The Battle of Guam broke out and soon spread throughout the world, attracting great attention from the great powers of various countries.

"The British Empire's naval guns have smashed the huge cannons on the fortress of Guam, and the Spaniards are cheering that they can finally take Guam back!"

The Times newspaper deliberately dragged the Spaniards into the political service of the British Empire, and since the start of the war a month ago, it has never broadcast negative news about the British Empire and controlled British public opinion.

The war broke out again between China and Britain over the Hawaii incident, and most people called it the Fifth Yapian War, because they knew that if Britain won, the Yapian trade would be legalized again in the Chinese Empire, because the British Empire could not defeat the Chinese Empire in trade, and could only use the Yapian trade to reverse the trade deficit.

Although the common people of the Western countries in the world did not like the arrogant and self-righteous British, they hoped that the British would win more than the Chinese Empire. Politically speaking, this is a battle between East and West for world domination, and Westerners naturally do not want Easterners to dominate the world. Economically, the Chinese Empire rose strongly, with a trade surplus not only with Britain but also with other countries, and all countries wanted to change the trade surplus because the Chinese Empire suffered a heavy economic blow in the war.

Most of the countries in Europe and the United States supported Britain, for whatever purpose, especially the Spanish government's public statements of support and gratitude for the British Empire, as a result of which the German media immediately stood up and slapped the Spaniards in the face.

"The Spaniards are so naïve, if the British take Guam, will they return Guam to Spain? If so, the sun is really rising in the west. ”

The German Empire was the only European country that supported the Chinese Empire, because they knew very well that the current world hegemony was British, and that Germany and China needed to form an alliance before bringing down Britain. As for after the defeat of the British. That's a different story.

This is the core national interest, and the Germans have always put it first.

Of course, the most happy outcome of Bismarck's government was neither the defeat of Britain by the Chinese Empire nor the defeat of the Chinese Empire by the British Empire, but the defeat of both of them, which ultimately bought time for the rise of the German Empire.

Taking advantage of the renewed outbreak of war between Britain and China, Bismarck quickly visited Austria-Hungary. and contributed to the alliance between the German Empire and Austria-Hungary.

The French government was very annoyed and openly opposed the German-Austrian alliance, but unfortunately France was mired in the Annam War and could not get out of it, and could not stop the German-Austrian alliance.

Similarly, the British government also scolded Bismarck for taking advantage of the fire to rob, originally the German-Austrian alliance had been unable to form under the strong intervention of Britain, but with the outbreak of the Anglo-Chinese war, 90% of Britain's military strength was transferred to the Pacific theater, so it could not stop the German-Austrian alliance.

The Russian tsar was also angry enough. Originally, there was not much contradiction between Germany and Russia, and the relationship between the two countries was very good, but Tsarist Russia and Austria-Hungary had territorial disputes, and the contradiction was very large. With the establishment of the German-Austrian alliance, Tsarist Russia felt a great threat.

However, there was a German chancellor, Bismarck, who soon visited Tsarist Russia and signed a non-aggression pact between Germany and Russia. And guaranteed to restrain Austria-Hungary from conflict with Tsarist Russia.

For Tsarist Russia, this was not the safest outcome, though. But it is also a kind of insurance to avoid the German-Russian conflict.

At the same time, the Tsar had another strategic purpose, so he had to accept the result of the German-Austrian alliance and the non-aggression of Germany and Russia.

What is the purpose of the tsar, Europe and the United States are very clear, as a tsarist family with a fanatical love for the territory. Being the largest country in the world has always been something that the tsar was proud of. However, the glory of the world's largest power was completely changed with the conflict between China and Russia, and Tsarist Russia lost its Far Eastern access to the sea.

Today, the largest country in the world is no longer the Tsarist Empire, but the Chinese Empire. This greatly annoyed the tsar. Always hold a grudge.

However, all along, the economy of Tsarist Russia was a serf economy, too backward, which was not visible in the era of muskets, and the military strength of all countries was about the same. But as the Industrial Revolution unfolded, Tsarist Russia fell far behind.

Military equipment has been upgraded, front-loading muskets have been upgraded to rear-loading rifles, front-loading guns have been upgraded to rear-loading guns, wooden sail warships have been upgraded to ironclad steam-powered warships, and ammunition has been reloaded separately to be integrated with ammunition, which requires huge industrial strength to support.

Therefore, the serfdom economy of Tsarist Russia could not support the replacement of the Tsarist army, and after losing the Crimean War and the Sino-Russian War, Tsarist Russia had to carry out reforms, although it achieved certain results, but it was still far behind by other industrial countries.

In the past five years, the conflict between Britain and the Chinese Empire has brought a turning point to Tsarist Russia, and Britain no longer carries out an economic and technological blockade of Tsarist Russia, which has enabled Tsarist Russia to obtain financial and technical help from Western countries, so that Tsarist Russia's industrial strength has increased rapidly, and its military strength has been continuously improved.

The Fourth Sino-British-Jacophine War ended so quickly that Tsarist Russia had to stop before it was ready to intervene in the war.

But this time, Tsarist Russia had already received a notice from the British Benjamin government in advance and agreed to send troops together. This was also a request from Britain to help Tsarist Russia recover its economy, and the Tsar also wanted to retake the Far East, so he was united in his goal and prepared for war against the Chinese Empire.

With the help of British funds and technology, Tsarist Russia launched the Great Asia Railway communication line project, planning to build a railway from St. Petersburg to the East Siberian Sea in ten years, when the Russian army can use the railway to quickly assemble in East Siberia and compete with the Chinese Imperial Army for the Far East.

However, the Siberian permafrost affected the construction of the Russian railway, and only a third of the railroad tracks to the East Siberian Sea were laid. But the feeder railway from St. Petersburg to the Kazakh region of Central Asia was opened a month ago.

It was precisely because Britain controlled the schedule of the construction of the Tsarist Russian railway that Britain chose to start a war against the Chinese Empire, because under the instigation of the British, the Tsarist Russian army began to continuously assemble from Europe to the Kazakh region of Central Asia, preparing to launch an attack on the provinces of Ili and Mongolia in the Chinese Empire.

At the same time, Britain also transferred troops from India to launch an attack on the western frontier of the Chinese Empire to cooperate with the actions of the Tsarist Russian army.

However, Tsarist Russia is also very thief, although it has agreed with the British to attack the Chinese Empire together, but secretly, the Tsarist Russian minister in China has made harsh demands on the Chinese Empire. Hope to reap the benefits without a fight.

Forbidden City, Taihe Palace.

For three days in a row, meetings were held here, and Li Weiguo and the imperial civil and military officials discussed countermeasures.

The last time Tsarist Russia did not intervene, the Imperial War Department once thought that Tsarist Russia would not intervene this time, but it did not expect that this time Tsarist Russia planned to intervene.

Britain mobilized 90 percent of its naval forces and 50 percent of its land forces. This is tantamount to a decisive battle against the Chinese Empire, and the situation is very critical. At this time, if Tsarist Russia sent troops and took advantage of the fire to loot, it would be even worse for the Chinese Empire.

Of course, the Chinese Imperial Shence Army was not afraid of the British and Russian armies at all, but there was a problem.

Western Xinjiang has always been the weakness of the Chinese Empire, even if Li Weiguo began to build Western Xinjiang early on, making it a barrier to the Chinese Empire. But there was still a lack of time.

This is manifested in the fact that from the day of the unification of the Chinese Empire, Li Weiguo began to plan to control the western Xinjiang and began to build a railway to the western Xinjiang. More than 10 years have passed, and all provinces in the country have been connected to railways, but the railways in western Xinjiang have still not been built.

This is because Western Xinjiang is located on the roof of the world, the highest plateau in the world, with 800 kilometers of permafrost. Snow-capped mountains block it, and a railway is built here. It was more difficult than Tsarist Russia to build a railway to Siberia (Arctic Circle permafrost), because the latter was building a railway on the plain, while the Chinese Empire had to build a railway on the plateau, altitude sickness was the biggest obstacle to the construction of the railway, and the railway workers excavated the frozen soil of the snow-capped mountains under conditions of extreme lack of oxygen, which can be imagined.

In this era, there was no such super-heavy machinery and equipment as later generations. Most of it can only rely on manpower, although the Chinese Empire has the most advanced scum medicine T Nt, and the speed is not fast.

Because the Chinese Empire's railways could not be built to the western part of Xinjiang, and the road transportation conditions were so harsh, the roads were covered with snow and ice for seven months of the year. Transporting troops is very difficult.

On the other hand, the British army crossed the Himalayas from India, and the Russian army entered Western Xinjiang from the Kazakh Plain very easily, which put the Chinese Imperial Army at a disadvantage in the western Xinjiang region.

It is precisely because of this disadvantage that Li Weiguo has been unable to decide whether to agree to Tsarist Russia's demands.

"Your Majesty might as well agree to Tsarist Russia's conditions first, as long as Tsarist Russia does not send troops at the same time as Britain, our army's strength in Western Xinjiang is enough to repel the British army from India. Destroy the British army first, and then destroy the Russian army in turn. ”

"That's a good plan! But what if the Russians are afraid of treachery and still send troops? ”

"Yes, at that time, our western Xinjiang garrison was trying its best to block the British army, the rear was empty, and the Tsarist Russian army suddenly attacked, and the British army attacked back and forth, and our army was in danger!"

The civil and military officials were at loggerheads, and they all insisted on their own words.

Li Weiguo also understands that the Russians are the most untrustworthy.

But the problem at the moment is that the Chinese Empire is stationed in Krawusu in the western Xinjiang only the 42nd Town of the Shence Army, with more than 12,000 troops. The intelligence shows that the total strength of the British army from India exceeds 250,000, including 50,000 British troops and 200,000 Indian troops.

At the same time, there are 100,000 Russian troops assembled in the Kazakh region of Central Asia, which may stab the Chinese Imperial Army in the back at any time.

"Is there a way to contain Tsarist Russia in Europe?"

Zhang Peilun, the minister of the Imperial Court, shook his head and said: "It's a pity that the German Empire can't make a move, they have just concluded a non-aggression pact with Tsarist Russia, otherwise with the German-Austrian alliance, Tsarist Russia will definitely not be able to easily transfer troops from Europe." ”

Wu Yong snorted coldly: "The German Empire is also a thief, especially that Bismarck is not simple, he deliberately signed a non-aggression pact with Tsarist Russia, but in fact, he deliberately let Tsarist Russia go all out to wage war with the Empire, and his heart can be punished." ”

Li Hongzao said angrily: "Then freeze all the weapons and warships produced and built for the German Empire, and let them suffer heavy losses." ”

Li Hongzhang immediately objected: "That's not good, we have no evidence to accuse Germany, freezing German assets in China is tantamount to losing trust in the international community in the first place, although it can take advantage of it in a short time, but the credibility problem can be long-lasting." This is the same as doing business, and it is absolutely impossible to do without reputation. ”

Li Weiguo nodded and said: "Li Hongzhang is right, we have no evidence or reason to accuse Germany of sanctioning Germany, and don't mention the freezing of German assets in China, that will not solve the problem." ”

Chen Jingnan suddenly said: "Do you want to think of a way to do it to the Ottoman Empire?" ”

Ottoman Turkish Empire?

Including Li Weiguo, the civil and military officials were stunned, and soon began to remember this declining empire.

I only heard Chen Jingnan say: "Since the Crimean War, more than 20 years have passed, and according to the hundreds of years of grudges between the Ottoman Empire and the Tsarist Russian Empire, they are mortal enemies!" ”

Wu Yong suddenly agreed: "You can think of a way to deal with the Ottoman Empire, don't forget that the frequency of wars between Russia and Turkey is much more frequent than that between our empire and Britain." Russia and Turkey clash every three years, fight every five years, and fight every 20 years, which is a tradition that has lasted for hundreds of years. ”

Li Weiguo nodded and said: "If you can encourage the Ottoman Turkish Empire to make a move, it is indeed possible to contain Tsarist Russia, and even force Tsarist Russia to withdraw its troops." However, with Turkey's relationship with the United Kingdom, it should be unlikely. ”

At this time, Cheng Kun, director of the China S.H.I.E.L.D. Bureau, said: "Your Majesty, the ministers have some important information about the Ottoman Turkish Empire, the Ottoman royal family and ministers are very corrupt, as long as they are given enough benefits, we can create some conflicts on the Russian-Turkish border, and we can definitely lure them to send troops to attack Tsarist Russia, and even provoke a full-scale war between Russia and Turkey." ”

Li Weiguo's eyes lit up with these words, and he immediately asked, "Are you sure?" ”

Cheng Kun Zhengse said: "Abdul is an out-and-out warlord, he has 200,000 Ottoman troops, recently in Bosnia, Herzegovina and Bulgaria and other places in the Russians under the banner of protecting the Slavs, secretly promoting the autonomy of these regions, has caused the dissatisfaction of the Ottoman Empire, Abdul is very cruel to the Slavs, the Ottoman royal family is greedy, as long as we operate properly, we can definitely provoke these Slavs to rebel in advance, the Ottomans will inevitably send a large army to suppress, then Tsarist Russia will inevitably enter the war." ”

Li Weiguo remembered that the Russian-Turkish war was fought many times, but the clearest one was the Crimean War, and it is not very clear when it was fought, which was basically fought once in more than 20 years. But from Cheng Kun's words, he seemed to feel that there was a drama, and this time it was the outbreak of the tenth Russian-Turkish war.

"In that case, I ordered you to deal with this matter with full authority, and it is extremely important to provoke their war in a short time, everything needs to be reported directly, and I have given you approval!"

"Emperor Xie, the minister will definitely complete this task!" Cheng Kun said overjoyed, very excited, and finally asked them to come forward to reverse the situation. Although the Chinese S.H.I.E.L.D. has always been highly valued by Li Weiguo, but it has always been active in the shadows, after every war, the common people only remember the navy or the army, and they don't know that the Chinese S.H.I.E.L.D. plays a huge role or even a decisive role, which makes Cheng Kun a little unwilling, and this time he must make achievements to perform well.

At this time, Li Weiguo said again: "Since we have tactics to deal with Tsarist Russia, then we can go all out to deal with the British, but we must also make two preparations for Tsarist Russia, one is to delay time in negotiations, and the other is to prepare to prevent them from sneaking attack. ”

"Obey the order!" Wu Yong immediately accepted the order. (To be continued.) )