BXBX NOVEL Chapter 519: Keep playing (ask for a monthly ticket)
"Marshal, if we continue to fight, are we sure of winning? The French Republic has already lost too many troops in this war." Prime Minister René Viviani asked.
Obviously, with heavy losses and little hope of victory in sight, the French government\'s position has been somewhat shaken. Since it is doomed to fail, why continue to fight? In that case, I\'m afraid it will only make them pay a higher price and let more people die.
"No, Your Excellency, Prime Minister. Although our chances of winning are not great, we still have a chance of winning. If we surrender to the Germans, then the Germans will definitely slaughter us. At that time, we will lose a large piece of land." The territory of the country has to bear the heavy burden of war reparations. France will sink from now on, and there will be no chance to rise again." Marshal Joffre said.
The faces of the bigwigs present at the meeting were ugly, but they all had to admit that what Marshal Joffre said was correct. From the information they obtained, Russia paid a high price in order to withdraw from the war. If France surrenders, it will undoubtedly be sent to the door by itself and let the Germans slaughter it. At that time, the Germans will definitely not be polite. Maybe they will put forward harsher conditions than those for Russia.
"Hey, if the current rules of war follow the rules of more than 200 years ago, that would be great!" Secretary of War Alexander Millerand said.
Everyone was taken aback for a moment, but then smiled wryly. They all understood what Alexander Millerand meant. However, that is obviously impossible. In Europe more than two hundred years ago, although many wars also broke out. But at that time, no country would perish or even lose its territory because of war. If you are defeated, you only need to bow your head to admit your mistake, apologize, and make some sense, then everything will be over. It\'s not like now, destroying the country at every turn!
Of course, mentioning this point undoubtedly shows how little confidence the French have in this war.
"His Excellency, Foreign Minister, if we surrender, what harsh conditions will the Germans probably ask?" President Poincaré asked.
"Your Excellency, with the style of the Germans in this war, they probably will kill us severely. First of all, in terms of territory, the territory in the northern part of the Republic may have to be lost, even including Paris. Secondly, the compensation On the one hand, the Germans have always opened their mouths. With the prosperity of the Republic, the Germans may ask for 20 billion marks or more in reparations." Foreign Minister Théophile Del Casse guessed. Of course, this is just his personal guess.
But even so, it has already made the faces of President Poincaré and others very ugly. Such conditions, if they agree, then France will really be no different from subjugation. Northern France is the most fertile place in France and has the strongest industrial base. If it is ceded to Germany, it will make France a second-tier country in Europe. Not to mention, Paris is the capital in the hearts of all French people, and it is also their spiritual symbol. Once Paris is also ceded to Germany, is France still France? In addition, the compensation of 20 billion marks is undoubtedly a huge burden. Although, France is very rich. Their overseas loans are as high as 50 billion francs, which is equivalent to DM, which is almost 40 billion DM. However, this money cannot be easily withdrawn. What\'s more, the 20 billion mark is just Théophile Delcase\'s own guess. Maybe the Germans\' request will be higher than this. France absolutely cannot agree to such harsh conditions.
"Gentlemen, if the Germans really propose such a condition, even harsher than this, can we agree?" President Poincaré asked.
The senior French government officials attending the meeting shook their heads again and again. If they even agree to such a condition, then they will definitely become sinners through the ages, and become the targets of all the French.
"Your Excellency, we must never agree to the harsh conditions of the Germans, and we must never surrender to the Germans. If we continue to fight, we may have a chance to win." Marshal Joffre continued.
"Oh?" President Poincaré and others immediately focused their attention on Marshal Joffre. If it can win, or even draw, it will be a great thing for France. That way, at least they don\'t have to pay too much.
"Your Excellency, on the British side, don\'t you want our navy to cooperate with them? If the navies of the British, French and Italian kingdoms combine to defeat the German navy, then the Germans will not have much advantage. As long as we continue to France resisted the German attack. Gradually, the balance of victory will be tilted in our favor." Marshal Joffre said.
"Navy? Your Excellency the Secretary of the Navy, can our navy defeat the Germans?" asked President Poincaré.
"Your Excellency, the Navy of the Republic has set sail and is headed for England. According to the plan, it will cooperate with the British fleet. The fleet purchased by the United Kingdom from the United States is expected to return to the United Kingdom next month. At that time, we will unite to fight against Germany. As for whether It is hard to say that the Germans will be defeated. But judging from the strength of the two sides, the gap is not that big. If you are a little bit lucky, victory is entirely possible." Navy Minister Victor Gagnul said.
"Since this is the case, Your Excellency, I think we can continue to fight. No matter how bad it is, we can delay it a little longer. After the decisive battle between the Navy and the German Navy is over, we can decide what to do next according to the situation. If the Navy can win , then we can continue the war and persist until the day of victory. If the navy fails this time, then I think there is no need for us to persist." Prime Minister René Viviani said .
President Poincaré nodded: "If you have no other opinions, then let\'s do this. May God bless the Navy and let us defeat the Germans!"