The representative of the South first threw out the argument that the states of the United States had the right to join or leave the Union, and that the power of the Union came from the contract between the states, and that the states had the right to terminate the contract if it was violated.

The arguments of the Southern deputies have been debated countless times in the United States, debated by a large number of legal experts, and discussed in Congress, but in the end none of them were decided. At the Berlin Conference, however, there were no bitter arguments, and the representatives of the countries were not interested in the US Constitution, and only France defended the North to a certain extent on the basis of its own point of view, but also on the basis that it was impossible to judge that the North must have harmed the interests of the South. Because before the war, Lincoln did not explicitly state that he wanted to abolish slavery.

But the representative of the South bypassed the topic and threw out a large pile of materials, including photos of troops in Northern uniforms laughing and setting fires, pictures of Northern soldiers herding cattle from farms in the South, photos of displaced refugees, pictures of children dying in the streets.

Rational debate soon turns into emotional indictments, and legal questions become moral ones.

The representatives of the South believed that there was no longer any need to discuss the question of whether or not they had violated the interests of the South before the war, even though the North's aggression against the South had become a fact.

And he also came up with the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: rights that are not conferred by the Constitution, or that are not prohibited by the Constitution from being granted to the states, are reserved by the states and their people.

He argues that the Constitution does not explicitly state that the states do not have the right to secede, and therefore of course enjoy the freedom to secede.

The representative of France added that the United States Confederation was a common compact of the states, and that independence was therefore possible only if all the states agreed.

The southern government was against it, because it meant that independence was impossible. Because it is simply impossible for all states in the United States to agree. Even if Cuba and other places are allowed to become voting states, the number is far from enough. Neither the two-thirds principle nor the one-vote veto principle can be independent.

The Southern states were based on the fact that joining the Union harmed the interests of the South, and the Northern states could naturally say that the South's secession from the Union harmed the interests of the Northern states.

If the vote were based on this principle, it would be absolutely impossible for the South to become independent, so the representatives of the South sternly rejected it.

It is a pity that they were only observers at the Berlin Conference, they had no influence on the course of the conference, Bismarck was cunning, and he immediately supported the views of the French, which surprised even the French. Bismarck suggested that the Berlin Conference collectively send a proposal to the U.S. Confederation to hold a referendum on the independence of the South on the territory of the United States, on a state basis. As long as more than two-thirds of the people in the states are in favor of Southern independence, the United States should accept Southern independence.

This compromise was adopted, and Bismarck, in the name of the Berlin Conference, made a public proposal to the United States.

Lincoln's refusal to consider this plan was exactly what Bismarck wanted, and this was where Bismarck was cunning.

Bismarck calculated that Lincoln could not accept this plan, because Lincoln had always insisted that the South was not an independent state, did not have statehood, and that the South was a rebellion. Lincoln's acceptance of the referendum, then, meant a denial of his previous principles, otherwise his own views would not be anything to politicians. Crucially, Lincoln didn't dare to take the risk. Because at this time, if the United States holds a referendum, it is really possible to let the South become independent.

First of all, the southern states, in the case of a large amount of destruction caused by the northern army in the south, the southern states could never support reunification, and then the north, the war made life difficult for the most ordinary people, the financial pressure on the states was huge, taxes increased, and they also had to bear the obligation of military service, if it is a nation-state, a country like Germany, it can also use nationalist sentiments to call on the nation to make sacrifices, but the United States is a country of immigrants, it is impossible to reach an agreement, so even the people of the north if there is a referendum, They may wish that the South would become independent and allow them to return to their former lives. Under these circumstances, Lincoln did not dare to risk a referendum.

Therefore, Bismarck calculated that Lincoln would inevitably refuse, but the jurisprudence of the Berlin Conference was complete, and the US federal regulations were a mutual agreement signed by each state, and if the states agreed, there were absolutely reasons to suspend the agreement in law. As a result, the United States refused, which put the United States in a legal disadvantage. The concept of law in European culture is very strong, giving the people a name that the Northern Federation violates the spirit of the law, and in this era of the Great Revolution, when everyone believes in the spirit of democracy, the Northern Federation immediately loses the support of public opinion.

France, in particular, has become disillusioned with the United States, which has good feelings, and has found that the United States is not a regime that handles domestic affairs based on the principle of separation of powers, but a violent regime that bullies the weak.

After the refusal of the American Federation, European public opinion immediately looked at the perspective of the Civil War at the legal level, and the situation became more and more unfavorable for the North, but after that, Bismarck did not take advantage of the situation and continued to put pressure on the United States.

Bismarck is still waiting, waiting for China to strike.

Bismarck knew very well that only China could put the greatest pressure on the United States, and that China had already made a move, so it would never drag its feet like the Europeans, and their monarchy would definitely act quickly.

Bismarck was right, and after seeing that the Berlin Conference was the first to make a decision, the Chinese government's actions really began. The signs of both sides strengthening their influence in the United States, especially in the South, are clear.

The Berlin Conference recommended that the states of the United States hold a referendum, and the Crown Prince immediately decided to support the South, and after negotiations with the Southern Delegates on the issue of slavery were completed, the Crown Prince and the Southern Delegates publicly made this proposition after the Southern Delegates were forced or forced to make a commitment to abolish slavery because of the current out-of-control situation in the South.

The South promised to immediately initiate the abolition process, and until the end of the war, all adult black slaves in the states would be granted free status if they were willing to serve the Union government. After the end of the war, all underage black slaves will be unconditionally granted free status, and adult black slaves will be reimbursed by the government in three years according to their value, and after the repayment, the black slaves will be granted free status.

This means that the South will complete the abolition of slavery within three years, and China has pledged to provide financial support to the South and provide guarantees for the South to obtain loans for the abolition.

The high-profile statement was followed by a public opinion campaign that portrayed the promises made by the South as a whole and the fact that it was already difficult to maintain slavery as a noble political act.

At the same time, the crown prince clique continued to put pressure on the US federal government, demanding that the other side immediately stop its aggression on the South, restore peace, and then resolve the issue of the reunification of the North and the South through negotiations.

The US Government also sternly rejected it, holding that China's proposal was an unreasonable interference in the internal affairs of the United States.

Following the U.S. refusal, the crown prince quickly announced a federal trade embargo against the U.S., prohibiting the flow of any trade goods into the northern United States, including but not limited to military supplies.

It was only after China's move that Bismarck became active again, convening emergency talks at the Berlin Conference to discuss China's attitude with all parties.

Bismarck believes that China's actions are clearly creating public opinion for direct intervention and reminding other countries to do a good job of China's direct dispatch of troops to the United States.

Privately, Bismarck also maneuvered among the representatives of various parties, mainly Britain and France. In the past, Britain was ambiguous and ambiguous, neither as strong as the United States, nor did it want the United States to be too weak, and this is how to make a balance, sometimes it will mess itself up, and the two world wars in history can be said to be that the British themselves played with the balance policy, thinking that it was balanced, but in fact it was not balanced.

The quickest decision-making is the kind of one-sided policy that does not use the brain, what the big brother says, the little brother will do it, which is the fastest.

Bismarck is now using Chinese pressure to force Britain to make a quick choice. He told the British delegates that once China intervenes militarily, then the problem will be troublesome, and when the time comes, it will either lose the United States or go to war with China, and Britain will have to face the dilemma of choosing one or the other. Bismarck suggested that Britain and European countries should send a serious warning to the North of the United States, and even take a tougher stance to force the United States to accept the referendum proposal. Britain had agreed to this plan before, and there was no problem at this time, it was just a tougher attitude.

On the French side, Bismarck's job was also easy to do, because the original idea of this referendum was put forward by the French, and France had no reason to reject it.

So Bismarck persuaded Britain, France, Russia, Austria, and Germany, together with Germany, and the five major European powers to jointly send a note to the US government, asking the United States to hold state referendums to decide on the independence of the South.

Lincoln refused again, but the pressure on Lincoln was even greater. The pressure was conducted, and Lincoln's pressure soon spread to the battlefield, and the offensive of the Northern Army was even more clouded, and they began to besiege Richmond, advancing from Atlanta to the sea, sweeping across the southern hinterland.

Lincoln also issued a number of symbolic orders calling for a purge of military discipline, explicitly stating that the private property of Southerners should be protected, that the property of slave owners should not be confiscated, that their houses should not be burned, and so on. But there is no specific punishment, in fact, it is just a show, and he also needs soldiers to maintain combat effectiveness.

At the same time, more armies were armed, and the expansion of the northern armies accelerated, starting with the intervention of various countries. The size of the Northern Army has reached 2 million people, but the Southern Army has barely reached 1 million people, the gap between the strength of the two sides is getting bigger and bigger, and the equipment gap is more obvious, the Northern Army has completely replaced the most advanced rear-firing metal cartridge rifles, and the level of equipment exceeds that of the Franco-Prussian War generation, and one-third of the reserve corps in the South is still equipped with backward rifled guns, the number of cannons, and even the military uniforms of the Northern Army have an absolute advantage over the Southern Army.

Lincoln was anxious to turn military superiority into victory sooner and end the war before the Great Powers intervened directly.