The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 994 America: We can speak German too!

The luxury cruise ship "St. Francis" on the Thames River.

The bronze bell on the deck tolled four times, and the sea breeze, carrying a salty smell, swept across the ship's hull. Wu Chaoyue, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, stood by the porthole, gazing at the bustling city through the mist outside. Behind him, the Earl of Salisbury, the British Foreign Secretary, was signing his name on parchment with a quill pen dipped in ink.

The Agreement between the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the British Empire on the Complete End of the State of Hostility—this document has a gold-edged title, but its content is simple to the point of being almost naked: 1. A de facto ceasefire: the front-line troops of both sides disengage, but the state of war is maintained externally;
2. Withdrawal from Australia and New Zealand: Britain was to withdraw from Australia and New Zealand within 12 months, and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was required to "cooperate" in creating a sense of pressure (but not to actually obstruct it).
3. Tacit understanding in the Indian Ocean: Ships from both sides will not attack each other, but they need to periodically announce "victories" to appease domestic public opinion;

4. The "secret agreement" is valid for 12 months – it can be extended if a formal peace treaty has not yet been reached.

5. Confidentiality Clause: The party that leaks the information must compensate the other party with 1 million Taiping Yuan. Of course, the contents of this secret agreement are too undignified, and neither side will leak it if they still have any sense of shame.

“Your Excellency Salisbury,” Wu Chaoyue suddenly spoke, though he spoke fluent English, he was representing the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom at the moment, so he had to speak Chinese, “Do you know why the Pacific Ocean must belong to us?”

Grand Duchess Natalia, acting as translator, pursed her red lips, deliberately softening her tone when relaying the sentence in English. Salisbury raised her grey-blue eyes: "Because...God?"

“Because of steel.” Wu Chaoyue pointed to the Pacific Ocean chart hanging on the bulkhead, “Last year, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom’s total shipbuilding tonnage was already equivalent to 1.5 times the annual warship production of Britain. This means we can use three battleships to fight your two. This is a decisive advantage!”

Three ships against two—that's a huge advantage! Anyone with a brain knows this battle is unwinnable. Besides, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's steel production is several times that of Britain!

With several times more steel and 50% more shipbuilding, how could Britain possibly compete with such a powerful industrial advantage?
Salisbury gave a wry smile. He recalled the predictions of the bankers in the City of London—that in ten years, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's industry would surpass that of all of Europe.

"But India..."

“We don’t want India,” Wu Chaoyue interrupted him. “Slaving 300 million people? And sharing our homes with them? No, we just want the Pacific Ocean—just like you white people are better off staying on either side of the Atlantic.”

When Natalia translated, she deliberately rendered "homeland" as "civilization," only to see Salisbury's pupils constrict slightly. This veteran diplomat suddenly realized: the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's attitude towards its colonies was completely different from Britain's—if Britain was the East India Company disguised as an empire, then the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was civilization disguised as an empire!
They are the Greece and Rome of the East! Even powerful nations like Japan and Korea are merely secondary civilizations of China.

When the source of civilization becomes an empire, secondary civilizations have no chance of resistance. And Britain could never become Rome!
Britain is too far from Rome to have any real connection with it.

Rome, German Embassy.

As Prince Friedrich von Hohenlohe pushed open the oak doors, the glow of the bronze chandelier spilled onto the black and white checkered floor. The building was a complete replica of the Baroque style of the Berlin Imperial Palace—even the Hohenzollern family portraits hanging above the fireplace were copies personally selected by Wilhelm I.

“Mr. Secretary of State,” Hornloe bowed slightly to U.S. Secretary of State Bayard, “it is an honor for Germany to have you here.”

With his beer belly protruding, Bayard replied in broken German: "Sir, I love Germany!" He emphasized the word "love" as if to cover up the fact that his ancestors were actually of Dutch descent.

Herbert von Bismarck, the eldest son of Bismarck the elder and now State Secretary of the German Foreign Ministry, emerged from the shadows. He wore a Prussian blue uniform, the Iron Cross on his chest as cold and sharp as a knife.

“Secretary of State,” Bismarck’s handshake was so firm that Bayard frowned, “America and Germany have never been truly enemies.”

Bayard immediately pulled out a handkerchief to wipe his sweat: "Of course! Both our countries are pillars of white civilization!" He lowered his voice, "To be honest, I am also an honorary member of the KKK... of course, it's just a symbolic title."

For a long time, the Ku Klux Klan was somewhat like a peripheral organization of the Democratic Party, and many Democratic leaders had been involved with the KKK. It wasn't until the Roosevelt family brought progressive Republicans into the Democratic Party that the Republican and Democratic parties began to "switch sides."

However, now, spurred by the American empire, the KKK's influence has grown considerably, and there is even a possibility that it could take over the Democratic Party.

Bismarck's lips twitched. He knew, of course, that Bayard was lying; the man was a moderate within the Democratic Party and had little connection to the radical KKK, but at this moment he needed the lie. As the waiter brought over the dark beer and Bavarian sausages, he deliberately spoke in German: "The British are like Jewish merchants—they only want to divide the white world."

“Exactly!” Bayard gulped down a mouthful of beer, foam clinging to his beard. “Britain is essentially an East India Company masquerading as a nation!” Bismarck nodded repeatedly. “You’re absolutely right! If it weren’t for Britain’s sabotage, Red France would have been finished long ago. All the whites would have united against the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and its lackeys!”

Bayard felt he had found a kindred spirit, and holding Bismarck's hand, he said, "Yes, we've all been deceived by the British. The British are truly wicked!"

Amidst the tinkling of the gilded clock's gears, the two men found themselves increasingly congenial. When Bayard proposed the "Secret Alliance of Virtue," Bismarck even patted him on the shoulder—a gesture that was almost presumptuous in Prussian etiquette.

“At the Rome Peace Conference, we can reach a consensus.” Bismarck the Younger unfolded a map of Europe. “Germany wants Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Western Ukraine, and control of the United Principality of Romania. America will take back Missouri and East Dakota. As for Britain…” He traced India with his finger, “Let them fight like dogs with the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.”

Bayard suddenly remembered something: "But the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom also demanded that we give up Mexico..."

Bismarck Jr. shouted, "Absolutely not! Do the British want the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom to become an Atlantic nation?" He brandished his fist, "Germany supports American control of Mexico, absolutely!"

Bismarck tapped his fingertips heavily on the map of the Republic of Mexico, leaving a white mark on his nail.

“Mexico must be controlled by the United States!” He stared into Bayard’s eyes, his voice low and sharp. “But the German Reich needs American support—not just words, but real action.”

Bayard swallowed hard, beer foam still clinging to his beard: "You mean..."

“Red France,” Bismarck said coldly, “their revolutionaries are inciting workers’ uprisings in Europe, and your ‘American Workers’ Union’—” He paused, a mocking smile playing on his lips, “—is their henchman in the New World.”

Bayard's fingers unconsciously tightened around the handle of his beer mug. The American Workers Union was indeed becoming increasingly radical; during last year's major strike in Chicago, they even displayed a sign that read "Unite the world's XXX!"

Meanwhile, many exiled French nobles and capitalists formed anti-Red France clubs in New York and Boston, spending their days exposing in newspapers how Red France had confiscated their property.

“But…suppressing the workers’ union?” Bayard hesitated. “That violates the First Amendment.”

Bismarck Jr. suddenly leaned forward, his Iron Cross gleaming coldly in the candlelight: "The Constitution?" He scoffed. "Think of those French nobles and capitalists who fled to America empty-handed—the Constitution of Red France cannot protect their sacred and inviolable private property."

Cold sweat beaded on Bayard's forehead. He thought of those fallen French counts, who once owned mansions in Paris but now eked out a living teaching French in cheap New York apartments. Many of them had joined the Ku Klux Klan, hoping to use the power of American white supremacists to fight their way back into Europe.
“You’re right.” Bayard gulped down a large mouthful of dark beer, the liquid dripping down his chin. “Those French exiles are indeed the worst example! We can’t be like them.”

Bismarck Jr. nodded in satisfaction: "Very good. So, our agreement is—"

"First, the United States fully supports the German Reich's military operations in Europe, including the final battle against Red France!"

"Second, the U.S. Congress must pass the Anti-Subversion Act, declare the American Workers Union an illegal organization, and arrest its leaders!"

"Third, the German Reich supports the United States' territorial claims to Mexico and its substantial support for the return of Missouri, Nebraska, and East Dakota!"

Bayard's heart pounded. This almost meant a complete violation of the Constitution, but the Mexican silver mines were beckoning him, and the German steel and artillery might help the United States win back a few more states at the negotiating table.

“Deal.” Bismarck Jr. held out his hand. “But the battleships of the United States must protect American merchant ships entering German ports in the Mediterranean.”

Bismarck Jr. grabbed Bayard's hand with such force that Bayard almost cried out: "In exchange, the Krupp Arms Factory will provide the United States with the latest 280mm siege guns—enough to blast Mexican fortresses to smithereens."

Outside the window, dusk deepened in Rome. In the glow of the bronze chandelier, the two exchanged drafts of their secret agreement. Unbeknownst to Bayard, Bismarck had added a small German note at the end of the clauses: "For white dominion over the world, unite!"
(End of this chapter)