Carlo looked at the foreign minister in front of him in surprise.
Seeing his monarch's surprised expression, Bacona was also deeply moved. Who would have thought that the Spaniards would make such a request and want to lease three Italian Turin-class battleships.
Yes, the solution that Prime Minister Castillo came up with was to borrow battleships. This was only three years after the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1894. The glorious deeds of the Italian army being borrowed by the Qing people to fight in the Far East War are still mentioned by various media from time to time.
As the Prime Minister of a country, how could Castillo not know this? So after Admiral Cervera mentioned the lack of warships, he immediately thought of Italy.
There is no way, this impression is too deep and cannot be changed at all. That's why Spain wants to test Italy's attitude through diplomatic channels.
"By the way, what exactly is Spain planning to do? Do you have any other ideas?"
Regarding the loan in Spain, Carlo does not know the specific situation yet and plans to find out first.
Faced with Carlo's inquiry, the Foreign Minister, who knew that this matter was of great importance, immediately replied. "According to the news sent back by our Embassy in Madrid, the Spaniards obviously want to adopt the Qing people's method, but the price is more generous than that of the Qing Dynasty."
The Qing people and the Spaniards are much worse. They are not financially wealthy and want to be paid in other ways."
When Carlo heard this, he couldn't help but ask. "Other ways?"
"Yes, in other ways, the reason is Spain's own poor financial situation."
Well, Carlo can understand this. Who makes Spain's financial situation the worst in Europe?
How bad Spain's financial situation is can be seen from the government bonds it issues. Spanish government bonds are currently the least popular in the bond market, and the interest rate has been among the highest among all countries' bonds for many years. The basic price of buying Spanish government bonds is
The mentality of gamblers is dominant, and they are all greedy for the high interest rates.
Moreover, the scale of the national debt carried by Spain is also very large, with a scale of 8 billion pesos. For the poor Spanish economy, it is completely overwhelmed. The term "debt to survive" is very suitable for Spain.
So for the Spanish government, which has no money in its pocket, it would be best to use other methods to pay.
However, for Italy, if you want to rent warships and personnel, you can't do it without money. At present, Italy is still financially tight. The previous drought has consumed 800 million lire of funds. The Spaniards want to pay in other ways, and they also need Italy.
Just agree.
"We can talk to Spain about leasing warships, but when it comes to paying remuneration, your Ministry of Foreign Affairs must demand remuneration that can be cashed at any time. Your Ministry of Foreign Affairs must flexibly control this aspect."
When faced with Carlo's words, His Excellency the Foreign Secretary also responded positively.
"Yes, yes, yes, our Ministry of Foreign Affairs will pay attention to the actual situation and act accordingly."
"Admiral Yagir, are there no problems with your navy?"
After discussing with the Foreign Secretary, Carlo asked the Minister of the Navy who had not spoken for a long time. If Spain wants to rent a warship, it certainly needs the permission of the Navy, so in addition to the Foreign Minister, the Minister of the Navy must also be consulted for discussion.
.
"Your Majesty, everyone in the navy is willing to contribute to the kingdom. Of course, we have a few small requests."
The Navy, represented by Admiral Yagir, also has some ideas of its own.
Since he wants to use the navy, how could Carlo not satisfy his wish? Carlo immediately said, "If you have anything to say, just tell me. As long as it's not too difficult, I will consider it."
"Your Majesty, can you directly sell three Turin-class ships to Spain?"
Admiral Yagir told the navy's wish. Carlo and Bacona understood the navy's plan as soon as they heard it. They just wanted to exchange the old for the new.
Don't blame the Navy for having this idea. Although the three Turin-class ships have worked hard over the years and are still the most powerful battleships in Italy (the Genoa class has not yet entered service), the Turin-class has been in service for almost ten years after all, and has also experienced
After one big battle and more than ten small battles, the battleship has already suffered various hidden injuries that cannot be solved. And if Spain uses it again, it will be two battles and the damage will inevitably be more.
This is of course quite uneconomical for the Italian Navy. Although the warships and officers and soldiers dispatched have also made money, considering the current government situation, there is a high probability that the money will be used for other purposes by the government. Moreover, it is also necessary to consider the acceptance
The government's financial situation has declined, so if it wants to replace its warships, the navy needs to think of more ways.
So after careful consideration, the Navy planned to take advantage of the opportunity to sell the Turin class for money while it was still valuable. The Navy was thinking of ways to raise some funds to prepare a new warship. Wouldn't it be nice?
"I don't know if this can be done, but it requires help from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs."
Although the Navy had a good idea, it still needed help from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, so it could only leave it to Bacona.
Seeing this question being pushed in front of him by His Majesty, and looking at the expectant Navy Minister, Bacona could only answer. "I will talk to Spain about this matter. According to Spain's current urgency, it shouldn't be a big problem."
.But this is not certain. After all, you know how bad Spain’s financial situation is. I don’t know if we can negotiate a suitable price.”
"It doesn't matter. As long as it's not too bad, we can accept it. Besides, we also need to provide officers and soldiers on board the ship. Spain can't offer too low a price."
Admiral Argyle is very confident in the selling price. After all, he still relies on Italian naval officers and soldiers to fight. Do the Spaniards dare to give a low price?
Since the Navy is so confident, what else can I say? Let’s just follow the Navy’s approach.
Later, Carlo continued to discuss other issues with the three people, but after the general direction was decided, everything else was easy to discuss.
When they were almost done talking, they heard a knock on the door.
Before Carlo could ask questions, the guard's voice came directly from outside the door. "Your Majesty, British Ambassador Mandyson asked to see you. He said he has made an appointment with you."
The guard's words made Foreign Minister Bacona a little embarrassed. Ambassador Mandison relied on the influence of the British Empire to discuss many matters directly with King Carlo, completely ignoring him as the Foreign Minister.
"Then let's talk about this today!"
Carlo felt that the conversation was almost over and it was appropriate to end it at this time.
"Okay, Your Majesty."
Since the king said so, what else could the two of them say? They just packed up and left.
After the two left, Ambassador Mandison came over with a serious look on his face.
"Your Majesty Carlo, I remember that your Majesty promised not to take any action on the Sudanese issue before? Then I would like to ask why your country's tributaries occupy part of Sudan's territory?"
Ambassador Mandison scolded Carlo as soon as he opened his mouth. It seemed that he was here to prosecute.
Regarding Ambassador Mandison's performance, even Carlo, who has a calm personality, flashed a hint of anger. The ambassador did not take Carlo seriously anymore. After all, he is the monarch of a country. Is this person confused?
Dare to speak like this.
No, there is something wrong with Ambassador Mandison's attitude. He is not usually like this. Is this because he wants to anger himself?
Although it is still unclear about the true attitude of the ambassador, it does not hinder Carlo's next answer. He only saw a smile on his face and said, "Why should I take it seriously? It turns out that this is what happened. Ambassador Mandison, what did you say?
Yes, I did say at that time that our country would not obstruct your country on the Sudan issue. But I cannot restrain Sudan from provoking the Kingdom of Abyssinia.
At that time, Sudan took the initiative to launch an attack on the Kingdom of Abyssinia, and the Abyssinian army subsequently counterattacked and attacked all the way to Khartoum. The Sudanese knew they were outmatched, so they were willing to cede territory and pay compensation. This matter has been written into
in the peace treaty between the Sudan and the Kingdom of Abyssinia. And
The Kingdom of Abyssinia's attack on Sudan was also helping your country. Otherwise, your country would not have captured Khartoum in May. Although Abdullah ran away, Sudan's combat effectiveness was basically wiped out.
, so your country should give thanks to the Kingdom of Abyssinia."
Yes, Carlo is also reasonable. He directly described the Abyssinians' robbery of the Sudan as a living spirit that is willing to help others. Of course, in this era, people are not particular about not asking for anything in return, so it is reasonable to get a little reward.
of.
Carlo's shamelessness made Ambassador Mandyson more and more angry. "Your Majesty Carlo, I would also like to ask your Majesty to note that the land of Sudan is a colony of the British Empire. Although it fell into the hands of the rebels before, this is not
It does not mean that we will recognize the treaty signed by the rebels."
"I'm sorry, Ambassador Mandyson, I want to correct you. Sudan is not a colony of your country, it can only be regarded as Egyptian land, and this land has been away from Egypt for more than ten years, so we have reason to believe that this has formed a new government
.Even if you are dissatisfied, the most I can do is discuss Sudanese issues with Egyptian officials."
That's right, Carlo dared to promise to King Menelik II of Abyssinia to keep the territory he occupied, and that's why it was here. Sudan was previously developed under the order of the Egyptian monarch Ismail Pasha. Although its main recruits were
They are adventurers from various countries, but in name this is Egyptian territory, what does it have to do with the British?
Carlo's words made Ambassador Mandyson pause. This was indeed his negligence. "But although Sudan is Egyptian territory, but your country occupies Sudanese territory, then Egypt may send mercenaries to take back the area."
Faced with Ambassador Mandyson's somewhat angry excuses and threats, Carlo stood up immediately. "If this is the case, then the Kingdom of Abyssinia may also send mercenaries to retake the area. If this causes any disaster,
consequences, do you think this is reasonable?"
Ambassador Mandison was caught off guard by Carew's sudden toughness.
More importantly, the attitude in Carlo's words made him unable to accept it. He could not bear this responsibility. "Perhaps His Majesty is right. It is best for Egypt and the Kingdom of Abyssinia to negotiate this kind of matter."
Ambassador Mandyson's words convinced Carlo that the British did not particularly care about the Kingdom of Abyssinia occupying part of the Sudanese territory.
Of course, Carlo might be able to suppress the dispute over the Kingdom of Abyssinia occupying part of the Sudanese territory, but he could do nothing about the dispute between the United States and Spain.
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
Thank you for your support, book friends, and I hereby wish you all good health and happiness in the new year!
