Zhou Chenggong told the story.

"The best policy, sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight. If the Anglo-Russian coalition wins, His Majesty can mediate bravely and reap the benefits. If the Anglo-Russian forces are defeated, His Majesty can move north and seize the land north of the Caucasus. ”

"The middle strategy, the United Week rejects Russia! If the Anglo-Russian alliance advances eastward, the Qing Dynasty can wave its army north to Kazakhstan to cut off the retreat of the Anglo-Russian alliance and help the Great Zhou. Da Zhou must be grateful, and after the war, he will be able to cut off Russian land to pay off the Qing division. ”

Daoguang nodded: "The next strategy must be to help Britain and Russia and attack the Great Zhou, right?" ”

Zhou Chenggong shook his head: "No, the next strategy is not to move like a mountain." The Qing Dynasty strictly adhered to neutrality and did not intervene in the disputes of other countries. There is no damage or gain to the Great Qing. ”

Daoguang smiled: "There is no way to be an enemy of Da Zhou, and you say that you are not a lobbyist?" ”

Zhou Chenggong said: "Cutting down Zhou is really a dead end, and it is definitely not taken by a wise man." Dare to ask Your Majesty, if the Great Zhou is defeated, will the country be destroyed? ”

Daoguang shook his head: "Da Zhou is a giant tree, and cutting down this giant tree is definitely not a day's work. Even if Da Zhou is defeated, he can retreat to the pass, and even protect Manmeng. ”

Zhou Chenggong said: "That's right. Even if Da Zhou is defeated, it will not hurt the roots. But has Your Majesty ever thought about what would happen if Da Zhou won? ”

Daoguang shook his head, and then a strong sense of crisis rose in his heart, he never took defeat into account, only worried about victory and not defeat, this is a taboo for soldiers!

Zhou Chenggong said: "I thought it was below." Even if the British, Russian, and Qing allied forces attacked Zhou, the victory or defeat was only five or five. The Great Zhou was defeated, and it did not hurt the fundamentals. If the Great Zhou wins, the Great Qing Dynasty is in danger of destruction. ”

Daoguang asked: "The Three Kingdoms invaded the Zhou, if the defeat is due to the Three Kingdoms, why will my Qing Dynasty be destroyed?" ”

Zhou Chenggong said: "Britain is far away, and the Qing Dynasty is close at hand." The Zhou soldiers could not cross the sea to attack Yingyi, but they could go south to conquer the Qing Dynasty. ”

Daoguang said again: "Even if Britain is far away, there is still Russia in front of it, and the Zhou soldiers will definitely go south?" ”

Zhou Chenggong said: "Russia lives in the bitter cold land of the north, if you change to Your Majesty, will you go north or south?" Your Majesty, don't forget, there is also India! ”

Daoguang was silent for a moment, compared to the territory of the Qing Dynasty, Russia was indeed a little northerly. The key is that the Qing Dynasty is in a state of being attacked from both sides by Chinese forces, one side can go south from the Western Regions, and the other side can go north from India, and the Qing Dynasty is in danger.

Daoguang was already in a cold sweat at this time, it was indeed difficult, cooperating with the UK, winning would not hurt Da Zhou's roots, and he would be retaliated against; If you lose, you will lose the country, and the danger is really not proportional to the opportunity, and this risk cannot be taken!

Daoguang suddenly laughed: "Your Majesty said that you are laughing." My Qing Dynasty and the Great Zhou have always been friendly, and the Anglo-Russian war with the Zhou is just a rumor from Shijing, and I don't know where Your Majesty heard about it? ”

Daoguang immediately denied rumors that he was going to cooperate with the British.

Zhou Chenggong said: "I also think it's a rumor, but it's just a casual remark." ”

Daoguang said: "The speaker has no intention of listening, but I am interested in what His Majesty said. Our Qing Dynasty and the Great Zhou have always been friends, and of course we must help the Zhou fight against the enemy. Once the war starts, my Qing Dynasty will immediately send troops to help the war, is this the best policy? Why is it just a middle way? ”

Zhou Chenggong said: "The first battle of the Qing Dynasty has helped the war, and of course Da Zhou will be grateful." But they can't cut the land and pay for it, and they can only take Russia and the land for reward. The Qing Dynasty also had to fight hard with the Anglo-Russian coalition forces, and it was the middle policy to gain less and produce more. Moreover, the number of victories and defeats between the two sides is still five or five, and they rush to help Zhou, and if they lose, they will be empty. The best policy, Da Zhou's victory will help Zhou to attack Russia and seize more than half of Russia's territory; If the Great Zhou was defeated, it would support the army to mediate, and split the Zhou soil without provoking the anger of the Zhou. It's the best policy! ”

Daoguang sighed: "Your Majesty is really the capital of the emperor, but there is no imperial land, and the little Greece is really empty of Your Majesty's talent!" ”

Zhou Chenggong smiled and didn't answer.

Immediately after his meeting with Daoguang, he met with the Chinese consul and asked him to immediately send the news back and tell the Great Zhou court that he could guarantee that the Manchus would not enter the war.

Then Zhou Chenggong returned to Greece without stopping, the British were very mobile, their diplomatic skills were outstanding, and it was not known how many countries would be involved in this war. It's hard to say whether Greece will get involved, he needs to sit at home.

The signs of Russia's entry into the war are becoming clearer, and it is clear that the country has not given up on losing Kazakhstan, and the huge debt owed to China has also made them start to dislike China, and once the war with China is started, and the war is won, these debts can be repaid. The privileges obtained by the Chinese commercial forces in Russia have also made the Russian magnates angry, whether it is the Petersburg or the Moscow-Central Asia railway, or the large gold mines in Siberia, which are operated by Chinese commercial companies, and they have always wanted to take them back.

Taking advantage of this opportunity for Britain, the United States, and Spain to go to war with China, Russia has already made demands, and China has agreed. Two demands were made, one was that Russia immediately pay the Chinese companies cash to buy their assets, and the other was that after China ended the war, it would return these assets to Russia free of charge.

However, the Russians opted for forcible confiscation, and they sent troops to seize various stations and mines. The two sides are still negotiating, but the attitude of the Russians actually indicates that they have decided to go to war with China.

The Russians' ambitions are by no means just a Kazakh steppe, their ambitions for the Mongolian region have never disappeared, and if they win the war against China, they may regain control of the Kazakhs, and at the same time occupy Inner and Outer Mongolia.

The victory of the British in Bengal, which accelerated the turn of the Russians, was a chain reaction. The British victory in Bengal could make Russia decide to enter the war. If Russia achieves some victories, it may make other European countries excited. Prussia might have been interested in the Chinese colonies in West Africa, Austria could not have had no ambitions in the Mediterranean, and the island of Crete, controlled by the European company, might have promised to fight in the Mediterranean if the British had promised Austria.

Once the surrounding countries choose sides and get involved in the war, the Ottoman Empire will never be able to protect itself, and once the Ottoman Empire is involved in the war, Greece will also be affected, and Egypt's attitude is ambiguous, and it is possible to participate in either side. Egypt could not have been satisfied with the fact that the Suez Canal had been controlled by Chinese companies, and it was not impossible for Egypt to enter the war if Britain promised them to take back the Suez Canal. But at the same time, Egypt also had bad relations with European countries because of the problems of the Ottoman Empire. It was also possible to join the Chinese side in a war against the British-backed Ottoman Empire.

It is very likely that this war will develop into a fierce war between the superpowers of the three cultures of Christianity, Islam and Confucianism, and Greece will not be spared. Zhou Chenggong must be completely prepared!