Reims, the temporary capital of the French Empire. After the partition of France, it served as the temporary capital of the French Empire. Both the French Empire and the Kingdom of France still claim Paris as their capital. However, Paris has been divided into two halves, and the Seine has become a border, and if the capital is continued to be Paris, it is undoubtedly very vulnerable to enemy attacks. So, the Kingdom of France made Orleans its temporary capital, while the French Empire made Reims its temporary capital.

Napoleon III remained Emperor of the French Empire. It's just that Napoleon III looks much older now than he did then. It has long since lost the demeanor of the leader of a world power. The last world war was as heavy a defeat for France as it was for Napoleon III personally. That defeat hit him very hard. If it weren't for the fact that his son was too young, he would have planned to abdicate. Of course, in order to maintain his position, Napoleon III deliberately sought the help of the German Empire, which allowed him to continue to control the French Empire. Otherwise, it would have been overthrown long ago.

Napoleon III did not build a large-scale royal palace in Reims, but only slightly renovated the original manor house of a wealthy merchant and used it as a new royal palace. Napoleon III swore that he would soon be able to return to the Élysée Palace in Paris. Therefore, there was no need to build a royal palace in Reims at all. Besides, with the financial resources of the French Empire now, he was not allowed to do so. Because of the last defeat, France was saddled with a heavy debt burden. At the same time, it was necessary to maintain a strong army in order to be able to fight the Kingdom of France. The territory of the French Empire is not very large now. The population is also only about 10 million, after losing all the overseas colonies. Being able to maintain the government and 300,000 troops is already their limit.

Fortunately, the strength of the French Empire's army is not weak. In the war with the Kingdom of France, they were almost always in an advantageous position. Otherwise, the situation of the French Empire will be even more difficult.

On this day, Napoleon III convened the Imperial Council in the humble royal palace. The current situation in the world made Napoleon III feel threatened. The struggle between the peaceful alliance dominated by the Chinese Empire and the Holy Alliance dominated by the German Empire became increasingly intense. If this continues, there will undoubtedly be a war on a larger scale. The brutality of the last war is still fresh in our minds. Napoleon III did not want to experience another such war in his lifetime. and King Louis of France. Like Charles, Napoleon III was constantly thinking about reuniting France and making France a world power, not a weak one. This time the war. It is both a crisis. But again, if you grasp it well, it is also a rare opportunity. The passage of time and the blows of defeat have clearly not been able to dampen the ambition of Napoleon III.

"Your Majesty, the German ambassador has contacted us in the hope of establishing a closer relationship with us!" This was stated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Duke Valevsky. When the war was about to break out, the Germans had already begun to desperately win over other countries, even countries like the French Empire, which were likely to cause trouble. No matter what. The French Empire is a country with a population of tens of millions, and if it is fully equipped with weapons and equipment and carried out extreme mobilization, it is completely capable of mobilizing millions of troops. This is for the Holy Alliance. It is also a powerful addition. After all, the Nordic countries that Germany had co-opted before did not have so many troops.

"Didn't the Germans refuse to form an alliance with us before? Right now. Why did you change your mind again? Napoleon III said with some disdain. Although, France was defeated. It was even necessary to rely on the Germans to be able to continue to survive. However, Napoleon III still looked down on the German Empire from the bottom of his heart. Think they're just nouveau riche who picked up the bargain and developed.

"Your Majesty, Germany has also felt the changes in the current world situation and wants to desperately strengthen its strength. The pressure on them from the Chinese Empire was simply too great for them to contend with. That's why the whole world is looking for allies! "Prime Minister Emile. Olivier said.

Napoleon III nodded: "So, let's all say, is it necessary for us to ally with the Germans?" After the alliance, what is in it for us. Or rather, is it necessary for us to get on the same boat with the Germans? ”

From Napoleon III's personal point of view, he was not very confident that the German Empire and the Holy Alliance would be able to defeat the peaceful alliance led by the Chinese Empire. The difference in strength between the two sides is too great, don't look at the current German Empire is extremely powerful. But compared to the Chinese Empire, it is not enough. If the French Empire had been on the ship of the Germans, it would have meant that they would probably be defeated again.

"Your Majesty, for the present Empire, we have no other way out than to join the Holy Alliance dominated by the Germans! The relationship between the Kingdom of France and the Chinese Empire was even closer. Although they did not form an alliance, they were supported by the Chinese Empire. Otherwise, we would have perished the kingdom of France. In the event of a world war, the Kingdom of France would certainly join the peace alliance led by the Chinese Empire. If we want to unify France, we have only one option: joining the Holy Alliance! "Emiller. Prime Minister Olivier said.

Napoleon III knew about Emil. Olivier was right. However, he doubted that the Germans would win in the end.

"Your Majesty, Germany and the Holy Alliance do not seem to be as weak as we think. At least in Europe, they have an absolute advantage. If the Germans could dominate Europe before the reinforcements of the Chinese Empire arrived in Europe, then perhaps there would be a chance to continue to compete with the Chinese. After all, the Chinese are too far away from Europe, and the Germans are close at hand. In general, Germany and the Holy Alliance were inferior to the Chinese Empire and the Peace League it led. However, in Europe, the Germans were dominant. If we ally with the Germans, we could have taken the opportunity to unite all of France! Foreign Minister Duke Valevsky also said. He was also strongly in favor of an alliance with the Germans.

"Your Excellency, what is your opinion?" Napoleon III asked.

"Your Majesty, I also think we should join the Holy Alliance. Europe is a white man's world, and the whole world should be ruled by white people, not those lowly yellow-skinned monkeys. If the Holy Alliance loses the next world war, the entire Western world will be finished. When the time comes, those yellow-skinned monkeys will surely turn us all into their slaves. The French Empire was a European country, and we were supposed to fight for the good of the white world as a whole. What's more, in this war, the Holy Alliance is not without a chance of victory. As long as the opportunity is grasped well, there is still a possibility of winning. Therefore, the French Empire should seize this opportunity to reunite France in one fell swoop! A.J. Saint-Arnault said.

"Well, since everyone has agreed to an alliance with the Germans. Well, then, Your Excellency Duke Valewski, you are ready to negotiate with the Germans. Sue the Germans, we can make an alliance with them. However, our interests must be safeguarded. Napoleon III said.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Duke Valevsky nodded.

All the high-ranking people of the French Empire were excited. The last failure has always been regarded as a shame by them. Now, they finally have a chance to do it all over again. They all hoped to take advantage of this war to defeat the Chinese Empire in one fell swoop, win the war, and regain the glory of France.

Subsequently, Duke Valewski went to Berlin to negotiate secretly with the Germans. To the demands of the French, the Germans expressed their support. After all, Germany is now very powerful, several times stronger than the original Kingdom of Prussia, and even if the French Empire reunified France, it would not pose any threat to the German Empire. As long as the French Empire can show their combat power in this war, Germany will naturally reward them without hesitation.

It's just that the Germans never imagined that when they were trying their best to win over the French Empire, the Chinese Empire had already instigated the Kingdom of France to prepare to attack. In order to ensure the success of the attack, the Kingdom of France threw all 300,000 troops into battle. In addition, the Kingdom of Belgium and the Kingdom of Spain each sent 100,000 troops, disguised as the army of the Kingdom of France, to attack the French Empire.

On the morning of August 1, the 300,000-strong army of the Kingdom of France launched a fierce attack, directly crossing the border and entering the territory of the French Empire. At the same time, the 100,000 troops of the Kingdom of Belgium and the 100,000 troops of the Kingdom of Spain also broke through the defenses of the French Imperial Army from the flanks and invaded its territory, launching a direct attack on Reims, the temporary capital of the French Empire, from both flanks.

The attack of the Kingdom of France came so suddenly that it was completely unexpected by the French Imperial Army. Although, they also have a lot of troops deployed on the border. The 300,000 army was even more combat-ready. However, the sudden blow still stunned them. Under the combined attack of 500,000 enemy troops, the 100,000 front-line troops deployed on the border were routed one after another, and the door of the entire empire was completely opened. The combined forces of the Kingdom of France and Belgium, as well as the Kingdom of Spain, are in a no-man's land. (To be continued......)

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