On July 27, 1888, Kaiser Wilhelm II's fifth son was born. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 Info44 years later, the German prince celebrates his 44th birthday as King of Iceland.

To celebrate his brother's birthday, Natsuki and Queen Charlotte arrived in Reykjavik Harbour a day early. Over the past four and a half years, the German government has invested nearly 300 million marks in Iceland's construction, and the Icelandic capital has been transformed into a modern northern port, with a new royal palace rising from the ground, giving it a fairytale dreamlike feel against the backdrop of mountains and boreal vegetation.

In an era of long-term peace and development, it would be easy to be the monarch of a small country far from the strife of the world, but the golden decade of Europe has passed, the global financial turmoil has triggered a series of economic and political crises, and with the formation of the new Entente camp, the international situation has become more and more dangerous, so that German soldiers have made up the majority of foreigners who have recently arrived in Reykjavík. The presence of his former colleagues may have made Oscar, as the king of Iceland, feel at ease, but such a lifestyle is by no means something he would like to see.

Compared with the current pseudo-prosperity, Icelanders obviously prefer the quiet and simple life they had at the beginning, so they have never had a good impression of the king "invited" by the parliament, and Oscar has no intention of running this small country that is not eye-catching, and the relationship between the monarch and his subjects can be seen from the dull atmosphere of the birthday celebration.

44 is not a very special number, and Iceland is not a very special country, despite the invitation of the Icelandic government, the Kaiser and his wife, the crown prince and his wife, and important military and political officials in Germany all send their blessings by letter or telegram, and among the rest of the princes and princesses of the German royal family, except for Natsuki, only the relatively leisurely Ettel and Louise were invited.

As a birthday star, Oscar was not in a high mood during the celebration, and his smile was very reluctant, but his children were smart and cute, like angels, which made others envious. Among the foreign officials who came to celebrate his birthday, Natsuki was surprised to see the figure of British Foreign Secretary Neville Chamberlain. Chamberlain in the old time and space was notorious for his appeasement policy during his tenure as British Prime Minister, but it was not entirely the result of his personal decision-making, and had a great relationship with the background of the times, the international situation and the atmosphere of public opinion. Beginning in 1922, Chamberlain served as Secretary of State for Health, Finance, and Foreign Affairs in three cabinets, and his greatest contribution as Foreign Secretary was his participation in the secret meetings of the United States, Britain, Japan, and the Soviet Union, and the conclusion of secret treaties on behalf of the British government.

From sweltering London to cool Reykjavík, Chamberlain's purpose was naturally not to escape the heat, and there was no contradiction between Britain and Iceland to resolve or a friendship to talk about. After the celebration, Natsuki stayed in Iceland for a few days, and when the foreign envoys and guests had left, he had a one-on-one brotherly conversation with Oscar.

In the absence of outsiders, Oscar said with a wry smile: "The British know that I, the king of Iceland, am nothing but a puppet of the German royal family and government, and I have no power to decide the future of Iceland, let alone refuse Germany to use Iceland's ports and bases in wartime, so they promised me that if the British army landed in Iceland, they would ensure the safety of me and my family, and let me continue to serve as the king of Iceland, and would give Iceland a considerable amount of financial assistance after the war." ”

As the king of Ireland, Natsuki has long studied the strategic situation around his country very thoroughly. Iceland is located in the north of Ireland and the United Kingdom, more than 500 kilometers away from the Faroe Islands, more than 800 kilometers away from the northern part of the British Island, 1,100 kilometers away from the north of Ireland, and more than 400 kilometers north of Iceland is Greenland, which is covered with ice and snow all year round. Although Germany forced the Danish government to allow them to establish several military weather stations and several small submarine-replenishment bases in Greenland in the late 10s, the world's largest island is geographically closer to the North American continent, and in the event of war, American or Canadian troops can easily destroy these weather stations and supply bases, and then "overlook" Iceland from high latitudes. Iceland's involvement in war is almost inevitable, and whether it falls or not, the days of the Icelandic royal family will be predictably bleak.

Seeing that Oscar had no fighting spirit, Natsuki deliberately asked with irritating words: "Doesn't that make it clear that you will stand on the opposite side of the German royal family, and make the name of Oscar synonymous with betrayal and cowardice?" ”

Oscar was not angry at Natsuki's words, he buried his face in his hands and said in frustration, "So what? What can I do, Jochen? It was too far from Germany proper, and it was impossible for Germany to have a large army here, and the British only needed an infantry regiment to occupy Iceland! ”

Natsuki reassured: "Don't be so discouraged, maybe Britain has no chance of sending troops to land in Iceland at all, maybe the war will end in a year or two, maybe all the worries will not come true." ”

Oscar was silent for a while, then asked rhetorically, "But who knows?" ”

Indeed, once the confrontation between the two camps escalates to the level of war, it is difficult to say who will win and who will lose. The overall strength of the Allies is not much stronger than that of the United States, Britain, Japan, and the Soviet Union, and each side has its own advantages and disadvantages, and each has its own shortcomings. The only thing that is certain is that if the war had broken out in the mid-to-early 30s, there would have been no nuclear weapons.

Natsuki didn't refute, but asked slowly, "Then what are your plans?" ”

Oscar sighed and looked at Natsuki with longing eyes, "Yoheng, can I trust you?" ”

Natsuki nodded without hesitation, "Of course." ”

Oscar's expression of loss softened slightly, and then he whispered, "Please prepare me a warship, preferably a cruiser or submarine, so that I can take my family to Ireland for refuge at a critical moment." ”

Natsuki guessed that Oscar's main consideration was distance: the distance from Iceland to Ireland was only a third of that of Germany, and the longer the voyage meant less security during the war, and when the war was over, he would be able to return to Iceland as soon as possible to take over power - of course, on the premise that the German camp would win the war.

Ireland's naval strength is certainly among the top eight in the world, but in the face of any of the main fleets of Germany, the United States, Britain, and Japan, it is a weak existence, and it cannot withstand any negligence, and it is too "extravagant" to send a cruiser or submarine to the king of Iceland to escape. Natsuki thought about it for a moment and replied: "The Irish Navy is equipped with a long-range water reconnaissance aircraft, which only takes four hours to travel from Reykjavik to Limerick, and whether it can cope with all kinds of bad weather, take off and land day and night, and its performance is better than that of the German Navy's Junkers-36, and the possibility of being intercepted by enemy aircraft between Iceland and Ireland is extremely low." I can assure you that as soon as there is any sign of a major war, I will have one of these aircraft at your disposal at your disposal. In addition, the Irish Army has secretly built a very safe wartime camp on the northern outskirts of Limerick, with a full range of living facilities for hundreds of people, where you and your family can live throughout the war. But ......"

Natsuki's previous words made Oscar nod his head, but the final turn made him chuckle in his heart, and he hurriedly asked, "But what?" ”

Natsuki paused and explained, "But if a big war really breaks out, Ireland is actually not much better off than Iceland. Because Ireland was so close to Britain and was a strategic point for blockading and besieging Britain from the sea and air during the war, the British had to win two victories first, one to defeat the German navy and the other to capture Ireland in order to turn around through the war. If our enemies had focused their war on Europe, Ireland would have been attacked before Iceland. ”

Although Oscar's eyes widened, there was not much surprise in his eyes, and this situation should have been something he could have expected. It's just that Ireland is different from Iceland, Natsuki originally came with the aura of a liberator, through the Irish War of Independence and the territorial struggle against the British became a hero admired and supported by the Irish, and after the war, he led the Irish to carry out successful economic construction, with strong industrial and military strength, and today's Ireland is by no means something that the British can occupy if they want to.

"Can Ireland avoid being drawn into a devastating war?" Oscar asked tentatively.

"I can't." Xia Shu replied categorically, a few simple letters, but it is a comprehensive consideration of a country's political strategy, a deep understanding of the truth of cold lips and teeth, and a firm decision to safeguard the dignity of the country and personal beliefs.

In these inconclusive assumptions, Oscar was not willing to put himself in the role of doing nothing but running away, saying: "If possible, I am willing to lead my guards with you against the British army." ”

Natsuki answered, "Maybe we can work together to create a miracle where the weak defeat the strong. ”

Since it is a miracle, the probability of achieving it will not be too high, and the result of fighting side by side may be to die on the battlefield together. Oscar hesitated for a moment and asked cautiously, "Then what is your worst plan?" ”

Natsuki shrugged: "Killed." ”

"What if there are no casualties?" Oscar asked, "You can't take the initiative to die, right?" ”

Natsuki knew what the other party wanted, and he thought for a moment before replying, "Establish an Irish government-in-exile in Germany and lead the troops to continue the fight against our enemies." ”

Oscar was finally satisfied, and then felt sorry for himself: "I really envy you, there is a group of people who are loyal to you, not like me, when you really want to flee Iceland, I am afraid that there will not be a few supporters with you except for your family and retinue, let alone establish a government in exile." Besides, I think that if the war situation does come to the point where you have to leave Ireland, it will not necessarily be a bad thing for Germany, and His Majesty the Emperor will let you recommand the fleet. In that case, our chances of winning the war will increase. ”

Natsuki chuckled, "How could the German fleet be under the command of a foreign monarch?" ”

"It's impossible for others, but you're different." Oscar said, not without flattery, "If the German navy is really forced into a very disadvantageous position, people will surely think of the man who led the German navy in the last war to defeat a strong enemy one after another, and it is known that this man can be trusted unconditionally, because only if Germany wins, will your Ireland see again." ”

Natsuki does not deny the possibility that Oscar said, he had long ago prepared the worst scenario for Ireland to be occupied by the enemy, but as Ireland's various military preparations continue to deepen, in his opinion, the probability of such a situation is decreasing, so once the war breaks out, he is not thinking about his own way back, but how to defend his homeland and people at the lowest cost.

(End of chapter)