Bulgarian Empire

Chapter 58: Negotiation 2

That's not all. The conflict between Britain and Russia is not only in history! The present conflict between the two countries is not small and lasted until 1907, before the Russian defeat in the "Russo-Japanese War", Russia was the primary enemy of the British!

Since the late 1870s, the British and Russian conflicts in the Persian Gulf region have not ceased and are now in full swing.

Because of the unique location of the Persian Gulf, it was the necessary route for Britain to enter India by land and an ideal base for British expansion into the two river basins to the Ottomans. The British Empire would not give it up in any case.

By the same token, the ambitious Russia, who also had ideas about India and the Ottoman Empire, was naturally unwilling to let Britain occupy the Persian Gulf and block the way forward.

In the Persian Gulf region, the two countries fought fiercely over businesses such as railroads, loans, trade, and even telegraphs.

(Do not be misled by fictional myths! All the time, the legend is that the British and Russia will fight for their lives to get control of the Persian Gulf and extract oil!)

And then the eyes turn to the "Graveyard of Empires". Thanks to the U.S., which is familiar to all of us, the famous "Afghanistan"!

From the second half of the 19th century, Russia began to expand wildly in Central Asia, soon entering the Afghan region.

Britain quit, and further ahead is British India. At once began to intervene, Russia is not easy to mess with it, why listen to you British? The navy can not go ashore even if it is strong!

But then, Afghanistan suffered a stroke of bad luck. Two robbers invaded one after another and then threw in the towel and were divided up! But the conflict in this region is still going on.

In 1891, through the world map, Russia was all enemies from the west to the east. The great powers have diplomatically isolated the ability to pull hatred! It was forced to close with its former enemies, which warmed up day by day with the same diplomatically isolated France.

Until now, Bulgaria was not worth it. Now the government of St. Petersburg, too, is taking it seriously.

With the Russian Empire's strategic focus shifting east, St. Petersburg has decided to adopt a conservative strategy in Europe and a limited strategic retreat in the Balkans. Fostering allies is a good option!

In this international context, Ferdinand adopted a pro-Russian diplomatic strategy. Based on mutual interest, the two sides quickly came to the present.

Ferdinand intended to sign the pact as soon as possible, while Count Pavel Shuvalov was in a trance before the day grew too late.

...

Ferdinand has no usual calming, said sternly: "I call you to a meeting today, not to discuss what should be discussed after so many meetings before!"

"I won't say any more nonsense! I'm calling you here now for the matter of negotiations with Russia! The international situation is rapidly changing. Now Russia is in a diplomatic dilemma, and this is our best chance!"

"After this one, there is no such game!"

"You must strive for the early signing of the Entente and obtain the greatest possible benefit for Bulgaria! In short, this time, the Russian Empire is more sincere than ever. Go ahead and talk despite the loud noises of lobbies!"

"You guys are in charge of taking care of the specific details! For the main talks, I'm personally involved!"

"Okay, the meeting is adjourned if there are no objections!"

After saying that, Ferdinand ignored the crowd who were still thinking and went straight back to rest! Today he is really too tired. Fooling people is not an easy job. (Well, the author is not good at fooling people, usually belongs to the fooled)

Lying in a king-size bed at twenty square meters of room, Ferdinand tossed and turned and had a long sleepless night. (Please forgive me if my imagination is limited by poverty)

"Look and search, cold and clear, miserable and tragic1). It is most difficult to rest when it is still cold at the beginning of the year."

The following day, Ferdinand appeared with dark circles under his eyes. He was proud of his 19th-century makeup skills, but he decided to go for a natural appearance.

This time, Bulgaria is an excellent example of "fast and furious". He just arrived in Sofia, has not had time to settle down Count Paul, and hurried to the negotiating table!

Today's split is simple, Ferdinand is in charge of pretending and hammer out the primary goal. The specifics are the job of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He chose the place at Ferdinand's palace to show the value that Bulgaria attaches to the talks. He is not going to admit to being lazy and not wanting to ride in that carriage!

...

To finalize it quickly, Ferdinand offered constructive advice: "Count Pavel, if we keep talking like this, I guess you'll still be sitting here today next year! I think St. Petersburg, like us, does not want to keep dragging on forever with no time to lose, so why not simply negotiate in groups!"

Pavel Shuvalov pondered for a moment, calculating in his mind. 'After the dissolution of the German-Russian Reinsurance Treaty, myself was left idle. If I don't produce results again, I will be considered incompetent by His Imperial Majesty! It does not affect the outcome even if we talk apart. The big deal is that we can just go over it again ourselves!'

"Your Highness has a point. For the sake of the friendship between our countries, it is indeed necessary to finalize the treaty as soon as possible. On behalf of the Russian Empire, I agree to negotiate in groups!"

The room resounded with roaring applause, and everything went in the right direction. Russia considers the most important military alliance, which Ferdinand had signed with Nikolai before, and now it is mainly in commercial trade.

Ferdinand personally sought out Count Pavel Shuvalov for a chat. No, it was to discuss the most crucial Bulgarian concern - the issue of bringing in the people.

He still used his best method of fooling around, "Count Pavel, as far as I know, the Russian Empire has been developing very fast in recent years!"

At the end of the 19th century, Russia was in its glory, with influence radiating from Europe to Asia. It was one of the primary challengers for world hegemony, and Russia of the time was in total control!

At the mention of the Russian Empire, Count Pavel Shuvalov became excited and said with a bright smile, "Yes, Your Highness. The Great Russian Empire, with the blessing of God, is developing at a rapid pace and can be projected to surpass the pesky British shortly!"

Ferdinand also smiled along and praised, "The Russian Empire is the successor of the ancient Roman Empire. It is only a matter of time before it overtakes Britain, and your country will certainly head the future of Europe and the world!"

Pavel Shuvalov has fluttered a bit, but in the end, he is still the elite of his time and did not get carried away. After slightly sorting out his emotions, he could not hide his pride, though, and said, "Your Highness, we still have a long way to go to surpass England. If Bulgaria joins us, I believe this time will be much shorter!"

"Oh, Count Pavel, you're wrong. We're already allies. I guess you've heard some rumors!" Ferdinand showed a smug expression.

Pavel Shuvalov was shocked. It seems that the secret contract really exists. The bloody Ministry of Foreign Affairs is out of the way and actually did not tell the details of the contents, whether it would be leaked to him!

"By the way, I heard that in recent years, the Russian Empire had seen a huge increase in the number of immigrants to the Americas. What's going on?" Ferdinand asked with a turn of phrase.