My Italy

Simonyi's telegram was quickly sent to Rome, and Menelik II's request also caused an uproar among the top government officials.

Regarding Menelik II's request, most senior officials believed that his ambition was untamable and was not conducive to Italy's control of this land. Some people even say that if the Abyssinians are given so many weapons, then Italy will shoot itself in the foot, and they will inevitably betray Italy.

In the face of the overwhelming opposition, some people think that it is entirely possible to take a gamble. The reason is that Italy's strength can completely suppress the Abyssinians.

However, due to the overwhelming opposition, these voices of support were completely ignored.

Of course, the differences within the government are not a priority for Prime Minister Despretis. He needs to know what His Majesty means first.

"Your Majesty, this is the current situation of the government."

Carlo said immediately after listening to the Prime Minister's report on the government's attitude. "The military's attitude is very different from yours. They are very willing to facilitate this transaction."

Yes, the hawkish military is very happy with the Abyssinians buying arms. Because the Abyssinians mainly wanted to deal with the Sudanese, although Italy could not personally end the war, if Abyssinia attacked Sudan and ceded territory to pay compensation, it would also expand Italy's sphere of influence in East Africa in disguise.

As for whether the Abyssinians are rebellious after their strength has greatly increased. To paraphrase the words of Marshal Cadorna, Minister of War, if we can hit him once, we can hit him a second time.

When Carlo told the military's attitude, Prime Minister Despretis was somewhat disapproving. "Your Majesty, although the attitude of the military can be used as a reference, I think it is not sufficient at all. You must know that the last war between our country and the Abyssinians cost more than 200 million lire. Although the Abyssinians are still It’s considered submissive, but the situation is not unchanged. If there is a next time, how much should it cost?”

Carlo also knew what the Prime Minister meant. Although the Abyssinians are currently respectful to Italy, there is still the possibility of rebellion. Perhaps under the instigation of thoughtful people, the Abyssinians might raise the flag of rebellion.

Moreover, selling such a large amount of arms to the Abyssinians is obviously more beneficial to them.

However, Prime Minister Depretis has said so much, but the final decision still lies with Carlo. Although he also knew that the Prime Minister's concerns were not impossible, Carlo always thought that this was not good.

As for why it wasn't good, he couldn't tell. Maybe it was a cognitive issue. Carlo believed that a surrendered vassal country like Abyssinia was like a younger brother, and Italy had to make its younger brother drink soup when eating meat. An approach that only exploits but does not give benefits will not last long.

Of course, if this dependent country is called India, that would be another story. It would be a kindness not to knock India's bones and suck out its marrow. After all, Indians are pursuing the afterlife, and suffering in this life is to prepare for happiness in the next life. The more suffering you suffer in this life, the happier you will be in the next life. Maybe you will be directly promoted from a Sudra in this life to a Brahmin in the next life, and everything will be worth it.

"Just follow the military's advice and agree to the Abyssinians' request."

"His Majesty!"

Carlo's words shocked the Prime Minister. Facing the Prime Minister who stopped him, he looked at him. "Prime Minister, this matter has been decided. The more important thing for the government at the moment is to find out the attitudes of various countries. Governor Antonio is waiting very impatiently."

Yes, what Carlo said is the most important thing for the Italian government at the moment. Compared with this, Abyssinia's purchase of arms is a trivial matter. After years of development, Italian Borneo has finally reached saturation, and now Italian Borneo is eyeing Dutch Borneo. In fact, it is not certain that the development of Italian Borneo has been completed. There are still a large number of virgin jungles in Italian Borneo, but the development costs of these places are too high.

As an investor, the most important thing is the rate of return, so there is no better place than Dutch Borneo, which is just sitting there and doing nothing. The main thing is to bully the Dutch. Italy has no pressure at all. As long as it can deal with the British, everything else will be easy.

The previous riots planned by Governor Antonio still did not make the Dutch let go. Since softness is not enough, then let's be tough.

So when Governor Antonio sent back a secret letter six months ago, Rome agreed without much thought.

After all, for the Italian government, the Borneo colony was a major source of financial revenue. Although this place is not suitable for growing food, it is very good for growing tropical cash crops, whether it is rubber, pepper, or other cash crops.

As for why we only asked the British for their opinions, the reason is very simple. Currently in Southeast Asia, Italy attaches great importance to the opinions of the British because the British are the most powerful.

Of course, Italy does not ignore the opinions of other countries, but considering the current situation, it cannot do so even if it wants to. Because Italy is invading the interests of the Dutch this time, other countries must be opposed.

Although the French are not weak in Southeast Asia, they pay more attention to Indochina and South China. As for the Spaniards, it would be good if they could keep their Philippines. The declining Spaniards have only a few ancestral legacies, but many people are making plans. Provoking Italy is not a wise choice. As the Dutch are destined victims, Italy does not care about their attitude.

So after a while, the attitude of the British is still the most important this time.

Faced with the king's inquiry, Prime Minister Despretis said immediately. "Your Majesty, we have talked with the British. However, the British demand a high price. They require our country to open the Borneo colony to British merchants and not set up obstacles to their investment."

Carlo couldn't help but frowned after hearing the Prime Minister's words. "Have the British not given in at all?"

The reason Carlo asked this was also to know the attitude of the British.

"This was the condition from the beginning, and the British did not give in at all."

After hearing the Prime Minister's words, Carlo quickly grasped the point. "So, the attitude of the British has changed, shouldn't it?"

Don’t blame Carlo for saying this. During the previous negotiations with the Dutch, there were loopholes in the treaty that did not include the remaining colonies in Borneo. Although the Dutch were not willing, all other countries acquiesced at that time. Could this have changed?

Carlo was right. Changes had indeed occurred. This is to blame. Former Prime Minister Cairoli was too successful in building Italian Borneo. The former prime minister left behind a colony that earned nearly 100 million a year, which made the British jealous. For this reason London was more than once accused of leaving this colony to Italy.

Of course, these accusations are a bit excessive. Before Italy took it over, no other country thought of investing money here. When Italy invested a lot of money to develop it, it started to be jealous again. Don't look at Italy's prosperity in Borneo, the British are not bad either, and their Malayan colonies also earn a lot of money, which is much higher than the Italian colony.

However, although Carlo didn't understand where the variables were, he still had an arrow on the string and had to take action.

"Since the British won't relent, let's continue talking. We don't need to raise our conditions. The British will naturally relent when the time comes."

Of course Prime Minister Despretis understands what Carlo said. "What does your Majesty mean?"

Carlo pointed it out directly. "Yes, sometimes you don't have to care too much about other people's attitudes."

That's right, Carlo plans to force himself. He did not believe that the British would declare war on Italy on behalf of the Dutch. Sometimes showing a tough attitude will make others respect you. Carlo thinks there is nothing wrong with showing Italy's attitude now.

Of course, he was confident in saying this, because the navy, which he relied on the most, had a secret weapon.