Sunlight pours into the room through the gaps in the leaves, creating a soft and relaxing sense of tranquility.

In fact, France's rapid rise to prominence after the Franco-Prussian War and its resurgence as a threat to the empire was due to a combination of factors. Economically, France's huge overseas colonies provided them with a steady stream of blood transfusions, giving them the foundation and strength to return to a first-class power; In politics, the Russian giant's rebellion against us has also become the core capital of their revenge plan. ”

Qingying spoke unhurriedly, clearly and hierarchically: "As long as we take away the French colonies, then they will naturally become marginal characters who can only take a back seat." They could no longer suck the wealth and blood of the natives of the colony through the guò trade scissors; Its own strength alone was no match for Germany. It is foreseeable that for a long time after the end of the war, France will inevitably fall into a severe economic recession due to the loss of its colonies: the sudden loss of overseas markets will inevitably lead to a large surplus of their commodity capacity, and the entire country's industrial economy will suffer an irreparable blow. ”

"The situation in Germany is the exact opposite of that in France. Through the Treaty of Brest, we were given nearly a million square kilometers of Eastern European land, all of which were the elite heartland of the former Russia; If the world's second-largest French colony could be obtained, it would be able to open up a huge market and promote the empire's economy to take off at an unprecedented rate. Ten years from now, Germany's national power will be at an all-time high; At that point, we don't have to make a representation. The French will also be because of this irresistible disparity in strength. And he took the initiative to stretch out his right hand and point at Germany to form a seal of reconciliation. This is also the most favorable situation for the Empire. Qingying said with a smile on her face.

William savored Qingying's words carefully. A pair of eyes gradually revealed a look of enlightenment.

William had been aware of the importance of the colonies and overseas markets long before he ascended the throne. If this were not the case, he would not have put forward the famous "world empire" strategy, and he would not hesitate to turn against his British relatives to expand the market and develop the navy. In previous peace talks, it was also within William's demands that France surrender its colonies. What he realized was an ideal way to get the expected harvest at the lowest cost.

At present, if Germany continues to adhere to the established regulations of severe punishment against France, the cost of a protracted war will inevitably increase dramatically: after all, the current infiltration tactics are still flawed. It is also difficult to estimate how far the French will resist alcohol. By contrast, an immediate truce centered on the plundering of the colonies has a clear and shining prospect.

With the dividends of the war, Germany was able to make a rapid leap forward in power beyond the early days of the founding of the state: the land of Eastern Europe, which had been ceded from Russia, was a vast land. The defeated France, on the other hand, did not have the conditions to recover at all: industrial contraction and economic downturn would surely become their main theme for a long time after the war. In other words, when the peace of the war in Europe is concluded, the strategic balance between Germany and France will only shift in the same way as the German side, and the longer it lasts, the more favorable it will be for Germany!

When the French found that there was a qualitative difference in the strength of the two sides, they did not completely wipe out their country and nation. No matter how unwilling they are in their hearts, they can only choose to accompany Berlin. Because the European landscape today has changed radically from hundreds of years before: the Russian giant was not only completely defeated in war. And it has fallen into a state of fragmented chaos; In this situation, Germany is already the dominant power on the European continent, even if the French have the courage to do so, they may not dare to touch the other side's scales. You must know that even in 1913, when they had already made long-term preparations for war, the French only dared to draw their swords against Germany that refused to back down after receiving the assurances of St. Petersburg. In the first Moroccan crisis before, France, which was only in the field, was thrown out of the ring by Germany and Austria in just one face; In the face of the threat of war from Berlin, the French government was simply helpless and could only act in full accordance with the will of the other side in the end!

"France must surrender all their colonies. In addition to the rich French Indochina and French West Africa, the scattered islands in the three oceans had to be represented: for these islands, we would either need to trade them with other countries after the war, or we would need to develop them into imperial military bases overseas. This is also the bottom line of negotiations that we should adhere to. If the Bordeaux government refuses to accept it, then we will have to continue the war until they are completely defeated. Seeing William's brows gradually stretch, Qingying understood that he had figured out the key point, and immediately told all his thoughts, "Of course, the probability of this happening is undoubtedly quite small. In the choice of overseas territories and homeland, I do not think that the French will abandon their own people for the sake of those black uncles. ”

William let out a long breath, and his gaze at Qingying finally became completely clear. Although the total loss of the colonies was still a blow to France, the world's second colonial power, it was a blessing in misfortune that the homeland could be preserved in this apocalyptic catastrophe. Compared with the previous demand for an armistice, which could be described as frenzied, such conditions were obviously more acceptable to the French. After a moment of silence, William finally spoke: "Ettel, it's up to you to convince Helmut and them about this matter." As soon as the military approves the bill, I will immediately ask the prime minister and state secretaries to put it into practice in the negotiations. ”

A smile appeared on Qingying's face, and then she agreed.

"And what about the British, what are you going to do with this distant cousin who does not hesitate to collude with France, the old feud of the millennium, and who wants to put my Germany to death? They suffered another humiliating defeat in a naval battle that had just ended, and their attempt to use a partial victory to regain their negotiating disadvantage was aborted. Wilhelm spoke again, with a hint of hatred in his words, "A year ago, I fantasized about being able to live in peace with these relatives, and even restrained the demands of the naval fleet in every possible way: yet all their actions were aimed at putting my Germany to death!" I don't want to have any affection for this hatred sower that has always stirred up strife in Europe and built its own interests on the blood and tears of others. ”

Looking at William's face that could not hide his anger, Qingying, who accompanied him all the way, couldn't help but sigh secretly, and he could already fully understand the mood of the person in front of him.

More than half a century ago, Frederick, who was still the crown prince of Prussia, married the eldest princess of Queen Victoria of England because of his political marriage; And their first child, William, in 1859, was deeply imprinted in England from the day he was born. In the 50 years since, although the world situation has undergone extensive and far-reaching upheavals, William himself has grown from a model boy who admires the British Empire to a rebellious uncle who "raises his voice and wields a big gun"; But whether it was the construction of a fleet or the reorganization of armaments, all he sought was to enable Britain to listen to the demands of Germany, a new power, in order to obtain the conditions that Germany deserved for normal development by peaceful means. However, Britain, which has controlled the seas and dominated the world for hundreds of years, has long regarded sea power and the world market as its own forbidden in extreme pathological paranoia; In the face of Germany's legitimate demands, they repeatedly responded in the most drastic manner, even at the cost of waging war against their long-cherished enemies, France and Russia, to eliminate the threat of German challengers. In this case, even the clay figurines have three points of fire, let alone William, a great emperor who has been in power for a long time and has made great achievements in office?

After the signing of the Treaty of Brest, Qing Ying also considered in detail the relationship that Britain and Germany should maintain after the war. Although Qing Ying himself did not have a liking for Britain, the-stirring stick of the European continent, he had to face up to the fact that the reconciliation reached after experiencing the pain of war was more in Germany's interests than the never-ending struggle.

In 1896, Tirpitz put the famous "risk fleet" theory into practice and put it into practice. The central thrust of the plan was to build a fleet that Britain would have to pay a heavy price to defeat, so as to curb Britain's war adventures against Germany and gain friendship with Britain. Although Tirpitz underestimated Britain's pathological ambition for the monopoly of the seas, the London government still read out a declaration of war on Germany under the coercion of warmongers; However, this year-long war has also truly demonstrated the meaning of "risk" that the "risk fleet" cannot intuitively show in peacetime, that is, the huge losses that will be borne when starting a war and the meager gains that are not proportional to it at all.

So far, Britain has suffered 700,000 casualties in the war; What made them even more thrilling was the sinking of as many as 24 core capital ships of the Royal Navy. The heavy losses of the fleet directly led to the change of sea power, and this directly affected the sea shipping on which Britain depended for its survival, as if it were dominoes. More than 2,200 British merchant ships were sunk in the war, and the total cargo loss amounted to 5 million tons. Britain's domestic supplies have withered, and the people who have been fooled and propagated by the government media have deeply experienced the pain caused by the war; And in order not to let this suffering continue, they will inevitably yearn to end this nightmarish war and never devote themselves to it again. And this is also an opportunity for reconciliation between Germany and the other side. (To be continued......)

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