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In November, Beijing has entered the late autumn, although it has not snowed yet, but the weather is getting colder and colder. When the lights are on, workers who get off work either walk, ride bicycles or take buses home, while the more affluent drive home. With the government's vigorous promotion of the development of civilian vehicles in China, in addition to trucks for freight, cars are also becoming more and more popular. By the end of last year, the number of private cars in China had reached 600,000, almost half a factor of 1.5 times that of the United States, according to government statistics. The development of automobiles has accelerated the transformation of urban road facilities, but at the same time, it has also accelerated economic development and become another booster of China's economic growth.

A car flying the German flag drove on the road, and the German ambassador to China, August von Klinde, sat in the back seat of the car, looking through the glass window, looking outside. Although China has entered the war and is fighting with the United States in Mexico, a large number of troops are being transported to Mexico by sea, and a large number of war materials are being transported to North America and the eastern Pacific region. However, in major Chinese cities such as Beijing, it does not seem to have been affected much. The supply of goods on the market is not restricted, and the people still have smiles on their faces. Except, of course, for families who received death notices!

Ambassador August von Klinder felt some emotion in his heart, that Germany, which had only been at the start of the war for a few months, had already imposed restrictions on food and fuel, and the market had begun to slump, and the economy had been greatly affected. China has completely gone ahead of Germany!

The car drove to the Prime Minister's residence before stopping, where the secretary of the embassy and the guards at the Prime Minister's residence negotiated and checked their documents before they were allowed to enter.

Ambassador August von Klinder got out of the car. Led by a servant from the Prime Minister's Office, he came to a small dining room. Inside, Imperial Prime Minister Wu Tingfang and Foreign Minister Tang Shaoyi were already waiting for him. In front of them, a pot of hot pot was steaming. The table was full of side dishes, but neither Wu Tingfang nor Tang Shaoyi moved their chopsticks. After Ambassador August von Klinder proposed to visit Wu Tingfang, Wu Tingfang invited Ambassador August von Klinde to the Prime Minister's Office for dinner, and at the same time invited Foreign Minister Tang Shaoyi to accompany him.

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister, Your Excellency the Minister for Foreign Affairs. Good evening! This is our wine, give it to His Excellency the Prime Minister to taste! August von Klinder came in and gave him a gift. Wu Tingfang studied in the UK in his early years, and he also likes red wine.

"Your Excellency, the Ambassador, is gracious. Please take a seat! Wu Tingfang said with a smile. He has been the prime minister for some years, and although he is nearly 70 years old and his hair is all gray, his mental state is very good.

After the three of them were seated, they began to make a hot pot that is usually prepared by the chef of the Prime Minister's Office. Although it is a bit spicy, Ambassador August von Klinder has been in China for many years and is already familiar with the taste of hot pot. Dinner. The planning was staggered, everyone talked about the things of Tiannan and Haibei, and the atmosphere was very harmonious. This meal lasted for a full hour, and it can be described as a joy for the guests and hosts.

After dinner. The three of them came to Wu Tingfang's study, and the servant had already served fragrant tea, and then withdrew. The smile on Ambassador August von Klinder slowly faded when he came to visit Wu Tingfang this time. It was on orders from the country. Germany hopes that China will help Germany more, although Germany still maintains its advantage on the battlefield. But the Entente were gradually erasing these advantages. Over time, the situation will undoubtedly become more and more unfavorable for Germany. Therefore, the German side needs China's help.

"Your Excellency, the Great War has been going on for four months, and the situation on the European battlefield is getting worse and worse. We have to admit that before the start of the war, we underestimated the opponent, so that the war began to shift to a protracted war. Germany and China are allies, and we need China's help! August von Klinder said first. The situation is very obvious now, China also knows very well about the shape of the European battlefield, and August von Klinder did not think to hide anything!

Wu Tingfang nodded, and then said: "Your Excellency, our two countries have the same interests, and of course China will help Germany." China is now fighting the United States, making it impossible for the powerful American army and navy to enter the European theater, which in our opinion is already the greatest help to Germany! You know, the size of the U.S. Army has now reached four million, and their naval strength can also rank among the top in the world! ”

Ambassador August von Klinder agreed that if China had not dragged the United States and the United States had transferred its huge army and navy to Europe, Germany would not have had to fight this battle. While China is holding back the United States, Germany believes that this is not enough.

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister, Germany needs greater help. For example, the Chinese Army launched an offensive against Russia from Central Asia and Siberia. The German Army can cooperate, and our two countries can completely deal with Russia first. In this way, we will be able to reconnect! August von Klinder said. Even though he knew it was unlikely, he wanted to go for it!

"Your Excellency, I don't know much about military matters, but I know that the Empire's first combat target is the United States, and now the Empire's main combat power is all around the elimination of the United States. We have only a few army groups on the Western Front, with only five or six hundred thousand men. And the Russian army has deployed at least more than 2.5 million people on the border between the two sides. If we were to launch an attack on Russia, it would inevitably affect our war against the United States. According to the projections of the General Staff, if we want to destroy the United States, we will have to invest at least three million or more troops in the United States. And now, the Empire's war mobilization is not complete, and the progress is still relatively slow, so it cannot support the two-front battle. After we destroy the United States, we will cooperate with Germany to march against Britain, France and Russia! Wu Tingfang said.

Ambassador August von Klinder was very disdainful that with China's population resources and industrial strength, it would be easy to arm tens of millions of land forces. It's just that China obviously doesn't want to get involved in the European war too early, so it has made the United States the target of attack. After China destroyed the United States, it is estimated that Germany will also be exhausted.

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister, I can understand that. However, the consumption of the war was more than we expected, and Germany's previous war reserves were depleted very quickly, especially in copper, tungsten and other non-ferrous metals, and the reserves were completely insufficient, and we needed China's support! Ambassador August von Klinde said.

"Your Excellency, you are already fully supporting Germany. More than 30,000 tons of goods are transported from Baghdad to Germany every month. In addition, our merchant ships were able to break through the blockade of the British Navy from time to time and transport strategic supplies for Germany. China has done its best in this regard! Foreign Minister Tang Shaoyi said.

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister, Your Excellency the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Germany wants to double the transport of the Baghdad railway again. With the capacity of the Baghdad Railway, this is completely achievable. In addition, regarding the matter of shipping, Germany has received news that the British side will increase the blockade of the North Sea, and in the future, Germany will want to obtain the materials provided by the Chinese side through the Guò sea route, I am afraid it will be even more difficult! August von Klinder said.

A number of ways to support Germany were discussed, but none of them could be implemented until China had decided to devote its main military strength against Britain, France, and Russia. Although the German side was anxious, there was no other way, and increasing the traffic of the Baghdad railway became the only way.

At the end of November, the North Sea was affected by the weather, and the wind and waves were very high. Before the war began, it was a busy sea lane, with a constant flow of merchant ships between the Americas and Europe. However, after the start of the war, due to the blockade of the British Royal Navy, all ships flying the German flag would be captured or sunk, and the German Navy also sent fast warships to attack British and French merchant ships from time to time, which quickly reduced the number of merchant ships in the North Sea by most of them.

At four o'clock in the afternoon of November 28, a fleet of five 10,000-ton merchant ships was passing through the wind and waves. The flags on these merchant ships are all Chinese flags, their destination is the port of Hamburg, and the ships are loaded with some non-ferrous metals, saltpeter, cloth and grain. Although the British Navy blockaded Germany, there were still many loopholes that Chinese merchant ships could seize to go to Germany and complete the deal. Even if it is caught by the British Navy, the British Navy will not use force against Chinese merchant ships, and at most forcibly demand that the merchant ships return to their home. Britain is not willing to enter into a substantial war with China at this time, otherwise India and Australia will become targets of China's attacks.

Suddenly, a British destroyer flying the St. George flag was speeding towards the fleet. Moreover, the Guò flag demanded that the fleet stop immediately. The appearance of British destroyers made it known to the fleet that it was already impossible for them to go to Germany. So, the flotilla signaled to the British destroyers that they were ready to return!

However, at this time, the British destroyer opened fire on the fleet, and the dense rapid-fire guns fired fiercely at the merchant ship 'Huaxing' at the front of the fleet, and the weak hull of the merchant ship could not reach the rapid-fire guns on the destroyer, and a few minutes later, the hull of the 'Huaxing' was punched out of many big holes, and the sea water frantically poured into the 'Huaxing' merchant ship, and in less than 15 minutes, the 'Huaxing' merchant ship sank to the bottom of the sea, and the British destroyer turned around and left!