Chapter 751 The End of the War
Germany surrendered, which was a bombshell to the whole world. In fact, in the past week, Bulgaria, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire had successively announced their intention to cease fire, and finally it was the turn of the German Empire.
As in history, revolutions broke out across the country after the German navy soldiers rioted. The socialist revolutionaries demanded that Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicate, otherwise he would not join the government, which meant that civil war would break out in Germany. In order to avoid the division of Germany, the then-powerful Prince of Baden urged Wilhelm II to abdicate. Faced with such a reality, Wilhelm II had no choice but to abdicate and immediately went into exile in the Netherlands.
"As long as Germany persists, we will all persist. Once Germany can no longer hold on, the Allies will surrender?" Listening to the report from the bodyguard leader, Sheffield couldn't tell what he felt, but it was quite sudden anyway.
Was it the cause of the domestic revolution? At least some Germans would still think that Germany had not been defeated, and until the last moment of the war, the German army was still fighting on foreign territory. If the Treaty of Versailles was still as harsh as it was, the flames of revenge of the Germans would be inevitable.
In fact, even if there was no influenza pandemic, Germany's defeat would have been inevitable, as hundreds of thousands of soldiers were lying in hospitals recovering. All men of military age had already been enlisted, and the entire German manpower was close to exhaustion. Although it did not reach the point of overdraft in France, it was impossible to continue to fight against the Allied forces supplemented by colonies and other countries.
Not to mention Germany's allies, the Ottoman Empire and the Kingdom of Bulgaria themselves did not have manpower as their strong point.
"Yes, boss. The three great pashas have all left Constantinople and gone into exile in Germany." Jesra knew that his boss didn't actually care about Germany, but was more concerned about the situation in the Ottoman Empire.
After the exile of the three Pashas, the Ottoman Empire was now leaderless and in a state of chaos. Even with Constantinople, it was unclear who was more reliable.
"Yes, the situation of the Ottoman Empire is more complicated. It is estimated that it will pay a heavy price for participating in the war. The British are vindictive, especially that guy named Churchill, who is as arrogant as a bull in heat. The Ottoman Empire made Churchill so embarrassed. It would be strange if the British were kind to the Ottoman Empire." Sheffield held his chin with his hand and said to the head bodyguard wearing a mask who was five meters away from him, "Now we should think about our problems. There is no other way. For safety during the influenza pandemic, I should have stayed in Oak Manor and not gone out. But for the status of the Middle East territory, I may have to meet with the White House in person."
Sheffield felt that, in fact, with the current strength of the United States on the ocean, it was possible to discuss the division of global interests, but the congressmen did not have the courage to do so. However, if they only talked about the current territorial issues in the Middle East, the resistance would not be so great. In terms of trying their best to gain benefits for the country, he, a slave owner, was far less timid than the congressmen.
Now the land occupied by the Eighth Army must be recognized by all parties. On this point, Sheffield and the Germans sympathize with each other. The reason why Germany took the risk of launching the Emperor Offensive was that it knew that the Allies would not agree to Germany withdrawing from the war by occupying the land of Imperial Russia. The best result Germany could strive for before the Emperor Offensive was to restore the pre-war status, withdraw from all occupied lands, and return the two provinces of France occupied in the Franco-Prussian War to France.
In other words, the four-year war was fought in vain. With the collapse of Imperial Russia and the great victory on the Eastern Front, the Germans would definitely not agree to this condition, so the only choice was to continue the war.
"Since this situation has arisen, tell John Connor to reorganize it into the Eighth Kuwaiti Army. I have given everything for the Ottoman Empire. Until the end of the war, I did not allow any Allied troops to enter Mesopotamia from the Persian Gulf." Sheffield felt that he was worthy of being a loyal subject of the Ottoman Sultan. Now that the empire had been defeated, he was now considering a bright future for more than three million Christians in the Middle East. I believed that no one could say anything.
But to win the support of President Wilson, Sheffield had to leave his home and go to the White House, even if he was afraid of death. He couldn't get a sitting president to come to Oak Manor to see him in person anyway.
At the end of 1918, for the whole world, in addition to the Spanish flu still raging around the world, there was also the victory of the war which made the Allied leaders quite pleased. Victory parades took place in cities of many countries, accompanied by the invisible flu virus, making people all over the world feel half sea and half fire.
On the one hand, their relatives might return to their homeland alive, but on the other hand, they might not live to see the day their relatives return. In November alone, 200,000 people appeared on death notices in the United States, easily equaling the 200,000 casualties of the American Expeditionary Force.
You have to know that the American Expeditionary Force suffered only 100,000 deaths in World War I. This number has doubled due to the efforts of the slave owners, but it is only consistent with the number of named deaths within one month. You can imagine how serious the Spanish flu was.
The entire country has closed all public facilities. Bars, theaters, and cinemas have all been closed, the subway has stopped operating, and everyone who travels must wear a mask. This is based on the premise that the police system is within its control, but there are still places that it cannot control.
There have been deaths in the prison trust run by the United Company, and before Sheffield arrived in Washington, almost all prisons had reported it. Anne had already warned several directors of the Black Gold Company in the country to prevent riots in the prisons, as people could do anything in the face of death.
The lid of the prison trust must be closed tightly. Even through the text on the telegram, Sheffield could immediately imagine the hellish scene. At this moment, his exclusive airship landed in Washington.
He arrived in Washington as the owner of a model company in the fight against influenza, and he also wanted to express the responsibility of the United Company and express his views on curbing the spread of the influenza pandemic.
As for the situation in the prison trust, even if it really broke out, so what? It was clearly the police from all over the country who arrested the patients and sent them to prison. This was a communication problem in the national judicial system that led to this negligence.
After enough people died, Berzin would take the initiative to tell the prison trust the inside story, and then say that the police department was not to blame, and then he would punish himself by drinking three cups of wine to cover up the matter, and that would be the end of it.
"Our country has done a good job of controlling the pandemic. One day, the pandemic will disappear like a miracle." Sheffield said nonchalantly in front of Bernard Baruch. "Think about how many countries in the world don't even have the ability to figure out the situation. These countries are all over the world. Who knows how many people have died? Not just other countries, let's talk about India alone. The number is an astronomical number that is unimaginable."
The slave owners expressed their indifference to life in the most vivid way, and the moment they opened their mouths, they were like old Darwin. Equality for all had been advocated for many years but could not be realized, but the influenza pandemic made it a reality.
"Congratulations, William. Your company's stock has been rising very well recently." Bernard Baruch nodded and said, "If the pandemic lasts for half a year, the returns will be even better."
"It depends on who is operating it. It's not easy to find a good trader." Sheffield understood and said, "And without the support of the War Industries Board, there would be no such good results. Sometimes we really have to pretend that the country is in control of everything."
When everything returns to calm, Bernard Baruch himself will naturally get his share. There is no need to say it directly; everyone can understand it tacitly.
"This is a disaster for all mankind. We are shocked to find that humans cannot control everything. Mother Earth tells us how small and impulsive we are. We can even say that the impact of this influenza pandemic far exceeds that of the leaders of major warring countries!" At the White House press conference, Sheffield put on a hypocritical face again. It was a little difficult to act as if he was mourning someone, but he could still make a serious statement with a straight face.
Giving these shameless excrement collectors a sympathetic impression, Sheffield talked about the necessity of the current lockdown. The current lockdown is to defeat the virus as soon as possible. Although a large enterprise like United will suffer heavy losses, this price must be paid.
Will the United Company suffer losses due to the pandemic? Of course it will, but not as much as expected. However, some companies with insufficient capital will die directly, and the remaining market can be taken directly.
"Prevention of any disease is the most important thing, and our great citizens should all know this." Sheffield paused, "The police will also help citizens realize this."
In the evening, Sheffield, accompanied by President Wilson's son-in-law, Secretary of the Treasury McAdoo, met with President Wilson of the United States in the White House. The two had not seen each other for a long time.
Compared to before, President Wilson looked a little older and spoke slowly, but he was still conscious and finally did not follow in the footsteps of his predecessor. However, it was unclear how long he could last. Slave owners remembered that during the last years of President Wilson's presidency, he was already paralyzed on one side and completely unable to perform his presidential duties.
"I heard from the Secretary of State that the President is going to go to Europe in person to convey our country's ideas to the world?" Sheffield glanced at Wilson and changed the subject, "But there are already some opposing voices."
"Germany has surrendered. Now is the time for our country to establish its position in the world." President Wilson nodded solemnly, "This is exactly what I want to do now. Don't you think it's not the right time?"
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
