Albion was to begin armistice negotiations with the United Rus' Duchy.

If this news were put into the human camp, it would be equivalent to the effect of a magnitude 9 earthquake or the detonation of a million tons of TNT-equivalent explosives, but for the elven camp, this is just a long-known result that happened on time.

With the rise of the Age of Discovery and the seizure of colonies, the medieval religious sentiment was receding from the minds of world leaders, and although it was not yet obvious, the foreign policy of countries was increasingly showing a tendency to prioritize national interests, and enthusiasm for "jihad" was replaced by the practical question of how to benefit from war. In other words - Machiavellianism.

In this regard, Albion is at the forefront, followed by Charlemagne. As the two most powerful countries in the human camp, under the guidance of Queen Elizabeth and Prime Minister Richelieu, the policies of the two countries are becoming more pragmatic and utilitarian. The tactics of the two sides are so similar that the two routes are not destined to be parallel lines of peace, and at some point, the two countries will collide like trains traveling at high speed at the intersection.

Both sides are aware of this, but Cheng Dù is completely different. The cunning Richelieu had long recognized that the current equilibrium of the human camp was determined by colonies, trade, and the resulting maritime power. So while he supported naval build-up and ultimately aimed at bringing his old rival Albion to the streets, the prime minister also focused on moderation. A series of major policies, such as naval negotiations and disarmament agreements, are diplomatic masterpieces that try to avoid provoking the sensitive points of the Albionyans and trying to gain substantial benefits for Charlemagne.

However, the Prime Minister's painstaking skills were not understood by the military and the aristocracy. None of them realized that the arms race and colonial competition with Albion had strengthened Charlemagne's position as Albiang's "number one mortal enemy", or that they did not care about Albiang's threat at all, blindly trusted their own power, lacked the necessary political minds, and simply used military logic to view their relations with other countries, which gave various opponents an opportunity to take advantage of.

In contrast, the consciousness of the people of Albion is much more profound. Queen Elizabeth and Secretary of State Walsingham knew that in the context of Charlemagne's rise, it was impossible to expand the continent beyond Normandy, Britannia and the Netherlands. In contrast, there is still a lot of room for improvement in the resources and wealth brought by overseas trade. Instead of throwing the last penny into a continental struggle for hegemony that can't make progress. It is better to invest the precious gold coins in the more urgent naval construction and overseas trade, and as for the territory on the mainland, as long as the defense work is strengthened, the role of the "breakwater" in the event of the outbreak of war, as long as possible to delay and consume Charlemagne.

In addition to the above-mentioned adjustment of the direction of domestic affairs. Albion's diplomatic strategy has also begun to make heavy adjustments. Her Majesty the Queen and her gentlemen began to work to build a new order: a balanced continent. A multi-tiered system of checks and balances between the great powers, a world system sufficient to restrain and limit Charlemagne's continued rise as much as possible, in line with Albion's wishes.

Truce with the United Principality of Rus'. It is precisely in order to build the first step of this vast strategic system, and only by ending this war with no end in sight, can Albion withdraw his strategic energy from the northern land and devote it to other more urgent directions, and then begin the second step of the grand strategy.

The principality didn't have much time to think about so many twists and turns, and the reason they asked for a truce was simple - the war was almost overwhelmed.

The first thing to fight a war is money, the second is money, and the third is money. Although the principality has a lot of land and resources, and it can save money by lending weapons, as long as the war does not end for a day, the principality will continue to burn money, burning a lot of money.

Even if they didn't care how many "gray animals" died every day, the adults of the Principality felt from the bottom of their hearts that it was time to put an end to it, otherwise the Principality would have to choose between mutiny due to unpaid soldiers and financial bankruptcy.

In addition to the economy, the military situation is becoming less and less optimistic, Charlemagne's Dauphin Louis is leading his expeditionary force into the heart of the principality, and at his pace, he can drink brandy outside St. Petersburg in a maximum of two months and admire the appearance of the principality's capital. Even if his goal was not St. Petersburg, cutting off the connection between the Riga fortress and the rear would break the current stalemate. After losing the barrier of the Riga fortress, all the principality could do was effectively imitate Marshal Kutuzov's approach, pack up its baggage and retreat in a small and soft stride, while at the same time taking everything to the bottom of it. Wait for the Charlemagnes to retreat and return to their homeland, which is in ruins......

Assuming conditions permit, the woolly bears will burn their homes to the ground without even frowning. But now they could not afford to do so, because His Majesty the Tsar, the "supreme emperor of the United Principality of All Rus' Union" and the "absolute monarch", had few days left to live.

By the time Colonel Kolchak was beating the navy of the royal family of Albion, the Tsar was already terminally ill and fainted several times in one day. By the time the siege and defense of the Riga fortress began, this majesty had suffered three consecutive strokes, and he was completely unable to move from the neck down, nor could he control excretion. Everyone in the court understood that the old emperor's time was short, and began to arrange the future affairs in private. The tsar himself knew this, so he summoned Crown Prince Nicholas to his side early, and stood by the bedside every day to listen to the reports of the elders and generals, and learn the art of governing the country.

With the Tsar's current physical condition, I am afraid that as soon as he leaves St. Petersburg, he will be called by the grace of Mother God. In the midst of chaos, whether the crown prince could succeed to the throne smoothly and effectively unite the hearts of his subjects in the midst of the turmoil and displacement were all things that the elders did not want to think about and did not dare to think about.

The situation is so bad that even the most die-hard conservatives have to think seriously about how to end this hopeless war.

Due to their respective predicaments, the armistice became something that both the principality and Albion wanted, and the Albians needed an intact duchy to contain Charlemagne, and the principality needed to end the war in order to survive the period of risk from the new tsar's accession to the throne to the stability of the whole country - the interests of both sides were completely identical, but it was only a matter of religious beliefs and camp positions. How to communicate has become a question that has to be considered, and after some thought, both countries have taken a fancy to a consortium that has a bit of friendship and is strict enough. Through guò, a channel that is free from the formal diplomatic scene, secret negotiations are conducted.

"Another important reason why they chose us was that 'the consortium is their own'...... What is the reason for that?"

Brunhill was laughing and crying, and was considered "his own man" by two rival countries at the same time, and this "own man" not only sold arms to both warring sides at the same time, but was also ready to trample them under his feet......

If that's a joke, it's cold enough.

"Don't be so harsh, our friends are just stating the facts. ”

Li Lin smiled. Continued:

"As long as the interests are aligned. Enemies can also become friends – and they both have a deep understanding of this, more so than Charlemagne. ”

It is precisely because of a deep understanding of what they really need that these two countries did not hesitate to abandon the barriers of faith and race, and began to hook up for the sake of practical interests. And with it. It is the end of the traditional international system.

This is also a victory for Li Lin's behind-the-scenes operation. Hit from the beginning. Whether it is supporting the principality, stumbling on the crown prince, and making Albion suffer losses, many other arrangements are aimed at achieving the current situation of hot and cold war. The intent of this conspiracy is clear: to weaken the principality and at the same time cause the two most powerful militaries in the human camp to go their separate ways. For more than a thousand years. The traditional strategic encirclement, which posed the greatest threat to the elven camp and was most immediate, has effectively collapsed, and it is not far from the official appearance of Alfheim.

"So, we can't relax too much yet. As long as the price is sufficient, our current friends don't mind picking up the name of 'righteousness' again, waving the banner of jihad, and joining hands with old friends from the past to destroy us again. ”

Li Lin restrained his smile and let out a slight sigh, which seemed to be a sigh for the impermanence of the world in Brunhill's eyes.

Whether or not he was really lamenting this, in Brunhill's own view, the solid system that had been forged for thousands of years was pryed into by the actions of a handful of intelligent species, and finally collapsed in just a few decades—the great cause of breaking through the life span and thinking limits of most intelligent species is indeed worth being lamented.

Of course, as Li Lin said, before the last step is really completed, there is no leisure for relaxation and confusion, and there is no room to consider other options, put away her sentimentality, and the female elf asked in a transactional tone:

"Where do you arrange for them to come into contact?"

"Hmm...... In this way, the second ship of the Zeppelin-class spacecraft, the Pieter Strassel, has completed its perching and is about to go to sea for public testing. Let the representatives of both sides go to sea by boat first, and then we will be responsible for the pick-up. Hopefully, on that big comfortable boat, the negotiations can go smoothly. ”

"Understood. ”

Noting the matter, Brunhill turned and handed the notebook to the secretary waiting outside the door. Also recording the subtle changes in the girl's vital signs, Li Lin's thinking has entered the calculation of the new affairs arrangement.

The bright red eyes are extremely stable, without a trace of waves, almost mistaking them for inorganics.

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"Humanitarian aid?"

With his fingertips against his chin, Ji El pondered for a while and then asked:

"Can I understand that I hope the church will come forward to help and shelter the refugees who have suffered from the war?"

"Exactly. ”

Roland nodded, looking at Her Royal Highness the Holy Maiden of Ji El with some kind of expectant purple eyes.

He did not expect the Church to stop Charlemagne's sweep, after all, the Church itself was the stronghold of conservative ideas, and it was unrealistic for them to save the revolution. Moreover, Charlemagne must have strongly opposed the Church's interference in his internal affairs, and would use even more extreme repressive measures under the provoking of it. In the end, Roland had to consider Li Lin's reaction to this, that person's attitude is often decisive for the situation, so far the statement of the consortium is not painful, but until the last moment, no one knows what Li Lin is planning, Roland has to take care of this.

Therefore, he can only start with what he can to alleviate the suffering of the people of the crown leader as much as possible.

"The Crown of St. István is a region of great orthodoxy, where the people of the Crown have been devout and Orthodox for generations, but the poor administration of the magistrates has caused strong resentment among the people. After the contradictions intensified, anti-government incidents occurred under the leadership of individual people. If the Church enters the Crown in the name of humanitarian relief, it will rescue the people. It is believed that the situation will soon be calmed down. ”

After careful consideration, the mention is almost impeccable, and logically, as a religious organization, the protection of believers is justified in the first place. Moreover, whether it is done properly or not, every time Emir launches a "holy war", there must be a phrase such as "to protect those who revere the only orthodox faith." The people of the Crown are not Protestant heretics, and since Istvin I, the "Holy Apostolic King", the holder of the Holy Crown and the Cyrillic Double Cross, this land has been one of the most orthodox faiths, and these devout believers have been allowed to be oppressed. The church can't make sense of it.

And that's exactly what happened. At the beginning, the crown prince worked hard to build a "defensive wall of erroneous thoughts" against the risk of being called a "brain showman", in order to prevent the church from going to this incident and making accusations. This is not like the time of the Dragoon Movement, where there was an excuse to "suppress heresy".

Now it's all exposed. His Majesty also condemned the revolutionary government. Continue to take a posture of disregard for the believers there. I'm afraid it will only push them to the Protestant heresy. To stop this, the church had to do something.

Of course, this is a superficial reason. Roland's true idea was that as the authority of the church was constantly weakened. They will not miss any opportunity to strengthen their prestige in the eyes of the people. By using this temptation to introduce the power of the Church into the Crown, under the noses of the priests and nuns, the suppression forces will be somewhat restrained, and in this way, many people should be rescued from the butcher's knife.

It's a perfect deduction, to the point, the conditioning is clear, and the possible situations are analyzed.

There are only two things that he can't control even if he knows them.

"Your Excellency Roland. ”

The saint smiled gracefully.

"Before answering your request, I would like to confirm that this is Charlemagne's, the consortium's, or your personal opinion?"

“...... My answer will be the basis for your choice, won't it?"

"No, it's just a reference, and you don't have to answer if you don't want to. ”

There was a trace of a childish smile in Roland's eyes, and his innocent face clearly revealed the meaning of "I already know the answer".

The answer is not difficult to guess, it is basically there - it is just Roland's personal will.

If the conglomerates left room for the suppression of the revolution, the Charlemagne government was an irreversible and unequivocal hard-line policy.

The victory of the Republic plunged Charlemagne into a hysterical frenzy, and the crushing defeat at the foot of Buda united the whole nation on the Crown.

Inspired by the crown prince's victories on the northern front, Charlemagne, who was extremely confident and dreamed of eight Hong Yiyu and the world's martial arts every day, was poured a basin of cold water on the knot, and deeply felt the taste of "shame". Then, "revenge" became the most frequent word in the streets and alleys of Lüddes, followed by "march" and "washing humiliation with blood". Countless "patriotic youths" came out of the horns, and all day long they hung these words on their lips, clamoring to "kill all the barbarians of the crown collar".

In such an atmosphere, it is impossible for both official and non-governmental organizations to leave room for ideas related to "humanity", and any force under the banner of "humanity" will have to bear considerable risks if they try to enter the crown territory.

Roland's intentions were good, and there was a lot of temptation to sell the heirs of the consortium to save face, and to earn a tall and holy image in his mind, but these benefits were not attractive enough compared to the risk of Charlemagne's break.

"Your Excellency Roland, if the Royal Government is determined to prevent others from interfering in their internal affairs, you should know that there is no one in this world who can stop them except Ling Zun. ”

Shaking his head gracefully, Ji El put on a helpless face.

It wasn't a surprise, but Roland wanted to make one last effort.

"I'm in contact with the foundation headquarters, but I also hope that the church will lend a helping hand to devout believers. Your Highness, although this world is cruel, as a wise species, as human beings, we still believe in the mercy of the gods, and also believe that there is still a moral existence in the world, cold-blooded opportunism cannot override blood after all, and the wise can always make the right choice between helping within their power and watching coldly. ”

Ji Elle looked at Roland in silence, and Roland also stared at Ji El without saying a word, and after an embarrassing and suffocating 5 minutes, the boy got up and left his seat, bowed deeply and exited the carriage.

The standard of action is impeccable, but everyone can see that Roland is only observing formal etiquette compared to recent times. (To be continued......)