The northern part of Gyeonggi Province lost two more cities, including two still-operating military factories. For this, the cabinet ministers were criticized bloody, which was simply treason.
This failure caused another panic among the people of the Holy City, and many people began to flee south. In fact, the flight south had already begun, and now it was the wealthy people who owned a large amount of real estate who began to flee south.
On the western front, after occupying the three provinces of Santiago, Queinal and Sidias, the Belis finally won a decisive victory after four months of stalemate with the Western Front led by Lewis.
The imperial army was retreating steadily, and the Belis vanguard even reached the north bank of the Longjiang River. They had the tendency to encircle the hinterland of Europe and join forces with the Assyrians in the Holy City. Every day, various horrific human tragedies were heard from the north.
.
The brutality of the Belis is not inferior to that of the Assyrians, and for the Belis, this is the first time in history that they have invaded the hinterland of Europe. Their national self-confidence is overwhelming, and they have invested more resources in conquering Europe.
on the battlefield.
Defeatism is rising in Europe.
Some people want to close the door and pretend that they cannot hear or see what is happening outside, while others want to make peace with the Belis people. But those unyielding people are still fighting.
For the Genoye people, closing the door is an instinctive choice. As Sean said, this empire has never been truly unified. When the real test comes, they choose to escape, just like the Otter Mountains
It's like eternity is blocking it there.
To this end, the Genoese convened an interim meeting of the Estates-General.
The delegates at the meeting were noisy.
The nobles and landowners, headed by Viscount Brandon, clamored to protect the emperor and defend the sacred Europa. They cried bitterly and accused the emperor's close associates of incompetence and malfeasance. They believed that as long as they united as one, formed a stronger army, and selected talents, they could
Can defeat the hateful invaders.
People in the business community believed that the emperor had never really cared about the lives of the Genoese people, and that the emperor only regarded the southerners as his coffers. They encouraged to stop paying taxes to the Holy City, and even thought of a good reason: these taxes could be used for
Raise an army to defend Genoa. This call is very seductive and very appealing to the Genoese people.
Liberals are jumping up and down. They preach patriotism and dedication, but they distinguish patriotism from loyalty to the emperor. They think that Europe is the Europe of the Europeans, not the Europe of the Sauron family. They are idealists and full of patriotism.
enthusiasm.
The church remained silent. In fact, since the meeting of dignitaries was forced to compromise last year, the church has become increasingly quiet in the political life of the empire, lest it become a target for all classes to share. Cardinal Xacelli was present in person and said nothing.
, worried.
The financial group members did not give up every opportunity to make profits. Their interests were basically the same as those of the industrial and commercial circles. Some even wanted to issue the Genoese's own currency. Except for some nobles, no one was willing to tie their wealth to the royal family.
Under this circumstance, Sean's every move has attracted great attention. No matter whether the representatives' opinions are diametrically opposed, even stubborn ones like Viscount Brandon respect Sean's opinions.
In the past two years, those nobles have also made a lot of money following Sean, not to mention the financial groups and the industrial and commercial circles. As for the liberals, they are inextricably related to Sean.
Sean has become the uncrowned king.
Sean patiently listened to the speeches of the representatives at the meeting, and everyone was waiting for him to express his opinions. Within a few days, Sean received a large number of letters of petition, both from conference representatives and from people from all walks of life outside the venue.
.
Finally, on the fifth day of the tumultuous meeting, Sean delivered his speech.
"Everyone, the situation in the north is already very tense. It is a complete waste of time for us to argue fiercely and disagree."
"As you can see, we Genoese are still enjoying peace so far. Peace is not something we are born with, nor is it something we should naturally enjoy for free. In the past, because of the existence of the empire, northerners blocked threats.
Now this barrier is about to disappear, and the lips are dead and the teeth are cold. So throw away your illusions and prepare for war!"
There was an uproar in the venue, but it was expected. Someone stood up immediately:
"Dear Earl, do you advocate the formation of an army?"
"That's true!" Sean said, "Seek peace through struggle, and peace will survive. Seek peace through compromise, and peace will perish. Don't imagine that through negotiation, the Belis or Assyrians will respect our borders, wealth, and battlefields.
What you can't get at the table will not be obtained at the negotiation table. Only the strength of steel and gunpowder is the most reliable."
"I completely agree with the Count's opinion, but I have a question. If this army is formed, if you are the commander, where are you going to use this army?" someone asked.
"Defend Genoa!" Sean said, "Its only role is this. Of course, the scope and limits of the future use of force will be completely decided by the Three-Level Conference."
Sean continued: "It is necessary to form Genoa's own army, because we cannot count on the distant victory of the Northern Empire Army. For this reason, some representatives proposed to withhold taxes, and I also agree. The taxes will be used to recruit soldiers, yes.
, they are paid a salary, not a pitiful allowance, this is the reward soldiers deserve for doing dangerous work."
"As for the opinions of some people, they are too dangerous. Although we are different from the North, just as they call us Southerners with their noses in the air, we also call us Yankees.
But taking the initiative to distinguish ourselves from the north is something that will accelerate the dissolution of our European national cohesion. This is what our enemies would like to see. If we are suspicious of the north and the south, or contain each other, the enemy will easily become ours.
Master, the vast sacred and beautiful territory of Europa will become our prison.
The door for people to get in and out was locked, the hole for dogs to crawl out was open, and a voice shouted:
Climb out, I'll give you freedom!
I long for freedom, but I know deeply——
How can a human body crawl out of a dog hole?
I hope one day,
underground fire,
Burn me with this living coffin,
I deserve eternal life in fire and blood!"
Sean’s speech was exciting. The delegates shouted:
"No, we need to be our own masters!"
Sean was very satisfied with the effect and continued to speak:
"In times of crisis, unity is strength. Not only do the Genoese need to unite within themselves, but we also need to unite with the northerners."
"We formed our own army not to break with the Holy City, nor to pursue independence. Objectively, this is a reflection of our self-reliance. If we are within our capabilities, we can even make more contributions to the defense of Europa.
This is what I have repeatedly emphasized. We are not only Genoese, but also members of the European nation. Because we cannot achieve peace independently by ourselves. If anyone thinks that peace issues can be solved through negotiations with the aggressors, then send
I am willing to provide double the travel expenses for him to go to the front line to meet the enemy."
"Selfishness, self-interest, and cowardice are our enemies!"