Tallinn, Tombea Palace.

Gorz, who had just been transformed from President of the Baltic Republic to Prime Minister of the Baltic Kingdom, and Hersmann, who had arrived from Berlin, walked into the office of Wilhelm II together. They had come to bring the elderly German Emperor back to his palace in Berlin.

As soon as the two of them walked into the office, they saw a desk that could be described as "huge", full of newspapers from various countries.

Hersman scanned it out of the corner of his eye and found a copy of the Times with the words in bold and black letters: War criminal William is back! He will be emperor again!

In another French-language newspaper, a similar font says: To choose William is to choose war! The people of France will win again!

In a Polish-language newspaper, Hersmann saw the words: 2 million Polish fighters have taken up arms, and they will defeat Germany!

A German-language newspaper expressed fears of war in rather cautious terms: England, France, Poland and Belgium had united, and Germany would be attacked on both sides.

"All of Europe is against me?" The elderly Kaiser Wilhelm sat behind his desk, his rather imposing face with a sad expression. "They still blame me for the war, and in fact I regret it, and I have been praying for the lost life for more than ten years, maybe I really don't fit to go back to Berlin......"

"My Majesty," said Hersmann, the old emperor was a little reluctant, but he had to go to Berlin and sit on that throne - for the sake of the people of Europe. "Not all of Europe has expressed opposition to your return, the Kingdom of Italy, Hungary and Romania have sent congratulatory messages, while the Soviet Union and Turkey have not said anything."

The congratulatory message from the Kingdom of Italy was sent by Mussolini in return for Germany's support for Italy's intervention in the Spanish Civil War.

The Hungarians, on the other hand, had recently acquired a small piece of territory from the Germans, the former state of Firmedek, which had been part of Czechoslovakia (after the establishment of the Kingdom of Bohemia, Firmvedik was the first to vote for independence and then join Hungary). Therefore, the whole country is grateful to Germany, and they all regard Kaiser Wilhelm and Hitler as relatives.

And the congratulatory telegram of the Kingdom of Romania was purely unavoidable, as King Carol II of Romania and Kaiser Wilhelm were both members of the Hohenzollern dynasty. Kaiser Wilhelm was of the Franconian line, and Carroll II was of the Swabian line - eight hundred years ago they were one family! Although the relationship between the two sides is not close at all, there is still a little work to be done in terms of face.

As for the "unposition" of the USSR and Turkey, it is not just that their governments have not made any statement, and even the newspapers of these two countries have not commented on it. This was in fact a kind of support for William's restoration. After all, the USSR was constrained by its political line. It is inconvenient to openly support an emperor.

Turkey, on the other hand, has always been the focus of the international operations of the Military Intelligence Agency and the National Socialist Party, and the pro-German faction is relatively strong. The reason why there was no support this time was entirely due to concerns about the British position.

"But there are still many who oppose me...... "Kaiser Wilhelm hesitated, "if I return now, is it possible to plunge Germany into a crisis?" ”

"Your Majesty, are you worried about war?" Hersman shook his head, "How dare they? In the age of the German Empire, which was weakened, they could have easily destroyed us...... At most, hundreds of thousands of casualties were needed, but because of the fear of war. They didn't do anything. Now that we in Germany have become stronger, what is there to be afraid of? ”

He laughed mockingly: "I dare to pack a ticket, as soon as His Majesty officially leaves Tallinn, the voice of opposition and protest will be halved." When His Majesty sets foot on the territory of the German Empire, no one will dare to make irresponsible remarks. And when His Majesty enters the palace of the Royal City of Berlin, congratulatory telegrams will be sent from all the capitals of the world. Great Britain, France and Poland will send only congratulatory missions! ”

"Is that really the case?" Wilhelm II is obviously old and confused, and he didn't understand such a simple truth.

"Your Majesty. This must be the attitude of the countries," Goertz immediately chimed in. "All of Europe will cheer you on."

Wilhelm II, who was actually very worried about the war in his heart, finally smiled, "Okay, since that's the case, then I'll return to Berlin immediately!" ”

……

"Mr. Schodown, Mr. Baker, Wilhelm II has left Tallinn. It will be taken on the armored ship 'Deutschland' to Wilhelmshaven. ”

British Prime Minister Stanley. Baldwin's face was heavy, his shoulders were drooped, his eyes were glazed, and in a hoarse and old voice, he told the bad news he had just received to French Defense Minister Chaudang and Polish Foreign Minister Beck, who were visiting 10 Downing Street.

In the past few days. He met with Shawdan and Baker every day to discuss countermeasures, issued a joint statement against Wilhelm II's restoration, and rallied many European governments to oppose it, which now seems to have been in vain.

"Mr. Prime Minister, I don't think the restoration of Wilhelm II is the same as starting a war, right?" French Defense Minister Camille. Xiao Dang said with some hesitation.

"It's not the same as starting a war right away!" Polish Foreign Minister Joseph with a large "French" nose. Baker corrected the words of the French Minister of Defense.

He looked at this "intellectually insufficient" French politician with some helplessness, Chaudan, who was involved in a fraud case that shocked France in 1934, the "Vitasky Affair". The case involved a wide range of issues, including a political earthquake in France because of the bribery involved, and the downfall of the ruling Zuo Yi government. And Camille. Xiao Dang was also involved, and it wasn't for the fraudster Vitasky who "committed suicide" and died, he was afraid that he would have to go to prison.

Although he escaped from prison, he made a comeback. However, many people in the European political arena still look down on Xiao Dang, thinking that he is an out-and-out fool -- to get a little money, he will be involved in the great fraud of the century!

"But why did Wilhelm II fight? He's already lost once...... "Camille. Xiao Dang shrugged and said, "What's in it for him to go to war?" ”

"It's not Wilhelm II who wants to fight," Beck frowned, looking very worried, "it's the Junker officer corps that supported his restoration...... He is just an old man in his last years, how can he have real power after being out of politics for so many years? They brought him out in order to take the command from the elected government so that they could wage a war of aggression! ”

"So what are we going to do?" The French Minister of Defense asked, "Now that the Germans are bent on going their own way, we can't just go to war because of that, right?" ”

"Of course it doesn't have to be a war," said British Prime Minister Stanley. Baldwin winked at the French defense minister, "But we should conclude a collective defense treaty and give Poland sufficient military aid, because Poland is a powerful country with sufficient strength to contain Germany's expansionist ambitions." As long as we join forces, we will be able to defeat Germany again! ”

Stanley. Baldwin's remarks, of course, were not untrue, but the result of the discussion of the British cabinet meeting: the British Empire could no longer lose Poland as an ally, otherwise Germany would be free from the threat of fighting on two fronts and would be able to concentrate its forces against Britain and France!

"That's right, we should be united," French Foreign Minister Shaw nodded heavily, "France can provide Poland with security guarantees, it can also give Poland more artillery, and it can also send engineers to help Poland build defense fortifications...... I think the Pilsudski line still needs to be reinforced. As long as Poland's eastern front is safe, we will be able to concentrate our forces against Germany. ”

"Britain will support Poland as much as France!" Stanley. Baldwin may have noted.

"That's a great thank you, and on behalf of the 53 million Polish people, I thank France and Britain for their help." Joseph. Baker let out a sigh of relief, hadn't he had traveled all the way to England just to ask for help?

"Then Wilhelm II is about to return to Germany, what should we say?" Joseph. Baker thought for a moment and asked, "Do you want to continue protesting?" ”

"No, there's no need to protest." The British Prime Minister shook his head, "Since the Germans have paid no attention to international public opinion, it shows that the restoration of Wilhelm II is inevitable." Then we should acknowledge the reality...... Although all of Europe did not like him, he was going to be the monarch of a great European power after all. At this time, we should show some politeness. Why don't you send a congratulatory message first? Wait until William holds the coronation ceremony, and then send someone to congratulate him, depending on the situation. ”

……

"Haha, Ludwig, you guessed it again, and they sent a congratulatory telegram."

The armored ship "Deutschland" on which Wilhelm II was traveling had just arrived at the heavily guarded Wilhelm military port, and the telegram congratulating him on his return to Germany had already snowflakes.

Not only the governments of Great Britain, France, Poland have changed their positions. Even the mainstream public opinion in these countries has made a 180-degree turn, and it no longer calls Wilhelm II a "war criminal".

"Your Majesty, this is determined by the strength of the German Reich," said Hersmann in a serious tone, "and thanks to the unremitting efforts of the Wehrmacht and the National Socialist Workers' Party for more than a decade, Germany has not only regained its strength, but is stronger than ever."

And what His Majesty is about to reign in is no longer the Second German Empire, which developed from the Kingdom of Prussia...... Rather, a new German Third Reich was born in the difficult years after November 1918! This is a new Germany, a new empire! His Majesty's status and powers will be conferred by the Constitution of the Third Reich, which is currently being formulated. ”

Hersmann was reminding Wilhelm II that while he was the old emperor, Germany was new, no longer the empire he had inherited from his father and grandfather. Therefore, he will no longer have the supreme authority of the past. (To be continued.) )