"Yesterday there was a horrific violent crime in the city of Cleveland, a group of bandits tried to rob the Cleveland branch of McDonald Ventures, and the police and the gangsters who got the tip got a tip, and the gangsters broke into the French consulate in Cleveland on the way to escape, kidnapped the consulate personnel as hostages, and confronted the police. and shot and killed diplomatic officers at the consulate in order to force the police to disperse the encirclement......

Cleveland Police Chief Mr. Hilton said it was a sad tragedy and expressed his condolences to the French consulate staff who lost their lives in the disaster, as well as outrage at the brutal crimes committed by the rioters.

'The peace and security of the city of Cleveland will not be trampled upon by criminals, and we will do everything in our power to hunt down those who have escaped with God's help, and they will not try to escape from us, but one day we will be able to catch them and bring them to justice!" ’

Although the police department has made such a statement, when this reporter interviewed some police officers of the police station, they all privately believed that the investigation of this case was extremely difficult and did not allow for optimism. A police detective, who asked not to be named, told the reporter:

These bandits are very cunning, very fierce. Their mentality is so remarkable that even when we besieged them in the consulate, they were able to ransack the entire consulate without panic and snatch all the valuable items inside that were easy to carry. And they wore masks throughout the crime, leaving basically no clues. Cleveland, on the other hand, is a transportation hub with a large number of outsiders and is difficult to manage. I think they might have left Cleveland a long time ago, maybe they'd already left Ohio, and it wasn't easy to catch them. ’

He also believes that the modus operandi of these criminals is very similar to that of some gangs in the Alaskan wilderness, and that some of the gang members have recently returned to their homeland after making a fortune in Alaska, but many of them have quickly become poor again because of gambling and other behaviors, so they have gathered together and started committing crimes again. The crimes of these guys are well-organized and highly mobile, and they generally do not commit crimes in a certain place for a long time. The Cleveland police can only hunt them down in Ohio, and once they get out of Ohio, the police will have little to do but wait for them to catch them on the spot when they commit their next crime......"

This kind of statement is no problem to deceive the masses who don't know the truth, but for the guys at the highest level, everyone knows what is going on.

"Bastard Yankee! How dare they do it! I'm going to declare war on the Americans! To burn down the White House with a fire, just like the British did back then! In the unoccupied room, Emperor Napoleon III roared angrily, but he himself knew that now was no time for war with the Americans. Because of the pressure of the Prussians, France would definitely not be able to pull out an expeditionary force to hold a barbecue meeting at the White House. And the current United States is not the United States of the past, let alone a country that can be bullied casually such as the Manchu Qing Dynasty, even if the British want to send an expeditionary force to burn the White House now, it is estimated that they will go to die.

Not only is it impossible to send troops to burn the White House, but there is no way to even engage in economic sanctions and the like, in fact, because of an espionage incident, France and the United States will fall out, and Prussia will really be happy to death if it recognizes. So after venting, Emperor Napoleon III calmed down and made this decision:

"Protest to the United States for the failure to protect the security of the consulate, demand compensation from them, and guarantee that similar incidents will not happen again."

The U.S. government apologized to the French and promised to strengthen the protection of the embassy and consulates, and gave a symbolic compensation of about two thousand dollars, and then, well, there was no then. Of course, it would be wrong to say that nothing has changed. For example, the Yankees are now paying a lot of attention to the protection of embassy and consulate personnel, especially in Cleveland, where a large group of police officers stay next to the consulate for a long time, and as soon as anyone from the consulate goes out, there are police officers following behind to protect their safety......

……

Towards the end of the year, the world's two first urea plants, Cleveland Agriculture's First Fertilizer Plant and Berlin Fertilizer Plant, began producing urea less than a week apart. However, the names of the products of the two factories are different, MacDonald's urea is of course called "earth gold", while the Prussians honestly name their products urea. Samples of the products of these two factories were quickly sent to the French Academy of Sciences by certain means. Then in less than half a day, the results of the analysis of the French Science Park were sent to Emperor Napoleon III.

"It was confirmed that the product produced was indeed urea of high purity." Emperor Napoleon III's hand trembled a little when he held the report. He remembered something a few months earlier when they learned about this joint project between the Prussians and the Americans:

"Do you think that if synthetic ammonia can be realized, it will be able to increase the output of agricultural products significantly, and how much is this large amount?" Emperor Napoleon III asked. In order to imitate his uncle, Emperor Napoleon III also often liked to talk to the scientists of the French Academy of Sciences to learn some of the latest scientific knowledge.

"We think it could potentially increase the yield of crops like wheat by more than 50 percent." An expert from the Academy of Sciences replied, "Of course, this is a very conservative estimate, in fact, we have a field where we have planted a solid yàn using urea prepared from saltpeter as a fertilizer, and we have obtained a comparative effect of a one-and-a-half increase in yield." However, if it is used on a large scale, considering the influence of water and pests, we believe that such a yield increase effect is difficult to guarantee, but a 50% increase in yield should be relatively easy to achieve. ”

"So, if the Prussians and Americans really made ammonia from nitrogen and could produce it industrially, would that mean that their fields would be similarly productive?" Emperor Napoleon III was a little nervous.

"Your Majesty, it is true, once the industrial synthesis of ammonia can really be realized, it will be a revolution in the history of agriculture, and mankind will be completely away from the threat of famine, which is really the greatest innovation." Obviously, this scientist has no idea about politics or anything, so he is still a little happy about it. But Emperor Napoleon III was not at all happy, because he knew that once the Americans and Prussians developed such technology and put it into agricultural production, there would be a tremendous increase in grain production in the United States and Prussia in the Prussian-controlled areas, and then the prices of agricultural products on the international market would certainly be greatly affected. And French agriculture, which does not have such technology, will inevitably be crushed by the agriculture of these two countries. This could not have been more terrible for Napoleon III, who had ascended to the throne with the support of the peasants.

For several months, Emperor Napoleon III allocated as much money as possible for the Academy of Sciences to intensify its research, and on the other hand, pinned his hopes on the defeat of the Americans and the Prussians.

However, for several months, the French Academy of Sciences continued to hear of failure, almost no progress, while the Prussians and Americans really succeeded in researching this thing, and even entered the stage of industrial production.

In order to solve the imminent threat, Emperor Napoleon III also resorted to a series of means. For example, using espionage methods to steal relevant technical secrets or something. However, the gains are limited. In addition, the ammonia synthesis process is complex, and there are so many technical secrets related to it that even those who have participated in related research may not know much. Of course, if France is given a few more years, France will definitely be able to develop relevant technology, but such a period of time is enough for the Americans and Prussians to completely expel French agricultural products from the international market, and even, if it is not done well, France will not only lose its original share in the international market, but also the domestic market will be hit. At that time, will the angry peasants continue to support this guy also called Napoleon?

"There's only one way now." Emperor Napoleon III himself said to himself, "That is to wage war against Prussia!" Yes, there is only one way, to provoke Prussia, to declare war on Prussia, and then to defeat it on the battlefield, as Napoleon the Great did in those days, to come to the city of Berlin, to force the Prussians to surrender, and then to make them pay a large sum of money, and to give me this fearful and lovely technique with both hands as part of the reparations. If I could do that, then I might really deserve the name 'Emperor Napoleon'. As for failure...... If there is a battle, there is still the possibility of victory, and now, what is the difference between waiting and seeing and losing? But what kind of excuse should I come up with? ”

……

In December 1868, Queen Isabella II, the Queen of Spain who had been expelled from Paris and went into exile in Paris, suddenly issued a statement announcing her abdication. So the crown of the king of Spain hung empty, and for a time, the nobles in Europe who were related to the Spanish royal family and had the right to inherit were active, and various countries in Europe also stepped up their movements, trying to influence the ownership of the crown of the Spanish king and realize their own interests. And among the hottest candidates, in addition to Alfonso, the son of Queen Isabella II, there are also cousins of King William I of Prussia.