Due to the lukewarm attitude of Germany and Turkey, the Italian proposal at the summit of the International Security Alliance was not adopted.

However, the countries still reached a relatively unanimous view on the Russian issue, that is, to implement an active blockade policy and strictly prevent the other side from infiltrating. This coincides with history in many ways.

After the meeting, Chen Tian quickly returned to Germany, at this time Europe is in the turn of autumn and winter, the weather has gradually become colder, but as the new parliamentary election is approaching, the atmosphere of public opinion in Germany is quite strong. The re-election of Gustav Nosesk, the 62-year-old current Reich Chancellor and Prussian Prime Minister, is no longer in doubt, and the competition between political parties for seats in parliament has become the first focus of attention, and the newly emerging Socialist Party has attracted considerable attention with its slogan "Great World Peace".

Berlin, Olaf Palace, Imperial Cabinet Council.

"Check it out! Ladies and gentlemen, our people are today content with the Empire's existing territory and international influence. They want to maintain the status quo and do not want to see more people, especially their loved ones, die because of war and conflict, which is a very unmotivated view! However, there is no good way to convince them these days, and I deeply regret that! ”

The speaker, who was the seventh Chancellor of the German Empire and the leader of the German Social Democratic Party, was also a politician who was actively involved in military and colonial affairs, and a loyal supporter and implementer of Germany's foreign expansion policy. During his tenure, Germany launched three large-scale wars, and through the German-American war to truly achieve world hegemony, and the German-Russian and German-Japanese wars also had a very positive significance for Germany's global strategy, despite this, few people still compare Gustav with the most famous prime minister in German history, Otto, von Bismarck, because in the eyes of many, Gustav Noske is just the policy executor of Kaiser Wilhelm III, and now he really rules Germany. Still the German aristocracy and the legendary leader of the royal family.

"What the Prime Minister said is that the mentality of the people in our country today is indeed helpless! The number of local anti-war demonstrations has decreased considerably in recent months, but morale in all walks of life is generally low! ”

Chancellor of the Exchequer von Bittenfeld with a bitter face was in a deep tone. In the eyes of outsiders, this gray-haired old man was always so shrewd and capable, he held the financial power of the empire, and he was the most beautiful among the cabinet ministers, but he did not know that the power in his hands was far from as great as others imagined, and he himself could not approve any financial expenditure alone. They often have to wrestle with how to convince members of Congress to pass a finance bill.

As the saying goes, when the war comes, the busiest people in the entire empire are not the marshals and generals, but the civilian officials like Bittenfeld who are in charge of the empire's internal and foreign affairs, coordinating funds, arranging budgets, coordinating distribution, and taking into account military and domestic production. It can be said that while the generals discussed strategy and tactics over coffee in the headquarters, Bietenfeld sometimes spent the day arguing over appropriations, and in his own words, "Congress is the most difficult battlefield in the world to conquer."

For such a diligent cabinet official as von Bittenfeld. Retirement is undoubtedly the best relief. The 68-year-old had already had such an idea, but the empire was still at war, and his retirement had to be postponed again and again. As things stand, Bittenfeld, who was already an aristocratic and trusted by the Kaiser, would continue to serve in prominent government positions even if he was not re-elected for a second term.

"In the third quarter, the rate of industrial growth slowed down further, and only the arms industry and shipbuilding industry were in the best situation in China!" There was also no good news from the Minister of Industry, Nolendorf, and after he had spoken, there was a brief silence in the room. Although this is not the last Imperial Council meeting for the current Cabinet members, everyone knows that the performance of the Cabinet in the last few months will have a great impact on people's evaluation of the current Cabinet, and it will also affect the future career of most of the people here.

In other words, most of the cabinet ministers present here hope to deal with the current situation with "change", which is also a point that Chen Tian feels quite strongly after returning to China this time.

After looking around at every minister present. Chen Tian said in a calm tone:

"I understand what you think! What I want to say is that some history is predestined, and some may change because of a small detail! Today, we are once again at the crossroads of history, whether to continue the war or to end, and different choices will take us on very different paths from now on! None of you, including me, are prophets! Most of the time, we take the risk associated with every decision we make. The risk is big or small! In the case of war, for example, we may have seen the outcome of the war before it began, but it is difficult for us to imagine how many collateral effects this war will have! So, in the time to come, our final decision will determine the fate of this empire! ”

The audience was solemn, and everyone focused their eyes on Chen Tian, who was dressed in military uniform.

"Some of you already know that during the meeting of the International Security Alliance, the Italians expressed their willingness to mediate between us and the Japanese Empire as a neutral third party, and we have not yet explicitly accepted or rejected this!"

Chen Tiandi's tone was still calm, and his eyes silently watched the reactions of the cabinet ministers. Unexpectedly, the ministers did not whisper to each other, but thought with serious expressions.

"If we accept the mediation of the Italians, it will also mean that the war will end through diplomatic peace talks, which is very different from the Japanese taking the initiative to sue for peace and we urge them to surrender! It should be noted that the current naval strength of the Japanese Empire has been reduced by 90 percent compared with the pre-war period, the loss of aviation strength has been 60 percent, and the strength of the army is basically the same as before the war, but the level of equipment has declined. Contrary to our initial estimates, we found that it would take more time and effort to completely crush the Japanese Empire through conventional and chemical bombing alone, which meant that the war would have to be prolonged according to our original plan. If we want to end the war next year, we will probably need to consider landing on the Japanese archipelago for ground operations! I personally regret this! ”

The Secretaries of State for the Interior were mostly surprised, while the Secretaries of the Admiralty, the War and the Air Force were calm, an assessment that they had evidently made in conjunction with their staffs.

After about three or four minutes, the cabinet ministers, except for the ministers of the three armed services, ended eye contact with each other and focused all their eyes on Prime Minister Gustav.

It took a while for Gustav to stand up.

"Your Majesty. Is a cabinet vote required? ”

"No need!" Chen Tian somewhat unexpectedly rejected this suggestion, and he still sat in his place, looking at everyone.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please stand up if you think you want to continue this war!"

For the next two minutes, the atmosphere in the room was a little weird, with someone moving slightly, but no one changing their state, and Gustav still standing. But it looks like you could sit down at any time.

The three servicemen on the right-hand side—Secretary of the Navy Ball, Secretary of War Ollie, and Secretary of the Air Force Zeckert—all hung their heads in silence, a scene that had never been seen before in a cabinet meeting! Field Marshal Ollie, in particular, is hard to imagine that such a meritorious figure who has been amazed on the battlefield and has a promising future within the empire would show such a state, and Bol and Zechter also have a defeated expression.

There was no trace of surprise in Chentian's gaze, he had even guessed what kind of expression everyone here would have, the Chancellor of the Exchequer was always so deep, and the Foreign Secretary was still the one who looked the most guilty, as well as the Secretary of Industry and Agriculture, the Secretary of Commerce and Trade......

Chen Tian has never complained about the sky, he just has a deeper understanding of the phrase "the plan can't catch up with the change".

When the clock in the conference room struck 11. Chen Tian slammed his chair away and stood up. This sudden movement made all the silent people look up.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this time we were not able to pluck the fruits of victory with our own hands and use it to comfort those soldiers who died in the war, and I personally feel deeply sorry! But. Our previous efforts will not be in vain, we need to ask for as much as possible at the negotiating table, even if it is not available at the negotiating table, we will continue to work hard in the future! Please swear, swear that we will always be vigilant against this enemy, that we will always fight to defend the honor of the Empire! ”

Everyone stood up in unison, "I swear in the name of God......"

A day later, the Chancellery of Rome.

"Hahaha! I knew that the Germans would not and could not continue to hold out, that the war had exhausted their vitality, and that they had to accept peace talks! That's great. It seems as if I have seen a dynasty begin to weaken, and I can't wait to see this moment come sooner rather than later! Ha, as I said a long time ago, our ideological system is in line with the trend of history, the most civilized and advanced, and the ultimate achievement of the development of human society! What are Germans? At a time when our Roman Empire was creating an incomparably glorious civilization, the Germanic people were still living an extremely backward and primitive life! ”

Mussolini, the true ruler of Italy now, laughed wildly in his richly decorated study for a moment. After a while, his face showed disdain. However, his cronies know that he was a great admirer of the Germans and their leaders, of their fighting spirit, and of all the myths created by their rise. As early as the beginning of his political activities, Mussolini went to Germany more than once to seek support, even at the beginning of the Italian government, he still actively courted the Germans, after these efforts without exception, the cronies found that their leaders had changed, and became very disgusted with the Germans, although he always praised the amazing achievements of the German Empire in diplomatic occasions, but in his heart he hated and jealous, and he vowed to build a great empire like Caesar, And then become the most powerful ruler on the planet - the biggest obstacle to this dream is undoubtedly Germany, an incomparably powerful neighbor!

Mussolini began to cooperate with the Americans, then the Japanese, but he learned from the mistakes made by Italy before 1914, he never went against the Germans in public, and cooperated with the United States and Japan in the name of friendly exchanges.

In this regard, Mussolini undoubtedly made a very wise choice.

"Your Excellency is so wise! As long as the Führer comes out, even the Germans can't say no! Italy is so lucky to have a leader like you, and I am sure that the Führer will be even greater than Julius Caesar! ”

The deputy hurriedly offered compliments

"Oh no, Julius Caesar is a great figure that we all must respect and worship, I have seen it as a goal since I was a child, and my current ability is not enough to compare with Julius Caesar, I have to keep trying!"

The short and chubby "Führer" pretended to be modest.

The deputy seemed to have seen a lot of this twisted expression, and he immediately made a gesture of admiration, and when Mussolini had enough self-appreciation, he put forward the topic:

"Then your Excellency, shall we immediately inform Mr. Special Envoy of this news?"

"Well, that's of course......" The deputy was just about to leave, but Mussolini changed his attention, and said with a wicked smile:

"Oh no, you go and get the envoy here, and I'm going to tell him the good news myself!"

After exiting the Führer's study, the deputy instructed the attendant next to him: "Go and call Antonio, the Führer is in a good mood now!" Also, let him prepare some more film! ”

"Okay!" The attendant understood that if you want to say who likes to take pictures in the world, this Italian prime minister is definitely the first person, as long as the weather is good, or when he is in a good place, or when he is bored, Mussolini will ask his subordinates to take pictures of themselves. In addition to taking pictures, the dictator has a penchant for hanging out with his mistress, so much so that he sometimes spends only two or three hours a day on "official business."