Long live Joachim

Chapter 51: Brothers and Friends In this season of spring sunshine and abundance, the San Ildefons Palace, located about 90 kilometers from downtown Madrid, still maintains its elegant and peaceful atmosphere. At the same time, it appears vibrant due to the sprouting of grass and the emergence of new branches and leaves. Parades, strikes, and even terrifying riots are all isolated by the mountains and forests surrounding this royal palace. On the bench by the pool, Alfonso XIII, dressed in a plain robe, threw small stones into the water in boredom. A servant dressed in military uniform and carrying a long sword stood silently not far away like a sculpture. Time is like a gentle breeze in the air, it just gives a little feeling and disappears invisibly. After a while, an old man in a tailcoat slowly walked up to the King of Spain, bent down, and respectfully presented a letter to him. Looking at the simple and unadorned envelope, the young king looked up hesitantly and asked, "What is this The old man replied calmly and gently, "The Irish ambassador forwarded it yesterday, saying it was a handwritten letter from His Majesty King Joachim of Ireland Alfonso XIII opened the envelope with his slender and pale fingers, and the white letterhead shone brightly in the sun. The handwriting on it was vigorous and powerful, written in fluent English. The Spanish king, who had received formal court education since childhood, could certainly understand it, especially since he married an English princess as his queen. Alfonso XIII is 32 years old and has been the king of Spain for 32 years. He has been thin and emaciated, as if due to long-term malnutrition, but no matter how poor the country is, the living conditions in the court cannot be any worse. The young king quickly finished reading the letter, folded it up and stuffed it into an envelope. He casually placed it on the bench, apparently not intending to communicate anything with the old man. What did Your Majesty say in the letter? "The old man asked proactively. Alfonso XIII replied nonchalantly, "Sympathy, mercy, kindness... the old trick of the new king! He is the savior of Ireland, the god of the Irish people, because of Germany's strong support behind him. Otherwise, Ireland would still want to become independent from British rule. Now that the Irish have achieved the long-awaited independence status, they are all grateful and full of enthusiasm. It is not surprising that the country's development momentum is good This statement is obviously only half spoken, the hidden part is about Spain. This country did not have a long period of independence, but it immediately entered a dreamlike period of development and rise after independence, until it became a leading maritime power, intimidating Europe with an invincible fleet. The ruling class and even ordinary people lived a prosperous life, leading to a trend of extravagance and complacency throughout the country. After being defeated by Britain, the country entered a long period of decline, with industries such as industry, agriculture, and textiles falling behind and lacking competitiveness in the international trade market. As a result, it fell into a vicious cycle of crossing poverty and triggered many irreconcilable social contradictions. This old man is Count Romanones, the head of government of the Kingdom of Spain. He holds the position of Chairman of the Council of Ministers, whose functions and roles are equivalent to those of Prime Ministers in countries such as England and Germany. He said in a declarative tone, "His Majesty was hailed as a genius of Hohenzollern several years ago, with astonishing performances in various fields such as ship design, commercial operations, military strategy, and domestic governance. Perhaps he is the kind of particularly intelligent person with the wisdom to solve all problems Due to their inability to change the poor social situation, Alfonso XIII and his Spain seemed like gentle sheep, but their peaceful attitude did not bring peace. Externally, Spain faced military challenges from the United States and lost its rich overseas colonies such as Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines;Internally, the reform measures of the Spanish government have repeatedly failed due to the obstruction of conservatives, and the long-term high unemployment rate and poor working and living environment have continuously weakened the prestige of the royal family and the government... In his own heart, Alfonso XIII did not want to become a great and respected monarch, leading his country out of the trough and back to the top of Europe and even the world. He had also made many efforts for this, but the country's numerous accumulated problems were chronic diseases accumulated over hundreds of years, and his power alone seemed far from enough. The young Spanish king slowly turned his head to look at the letter placed on the bench and murmured, "But why does he want to help us? What are his intentions The old count, who had experienced vicissitudes but did not show signs of decline, pondered for a long time and speculated, "Perhaps it is because he lacks friends, so he is looking for friends. Your Majesty, Ireland's relations with the countries around it are not very good. Britain is already their archenemy, and the French and Belgians must be very hostile to Germany and its allies. The Netherlands adheres to neutrality and does not have a good impression of them. Ireland cannot rely on Germany for everything. If they want to have an independent political role and diplomatic stance, they must strive for a better living environment for themselves. Although Spain is at a low point in its history, our land area is six times that of Ireland and our population is five times theirs. If we can overcome the difficulties, we will still be a European power with significant international influence. Moreover, the Iberians have a special blood connection with the Celts. Based on these circumstances, the rulers of Ireland will be happy to establish good national relations with us and even seek opportunities to form strategic alliances Alfonso XIII was like a poor person rolling and falling in the darkness, as long as he saw a little light, even if he pretended to be calm on the surface, his heart was already surging with excitement. As the Prime Minister said, around 1200 BC, Celts from Central and Northern Europe entered the Iberian Peninsula from the north, intermarrying with blonde Celts and darker skinned Iberians, and expanding throughout the peninsula. This is the blood relationship that Ireland and Spain have to say about. So, how about we use the wisdom of His Majesty to help Spain overcome its current predicament The old Count has served as the President of the Spanish Council of Ministers for the second time and has experienced the largest scale strikes during his tenure. He has also witnessed the competition among European powers in the Moroccan crisis and the Balkan conflict, and has a thorough understanding of the dark side of international politics. Therefore, he reminds us that "if His Majesty can always receive the protection of the Goddess of Victory, our alliance with her should have more advantages than disadvantages, but the problem is that no one can guarantee that they can always stand invincible. From the current international situation, the Allied forces are in an absolute advantage, but the industrial strength of Germany, Austria, Turkey, Italy and other countries combined is not as strong as that of the United States alone. When the war fails, one side is relying on the power of the United States to rebuild its strength. The future pattern is still difficult to say. Once we rely too much on Ireland's support, we will inevitably be driven by it, get involved in uncertain disputes, and even fall into a disaster abyss that is a hundred times worse than the current situation Alfonso XIII looked up at the sky and cast aside his lazy and decadent posture before speaking again: "That is a long-term consideration. As far as our current situation is concerned, we do need strong external assistance to change the situation. Think about it, Ireland has gone from a country without even industry to a miraculous place of zero unemployment and high welfare in less than a year. The whole world is watching it, isn't it because of Germany's gratuitous aid and interest free loans? After all, this is also a huge benefit brought by war adventure! Before the war, Germany's industrial economy was strong, far more than supporting allied countries with billions of marks like it does now The old count echoed, "Yes, the war reparations of the French alone are enough to enable the German economy to achieve a second leap, let alone the fact that the Germans have taken over a large number of British and French colonies in Africa and Asia, controlled the oil resources of Mesopotamia, and almost all European countries are vying to show goodwill towards Berlin. Compared to the coldness before the war and the resistance during the war, it is a great irony to political diplomacy Alfonso XIII picked up the letter again, seemingly weighing its weight and pondering the words inside, but he never took out the letterhead to read it again. Instead, he said to the Prime Minister, "I am writing a handwritten letter inviting His Majesty Joachim to visit Spain. You can have the letter delivered to Ireland, and our ambassador to Ireland will personally deliver it to the palace to show our sincerity Yes, Your Majesty, but... "the old count said awkwardly Alfonso XIII had a pile of documents on his desk, and he clearly didn't even look at the proposal put forward by Count Romanones. Led by the king, the entire Spanish bureaucratic system operates with a snail like efficiency, except for a few honest and diligent officials. These accumulated problems cannot be eliminated with external assistance. As usual, Alfonso XIII asked, "Among them, who do you think is more capable of fulfilling this position The old count replied tactfully, "Personally, I think Baron Pietro Obian can be a key consideration. Although his qualifications and reputation are not as high as the other candidates, he has served as a diplomatic officer in multiple countries, has rich knowledge and experience, and has a dignified appearance, which is very suitable Alfonso XIII didn't have the patience to listen to everything and directly stated, 'Then let's appoint Baron Obian as the ambassador to Ireland! Where is he now and how long will it take for him to take office?' The old count was not surprised by this at all. He quickly replied, "As far as I know, he is currently in Madrid and can go to Ireland to take up his post at any time. Before his official appointment, will Your Majesty summon him to understand our new diplomatic strategy for Ireland, so that he can grasp the balance after taking up his post The young Spanish king pondered for a moment and said, "Then let him come to see me tomorrow, just in time to take the letter with him That's great, "the old count replied." If everything goes smoothly, he will be able to deliver the letter to His Majesty the King of Ireland in three days Alfonso XIII, on the other hand, asked, "Does this make him feel that Spain is in a very difficult situation and is now eagerly waiting for Ireland's help If it were someone else, we could consider delaying for a while, but for that Your Majesty, we may not need to do too much concealment. He should have a deep understanding of our situation As soon as the words were spoken, the old count realized he had misspoken and quickly observed the king's reaction. Alfonso XIII may not have been unaware that he had opened this letter, but after a conversation just now, his gloomy mood improved significantly, so he did not express any dissatisfaction with it.