On April 1, 1861, Imperial Foreign Minister Wei Yuan had arrived in Singapore, the capital of the Imperial Straits Province. He will be here to greet the visiting delegations. Wait until all the missions have arrived, and then go to the empire together. Missions from various countries will also transfer to the Imperial Family's Royal Princess cruise ship in Singapore. Although some foreign missions were a little puzzled about this request of the Chinese Empire, they still did not raise any objections.

The first to arrive in Singapore was the mission of the Kingdom of Afghanistan, where King Akbar Khan of Afghanistan arrived with his ministers on an ordinary merchant ship. He was then placed in a luxury hotel in Minato Ward.

Subsequently, the Spanish mission, the Belgian mission, the Republic of Ireland, and the Kingdom of Scotland missions also arrived. The last to arrive was Mustafa of the Ottoman Turkish Empire. Lester. Pasha as well as the mission of the Republic of Chile.

In the evening of the same day, Imperial Foreign Minister Wei Yuan hosted a welcome dinner at the hotel for the arrival of the missions.

"Your Excellency, Your Excellency, Your Excellencies, welcome to the Chinese Empire. Tomorrow morning, we will take the Oriental Princess cruise ship to the imperial capital. Thank you for coming, and I hope this trip will bring you an unforgettable memory! Wei Yuan smiled. The reason why the missions of various countries were left in Singapore and then unified to the capital of the empire. It was because the empire had arranged a special welcome ceremony for these guests who had come from afar. On the one hand, it was to increase the confidence of the allies of these empires, but also to let them see the great military power of the empire.

"Lord Wei, why can't we go directly to Huaxia City, and have to wait here for so long? As the most loyal ally of the Chinese Empire. Is there anything the Chinese Empire is still hiding from us? A somewhat abrupt voice suddenly sounded.

The person who spoke was none other than Prince Castel, the husband of Queen Isabella II of Spain. Though. He asked the question that was on everyone's mind. But everyone looked at the way he looked. But it's like looking at an idiot. Why the Chinese Empire did this, naturally there is the intention of the Chinese Empire. As an ally and guest of the Chinese Empire, everyone is free to entertain. Take the initiative to provoke this problem, isn't that uncomfortable for yourself?

Custer had just married Queen Isabella II not long ago, and he was still not part of the world's top power circles. However, he really wanted to be able to embody his sense of existence. In any case, the Kingdom of Spain was second only to the Chinese Empire's allies. As the husband of the monarch of this country, then his status should always be reflected!

So. Prince Custer looked triumphant after asking. As if to say, "Look, you don't dare ask, I just asked." The Chinese won't do anything to me. I am the prince of the Kingdom of Spain, and the Chinese Empire will also give me some face! ”

"Your Royal Highness, the Empire has its own arrangements for this. As for what it is, for the sake of secrecy, I can't say it now. I promise, though. This time it will definitely make you feel that the trip is worth it! Wei Yuan still looked smiling. But in fact, there is already some dissatisfaction with Prince Custer. He was nothing more than a prince with no real power, and if he weren't the queen's husband, the empire wouldn't have looked at him properly. Wei Yuan had also heard of this Prince Custer, and his reputation was not very good. Some are too self-righteous.

Prince Custer wanted to continue to ask something, but was stopped by a stern look from Isabella II. This shocked Prince Custer's heart. Did he do something wrong? You know, all of his glory comes from Queen Isabella II! If it disgusts the Queen. Then he's completely finished. Custer was a man who was extremely fond of power, otherwise he would not have married Queen Isabella II, who was fat and like a pig.

"Idiot. Shut up! The intentions of the Chinese Empire are not something you can question. If I have any objections, I'll go back to Madrid! Queen Isabella II scolded.

Prince Custer's face turned blue and white for a while, but he didn't dare to speak again after all. He knew that he seemed to overestimate his position in the heart of Queen Isabella II, and also underestimated the influence of the Chinese Empire.

This little episode didn't make any difference. After the banquet began, the envoys from various countries divided into small groups to talk about their interests. Monarchs tended to stay together, and ministers communicated privately.

The most talked about is undoubtedly the formation of the Holy Alliance, which is obviously a threat to those countries that support the Chinese Empire. Everyone speculates that this time the Chinese Empire invited everyone to visit Wèn, for the sake of this must be the same thing. It is almost certain that this time the Chinese Empire also wants to lead an alliance and let everyone join in to deal with the Holy Alliance.

Although the Holy Alliance is strong, the strength of the Chinese Empire is not weak. In a way, the Chinese Empire was stronger. It's just that because the Chinese Empire is too far away from Europe, it is not easy to project military strength to Europe, which gives the German Empire the opportunity to provoke the Chinese Empire. However, on the whole, the Chinese Empire still has a better chance of winning. Therefore, they are still willing to stand on the side of the Chinese Empire. Even if the situation may not be good at the beginning of the war, when the Chinese Empire's troops arrive in Europe, they will definitely be able to defeat the Holy Alliance.

On April 2, the Royal Princess set sail from Singapore to Huaxia City, the capital of the Chinese Empire. It is the most luxurious new cruise ship in the Empire, with hundreds of luxurious rooms, swimming pools, restaurants, and other recreational facilities.

The luxury of the Royal Princess cruise ship shocked the monarchs of various countries who went to the capital of the Chinese Empire. Some monarchs are even considering whether they should also order such a luxury cruise ship. However, when the thought of the imminent outbreak of war and the necessity of devoting the national strength of all countries to the war of arms expansion, everyone can only press this thought. If they had won the war after the war, they would have been able to order one of these ships. After all, once they win the war, the gains they will have will be staggering. Ordering such a cruise ship is just a trivial matter.

On April 5, when the Royal Princess sailed into the central part of the South China Sea, Wei Yuan summoned the members of the missions of various countries to the deck. This made the members of the missions of various countries even more confused.

"Ladies and gentlemen, for your arrival, the Empire has specially prepared a welcome ceremony, I hope you can be satisfied!" Wei Yuan said.

"The welcome ceremony? At sea? What's going on? "Everyone looked at each other.

However, it soon became clear that the anomaly was discovered. In the distance, where the sea and the sky met, thick black plumes appeared. Anyone with experience knows that this is the smoke rising from the chimneys of large warships. Although, the warships of the Imperial Navy now used boilers with full heavy oil. However, when the boiler is overloaded and the maximum speed is exerted, it will still emit thick smoke.

"Oh God! That's a battleship. What a huge battleship! "Crown Prince Leopold of Belgium. Victor exclaimed.

In everyone's shocked eyes, eight huge battleships appeared more than ten kilometers away from the Royal Princess cruise ship. Even though they were more than ten kilometers away, those huge battleships still seemed to be like small hills floating on the sea.

These warships are the 'Northern Song Dynasty-class' battleships that have just been commissioned by the Imperial Navy, a total of eight battleships, and they have just completed sea trials. In order to welcome the delegations of various countries to the Chinese Empire this time, they were specially dispatched. After that, these 'Northern Song class' battleships will be divided into two parts, four will remain in the 1st Fleet, and the other four will go to Europe to join the 5th Fleet.

An old armored cruiser appeared fifteen kilometers away in the sea, sailing at a speed of twelve knots. This armored cruiser was the trophy of the Empire's last war. After capturing these ships from the British, they were not dismantled, but were used exclusively as target ships for training.

On the battleship "Song Taizu", the new flagship of the 1st Fleet of the Imperial Navy, Admiral Xu Haihai, commander of the 1st Fleet of the Imperial Navy, gave the order to shell the target ship.

"Let's work hard, let those earth leopards who have never seen the market see the strength of the Imperial Navy!" General Xu Haihai shouted loudly.

"Yes, Commander!"

Two minutes later, the battleship 'Song Taizu' began to roar. The design of the three triple 356-mm guns carried on the battleship began. Orange-red flames shone in the muzzle, and shells weighing hundreds of kilograms had already flown out.

"Boom! Rumble! Rumble! ”

The cannonballs exploded in the distance, splashing jets of water on the surface of the sea, as if whales were spraying water.

After the 'Song Taizu' battleship began shelling, the remaining four 'Northern Song Dynasty-class' battleships also began shelling.

For a time, the sound of artillery on the sea was rumbling, and the smoke of gunpowder was filled. As for the armored cruiser as a target ship, it was even more in turmoil. Columns of water rose from around it, as if they were about to overturn.

"Boom!"

A cloud of fire rose from the armored cruiser, and a 356-mm shell accurately hit the front deck of the armored cruiser. Thin armor simply could not withstand shells weighing hundreds of kilograms. After the shell smashed through the foredeck, it exploded inside the battleship. The huge power directly blew up the entire ship's capital.

In just about ten minutes, an armored cruiser with a displacement of more than 7,000 tons sank into the sea. (To be continued......)

PS: The third update is here, asking for subscriptions, monthly passes and recommended tickets! Thank you to the book friend YQM508 and the military master for the monthly pass of 1989!