MTL - Red Alert 1895-Chapter 966 Weakness and Compromise (Medium)
"Cecil, some members of our parliament are discussing in private whether it is possible to use Hong Kong and the Chinese to exchange some conditions, and then let us gain some benefits in trade. Net≯≯ Some members communicated secretly, and then they discussed whether We can use Hong Kong, which has become useless, to exchange some preferential commercial conditions with the Chinese, which will be more beneficial to the future of our British Empire." Secretary of the British Prime Minister Cecil said.
Cecil's face was dark. Of course, he knew that the lower house of this parliament was only discussing secretly here, and no real proposal was proposed. However, Cecil knew that in the near future, those congressmen might have discussed it in private, and they would probably formally propose a bill. And most of this bill has to go through discussion, and then those councils will force themselves to make a decision and implement it. But this Cecil obviously knows the problem here, and it is imperative that Hong Kong is Chinese.
"What are those businessmen thinking?" Cecil said angrily.
And Cecil's secretary smiled wryly and said: "Your Excellency, the people who are connected in private this time are all people who have a lot to do with those exporters. They often accept political donations from those businessmen, so they think they should They are speaking for those merchants. Their export merchants, especially those in the textile industry, and many merchants of industrial products, their commercial profits are heavily dependent on export trade. They now need China's full four The 400 million population is already more than the entire population in Europe. Although the purchasing power there is relatively poor, there are still a large number of people. Moreover, they are now in the stage of economic development, and the people have gradually started to accumulate savings. They're stocking up on all kinds of stuff."
"China is currently in a period of economic expansion, and many people need a lot of things. So they think this is an emerging market, even better than the market in the Qing Dynasty. Their working class has begun to expand rapidly, and their There is also a lot of demand, so they think it should be able to make money, and it is a good market.”
"The Chinese government has controlled the market. Although the Chinese government has collected a lot of tariffs, it has not completely blocked them, so there are still a lot of profits. Now the Chinese are against us because of the Hong Kong issue, so they China The government used the Hong Kong issue as an excuse to force domestic businessmen to terminate transactions with our British Empire. Even following this trend, the Chinese market may be cut off at any time. Many products in our British Empire are surplus. If there is no China With such a huge market digested, a large number of products cannot be sold, and problems will arise in factories and enterprises. Even many textile workers will lose their jobs because of this. Even if they only eat part of China's huge market, they still have problems. It is enough to feed our tens of thousands of textile workers. The same is true for all industries and industries. Basically, the Chinese market can determine the employment of more than 200,000 workers in our British Empire, so we have to pay attention to it.”
"Now that the Chinese government controls the Chinese market, they can close the country and stop doing business with us. They can even directly send our orders to people from other countries, so we can say that we have lost too much. China This market cake is really too big, with a population of 400 million! Even if they have just developed there, even if the Chinese government controls the country there, even if they collect a lot of taxes, it is a huge economy with a population of 400 million after all. I am afraid that only One percent, or even one thousandth, can be eaten. So they have a market with so many people. So of course they are tempted, and anyone will be tempted by such a huge market."
"So, they think that the value of Hong Kong is no longer great, so it is better to exchange some commercial terms with the Chinese, so that we may all get more benefits."
These British businessmen don't care about politics, they just care about making money. They even think that Hong Kong has long been a chicken rib. Wang Guorui's navy has controlled the South China Sea, and Wang Guorui has completely controlled the Strait of Malacca in the South China Sea. If Wang Guorui needs it, he can actually close the Strait of Malacca at any time. As for Hong Kong, it has already become a dispensable enclave. Such an enclave has little value. There is almost no economic value or strategic value. The British occupy this small piece of Hong Kong, which is actually useless at all.
Instead of continuing to occupy it like this, continue to have bad relations with China, and then affect business, then they must be willing to use this doomed Hong Kong in exchange for some commercial benefits, so they may get more benefits. While Hong Kong is still there, hurry up and talk to the Chinese in exchange for some commercial benefits. Otherwise, if China really directly occupies Hong Kong, then I am afraid that this will really expire. If you don't play cards, do you keep smelly?
"Your Excellency, news has just come from Hong Kong that the Chinese have not only shelled from the sea, but have even dispatched an artillery regiment of the army to shell. Then an infantry battalion of their army has begun to enter the New Territories. Then they have begun to attack our Hong Kong’s main island is advancing, and a large army may be invaded at any time. The Governor of Hong Kong requests to make a decision as soon as possible. If China continues to attack, will we declare war on China? And, after the declaration of war, will we really fight or pretend to fight.”
Cecil is also under great pressure, because it doesn't seem to be a good choice anyway. If it is to keep Hong Kong, it must not work. If the Chinese take advantage of this time to completely occupy Hong Kong, will the UK declare war for this worthless Hong Kong and China? And after the declaration of war, whether the war will really start, or whether the war will be declared without war, this is also a question. If the war really starts after the declaration of war, then the British will lose more than the gains, because as long as a British general with a mature IQ knows that it is impossible to defeat China, especially if it is a war across a continent, it is simply a joke.
But it is meaningless to declare no war. Because even if there is no war declared, China can cut off their production and trade with the British at any time. The Chinese market of 400 million people is really fat, and anyone has to be tempted. With such a huge market, who can not be tempted? If anyone is not tempted, it is a fake. Those British businessmen who rely on export trade for a living will naturally not support war against China, especially if they do war with China, then the British will not be able to obtain enough benefits, and then they will definitely make China completely and causally cut off trade contacts, so those capitalists will definitely quit.
So no matter how you choose, there will be problems.
"What should we do? Are we going to declare war on China?" Cecil also said with a headache.
And Cecil's secretary next to him didn't dare to answer. He couldn't talk about this kind of thing, and even Cecil himself couldn't solve it. Fighting against a country that is also a big country is not something they can solve on their own. The capitalists in the parliament all regard economic interests as more important than political interests. And those capitalists want to use this Hong Kong and China in exchange for some economic and trade preferential treatment, so that they can get better benefits. This Hong Kong is already a "stinky boy" and its value is not great, so it is understandable for them to think so.
"Your Excellency, the Chinese have begun to enter Hong Kong and have begun shelling Hong Kong. Their idea of retaking Hong Kong is imperative. So..."
Cecil also sighed, and then said: "The power of the Chinese government is really great. It can easily manipulate those businessmen. Those businessmen are oppressed in front of the government. But we... hey! "
Obviously ~www.novelbuddy.com~ Cecil was also very emotional, and was speechless about his situation. But he can't do anything about it, because the cultural backgrounds of the East and the West are different. In China, the government may have a lot of power, and even ordinary people "take it for granted" that it is normal for the government to have a lot of power, so businessmen are nothing in front of officials. But in Europe, capitalists are very powerful. Although he is a bureaucrat of the British Empire, he seems to be the most powerful person in the world, but he still has many "mother-in-laws" on his head. If these "mother-in-laws" are not served well, they may collapse. So he is naturally very depressed, and now he has nothing to do. In particular, it is imperative for the Chinese to regain Hong Kong. If they do not agree, it will only make the situation worse.
"The Chinese government has too much power, they can say the same thing. If we can have such a big power, that would be great! If I can have such a big power, then I can play to make the Chinese people compromise. That The one surnamed Wang is right, you are not afraid of opponents who are like gods, but teammates who are like pigs!" Cecil also complained.
Wang Guorui, the emperor of China, said a word, and everyone in the whole country must implement it. Basically, it is not a big problem to start a war. It's just that Wang Guorui was calm and didn't choose to start a war. But if Wang Guorui really decides to go to war, the whole country will cooperate with him. But in the UK, it is obviously impossible to have such a great power, Wang Guorui's power also makes this Cecil feel envious and jealous! Wang Guorui is not like Cecil, with so many "mother-in-laws" on his head! (To be continued.) 8