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The British Prime Minister, Earl Stanley, frowned tightly, as if he was considering the British Foreign Secretary, the Earl of Granville. The establishment of the Canal Development Company by China, France, and Spain to build a canal connecting the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea will pose a great challenge to the British colonial system in the world. Before the rise of the Chinese Empire, Britain was opposed to the construction of canals, which would shorten the distance from India to Europe. It was easier for the European powers to send troops to invade India. But now, the unexpected rise of the Chinese Empire posed a great threat to British India. Now, if the canal is opened, it will be beneficial for Britain to defend India. After all, without a detour to the Cape of Good Hope, the British Navy would be able to arrive in India at least ten days ahead of schedule. It's just that if the canal is in the hands of China, France and Spain, once the war breaks out, the canal will definitely be blocked. When the time comes, it will be very unfavorable to the UK.

The Earl of Stanley fully agreed with the Earl of Granville that Britain had to be involved in the construction of the canal. If China, France and Spain want to exclude Britain, it will never work. If it doesn't work, they can even start from scratch. Unite with other European powers to form a separate canal development company. With the financial resources of Britain, it was enough to support the excavation of the canal. Moreover, the relationship between Britain and Egypt is much closer than that between China, France and Spain and Egypt. It would have been easier for Britain to obtain the right to dig the canal.

However, the Earl of Stanley also had some concerns. China, France and Spain have formed an alliance over the construction of the canal. If Britain wants to join it, it will inevitably lead to strong opposition from China, France and Spain. At that time, Britain will definitely have a serious conflict with China, France and Spain. There is even the possibility of a war. A Chinese empire would make Britain miserable, and with the kingdoms of France and Spain, Britain really had no hope of winning!

"Your Excellency, the British Empire must join in the excavation of the canal, and no one wants to leave the British Empire behind. However, it is necessary to be flexible in dealing with this matter. I did not want this to be the trigger for a war between Britain and China, France and Spain. Earl Stanley said. Britain in Burma's war with the Chinese Empire. Hundreds of thousands of troops were lost, and huge ransoms were paid. In addition, now the British Royal Navy is building warships on a large scale, which is really unable to support a large-scale war.

"Yes. Your Excellency the Prime Minister. I think that as long as we can get the Chinese right, we should be able to join in the excavation of the canal. I built yì, in the name of Her Majesty the Queen. Invite the Emperor of China to visit Wèn in England. That's the case. We will have the opportunity to negotiate with the Chinese. Moreover, at this stage, we also need to ease relations with the Chinese. The Earl of Granville said. Now the relationship between Britain and the Chinese Empire is too tense. This is clearly not conducive to the development of the UK's next plans. Although the contradictions between Britain and the Chinese Empire were irreconcilable. But at this stage, it is obviously more advantageous to hide the contradictions.

Earl Stanley nodded, there are no eternal friends in the world, let alone eternal enemies. Britain and the Chinese Empire were at odds on many issues. But this did not mean that Britain and the Chinese Empire could not cooperate on certain projects.

"Still. Even if we ask the Chinese emperor to come to England to visit Wèn, will he dare to come? Won't he be afraid that we will imprison him when the time comes? Earl Stanley said with a smile. After all. Britain and the Chinese Empire had just fought a war, and if Britain imprisoned the emperor of the Chinese Empire, the Chinese Empire would be miserable. Of course, if Britain does this, it will be completely discredited.

"Your Excellency, the Emperor of China should come. However, we may have to do some preparation first. In particular, those who oppose the Chinese Empire must first be restrained. Said the Earl of Granville.

"Well, we'll say hello to the newspapers then." Earl Stanley said. After the Chinese fleet brazenly bombarded Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, and brutally seized the Azores from Portugal, under the planning of the British, the whole of Europe set off a trend of thought against the Chinese Empire, and many mainstream newspapers were preaching that the Chinese Empire would invade Europe and promote the threat of the 'Yellow Peril'. Now it seems that the results have been huge. The image of the Chinese empire in the West has once again been discredited. It's just that if you want to invite the Chinese emperor to visit the United Kingdom, these remarks seem a little inappropriate. You'll have to suppress it a bit. Of course, after the visit of the Chinese emperor is over, it can be continued.

"Your Excellency, please go to Paris in person, and invite the Emperor of China to visit England on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen. I will go to Windsor Castle and mention it to Her Majesty the Queen and Her Royal Highness Prince Albert. Earl Stanley said.

"Yes, Your Excellency Prime Minister." The Earl of Granville nodded. Although Britain is a constitutional monarchy, the current queen still has a lot of power. On many issues, the Cabinet still needs the Queen's consent.

"By the way, Your Excellency the Foreign Secretary, when you arrive in Paris, you may first negotiate with China, France, and Spain about the British joining the Canal Development Company. Strive to be able to obtain their consent. In the Canal Development Company, we have to take at least a stake in France! Earl Stanley said. In the Chinese, French and Spanish canal development companies, the difference between Chinese and French shares is only 5 percent. If the UK were to get involved, the shares would have to be redistributed. Of course, if possible, the UK will also fight for more shares in order to be able to gain more voice.

The Earl of Granville, the British Foreign Secretary, hurried to Paris to negotiate with China, France and Spain about Britain's entry into the Canal Development Company, and asked the Chinese Emperor Long Yu to visit Britain. The Prime Minister, the Earl of Stanley, travelled to Windsor Castle to report to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

Located in Berkshire, a southeastern region of England, Windsor Castle dates back to the time of William I, with a floor area of approximately 45,000 square metres. Like Buckingham Palace in London and the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, Windsor Castle is the main administrative residence of the British monarchy. The Queen of England spends most of her time either at Buckingham Palace or at Windsor Castle.

Windsor Castle is only 40 kilometres from London and is connected by paved roads, and it took only two hours for Prime Minister Earl Stanley to appear at Windsor Castle. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert summoned the Earl of Stanley.

"Your Excellency, what do you say? Do you want me to invite the Emperor of China to visit the United Kingdom? No, it's absolutely not going to work! That nasty fellow, he took away the Straits Settlements and Australia, and also killed hundreds of thousands of British soldiers in Burma. He's a demon in his own right, and I won't allow this demon to set foot on British soil! Queen Victoria screamed. Although Queen Victoria is only 26 years old, she is much more mature than when she succeeded to the throne. However, her hatred of the Chinese Empire did not lessen much. At the beginning, in order to open up the Chinese market, she vigorously launched a war against the Manchus. Eventually, the war was won, and Queen Victoria's prestige increased like never before. However, in the ensuing wars with the Chinese Empire, the British were repeatedly defeated, which made her very angry.

Prince Albert and Earl Stanley both frowned, speechless at Queen Victoria's willfulness.

"Your Majesty, the time has come for us to improve relations with the Chinese Empire. Otherwise, the British Empire will lose even more! Earl Stanley said.

Queen Victoria had a cold face and said nothing, obviously still disagreeing with Earl Stanley.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, is it for the joint establishment of the Canal Development Company between China and the West?" Prince Albert asked. The British royal family also has their own sources of intelligence, and they know about it.

"Yes, Your Highness. The opening of the canal is very important. This canal must not be in the hands of China, France and Spain. If it did not have full control of the canal, the British Empire would at least have to join it. Otherwise, the British Empire would be in an extremely disadvantageous position. Earl Stanley said sternly.

Prince Albert nodded, agreeing.

"Why are we uniting the Chinese, why can't we leave them alone? If the British Empire wanted to dig a canal, the Governor of Egypt, Mohammed. Ali shouldn't have refused. Queen Victoria said.

"Your Majesty, that means that the British Empire will start a round of fierce conflicts, or even wars, around the canal with China, France and Spain!" Earl Stanley said.

"Even if China, France and Spain unite, the British Empire will not be afraid of them!" Queen Victoria said forcefully.

Both the Earl of Stanley and Prince Albert were silent, and this statement might have been true if it had been placed ten years ago. But ten years later, it's completely different. The Chinese Empire alone would be difficult to deal with, and with the Kingdom of France and Spain, Britain would have had little chance of winning.

Despite Queen Victoria's reluctance, she was eventually persuaded by Prince Albert and Earl Stanley. The interests of the state are more important than the feelings of the individual. In order to ease the relations between the British Empire and the Chinese Empire, it was necessary to invite the Chinese Emperor, who was visiting France, to visit Britain. Therefore, Queen Victoria officially extended an invitation to the Emperor of China to visit the United Kingdom! (To be continued......)