In November 1896, the continuous fermenting uprising of Crete led to the tension between Greece and the Ottomans, which attracted the attention of all countries.

On November 3, Constantine, together with King George, received the British Foreign Secretary, the Marquis of Salisbury, who came to inquire about the situation at the Palace of the Constitution Square.

The Marquis of Salisbury, dressed in a typical British gentleman's dress, with a bowler hat, a black woolen coat, and a civilized stick in his left hand.

After the two sides met and sat down, the Marquis of Salisbury said straight to the point: "For God's sake, the whole of Europe is bathed in a rare peaceful time."

Since the Franco-Prussian War in Western Europe in 1871, there has been no major war.

"His Majesty the King, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, the two countries, Greece and Ottoman, are on the brink of war because of the uprising in Crete"

"Greek newspapers have intensified their attacks on Ottoman Turkey. Have you made up your mind to go to war with the Ottomans?"

The prelude to war is generally overwhelming public opinion against the enemy country in order to mobilize the enthusiasm of the people.

The content of newspapers in Greece cannot deceive people at all. As long as you go to the road and buy one, the news about Ottoman on it is shocking.

"The British Empire is concerned about the stability of the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean"

First, a war broke out between Italy and Ethiopia, and now the two are fighting fiercely on the south bank of the Red Sea. At this time, a war also broke out in Europe, which may cause a chain reaction of the situation in Europe.

European countries are inextricably linked, and they have all kinds of allies with each other.

Especially for a big country like Ottoman Turkey, whether it is defeated or won, it is a trouble for the rest of Europe.

Britain is unwilling to see the war between Greece and Ottoman Turkey at this time.

King George and Constantine looked at each other and responded: "Your Excellency Minister, you should know that for the past two years, the business activities of Greek merchants in the Ottoman Turkish Empire have been boycotted. The despicable behavior of the Ottoman Empire has led to Greek merchants. lost heavily"

Salisbury was silent for a moment after hearing the words, saying: "If it is just an economic issue, I can represent the British government and immediately go to Constantinople to mediate and try to persuade Hamid II to let He stopped his hostility to Greek commodities"

"As long as Greece promises not to interfere with the situation in Crete"

The foreign minister of the British Empire seems to be very confident in persuading Hamid II to abolish trade discrimination, or in other words, the prestige of the British Empire.

After thinking for a moment, Constantine said: "Now the Greek people are angry, Your Excellency, your time will not be too long"

Salisbury was dissatisfied with such a general answer, but there was no good solution, and his heart sank. It seemed that the possibility of mediating to prevent the war was relatively slim.

After saying goodbye to the British Foreign Secretary, in the palace garden, King George asked Constantine, "Constantine, what do you think of the advice of His Excellency the Marquis?"

"There is no operability. Now Greece has no better choice. The statement issued by the people of Crete is well known in Greece. Who would dare to refuse?" Constantine replied without thinking.

"Moreover, the British are also untrustworthy. Maybe the British got some benefits from the Ottomans and sold Greece."

The British are such a European scumbag who can benefit from the chaos of European countries every time. How could Constantine put hope on them.

Now that things have developed, both the Ottomans and the Greeks have already come to their senses and are preparing intensively. At this time, listen to the British and stop. If the British mediation fails, wouldn’t Greece be passive? ?

With the size of Ottoman, the longer the preparation time before the war, the greater the advantage.

Thinking of this, Constantine said to King George: "It is better to be fully prepared now, this is the best choice"

........

Africa, Port Matadi, Congo.

As the only channel connecting Congo with the Atlantic Ocean, Matadi in the lower reaches of the Congo River is the most important port in Congo.

Although a river port, Matadi has direct access to the Atlantic Ocean.

On the wide river surface, the mist is filled with mist, and you can vaguely see that dozens of ships are taking turns to load goods in an orderly manner.

On the side of several ships that were docked at the port, under the command of Greek officers, indigenous soldiers lined up in a long line and boarded the ship through wooden boards.

Under the awning on the side, a group of high-ranking Greek officials in the Congo colony were waiting for the news of their departure.

Banning, governor of the Congo colony, looked at his complacent colleague, Brute, the confidant of Crown Prince Constantine.

It has been more than ten years since the Berlin Conference obtained the Congo colony and Brut was sent by Constantine to Africa to train indigenous soldiers.

In the past ten years, Brut, according to the orders of Constantine, relied on the model of Greek officers and black soldiers in Africa, and pulled up a force of about 50,000 indigenous soldiers.

Now, after receiving the order of Constantine, he will finally lead the army back to Greece.

"Brut, congratulations, now you have returned to Greece with such an armed army. Your position in the army, with the support of Crown Prince Constantine, has a great future." Banning looked at Brut enviously. Congratulations.

As Banning, who came to Congo when Stanley started colonizing the Congo~lightnovelpub.net~, he stayed in Africa longer than Brute.

The high-spirited Colonel Cantoriotis, who was wearing a white navy uniform beside them, said loudly, "Your Excellency Governor, we are going."

As one of the few senior naval officers in the Greek Navy, after two Esmeralda-class cruisers were delivered and stationed at the mouth of the Congo, the Greek naval officer was often dispatched to the mouth of the Congo to familiarize himself with the command of the warships.

I saw a soldier quickly running towards the location of the three and said loudly: "Report, a total of 41,000 soldiers have already boarded the ship."

This time, Constantine dispatched a total of about 40,000 indigenous soldiers, and there are still nearly 10,000 soldiers in Congo for emergency use.

After saying goodbye, Cantoriotis immediately boarded the "Congo" (two Esmeralda-class cruisers, one named Congo and one Banning), which was docked at the dock. ).

On the masts of two warships and three destroyers, the emblem of the Greek Navy - the anchor cross and the cross-flag, the sailors are lined up, standing on the side of the ship's side facing the port, the blue ribbon behind the head is flying in the wind, The warship started slowly, saying goodbye to the port of Matadi, where it has been stationed for the past two years.

Dozens of ships with a tonnage of more than 2,000 tons were waiting on the river. After seeing the warships leaving their posts, they sounded their sirens together, black smoke billowed from the chimneys, and loud noises in the port.

The mighty fleet officially pulled anchor and set sail for Greece.

Banning on the shore looked at the fleet that was gradually passing away. His heart was agitated, and he had mixed feelings. The ten years of hard work he had spent on going to the wild Africa finally came to fruition.

Thinking of this, Banning, whose eyes were wet, murmured, "I wish you luck in the exam, and good luck to Greece."

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