After the Battle of the Marne in 1914, the Allies and the Central Powers were at a stalemate on the front between northern France and the corner of Belgium. As the war dragged on, the Ottoman Empire's tilt toward Germany became a serious problem.

Due to the unwisdom of British diplomacy and the imprudence of Churchill, the Ottoman Empire had a strong dissatisfaction with Britain. Because according to some hearsay, when the Turks bought battleships from the British, even elementary school students donated money, and the British seized the battleships that originally belonged to the Ottoman Empire for no reason.

Although the Ottoman Empire during this period is no longer the Ottoman Empire in history, the shelf of this empire is still very large after all, and it is also very scary from the outside, and the Ottoman Empire itself has a strong arrogance, and the British will certainly not allow the Ottomans to do this.

Therefore, the Ottoman Empire "gifted" two new warships that could not escape from the Mediterranean Sea to join the ranks of the Central Powers in Germany, and the result of this was that the Black Sea shipping lane, which was the most important for Western Europe to assist Russia, was blocked, and Russia's shipping throughput, which was only available in a few frozen ports, shrank to only 5 percent in one fell swoop, which was extremely detrimental to Russia's continued fighting, and could lead the Allies to lose the war. After all, Russia was an extremely important link in the iron triangle of the Entente, and if the Russians failed, then the Allies would no longer have any threat on the Eastern Front.

In fact, at the beginning of the war, Russia was still very terrible, and it was even called the 'European steam steamroller'. The Russian giants bewitched Europe as if by magic. On the chessboard of military planning. Russia is regarded as a behemoth because of its large size. Although it was humiliated in the First War against Japan, France and Britain were relieved to think of the Russian 'steamroller'. And the Germans, fearful of the Slavs behind them, were so worried that they could not sleep.

Although the Russian Army has many shortcomings and a bad reputation. Although it was the Russian winter that drove Napoleon out of Moscow rather than the Russian army, although the Russian army suffered defeat from France and Britain on its own soil in the Battle of Crimea, and although Turkey had defeated the Russian army in the defense of Pleven in 1877, it was later defeated because of the disparity. Although Japan had defeated the Russian army in Manchuria, the myth of the invincibility of the Russian army still prevailed. The Cossack cavalry charged, and the sound of killing shook the sky. Fierce and cruel, it was so deeply rooted in the hearts of the people in Europe that in August 1914 the artists of the press were able to paint such a picture with eerie precision and painsmanship, thousands of miles away from the Russian front. The idea of the Russian army was the Cossacks plus the millions of strong, tame, death-defying grey animals that could not be depleted.

The Russian Army was outnumbered. Staggering.

The peacetime strength was 1,423,000. Once mobilized, an additional 315,000 troops would be added, in addition to a local army of 2 million men and a reserve force that could be called upon, so that the total number of troops available for use would be 6.5 million.

In people's minds, the Russian army is a behemoth, inevitably bloated and sluggish at first, but once fully mobilized into action, it will be wave after wave of never-ending sea of people. No matter how big the casualties, they will be indomitable. Roll forward one after the other.

Edward in history? Sir Grey noticed this and felt the same when he went to Paris in April 1914 to negotiate a naval agreement with the Russians. He told President Poincarai, "Russia is very rich in resources, and if we don't support Russia, the Germans will be exhausted in a long time." ”

However, it turned out that everyone was wrong.

On the Eastern Front, the Russians were defeated, or even defeated. It was only in the face of the Turks and Austrians that the Russians were able to play to some of their strengths. However, due to the extremely large losses on the battlefield on the Eastern Front, it was obvious that Russia could no longer support it on its own, so this place in the Black Sea naturally became very important to the Russians. Because that is the only channel through which the members of the Entente can provide assistance to Russia in peacetime, if this channel is blocked, then from a certain point of view, the blood transfusion of the Entente to the Russians will also be stopped.

Although the British and French were extremely remorseful for seeing the Russian steamroller wrongly, they also knew that if the Russians failed, then the Allies could concentrate all their forces on the Western Front. On the Western Front, the British, French and Germans were already fighting very anxiously, and it was difficult to distinguish between the top and the bottom, and at this time, a little straw could change the balance on the battlefield. If the Germans had cleaned up Russia and transferred the millions of troops from the Eastern Front back to the Western Front, Britain and France would have been completely unlucky.

So in order to save the situation on the Eastern Front, and at the same time to save the Eastern Front, which is an indisputable ally. The French Minister first recommended a "peripheral strategy" (the search for decisive battlefields outside the stalemate on the Western Front) to break the stalemate. Churchill offered to use the strength of the British navy to open the Dardanelles and then land in Gallipoli to take Istanbul, the capital of the Ottomens, and drive Turkey out of the war. On the one hand, it relieves the pressure on the Russian Caucasus Mountain Front. The Bosphorus, controlled by Constantinople, would lead directly to the Black Sea to support the Russian army in a bloody battle. And hoped to use this to open up the southern front and attack Austria-Hungary.

And as long as the Dardanelles can be taken, then everything will be better.

On January 2, 1915, the British government accepted the request of Nicholas II and decided to open a new front in the Dardanelles.

And Zhu Erdian came over this time, because it was related to this matter...

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Britain and France were hesitant about Yan Shaoti's accession to the Entente. If they just join, they will naturally welcome it, even if it is just a supporting country waving the flag. But in their opinion, Yan Shao asked for too many things.

Such as tariffs, Weihaiwei, and even post-war compensation. This is more than what a supporting country can get.

And if he sent troops directly, Yan Shao asked for a colony, and the conditions in front of him would not fall.

At present, Britain and France have not yet reached the point of exhaustion. Of course, it is impossible to agree to Yan Shao's request.

Having said that, Zhu Erdian still ran over. Because the situation in Russia is not very good at the moment. So London and Paris asked if it was possible to transport supplies to Russia via the Trans-Siberian Railway in China?

At present, the sea and land may not be able to be opened before the victory of the Battle of the Dardanelles, so if the Trans-Siberian Railway can be used to deliver supplies to Russia in a short time, it may not be as large as the amount of sea transportation, but it will definitely not be less. And now the whole of the Northeast is under China's control. It's easy to do whatever you do.

This time, Zhu Erdian came over for this purpose.

Of course, this is only temporary. Because in the eyes of the British, as long as the Dardanelles Strait can be opened, there will naturally be no need for this railway transportation ...

Listening to Zhu Erdian's request, Yan Shao touched the stubble on his chin.

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Britain was to launch a campaign in the Dardanelles. Something that opens up the Dardanelles. Yan Shao actually already knew about it.

In fact, this news was also obtained by chance, but Yan Shao did not doubt it at all. Having said that, Yan Shao has actually been suspicious of one thing...

"Could Churchill's insistence on seizing the battleships of the Turks be deliberate..."

Looking at Cai Ye and the others standing in front of him, Yan Shao asked with a wry smile.

"What do you mean, President?"

Hearing Yan Shao's question, Cai Yi, Jiang Baili and the others were taken aback.

Deliberately? What does that mean?

Almost everyone was confused, not knowing what Yan Shao meant by what he had just said.

However, Yan Shao did not immediately answer their questions. Instead, he walked and walked alone in the conference room. After a long moment, he looked up at a few people again and asked.

"Do you think Churchill's seizure of the Turks' battleships was deliberate, in order to make the Turks angry and join the Allies?"

Hearing Yan Shao's thoughts, Cai Ye and the others were taken aback again. It's just that after being surprised, Cai Ye and Jiang Baili glanced at each other, and a hint of surprise flashed in their eyes, as if they had figured out something.

Of course, there are many people who can't figure it out at this time, and someone soon asked. "Did the president get any evidence when he spoke?" Standing in front of Yan Shao, Duan Qirui spoke.

"There is no evidence." Yan Shao shook his head. "It's just a little speculation..."

"You should know that we Chinese are called the sick men of East Asia, a title that has only barely gotten rid of since the victory in the Shandong Campaign..." said Yan Shao and looked at everyone. And in Europe, there is also a sick man..."

The term "sick man of East Asia" first appeared as "sick man of the East", which appeared in an article in the English newspaper "Zilin Xibao" run by the British in Shanghai at that time, written by a British, and published on October 17, 1896. According to Liang Qichao's translation: "The husband of China - the sick man of the East, his insensitivity has been insensitive for a long time." ”

In reality, however, the term "Sick Man of East Asia" was coined by analogy with the so-called "Sick Man of Europe" (referring to the Ottoman Turkish Empire) of the Western powers. In other words, in fact, Turkey's status is the same as China's, and it is even more or less stronger than China, after all, Turkey at that time was still working harder, unlike China...

But in this way, the problem also comes.

We all know that countries that generally bear the title of sick man are usually weaker.

Considering China's strength in the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China, we really can't justify anything. And generally speaking, countries with such titles are generally easier to bully...

Winston Churchill, Secretary of the Admiralty, later the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

Although this person's position in history does not seem to be as good as that of Roosevelt or Stalin, as long as you consider that during the war, he had always held an anti-Soviet position, and he would actually join forces with the Soviet Union against Germany, it can be seen that he is absolutely extraordinary.

And after learning that this Churchill was the Churchill that Yan Shao knew, Yan Shao didn't dare to underestimate this person.

In the same way, he began to have deep doubts about Churchill's purpose in seizing the battleship in the first place.

Very simple.

"Can't he see it? Would the seizure of the battleships of the Turks lead to fierce opposition from the Turks, and it is even quite possible to force the Turks over to the side of the Germans? Could he not see that if Turkey sided with the Allies, the entire Black Sea could be blockaded by the Turks. Don't the Russians have no way to get supplies anymore? ”

If this Churchill is really the one that Yan Shao understands, then it is absolutely impossible for him not to understand.

In other words, Churchill was definitely conspiratorial in doing so.

Taking into account the title of the sick man of Europe in Turkey...

I am afraid that in Churchill's view, Turkey is a very good opponent to resolve. Originally, Turkey's political position was unclear, and it was difficult for Britain to find Turkey's handle to attack it. The problem was that Turkey's territory was very large at that time, and the overall situation was very similar to that of China at that time, with a vast territory. But the kind that is not strong enough.

So, if Turkey can be dragged into the water, then the British can reap enough benefits from Turkey.

But think about it the other way around. If you want to reap the benefits, you must not allow Turkey to join the Entente, because then Turkey will be an ally of Great Britain. If it's an ally, then how else can Churchill start? So I had to find a way to force him to the Allies. In this way, Turkey's problems could be resolved at the same time as dealing with the Allies―――――― although this would seem to be an increase in adversaries. But don't forget the title of Turkey's sick man of Europe. One only has to imagine how fragile China really was in the late Qing Dynasty to imagine the superiority of Churchill and other Britons over Turkey.

In their opinion, I am afraid that Turkey is a very good opponent to solve, and it can be solved very lightly. Initially, the blockade of the Black Sea may cause some problems for the Allies, but as long as Turkey is eliminated, then Britain can benefit greatly from Turkey.

In fact, after the dissolution of Turkey, many of Turkey's territories were taken over by the British. And the Ottoman Empire, which originally spanned three continents. Eventually, only the small piece of space that exists is left. It's just such a small piece, and Kemal managed to save it...

But the British clearly miscalculated one thing. That is, the Turks are not as weak as they think, and they can still make some trouble for the British.

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Perhaps because of their contempt for Turkey, the British did not think of the disadvantages of provoking Turkey, but only the advantages of forcing Turkey into the camp of the Allies.

Also considering the prestige of the European steamrollers, I am afraid that the British did not expect that the Russians would be beaten by the Germans so quickly―――――― you must know that at this time the world still has a very high evaluation of the Russians, thinking that the Russians have great strength.

That being the case, then Russia cannot be in trouble because the Black Sea is closed for a short time.

And during the period when the Black Sea was closed, Britain could send troops and launch large-scale battles such as the Battle of the Dardanelles to find a way to solve the Turks, and get the greatest credit for solving Turkey...

It needs to be explained here that the historical Battle of the Dardanelles was originally launched by the British and the Russians. But I don't know what's going on, the British actually did it alone, which is also one of the reasons why the British will fail miserably in history.

However, it is precisely because of this that it may be more evident that the British really wanted to drag the Turks into the water for a long time, and the original policy of seizing the battleships was not to worry that the Turks would throw themselves into the Allies, and it would be more troublesome to clean up these battleships at that time. Rather, they just want to drag the Turks into the water, and then dismember Turkey and distribute the benefits.

If this were not the case, the British would simply not have been able to launch the Battle of the Dardanelles against Turkey themselves. This was done entirely because the British thought that they could solve the matter, but the British miscalculated, the Turks were far stronger than they thought, and the British lost a lot of money in this battle in the world, and the normal battle ended in failure.

The reason for this was that the British underestimated the Turks, and the Turkish Army at that time was completely trained by the Germans, and even the Turks were commanded by German officers at that time.

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Thinking that Turkey was completely dragged into the water by the British, Yan Shao felt a little chilled.

Because he also desecrated this battle in history, after the First World War, Turkey was indeed completely dismembered. If it weren't for the fiasco at the Battle of the Dardanelles, I'm afraid everything would have been as planned by the British.

And as long as he took into account that the British had actually begun to plan such a thing before the war, Yan Shao felt a little chilled.

However, the occurrence of the Battle of the Dardanelles was also in line with Yan Shao's wishes, and the reason was very simple, because Yan Shao originally wanted to see the Europeans cannibalism...

Only if the Europeans lose a lot can China rise, at least in Yan Shao's view, it is extremely correct.

If Europe's strength cannot be suppressed, then China's development space will be limited. Because almost all of the area around China is occupied by foreign powers, including even countries like the United States... (To be continued......)