A diplomatic reception team led by Foreign Minister Su Zining and a French diplomatic delegation led by Mazarin are engaged in long and cautious negotiations in the town of Xianglin, Haizhou. The basic rhythm and guiding ideology of the talks were very clear, and a number of countermeasures had already been prepared.

The "Azores Peace Treaty signed by the United States, Britain, and France" 10 years ago is about to expire, and China and the United States will face a major geostrategic adjustment in the North American New World. Unlike many of the vague concepts of inland geographical demarcation in the first signing, this time France and France will more carefully define the inland boundary between the French colony of Quebec and the American Republic of China. In view of the imminent readjustment of the strategy towards Europe, the termination of the renewal of the Azores Peace Treaty between the United States, Britain and France, and the signing of a formal agreement between England and France on the demarcation of the new North American continent are urgent and urgent.

France's exploration of the St. Lawrence River deep into the interior of North America is clearly more dedicated and long-lasting than that of the United States. While French furriers were already widely among the Iroquois and Huron in the Great Lakes, Huamei was still struggling with the Iroquois in the Mohec Valley. However, for Huamei, this time it is necessary for France to recognize that the land on the south shore of the Five Great Lakes belongs to Huamei, and it does not matter how much the French are willing to occupy the vast bitter cold hinterland of Canada.

Another purpose of the negotiations was to conclude the Thirty Years' War in Europe, in which the French were about to draw European countries into another anti-Habsburg coalition.

According to the established plan, Su Zining must let France devote itself to the fourth phase of the European war "without worries", and support any future attitude of Huamei towards England. For this reason, China and the United States are likely to pay a greater price than the original use of England to support Frederick V's "restoration."

According to the diplomatic agreement reached between Su Zining and Mazarin, Huamei and France will formally sign a "commercial loan" with extremely low interest in the American concession in the Azores after the beginning of spring next year, and the amount is likely to reach a huge amount of 5 million US dollars. France will use all of this loan funds to purchase military supplies from the United States, which can be called the largest single European arms sales since the founding of the United States.

Yan Xiaosong was not idle, shouldering the heavy responsibility of grinding with England about the Killarney incident in Ireland. It is located in the American concession of the Azores. Svenbeau, on the other hand, traveled to Lisbon and Seville to enlist the support of Spain and Portugal as much as possible.

……

The absence of the two Ministers and Deputy Ministers of the Foreign Office did not prevent the "National Security Council" from holding an important meeting on October 28 to formally discuss the final solution to the England problem.

The Council of State was a new body formed in 1633 after the new Diet and the Cabinet of the Government came to power. Heads of the two houses, including the Speakers of both Houses, the President, the Prime Minister, the Departments of Defense, Foreign Affairs, Homeland Security, and the Treasury, are members of this body.

“…… Judging from the content of the diplomatic negotiations sent by Haizhou, the French side accepts our position of opening up certain economic and military assistance to France while maintaining neutrality. However, Su Zining still insisted that we temporarily abandon our claim to the 'Lesser Antilles' and recognize that St. Maarten belongs to France. ”

Qi Jianjun unfolded the document and informed the members present of the latest diplomatic developments. I am quite satisfied with Su Zining's work results.

"We will soon formally ask England for a loan that has been postponed for several years." Qi Jianjun raised his head, looked around at the members present, and raised a telegram in his hand, "This is a telegram sent by Yan Xiaosong from the Azores yesterday, the English National Assembly believes that we first violated the London Agreement, there are signs of denying the terms of the island mortgage signed by the English royal family with us, and rejecting our request for them to withdraw from the Northern Islands of the Lesser Antilles!" ”

Good guys, isn't this going to be a direct debt? As soon as this remark came out. Everyone present was stunned.

In the first half of the 17th century, all kinds of pirates were rampant in the waters of the Lesser Antilles, and the northern islands of the archipelago were basically divided by European powers such as England, France, and the Netherlands. In this new era, the Lesser Antilles as a "carte bli" of Spain. The Kingdom of Spain, which was itself on the waning stage and had only verbal rights left, was transferring its bargaining chips to hatred.

Like Spain, Huamei did not have the energy or ability to take care of this scattered island as later generations did. As for the monument of territorial sovereignty that has been lost for many years, in the eyes of the European powers, led by pirates, it is actually no different from the territorial declaration that the Kingdom of Spain has sworn for more than a hundred years.

Maybe it's been planned for a long time. As early as 1631, the English set out from the island of Saint Kitts and Nevis and successively opened up colonial bases on the islands of Antigua, Barbuda, and Monserrat. Especially Montserrate, the closest to Guadeloupe's Butterfly Island. The pirates who served as the advance party of the English colonies even ignored the ornate sovereignty monument on it and went directly to the other side of the island to land and enclosure to establish themselves, and they prepared all the reasons - "a stone monument in one corner does not entitle the whole island." ”

And then what is even more ironic is that England, in turn, shamelessly "volunteered" to mortgage these islands to Huamei in exchange for a large military loan. Once Huamei agrees, he can implement his colonial territorial claims, and he can also exchange for Huamei's long-term military loans like an empty glove white wolf, and he won't have to worry about debts anyway.

Before the time was ripe for a full-scale showdown, the Chinese and American Foreign Ministries had already started a long period of verbal negotiations with the English side on such matters. However, after the incident in Killarney, Ireland, the attitude of the British diplomats in the American Concession in the Azores changed abruptly.

"Hehe, the English have also learned the trick of making a fuss about one thing for another......" Homeland Security Minister Liu Yun immediately laughed when he heard this, "Aren't they looking for a fight?" ”

"The Caribbean isn't our focus at this stage, is it?" Finance Minister Liu Xin raised his hand, slightly worried about Liu Yun's belligerent posture, "In these years, it has taken a lot of energy to clean up the Caribbean pirates, and it is of little practical significance to fall out with the English for those islands that we can't take care of now." And if it's just the arrears, I'm afraid the English people won't give in so easily, a few million dollars is not too much, a lot less, and the overall financial potential of England is still greater than ours. Even if the king is stupid, the Conformists of the National Assembly are far more able to raise money than the royal family, not to mention that they can borrow money from the Dutch, who have better connections. ”

Liu Xin's opinion is very objective. Regarding the gap between the economic strength of China and the United States and the current major European powers, Liu Xin's annual analysis report is the most authoritative in China. Looking at GDP alone, Huamei's GDP in 1634 is expected to exceed $80 million, which is only about 60% of the same period in England's history, not to mention the current European big financier Netherlands.

"No, what Su Zining means is that now is the opportunity to take advantage of the Irish issue, the national debt arrears and the Caribbean island mortgage issue to find an opportunity to attack the Constitutionalism of the National Assembly of England." Senate Speaker Bao Zitu smiled and pointed to the map on the wall, and had long understood the thoughts of Su Zining and the others, "The Irish rebellion and the Scottish Bishops' War. Giving the National Assembly of England a great deal of power ahead of schedule would have made it difficult to expect a civil war in England after 1640. We need an opportunity to intervene in England's internal contradictions and deal a blow to the constitutionalists in the English Parliament, which is more important than the national debt and the Caribbean. ”

As long as the issue of national debt and the Caribbean territory remains unresolved, then China and the United States can take advantage of the issue. Su Zining spent so much energy to make Huamei a creditor of England, obviously not simply because of whether the Little Antilles Islands belonged to Huamei.

Since the Irish support plan has been flawed and twisted because of the Killarney incident, and it has triggered a chain reaction of turmoil in the relationship between the two countries, it may be a perfect opportunity for Huamei, who has been recuperating for several years, to inadvertently insert willows and willows.

"I'll build yì, this time by the way, solve Virginia at once!" Defense Minister Zheng Quan heard that the bun picture had the intention of moving a knife against England. Hurriedly slapped the table to make a statement.

"The intention is too obvious, and if we choose to go to war with England, we will lose an important supply of raw materials and an export market. How much wartime economic pressure can the country withstand now? Zhao Fang, the new speaker of the House of Representatives and the old ship doctor, turned his head to Liu Xin and asked a most critical question.

"According to the number jù statistics. In the first half of the year, England provided us with about 12% of the Atlantic commercial capacity, with import and export trade accounting for 18% of the total share, ranking third. Virginia's cotton and tobacco imports, in particular, account for half of our needs...... Therefore, if the war lasts for more than half a year, the overall loss of our economy next year will not be less than $10 million. In order for England to hit the wall once. Is it worth the price? Liu Xin hurriedly opened his text and said a string of numbers.

"France, Portugal, Sweden, the Netherlands and Spain should be able to work together more to fill this gap. If they play well, we can ask them to cede Virginia, and it's not worth it! "Defense Secretary Zheng Quan is a resolute pro-war faction, and he has long been thinking about Virginia under his nose.

"How can it be so easy to fill...... Our total economic growth for the whole year this year is estimated at only 10 million. In recent years, the population has grown too fast, and although domestic demand has increased considerably, it has also dragged down the finances as a whole, and it is difficult to increase military spending...... If England is on our shoulders, even if we occupy Virginia, it will be equivalent to another burden, and I am afraid that there will be an economic downturn next year. Liu Xin habitually spread his hands, looking like a bitter man in the treasury.

"You can't just look at the economic numbers on the books every time you talk about war, right? By taking Virginia, we will be able to gain a stronger and broader space for development, and we will also have one less strategic hostile direction. Zheng Quan was most disgusted by Liu Xin's attitude of opposing war at all times.

"Liu Xin's opinion is actually very important, that is, how can we get a win-win situation from the war at the same time with minimal economic pressure and a quick recovery of the English market after the war, which is very difficult here. Simply dragging England, reviving the Irish support program, or taking Virginia may seem simpler and more straightforward, but the economic and diplomatic costs will be too high, and it will seriously affect the overall development of the country, and may even trigger hostility in Europe, which is still inconsistent with our original intentions. It is no longer possible to disregard the costs and consequences as when the Far Eastern Fleet was sent. Judging from the current state of Virginia, it is far more practical to be our raw material supplier than to be a territory, and we are not short of land. As long as Virginia's raw material supply is not interrupted by the war, Su Zining's idea of 'peaceful evolution' is in our long-term interest." As a last resort, he did not choose to use force against Virginia. Zhao Fang deserves to be the more stable speaker of the House of Representatives, so he naturally prefers Liu Xin, and Bao Zitu is also nodding slightly.

"Peaceful Evolution...... Hey, that's going to be the Year of the Monkey. Seeing that the speakers of both houses were cautious about the direct use of force, Zheng Quan could only retract his hard-line attitude in a daze.

"Prime Minister. A telegram from Seville from Mr. Swenbeau, Consul General for Europe. ”

Just as everyone was pondering, suddenly the door to the conference room opened, and a clerk brought in a telegram.

Swenbo and Spain completed the negotiations, and the other party took the initiative to come to the door. They accepted the demands of the Irish independence nobles who had secretly withdrawn from Ireland and were ready to intervene in Ireland in the hope that we would join them in supporting the Catholic revolt in Ireland. After reading the message, Qi Jianjun suddenly slapped his palm on the table excitedly, "That's right, Spain is willing to take the lead for us, and the cost and risk of our intervention will be much lower later!" Neither let England treat us as the first mortal enemy, break the jar and break it. And you can borrow someone else's hand to bring England to its knees! ”

"Let Ireland become independent now? I'm afraid it will anger England even more, and it won't be a year and a half to achieve the goal, we can't swallow this piece of meat, right? Liu Xin frowned, and always seemed to feel that it was ridiculous to choose war.

"There is no need to be independent, just grasp the timing and proportionality of intervention, and strive for a part of Ireland to achieve local autonomy, otherwise it will be a life-and-death rival." The bun picture was also eye-catching, and he was the first to understand Qi Jianjun's intentions, "Take a ride in Spain." Get involved at the right time, bring the war to England's doorstep, and take the opportunity to get a piece of the pie! But the excuse for the national debt and the Killarney issue is not enough for now, and Virginia's plan for 'peaceful evolution' remains unchanged. But there are some activities that can be properly arranged by the Military Intelligence Agency...... Lao Zheng, you and Liu Yun have a good discussion to see how to make the mess in Virginia bigger. ”

As soon as these words came out, the members of the National Security Council at the scene suddenly realized. One by one, they gave a thumbs up to the bun map.

The "disposal" plan for England was thus preliminarily confirmed, in order to deal with the Atlantic situation in the next few years, under the advice of Zheng Quan. The members present agreed in principle to propose at the next session of the National Assembly a proposal to increase the military expenditure of the Navy to start construction of one large light cruiser of the Princess class at the end of 1634 and the beginning of 1635.

In the past first four-year national development plan, the defense budget was suppressed to the lowest point in order to save money to make way for economic development across the board. In the whole of last year, the Navy did not start construction of any capital warships, and in the second half of this year, only two low-cost Sativa-class all-steam-powered light cruisers with a full load displacement of 1,450 tons were started.

Since the financial work for this year had been basically completed, and the state budget for 1635 had almost been drawn up, the basic idea was still to emphasize domestic affairs over military affairs, so there was not much room for operation in this temporary naval shipbuilding program. Once the temporary construction plan was completed, the Treasury Department would have to temporarily issue an additional $1 million in special naval bonds to fund the construction of two large Princess-class light cruisers.

It will take some time to communicate whether the National Security Council's internal resolution will be supported by the majority of the Congress, but it is undeniable that this is probably the best time for China to bite off a big piece of meat from England at a safer military and economic cost since the signing of the Azorean Peace of England in 1624.

……

A week later, good news came from Xianglin Town, Haizhou, that the "Treaty of Friendship between the United States and France in Xianglin" had been formally signed, and many issues had been settled one by one after nearly a month of arduous negotiations. The only regret left is that the Southern Ontario region, which is "inserted into the heart of the Great Lakes", on the northwest shore of Lake Ontario, has not yet reached a consensus on demarcation.

According to the demands of the Chinese and American sides, the land on the south shore of the five lakes should belong to Huamei, but the Southern Ontario region belongs to the south shore from the perspective of Lake Huron, and from the perspective of Lake Ontario, it belongs to the north shore. The French could hardly part of such a warm and humid place – even though they did not have the strength to occupy it at the moment. "Setting aside disputes" becomes the content of the parties' second ambiguity in this Treaty.

All that remains is to wait for when Spain will send the "invitation". (To be continued......)