I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 262

< The Treaty of Paris >

As soon as we received a response from Russia agreeing to separate negotiations in London, I immediately went to Paris.

Although I’d been subtly involved with France in many ways, this was my first time coming to Paris directly for official business, so it felt different.

Moreover, Louis-Philippe, who still held the throne thanks to me, was very eager to see me, so a grand welcoming ceremony was held.

It wasn’t extravagant because the war had just ended, but the welcoming ceremony, attended by the Prime Minister, the King, and ministers from each department, was quite a spectacle.

If Victoria had visited, it would have been understandable, but considering I was just the Prince Consort and not a king, I received a welcome befitting royalty, or even higher.

Seeing that no one found it strange, it seemed I had indeed made quite an impact in this war.

In fact, Louis-Philippe openly invited me to the palace and eagerly asked me to recount heroic tales from the battlefield.

“We were busy fighting fiercely in the Crimean Peninsula, and we didn’t expect the British Empire to launch an offensive as far as Asia.”

“If you widen the front, Russia can never respond. The basic principle of the operation was to attack as many areas as possible simultaneously.”

“According to the Prime Minister, Your Highness’s political skills are extraordinary, and now you even possess military qualities? Aren’t you being too greedy? And to top it off, you’re handsome too. God is truly unfair.”

“Your Majesty, even though you are over seventy, you still have a dignified charm. I would have nothing more to wish for than to grow old like Your Majesty.”

“Haha, I see you’re good at flattery too. Did you know? Stories about Your Highness have been appearing frequently in French newspapers recently.”

As soon as Louis-Philippe finished speaking, a servant next to him selected a few newspapers and showed them to me.

– Who is Killian Gore Hanover, the Prince Consort of the British Empire?

– The British Empire’s secret weapon that crushed Russia is the Prince Consort?

– How did the British Empire become the world’s strongest power?

In France, where national pride is second to none, articles praising a foreigner, especially an Englishman, were pouring out like this.

In a way, this could be seen as evidence that France has firmly decided to take a pro-British stance.

“Prince Killian, I hope that France and the British Empire will continue to get along like brothers. It is said that brothers grow up fighting. The conflicts between our two countries in the past were all part of that growing pain.”

What kind of crazy brothers wage war for 100 years? But Louis-Philippe and I didn’t fight for 100 years, so what does it matter?

I nodded coolly and spent a full hour talking about how the friendship between France and the British Empire would never change.

Immediately after finishing the meeting with the King, Prime Minister Guizot came hurrying after me.

“Does the British Empire have a set policy for this meeting?”

“There’s nothing specific, but if I had to say, I’m thinking that we shouldn’t suffer losses after winning the war.”

“Indeed, you absolutely shouldn’t suffer losses. Then we will also move in the direction of supporting the British Empire and pressuring Russia.”

“Please do so. By the way, what’s happening with the canal you mentioned before?”

Before the war started, I was supposed to take over the shares of the ‘Suez Maritime Canal Company,’ which was established in partnership with the French Rothschild Bank, but the Russian bastards suddenly started a war, which slightly disrupted the schedule.

According to the original plan, we should have broken ground long ago. Those Russian bastards are never helpful.

“Ah… don’t worry about that. The discussions with Egypt are all finished, so we can start construction as soon as the funds are secured.”

“So, you haven’t started construction yet?”

“Yes. It seems we’ve spent too much on the war with Russia…”

Well, France was supposed to sell all the shares to me, but to deceive Egypt, they had to pretend to start construction.

After that, if they sell all the shares to me, Egypt won’t be able to say anything.

However, from the French government’s perspective, it was not a good time to announce a new project.

In the current situation, where they have suffered enormous losses in the war, it’s easy to imagine how the citizens would react if they started talking about canals.

“Then just tell Egypt this: the damage from the war is too great, so we can’t do the canal. Therefore, we have decided to sell all the shares to the British Empire at this stage. That way, you can transfer ownership more cleanly.”

“Indeed, if we say that the damage from the war is enormous, Egypt won’t be able to say anything.”

“Yes. And even if you sell the canal shares, the citizens won’t care much. As a bonus, if you announce that you will use the money from selling the shares to support veterans in returning to society, wouldn’t the Prime Minister’s popularity increase even more?”

“Oh, that’s a good idea. Then, why don’t we just take this opportunity to publicly sign an agreement while Your Highness is staying in Paris? Didn’t you say that you already received permission from the parliament last time?”

“That’s right. I understand. Since I’ve come all the way to Paris, I might as well take care of everything before I leave.”

Prime Minister Guizot can show off by treating the veterans well, and I can subordinate the Suez Canal to my personal ownership, so there’s no better deal than this.

Since no country can sell the canal in Suez without the tacit consent of the British Empire, France is not at a loss either.

What good is it to cherish a treasure that you can’t even brag about?

It’s good for everyone to sell it when the price is right.

After 72 hours.

Just before the representatives of each country arrived, an announcement was made in the name of Prime Minister Guizot that the owner of the ‘Suez Maritime Canal Company,’ jointly created by the French government and the Rothschild Bank, had been changed to me.

The first puzzle piece for the British Empire’s royal family to control the global shipping industry was finally put in its place.

* * *

Usually, when concluding a major agreement, the representatives only sign, and the work is done by the staff.

However, when the interests of each country are so sharply divided, it is necessary for those with decision-making power to coordinate.

Once the general direction is set, the staff can discuss and calculate specific figures to write the agreement.

And this complexity naturally increases as the number of participating countries increases.

Since someone’s gain is someone else’s loss is a natural law in the international community, it was almost impossible to unify opinions.

Russia probably aimed for that and tried to divide and conquer to minimize their losses.

But they were caught by me and ended up not only failing to break even but also having to cough up profits.

Anyway, if I were a Russian minister, I would have thought about where to dig in and found some room to cause trouble.

Alienate Prussia and Austria, who have traditionally had a bad relationship.

Next, if they could drag France, which is wary of Prussia’s growth, into this nerve war, it would be half the battle.

And the rest is to appropriately cover up for the virtually helpless Ottoman Empire and make plans to regroup.

The problem is that the seasoned diplomatic masters participating in this meeting are well aware of this strategy.

Sometimes there are unavoidable situations in this world, but Russia unfortunately did not have the ability to pull out such a cheat-level technique.

Above all.

“Your Highness! It’s been years since I saw you in London. I’m so glad to see you again like this.”

“Just a few years ago, you were a young and promising talent who came to London with nothing but ambition, but now you’ve already become an ambassador representing your country. Congratulations.”

“It’s all thanks to Your Highness for giving me valuable experiences and encouraging me to have confidence. Please come to Berlin sometime. His Majesty is eagerly waiting for Your Highness to visit.”

“If I have the opportunity, I’ll make time.”

It was unfortunate for Russia that Bismarck, whom I met after a long time, was stuck to my side like a fan meeting a celebrity, not hiding his fanboyism.

“By the way, how are those guys doing?”

“Who are you talking about when you say those guys?”

“You know, Marx and Engels.”

“They are still doing well in London.”

Our communist duo is currently studying economics, listening to my advice that you must know the enemy and yourself to win the battle.

I’ve been subtly leaking the essence of modern revised capitalism here, so if it’s a genius like Marx, I think he’ll soon come up with a theory that will have a significant impact, whatever it may be.

“Those two don’t have any plans to return to Prussia, do they?”

“I don’t think so… Is there a reason why they shouldn’t return?”

“Ah, no. I just thought that London suits them well, so I hope they continue to live in London. Haha, hahahaha.”

I see. You’re worried that the story of you losing embarrassingly in a fistfight and rolling around on the floor will spread.

You even lied to your servant that you won, so if the truth is revealed, your image will be tarnished.

In fact, Marx is also writing that he knocked out Bismarck with one punch and knocked out all his teeth, so I think they are both the same.

I’ll record this in detail in my autobiography later, and they’ll both be very happy, so I’ll just move on without saying anything now.

“Prussia’s participation was greatly influenced by our ambassador, and thanks to that, the war ended more easily.”

“It was a timely participation because it looked like Russia was going to lose anyway. The Junkers [Prussian nobles] in our country were initially negative, but now they are happy that Russia, who was always acting high and mighty, got what they deserved and are welcoming Russia’s defeat.”

“In addition, Prussia will feel much more comfortable because weakening Russia in the rear will directly help with national defense.”

“It would be a lie to say otherwise.”

Small but meaningful conversations were exchanged.

We passed through numerous security guards with leisurely steps and entered a spacious conference room.

“I am Gorchakov, the Foreign Minister of Russia.”

“I am Ali Pasha, the Ottoman Marshal.”

“I am Edouard Louis, the Foreign Minister of France.”

“I am Count Karl Ferdinand von Buol, the representative of Austria.”

“I am Otto von Bismarck, the plenipotentiary ambassador of Prussia. It is an honor to meet such distinguished people.”

“Killian Gore Hanover.”

In this place where representatives of powerful countries in Europe gathered, the direction of the new international order would be determined.

“First, I would like to state what the British Empire wants. All Russian troops and fleets in the Black Sea must be disarmed. Of course, the operation of warships is prohibited, and do not dock warships in any port. Does anyone object?”

“France agrees.”

“Ottoman also agrees.”

“…Russia will accept it.”

The details will be taken care of by the staff, so if we coordinate only the two big frameworks of what is acceptable and what is not, it is no exaggeration to say that our work here is done.

Russia subtly tried to divide France and Prussia, but unfortunately, Bismarck unilaterally took my side, so they could not see the effect they had hoped for.

At this meeting, Bismarck revealed his diplomatic policy without hiding what direction it was taking.

‘Diplomacy is about being close to the British Empire.’

Thanks to his actions, which were 180 degrees different from the original history, the Paris Peace Conference proceeded smoothly.

Danube River, Crimea, Caucasus and Bessarabia, and Poland.

Russia, which lost and lost influence in all sorts of regions, was unilaterally beaten by the Allied ambassadors and could not make a proper protest.

“Then it seems that the European issues have been roughly settled.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Minister Gorchakov’s face lit up, thinking that the long and hellish time was over.

But what a pity. I said the European issues were over, but I didn’t say the meeting was over.

“From now on, let’s discuss the Asian issues. Joseon [ancient Korean kingdom] and Japan were also parties to this war, and it would be a shame if they were excluded. Fortunately, both countries have asked our ally, the British Empire, to represent their voices, so I will speak on behalf of those two countries.”

“Your Highness. But those two countries are clearly sovereign states, and discussing among ourselves without representatives could cause problems in the future. It would be better to call the ambassadors of the two countries and create a separate meeting later…”

It seems like they are struggling to get beaten later, but of course, I didn’t come from Asia without any preparation.

I took out several pieces of paper that I had been deliberately hiding and handed them to Minister Gorchakov.

“…What is this?”

“It is a letter of attorney with the royal seals of the King of Joseon and the Emperor of Japan. If you look there, you will see a phrase designating me as their agent. I have kindly attached a translated version.”

“Killian Gore Lee Hanover, a relative of the Joseon royal family, is designated as the person to represent Joseon’s voice at the Paris Peace Conference…”

Gorchakov, who was reading the translation with a dumbfounded expression, widened his eyes as he saw the phrase written on another piece of paper next to him.

“Delegating the qualifications of Japan’s representative to Killian Gore Tokugawa Hanover, representing the will of His Great Emperor… No, what is this? Could it be that Lee Hanover or Tokugawa Hanover mentioned here is…”

“Yes, it’s me.”

In Europe, I have to coordinate the interests of France, Ottoman, Austria, and Prussia to determine the direction, but Asia is a different story.

Joseon and Japan have both delegated all their authority to me, so it’s safe to say that my voice is the will of Northeast Asia, right?

“As the Minister said, let’s discuss the details in another meeting and just grab the big picture here. First of all, how about giving up Sakhalin cleanly?”

“…?”

You should have expected this much, so why are you pretending to be surprised?

Anyway, you pretend to be manly, but you’re so dramatic at times like this.