Germany, Austria-Hungary, Poland and the Balkan Empire were on one side. In terms of population, Germany has 42 million people, Poland 23 million people, Austria-Hungary 36 million people, and the Balkan Empire 21 million people, totaling more than 130 million people. Economically, Germany has surpassed France and ranks second in Europe, and although its total economic output is less than half that of Britain, it has reached the same level as Britain in terms of military-related coal and steel production. Although the Austro-Hungarian Empire had great internal contradictions, its economic conditions were good, although it was inferior to France in terms of total volume, and ranked behind Britain, Germany and France in Europe, but the heavy industry in Bohemia was not lost to France. Poland's industry is backward, and the metallurgical and mechanical industries also have a certain scale, while the Balkan Empire's heavy industry is not good, but the light industry is relatively developed, and the overall strength is about the same as Poland.

The United Kingdom, France, Italy, Spain, Denmark and Sweden are the other side. In terms of population, not counting the colonies, Britain has about 32 million people, France has more than 36 million people, Italy 26 million people, Spain has 15 million people, Denmark has less than 3 million people, Sweden has more than 4 million, Norway also has more than 1 million, a total population of about 120 million. In terms of industry, Britain's economy is the largest in Europe, accounting for more than 50 percent of Europe's total economy, but if we exclude the large-scale industries such as textiles, transportation, and commerce, which did not directly help the war, Britain is about the same as Germany in heavy industry. France's economy is not small, but it focuses on light industry, and because its resource endowment is not as good as Germany's, the development of heavy industry is slow, which is comparable to Austria-Hungary. Spain was still an agrarian country at this time, and during the Industrial Revolution in Europe, Spain was a mess and did not have any decent industry. Denmark is also an agricultural country, and Sweden's industry has developed rapidly, especially the mining and metallurgical industries, which directly contributed to the war, but the scale is limited. Italy is slightly stronger than Spain, but compared with Britain, France, Germany and Austria, these industrial powers, it is almost negligible, especially heavy industry, Italy does not even have coal, nor does it have iron ore, so to speak, Italy is not as good as Japan in terms of resource endowment. Therefore, Italy has only some light industries such as light textiles and silk weaving, and the level of heavy industry is still very low.

Comparing these hard powers, population, resources, and military industry, at this time, the side led by Germany and the side led by Britain are actually about the same, the gap in population is not large, the German side has a slight advantage, and in the military industry, it is difficult to distinguish between the superior, and the British side has a slight advantage.

But on the whole, it should be said that the British and French sides are still superior to the German and Austrian sides, for the simple reason that the wealth of Britain is real. Moreover, the British have a developed financial industry, which can most efficiently convert this wealth into war funds, and a developed financial system, which is the biggest shortcoming of the German and Austrian side.

In addition, Britain and France also had huge colonies, although the colonies of India and the Americas, with China's entry into the war, it was unlikely that they would use resources and manpower on the European battlefield, but French North Africa and British West Africa, because of their proximity to Europe, had the conditions to transfer manpower and resources to Europe. In the Anglo-French African territories, there are about 40 or 50 million people, but because the British and French management of the colonies is mainly aimed at extracting wealth, the management is lax and the local society has not been reformed. The African colonies could only provide some strategic resources, and the army could arm up to one million men.

Therefore, the forces on the European battlefield were basically balanced, with the British and French having a slight advantage, while the German-Austrian side had a more elite army, stronger mobilization ability, and more efficient command. The European theater of war took place mainly on land theaters, and if either side won, the world war would be over.

Because once Britain and France defeated Germany and Austria, the European theater ended, and China could only choose peace talks and withdraw from the war if it did not destroy the British fleet. Because at this time, even if China continues to fight, it is difficult to guarantee victory over the tens of millions of British and French forces that have just defeated Germany and Austria.

However, the European battlefield was not the only factor that determined the outcome of the war. The global battlefield between China and Britain is another decisive factor. Just as when one side wins in the European theater, the other side can only accept defeat. When China or Britain decides the winner, the other side will have to accept the outcome.

Because once China defeats Britain in a naval battle, and the Chinese navy enters the British mainland, Britain will inevitably withdraw from this war, and if France and Germany have not yet decided the winner or loser, France can only choose peace talks to end the war and continue the war, which can only be defeated. As for whether Britain can defeat China in a naval battle, basically no one thinks that this is a possibility. The British navy is very strong, which everyone admits, but the Chinese navy is even stronger, and everyone admits it. Ideally, Britain would only be able to remain undefeated and hold out until victory in the land war.

Therefore, there are only two factors that determine the outcome of this world war, the naval battle between China and Britain, the land battle between Britain and France and Germany and Austria, and China's defeat of the British Navy, or the defeat of Germany and Austria by the British and French armies, and the war ends with the victory of the Sino-German alliance. The defeat of the German-Austrian forces by Britain and France ended in the victory of the Anglo-French alliance.

After China's entry into the war, its impact on the German-French land theater was limited, with Germany still on the offensive and Britain and France continuing to defend.

Moltke's army had marched into Paris, and he was determined to conquer Paris and end the war. There are very few European countries that continue to fight despite the fall of the capital, and it is rare in history for the Russians to abandon Moscow.

The German army used to lay siege to Paris was very strong, totaling 5 million men, and it was composed of soldiers who had received military training before the war, and their combat effectiveness was stronger than that of the French army. The French army was mainly a newly formed reserve army, half of which had no training before the war, and the total strength was only 3 million, and the main force of the French army was pinned down on the Lorraine plateau, and wanted to return reinforcements, but was cut off from direct contact with Paris.

Therefore, the French army could only rely on the Paris defense line to resist stubbornly, and the good news was that the British army and the Spanish army were heading for Paris, and time was favorable to the French army.

Moltke was well aware of this, and the Germans were still in the upper hand, Britain was beginning to recruit more soldiers, and Parliament was beginning to discuss compulsory military service, and with the administrative efficiency of Britain, it was unlikely that a large army could be quickly passed through compulsory military service. Italy had compulsory military service and also began mobilization, excluding reinforcements from France.

Although Austria-Hungary announced that it would join the German side and that Germany could receive reinforcements from Austria-Hungary over time, Moltke was unwilling to gamble the outcome of the war on the aid of his allies, so he wanted to win as soon as possible with the German army having the advantage in numbers.

On the one hand, the Germans built an offensive to block the return of the main French army in the direction of the Lorraine Plateau, and on the other hand, launched a fierce attack on Paris, and the Battle of Paris broke out.

On the other hand, on the world theater, China began a full-scale offensive against Britain.