There were many Tang people active in Europe, and at first most of them were employees of multinational institutions such as oil companies and large banks, and the number of people who traveled to Europe in the early days was small.

After the visit of His Majesty the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty to Europe, transatlantic exchanges also became eager and frequent, adding scholars, students and businessmen, as well as Tang people who came to Europe in search of development opportunities, and gradually formed Chinatowns scattered in cities around the world.

If you want to talk about the largest Chinatown in Europe, you have to count the Chinatown on the Thames River in London's West End, which encompasses six or seven blocks in the surrounding area.

In total, more than 82,000 Tang people live here, and most of the surrounding properties have been purchased, making it a neighborhood with oriental characteristics.

Downing street

Liberal Prime Minister William Jurter Gladstone sat at his desk, frowning as he flipped through the secret reports collected by the Intelligence Service on high-level movements between the two countries.

A moment later

Prime Minister William Jurte Gladstone pushed away the documents in his hand, then took off the crystal glasses on his nose with some tiredness, rubbed his brow with his hand and said; "Now it seems...... The Prussians are ready, the French are as anxious as male dogs in heat to step into the trap, and our eastern allies are stabbing in the back across the Atlantic, probably right? ”

"Yes, Prime Minister, maybe that's what we want to see." Cabinet Secretary Robert Page replied in a low voice.

"Britain would like to see French power weakened and a power on the continent emerging that can counterbalance him. But given the size of the Franco-Prussian two, this will be a fierce battle everywhere, so please forgive us! ”

"Prime Minister, you can't stop an angry bull from rambling. Especially a monarch like Napoleon III, who was carried away by victory, seemed to want to replicate Napoleon's former glory, and no one could stop him from taking the Prussian neighbors around him. ”

"Madness brings destruction, and it has always been the case, especially for a man who is beyond his means." Prime Minister William Yurt Gladstone shook his head with a wry smile, he did not think highly of Napoleon III.

In addition to the self-congratulatory French, the world powers who watched from the sidelines really had a few pounds and taels of Napoleon III, and their views were more realistic.

Prime Minister William stood up and walked to the window, looked at the typical Victorian building outside the window, was a little stunned, and suddenly asked; "Robert, maybe a big scuffle in Europe will make the dictator on the other side of the Atlantic close his mouth with joy?"

"What do you mean ......"

"I have deeply studied the history of Richard leading the Tang Dynasty, and this is a very insightful strategist and the biggest speculator of this century, and there is no one." Prime Minister William's voice came faintly, and he continued with a taste that seemed to be reminiscing and seemed to be uncertain;

"He always seems to be able to keep his finger on the pulse of the turmoil in the world, lose no time in expanding his empire, succeed again and again, and always become the final winner.

This astonishing talent is similar to that of the former Napoleonic emperors, except that one specialized in international strategy and the other specialized in warfare, and there is a similarity in it.

The last time was during the North American War, when we united with the French to launch the Second Opium War in an attempt to expand the margin of interests in East Asia, the Tang Dynasty copied our back road.

Taking advantage of the exhaustion of the North and South sides of the United States, Richard led his Tang Imperial army to decisively plunge into the North American Civil War, winning a rich reward for himself.

As a result, everyone saw that Datang had truly risen to become the hegemon of North America, completely controlling and dominating the transatlantic trade.

Britain's influence in North America declined dramatically, and in many cases was replaced by the Tang Dynasty.

While we were anxious about the contradictions between Prussia and Austria, Richard took advantage of the situation to get the Yukon Province through an exchange of interests, connecting remote and cold Alaska with the mainland of North America, which has to be said to be a major mistake.

Looking through these interesting memories makes me think;

There's always a pair of eyes on our backyard, taking something away when we're not prepared?

Of course, this is just speculation. ”

Speaking of which

Prime Minister William stopped talking, paused for two or three minutes before suddenly turning around, his eyes fixed on Robert Page.

He said in an affirmative tone; "Let's take a closer look at what else this dictatorship will do? Surely he will not miss the opportunity of this violent upheaval in Europe, and he will definitely take action to take something? This confirms that my judgment is correct, what do you think...... Robert? ”

"Uh...... I think you're right, it's just ......" Robert Page looked a little hesitant with obvious uncertainty on his face.

Prime Minister William followed up and asked, saying; "Just what?"

"Oh...... Prime Minister, I think Datang's current territory is vast enough to get almost the vast majority of the territory it wants. It may not be realistic to continue to annex the United States and the North or the North or Canada, is the target Brazil or Argentina, or Cuba or Chile? It's really hard to judge. Robert Page, the cabinet secretary, who was also a very strategic statesman, put his hands around and rubbed the pretty mustache on his lips with one hand, and said carefully;

"Let me think about it......

Who will they target next?

Fuso Islands or the Korean Peninsula in the Western Pacific?

Could it be the Dutch East Indies?

No, no, no...... There is no such sign at all.

The Dutch have been operating in the East Indies for 300 years, and the Orientals can't eat such a large territory, and they don't have such a good appetite.

If the Tang Dynasty intends to get involved in the Western Pacific region, it deserves great attention, and if necessary, it should be curbed and told not to step on the red line.

London's policy was to prevent Tsarist Russia from moving south in East Asia, and also to prevent the Orientals on both sides of the Atlantic from joining forces to maintain the balance of power in East Asia. The Fuso Islands and the Korean Peninsula can be seen as a policy bellwether.

From the standpoint

Datang is not deeply involved in the Fuso civil war, but is working with us to mediate this protracted war, which is in the common interests of the two countries.

If the Tang Dynasty attempts to continue to expand its territory in South America and invade any of Brazil, Argentina, Chile, and Bolivia by force, it may prove that it has a dangerous tendency to colonize the whole of the Americas, and it should be taken very seriously.

Prime Minister, considering that the Tang Dynasty has become a climate of power in South America, there is not much we can do there. ”

"Very good analysis, Robert, but what is the core of what I didn't hear this saying?"

"I beg your pardon, Honorable Prime Minister, I mean there are indeed a lot of suspicions, but there is no clear indication to prove them right now, so suspicions are always suspicions."

William Yurt Gladstone was choked by his assistant's words, and waved his hand a little depressed; "Glad to hear your wonderful analysis, Robert, now go about your business. Bring me the minutes of the current civil war negotiations in the Fuso Islands, these damn islanders are more stubborn than I thought, are they going to sink the islands before they stop? ”

"As you wish, Your Excellency Prime Minister." The secretary, Robert Page, gracefully bent down and made a gentlemanly manner, turned and left the prime minister's office, and thoughtfully closed the door.

Sitting alone in the room, Prime Minister William frowned and thought about it for a long time, and finally sighed softly and said fiercely; "Don't let me catch ...... Richard, no hound can resist the temptation to hunt, and this will be a lot of fun to play. ”

Britain is one of the most strategically minded countries in Europe and the whole world.

Those countries that once threatened Britain's world hegemony, whether France or Tsarist Russia, fell in the face of the traditional world hegemon, even the French Emperor Napoleon, who fought the invincible opponents of Europe.

Before the Crimean War in 1853, when Tsarist Russia showed signs of expansion into the warm Mediterranean, Britain decisively united with France, the Ottoman Empire, the Tang Dynasty and the Kingdom of Sardinia to attack Tsarist Russia head-on, firmly confined it to the Black Sea coast.

It is different from the above two

Due to its location on the other side of the Atlantic, the rapid rise of the Tang Empire was largely ignored by the British, and the assessment of strategic threats was also low.

But in recent years

The Tang Empire's rapid economic development and rapidly expanding territory made London feel deeply jealous from the bottom of his heart, and regarded it as one of his potential rivals.

The reason why the Tang Empire was not attacked was mainly because the situation in Europe had changed since the middle of the 19th century, and Tsarist Russia, France, Prussia, Italy, and Austria did not have a worry-free master.

The performances of these European powers, which you sang and me, involved a great deal of energy in Britain, and could not spare their hands for the time being.

The second aspect

Across the vast Atlantic, it was difficult for Britain to project its military power, and it was even more difficult to organize a multinational European expeditionary force.

The British Army General Staff Headquarters has done many sand table deductions, and the final result of the transoceanic expedition is fifty-five, which means that there is a half probability of losing the war.

As an emerging world-class power, it would now cost millions of troops to defeat the Tang Empire, and the price to pay was too great and particularly tricky, which made Britain unable to agree internally.

Prime Minister William thought about it for a while, and felt that Datang was a hedgehog with nowhere to start, so he could only put it aside.

For the immediate situation in Europe

London is always in a good position to maneuver, with a lot of pieces in its hands, and there is too much room for manipulation.

Regardless of the final outcome of the Franco-Prussian War, Britain was the biggest winner.

Don't look at Prime Minister William's fake expression of guilt, in fact, in these hundreds of years, the European continent has been able to rank the number one major war, and the British have participated in all of them, and they are the leaders of the war.

To say that Britain is the source of Europe's troubles is not at all wronged.

If France is defeated, then Europe will form a situation of two giants, in the distant East Slavia and the Tsarist Russian Empire, plus Austria, Italy, Ottomans, Spain and a number of small and medium-sized European kingdoms to contain it, will form a new European balance.

If Prussia were to be defeated, the power of France would also be greatly weakened.

Next.

Britain had the opportunity to tie the Kingdom of Prussia firmly to its chariot, and after a few years, once again form a coalition army with the participation of Britain, Prussia, Italy, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Norway and other countries, and once again defeat this Gallic rooster that has been in love with the British Isles for hundreds of years, and trample the pride of the French under their feet.

In order to achieve the purpose

The British envoys had already rushed to Vienna in advance, luring the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia with the temptation of strength and profit, and laying the foundation for a possible joint war in the future.

As for Italy, the unification of the Apennine Peninsula was the highest goal to which the Italians were unswerving, and now the greatest obstacle was the areas occupied by the French.

As long as the British hook their little fingers slightly, the Italians will happily pounce on them and kneel and lick them.

After dealing with these major countries, Britain can immediately organize a very large anti-French alliance, plus Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway and other small countries can form a huge momentum.

No matter how Napoleon III of France jumped, the fate of defeat was already doomed.

Prime Minister William saw it clearly;

If France is defeated, the Second French Empire established by Napoleon III will collapse with a bang, and the country will be plunged into a period of civil war and division, thus eliminating the greatest source of threat to Britain's "continental balance policy".

Napoleon III's reign was based on shaky foundations, and the first half of his life was spent in exile between England and France, where he was arrested and imprisoned several times for trying to restore the Restoration.

Napoleon III relied on evoking the memories of the glorious empire of the Napoleonic era in the early 19th century, and after overthrowing the Bourbon dynasty, he ran for president by a narrow margin.

Then, through a coup d'état, what is now the Second French Empire was established.

This political speculator who entered France alone and created glory relied on the illusion of victory that he had woven to anesthetize the French, and as long as the illusion was shattered, everything would return to the starting point.

Go to the window

Prime Minister William lit a Havana cigar and took a beautiful puff, enjoying the rich smell of tobacco with a look of control on his face.

But when he thought of the Tang Empire, his face was not good-looking.

The cunning and brutal dictator of the Tang Empire, Richard, has woven an almost airtight network of relationships through more than 20 years. Involving the British aristocracy, many heavyweights of the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party, it is by no means a behemoth that can be easily shaken.

The Liberal Party is a popular party that focuses on the interests of workers, and the party's attitude towards Datang is different, mostly biased towards the positive, and it is extremely difficult to build consensus.

This is because the economies of the Tang Dynasty and the British Empire are very complementary, and there is no strong competition, such as oil, silver, copper, agricultural machinery and automobiles, chemical products, grain and meat, etc., are all blank or urgently needed in the British economic field.

The Anglo-Tang trade benefited from a wide range of trades, including British grocers, farmers, and the upper class, as well as a large proportion of middle-class people who preferred imported products.

Some of Britain's heavyweights, aristocrats, influential politicians, and democrats, many of whom own more or less shares in Chinese-funded enterprises, or receive an extra salary, often publish pro-Tang articles in influential British newspapers and magazines, advocating close alliances.

It is because of all kinds of operations

Let Prime Minister William feel that dealing with Datang is a tricky matter, he can't fight and can't fight, he can't be restricted, and these little tricks to sow discord are basically useless.

This empire is an emerging world power established by the demon king Richard single-handedly, with a deep foundation and strong popular cohesion, making it an extremely difficult opponent.

If it weren't for watching the Tang Dynasty become stronger and stronger, it would have threatened the hegemony of the British Empire, and it must be taken seriously, Prime Minister William really doesn't want to poke this hornet's nest!

(End of chapter)