Telegraph technology in the 19th century was actually very backward. Long-distance signal transmission required manual transcoding, so this kind of information transmission would inevitably lead to errors, omissions and loss.
If civilian telegrams are lost, they are lost, but if military intelligence information is lost, it will be terrible. If the secrets are leaked, the consequences will be disastrous!
Some of the information cannot be written clearly in just a few words, so half of the information transmission in this era still relies on the old methods of the past.
That’s secret messages and word of mouth!
When Shopkeeper Qian returned to Asia this time, he not only brought several maps and secret messages, but also countless intelligence information from high-level European officials recorded in his mind.
When this massive amount of news was placed in front of Xiao Letian, the head of state's face suddenly lost all color!
"Ah! I still underestimated Britain...Britain is not aggressive, not aggressive!"
"What's wrong?" Fatty Liu Langjin and others quickly asked.
Xiao Letian sighed, "The Queen of England's birthday is May 24th, which has only been a few days... The Queen's birthday party this time was not very grand!"
“But the so-called simplicity is also for the royal family, it’s just that there is no national celebration!”
"For the Queen's birthday, all these relatives in Europe have sent representatives to attend this banquet!"
"Princess Sissi's son, Rudolf Franz Karl Joseph... is the Crown Prince of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Naturally, he has to go to celebrate the Queen's birthday, and Sissi will naturally go too!"
"There is also the grandson of the German prince, the son of my old friend Prince Carl, the grandson of the Queen of England... Of course William Victor has to go, he is his grandson!"
"Haha... Hahaha..." Xiao Letian smiled helplessly, "If I guess correctly, these two, including Princess Sissi... I'm afraid they are already hostages of the British at this moment!"
ah! Everyone exclaimed, "This! This is so shameless! Can Britain really do this?"
Xiao Letian snorted coldly, "There is no family affection between countries! Benjamin brought out all the new warships of the British Navy this time, even the French ones!"
"All the former Zhiyuan-class warships in Europe are protecting the homeland! Aren't you afraid of being British?"
"The term Zhiyuan is no longer just a battleship. It is a symbol of an era and a symbol of the navy across the ages!"
"In the Battle of East Frisia, one of our ships, the Zhiyuan, directly defeated the French sneak attack fleet! Even at the end of the battle, the Zhiyuan was overhauled and could continue to be used!"
"What kind of combat power is this? This is something that warships from the pre-Zhiyuan era could not even imagine!"
"At the moment, Germany has two experimental ships in its hands, and one is still in dry dock! These are new Zhiyuan-type warships! What if Bismarck takes advantage of the chaos and raids the British mainland?"
"Don't think that the Germans can't do it! Two new Zhiyuan-class warships raided the London Estuary in the UK at night, and then escorted a group of troops to fight up..."
"What a great opportunity to backstab Britain! Will Bismarck seize it? Raid London and carry out a beheading operation?"
"Even if we don't behead them, the prisoners captured alive are enough for the British to drink a pot of!"
"We admit that the German navy is indeed weak, but don't forget that the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Germany belong to the same nation and language area!"
"They are all branches of the Holy Roman Empire... They are all concepts of Greater Germany!"
"The Austro-Hungarian Empire has a navy. Don't forget that the Austro-Hungarian Empire has access to the sea. They have a navy!"
"The navies of Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire are brought together, and three Zhiyuan-class warships will serve as the main flagship of the finale. Those old British warships will be in trouble!"
"All their main forces are in Asia. They can't come back until the Germans land on the British mainland! Haha..."
"The history of William the Conqueror will repeat itself! Don't you think Britain will be wary of this?"
"Then the Queen's birthday stunt detained the heirs of two countries. This is very English!"
"The Crown Prince of Germany is Prince Carl, who is also an old friend of mine. I discovered that he was not in good health at that time... The final diagnosis was that there was something growing on his throat, was it cancer or a tumor?"
"During the Austro-Prussian War, I reminded him that fortunately it was discovered early, so Prince Carl can survive to this day... But extending his life span by a few more years will not change his main destiny!"
"Prince Carl does not have the blessing of an emperor. He has to leave after all! Bismarck may have seen the British trick, so he took the opportunity of Prince Carl's serious illness to take the emperor's eldest grandson back to Germany!"
"I'm sure the Queen will never let her go! She will never let her grandson go home. Even if his own father dies, she will not let the child see his father for the last time!"
"Damn it! The princes of both countries have been detained, so good...that's so good!"
Xiao Letian's analysis was not wrong at all. At this moment in Buckingham Palace, the German Chief of Staff Moltke, as well as a group of high-ranking German nobles, more than ten people were waiting for the Queen's summons.
They had been waiting in the living room for two hours, and an ominous omen emerged in their hearts!
Suddenly, the door was opened, and the smiling British Crown Prince Edward VII walked in. "Ah! Isn't this the chief planner of the Franco-Prussian Campaign? Your reputation has shocked the whole of Europe. The powerful Germany has you." Good news from God!”
The British Crown Prince came, but the Queen did not show up. Everyone present stood up and bowed to the Crown Prince!
"Your Highness, you are ridiculous. Germany's victory is the result of the great Emperor! It is the plan of the iron-blooded prime minister, not my luck..."
"This time... unfortunately, our crown prince, Prince Carl, is seriously ill. To be honest, he is on his deathbed... We hope to bring his wife and prince and grandson back to the country..."
The members of the German delegation all had sad expressions on their faces, but unexpectedly Edward VII shook his head, "What are you talking about! Isn't it too exaggerated?"
"My old friend Karl is in very good health. How can he be as serious as you say? I don't believe it!"
"In addition, I am sorry to tell you that the Queen is not feeling well and is resting. Her grandson and my sister are accompanying Your Majesty. They cannot go back!"
"Ah? This is impossible...Prince Carl is already on his deathbed. His wife and son must go back! We want to see the Queen, or let us meet His Majesty William!"
The German envoy became panicked, and Moltke's excited voice rose an octave higher.
But Edward VII was extremely firm, "No! My brother-in-law obviously has no big problem, why are you exaggerating?"
"Lying is a bad moral character! Okay, friends, don't quarrel over these trivial matters. I have prepared a dinner. Let's drink and chat slowly!"
"Don't be in a hurry...hahaha...don't be in a hurry!"
The attitude of the British Crown Prince has explained everything. Moltke and the others can't cause trouble in Buckingham Palace, so they have no choice but to leave and discuss the matter in the long term!
After leaving Buckingham Palace, Moltke immediately sent a telegram to Bismarck, "The emperor's grandson has been detained! The British do not respect martial ethics!"
