Chain Reaction (4)

Of course, if the United States were to take the blame, then it would be necessary to discuss it with United States. At this time, the United States envoy also approached Talleyrand, appearing quite anxious. This was naturally due to the burning of Savannah by the Britain fleet. After the Savannah fire, United States President Jefferson sent envoy Speer, who traveled to France on a France transport ship. Upon landing in Paris, Speer, without even having time for a cup of coffee at the United States embassy, rushed to Talleyrand's place.

Talleyrand already knew about the Savannah fire, and he was also an old friend Speer's envoy. So when he saw Speer, he first exchanged pleasantries, then remarked that Speer had lost weight, and after that, he launched into a tirade against the Britain.

"His Excellency the First Consul has heard of the heinous crimes committed by the Britain in your country, and he has asked me to convey his condolences to you. He has asked me to tell you that he firmly believes that justice will prevail, and that the great United States people will surely be able to defeat the evil Carthage through their own strength."

While the words sounded pleasant, Speer overheard a phrase that seemed to carry a less than positive connotation. "Believe that the great United States people will surely be able to defeat the evil Carthage through their own strength."

For a moment, Speer couldn't help but ask, "Foreign Minister Talleyrand, explain to me what 'inevitably able to rely on one's own strength' means? Does this mean you don't intend to fight the Britain and just watch from across the Atlantic Ocean?"

Of course, since the United States needed their help, Speer couldn't say such a thing. So he replied, "I believe that with God's help, we will surely defeat these evil barbarians. But as we fight against the most terrible and evil barbarians in the world since Genghis Khan, we also hope that the civilized world will stand up and join us against those barbarians."

"You are quite right, my friend," said Talleyrand. "In fact, the whole free world has stood up and united against the Britain's wrongdoing. You just mentioned that you traveled by ship and then by train to Paris, so there are some things you may not be aware of. On the very day the Britain burned Savannah, our France fleet, in order to uphold our rights to free trade and freedom of navigation, had a minor skirmish with the Britain fleet near Carroll Port, Ireland. Our fleet was brutally rammed by the Britain fleet. But we still stood up for our rights and upheld our right to free trade with Ireland."

Furthermore, the Dutch Republic and the Kingdom of Spain have both stood up and launched a counterattack against the evil Goliath. Especially Spain —you know, the Britain have shamelessly occupied Spain land for many years. Our Spain friends, because of their love of peace, have always wanted to reclaim their territory peacefully. However, the Britain have always viewed our Spain friends' love of peace as weakness and vulnerability. Therefore, the Kingdom of Spain now intends to stand up and adopt more effective means to resolve the Gibraltar issue."

Talleyrand's reply immediately energized Speer. These actions suggested that France was about to lead the "free world" in a full-scale offensive against the Britain.

While France's growing power isn't necessarily a good thing—some things the France did in Louisiana have given the United States a major headache—at least for now, they outwardly maintain a semblance of morality and dignity.

"An empire's ability to stand firm depends not only on its powerful military and economic strength, but also on its ideals. An empire that loses its ideals and its sense of nobility is almost certainly on the verge of collapse."

This is supposedly a conclusion reached by Joseph and Napoleon while studying history. Therefore, although France is also quite unreasonable in handling various international affairs, it still needs to maintain a facade of politeness, and is even quite adept at it.

"I am personally very grateful to hear this news. I agree that the free world should unite to defeat the England barbarians," Speer added.

"Mutual assistance is a natural obligation among nations of the free world," Talleyrand replied. "For example, the struggles of Ireland, Spain, and England are also support for the struggle of the United States; and the struggle of the United States is, in turn, support for the just struggles of us, and of Ireland and Spain. Well, recently, our Spain friends have something they need your country's support for..."

The so-called need for United States support naturally refers to the Spain or even France going to Gibraltar to carry out the mission, which the United States must acknowledge.

Although Speer was somewhat dissatisfied with the hesitant actions of the France and Spain, he did not object to the request. This was not only because he needed France's help, but also because the United States needed news of victory to boost morale. Even if the United States had not done it, as long as United States admitted it, it could use propaganda domestically that the United States army had successfully defeated Britain.

Thus, the three parties quickly reached an agreement. Then, through Talleyrand's arrangement, Speer met with Napoleon, the First Consul, and the two held cordial talks on issues of common concern. Napoleon, representing France, expressed his appreciation for the contributions made by the United States people in upholding freedom and democracy and safeguarding national independence.

Speer also expressed his gratitude for Napoleon's support. He further stated that the United States, as a member of the free world, has always upheld free trade and respected religious freedom. He asserted that the United States does not discriminate against Catholicism and will not tolerate any discrimination against Catholicism. In fact, aside from the Anglican Church, which is essentially England intelligence organization operating under the Anglican Church of religion, the United States treats all legal religions equally.

With the support of France and the endorsement of the United States, the Spain began preparing to lay mines near the port of Gibraltar. To improve the efficiency of the mine-laying, the France simply repeated their old trick, "leasing" several of their mine-laying ships to the Spain. Then, under the cover of night, the four France mine-laying ships began to lay mines near the Gibraltar fortress.

The France mine-laying ships were the world's earliest warships specifically designed for laying mines. Using these ships, the France —no, I mean the Spain —or rather, the United States— could lay forty mines in one night in the main shipping lanes outside Gibraltar.