Chapter 534 Shao Quanzhong's Promise
Chapter 534 Shao Quanzhong's Promise
The Rhine Demilitarized Zone includes the area west of the Rhine River in Germany and the area 50 kilometers east of the Rhine River. It is Germany's Sixteen States of Yanyun.
The Treaty of Versailles stipulated that Germany was not allowed to station troops here. Germany had no strategic location to defend, and the door to the west was always open.
It was humiliating not to allow troops to be stationed on one's own territory. Waldersee was ready, and at a command, 30,000 German troops crossed the Rhine.
When Shao Quanzhong heard the news, he was so excited that he couldn't sleep all night.
It was worth it that he had been Waldersee's chief of logistics and military industry, working hard to boost Germany's military strength. Now Waldersee has finally taken action. Wouldn't the European war have to start again immediately?
However, Shao Quanzhong, who had lost the foresight to "count with his fingers", was disappointed and the fight did not start.
As expected, Alfonso I reacted violently, expressing strong dissatisfaction with Waldersee's brazen violation of the Treaty of Versailles, "denounced" his behavior, and sent heavy troops to gather on the Franco-German border. And then, nothing happened.
France is strong on the outside but weak on the inside and no longer has the courage to fight another European war.
Shao Quanzhong, who likes to watch the fun, was angry at his brother-in-law for not fighting back, "Brother Britain, why don't you do anything? I have called you brother for decades, don't let me down."
The British did speak up. The new Prime Minister, Conservative Party leader, Robert Gascoigne Cecil, Marquis of Salisbury, immediately proposed to convene a League of Nations meeting to impose sanctions on Waldersee's cross-border behavior.
Shao Quanzhong is a man with no temper. He knew very well about the execution ability of the League of Nations "in the past". Can this thing be reliable?
On October 1887, 10, the League of Nations Conference was held in Geneva, and Zeng Jize attended the conference on behalf of Shao Quanzhong.
The British Prime Minister, Lord Cecil, who also served as Foreign Minister, personally presided over the meeting and proposed that the League of Nations jointly dispatch a peacekeeping force to expel Waldersee's 30,000 troops from the west bank of the Rhine and maintain the seriousness of the Treaty of Versailles.
Shao Quanzhong's goal was to let Waldersee weaken the British so that he could get the colonies he wanted. Shao Quanzhong certainly would not suppress Waldersee, who had been fattened up with great difficulty, and Zeng Jize abstained from voting.
Russia is still a younger brother of Daxia. Although it has its own independence, it generally gives face to Shao Quanzhong. Russian Foreign Minister Chernyshevsky followed Zeng Jize's footsteps and abstained.
Britain and France were of course in favor, and finally looked at the representative of Umberto I. As for Italy, it jumped back and forth during the European war. Although its reputation was not very good, it maintained its strength and became a victorious country, gaining a great advantage.
Having recently conquered Ethiopia, a sad land, Umberto I was in high spirits and set his sights on France's colonies in North Africa.
If Alfonso I was beaten by Waldersee, Italy would have a chance to seize North Africa. So Umberto I's representative reprimanded Waldersee on the surface, and then abstained.
Three of the five votes in favor abstained, and the League of Nations meeting ended in displeasure.
Waldersee discovered that the League of Nations was just an empty shell and was extremely happy that his adventure had succeeded.
He called Shao Quanzhong to thank him for his support at the League of Nations meeting, and immediately gave the order to start building defensive positions west of the Rhine.
Huh? Waldersee didn't seem to be going to attack, and Marquis Cecil was relieved.
You just need to not hit me, that's all. But you have to put some pressure on me so that Waldersee won't dare to hit me in the future.
The League of Nations' intervention failed, and Marquis Cecil immediately held a small meeting.
On December 12, Britain, France and Italy held a small meeting in Stresa, Italy, and organized the "Stresa Front".
The joint communiqué issued by the meeting "condemned" Waldersee for sending troops to the Rhine demilitarized zone and tearing up the Treaty of Versailles, and stated that the three countries must "collectively maintain peace" and will "take joint action" if Waldersee poses a threat to the three countries.
Umberto I used this agreement as an excuse to expand the army, and the army expanded from 10 corps to 12 corps with 42 people. At the same time, the aircraft carriers "Garibaldi" and "Cavour" were launched. The tonnage of the two aircraft carrier formations reached 24.2 tons, second only to Bactria, Britain, France, Germany and Russia.
Umberto I was ready to take action, and his plan was to defect as soon as Waldersee attacked France, seize the North African colonies, and at the same time, take over the neutral country of Albania.
Umberto I's titles were now King of Italy and Emperor of Ethiopia, and he was eager to add the crown of Albania.
The Stresa Front has this Italian traitor in it, so you can imagine its execution ability...
There were undercurrents in Western Europe. After Waldersee occupied the Rhine demilitarized zone, there was no movement, as if he was satisfied.
Alfonso I and Queen Victoria exchanged phone calls to celebrate the success of the appeasement strategy. Shao Quanzhong was so angry that he jumped up and down, and the Italian King Umberto I also secretly cursed Waldersee for being useless.
The Spring Festival of 1888 arrived as everyone had their own plans.
Shao Quanzhong received a New Year gift jointly presented by Hailing Arsenal, Haoguozi Aircraft Design Institute, Xiaoxiangya Academy of Sciences, and Wen's Railway Group Xuzhou Vehicle Factory - a special train with a strong sense of science fiction.
With the arrival of 1888, new technology emerged. Hans Giger, an Austro-Hungarian chemist, invented aluminum alloy based on the electrolytic aluminum process of federal inventor Hall.
Haoguozi Company responded quickly. The aircraft and airships produced by Daxia were immediately replaced with aluminum alloy secondary keels and skins instead of hardwood frames and canvas skins, greatly improving performance. The missiles were also made of aluminum skins.
The second person to react was Tesla. His flying saucer also turned into a shiny aluminum alloy shell, flashing and flying across the sky all day long. This time, the shell was not melted and damaged due to speeding.
As soon as aluminum alloy came out, it was immediately applied to various industrial production due to its light weight, high strength and high melting point.
The special train Shao Quanzhong received used a water-cooled V12 gasoline aircraft engine. At the rear of the train, a huge propeller was added. The entire train was made of aluminum alloy, weighing only 20 tons and reaching an astonishing speed of 230 kilometers per hour. This is the fastest gasoline-powered rail train in history, and the speed record has never been broken. It is basically flying along the rails over the land.
What does this speed mean? It only takes two and a half days for the special train to depart from Hailing and reach Paris along the newly built Eurasian Continental Bridge - the Istanbul cross-sea railway bridge designed by Zhan Tianyou in this time and space has been completed.
The design concept of this special train was completely based on the Zeppelin airship, so it was named Zeppelin Train.
Soon, this super train was put into use.
On April 1888, 4, the second modern Olympic Games opened in Jiangyan, Hailing.
Before the opening, the Zeppelin train made a seven-day round trip across Europe, bringing royal representatives from various European countries to Hailing.
The royal families of various countries were shocked by Daxia's far-reaching lead in the field of technology, and were extremely envious of Hailing's prosperity. They looked at Shao Quanzhong with awe.
The Hailing Olympics was prepared for four years. One hundred thousand people watched the opening ceremony in the huge Jiangyan Stadium. Hailing TV and Hailing Radio broadcast live to the world, and it was quite lively.
However, most of the royal family members were not there to watch the fun. Just as German Emperor Wilhelm II sat down in his box, Italian Prince Vittorio Emanuele strolled in.
"Your Majesty, my father asked me to tell you something. Italy joined the Stresa Front under pressure from Britain and France. We will not be an enemy of our old ally Germany. If you kill Alfonso I, we will definitely join your camp."
Although Waldersee held all the power, William II was not a puppet.
Waldersee was promoted by William I and had great respect for the royal family. Waldersee made Germany great again, and William II was very satisfied with his prime minister and completely authorized him.
William II talked cordially with the Italian prince for a while, and when the little prince left, he said "Pooh". He no longer trusted Italy, which was jumping back and forth. However, it was better to have someone with ulterior motives in the enemy camp.
You guys are playing a bigger role in that camp than joining me.
As soon as the Italian prince left, William II immediately went to the Austro-Hungarian box to visit Princess Sissi, and then came out disappointed.
The Austro-Hungarian Empire loyally followed Shao Quanzhong and refused to agree to merge with Germany to dominate the European continent together.
It doesn't matter, I can do it without you. I can't possibly challenge Daxia, my goal is to defeat Britain and France, unify Western Europe, and stand on equal footing with Shao Quanzhong and Garfield. I have to ask Shao Quanzhong for the truth.
Shao Quanzhong met William II in his box. William II came with two reinforcements - Bismarck and Moltke.
The 29-year-old German Emperor showed great respect to the 48-year-old Shao Quanzhong and said in a humble manner, "Your Majesty is an old friend of my grandfather, Chancellor Bismarck, and Marshal Moltke. If we come into conflict with Britain and France, will you attack us?"
The good show is finally coming. Shao Quanzhong suppressed his ecstasy and sighed, "My iron-clad friendship with Germany has never been interrupted. Logically, I should support you. Unfortunately, I am a member of the Windsor royal family, and Alfonso I is my brother-in-law. This makes it difficult for me."
"so--"
William I's heart was pounding as he listened to old Bismarck translating to him in a low voice.
"So, I can only not help either side. But don't worry, I promise that as long as I am the emperor, Daxia will never use force against its old ally Germany."
William II and the two German veterans Bismarck and Moltke looked at each other and were overjoyed. Shao Quanzhong promised Bismarck and Moltke not to interfere in the European war, and that was enough.
"Thank you for your promise, the China-Germany friendship will last forever."
Coming out of Shao Quanzhong's box, William II laughed out loud and went to visit Nicholas II with Foreign Minister Hohenlohe Schillingsfister.
Half an hour later, the Olympic opening ceremony was over and the first event began.
The Jiangyan Stadium was filled with the roar of gongs and drums, and the cheers of a hundred thousand people were earth-shaking.
In the royal box of Russia, William II and Nicholas II, who was nine years younger than him, were arm in arm, watching the first event of the Olympics - the 100-meter race - with great interest.
On the coffee table behind the two emperors was a map of Europe covered with arrows, and the core of the map was Poland.
German Foreign Minister Schillingsfister and Russian Foreign Minister Chernyshevsky were signing the documents seriously with smiles on their faces.
After signing, the two foreign ministers shook hands cordially and exchanged the signed document, which was in triplicate in Russian, German and Latin and was titled the Lourdes Non-Aggression Treaty.
Outside on the field, cheers were deafening.
Federal athlete Shari used the crouch start that had just been invented by the famous federal track and field coach Malfi, and won the 11-meter championship, setting a world record of 8 seconds.
(End of this chapter)