"Indeed, the Balkans are a powder keg for Europe, and if something happens, the whole of Europe is likely to be involved." Lin Yiqing frankly admitted that the Balkan issue is not easy to solve, and in fact, until the later generations of his original historical time and space, the Balkan issue has not been truly resolved.

"In any case, it is necessary to unite Russia." "You are well aware of the complexity of the Balkan issue, and what is happening in Bulgaria is bothering you right now, and my advice to you is that you should not only focus on diplomatic means to get out of trouble, but also think more about using economic means, which you seem to often overlook," Lin said. ”

"You're absolutely right, I'm not very good at economics." Bismarck nodded, he calmly admitted his shortcomings, "Can your suggestion be more specific?" ”

"For the time being, it is not easy to solve the Balkan problem in one step, so you might as well think differently, that is, as I just said, adopt economic means." Lin Yiqing said, "As I said earlier, the closer the economic ties between Russia and Germany, the less likely it is that it will fall to Germany's enemies. If France could tempt Russia with money, why couldn't Germany? As for the specific means, for example, you can amend the German 'Agricultural Protection Act' to allow Russian agricultural products to enter the German market in exchange for funds for industrialization, for example, you can allow the Russian government to issue bonds in Berlin to raise funds, for example, you can allow the German bank group to lend to the Russian government. These measures could effectively bind Russia's interests to Germany, so that if there was a problem with the Balkan powder keg, Russia would consider whether the price was worth it because the Balkan issue was at odds with Germany. And Germany has more room to maneuver. ”

After listening to the specific advice given by Lin Yiqing, Bismarck once again fell into deep thought.

What Lin Yiqing said is not unfounded.

In his original history, because the Franco-Prussian War had cost France too much (cession of Alsace-Lorraine, 5 billion gold francs in reparations), since the establishment of the Second German Reich, the most worrying thing for the iron-blooded Chancellor was the revenge of the defeated France.

In Bismarck's opinion, the Gallic rooster was simply like an "immortal bird". Although he suffered "severe blood loss", he quickly recovered, and the vitality of this proud French was barely damaged. France not only paid off the principal and interest of the reparations in four years, but also squeezed back into the ranks of the first-class European powers as if nothing had happened. The fierce export of French products at low prices made Paris once again one of the centers of Europe, and the reconstruction of the French Army and the French naval fleet, which was barely affected by the war, further enriched the French with the capital of revenge. Faced with the unstoppable revival of France's comprehensive national power, Bismarck had to devote his entire later years to the great project of weaving an "anti-French alliance" in order to "isolate France" to the greatest extent possible, while being annoyed that he had not done a little more "absolutely".

For this reason, Bismarck showed an extremely "tolerant" side towards the French and fully supported the establishment of a colonial empire in Africa and Asia. Bismarck, on the other hand, despite the fierce opposition of Emperor Wilhelm I, insisted on establishing the German-Austrian defense pact. This pact eventually plunged Germany and Austria-Hungary into the abyss of destruction, tied the German Empire with a Balkan powder keg that could explode at any moment, and laid the groundwork for the outbreak of World War I. After that, the iron-blooded prime minister, who was keen on secret room politics and called himself an "honest middleman", once again concocted a second "Three Imperials Alliance" composed of the Protestant German emperor, the Catholic Austro-Hungarian emperor and the Orthodox Russian tsar, and the subsequent "reinsurance treaty" between Germany and Russia. Then he drew Italy into the "Triple Alliance" of Germany, Austria and Italy, and acted as the behind-the-scenes director of the "Quadruple Alliance of the Mediterranean" of Britain, Austria, Italy and Spain in the Mediterranean, trying to convince Britain that France and Russia were the troublemakers of the European order......

Bismarck, tormented by the "murder syndrome", while weaving those dazzling conspiracies, also planted the fundamental seeds for the destruction of the empire. Because it was tied to Austria-Hungary and the Balkans, and thus a fundamental conflict with Russia! The conflict with Russia, especially at the expense of Russian interests at the Berlin Conference and the subsequent promulgation of the "Agricultural Protection Act", which raised tariffs on Russian agricultural imports, and the "Lombard Decree" expelling Russia from financing in the German financial market, not only made it possible for Russia, which had shifted its financing center to Paris, to find an economic basis for an alliance with France (the "Lombard Decree" abolished Russia's right to issue bonds in Berlin). Russia then transferred its deposits directly to Paris and immediately received a loan of 100 million francs from the French government, thus revealing the economic basis of the Franco-Russian alliance. In the three years following the rupture of German-Russian financial relations, Paris replaced Berlin as Russia's main foreign financier. Since then, Russia has issued a total of 2.4 billion francs of securities in France, and French banks and companies have invested heavily in Russia, whether it is the Trans-Siberian Railway, the Russo-Japanese War, or Nicholas II's Great Naval Plan, behind which the oligarchs of the Bank of Paris are involved. Such close economic ties will naturally lead to political, military, and diplomatic alliances. Author's note), and strengthened the determination to make the next war a "war of alliances", and further planted the fuse that ignited the Balkan powder keg and the two-front battle against the enemy.

Lin Yiqing's suggestion is basically based on the "Agricultural Protection Law" and the "Lombard Decree".

"Your suggestion is very good, I will seriously consider it." Bismarck retracted his thoughts and nodded.

"I am confident that under your wise leadership, the German Empire will surely go to glory." Lin Yiqing smiled.

"Lin, can you tell me why you are giving me such advice to bring about the union of Germany and Russia?" Bismarck turned his words and asked suddenly.

Lin Yiqing noticed that Bismarck's gaze had become sharp again, he smiled, and replied: "With your wisdom, you should be able to understand that I am making these proposals not only for the benefit of Germany, but also for the benefit of the country. ”

"Will the situation in Europe still affect the Qianguo?" Bismarck asked curiously.

"Of course." Lin Yiqing smiled and nodded, "When Russia and Germany come together, its attention to the West will be much higher than that of the East, and in that case, Russia's threat to the Qianguo will be greatly reduced." ”

"Russia has chosen to support Japan, and of course it will not give up easily." Bismarck's answer shows that he is also very concerned about the situation in the East, "But you have built a powerful fleet for the Qianguo country, which is beyond the need to deal with Japan, and will not only stimulate the nerves of Russia, but also attract the attention of other European naval powers. ”

"The navy of the Qianguo country is only set up to guard against Japan, not against European friends." Lin Yiqing replied with a smile on his lips, but added two words in his heart, "weird".

"You're an amazing person, Lin." Bismarck looked at Lin Yiqing for a while before he said slowly, "I hope that in my lifetime, I can see the Qianguo under your impetus embark on the road to prosperity and strength." Although I know that you are facing no less trouble than I am. ”

"I am willing to work together with His Excellency the Prime Minister to open up a new world together." Lin Yiqing said with a smile.

At this time, Bismarck would not have imagined that only a dozen years later, he would see a different Qianguo. And in the new world opened up by Lin Yiqing, he was not able to see what Germany was like.

This conversation, which had a profound impact on future generations, took place in the gardens of the Charlotten Palace in Berlin and went down in history as the "Garden Talk".

Shuzo Aoki sat in the corner with his head bowed, the train was moving faster and faster now, but he didn't dare to look out the window yet. Everything outside recedes at a rapid pace, and the scenery is torn to pieces by the high speed of the train. Will all he had—the little house on the hill with his table, chair, bed, wife, dog, and many happy days—ever come back now?

The open view, his freedom, and his whole life, which he had so often admired with great interest, had vanished from the ashes, as if his life had flowed from all his veins, and that he had nothing left, and was now drifting about under the drive of doom.

He was only vague and confused about what had happened. The conductor asked him to show his ticket, he didn't have one, he said his destination like a sleepwalker, and he unconsciously changed another train. All this was done by the machine in his heart, and he no longer felt pain. At the train station, the inspectors asked him for his papers, and he gave them them nothing.

There was nothing left around him. Sometimes the lost thing still reminded him softly, as if in a dream, a murmuring voice from the depths of his heart: "Go back! You're still free! You shouldn't go. But the machine in his blood, which did not speak, but forcefully plucked his nerves and limbs, stubbornly pushing him forward with the silent command "You must go".

In the dim light he could clearly see that there was a bridge across the river over there, and that was the dividing line where he came. His idle mind tried to understand the meaning of the word; On this side, he can live, breathe, speak freely, act according to his own will, and do what he likes; But eight hundred paces from that bridge, where the human will has been removed from the body, like the entrails of an animal, is all that this little bridge here, a little bridge with a hundred or so pieces of wood on two great beams, is all about.

At this moment, he felt depressed and felt that he could no longer think clearly, and his thoughts were rolling and tumbling, and his thoughts were flowing and flowing.

Thank God! Startled by his own thoughts, he woke up violently. Ever since he saw this boundary on the ground—the bridge between life and death—he felt that his heart was beginning to move, not the machine, but a consciousness, a rebellion, that was about to awaken in him. On the other track, the train he had been on was still parked, but the locomotive had turned around in the meantime, and the huge glass eyes were now staring in the other direction, ready to pull the cars back up. It reminded him that it might still be too late, that his nerves, which longed for his lost home, were dead and now painfully moving again, and he felt in his heart that the old one he had begun to regain his original form.

Now it dawned on him that he had figured out his fate. Ever since he understood this, he had seen destruction in his own destiny. There was now a call for life in his soul.

At this moment the signal clock struck, and the heavy sound shattered his unstable feeling, and the train rumbled near, deflated, and stopped. All the people had rushed up, and the doors of the carriages were opened, and pale faces stretched out, and their bright eyes showed extreme joy. They waved their hands, they called, they laughed, and the women sobbed and ran to and from window to window, until they found the person they were looking for and the dear one, calling, crying, shouting, all kinds of voices were chaotic and noisy, but all of them merged into a high cheer.

The music stopped. Within a few minutes all that was heard was the clamor and the cries - the waves of surging emotions that lapped over people's heads.

Gradually, it calmed down. Everywhere there was a crowd of people, everyone was immersed in happiness and joy, and they talked enthusiastically. A few women were still crying back and forth in a state of confusion.

Aoki Shuzo stood paralyzed in the middle of the crowd he had unexpectedly encountered. Underneath his chest, his heart was beating violently again. The truth of feelings surged over his heart with majestic momentum, destroying the machine in him, and the sublime and great freedom rose up, which triumphed over obedience. "Never go back! Never go back! A voice that had never been heard before shouted in his heart and slammed into him. He whimpered and fainted.

People ran up to him, thinking he had a seizure of epilepsy, and the doctor came. However, he slowly stood up on his own, and did not want to be helped, looking peaceful and happy. Everyone looked at him and thought he was crazy. He didn't feel any shame anymore, he felt like he was recovered. Then the music started again. But the loud sonata of his heart drowned out all voices.

He came home late in the night. The room was pitch black, closed like four coffins, and he knocked on the door. There was a sound of footsteps dragging inside: his wife opened the door. When she saw that it was him, she couldn't help but be deeply surprised. However, he gently grasped her and led her through the door. They didn't speak, and both trembled with happiness.

From his wife's actions, he felt infinite love, and at the same time he understood how many disasters he had spared. He silently squeezed her hand. The dog burst out of the kitchen and jumped straight at him: everything was waiting for him, and he felt that he had never left the place, but he felt like a man who had risen from the dead.

The two of them had not spoken. But she gently pulled him to the window: outside was the eternal world, which was indifferent to the troubles of a momentary fool, and the world shone for him, and in the infinite space the stars were brilliant.

He looked up at the sky and felt a lot of emotion, and now he understood that there is only one law that applies to human beings on earth: nothing can really bind a person except love for each other. His wife breathed happily next to his lips, and sometimes their bodies trembled slightly next to each other with extreme joy. But they are silent, their hearts soaring freely in the eternal freedom of all things, beyond the chaotic vocabulary and the laws of man.

"He didn't come to your trouble, did he?" She asked happily.

Hearing his wife's inquiry, Aoki Shuzang remembered Lin Yiqing, and his heart tightened suddenly.

Why didn't Lin Yiqing send someone to kill him?

Is he forgetting himself?

No way! He had insulted him like this, how could he let himself go with his retributive character and murderous subordinates?

Is he going to do harm to himself in his own home? And his own wife, Elizabeth?

Thinking of this, boundless fear surrounded him again.

What to do? What to do?

He was so eager to return home because he wanted to see his beloved wife before he died.

He ...... Didn't come to me...... Maybe it's because you know I'm quitting......" Shuzo Aoki replied in a low voice, trying to calm himself down, not wanting the fear in his heart to infect his wife.

"That's great." Elizabeth didn't notice Aoki Shuzo's strange appearance, she took a newspaper and handed it to him, "There has been news of him in the newspaper recently, he has brought a large number of warships and weapons orders to Germany, and has become the darling of the German business community, he will leave Berlin for France today, and people are very reluctant to let him go!" Her tone was full of regret, "It's unimaginable that such a person is a terrible killer demon king on the other side." ”

Aoki Shuzo didn't listen to what she was saying, he opened the newspaper with trembling hands and read the news about Lin Yiqing.

Is he really not going to harm himself?

Aoki Shuzo read the newspaper report repeatedly, and after making sure that Lin Yiqing really left Berlin, he knew that he was really safe now, and he let himself go.

Confirming this, Aoki Shuzo couldn't help but shed tears.

"What's wrong with you? My dear? She asked curiously.

"No, nothing, I'm fine, dear Elizabeth." Shuzo Aoki wiped away his tears and said softly, "I'm so happy to see you." ”

She stared at him, as if she understood something, and suddenly tears welled up in her eyes, blurring her vision, and she couldn't see anything for a moment. She threw herself into his arms and hugged him tightly. (To be continued.) )