Chapter 891: intimidation of force

   "Gentlemen, what should we do now?" Alfonso XIII looked at his ministers. Right now, he just feels a very headache. He didn't want to agree to such harsh conditions from the Germans, but he was also worried that war would detonate after rejecting the Germans' conditions. In that case, Spain will be finished.

"Your Majesty, there are only two roads before us. Either agree to the terms of the Germans, cede Gibraltar and the Balearic Islands to them, and at the same time compensate them for the loss of one billion marks. Or reject the terms of the Germans, Then mobilize immediately, and prepare to fight the Germans to the death. Besides, there is no other way!" Count Romanones said. Other ministers can pretend to be stupid, but he is the prime minister, so he cannot pretend to be stupid.

  Alfonso XIII couldn't help but frowned. Neither of these two paths was what he wanted to choose.

   "If we mobilize, can we scare the Germans?" Alfonso XIII asked. If Germany can give up these harsh conditions after seeing Spain's determination to fight at all costs, it would be a good thing for Spain. However, Alfonso XIII knew that this might be very difficult. Because the strength gap between the two sides is really too big.

"Your Majesty, even if we mobilize, I'm afraid we won't be able to defeat the Germans. With our strength, we can mobilize at most hundreds of thousands of troops in a short period of time. The Germans only need to send 100,000 troops to defeat us. So , It is almost impossible to fight the Germans to the death." The Minister of War said.

  His meaning is very obvious. If you want to fight for a fish to die and a net to break, the final result may be that the fish is dead, but the net is not broken.

  In the hall of the kingdom, there was a sudden silence, as if even a needle falling to the ground could be heard clearly.

   "So, do we have to surrender like the Germans? Accept their conditions humiliatingly?" Alfonso XIII was very helpless. He was originally a very good-looking person. In this case, he might not be able to hold his head up in front of the monarchs of the world.

  Everyone was silent again, and no one knew what to do.

   "Prieto, can you ask the United States to help us? This is what they promised." Alfonso XIII said. As long as the Americans can intercede for Spain, make the conditions of the Germans not so harsh, and make Spain's face a little better, he has no demands on this.

Prieto shook his head: "Your Majesty, the Americans claim that the Germans don't give them face at all. Therefore, they are probably powerless in this matter. After all, the relationship between the United States and Germany is also very bad The two sides are even in hostility."

"Your Majesty, there is no way around this. Perhaps, from the very beginning, it was a mistake for us to accept Gibraltar returned by the British. This is clearly a trap, a trap dug for us by the British. Even the Americans participated in it Among them, they want us to start a war with the Germans and use us to consume the strength of the Germans. Such intentions are really too sinister!" Count Romanones said.

  Alfonso XIII's face suddenly became very ugly, and he also knew that he had fallen into a trap. He even wanted to give himself a slap in the face, why is he so stupid?

  At the same time, Alfonso XIII gave Prieto a vicious look. He believed that this guy must have played a bad role in it.

   Prieto saw the eyes of Alfonso XIII and was immediately frightened. He knew that next he had to be a man with his tail between his legs, otherwise, he might be in bad luck. The angry Alfonso XIII might even eat his heart.

   "Tell the Americans, if they don't come forward to help us, then we will tell the Germans everything. Let the Germans know that they are behind all this!" Alfonso XIII said. He seems to think that this is a very good way to divert conflicts. In this case, maybe Germany will be able to deal with them lightly.

"Your Majesty, this is probably useless. The German intelligence agencies are all-pervasive. They must know that the British and Germans are behind this. However, the Germans have no way to deal with the British and Americans now, so They will vent their anger on us." Count Romanones' words once again shattered Alfonso XIII's delusion. This made Alfonso XIII almost desperate.

"Damn! Then what should we do? Is it really possible to agree to the Germans' request? Give them Gibraltar, that's fine. However, the compensation of one billion marks and the Balearic Islands cannot be given to them. Yes!" said Alfonso XIII.

   "Let the German ambassador talk to the Germans again. We are willing to cede Gibraltar to them. In addition, we will compensate them with 100 million marks. This is the bottom line of the Kingdom of Spain!" Alfonso XIII said.

  At this point, he is still unwilling to fully accept the conditions proposed by the German Empire, thinking that he can lower the conditions as much as possible and strive for certain benefits for the Kingdom of Spain.

   It's just that Alfonso XIII's behavior is obviously unacceptable. Under Qin Tian's leadership, the German Empire has become the most powerful country in the world. And, it is now in its heyday. Alfonso XIII's behavior will only bring more trouble to themselves.

  When the two-day deadline given by the German Foreign Minister expired, but the Spaniards failed to accept all the conditions offered by Germany, German Foreign Minister Vachter immediately announced that the negotiations had broken down.

   This is definitely not good news for the Spaniards. When the news was sent back to Spain, Alfonso XIII was furious and frightened at the same time. He was really afraid that the Germans would do what they said and expand the war against Spain. In that case, Spain will be finished.

   After Qin Tian learned that the Spaniard still did not agree to his request, he knew that the Spaniard hadn't given up yet, and he was still lucky. What Germany has to do now is to put further pressure on the Spaniards so that they can't bear it. By that time, the Spaniards will naturally agree to Germany's request.

Qin Tian issued an order to the Ministry of War, requesting the 1st Army of the German Army stationed in northern France to quickly move to the southern part of France until it reached the northern part of the Pyrenees Mountains, making a plan to cross the Pyrenees Mountains and attack Spanish posture.