Bright sunlight slanted through the window, illuminating the already gilded and silver-decorated Byzantine parlor.

"The annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina by Austria-Hungary is an internal affair between the Balkan countries and has no direct interest in the German Empire; Germany merely adheres to the obligations of an ally, and expresses its neutrality towards its allies' support rather than approval. As for the psychological damage caused to your people by the Austro-Hungarian annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany can only express its deepest regret to your country. Qing Ying said bitterly, as if the tragedy had taken the lives of his loved ones. Although he already knew that Camille in front of him actually had no real hole cards in his hand, out of consideration for winning over the Turks, Qingying still decided to show his sincerity to the other party first; He adjusted his state slightly, and suddenly fully opened the actor-level strength that he had honed after more than ten years of career as a crown prince.

Camille listened quietly to Qingying's words and did not reply immediately. At present, the attitude displayed by this young man is still at the superficial stage, and under the circumstances of the Austro-Hungarian annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the sudden tension in the Balkans, the Crown Prince of the German Empire has made a special trip to Istanbul, which has traveled thousands of miles to visit Istanbul, which has a completely different religion and culture.

"Thirty years ago, Germany had concluded a treaty of alliance with Austria-Hungary. Today, Germany and Austria have long been an offensive and defensive iron ally; As long as the decision-makers in Vienna were not crazy and did something unthinkable, the German Empire would support them as allies. However, your country is also a friendly country with which we have a traditional friendship. With the construction of the Eastern Railway and the increasing number of German officers serving in your army. As a result, the economic, trade and military ties between the two countries have deepened, and Germany has become your country's third largest trading partner and the most important presence to help your country retrain its army. Qingying said unhurriedly. After that, Kamil's face couldn't help but change, "Therefore, based on the issue of Austria-Hungary's annexation of Bosnia, the German Empire is willing to act as an intermediary to let Austria-Hungary and your country get a mutually satisfactory solution within the framework of the same friendly German countries!" ”

Here it comes! Camille said secretly in his heart, and then a trace of excitement quietly spread in his heart. Although the foreign crown prince in front of him is no different from a senior diplomat in terms of acting skills, his milky age of just turning 25 is an unavoidable flaw; Perhaps he will use this to capture the hearts of many young girls and deep ladies at the welcome party held later. However, in the negotiation, he can only be abused by himself. He just adopted a relatively tough tone without a trace at the beginning of the negotiation, and the young man was flustered, and then he couldn't wait to play the hole cards in his hand!

"Dare to ask Your Highness, what is the solution proposed by your country to this problem?" Camille reined in his thoughts. He smiled slightly. Kamile did not have much resistance to Germany's condescending approach to allowing Austria-Hungary and Turkey to settle the problem under the so-called "German framework", just as parents mediated a child's fight. In the present age when the fist is the truth, Germany has the capital to do so; Not to mention that he has dealt with the British for many years. There is already enough immunity to this. The attitude of those gentlemen in suits and leather shoes towards Turkey is much worse than that of Germany!

"Mr. Kamil, I would like to stress at the outset that, by the Treaty of Berlin of 1878, your country has given the administration of the two provinces of Bosnia and Herzegovina to Austria-Hungary in return for helping you in the treaty against Russia. In this land, far from the core of your country, the garrison is also composed of troops loyal to the Habsburg Empire. Austria-Hungary's declaration of sovereignty over Bosnia and Herzegovina is not in line with international norms and has aroused dissatisfaction in your country. But it is a practical embodiment of the current situation of the two provinces over the years. ”

Qingying paused, and then said: "If your country insists on maintaining sovereignty over the two provinces of Bosnia and Herzegovina. If you refuse to recognize the Austro-Hungarian occupation of the place, then with all due respect, it will not be of any interest to your country. With the present strength of your country, it is impossible to contend directly with the army of Vienna; Serbia and Russia, while also resentful of Austria-Hungary's annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, will not act on this matter. So far, Russia and Cyprus have not shown any signs of mobilizing for war, and there has been no more voice after a few weak protests that are not painful; It is conceivable that it will not be long before they recognize the established fact of the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina by Austria-Hungary. Therefore, if your country chooses to persist in the struggle, not only will it not be able to recover the two provinces of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but it will be at odds with Vienna and Germany behind her; Your Government has always been far-sighted, and I would not have done such a harmful and unhelpful thing. ”

Camille's eyes froze slightly, and he said in a deep voice: "Although it is difficult for our country to defeat Austria-Hungary militarily, this does not mean that we will give up the glory that has lasted for 600 years. Moreover, not all countries are afraid of Vienna; In the light of Allah, there will always be a strong force of justice that will stand firmly on the side of the Turkish people. If the Viennese side always ignores our interests, then we can only choose to wage a long and arduous struggle against them, even if we are ultimately doomed. ”

"Your Excellency the Grand Vizier, stubbornly fighting for the sake of so-called glory is what I personally consider to be a pointless act. It is precisely because the British are aware of this that they have chosen to stop a shipbuilding race that is destined to be impossible to achieve their imaginary ratio of the number of capital ships to Germany, and by taking the initiative to recognize Germany's maritime rights and interests, so that both sides can save their finances from the heavy pressure of the shipbuilding race. In the face of tangible benefits, no qualified politician will choose to give up interests for the sake of a superficial reputation. Qingying spoke calmly, and used the previous naval agreement between Britain and Germany to simply and directly respond to the blackmail threat contained in Camille's words. He glanced at the person in front of him and said, "Through the painstaking diplomatic mediation of the German Empire, on my way to Istanbul, Germany has reached a mutual agreement with Austria-Hungary on the question of Bosnia and Herzegovina. ”

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"Germany expresses its deep condolences and sympathy for the wounded hearts of your people. It is for this reason that, with the vigorous mediation of Germany, Austria-Hungary has promised to pay you a sum of no less than 1,800,000 pounds sterling to purchase their sovereignty over Bosnia and Herzegovina. Of course, if you consider this amount to be too low, you can still have friendly and pleasant negotiations with Austria-Hungary. In addition, the Austro-Hungarian side will express its regret at the harm caused to your country by occupying the Bosnia and Herzegovina region by vigorously endorsing your government's long-awaited plan to raise tariffs. Qingying took a sip of the coffee in his hand and said, "I think these two measures should be enough to show the sincerity of the German Empire and Austria-Hungary, right?" ”

Hearing the solution given by Qingying, Camille couldn't help but quickly calculate it in his mind.

Ever since Austria-Hungary declared sovereignty over Bosnia and Herzegovina, Camille knew that the annexation of the region by Austria-Hungary was a foregone conclusion. With the defeat of Russia in the Far East, the original-for-tat situation between Russia and Austria in the Balkans was reversed in an instant; At present, the entire Balkan Peninsula has been completely enveloped by the strength of Austria-Hungary, and there is no force that can confront the German-Austrian troops in the Balkans. Therefore, it was impossible for Austria-Hungary to spit out the meat that had been eaten in its mouth, and the so-called "ransom" method of giving the Turks a step down and compensating them financially was the greatest concession that the Austro-Hungarian side could make. Although the compensation of 1.8 million pounds seems a bit of a chicken in Camille's eyes, it is still the bare minimum that can be bargained; As long as he worked his own, he could still get a good amount of reparations for Ottoman's strapped finances!

Compared with this indemnity, which is more symbolic than practical, Austria-Hungary's attitude in favor of Turkey's tariff increase really made Kamil feel a little moved. As a declining country whose customs and national economy depended on the eyes of the great powers, the "sick man of Europe", the Ottoman Empire, had no power to tariff autonomously; The predecessor, Sultan Hamid II, repeatedly tried to expand the sources of wealth in terms of tariffs in order to increase fiscal revenues and gradually break away from the control of French capital over the Ottoman economy, but the British and French flatly refused. After years of hard work, the French-controlled "National Debt Management Committee" reluctantly agreed to raise imperial tariffs by 3 percentage points, and more than three-quarters of its revenue was invested in reforms in Macedonia and in the provision of deposits for the Eastern Railway, with very little actual government control at its disposal. The new government, which has just been formed, is spending a lot of money and is preparing to raise the tariff from the current 11% to 15%; If this plan can be approved with the support of Germany and Austria, it will be tantamount to a long and lucrative income for the Empire, which is far better than the indemnity!

"By accepting the mediation plan proposed by Germany, in addition to the tangible economic benefits that your country can reap, the Eastern Railway Line that drives your country's economic development and the German instructors who enhance the combat effectiveness of your army will also be maintained because of the friendship between your country and Germany." Qingying smiled slightly and said, "If your country chooses to refuse, then not only will all the benefits I mentioned before be lost, but your country will also lose the friendship of the only big country that really wants to help your country become strong and prosperous, and it will fall back into poverty, backwardness, and being surrounded on all sides." It is up to you, Your Excellency, to decide for yourself. (To be continued......)