that commission, the Imperial government doesn't mean much to the Empire either. So don't mention the large-scale dispatch of troops. ”

"Yes, Your Majesty." Schlieffen and Muntz replied.

Seeing the gloomy faces of the Chief of the General Staff and the Minister of the Navy, Jochen proposed a compromise plan on the side: "Your Majesty, Your Excellency the Prime Minister. I also don't think we can send troops on a large scale. However, in addition to excluding the advisory group, we can send small elite troops. On the battlefield in Chile, a head-to-head battle was really ineffective for the Imperial Army, but it was a good opportunity for small forces to infiltrate. ”

"Your Highness, do you want KSK to go to Chile?" Caprivi is a little bit clear.

"As a special unit with the best equipment and the highest salary within the empire, and at the same time keeping a large number of outstanding officers and soldiers out of the country. Shouldn't they be allowed to show what they are capable of? So as not to keep gossiping. Jochen replied lightly.

Good equipment and high pay are enough to make the army red-eyed, but after all, the number is small, and it is nothing. But the best soldiers in their eyes were selected for training like digging into their hearts, and then ruthlessly eliminated. This left many officers in the army blind. Although this is a unit formed by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, no one dares to point fingers, but it is always inevitable to gossip behind your back. Considering the Chilean environment, there is also the capacity of the Chilean Army. Jochen saw this as an opportunity for KSK to try his hand at gagging some people.

"Let KSK go to Chile as a military adviser. Externally, it is the research and observation group of the advisory group, whose main task is to help the observers of the advisory group to grasp the situation on the front line. As for what they can do after going to the front, it's not up to the Chileans. "Jochen's construction is a copy of the MACV-SOG formed by the United States in the Vietnam War, saying that it is an observation group, but in fact it is a special unit to do some shady mission.

Schlieffen knew that the crown prince was talking about the army, but he didn't answer the question, he knew that His Royal Highness the crown prince was dissatisfied, and he would find an opportunity to resolve it, and it would be too unsmart to pick it out at this time.

Small troops can be sent there, and then the army has a good excuse: "Your Excellency, the majority of the Chilean army supports President Balmaceda, so the parliament can only temporarily form troops." The level of training of these recruits is a cause for concern, so we can send instructors to help the council march to train the soldiers. Considering that the training task will be heavy, I think that the scale of sending about 500 people is appropriate. "Do you need 500-strong troops to train the Chilean army? Schlieffen, your discipline has also dropped.

Seeing that the army was going to fight for the sending of instructors, Montz naturally had to give the navy a chance: "The accurate shooters of the Marine Corps are all first-class shooters, let them go to Chile to teach Chileans how to shoot." ”

"You mean, our army doesn't shoot first-class lads? Need your Marines to teach? Schlieffen retorted.

"Our precision shooters are professionally trained, and it's not just about shooting well. Do you lads know how to pick and choose the targets to be prioritized on the battlefield? ”

"Alright, stop arguing." Seeing that the two were about to pinch again, Frederick III stopped him, and then went to ask Caprivi for his opinion.

"So what do you think? Leo, how much do you think it is feasible to reduce the number of troops to be sent? Frederick III also believed that there had been no more wars in the empire since the Franco-Prussian War. Because of Germany's current relatively relaxed colonial policy, there was no serious friction with the local natives, and even if some tribes came out to resist, they were quickly exterminated by the local army. Therefore, it is not a bad choice to go to war with a civilized country like Chile and train your troops. The only thing to scruple about was the attitude of the British.

Seeing that His Majesty the Emperor had asked this, Caprivi also knew that no matter how resolutely he objected, he would offend the crown prince, the army, and the navy. After thinking for a while, he settled on a number: "The total number of German servicemen going to Chile, including the members of the advisory group, must not exceed 500." ”

His Excellency the Prime Minister spoke, and the rest was left to Jochen, Schlieffen, and Mutz. In the end, Jochen, as the crown prince, won the full force of 168 people from the KSK company to participate in the battle, the army sent a reinforced company of 254 people, and the marines only got 58 places, leaving 20 people as an advisory group.

After the small force was assembled, it rushed to Hamburg and boarded a ship for Chile.

The 500-strong troop is not big or small. Caprivi thought that this number was the maximum to keep the British from overreacting. And in a war of tens of thousands, 500 people is indeed very inconspicuous. It's just that what Caprivi didn't expect was that with the level of the Chilean Army, the Chileans couldn't do anything about this carefully selected small German force, and in the end, this small force made a lot of noise.