The bright and beautiful sunlight reflected off the dark blue sea, giving it a unique flavor.
Colonel Richard was in a good mood on a sunny day, and he was about to earn some extra money.
With years of experience, he had long discovered that there was something wrong with the ship in front of him. He tried to chase after it, and sure enough, he was exposed.
Ordinary merchant ships would also stay away from the Royal Navy on the high seas, but no matter how far away they were, they wouldn't dump their goods into the sea just to escape.
Although the Royal Navy had a history of pirates, that was a thing of the past. In recent years, they had been much more restrained.
Even if they wanted to rob, they would disguise themselves. When they were flying the navy flag, they could at most extort a sum of protection money.
If they had connections, they could even get a discount by using their connections. As long as the money was in place, it didn't matter even if it was smuggling.
The Fulda's behavior was undoubtedly telling them that it was hiding something. It was rare to see such a fool, and Colonel Richard naturally wouldn't let it go.
The officer in charge of the semaphore said excitedly, "Colonel, we met Vittorio Emmanuel III on the warship in front of us. He has already identified himself."
In order to catch Vittorio Emmanuel III, the Government of London had gone all out. The Royal Navy had almost turned out in full force.
After all, as a king, John Bull also had to pay attention to international influence. Therefore, the Royal Navy's mission was to invite him back.
Hearing this good news, Colonel Richard's face lit up. In order to stimulate everyone's enthusiasm, the country had offered a generous reward.
As long as they could invite Vittorio Emmanuel III back, not only would they receive a generous reward, but they would also be promoted.
Richard was already a colonel, and if he wanted to go up, he would cross the threshold of a general. It seemed like there was only a thin line between them, but in fact, it was a world of difference.
There were a lot of colonels in the Royal Navy, but less than one out of ten could really cross the threshold of a general. It couldn't be helped. It was an era of peace now, and it was naturally difficult to be promoted without the bonus of military achievements.
"Then what are we waiting for? Ask them to stop the ship immediately and invite Vittorio Emmanuel III over."
Colonel Richard emphasized the word "invite". No matter how abject a king was, he was still a king. He must be given sufficient respect.
There was no other way. The relationship between the European royal families was very messy. When they went out, there were relatives everywhere. The connections of any royal family could not be underestimated.
The young officer's face suddenly turned ugly, and he replied with a headache, "We have already sent an invitation, but Vittorio Emanuele III did not agree.
They also warned us not to follow them. Otherwise, if anything happens along the way, we will have to take responsibility. "
In the end, the young officer still reacted and decisively chose to avoid the important and dwell on the trivial. He did not directly threaten Vittorio Emmanuel III.
Colonel Richard was dumbfounded. He did not expect Vittorio Emanuele III to be so uncooperative.
Threatening to fire the cannons was out of the question. If they were unlucky enough to send Vittorio Emanuele III to God, no one would be able to bear the blame.
Glancing at the young officer, Colonel Richard reprimanded, "He refused, why didn't you persuade him?"
That's right, persuade. No matter how abject the king was, to most ordinary people, Vittorio Emanuele III was a big shot.
Seeing the young officer's confused face, Richard continued, "Idiot, we can't touch Vittorio Emanuele III, but can't you find a way to threaten and entice the others on the ship?
Pass down the order to speed up and put pressure on them … "
…
It turned out that the flag language was still not perfect enough. At least when it came to expressing threats, the deterrent effect was not strong enough.
After confirming that the British did not dare to fire the cannons, the people on the Fulda quickly recovered. Of course, they were still a little emotional.
As soon as Vittorio Emanuele III opened his mouth, everyone became nobles, provided that the King of Sardinia could successfully restore his country.
Those who made a living on the sea knew that wealth came from danger. Captain Petra also appropriately exaggerated the success rate, telling everyone that it was because the French were at a disadvantage on the battlefield.
In order to save the French from defeat, the despicable Government of the United Kingdom detained Vittorio Emanuele III.
There was nothing wrong with it, it was just the despicable Government of the United Kingdom. Although we are all English, there are differences between Englishmen.
Although it was a temporary ship, it was impossible for the Austrian embassy not to investigate. The reason why the Fulda was chosen was naturally because the crew was all Irish.
If the crew was the British, who had the strongest allegiance to Britannia, it would be a different situation.
The distance between the two sides continued to close, and the atmosphere on the Fulda began to become tense. Vittorio Emanuele III had to personally appease the people.
Suddenly, a few small black spots appeared on the horizon, and the crew on the observation deck reported, "We found a fleet in front, and it's heading in our direction."
Vittorio Emanuele III breathed a sigh of relief and immediately said, "That's the ship that's coming to pick us up. Let's go there immediately."
After saying that, he pretended to be calm and entered the cabin.
The accompanying middle-aged man couldn't help but remind him, "Your Majesty, we chose our own route to leave this time. Even the Austrians don't know the specific route. They didn't arrange a ship to pick us up!"
After being in exile for so many years, the Italian independence organization was also beaten up by society, and now they didn't trust anyone.
Even though they were now allies with Austria, Vittorio Emanuele III didn't accept the escape route arranged by the Austrian embassy, but temporarily changed the route and boarded the Fulda.
Vittorio Emanuele III said slowly, "It doesn't matter now whether there's anyone to pick us up or not, as long as someone knows that I'm on the Fulda.
We're less than 100 nautical miles away from the Netherlands, and there are only two British warships chasing us. They don't have the ability to kill everyone on a fleet.
Once we get close, tell them that there's a noble king on the Fulda. As long as the British officers chasing us aren't stupid, they'll let us go. "
In theory, the Royal Navy wouldn't dare to kill the king. But there were always accidents, and in this vast sea, it wasn't a big deal for a ship to go missing.
Vittorio Emanuele III boarding the Fulda was a completely temporary decision, and only a limited number of people knew about it.
And these people who knew about it were all in London. Once the British became ruthless and killed them, who could prove that the British did it?
Maybe there would be some clues left, but the problem was that someone had to investigate, and it couldn't be an ordinary person.
The people on the Fulda were all temporarily recruited underlings, and their loyalty couldn't stand up to the test. The previous saying that the British wouldn't dare to make a move was to boost morale.
…
On October 9, 1890, under the escort of the Royal Navy, Vittorio Emanuele III arrived in the Netherlands.
Colonel Richard, who was in pursuit, was still very politically astute. He made a decisive change at the critical moment and defined the journey as an escort for Vittorio Emanuele III.
As for the unhappiness that happened in the middle of the journey, it was just a small problem. Not to mention that Vittorio Emanuele III hadn't been successfully restored, even if he really became the king of Sardinia, he couldn't afford to offend the British.
Since he wasn't as strong as the British, he had to accept it even if he didn't want to. He even had to act like he was enjoying it to prove to the outside world that the British were friendly.
After half a month of fighting on the Western Front, the anti-French alliance was at an absolute disadvantage.
Even if it was a battle on their own territory, Belgium still couldn't counterattack in the face of absolute strength.
The Austrian reinforcements were still on the way, the German Confederation's actions were slow, and the Belgian Luxembourg line was already on the verge of collapse. Even the Rhineland line of defense was facing problems.
The situation on the battlefield was getting more and more serious, and Leopold II was no longer as high-spirited as before.
"The situation is getting worse for us. When will the reinforcements from Germany and Austria arrive?"
Frankly speaking, the Belgian army's performance this time was passable. To be able to resist the French army's attack on the battlefield for half a month with inferior forces was already very impressive.
Foreign Minister Juer replied, "The main force of the Austrian army arrived in Baden yesterday afternoon, and the vanguard has already reached the Rhineland area. They are expected to enter our country in five days.
The German Confederation's mobilization speed is slower. Currently, only the western states have completed their military mobilization, and the eastern states are still in progress.
However, the troops mobilized by the western states haven't arrived at the frontline immediately. We have communicated with the German Confederation government, and they can't do anything about these states. "
The lack of unity of command was the chronic problem of the German Confederation. If it weren't for these internal problems, they would have joined the club of the great powers long ago.
Leopold II asked doubtfully, "Didn't George I say a few days ago that he would personally come to the frontline to supervise the war? Why is there no movement?"
War was a risk, but it was also an opportunity. It wasn't easy for George I to ascend the throne, and he naturally wouldn't give it up easily.
In fact, George I's throne wasn't stable, not only because of Austria's covetous eyes, but also because his personal prestige as a monarch was too low.
This was a problem left over from history. The German Confederation was a product of a special period. It was an empire imposed on the German people by Britain, France, Russia, and other European countries.
An empire that was forcibly created naturally wouldn't satisfy everyone, especially for nationalists. This empire was a disgrace.
Under this background, the small states naturally wouldn't buy the central government's words.
In order to weaken the authority of the central government and protect their own power, there were even people who deliberately promoted the theory of Hanover's betrayal.
It was publicly announced in the newspapers that the crown of the Gotha Dynasty was a reward from the great powers for obstructing the unification of the German Region.
There was no other way. Hanover's strength was limited and didn't have the ability to suppress these small states. In addition, the people didn't support the central government, so the German Confederation was in a weak position from the beginning.
In order to change this passive situation, two generations of German Confederation emperors made a lot of efforts, such as: working hard to develop the economy, opening up colonies, merging the Kingdom of Prussia, and a series of other measures.
The results were remarkable, but the effect couldn't be said to be mediocre. After all, these things couldn't satisfy the appetite of nationalists.
In a sense, this war against France was already George I's last chance. As long as he established enough prestige in the war, he would have the power to fight after the war.
"Your Majesty, the internal problems of the German Confederation are too troublesome. If George I wanted to gain prestige in the war, he couldn't do without the support of the Kingdom of Prussia.
The problem was that after the two Prussian wars, the Government of Prussia had gradually become conservative and unwilling to continue to take risks.
Because of the political changes, the Government of Prussia was not prepared to fulfill the conditions they had originally agreed on.
George I is working hard to persuade the Government of Prussia, but from the current situation, there is a high chance that he will fail.
The main thing is that the Austrians won't give him this chance. Once the Government of Vienna gets involved, all of George I's efforts will be in vain. "
Minister of Foreign Affairs Juer explained, which made Leopold II want to cry but have no tears. Whether the German Region was unified or not, it had nothing to do with Belgium.
Whether it was the integrated German Confederation or the unified Shinra Empire, for Belgium, the difference was like the difference between an elephant and a baby elephant.
The elephant couldn't be provoked, and the baby elephant couldn't be provoked either. Anyway, they had to live with their tails between their legs, and the final result would be the same.
After a moment of contemplation, Leopold II said fiercely, "Urge the Government of Vienna again. Tell them that if there are no reinforcements, we will surrender … It's over."
Fortunately, Leopold II reacted in time, otherwise it would be a joke that he threatened his allies with "surrender".
…
Although the reinforcements hadn't arrived, the officers had already arrived at the front.
In order to win the final victory, Franz directly sent Grand Duke Albrecht to the Western Front.
This was also a helpless move. It wasn't that Austria didn't have a general, the key was that the Western Front needed a joint command.
Without a doubt, the command of the coalition army fell into the hands of Austria. Even if Bede and Germany wanted to compete, they didn't have the confidence.
It was easy to get the command, but it wasn't easy to command the coalition army. Without a strong enough person as the commander, they couldn't control the situation.
Grand Duke Albrecht, who had the loudest voice in the Austrian army, became the best candidate.
The coalition army hadn't been formed, but the command of the coalition army had been born ahead of time, and Grand Duke Albrecht had also begun to perform his duties ahead of time.
The situation was getting worse for the coalition army, and the Ardennes Forest was about to be lost. Putting down the documents in his hands, Grand Duke Albrecht also couldn't sit still.
It seemed that the current war had little to do with Austria. Anyway, it wasn't the Austrians who died, and no matter how heavy the losses were, it was still the matter of their allies.
But in reality, that wasn't the case. Both Belgium and the German Confederation were important forces against France. Now that they had suffered heavy losses, the heavy responsibility of fighting back against France in the future could only be carried by Austria.
In particular, they controlled strategic areas. Once they fell into the hands of the French army, they would have to pay a greater price to take them back.
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