"John, I personally don't think there's any benefit in cooperating with the Chinese. But since you're so willing to cooperate with China, I don't think you're satisfied with the fact that China doesn't attack us. Such cooperation is meaningless. "The Portuguese Minister of Foreign Affairs stared at his prospective son-in-law and said in a very questioning tone. John? Ferrell, the Minister of Industry and Commerce of the Kingdom of Portugal, accurately predicted China's military attack on Mozambique. Although he did not help the Kingdom of Portugal, at least the Foreign Minister was impressed by John Farlier. He agreed with Ferrell's judgement to a certain extent. Therefore, he also wanted to hear his prospective son-in-law's point of view.
"I don't know how many people in China still have high hopes for Brazil. In my opinion, the best condition to cooperate with China is that China can help us take back Brazil." Ferrell replied calmly.
The Foreign Minister's eyes widened instinctively. His wife and daughter also looked at the Portuguese Minister of Industry and Commerce with great surprise. Brazil was once a colony of Portugal, which was occupied by France in 1808 during the Napoleonic Wars. Therefore, the Portuguese House of Braganza fled to the colony of Brazil in South America. In 1809, they moved their capital to Rio de Janeiro and did not return to Portugal until 1821. In 1822, the son of the king proclaimed himself king in Brazil and proclaimed the establishment of the Brazilian Empire.
Just the day before yesterday, on November 15, 1889, the republican coup in Brazil succeeded, and the rule of the second emperor of the Brazilian Empire was overthrown. For ordinary people, this change was huge and sudden, but for the Portuguese Minister of Foreign Affairs, this change was not surprising. Many things had already proven that it was only a matter of time before the Brazilian Empire fell.
As for the Portuguese Minister of Industry and Commerce, John? His opinion was even more different from that of the Foreign Minister. Even though it was in the living room of his future father-in-law's house, even though there were two women in the audience. Ferrell's expression was still firm, and there was even an unconcealable hostility in him. "Sir, if we want to restore our rule in Brazil, this is probably the best chance, or perhaps the only chance."
"… What does this have to do with China?" The Foreign Minister of the Kingdom of Portugal at least understood the concept of taking advantage of the situation, but he still couldn't understand why the Minister of Industry and Commerce was so persistent in maintaining a good relationship with China.
John? Ferrell could not help but sneer. Due to his emotions, his tone was full of ridicule and disdain. "Because the Empire of Brazil's economy is actually controlled by the British, and the reason why the Empire of Brazil collapsed was because the current emperor, Pedro II, was forced by the British to abolish slavery for a long time. Do you still remember how Pedro II supported his Princess Isabel in signing the Abolition Act last year? I've never seen such a ridiculous decision. If he really wanted to abandon the crown, he could just announce his abdication. If he really supported the republic, he could just amend the constitution and change the country's system. Why must you turn yourself into a loser and let the world laugh at you? "
At this point, the Foreign Affairs Minister finally understood his prospective son-in-law's judgment of the world situation. Since England's support had led to the destruction of the Brazilian Empire, now that Portugal was involved in the Brazilian Empire's affairs through blood relations, they would first support the local puppet, and then find a way to take over Brazil. Other than not considering Portugal's strength in the real world, this was a very good choice.
The Foreign Affairs Minister's brain was even flexible enough to consider the problem between China and England. Although there was a fierce conflict between China and England, this conflict was far from the point where the two sides would fight. So as long as Portugal could cooperate with China, China's powerful navy would have the opportunity to escort the Portuguese army to Brazil. And once China defeated the United States and gained access to the Caribbean Sea, China's powerful army would even have the opportunity to go to sea by ship and join in the suppression of the Brazilian Republic...
In the burst of all kinds of ideas, the Portuguese Foreign Affairs Minister suddenly felt the light in front of him. If Portugal could recapture Brazil, and even move the capital to Rio de Janeiro like 80 years ago. Brazil, a vast and sparsely populated country, would make the Kingdom of Portugal rich in an instant, or at least have the opportunity to become rich.
"John, do you support slavery?" The Portuguese Foreign Affairs Minister's daughter said in a surprised, shocked, and even sorrowful voice. The two men were stunned at first, and then they both looked at the young lady. The young lady was wearing a beautiful dress, and tears almost welled up in her big eyes.
John? Farrell knew that his fiancée did not receive a full education in Portugal. She went to England to study after primary school. Although she did not get into Oxford or Cambridge, she still graduated from a good English university. So she was very much in agreement with the slogan "abolish the slave trade" promoted by the British. That was why she had such a strong sensitivity. Even John? Farrell did not talk about his personal views on slavery at all, and the girl also felt a lot of things from it.
"Ellie, you have to know that the British are the main force of the sea slave trade. The number of slaves sold by other countries in the world combined is not as many as the British. " John Farrell persuaded.
"I don't care about the British, I just don't want you to support slavery, John!" The young lady, also named Isabelle, said firmly. But a moment after she finished speaking, she immediately added, "And the United Kingdom is now firmly abolitionist. Let bygones be bygones!"
"… The past … Hehe. But the fact that the British are the biggest slave traders is still there, and the British have not truly repented. And the reason why they oppose the slave trade is not because of kindness or humanitarianism. The British oppose the slave trade because they want to weaken the productivity of other countries by opposing slavery. " John Farrell was still young, and he could not help but reason with his fiancée.
This time, the Foreign Affairs Minister and his wife subconsciously shook their heads. It was not wise to reason with a young lady, let alone John Farrell. Farrell actually tried to reverse a young lady's already formed beliefs. This was even more strenuous and unrewarding.
Sure enough, Isabelle's eyebrows slightly raised, and traces of a frown appeared on her face. She said without hesitation, "John, in your eyes, everything is profit and transaction?"
"Tsk!" John Farrell was speechless. It was obvious that the young minister had no intention of giving in. Farrell spoke in a sincere and earnest manner, "Ellie, the relationship between countries is not the relationship between people. It's common for people to do all sorts of things purely because of feelings and preferences. But between countries, it's purely about profit, not to mention a great country like England that has dominated the world for hundreds of years. No matter how they behave, if you cut open their chests, you'll see a black heart. Compared to England, our Portugal is the pure … "
"Enough! John. I don't want to discuss this with you anymore! "Isabelle stood up angrily and quickly left the living room. Because of her large movements, she even knocked over a book on the stool. John? Farrell took a closer look. The title on the cover was actually Negro Slave's Cries, which could also be translated as Uncle Tom's Cabin. His fiancée used such a book as her daily reading material. Farrell finally understood why she had such a fierce opposition to slavery.
"John. Isabelle is still young, don't lower yourself to her level. "The Foreign Affairs Minister's wife said in a soothing tone.
John? Farrell hurriedly replied, "Madam, don't worry. I think she's very cute. A bad person like me actually likes to be with such a pure person. "
"Haha!" The Foreign Affairs Minister's wife was amused. She laughed and said, "John, in fact, the country needs people like you who can put the interests of the country in the highest position. Without people like you, our country would have no hope. "
Receiving praise from his senior and mother-in-law, John Farrell also showed a calm expression. Ferrell also showed a calm expression. "Madam, I just want us hundreds of Portuguese to have a lot of land of our own. The Portuguese people can get rid of hunger and poverty through farming, and everyone can easily pay the country's taxes. And our Portuguese government can also use these taxes to build education and factories. To turn Portugal into a powerful country again. This is my hope as the Minister of Industry and Commerce. "
"Become a country like China?" The Foreign Affairs Minister's wife said.
This time, the Foreign Affairs Minister was stunned. He did not expect his wife to come up with such an analogy. In the upper echelons of Europe, many people regarded China as evil pagans, as fierce barbarians. Although these Chinese could build a navy more powerful than the British Grand Fleet, the Europeans who felt threatened by China, especially the Portuguese who had lost the ability to rule Europe, still instinctively regarded China as a barbarian.
"Madam, you are really too kind." John Farrell said sincerely.
The Foreign Affairs Minister saw that his wife was flattered in such a way that even the rims of her eyes turned slightly red. Before the Foreign Affairs Minister could judge his wife's political leanings, he heard his prospective son-in-law, John Farrell said, "Sir, I actually hope that you can support my views in the cabinet meeting. Think about it, if you can finally achieve such a major thing as the Foreign Affairs Minister, what kind of reputation will you leave in the history of Portugal? Think about it, if you can finally achieve such a major thing as the Foreign Affairs Minister, what kind of reputation will you leave in the history of Portugal? I think you may be called the greatest patriot in Portuguese history. "
The Foreign Affairs Minister did not care about the future son-in-law's flattery. He said seriously, "John, this matter is too important. It needs more than my support alone. And at such a moment, what does His Majesty think? His Majesty is really angry that China took away Mozambique. "
"Sir, I would like to invite you to my house tomorrow. We can discuss it. " John Farrell did not answer, but gave a different explanation.
After leaving the Foreign Affairs Minister's house, John Farrell went straight to the Justice Minister's house. Along the way, his car sped along the way. While John Farrell kept looking at his watch. He finally arrived at his destination before two o 'clock in the afternoon. He finally arrived at his destination before two o 'clock in the afternoon. He quickly walked into the Justice Minister's house, where a group of people were already waiting.
Portugal did not have a large population. Although there were various ministers, in fact, the level of official work was very low. So when he saw the high-ranking officers and officials in the Justice Minister's house, John Farrell was not surprised at all. Farrell was not surprised at all. After introducing the views of the Foreign Minister, he said happily, "Everyone, we have more and more people. If, with God's blessing, we can really recapture Brazil and rebuild the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and the Algarve, I think you will all be very busy."
His words elicited laughter from the ruling class in Portugal. Then the Minister of Justice introduced the three new members. Many people knew the first of them. He was a professor in Lisbon. He had always regarded himself as an enlightened thinker, and he had really done some translation and promotion work.
The professor gave his own opinion as soon as he came up. John, the Minister for Industry and Commerce, John Farrell knew that in addition to those who were simply afraid of China, there were other types of people in Europe. For example, although the intellectual class was also very vigilant and uneasy about China's expansion, the European intellectual class was very appreciative of China's domestic economic policies such as "state-owned land", "abolition of the feudal land system", "abolition of land rent", "respect for the status of the working people", and "protection of the legitimate rights and interests of workers".
The translator who was speaking was one of them. He also produced some data to support his view. He believed that at least more than 30% of the Portuguese intellectual class thought the land war was "just", and 30% thought that China's practice of killing the landlords was not just, but it was effective. In the long run, it was good for the country. Even the remaining 40% who were very dissatisfied with China's policies had to admit that China's policies were useful to the Chinese in the face of the fact that China was growing stronger day by day.
Therefore, the European countries now had a view that they began to reflect on whether there was a problem with their previous colonial policies. John Farrell, the Minister of Commerce and Industry Farrell once attended a European conference. The content of the discussion was the difference between China's colonial policies and Europe's colonial policies. Minister of Industry and Commerce John Farrell? Farrell had no interest in this kind of thing, so he simply listened. Now, he recalled some of the content.
Many European scholars believed that Europe hoped to obtain goods from the colonies that could make a lot of money, so they were satisfied with that. The money was earned by those who had the ability to go to the colonies to make money. With the improvement of sea transport capacity, the once exclusive trade was getting worse and worse. Although there were still a few people who made money, the majority did not, so the colonies became a loss-making business.
China used the colonies to solve the fundamental contradiction of China's large population and insufficient land. Therefore, the more colonies China had, the more people from China worked in the colonies, and the more variety of products China could produce. China's huge internal market could fully digest these products, so every colony in China became a source of profit.
The conclusion of the conference was that if the European countries wanted to get rid of the mistakes of the past, they had to change their policies from a pure plunderer to a local builder. The participants were all Europeans. Everyone imagined that if the European colonists became pioneers, Spain would still be a large country in South America, and Portugal with Brazil would not have to starve.
Back in the past, John F. Kennedy, the minister for industry and commerce, Farrell suddenly felt that the Minister of Commerce and Industry, John Farrell. Ferrell was probably already on the same path as the intellectual class.
In addition to the intellectual class, the lower-class Portuguese were also influenced by China. Those damned European countries propagated China's policy of not collecting agricultural taxes everywhere. At first, the lower class of Portugal sneered at this. They did not believe that there would be a country in the world that did not collect taxes from the lower class, especially from farmers. However, since the rumor reached Europe, over the years, more and more Portuguese began to believe it, and they even hoped that Portugal would one day implement such a system.
The Minister for Industry and Commerce, John? As far as Ferrell knew, the Portuguese church had been trying to quell the rumors of "non-payment of agricultural taxes" for several years, but things seemed to be going against the church's wishes. Moreover, some of the more radical young clergy turned in favour of this direction of taxation, and even began to quote from the Bible, "It is more difficult for a rich man to go to heaven than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle."
After the translator finished speaking, the Minister of Justice introduced the other two. One of them was a radical clergyman. This clergyman believed that the demands of the people could be listened to, and that Jesus, the Son of God, not only did not explicitly oppose the state ownership of land, but also criticized social injustice to a considerable extent. If according to the Bible, Jesus himself did not oppose the establishment of an earthly heaven.
After listening to the words of this radical clergyman, John Ferrell was secretly happy. John Ferrell secretly laughed in his heart. He could understand why the Minister of Justice chose to bring in such a radical clergyman. Some things needed some peripheral personnel to take the initiative, and the radicals were very handy weapons. The Minister of Justice was looking for a scapegoat for the organization, or at least a handy knife.
The last newcomer who joined surprised everyone. After the introduction, this guy turned out to be the representative of the local Brazilian landlords. "We, the local landlords, hope that you can overthrow the rebels of the republic and restore the old system of Brazil. As long as you can help us, we will do our best to help the Portuguese army. "
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