Chapter 1071 The situation is quite serious
Everyone watched Xiao Peng drumming his fingers on the table. There was complete silence and no one spoke.
Xiao Peng's brows furrowed. After a moment, he asked, "Has the situation become so serious?"
Fabian and Pascal nodded.
Xiao Peng turned around and asked William, "William, what's the current situation in the EU?"
William shook his head and said, "I'm not saying the EU is split without reason. A family can't have two heads. France and Germany both want to expand their influence in the EU, and it's impossible for them to reach a consensus right now."
Xiao Peng frowned and said, "If Spain, Portugal, and Britain were causing trouble for us, I would have tolerated it, but why is France also involved?"
During his absence, Ma Xiao found a cargo ship called "June Gardenia" on the African route. The ship was carrying a large amount of oriental porcelain and Middle Eastern silver and bronze artifacts.
To be honest, Xiao Peng wouldn't have been interested in this type of cargo ship. Salvaging it would be time-consuming and laborious, and the profit would be... well, it would still be quite good, but it would depend on the buyer's reaction, and selling it would take time.
How can you get precious metals as easily as you can? In one hand, out the other!
Moreover, such foreign trade porcelain is generally not of high quality, and even antiques are not as expensive as one might imagine. This further affects the price.
For other ocean exploration companies, discovering such a ship would be a thrill, but for Xiao Peng, it was like, "Tsk tsk, what the hell is this!" He was too lazy to salvage it—this was the confidence of the "Salvage King."
However, the 'June Gardenia' was still salvaged by Ma Xiao and his team.
Xiao Peng gave them the task of finding a Portuguese cargo ship no matter what. And this ship was a Portuguese cargo ship.
It was this 'June Gardenia' that caused trouble for Xiao Peng and his team.
Pio, heir to the House of Braganza, filed a personal lawsuit to recover the ship.
The full name of the Portuguese royal family is the House of Braganza-Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. This is due to an alliance between the House of Braganza and the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha after the House of Braganza took the Portuguese throne in 1640.
In 1910, the Portuguese royal family was overthrown and the king went into exile in the UK. It was not until 1956 that Portugal lifted the entry ban on royal family members. The royal family members who were expelled that year returned to Portugal to settle down. They are now the Braganza family, and the current head is Archduke Pio.
Although not officially the head of state or a member of parliament, Archduke Pio holds considerable connections, forging personal ties with leading figures from various countries. He is considered Portugal's "mascot" and "ambassador." He is often called upon to conduct unofficial diplomatic activities. Now, he has personally filed a lawsuit seeking the return of his so-called "family fortune."
Spain also took action at the same time. The Spanish royal family also filed a lawsuit to recover the "Queen's bride price." The reasoning was the same as that of Archduke Pio: it was "family property."
The Portuguese and Spanish courts quickly issued a verdict, making a unilateral ruling in Xiao Peng's absence: Xiao Peng lost the case and was required to repay the property of the two sunken ships.
But this is their own country's decision, and Xiao Peng doesn't care about them at all - isn't it okay for me not to go to Spain and Portugal?
Portugal and Spain also discovered this problem, so they simultaneously appealed to the European Court of Justice, hoping that the ruling of these two countries would become a European Court of Justice. If that were to happen, it would mean that if Xiao Peng did not comply with the ruling, he would not be able to stay in the entire EU.
Despite European countries' claims that the "supreme monarchy" is no longer the norm, the reality is that royal families still hold a high position. The vibrant "Royal Restoration" movement in France is a prime example of this. A significant number of people believe that a country should be run by a royal family.
It is very appropriate to describe these people with one sentence: the braids on the head are cut off but the braids in the heart remain.
The simultaneous efforts of the two royal families have also put considerable pressure on the European Union.
William said, "There are also constant disputes within the EU right now. Don't underestimate the influence of the Spanish royal family and Archduke Pio of the House of Braganza."
Xiao Peng laughed after hearing this: "I understand. It's the Spanish royal family. Come, let me ask you a question. Who can name the Spanish royal title?"
Everyone in the room shook their heads like rattles. Xiao Peng's question was too difficult!
If people still had to introduce themselves as they did in the Middle Ages, the Spanish king's herald would probably be exhausted. His title list was too long, with more than fifty miscellaneous titles.
If the traditional introduction of the current King of Spain, Felipe VI, were to be followed, it would be: "This is the Great King of Spain, King of Castile, King of Aragon, King of León, King of the Two Sicilies, King of Jerusalem, King of Cyprus, King of Navarre, King of Majorca, King of Granada, King of Toledo, King of Seville, King of Valencia, King of Galicia, King of Sardinia, King of Córdoba, King of Corsica, King of Menorca, King of Murcia, King of Jaén, King of the Algarves, King of Algeciras, King of Gibraltar, King of the Canary Islands, King of the East and West Indies and their associated islands, of the Americas and of the Four Seas..."
This is only half the introduction!
Especially the title of "King of the East and West Indies and their affiliated islands, the American Continent and the Four Seas" is really domineering to the extreme.
Although these titles all come from the Age of Exploration, they have been used to this day. In other words, he is the theoretical king of the entire American continent! All those who eat at sea must obey his orders!
Of course, this is just a title. If he really dares to say this in front of Xiao Peng, Xiao Peng will slap him in the face!
But even though these titles are "empty", the influence of the Spanish royal family is undeniable. Xiao Peng is not running to South America now. The official language of almost all countries in South America except Brazil is Spanish!
If Xiao Peng wants to develop in South America in the future, he may not encounter any trouble.
William suddenly said, "In fact, Pio and I are good friends. Their Braganza family and our Orange family are also related by marriage."
Xiao Peng laughed out loud after hearing this. "Which royal family in Europe isn't related? Wait, William, you and Pio are friends? What do you mean? Are you here just to lobby for Pio?"
After hearing this, William took out a folder and said, "Actually, there's a point to that. If things continue like this, there might not be a good outcome. After all, as you know, the relationships between European royal families are incredibly complicated. It's almost impossible for them to become estranged over something like this. So, here's a solution you can take a look at."
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