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Chapter 1024 Confrontation between Kings

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    In September, the harvest season, the city of Vienna is filled with colorful flags and flowers. The entire city of music is filled with a romantic and festive atmosphere. The Hofburg Palace in the center of the city is decorated into a fairy tale-like dream castle.  After quickly and easily defeating Italy, the depression of the Austro-Hungarian Empire for nearly a century seemed to be swept away. Whether it was the Austrians, Hungarians, or the Czechs, Poles, Croats, and Romanians in the empire,  They are all praising the great achievements of Austrian Emperor Karl I and praising the power and prosperity of the empire.  On this occasion, King Karl I held a grand wedding ceremony for his young daughter Princess Elizabeth-Charlotte, which made this once turbulent century-old empire show the appearance of a new life!  At the invitation of Karl I, the German Crown Prince, the US Secretary of State, the Spanish Prime Minister, the French President, the King of Sweden, the King of Denmark, the Prime Minister of Belgium and even the Vice Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union and the Turkish Foreign Minister arrived in Vienna by plane.  , and although the situation in the British Isles has been extremely tense recently, heads of state were still invited to come. Joachim I, the monarch jointly supported by Ireland and Wales, King Edward VIII of England, and Scottish dictator Balliol appeared at Vienna International Airport one after another.  Their arrival naturally became the focus of media and public attention.  From the perspective of the outside world, the current disputes among the British countries originate from a small harbor with only a few thousand residents. They are neither irreconcilable conflicts nor blood feuds that must be avenged. Why can't the disputes be resolved peacefully and the looming "  "British Civil War" averted?  The day before the wedding celebration, the three leaders sat together in an informal meeting, coordinated by Austrian Emperor Karl I personally.  Although there was no tense situation when the three met, the atmosphere was quite awkward given the current relationship between the three countries.  His Majesty Joachim I, who has been the master of a country for the longest time and has the most resounding international reputation, was the first to stir up the topic: "Anglo-Saxon-Celtic people have been living together on the British Isles for thousands of years. The ups and downs in the past have  Rain has become history. In this era of great civilization and development, why bother killing each other and letting the blood of the British stain the land of Britain? " "British?" Balliol sneered, "If it weren't for the Germans being afraid of Britain?  Once we have become a unified country again, our great European God of War has already conquered England and Scotland under the banner of 'British people are not divided', and crowned the King of Britain!" Natsuki did not look at the change in Edward VIII's expression!  , or making eye contact with him, but countered from a philosophical perspective: "For history, all assumptions are meaningless. The three of us, sitting here representing our respective countries, this is unshakable  Reality. As for the future, we are not prophets or creators of the world. As long as we do well now, it is enough." As a staunch ally of the new United Kingdom, Edward VIII immediately stated: "His Majesty Joachim I said so.  Yes, it is an established fact of history that our three countries are independent of each other. We cannot change the past, nor can we control the future. What we can decide is what to do now and how to do it." Baliol is neither angry nor angry.  Instead, he gently stirred the coffee in the cup, picked it up in an elegant manner and took a sip: "Okay! Then let us put aside those meaningless arguments about blood and race and talk about the present. According to international practice, our country's treatment of equipment  There is nothing wrong with declaring sovereignty over the islands and surrounding waters of the Deland Islands. However, citing the ruling of the League of Nations Arbitration Commission on the ownership of the Dodecanese Islands on April 3, 1945, our country ended the lease ahead of schedule and took back Salom.  The rights to use the Gulf and appropriate compensation are reasonable and legal. The series of disputes and even the threat of war caused by this really make me feel incredible. I really don¡¯t know where justice is in our time.¡±  Sneered: "I think it is necessary to remind you again that the Salom Bay Lease Agreement signed in 1939 clearly stipulates that the lease can only be terminated early with the consent of both parties. Scotland must forcibly take back Salom Bay. This is  Since it is a unilateral breach of the agreement, our country has every reason to punish it in accordance with international practice!" Baliol did not argue, but turned to the King of England: "Another question that I can't figure out.  Yes the right to use Salom Bay does not involve England. Why does England send troops and exert military pressure on our country? " "I'm afraid your understanding is a bit biased," Edward VIII said in a standard diplomatic tone.  Explained, ¡°Because disputes between neighboring countries have a tendency to escalate into military conflicts, our country responds in advance, adjusts military deployment and organizes necessary exercises. This is a reasonable and reasonable act of national defense preparedness, and there is nothing wrong with it.¡±  Angry, he joked: "As far as I know, since the end of the war in 1935, tens of millions of English people haveThey vowed not to be involved in the war again, and established the English Anti-War League to this end. Once England has a tendency to become involved in the war, this alliance will actively play a role in preventing it. This is also the reason why England has seen frequent demonstrations and strikes recently.  If public opinion is like this, Your Majesty, please take good care of yourself!  " "We have domestic affairs that you don't need to worry about.  " Edward VIII responded angrily. Xia Shu waved his hand: "Okay, it's a rare opportunity for the three of us to sit alone together, so let's be honest!  Over the years, Scotland, England, and the United Kingdom of Ireland and Wales have invested considerable manpower and material resources in the field of armaments and maintained a considerable standing army. As a result, the proportion of military expenditures in government revenue has been significantly higher than in other countries.  In European countries, the takeover of this is the funds that should have been invested in economic construction and social development have been used to build guns and artillery. The government is under heavy pressure and even has high debts. What is the point of doing this?  As Lord Baliol said, a powerful Germany will not allow Britain to be reunified. We are against each other and are at odds with each other. Why?  At best, it¡¯s the gain or loss of a city or a county. What¡¯s the point?  " Balliol smiled coldly, but said nothing. " Since taking the throne, I have never had expansion ambitions. I have tried my best to protect the independence and integrity of England and ensure that the people of England live a peaceful and prosperous life.  life, and the former glory of the British Empire has become a story to us.  Edward VIII turned to the Scottish dictator, "We respect the independence and sovereignty of the Republic of Scotland and are willing to live in peace with the Scots, rather than rely on our numerical advantage to interfere in Scotland's internal affairs or attempt to form the Kingdom of Britain."  old map.  " "Yes, of course you can let the Scots live in dignity and order as long as you want, but equally, as long as you or your successors are willing, you can make the Scots tremble in front of your army at any time.  Don't rush to deny it. Throughout history, people's ideas are constantly changing. After taking office, few princes followed the original strategies of governing the country, while many implemented new strategies and new ideas. When the time comes, the promises and guarantees made in the past will no longer matter.  I'm afraid it has no binding effect.  "Barrio argued plausibly. Natsuki clasped his hands together: "I think we have to admit that from a philosophical point of view, your point of view is logical, but your concerns are not without solutions.  For example, we can jointly reduce armaments, strictly control the size of the standing army, and accept the supervision of the League of Nations, so that no one has the ability to wage war. Wouldn't it be great?  " Baliol replied: "This sounds indeed very good. Then I will ask your Majesty a question: If our three countries reached an agreement to jointly reduce armaments ten years ago, your country would still have the opportunity to join forces with the Austro-Hungarian Empire.  Crush Italy and steal huge war profits from Italians' pockets?  When the opportunity is presented to you, will your country choose to give up, or quickly rearm its arms and engage in this significant war?  " Natsuki thought for a while: " Frankly speaking, we may not participate in the war, but provide a large amount of weapons and equipment to the Austro-Hungarian Empire to help them win this war.  " Baliol sneered: "In other words, the new United Kingdom will produce enough weapons, equipment and ammunition to equip hundreds of thousands of modern troops in a very short period of time, such as two to three months, four to five months.  It's just that it is not used directly to arm the country's army.  what does that mean?  This means that your country has far more war potential than our two countries. Once a conflict breaks out between us, your country quickly organizes a very powerful army, while we can only organize a group of people using sticks, knives and forks.  militia armed.  From this perspective, arms reduction agreements are essentially unequal treaties that bind the weak!  " Natsuki responded calmly: "You are right. Any agreement on joint arms reduction is one-sided, hypocritical, and lacks real binding force. Its significance can only be within a specific period of time.  , reducing the total military investment in a certain region or the world, and increasing investment in economic and social development accordingly. If a country bent on expansion and annexation, no agreement or treaty can stop its ambitions.  In fact, this goes back to what I said at the beginning. We can only be responsible for our country during our time in office. We cannot control or decide what our country will be like and what the world will be like a hundred years from now.  " "After going around and around, your intention boils down to one thing: to continue to retain the right to use Salom Bay and several other island ports involved in the 1939 agreement between the two countries.  Baliol deliberately slowed down his speech, "As stated in our external announcement, we are not unwilling to accept this request, provided that our reasonable requirements are met."  ¡± During the bilateral discussions, the representative of the new United Kingdom proposed to provide three times the economic compensation in addition to the rent agreed in 1939, and to be responsible for settling the living order.The disturbed Scottish residents were rejected by Scotland.  The Scottish government insists on sharing the revenue from the New United Kingdom's oil exploration in the northern North Sea, and the share ratio is no less than 30%. Little does it know how much time, money, manpower and material resources Ireland and even the New United Kingdom have invested in these offshore oil fields.  Because of this, Xia Shu sneered: "The North Sea is a huge treasure house, containing endless resources. If you want it, just explore and mine it. We have painstakingly studied for many years and condensed the results of countless people's hard work.  It is impossible to give in. This is a matter of national dignity and the will of public opinion. We cannot make concessions!" Baliol shrugged: "With the starting point of safeguarding national dignity and the will of public opinion, we are no matter what.  No matter what, we will not give in. In fact, the conditions we proposed have already made a lot of concessions and sacrifices." Xia Shu stood up and said: "Okay! You have your persistence, and we have our bottom line.  There is nothing wrong with it. Let future generations comment on what trajectory we will leave in history! It is enough for us to have a clear conscience for what we say today and what we will do tomorrow!¡± Baliol said without giving up.  : "Okay! No matter what your Majesty decides, the rebellious Scots will stick with you to the end!" (End of this chapter)
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