As for whether East Africa is a German country, in fact, many people in Germany and Austria do not agree, after all, the composition of East Africa is too complex, and it is still on the African continent, so it is naturally at the bottom of the chain of contempt.

However, since the South African War, East Africa has certainly been a German state, after all, it is "only" the German nation that can defeat the Anglo-Saxon nation.

Although the East African blood is "impure", the traditional German royal family with strong roots and the dominance of German culture.

Of course, Ernst's purpose was only to reap benefits in the name of the German state, after all, this part of Africa was indeed too stretched, which was not conducive to international exchanges in East Africa, and in essence, there was no fundamental difference between Ernst and those tribal chiefs in Africa.

……

Du Ji Palace.

The former Doge's palace in Venice, where Ernst's father-in-law, Archduke Ferdinand, once worked, was also the meeting place for negotiations between East Africa and Britain and Portugal.

"Welcome, Count von der Leyen and Viscount Hermann!" Austrian Foreign Minister Count Ehrenthal said to the two of them.

"Hello, my old friend." Herman and Count Ehrenthal said.

As Foreign Minister of East Africa, Hermann traveled extensively to Austria on business, so he developed a good personal friendship with Count Ehrenthal.

"This is our East African Chancellor, Count von der Leyen." Herman introduced to Ehrenthal.

In Europe, the Chancellor of the Exchequer is generally high-ranking and often the best candidate for Prime Minister, of course, the same is true for Foreign Ministers, many of whom are Chancellor of the Exchequer or Foreign Minister, typified Bismarck.

Hermann's words also confirmed von der Leyen's position in East Africa, of course, East Africa has a special national situation, there is no prime minister, and Ernst has sole power in the country, so the status of chancellor of the exchequer is not the same thing as in Europe.

"Hello, Count von der Leyen, I think this is the first time we have met." Count Ehrenthal said.

"Of course, I haven't left East Africa since the seventies, but I know your name." Von der Leyen said to Ehrenthal.

In fact, von der Leyen is still a little uncomfortable communicating with Ehrenthal, he was actually a colonial employee who was reused by the Heshingen royal family, and it can be said that it is a complete surprise to be able to become a nobleman.

Therefore, there is still some restraint when communicating with these old European aristocrats, but von der Leyen has been in a high position for many years and quickly adapts to it and communicates with Ehrenthal.

"This time, you fought beautifully in East Africa, and after the South African War, you will definitely have a place in the future world." Alenthal complimented, of course, this is also true.

"Where, we are still far from East Africa, this time the British did not exert all their strength at all, otherwise the South African war may be deadlocked, and the strength of the Kingdom of Portugal in the South African war is too weak, so it creates an opportunity for us."

After mixing with a ruler like Ernst for a long time, von der Leyen naturally has a bit of humility, of course, the remark that the Portuguese kingdom is too weak is a bit Versailles.

However, Alenthal agreed: "The Kingdom of Portugal is indeed too backward, it has been silent in the glorious history of its ancestors and is unwilling to wake up, and it cannot keep up with the pace of Europe in all aspects, so it is inevitable to be eliminated." ”

As a diplomat, Alenthal is very familiar with Portugal's national conditions, but the more he understands Portugal, the more he understands that this country is a foreign power, and Portugal is just a name bluff, so he can only deceive other backward countries and regions in the world that do not understand the situation in Europe.

"Of course, Portugal is not the point at all, the British are the main part of this war, is it convenient to reveal where the war in South Africa is now?" Alenthal asked.

This is not a top-secret incident, so von der Leyen said: "I am not a member of the military, but I have a general idea of the current war situation, our army has entered the south of Cape Town, and now only a small part of the western and southern parts of the Cape Colony and cities are still under British control. ”

The western part of the Cape Town colony is a desert area, so naturally it is not the focus of the East African attack, and although the southern part of Cape Town is small, it is the essence of the Cape Town colony.

"Are you sure you can end the war in a few months?" Alenthal asked curiously.

"If all goes well, it should be within two or three months, of course, provided that Britain does not increase its forces against South Africa." Von der Leyen didn't say anything to death.

However, even if the British army continued to increase its strength, it would not change the overall situation, and Cape Town was too far away from the British position, and Cape Town's position was not as easy to support as Canada.

"Very well, what are your psychological expectations for war this time? Of course, we are on one side, and His Majesty the Emperor and Crown Prince Ernst have agreed on this before. ”

Franz I had already passed the gas with Ernst, so it was already a consensus between the two countries that Austria would be on the side of East Africa.

Herman: "Angola and Mozambique are going to be included in East Africa, after all, we will not give the Portuguese a third chance to start a war, as for the Boer Republic should be a difficult point, Britain's main economic interest in South Africa is the diamond mines in the Boer Republic, but we can make appropriate concessions and continue to allow the British to mine diamond mines in the Kimberley." ”

"What about Cape Town?" Alenthal asked.

"Hehe, old friend, you should know that that is the bottom line of the British, and they should not give up Cape Town." Herman said honestly.

Alenthal nodded and said: "That's the truth, Cape Town is related to the UK's global strategic security and is an important part of maritime hegemony, and the British Royal Navy will definitely not give up this important military passage control point." ”

The attitude of the Royal Navy is actually the attitude of the British government, after all, the interests of Britain are all played by the Royal Navy, and to maintain the superiority of the Royal Navy, it is necessary to ensure the safety of the British Royal Navy's overseas bases, and Cape Town is undoubtedly an important strategic fulcrum that the British Royal Navy will not abandon.

Of course, Cape Town's status is no longer comparable to what it used to be, and with the option of the Suez Canal, Cape Town is destined to be a spare tire.

In fact, as a sea passage, Cape Town corresponds to the Drake Strait at the southern tip of South America, but Cape Town was the main trade route of the Eurasian continent at that time, and its economic value is not comparable to the Drake Strait at all.

Even so, Britain has the Falkland Islands (Falklands) as an important strategic fulcrum to contain the Drake Strait, so the Royal Navy will not abandon the more important Cape Town.

Now Cape Town's economic value has been weakened, but it is still the fulcrum of Britain's future containment of East Africa, after all, the exchange and trade between the east and west coasts of East Africa cannot go without Cape Town.

At the same time, as a spare tire, if something major happens to the Suez Canal or the Red Sea, Cape Town can be immediately reactivated by the British.

So Cape Town must be the bottom line of Britain, of course, if East Africa wants to use strength, it can indeed get Cape Town, but it will also completely offend Britain.

But East Africa did not have the idea of fighting Britain to the end, especially at the end of the 19th century, when the international turmoil was turbulent, and there were many powerful countries in the world besides Britain.

As the saying goes, the sandpiper and the clam compete, and the fisherman wins. This is not the outcome that East Africa wants, and as for the South African War, as long as it does not harm Britain's core interests, it can also make the British government give an account at home.

(End of chapter)