"Oh, then speaking of which, the war in Europe will be an alliance of four countries, including Britain, France, Turkey, and Prussia, against the Russian-Austrian alliance?"

Although Emperor Zhu remembered that there was a Crimean War in which Britain and France fought Russia, he was not sure whether the war that was about to break out in the West was the Crimean War. And he didn't know what Austria was about in the Crimean War, which is why he had such a problem.

Maria. Clementina pondered for a moment: "This is very likely...... But the specifics depend on the extent of Russia's ambitions for the Balkans and Russia's determination to go to war with Prussia, which, if Austria were to enter the war, could well turn into a full-scale war that would encompass the whole of Europe, as was ......the case with the Napoleonic Wars and the Seven Years' War."

Now she doesn't know about Austrian Prime Minister Felix. Schwarzenberg is dead, only 23 years old, and Franz has little experience in politics and diplomacy. Joseph I did not appoint another prime minister, but began to command his empire at will.

"If the Austrian Empire collapses after this war, will France be able to regain hegemony on the continent?"

Zhu Jishi asked uncertainly. He clearly remembered that the Austro-Hungarian Empire had collapsed only after losing the First World War, and this time it should be safe and sound.

Maria said, "I want to ...... It is likely that the Austrian Empire will not collapse immediately, because Britain will not allow such a thing to happen, Britain needs a weakened Austrian Empire to occupy the center of Europe, and once the Austrian Empire collapses, Germany will most likely be unified by Prussia, which is unacceptable to both Britain and France...... So the Russian-Austrian alliance was dismantled by war. Neutralizing Austria or joining the anti-Russian alliance should be a policy acceptable to both Britain and France. Perhaps Austria would be forced to cede some of its possessions in northern Italy to France. ”

She thought about it for a moment. And again: "It seems that the Austrian Empire is likely to be the biggest loser in this war." If they betrayed Russia, they would surely be seen as a thorn in their side in the future, and without their support, Austria would not be able to maintain its position as the leader of the German states. If Austria had entered the war on the side of Russia, it would have been flanked by France, Prussia and possibly Sardinia, and the possibility of defeat would be very high. Moreover, once defeated, Hungary, Bohemia and other Austrian territories are also very likely to break out in revolution. Joseph I was about to lose his heart. ”

"Maria. Do you think the biggest loser is probably Austria, isn't it Russia? Wu Chunqiu asked a little incomprehensibly. He guessed that he would most likely be sent to Europe by Zhu Jishi as the leader of the plenipotentiary mission.

"Well, that's a very complex issue."

Maria explained with a smile: "Actually, for Russia, Eastern Siberia and Alaska are not particularly important, although these two areas are large, but the degree of development is very low, and the climatic conditions are very harsh. And since the time of Peter the Great, the policy of Russia has been to expand westward to southward. in order to seize the territory of wealth and warmth. Also, since the beginning of the century. Another 'Pan-Slavism' emerged in Europe, and a Pan-Slavism also emerged in Russia.

Their basic propositions are: (1) to claim that the Slavs and Russians share a common history and blood relationship, are similar in language and culture, have the same religious beliefs, live in adjacent territories, share a common destiny and interests, and that the Russian nation is the leader of the Slavs; (2) to propagate Russia as the 'protector' of the Slavic peoples, and to rely on the Tsar to secure the future of the Slavs; (3) to establish the Great Slavic Empire with Russia as the ally in order to free the Slavs from Austrian and Ottoman rule, and finally to achieve the goal of pushing Russia's European borders to the west and south.

Moreover, both the former Tsar Alexander I and the current Tsar Nicholas I were active supporters of Pan-Slavism. Thus, the influence of Pan-Slavism in Russia was enormous, and perhaps in their view, the loss of the East was an opportunity for Russia to devote all its energies to the West and the South.

Therefore, for the Ming Dynasty, there is always the possibility that after defeating Russia and seizing part of Siberia and Alaska and Central Asian territories, it will turn to reconciliation or even alliance with Russia. ”

Such...... Okay!?

Wu Chunqiu and Guo Songtao glanced at each other, they really couldn't understand Maria. Clementina's diplomatic philosophy. How could the Ming and Russia reconcile? How could Russia swallow the bitter fruit of losing most of Siberia?

"It's possible, and Russia will surely realize after losing this war that they don't have the strength to fight on two fronts. We can only abandon one aspect and concentrate on the other. ”

Zhu Jishi said lightly: "And Britain will definitely have the same goal, but they will hope that Russia will focus its main energy on the East." Therefore, the first difficulty in our European diplomacy is to reach a comprehensive rapprochement with Russia in the event of seizing a large part of Russian territory. ”

"But...... Isn't weakening Russia the focus of the Ming Dynasty's foreign policy? Wu Chunqiu asked again.

"Yes, but only if Russia continues to pursue its policy of westward and southward expansion will it be possible to once again clash with the Western powers and be completely weakened. Other than that...... Russia's westward expansion and southward expansion was also the basis for the continued alliance between the Ming and the British. ”

Zhu Jishi suddenly aggravated his tone: "And the Mingying Alliance and the Ming-French Alliance must be maintained, which is the basis of the Ming Dynasty's foreign policy." ”

Zhu Jishi has never been a "non-aligned person", and he has no confidence and courage in the entire anti-Western world...... This may have something to do with his experience as a "returnee", whose bones are not as hard as those of a turtle. Emperor Zhu is not only afraid of Britain, but also afraid of beauty! I am afraid that the United States will rise to become the number one power in the world in the future. It's really unproductive to say...... Therefore, another focus of Zhu Jishi's foreign policy is to use the Civil War to divide the United States!

In order to achieve this goal, the Ming Dynasty must maintain alliances with Britain and France, and pull Britain and France together to support the United States in the south, so that it is possible to successfully split this big boss of the future world - otherwise, it is unlikely to achieve this goal by relying on some small actions, such as opening an arsenal in the South of the United States and supporting Mormonism.

"In order to maintain the alliance with the British, I have decided to conditionally withdraw from the islands of New Guinea and New Britain, and to pledge not to seek new bases in the South Pacific."

Zhu Jishi thought for a while, and said to Wu Chunqiu and Guo Songtao: "This time, I plan to let the two of you lead the envoy to Europe, you will be the ambassador to England in the Spring and Autumn Period, and you will be the ambassador to France...... In addition, Chunqiu also received the title of secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responsible for all the foreign affairs of the Ming Dynasty in Europe.

When you arrive in France, give Louis the handwritten letter from me and Maria. Bonaparte, ask him to intervene in the New Guinea question...... My request was to transfer southeastern New Guinea to the Netherlands in exchange for Dutch Borneo, and that the Grand Duchy of Lanfon pay compensation to the Netherlands up to a maximum of 10,000,000 silver dollars. If the Netherlands is not willing to cede sovereignty over Dutch Borneo, it can also be leased for a period of 99 years.

In the spring and autumn, you are to enlist the support of Britain for this plan, which can be a precondition for China to go to war against Russia, if Russia has already launched an attack on Turkey.

In addition, you will have to consult with Britain and France on the disposition of Russia's eastern territories after the war. My demands were to acquire all Russian territory east of the Yenisei River, to establish a Taiping state in Central Asia under the suzerainty of the Ming Dynasty, and to hand over the Aleutian and Kuril Islands to Japan.

If Britain and France objected, we could retreat to the establishment of a colony east of the Yenisei River under the joint administration of the Ming, France, and Great Britain, and let the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom become an independent state in Central Asia. Of course, China's northern borders, as stipulated in the Treaty of Nebuchu, must be secured.

As for contacts with Russia, it can be done through the Crown Princess Olga of the Kingdom of Württemberg. Nikolaevna was secretly carried out, she was the daughter of Nicholas I and a friend of mine. (To be continued......)