C271 Xiao Letian who refused to admit defeat (1/2)
In the rise of Prussia, France was an unavoidable stumbling block. As the ruler of the continental Europe at that time, the so-called strongest country in the army, France's suppression of Prussia was an open secret.
At that time, Britain followed the policy of the sea. As long as you didn't challenge my marine interests, I wouldn't interfere with your rise to prominence. Bismark had taken advantage of the British mentality to paralyze them, allowing Britain to remain neutral throughout the rise of Prussia.
However, France could not, he definitely could not allow another powerful country to appear, and she could not allow the German to challenge his army's position as the number one in the world. Therefore, they had to provoke the States in the south of Prussia to cause trouble for their independence, and they had to think of all sorts of ways to weaken the rise of the Germany.
Since the conflict could not be resolved, it could only be resolved by war. Although Prussia did not have the ability to challenge France, this did not stop Prussia from forming a huge intelligence network in France. Everything was in preparation for the upcoming war.
Xiao Letian's plan was very bold. The only reason he had chosen the border city called Besanthus was to sneak over to the Switzerland and then transfer to Prussia. What he had done now was to numb the French.
At first, Paul did not agree with Xiao Letian's plan, because it was too risky. But when he found out that Xiao Letian was going to use his army to complete the rescue mission, not only did he think that Xiao Letian was taking the risk, he thought that the prime minister was going crazy too.
However, Xiao Letian's explanation dispelled his doubts.
”France is now the best in the European army, especially after they set fire to the royal garden of the Qing state six years ago, when the French leadership looked down on China. ”In their minds, the Chinese are weak and cowardly. For a country where even the capital was captured, they actually dare not fight back. This kind of people are not worthy of respect …”
”I wanted to use the arrogance of the French to complete my plan. They would never have thought that I would use the army to break out of Besanthus. Even if Pierre was a genius in intelligence, he would not have guessed my plan …”
”Furthermore, the French are all focused on the Prussian, even if they have to be on guard against you guys, their intelligence network in Prussia will be paying close attention to every single move of the Prussian army. As long as you guys create a few feints in the border area, you will definitely attract their attention …”
”Besanthus is already very close to Switzerland. I believe that my brave warriors can escort me out of the encirclement with a distance of dozens of kilometers. I personally trained that iron army, so I have no doubts about their strength!”
Madman, this was a madman! Paul was really unable to understand where Xiao Letian's strong self-confidence came from. The French army would surely clash with the Chinese, and a small war would begin.
No matter who won, the military conflict would turn into a diplomatic disaster. At that time, France would naturally become enemies with China, wouldn't Xiao Letian be afraid of the retaliation from the French Navy and Army? Forget about that small Ryukyu, even if it was the Great Qing, what could it do? Hadn't he also failed?
Xiao Letian seemed to have guessed what Paul was thinking. He sneered and said, ”It's not that I despise the French, the current France definitely doesn't have the ability to send military forces to China again. Napoleon III is just dragging the British down to gain an advantage.”
The Crimean War, Second Opium War and even the later part of the expedition, Mexico, all came from France. Although the French had a tough tongue, they were also very clear about the current international situation. Britain occupied the largest number of colonies in the world, had the world's number one naval power, and many things could not be done without the help of the British.
”Paul, do you really think that the British will continue to oppose China for France? ”Don't think that the British are idiots. Six years ago, Britain already received the commercial benefits they wanted, and even the authority to manage the Great Qing Customs was entrusted to the Northern Ireland He De. Who would risk upsetting their own jobs if they were full of oil?”
”Without a strong navy, the army is just a landlubber, and they want to cross half the world to go to war with China? This is a dream! ”
Xiao Letian did not tell Paul that the reason why the French did not dare to start a war was mainly because Prussia was holding them back. As long as the rise of Prussia was not stopped, the core forces of France would not dare to leave Europe.
Furthermore, the Ryukyu had almost formed an alliance with the United States. The United States would definitely not allow France to harm their interests in Asia.
The most important point was that Xiao Letian knew clearly about the war between France and the Qing Empire in Viet Nam. At that time, even though the French had destroyed all the fleets in the Southern Ocean, they had never been able to get anything from the war on land.
France is now a bit of a powerhouse on the outside, but no one has found any clues, still holding the paper tiger as a real tiger.
Faced with Xiao Letian's toughness, Paul could only nod his head and agree to cooperate. It was only after the two of them reached an agreement that the negotiations would begin.