From the heart, the Tokugawa shogunate was extremely jealous of the unprecedentedly strong force of the Tang Empire, and was unwilling to involve the imperial army too deeply in the civil war, so as not to turn the shogunate into a puppet.

The Paraguayan War, on the other hand, was most lacking in the involvement of external military forces.

On December 13, 1864, Paraguay declared war on Brazil and sent troops to the Mato Grosso region, taking the lead in provoking the Paraguayan War.

Due to Argentina's refusal to allow the Paraguayan army to pass through Argentina to aid Uruguay, Paraguay declared war on Argentina on March 18, 1865, and sent troops to the Argentine province of Corrientes, making a reckless decision of 1 to 3, which also led to the situation of small Paraguay facing a group fight.

In May of the same year, Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay formed a Triple Alliance against Paraguay, and the Paraguayan War broke out.

Today, the Paraguayan War has been going on for two years, and Paraguay has gone from an early triumphant triumph to now facing the pressure of Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, and the future prospects are extremely bleak.

The reason for this

Paraguay is still too small, the population is too small, the country has a total population of more than 400,000, and now almost the whole people are mobilized, men under the age of 60 and over 15 are carrying guns on the battlefield, the existing army alone has reached more than 50,000 people, and there are more than more militia forces, with a total strength of more than 80,000 people.

On the other hand, on the side of the coalition forces

The Brazilian Empire has a population of more than 10 million, Argentina has more than 1.5 million, and Uruguay has 20~300,000 people.

Paraguayan President Andrés López López is still too young and reckless.

After he became president, he relied on his father's legacy to go smoothly and did not experience the beating of society.

His example, whether it is the Tang Empire or the French Empire, is not at all comparable to Paraguay, which is a small country and weak country.

How easy is it to rise in South America?

Paraguayan President Andrés López López did not expect the war caused by the Uruguayan coup to turn into the largest full-scale war on the South American continent.

At the beginning of the war, Paraguay had only 25,000 regular troops and about 30 battalions.

Facing the Triple Alliance, which is several times his size, López had hoped to win while the Uruguayan civil war dragged down Brazil's main force and play a time gap.

But from the very beginning of the war, it deviated from the established track, and the overall strength of the two sides was too different, and the allies had a clear advantage.

In the face of the ant-like Paraguay's blatant provocation, the anger of the Brazilian Emperor Pedro II's departure, said;

"López, the clown, must feel the wrath of the Brazilian Empire, and make him tremble in the despair of being crushed, and the divine imperial power of the Brazilian Empire cannot be disgraced."

The Brazilian Empire began to make a real effort, constantly adding a large number of troops to the front line, and launching a tidal wave of attacks with the Argentine army, which has now recovered the decline of the early stage of the war, and surrounded the Paraguayan army with heavy troops.

Paraguay has struggled to cope with a protracted war, having suffered heavy casualties in a full-scale war for two years. With the increasing scarcity of manpower and resources, coupled with the blockade on the part of the allies, there was a severe shortage of supplies, with disastrous consequences for Paraguay.

If there is no strong foreign aid, it may suffer the terrible end of national extinction.

At the court, the ministers discussed and basically restored the disastrous situation facing Paraguay.

"Is Paraguay willing to honor the Tang Empire as the Celestial Empire?" Richard asked sharply.

Field Marshal Dai Changfu stepped forward, and Shi Li replied;

"Your Majesty;

Paraguayan President Andrés López López is an extremely tough person, and has repeatedly mentioned it in previous close contacts;

Paraguay loves freedom, advocates equality, and is willing to interact with the Tang Empire on an equal basis.

Even if the mountains and rivers are overturned and the country is destroyed, they will never accept the humiliating master-servant relationship, which is the bottom line that all Paraguayans adhere to, and will not be diverted by anyone's will. ”

"That's a good point, I'm ambitious, I'm very optimistic about Paraguay's future prospects, so is there any need to discuss the Paraguayan issue?" Richard asked abruptly.

yes, why can't you go to heaven if you're so awesome?

Although it is good to die with hundreds of thousands of Paraguayans, this has nothing to do with the Tang Empire.

Some people are just dead ducks with hard mouths, they can't see the situation clearly, and they still talk about equality and freedom when the country is in danger, so even if they stick to their own ideas, why do they come to ask for support from the Tang Empire?

As soon as His Majesty the Emperor said this, all the ministers were silent, and Marshal Dai Changfu also retreated into the train with a look of disgust. Then the eyes look at the nose, the nose looks at the heart, and begins to touch the fish.

A moment later

Prime Minister Yoo Hyun-jun stood up and said after giving a salute;

"Your Majesty;

The current situation in South America is quite a bit out of the strategic layout of South America formulated by the empire, and Weichen is deeply worried.

Whether it's a thorn or a-stirring stick, the empire needs a role-playing spoiler like Paraguay. Only by rushing to the forefront in the situation in South America can the supremacy and decisive influence of the imperial arbiter be demonstrated.

Paraguay's population is already small and its national strength is not strong, and excessive consumption is not in the interests of the empire.

President Nopez has a stubborn personality and easily refuses to bow his head. However, he is extremely loved by the people in Paraguay and regards him as an irreplaceable national leader, which is the most troublesome part.

Wechen is worried that if he doesn't make a move, this small country will be completely abolished, and it will be difficult to play the expected role, which will greatly affect the implementation of the empire's South American strategy.

Which is more important, please make it clear to Your Majesty? ”

The words of the Prime Minister, Duke Yoo Hyun-jun, are also reasonable, he does not care about the life or death of Paraguay, and the real question is;

Your Majesty, are you interested in changing your South American policy?

The empire's 10-year expansion strategy for North America and Central America has been successfully completed, and the North American strategic territory of "one belt and three small ones" has been completely established, and it is no longer expandable.

The so-called "one big" refers to the Tang Empire.

The "three small" refer to Canada, the United States of America (North) and the Confederate States of America (South), from North America to Central America, these four countries, the latter two are headed by the Tang Empire, and the former is headed by the British Empire.

The "three small" are only relative to the Tang Empire's huge territory and strong military, economic and cultural strength, and any one of its countries alone is a regional power in Europe and even in the world, and its comprehensive strength is not weak.

As for Central America, let's not mention it, in the process of the strong rise of the Tang Empire in North America, if more than a dozen small and medium-sized countries are not destroyed, how can they be worthy of the ancestors and ancestors, and how can they be worthy of the great force of the Tang Empire that shook the Eurasian continent more than a thousand years ago in Shenzhou?

From 1866 onwards

The Tang Empire's colonial expansion has been directed to South America and the Western Pacific, as well as the now turbulent Spanish colonies of Cuba and Puerto Rico, all of which are included in future strategic planning.

South America is a key focus.

The core of the policy of "Yoo Hyun-junism" is that "America is the America of the Americans", in other words;

That is, the Americas are the Americas of the Tang Empire.

The core meaning of this policy is; North America and Central America are in the bag of the Tang Empire, and South America is also in the bag of the Tang Empire, and it is the back garden of the Tang Empire.

The Tang Empire can coexist peacefully with the countries of South America, but the premise is that the Tang Empire must be the leader, and it is not allowed to "be in Cao Ying's heart in Han", not allow Europe to interfere with the internal affairs of the Americas, and not allow these South American countries to collude and flatter everywhere.

Therefore, the South American policy of the Tang Empire was to vigorously support pro-Tang forces on the one hand, strengthen military, economic and cultural penetration on the other hand, and support Paraguay as a spoiler on the third side.

In Emperor Richard's mind, the template for this was Israel in the Middle East.

A Paraguay that has been severely beaten and weakened by the war is obviously not in line with the fundamental interests of the Tang Empire, and the power of the chess pieces is too small, nor is it in line with the policy positioning of South America.

The South American strategy is an expansion policy formulated by Emperor Richard himself, which is embodied in the strategy of "long-distance friendship and close attack" by attacking and weakening Argentina, supporting Paraguay, and deterring Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Uruguay and other South American countries.

As can be seen from the map of South America;

Uruguay is at the crossroads of landlocked countries in South America, bordering Paraguay in the east, Argentina in the southeast, only one province away from the armed militia groups expanding north of the Tang Empire in the south, Chile in the southwest, Bolivia in the northwest, and the Brazilian Empire, the largest country in South America, in the north.

It would be a pity if it was scrapped in the war.

The Prime Minister, Duke Yoo Hyun-jun, had no bottom in his heart, so he asked His Majesty to make it clear;

Is there any intention to change policy in South America?

After he recited, he stood with his hands respectfully bowed, and the ministers in the court looked at each other and wisely remained silent.

There was a brief silence

Richard, who sat on the throne, laughed, and said after glancing at the ministers; "Liu Aiqing's words are wrong, how can there be any reason for the policy to change overnight?

Supporting Paraguay does not necessarily require money, food, and troops, but can also be supported in terms of foreign policy and morality.

The allied forces of Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay besieged the small South American country of Paraguay, causing extreme turmoil and not conducive to the simple aspirations of peace and development in South America as a whole.

As the most influential voice in the entire American region, the Tang Empire should stand up at this time, urge the countries of South America to resolve disputes through dialogue, abandon the wrong practice of using brutal and bloody wars to solve problems, and return to the right track of peaceful dialogue.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately summoned the envoys of the four countries involved in the war and entered into mediation in a strong manner.

It is believed that this move will greatly relieve the pressure on Paraguay's shoulders, and the empire has done its best. ”

Speaking of which

The ministers in the court have suddenly realized, and they have to sincerely admire Your Majesty's far-reaching thoughts, this is a step-by-step camp, buried with a killing move!

On the one hand, it showed the Paraguayan government the goodwill of the empire, and used its influence to suppress the coalition forces, making it more or less jealous, and when launching a new round of large-scale offensives, it must consider the consequences of angering the Tang Empire.

The logic is simple;

Since the Tang Empire has come forward to mediate strongly, all parties involved in the war must give face, otherwise the imperial side can turn the table and go crazy at any time.

If you don't listen to good words, you won't be able to negotiate if you beat you!

On the other hand, imperial mediation pays lip service.

The position of the coalition forces and Paraguay is so far apart that there is no possibility of successful international mediation, and in the end it will be necessary to rely on war to resolve the acute dispute.

So...... Paraguay is the only one to bear.

The Tang Empire has already helped you, but you yourself are not angry and can't see the situation clearly, so isn't it reasonable to continue to be beaten?

If you want to get a strong military intervention from the Empire and even more, then the door is always open; It is to respect the Tang Empire as the superior kingdom of the Celestial Empire, and to be driven by the status of a vassal state, and don't think about the grand hegemony that you don't have all day long.

Isn't the lesson of this all-out war enough?

Sure enough, His Majesty the Emperor is insidious enough, ah...... No...... His Majesty the Emperor is a high strategist in the temple, and his decisions are thousands of miles away, and the wise and martial arts are very accessible, and the ministers are all admired!

There was a sound of flattery in the court, and all the ministers admired His Majesty from the bottom of their hearts, and the temple was considered to be people's hearts to the bones.

Paraguayan President Andrés López López Ló

The longer the time drags on, the deeper the inner torment and pain becomes.

This is a young politician who loves Paraguay deeply and has ideals and ambitions, and if there is a 1 in 10,000 chance of saving the nation from peril, he will definitely try to do it, even if it goes against his heart.

The fact that Paraguay's ideals of national independence, freedom, and equality are still adhered to shows that the beatings have not been enough, and the painful self-blame in my heart is not strong enough, and it is necessary to gently push it forward.

Young people, you will only see a rainbow when you experience wind and rain......

It was in this way that Emperor Richard taught Paraguayan President Andrés López to recognize a truth;

There has never been love for no reason in this world, and there is no hate for no reason, and when the strength is not enough, don't ask for any equality, that thing really doesn't exist in the world of the jungle.

Negotiate terms with the Tang Empire, are you qualified in Paraguay?

Anyway, if López thinks that 10,000 is not enough, then pay 20,000, 20,000 if 20,000 is not enough, then pay 50,000, and if 50,000 is not enough, he will pay 100,000.

If you find a butcher, can you still eat hairy pigs?

It is really not possible to make tens of thousands of Chinese immigrants to the past to fill the fatal shortcoming of the scarcity of the male population, but it is conducive to completely controlling the top echelons of the military and political circles in Paraguay in the future, and there will be no loss to the empire.

The courtiers figured this out, and couldn't help but admire it in their hearts; High, Gaojiazhuang's high!