"Gentlemen, what shall we do now? How can we preserve the interests of the British Empire in the Middle East and curb the ambitions of the Chinese? "Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour asked. He also felt that the current situation is very tricky, the threat of the Chinese to the British Empire in the Middle East is very strict, if it is not handled well, the colonial system of the British Empire in the Middle East and even the whole of Asia will collapse, and this is a complete disaster for Britain, which is dependent on the colonies.

Everyone was silent, and they didn't have a good solution. The current British Empire is no longer the world hegemon of the past. Just after the Boer War, Britain's strength has fallen to the freezing point. In Europe, however, there was a German challenge, which forced Britain to win over France in order to counter Germany. In the face of China's threats and challenges, Britain has become overwhelmed.

"Your Excellency, I think that the reason why China is taking action against Kuwait is not only the ambition of the Chinese, but also the retaliation against us. We joined forces with the French to fight for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with the Chinese, which made the Chinese very dissatisfied. Lord Lansdowne, the Foreign Secretary, said.

"Should we withdraw from this war? In exchange for the understanding of the Chinese? France is now an ally of the British Empire, and we need to help the French. Also, when did the proud British Empire need to be cowardly enough to bow to the Chinese? "Edward, the Colonial Chancellor? Sir Grey said dissatisfied. He was a traditional Englishman, and even though Britain had clearly begun to decline, he still seemed to be immersed in the aura of the British Empire, the world's most powerful country, and did not want to wake up.

"Alright! Then, war, only war, only by winning the Chinese, we will be able to preserve the interests of the British Empire! Lord Lansdoorne said with some exasperation.

Everyone knows that war is the only and most advantageous way to resolve the conflict between Britain and China. But will it be possible to win? No one dares to play this package ticket. The fierce fighting that broke out in the Kingdom last month has thoroughly verified that in terms of land war, if there is no absolute superiority in forces, it seems very difficult for the British and French forces to defeat the Chinese.

"War!" Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour muttered. He could not make up his mind to fight a big war with China in the Middle East. Because, if you can't win, it's not going to end well.

"What do you think?" Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour asked. China's attack on the British colonies has touched Britain's bottom line, and it seems that a war is already inevitable.

"Your Excellency, Prime Minister, if you make up your mind, the Navy will do its best. Although the navy now does not have the ability to compete with the Chinese for command of the Indian Ocean, we can take control of the Red Sea first. As long as heavy troops are deployed in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, it will be able to stop the westward advance of the Chinese navy. At that time, it is possible to take advantage of the sea freight and send a large number of troops to the west of the kingdom. logistical supply, there will not be much of a problem. "Lord of the Admirals John? Sir Fisher built yì tract. The Red Sea is relatively narrow and does not allow for large-scale naval battles. As long as the British Navy takes the lead and blocks the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, it will be able to block the Chinese Navy east of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait with a small number of troops. In this way, Britain would have a favorable opportunity to send a large army to the kingdom and gain the advantage of the war. Although the squadron is strong, as long as Britain and France send troops to the Kingdom with all their might, it will not be difficult to defeat the squadron.

"However, we can only send two 'Dreadnought-class' battleships to the Middle East now, and even if we add the four 'Guba-class' battleships of the French, I'm afraid we won't be able to take advantage of the Chinese!" Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour asked. If there is any more accident in the British Navy, the security of Britain will be shaken. The Germans would have had two more new battleships than the British, and they would certainly not have let go of such an opportunity.

"When it comes to the defense of the homeland, I think we need to turn to our allies. The six Connecticut-class battleships of the U.S. Navy are already in service, and their performance is no worse than our Dreadnought-class battleships, and we can invite the U.S. Navy to visit Wèn in the United Kingdom to fill the gap left by the transfer of all the Dreadnought-class battleships. As our ally, and the United States, which is facing the threat of the Chinese, will not refuse this invitation! "John? Sir Fisher said. Just let the US Navy replace the British Navy, guard the North Sea, and confront the German Navy, not let them fight with the Chinese, which the United States should not refuse. In this way, the British Navy's six 'Dreadnought-class' battleships and the French Navy's four 'Guba-class' battleships would be able to form an absolute superiority over the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet. Unless the Chinese Navy moves the Pacific Fleet to the Middle East, it will not be able to reverse this disadvantage. Moreover, the British Navy needs to at least control the Red Sea, and does not have to enter the Indian Ocean to fight the Chinese Navy. In such a situation, the danger to the British Navy would be greatly reduced.

"So, what about the Army? If the Navy gains control of the Red Sea, how many land forces can be guaranteed to operate in the Kingdom? "Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour asked. Lord of the Admirals John? Sir Fisher's plan is very feasible and, if successful, will be able to win a victory for Britain and France in the Middle East. The geography of the Middle East is destined to not be able to invest too many troops. Backed by the Red Sea, the logistics of the Anglo-French connection are undoubtedly more advantageous. As long as we can defeat the Chinese in the Middle East, we can curb China's ambitions, keep Britain's interests and colonial system in the Middle East, even if we pay certain benefits after the war and sign a treaty with China, it is much better than the complete collapse of the entire colonial system in the Middle East!

"Your Excellency, the second expeditionary force of the army has begun to depart, and the army has entered mobilization. In just one month, we can send 200,000 to 300,000 troops to the Kingdom. Our French allies are almost capable of sending so many troops. In this way, our army in the Middle East will increase to about 600,000. If the Chinese do not increase their troops, or if the total number of additional troops is less than 300,000, then we are very likely to win this war. Powers? Sir Chamberlain said. The Chinese Army was able to transport hundreds of thousands of troops across the Pacific Ocean to the United States to fight. The only advantage of the Anglo-French alliance was that the logistics and transportation lines were shorter than those of China. They only need to cross the Mediterranean, while China needs to cross the Indian Ocean from its homeland, and the distance of logistical supply lines is more than twice that of the Anglo-French army. At the same time, the ports on the Red Sea coast of Tongguò made it easier for the Anglo-French forces to receive logistical support when fighting in the Kingdom, and in such a situation, it was highly likely that the Anglo-French forces would win a big victory.

"What about other people's opinions?" Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour was a little moved. His predecessor, the Marquess of Salisbury, had to step down because he was defeated by the Chinese. If Britain can defeat China under his leadership, even if it is only a local war, then his prestige in Britain will rise a lot. When the time comes, we will be more sure of the next re-election.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, I agree, we have to give those yellow-skinned monkeys a little bit of power!" Colonial Chancellor Edward? Sir Grey agreed first. Among the many ministers in the cabinet, he is probably the most active in calling for war against China.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, we can do this. However, in order to avoid falling into a state of full-scale war with China. I still don't want to declare war on China, still using the war against the Saudi kingdom as an excuse. Lord Lansdowne, the Foreign Secretary, said.

"I agree with His Excellency the Lord's advice, if there is a full-scale war with the Chinese, it will completely collapse Britain!" Chancellor of the Exchequer Charles? Thomson? Rich also said. As soon as the cannon sounds, there are 10,000 taels of gold, and it costs money to fight a war, especially a large-scale war of hundreds of thousands of people, and the military expenditure that needs to be spent is an astronomical amount. A Boer War has cost Britain two or three hundred million pounds, and Britain's treasury is already empty, if Britain hadn't plundered the whole world for so many years, I'm afraid it would have been unable to support it. Therefore, the scale of the war must be controlled.

Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour nodded, and he also agreed to keep the scale of the war in the Middle East. If there is an all-out war, no one can guarantee victory in the end.

"Then, everyone, for the good of the British Empire, let us all act! A month later, we will teach those Chinese a hard lesson in the Middle East, let them know that the British Empire is still not old, and we are still the hegemon of the world! "Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour said.

"Yes, Your Excellency, for the sake of the British Empire World War II!" The rest of the cabinet members chanted.

After the cabinet reached an agreement and made a decision, the British war plane immediately began to speed up. A large number of young people were drafted into the army and then loaded onto ships for the Middle East. The Navy's warships are also open to frequent transfers, and the latest 'Dreadnought-class' battleships also show signs of heading to the Middle East. At the same time, British diplomats are also active all over the world. France, the United States, and Russia all have British diplomats negotiating with governments to prepare for the coming big war. At the same time, the British ambassador to China, Juerdian, also lodged a solemn protest against China's invasion of Kuwait, but no one paid attention to it!