Chapter 920

The British referendum was still ongoing, and the armistice negotiations had already started. Even a rotten ship had three pounds of nails, let alone the British Empire.

It was true that the Continental Alliance had the upper hand. If they really wanted to push through, it would take at least a year and a half.

This was especially so for the overseas colonies. Canada and Australia were typical vast territories. If they really fought, it would be difficult to control a place without 1.8 million troops.

Franz didn't have the energy to spend another three to five years catching mice after winning the war. Even if he had a big family, he wouldn't be defeated like this.

War was very costly, and continuous fighting was the most draining of a country's resources. Spending too much power on the British was not conducive to Shinra's subsequent strategic layout.

War was only a means, not the ultimate goal. Weighing the pros and cons was the most basic ability of a politician.

…

Austria Hotel conference room

Adam was furious when he got the armistice conditions. Announcing surrender was a small matter. Since they had lost, it was only a matter of time before they admitted defeat.

The trouble was ceding land and reparations. According to European tradition, it was natural to cede land and reparations after losing a war. Adam was already mentally prepared.

However, after seeing the specific amount of reparations and the land that was requested to be ceded, Adam couldn't help it.

The ceding of land was almost the same as what was previously said. All of the overseas colonies, plus Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, were independent, but a small piece of England was taken away.

The dismemberment of the British Isles was unacceptable, and they wanted to continue to weaken England, so there was no room for negotiation.

Even the British Empire at its peak would not be able to handle 80 billion DND of reparations, let alone Great Britain, which was suffering from severe injuries.

Even if they handed over all the wealth that they had plundered for hundreds of years, the current Government of the United Kingdom couldn't come up with such a huge amount of wealth.

The specific example could be France. Just the war reparations alone was enough to make France unable to breathe.

The Government of Paris had been paying for so many years, and they hadn't even paid off the annual interest, let alone the principal.

Unless the BDH depreciated, France wouldn't be able to escape the debt crisis in this century. Adam naturally couldn't let a similar scene happen to Britannia.

Unlike France back then, Britannia now had Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. They also had a strong Royal Navy at home.

Although they couldn't save the overall situation, they could still cause hundreds of thousands of casualties for the Allied Forces.

Although they couldn't save the overall situation, they could still cause hundreds of thousands of casualties for the Allied Forces.

"Your Excellency, these conditions are too harsh for the British Empire. They are far beyond what we can bear. The 40 million British citizens cannot accept such humiliation."

When he heard the word "humiliation", Leo, the representative from Divine Clapnet, could not help but roll his eyes. Throughout the history, how many defeated countries didn't suffer "humiliation"?

Not all countries were like the Far East Empire, and the government of Vienna was not that stupid. There were very few countries that did not pursue responsibility after winning.

After picking up the cup of coffee, Leo calmly said, "You have to pay the price for doing something wrong. Your country is now paying for the previous mistake.

"Since the outbreak of the war, the foreign trade of the European countries has been interrupted, and the world's economy has fallen into negative growth.

"Since the outbreak of the war, the foreign trade of the European countries has been interrupted, and the world's economy has fallen into negative growth. The death toll of the war is in the millions.

"If we look back, the losses your country has brought to the world will be even greater. Let's talk about the European continent. In the past two or three hundred years, which European war didn't have your country's shadow?

After committing so many sins, how could mere money make up for them? Eighty billion BDH is already determined after considering your country's ability to pay. If you really look into it, your country can only go to hell.

As for the colonies, they don't belong to your country. We're just taking them back on behalf of our masters.

Ireland, Scotland, and Wales are all forcibly occupied by your country. All the righteous people in the world have the obligation to rescue them.

… "

Politics was so realistic. Whoever lost the war had to be responsible for the war. The winner couldn't be blamed.

It was Vienna and London who pushed for the war together. Now, all the responsibility for the war fell on the Government of the United Kingdom.

There was no point in arguing. In this era of the law of the jungle, strength was still the most important thing to speak.

As for the losses brought about by the war, it was a bit biased. It was true that millions of people were killed or wounded, but most of the casualties were from the Oceanic Alliance. India contributed most of the casualties.

Except for the unlucky Russian Empire, which suffered heavy losses in the Far East, the other countries of the Continental Alliance didn't fight many hard battles.

There were only a few battles, but they were all one-sided battles. The real evenly matched battles were still carried out in the navy.

The casualties of tens of thousands of people might be considered "heavy losses" at other times, but during a world war, it might not be enough for a day's casualties.

At least in the Indian battlefield, there were several battles with tens of thousands of casualties in a day. It was just that every time the casualties were heavy, it was the colonial army that didn't enter the eyes of the Government of Vienna.

All of these added up couldn't make up for the old debts. In the past years, Britannia had done too many things that attracted hatred. It was like coal that couldn't be washed clean.

If all the losses caused by these actions were added up, 80 billion in reparations was really not much. It could be added with a zero.

After thinking for a while, Adam quickly came to a realization.

"The problem has to be looked forward. The past is a legacy of history and can be left to historians to explore. There is no need to involve politics.

Today, we can sit here on behalf of peace-loving people from all over the world to discuss how to end this war.

We have shown the greatest sincerity, and we hope that your country can show sincerity, face this problem carefully, and come up with an agreement acceptable to all parties as soon as possible.

Britannia can give up most of its colonies and pay a reasonable amount of war reparations, but its sovereignty must be respected, and its international status after the war must be guaranteed without any discrimination. "

Sincerity was naturally seen. Even if there was no sincerity, with the decline of domestic food reserves, the Government of the United Kingdom must show sincerity.

The Government of Vienna was also very sincere. Otherwise, they wouldn't have agreed to a one-week truce to create an opportunity for the Government of the United Kingdom to shift the blame.

However, sincerity couldn't be eaten. Negotiations always revolved around interests.

Leo shook his head without hesitation. "I'm sorry, Sir Adam. Not only can we not accept such a truce, our allies won't agree to it.

In the past years, your country has left too many bad impressions on everyone. If your country isn't weakened, I'm afraid the whole world won't be able to sleep.

If your country really wants to end the war, it is necessary to surrender all colonies, pay war reparations, and limit armaments.

Of course, if your country can show more sincerity, we can also make some concessions.

For example, whether Ireland, Scotland, and Wales are independent can be decided by the local referendum after the war.

Your Excellency, there is not much time left for you. Your government must make up its mind quickly.

Once the seven-day truce expires and we haven't reached a preliminary agreement, then your country will only be left with the path of unconditional surrender in the future. "

It turned out that allies were meant to be used against. At the end of the world war, the Government of Vienna still considered its own interests first.

In contrast, punishing Britannia was secondary. As long as the colonies were cut and armaments were limited, as an island country, Britannia wouldn't be able to stir up any waves.

"More sincerity" was obviously asking for benefits. As long as the benefits were big enough, they could first feed the Holy Roman Empire and then talk about non-principled issues.

Adam secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't afraid of the Government of Vienna being greedy, but he was afraid that the Government of Vienna wouldn't have any desires.

In any case, feeding a country was easier than feeding dozens of countries. If they really went to talk to the Continental Alliance, it might be the second France.

After a moment of silence, Adam cautiously asked, "What does your country want?"

The British Empire's foundation was still very strong. Even at this point, there were still many good things that people coveted.

If it wasn't for the fact that they were in a hurry, Adam wouldn't have been so direct. If they slowly grinded the price they had to pay, the price might be smaller.

Shinra Foreign Minister Leo: "We don't have too many requests. We just want your country to help us a little. It's not difficult.

You know that we don't like trouble. As long as your country withdraws from Canada, New Zealand, and Australia, take all the trouble with you.

Also, the old guys from the Academy of Sciences are interested in some of your country's technologies and want to exchange them.

Finally, we want to make an advertisement. As you know, for the long-term development of mankind, we have been committed to environmental protection and saving resources.

For example, in the military field, the market is not big to begin with, but there are many participants. However, these participants' technologies are not up to standard, and a lot of raw materials are wasted every year.

In order to change this situation, we have been working hard to promote the global integration of weapons and equipment, and have achieved progress.

More than 70% of the world's army equipment, air force equipment, and nearly 40% of the navy equipment have been integrated, saving at least tens of thousands of tons of raw materials every year.

Everything is developing in a good direction, except for the problem in your esteemed country. After the war, your country's military production will be limited, and the original military enterprises will be closed.

If possible, when your country purchases weapons and equipment from other countries, you can give appropriate consideration to our military products.

You can rest assured that our country's military products are of high quality. They enjoy a high reputation all over the world, and are highly praised by users. "

Small help was not small at all. It could be said that every one of them was digging up the foundation of the British Empire, but Adam couldn't find the courage to refuse.

Snatching colonies, snatching technology, and even monopolizing the military market. Once these plans were completed, the Holy Roman Empire's advantage over other countries in the future would become insurmountable.

What was even more despairing was that these plans were almost completed, but the outside world still didn't know.

But all of this had nothing to do with Britannia. After the fiasco of this world war, it was not easy for Britannia to keep its territory. Fighting for hegemony was a matter for future challengers.

Adam didn't want to break the window paper. With the decline of the British Empire, there was no country in the world that could balance Shinra.

Even if the ambition of the Government of Vienna was exposed, people could only fake their noses and accept the established facts.

…

On December 16, 1905, the Government of London announced the results of the votes. "Stop the War" was passed by an absolute majority.

A total of 27.345 million people participated in the vote, and 25.494 million people supported stopping the war, accounting for more than 90%.

As for how the votes were completed in such a short period of time, it could only be attributed to the "efficiency" of the British during the special period.

On the same day, the British Parliament announced that the vote was valid, and Britannia officially withdrew from the war.