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"Gentlemen, I want to know, if we start a war with Xinhua Kingdom, will our army be able to win?" William. Viscount Lamb asked suddenly. Before figuring out the attitude of the new Chinese state, the British government did not dare to make up its mind whether to go to war against the Qing state. It was only after the Xinhua Kingdom launched an attack on Vietnam, and it was likely to be mired in war, that everyone's resolve was strengthened. Therefore, William. Viscount Lamb was a little strange, could it be that the British Empire, as the number one power in the world, could not defeat a small country that had recently risen?

"Your Excellency, Prime Minister, judging by the strength of both of us! If the British Empire is compared to a hundred, the new Chinese kingdom can only be regarded as ten! The strength of the British Empire is more than ten times that of the New Zealand! "Foreign Secretary Henry. Viscount Temple said.

"So, why don't we kill it together with Xinhuaguo? It just so happened that Xinhua defeated Spain and the Netherlands, and the whole Nanyang has been bagged, if we defeat Xinhua, then the entire Nanyang will be ours! "William. Viscount Lamb said. Previously, the UK's focus had been on India. But now that India has largely pacified, it's time for Britain to begin a new round of expansion.

"Your Excellency, that's not what you say! Although the strength of Britain is much stronger than that of Xinhua. However, our colonies are spread all over the globe and we have many enemies. We simply can't put too much strength into the South Seas! In addition, Xinhua has a great advantage in fighting on its own soil. If you want to beat them. It's not an easy task! "Foreign Secretary Henry. Viscount Temple said helplessly. If they could, of course they wanted to deal with Xinhua as well. But, the lessons of the Spaniards are there! Britain also has to tread carefully!

"More importantly. Our military equipment is slightly behind Xinhuaguo! Their battleships are fast and have a long range of naval guns, although they are not as powerful as our battleships. But if they adopt the tactic of staying out of range of our naval guns and firing, we can't do anything about them. In the end, they will gradually wipe it out! The Spanish expeditionary fleet was dragged to death by the Xinhua Army under such tactics! The Far East Fleet has already submitted a detailed report on the naval battle in the Java Sea to the Admiralty, which is currently focusing on its research. At the same time, a new type of warship was designed that could restrain the 'Shark-class' cruisers of the new country! In terms of naval artillery, it is also being intensified, and it is expected that it will not be long before. You can come up with a new naval gun! "Lord of the Admiralty, Charles. Sir Adam said. Britain as a maritime hegemon. Particular attention has been paid to the building of naval strength. The Xinhua navy defeated the Spanish expeditionary fleet with a weak victory over the strong, which gave the British navy a great shock, and also allowed them to invest a lot of manpower and material resources in the development of new warships and naval guns, striving to catch up with or even surpass Xinhua as soon as possible. At that time, Britain may be able to defeat Xinhua in one fell swoop, and then occupy the entire South Seas!

"It's the same with the Army's equipment! It's a little hard to believe, though. But according to the information we have, the rifles and artillery of the Xinhua army. The range and rate of fire far exceeded the rifles and artillery equipped by the British Army! We have obtained a rifle from the Xinhua Army, and now we are calling military experts to develop it, and we will soon be able to produce samples! "Secretary of War Samuel. Sir Hulse said.

"In other words, before the development of our military equipment is completed, we must avoid a conflict with Xinhua?" William. Viscount Lamb said. This is indeed a bit difficult for the UK to accept. After the defeat of the First French Empire led by Napoleon, Britain has not been in such a situation for a long time!

"Yes, Your Excellency Prime Minister! It is very necessary to avoid conflict with Xinhua for a period of time in the future! It won't be too long, though, I assure you! "Foreign Secretary Henry. Viscount Temple said.

William. Viscount Lamb nodded, and did not dwell on the issue any longer. The cabinet has agreed to take war revenge on the Qing state. However, the consent of Queen Victoria and Parliament is still required. In particular, the authorization of the parliament is very important, and it is related to whether Britain can officially send troops to attack the Qing country!

The next morning, William. Viscount Lamb travels to Buckingham Palace to meet Queen Victoria.

At the moment, Queen Victoria has only been on the throne for two years, and she aspires to become a great monarch and lead LinkedIn to a stronger country. In fact, at this moment, Britain, with the deepening of the industrialization process, the national strength is also thriving, and her wish can be easily realized. The strong national strength gave her a stage to show. This time, the Manchu government's anti-smoking campaign gave her a great opportunity!

"Her Majesty the Queen, the cabinet has passed a resolution agreeing to take military revenge on the Qing State. After the resolution of the parliament is passed, we will officially start the military operation! "William. Viscount Lamb said to Queen Victoria. He had a very good relationship with Queen Victoria and treated her as his daughter. His daughter died tragically, and Queen Victoria was fatherless since she was a child.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, this is really good!" Queen Victoria cheered.

"But, Your Majesty! One of the most crucial steps, the guys in the council, haven't passed a resolution yet! I plan to formally submit the resolution to the parliament for consideration next week! However, the chances of parliamentary passage are low. You also know that the conservative guys in the council are very powerful. They stubbornly believed that a war against such a powerful country as the Qing State would lead to a crushing defeat, and that would bring great trouble to the British! "William. Viscount Lamb said. Actually, he thought so before that. However, the Minister of the Navy and the Minister of War assured him, and the other cabinet members also supported military retaliation against the Qing State, which made him decide!

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, if there is a war, we will definitely win, right?" Queen Victoria asked.

"Of course, both the Secretary of the Navy and the Secretary of War assured me of this. Although the Qing State is a big country, their military affairs are lax, their equipment is backward, and the biggest unexpected factor, Xinhuaguo, is also stuck in the quagmire of the Vietnam War, and there is no way to interfere in our war against the Qing State! Therefore, our chances of winning this war are as high as more than eighty percent! "William. Viscount Lamb said. Previously, the British cabinet had been worried about the Xinhua Congress's interference in the British action, but now, they have figured out the attitude of the Xinhua Kingdom, and this unexpected factor is gone!

"That's good, I'll find a way to convince those stubborn old fellows in the council!" Queen Victoria said.

"Your Majesty, is this possible?" William. Viscount Lamb was a little worried.

"I'll get the Duke of Wellington's support beforehand!" Queen Victoria said.

William. Viscount Lamb nodded, if he could get the support of the Duke of Wellington, it would be much less difficult. As the commander who led the British army to defeat the French army, the Duke of Wellington had an unparalleled influence among the British aristocracy. If he expresses his support for the cabinet resolution, then it is likely that the parliament will pass the resolution!

On December 18, 1839, William. Viscount Lamb proposed to the parliament and decided to declare war on the Qing state. However, in this parliamentary review, the parliament vetoed the cabinet decision.

After that, the British bourgeoisie, unwilling to accept defeat, was once again connected in tandem. At the same time, members of the British Cabinet are also beginning to gain more support in Parliament.

Because it's Christmas next, William. Viscount Lamb decided to wait until January 1840 before making an application to Parliament.

During this period, the British bourgeoisie did a lot of work, assuring the parliamentarians that the British army would definitely be able to defeat the Qing army, and that as long as the Qing market was opened, their goods would be sold to the Qing on a large scale, and then they would be able to obtain a large amount of wealth and state taxes.

Queen Victoria also persuaded the Duke of Wellington during this period. In addition, the activities of other members of the British cabinet have achieved considerable results.

On January 16, 1840, the British Prime Minister, William Brown, was appointed to the post of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Viscount Lamb, once again, applied to Parliament for a resolution of the Cabinet authorizing the Queen to wage war against the Manchus in order to defend British interests!

Queen Victoria gave a speech to Parliament before the members of Parliament voted.

"Parliamentarians, you are the elite of the British Empire, and your decisions affect the future of the British Empire! There have been countless times in history when the British Empire has faced crises, but in the end, we have all triumphed! Members of Parliament are indispensable! Now, the legitimate trade of the merchants of the British Empire was hindered by the barbaric Qing government, and the merchants suffered huge losses, and even the safety of life and property could not be guaranteed. The British Empire has been shamefully provoked, and for the glory of the British Empire, we must punish the Qing people! For the good of the British Empire, fight! Queen Victoria shouted.

Queen Victoria's speech did influence some of the otherwise neutral parliamentarians to change their positions. However, at the moment when the voting results are announced, no one can be sure what the final result will be!

In the end, the British Parliament voted 271 to 262 to pass a resolution on military action. However, the British government did not officially declare war on the Qing state, but positioned this military action as military retaliation. They were also afraid that if they were defeated, they would not be able to end the battle. The British were obviously overly concerned, and soon they would learn how weak the Manchu government was! (To be continued......)