Blenheim Palace, the Long Library.

"Marquis, I don't understand, who do you Ming regard as the main opponent? Is it the United Kingdom, or the United States of America, or the Indian Empire? Is it true that what you want from the United Kingdom is just that wild southern continent? Are our two countries fighting to the death for the land used to exile criminals? ”

The one who raised the question was the most outspoken Viscount Palmerston – in another timeline, he openly claimed that "the British Empire has no permanent friends, only eternal interests"! Although this is the consistent norm of the British in handling international affairs, it is still a bit of a mouthful to say it openly.

Hearing this question, Zhuge Weixue laughed: "Viscount, don't you understand what the diplomatic principles against the West that our Ming Dynasty has always adhered to since King Wuzhong were?" We have never seen Britain as our main rival and Britain has always been our friend in the past. And in the future, after the end of this war to decide who is number one in the world and who is second in the world, our two countries will remain friends and will be even closer!

As for our main adversary, now, of course, Great Britain, but in the past and in the future, there are three, the United States of America, the Indian Empire and Europe! ”

"And Europe?"

"You mean a united Europe?"

"It seems to be our British too."

Speaking of opposing Europe, the three Brits are coming to their senses right away!

A united Europe is certainly the enemy of the Ming Dynasty. But for Britain, it is the question of whether the country can still exist, even if Britain can still exist, then she will inevitably lose all her glory and dreams because of the unification of Europe, and of course, most of the wealth!

To put it bluntly, Europe's wealth after the Age of Discovery relied on the world's zero-dollar purchases, while Britain's special wealth depended on sucking European blood. So not to make it easy for Europeans is the number one diplomatic principle that Britain has always had!

Zhuge Weixue said with a serious face: "Obviously, on the issue of not being able to unify Europe, we have common interests. A divided Europe should have at least three poles, and at the same time a broken kernel. Ideally, these three poles must be located on Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and the British Isles. Because the two poles that control Eastern and Western Europe are necessarily opposites. At the same time, because she is an island country with a small population, and she cannot afford to build a large army enough to conquer Europe after maintaining the necessary large navy, she can only prevent the unification of Europe, and cannot unify Europe herself, which is why the Ming Dynasty has been quite friendly to Britain in the past hundred years. Of course, the relationship between Daming and Daying will only be closer in the future! ”

Zhuge Weixue continued: "And the core of Europe, that is, Germany in Central Europe, must be fragmented and weakened! Because a united, cohesive, and powerful Germany will inevitably become the basis of a united Europe. Imagine if the German states and the Austrian Empire were to become a whole, it would be a powerful country with the German nation as the absolute subject, dominating a population of more than 60 million, with a complete industrial system and developed agriculture. France, with a population of only 30 million, will not be able to defend itself against her in the long run, and the Rakshasa with a population of 68 million will also seem to be difficult to resist alone against a Germany that defeated France and dominated Central, Western, and Southern Europe! A united Germany was also what Britain tried to prevent, and with good results.

So the role that Britain can play in preventing European unification is irreplaceable, and we need a strong, prosperous Britain, even if it has fought a war with us for the first place in the world! And to prove it, our Pacific Fleet has now ceased to hunt down the main forces of our Royal Navy. They can now leave Australia and return to Europe after completing their resupply in Sydney Harbour.

Also, we don't want to see the main force of the Royal Navy on the battlefield again. Because you England also need the remnants of the fleet to protect the homeland, in case the French little Napoleon led the navy we helped to build the Bourbons and his army left behind by his great father to launch a surprise attack on the British mainland! ”

The convergence of the Bonapartist and the republicans in France was indeed a major event that the rulers of the Ming Dynasty had anticipated. On the one hand, the Ming Dynasty supported the Bourbon Dynasty to revive France, on the one hand, because of the traditional friendship with the Bourbon Dynasty - since Louis XIV, the Bourbon Dynasty, which led the European fashion, has been "bringing goods" for the Ming Dynasty, which is a friendship cast with real money! On the one hand, it is the need to contain the rakshasas. Alexander I leaps into Paris after defeating Napoleon I, unbeatable!

Unexpectedly, the Bourbon Dynasty, which was supported by the Ming Dynasty, was still not loved by the French people, and was ousted by Napoleon II who pretended to be a republican!

Therefore, Zhuge Weijiu and Zhuge Weixue were very worried that Napoleon II would take advantage of the British Royal Navy's crushing defeat in the Pacific Ocean to attack Britain, so they thought about leaving some navy for the British.

Viscount Palmerston, the British Lord of the Admiralty, smiled and said, "Marquis, your worries are unnecessary. Now all the shipyards in the British Isles are working day and night to build warships. In a maximum of 6 months, our latest standard displacement of 42,000 tons, equipped with a 16-inch cannon, and a new battleship with 60,000 horsepower will be ready for service! ”

Of course, he is bragging about this, although there are several 40,000-ton projects under development in the UK, none of them have advanced to the point of starting production. At present, shipyards in Britain are still building a large number of Indian Emperor and William IV classes, and at the same time preparing to launch the Fury class, which is the new aircraft-carrying fast cruiser of more than 20,000 tons. However, within 12 months, it is unlikely that the lead ship of the Fury-class will be operational

Zhuge Weixue smiled and said: "Since you have a 42,000-ton ship, then we can rest assured.Although your 42,000-ton battleship will definitely not be able to beat our 52,000-ton battleship, but it is enough to deal with the French's slow-speed heavy artillery battleships, after all, those are only 25,000-ton battleships." ”

Of course, he's also fooling around, diplomatic negotiations.

He then changed his tone and said with a smile: "In addition, the problem of the United States of America and India is obvious, as these two countries have no less land and resources than Central, Western and Southern Europe combined, and both have achieved initial political unity. Among them, the United States is constantly absorbing immigrants from Europe, and in the foreseeable future, it will be a large country with a large population. India has a population of 200 million or 300 million now, and there will be more in the future. So we think that the United States is what it will be after the unification of Europe, and India is a China that is in a weakened phase. If over time, the rising United States and India will definitely threaten the leadership of the Ming Dynasty over the world, and will also replace the current position of the British Empire. If there's one thing you've done that we're hard to swallow, it's that you've allowed the United States to become independent, and you're trying to make India a truly unified nation. That's why we had to go to war with Britain! ”

"That is." British Foreign Secretary Robert . Peel looked at Zhuge Weixue a little incredulously, "Everything is the fault of the United States and India?" ”

"So to speak!" Zhuge learned the Tao, "So these two countries must pay a really heavy price for the mistakes they have made!" ”

"What about us?" Robert. Peel asked, "Do we have to lose Australia?" That's a big continent! ”

Zhuge Weixue nodded and said, "We know. We'll have to take a new map of the world and tell the people below what we've gained in this astronomical military war. Australia is so big, it will definitely be satisfying.

In addition, we need to get the Anglo-American Oregon. Perhaps it can be changed to the name of Ming and British co-governance, as long as the United States is excluded.

I don't think such a loss is unbearable for Britain. In fact, you are not using Oregon at all, and Australia is nothing more than a prisoner's penal colony. The world is so big, where can't a prisoner be exiled? You can let them go to Canada, but if you can't, you can just land in Africa. ”

Viscount Palmerston and Robert. Peel exchanged glances, and Robert . Peel asked, "What about the issue of war reparations?" ”

"Reparations?" Zhuge Weixue shook his head, "Da Ming must be the winner, and the winner has no obligation to compensate." However, the Ming Emperor will not ask his brother and daughter-in-law for money, so you can rest assured. ”

Viscount Palmerston said: "But we can't give up Australia either, because British bookstores also have world maps for sale!" ”

Zhuge Weixue nodded: "I understand, you can't give up, but we can seize the war, that's it!" ”

"We have deployed 500,000 troops in Australia, and you can't take it anytime soon, but the war shouldn't go on forever, it's not good for both of us!" It will only benefit Europe, India, the United States, and perhaps we can consider other alternatives. ”

Zhuge Weixue smiled: "That's right, it's no good to keep fighting, and the people will get tired of it sooner or later." Then set a schedule. We're going to take the entire coastline of Australia in 12 months!

Twelve months later, whether or not we have achieved this goal, we hope to sign a permanent and just peace treaty with Queen Victoria, from which both the Ming and the British can benefit! ”

(End of chapter)