"Although Italy has gained great benefits in this war, there are still huge contradictions in the country, and Italy has invested too much money and manpower in the war, resulting in a decline in the standard of living of the people. Although Italy is still trying to heal the wounds of the war, the process is very slow because it has to take care of the construction of new colonies. Italy is a weak country, and it does not have the capacity to recover as quickly as ours and other powerful countries. ”

In Italy, too, there were all kinds of conflicts and contradictions, the most important of which was the conflict between the officials of the navy and the other factions and the army in the government. Admittedly, the role of the Italian navy in this war was quite enormous, and the victory and impact on the war situation were not comparable to that of the Italian army, and after the war, the navy was further inflated, which caused discontent and backlash among the army and other high-level government leaders. And it's not just a matter of poor distribution of benefits. The Italian navy's tendency to protect itself, and its alienation from our country displeased the other high-ranking officials, some of whom wanted to continue the struggle with Germany for land under the sun, and this was the focus of the conflict between the army and the navy, and although not all the generals wanted to continue to expand, a considerable number of them were inclined to expand and friendly to Germany, which we could make full use of. A German army colonel named Ribbentrop once said this in an internal report about Italy at this time.

"In other words, this friend of ours is also hesitating?" Wilhelm II looked at the report and asked the Minister of Defense, Marshal Moltke Jr., with a smug look in his eyes. William was convinced. No one would refuse to be brought to the door, and in his opinion, the best option for Italy at this time was to follow Germany in conquering the vast South Asia and then get a piece of the pie. Instead of holding on to the Mediterranean and Africa, after the First World War, Wilhelm II decided that there was no strength left to organize the advance of the Central Powers!

"That's right. The benefits of the navy were so great that they aroused the displeasure of the rest of the country, and the recovery process of Italy was too slow, and they spent their little money on the construction and consolidation of colonies at the expense of the development of the homeland, and the current government was in a state of flux. Maybe one right storm will turn the country up completely. Moltke chimed in.

"This person analyzed it very well, really saw the contradictions within Italy, and quickly grasped the key to it! What's more. His idea is very much in line with China's current strategy, and if we want to move south and east, we must first ensure a stable rear. Italy's variable is too far-fetched if we can uproot it before we act. Naturally, there are no worries. But let's not rush it for now, we need to wait for an opportunity. Kaiser Wilhelm II said.

Wilhelm II was arrogant, but he still had a certain understanding of the international form, and he knew that the circumstances at this time were not suitable for radical action. First of all, in terms of comparative strength, no matter how weak Italy is, it is also an industrial power, and the German High Seas Fleet is currently recovering its strength. The forward base in Greece in the south was not completed, and the main forces of the fleet were still in the North Sea. The only ones in the Mediterranean could be used were the Austro-Hungarian Navy and the Turkish Navy. It's hard to say whether the Spaniards will be able to get involved. After all, you are still stared at by the French. If you want to intervene directly in Italy, the best way to eliminate immature air transport is sea freight, but these two countries want to go head-to-head with the Italian Navy? Or wash and sleep, what? Planning to enter by land? The mountains between Italy and Austria-Hungary were Italy's best defenses.

Second, if Germany did not have a suitable ally as a puppet, once the Italian government and the Entente were in contact, not only would the intervention ultimately fail, but Italy would also be completely pushed to the side of the Entente. At this time, Germany really did not want to fight. Although Germany recovered quickly, it still took a long time to absorb the newly added territory. Wilhelm II, though belligerent, knew that peace was the most favorable condition for Germany at this time. What's more, even if you take a step back, Germany took Italy before the Entente reacted, but there was no popular base, and the Allies agreed that they could not use Italy's resources and forces to serve themselves, so Germany needed a puppet to control Italy!

Thirdly, what Germany needed was the Italian navy and related industries. There was a saying in the top echelons of the German army that Italy's greatest reliance was its navy, and if the Allies could get this fleet and bases in the south, then it would not matter so much whether the Italian government was inclined to Germany, but if the whole of Italy was controlled, and the navy was destroyed or escaped, then this would also make half of the meaning of the victory, and the Germans had long wanted to take action against Italy, so they also discussed what Italy meant to Germany! So Germany either doesn't act, and if it does, it must hold the Italian Navy firmly! Without this certainty, action is meaningless.

And the last point is that the influence of the Italian Navy is very large, the entire southern Sicily and Sardinia and the Apennine Peninsula south of Naples have a close relationship with the navy, economically, Italy's important shipyards are concentrated in the south, these shipyards not only provide the armament of the Italian Navy but also produce a large number of civilian ships, Italy itself is not rich in resources, the yuan is not as good as Germany, for the sake of domestic industry and livelihood, Italy is extremely dependent on shipping, Most of these shipyards and shipping companies have naval backgrounds and form a community of interests with the Italian Navy. Local governments are almost always controlled by people with naval backgrounds or their spokesmen, which is one of the reasons why the navy clashes with other political factions, but the navy has a strong grip on southern Italy.

Of course, more importantly, the Italian Navy also has a Marine Corps that cannot be underestimated, this force of about 40,000 people was originally used to cooperate with the Allies to seize North Africa in World War I, they participated in the attack on many port cities under the cover of fleet fire, this force was originally composed of elite troops drawn from the army, but because this force was under the command of the Navy in World War I, and Tycho was still very concerned about this force, Both the treatment and the supply are superior to other troops. After the end of the war, this unit was vaguely placed under the command of the navy, and was responsible for the security of some of the colonies in North Africa. As a result, if the Allies acted hastily and the Italian navy persisted in resistance, the final result was likely to be defeated by the intervention of other powers. The impact on the Allies was enormous, so the Kaiser had to tread carefully.

"The key now is to find an ally, a figure who can uphold our will and who can control the whole of Italy! We can give them assistance, not only in terms of money and materials, but even directly send a limited number of troops! But he must make sure that he can form an effective new government and stand firmly on our side! Wilhelm II emphasized.

"Colonel Ribbentrop is looking for such a man, and now he is a little eyebrow-raising, a fellow who wants to restore the glory of the Roman Empire has been put on a line with our men in Italy." When it comes to the Roman Empire, Moltke can't help but smile sarcastically at the corner of his mouth. Although Moltke and others were very disgusted by Italy's tendency to secession. However, from a neutral point of view, Italy's choice is the most suitable for its own national situation. Unlike other members of the Central Powers, Italy had to be dependent on Germany. The political, economic, and diplomatic relations between the two sides have reached a point where they are almost inseparable. It can be said that one wins and one loses. Turkey, Russia, and Spain are pure little brothers. Just give them some scraps and give them a cold scorch. But Italy is different, Italy does not necessarily have to rely on Germany, and its own strength can also be described as not being aggressive enough to be more than successful. Considering that Germany would never give Italy more benefits and support than it did with Austria-Hungary, Italy's choice of neutrality after World War 1 was indeed quite reasonable.

But the idea of restoring the Rome of Julius Caesar all day seems so ridiculous, and they don't look at themselves. Such a hot-headed guy who doesn't care about the actual situation can only make people use guns as a gun. But what Germany needed was such people who could mobilize the people in Italy to fight for the good of Germany. "This guy is said to have served in the Italian Army." Moltke Jr. added.

"If that's the case, it looks like it's a good fit for our plan, and the Italian Army will be better fighting than the Turks. Such a person is easier to control. Wilhelm II said with a smile.

With the approval of Wilhelm II, the Italian action group headed by Ribbentrop began to contact another notorious person in history, who had historically been entangled with a group of fascists to march into Rome in 1922 and has been dormant due to the change of history, but his ambition has not disappeared, but has been further inflated by the increase of German power in this plane. "Sooner or later, Italy will have a slice of the South Asian subcontinent." Mussolini said confidently.

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