Chapter 997 We Should Help France
“It’s ironic, isn’t it?” Tijani said with emotion: “I have always hated profit, but in the end I found that what I pursued was profit.”
"Not at all," Charles replied, "because it is human nature to seek profit."
"Nature?" Tijani smiled bitterly. "That's the word for 'darkness', Lieutenant General."
Ciel said calmly, "So, what do you think the survival of the fittest among animals is? Do they also understand 'darkness'?"
Tijani was stunned.
He felt that his spiritual world had hit rock bottom because of Charles' words.
Yes, why isn't this nature?
This is the most primitive desire among animals, and it is the support and motivation for their survival.
In order to survive, animals learn to hunt or hide from the moment they are born, which enables them to develop healthily.
Isn’t this the case with human warfare?
Tijani felt that his cognition had risen to another level. He excitedly held Charles' shoulders:
"That's right, Admiral."
"The benefit of war is a return to the primitive, which may be a natural law!"
"Great, you are my idol, Lieutenant General, you are a wise man!"
Ciel didn't quite understand what Tijani was so happy about.
It was just a sentence, and Tijani actually got nothing.
Is this what is meant by "If I hear the truth in the morning, I can die in the evening"?
But Tijani seemed to have untied a knot in his heart. He was more relaxed than before, as if he was looking at tactics from another height, instead of facing what he thought was "darkness" with disgust.
"So, we shouldn't agree to the British terms, right?" Tijani asked, "even if the British terms are in the interests of France?"
This does not seem to be in line with the principle that "war is for profit".
"There are short-term and long-term benefits, Major General." Charles looked at the scenery below the fortress and answered casually: "Many times, short-term benefits seem lucrative, but in fact they are traps. If we agree to them, they will drag us into an abyss from which there is no return."
Tijani wondered: "Is this what is happening right now?"
Charles nodded affirmatively: "This is what is happening right now."
He looked back at Tijani:
"If we agree to the British terms, France will gain substantial benefits on the surface."
"France can get more reparations from Germany and lift the British blockade against us."
"but."
"This means we surrender, Major General. No one believes in the French spirit anymore, nor will they take France as their leader."
"More importantly, if Britain can threaten us once at sea, it can use it to threaten us twice, three times, or even more."
Tijani said "Oh" and nodded slowly.
The British will have a handle on France's development, and as long as the British are unhappy, they will show this handle in front of France.
Then France surrendered once, twice, three times... and eventually became a puppet of Britain and could never surpass Britain.
"But what can we do now?" Tijani said worriedly:
"Our navy is far inferior to the British and we cannot confront them head-on."
"The Germans will not listen to us. They will choose to sit on the mountain and watch the fight, so their navy will not participate in the war."
"Because the German navy will not participate in the war, the British will put their main forces into the Mediterranean, and their strength will be three times or even more than ours."
Tijani's summary is very accurate, every word hits the point, but none of it is correct.
Charles gave the exact opposite answer:
"In fact, the British navy is far inferior to ours, Rear Admiral."
"The Germans may not listen to us, but their navy will fight."
"No matter how many naval forces the British put in the Mediterranean, they will become turtles in a jar. They are just meat delivered to our mouths."
Tijani stared at Charles with a strange look, as if he were an alien. "Are you kidding me, Lieutenant General? This, this is not funny, not at all!"
…
Britain's blockade of the Mediterranean is becoming increasingly tight and excessive.
More than once, Britain sent battleships with dozens of warships to surround the port of Algiers, searched merchant ships bound for France, and detained some of them.
The reason was: these merchant ships were carrying war materials, which were likely to flow into Germany.
There was an uproar in the media, with people accusing Britain of betraying its ally.
Clemenceau got busy and sent an ambassador to protest against Britain's behavior.
The UK simply gave a seemingly "reasonable" explanation:
"France has already reached an 'armistice' agreement with Germany, so there is no need for it to fight."
"But France is transporting large quantities of strategic materials and reselling them to Germany."
"This is aiding the enemy and is not in the interests of the Allies. All we are doing is ensuring that supplies do not flow into Germany."
It even puts forward a strange theory: "We are not targeting France, we do this to Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, and other countries, we treat them equally!"
The implication is: If other countries can accept it, why can't France?
The French media exploded instantly, and all major media, even newspapers that opposed Charles, protested in anger:
"Transporting supplies is France's sovereign right. It is not Britain's turn to interfere!"
"Britain has no right to interfere in the internal affairs of France. This is an act of war."
"This is an act of betrayal and an insult to France!"
But all this was of no use.
What matters in the international community is power, not justice.
…
At the Crillon Hotel, Clemenceau said to the representatives of various countries with a firm face:
"Gentlemen, do you think this is a French matter?"
"No, I don't think so."
"The reason why the British treat France like this is because France upholds the 'French spirit', don't you think?"
After a pause, Clemenceau helped them recall:
"France advocates the spirit of 'freedom', 'equality' and 'fraternity'."
"This threatens Britain's colonial system and could even lead to its collapse."
Representatives from Algeria, Malta, Egypt and other countries nodded in agreement.
The interests of France coincide with theirs.
I should stand up bravely and help France, otherwise I might be colonized by Britain forever, or even be colonized by it.
Clemenceau added:
"We fought for the interests of neutral countries and even gave the Germans a fair armistice."
"But this is not in the interests of the British, so it is targeted by the UK."
Representatives from neutral countries such as Greece and the Netherlands exchanged glances and nodded secretly.
If France is defeated by Britain, they will never be able to rise up and will not be able to escape the "clutches" of Britain for a foreseeable time.
So, we should help France!
(End of this chapter)
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