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On July 12, 1848, the Royal Navy held a huge parade to celebrate the commissioning of two of the British Navy's most advanced 'Nelson-class' warships. Outside the Portsmouth military port in the south of England, the main force of the British Royal Navy lined up outside the harbor to greet Queen Victoria and review. These warships include 36 'Pearl-class' cruisers, 12 'Orlando-class' warships, and two 'Nelson-class' warships that have just been commissioned. The latter is undoubtedly the protagonist of this parade.

Two tall battleships, at the head of the queue. The tall hull and the huge main gun with a hideous muzzle undoubtedly did not show the strength of this battleship. It was also a good opportunity for the British Navy to show off its force.

All members of the British Cabinet took part in the parade. Envoys from other countries to the UK were also invited to attend. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert inspected the main ships of the Royal Navy of the British Empire to a majestic military music.

Countless British, gathered outside the port, looking at these tall and mighty warships, and let out an earth-shattering cheer.

"Hooray! Long live the Queen! Long live the British Empire! "The display of strong military strength makes these British people full of pride. The shadow created by the defeat of the Chinese Empire before seemed to have disappeared without a trace at this moment.

The envoys of various countries were also greatly shocked. Unconsciously. The strength of the British navy had been restored to such a point. In particular, the ambassadors of France to Britain and the ambassadors of the Kingdom of Spain to Britain are feeling the real crisis. The two countries are too close to Britain and are especially threatened by the British. Originally. The navies of the two countries have also developed rapidly, and in the whole of Europe, they are second only to the British navy. But now it seems that even the navies of the two countries combined are no match for the British navy! In particular, the mighty 'Nelson-class' warships were completely no match for the two navies.

Guo Songtao, the imperial Chinese envoy to Britain, was also shocked. Though. The 'Eastern Zhou-class' warships of the Chinese Empire were comparable to the 'Nelson-class' warships of the British Navy, and even slightly stronger. But. The British Navy planned to build 12 'Nelson-class' warships, while the Chinese Empire only had 6 'Eastern Zhou-class' warships. For other warships of all classes, the Chinese Empire was also at a disadvantage. In terms of numbers, the Chinese Empire had no advantage at all. But. Britain was too far away from the Chinese Empire. The threat that could be posed to the Chinese Empire was also limited. If Britain had gone on an expedition across the sea, it would not necessarily have been able to defeat the Imperial Chinese Navy.

Subsequently, the British Royal Navy conducted a live-fire exercise. Battleships after warships, firing at predetermined targets. On the sea, the sound of cannons rumbled, and columns of water rose into the sky. The fierce artillery fire made the envoys of various countries in Britain tremble.

At the end of the parade, Queen Victoria spoke. Her Majesty the Queen Xià proposed. The world is in turmoil. The protracted war has had an extremely negative impact on the peace of the entire world. Her Majesty hopes that the world will soon be restored to peace. The British Empire was willing to contribute to world peace.

Queen Victoria's speech made the envoys of various countries in Britain feel a strange taste. Her Majesty the Queen made such profound remarks during the parade, and the purpose was obviously unusual.

Sure enough, after the parade was over, the British Foreign Secretary, the Earl of Granville, approached the envoys of China, France, and Spain to Britain and proposed that Britain be willing to mediate the current war between China, France, and Spain and the United States. It is hoped that China, France, Spain and the United States will be able to resolve this war, which has been going on for almost a year, through peaceful means.

Obviously, these envoys in Britain could not decide on such a major matter, so they had to say that they would report it to China immediately. As for what kind of method to take, domestic instructions are still needed.

Now, the war in North America has entered a stalemate. Because the Chinese Empire and the Kingdom of Spain sat on the mountain and watched the tiger fight, the United States and France lost both. The French, in particular, have already invested more than 400,000 troops in North America, but they are still blocked more than 100 kilometers from Washington, and they are unable to move forward at all under the layers of defense of the US military. In addition, under the continuous resistance of the Americans, the French army also paid heavy casualties. France's goal of capturing Washington and then forcing the United States to submit now seems difficult to achieve. In the same way, the United States was unable to continue the war because of its heavy losses in this war.

Although, Charles. President Bonaparte was very reluctant to end the war like this. However, the power of France and the rise of the Kingdom of Prussia prevented France from continuing to invest too many troops in North America. If the desired benefits can be achieved at the negotiating table, this will be an acceptable outcome for France.

Therefore, the Charles. President Bonaparte agreed to peace talks. However, before the war began, China, France, and Spain had agreed that none of the three countries could make peace with the United States alone. Therefore, even if France wanted peace talks, and needed to consult the wishes of the Chinese Empire and the Kingdom of Spain, if everyone had no objections, the three countries would unite to negotiate with the United States.

The Kingdom of Spain is based on the Chinese Empire. In addition, in this war, the Kingdom of Spain had already occupied several southern states of the United States, and the casualties were very small, which had already achieved their intended goal. Therefore, the Kingdom of Spain did not contradict peace talks, and if the Chinese Empire agreed to peace talks, they had no opinion.

The key point of the peace talks lies in the Chinese Empire. Only with the nod of the Chinese Empire can this peace talks begin.

In fact, after the British Foreign Secretary, the Earl of Granville, raised the issue with the Imperial Minister in Britain, Minister Guo Songtao sent a telegram to China as soon as possible.

On the evening of July 12, Eastern time, after receiving a telegram from Minister Guo Songtao, Imperial Foreign Minister Lin Zihao immediately rushed to the palace and reported the matter to Emperor Long Yufei.

"Your Majesty, the British have made it official that they wish to mediate the war between us and the United States. Not surprisingly, the Kingdom of France and Spain also received this meaning. Lin Zihao said.

"It seems that after two years of silence, the British are finally unwilling to continue to be silent!" Prime Minister Li Decheng said. In a little while, he will step down as prime minister, and this will be his last shift.

"Your Majesty, the British have just held a parade with great fanfare, in order to not only show their military strength. I'm afraid that they just want to take advantage of this parade to meddle in the world situation. One way or another, they are nominal world hegemons. General Niu Meng, Chief of the General Staff, also said.

Long Yufei nodded, the British held a huge military parade this time, and dozens of capital ships were reviewed, which was undoubtedly a strong impact on the rest of the world. Even the mighty Imperial Navy would not be able to come up with so many capital ships. Britain's shipbuilding industry and naval heritage are indeed not comparable to those of the newly developed empire. Therefore, if the empire wants to surpass Britain in the navy, it cannot compare with them in quantity, only in quality.

One 'Qin-class' battleship of the Imperial Navy can deal with at least two 'Nelson-class' battleships of the opposing side, a total of 8 'Qin-class' battleships, which is enough to deal with all the 'Nelson-class' battleships of the British Navy.

"If we refuse to negotiate peace, will the British use force against us?" Long Yufei asked.

"Your Majesty, it's hard to say. However, I do not think that the British would have made war against us if we had refused. But, for sure, they will hit us in other ways. For example, blatant support to the United States, and then forcing France and the Kingdom of Spain to withdraw from the war. The kingdoms of France and Spain were more vulnerable to British threats than empires thousands of miles away. If the British navy cut off their sea supply lines, the armies of the two countries in North America would probably fall into a situation where they would be completely annihilated by the Americans. Foreign Minister Lin Zihao said.

"Is it difficult? Did the British really dare to attack France and the Kingdom of Spain? Long Yufei frowned.

"Your Majesty, according to our estimates, even if the French Navy and the Spanish Navy are tied together, it is estimated that they are no match for the British Navy!" General Niu Meng, Chief of the General Staff, said.

Long Yufei nodded, the British Navy does have this strength.

"Your Majesty, I see, in my opinion, the French don't want to fight anymore, they are inclined to peace talks. Our intended objectives with the Kingdom of Spain have also been achieved. If the Americans are willing to make concessions, we can agree to peace talks with them. However, in the negotiations, we must ensure that our interests are not compromised. Prime Minister Lee Decheng said.

"Hmmm! In that case, then reply to the British, we can make peace talks with the United States! Long Yufei said.

Later, Imperial Foreign Minister Lin Zihao said in public that the Chinese Empire also hoped that the world would be restored to peace.

Next, the British began to jump up and down again, and they actively contacted China, France, Spain and the United States. Thanks to the efforts of the British, China, France, Spain, and the United States agreed to hold peace talks in London, and Britain would act as a mediator. This peace talks are called the London Peace Conference! (To be continued......)