Rebirth of the Spanish Empire.

Chapter 18 Family Reunion

1875 year 9 month 10 day,
  A warship from the British Royal Navy is slowly approaching the coast of Gibraltar.

At this time, Gibraltar was already occupied by the United Kingdom and was not returned to the Kingdom of Spain in the 21st century.

This is mainly because Gibraltar's geographical location is very important, because the Strait of Gibraltar of the Kingdom of Spain is a traffic artery guarding the Mediterranean Sea.

Its important status is equivalent to the importance of the Strait of Malacca to the small lives of a large Eastern country and its neighbors in later generations.

Because controlling the Strait of Gibraltar means controlling the transportation channel for food in the Mediterranean, the Strait of Gibraltar is also known as the "Sea Life Channel of the Mediterranean."

Which country controls the Strait of Gibraltar, then this country has an important say in the Mediterranean.

Originally, this important sea transportation channel belonged to the Kingdom of Spain, but due to the failure of the Thirty Years War in the 17th century, coupled with the incompetence of the rulers, it became a major maritime transport channel. As a result, the Kingdom of Spain's national power declined rapidly.

In the 17th century, Britain quickly became stronger and set its sights on the Strait of Gibraltar, which was in the hands of the Kingdom of Spain.

The declining Spanish Kingdom could not stop the British attack, and in the end the Spanish Kingdom was defeated.

This ultimately resulted in the British occupying the Strait of Gibraltar, which originally belonged to the Kingdom of Spain.

So now the Kingdom of Spain can only watch helplessly as the UK makes huge profits by relying on the Strait of Gibraltar and has no choice.

This incident was a huge shame to the current Kingdom of Spain.

But what can the Kingdom of Spain do? The strength gap between the two is really too big.

Not to mention, in the next two centuries, the Kingdom of Spain had many foolish kings.

Let’s not talk about that far away, let’s talk about the former Queen of the Kingdom of Spain, Alfonso’s dear mother, Isabella II.

Then there is a generation of foolish kings, a debauched and decadent private life, incompetent political rule, and the appointment of a large number of treacherous ministers to do evil in the Kingdom of Spain... These measures have greatly consumed the strength of the Kingdom of Spain.

It can be said that Isabella II, who was fatuous and incompetent, successfully accelerated the decline of the Kingdom of Spain.

During its 25 years in power, the Kingdom of Spain changed 34 governments, promulgated 7 constitutions, and triggered 15 rebellions and armed uprisings.

These incredible statistics directly led to nearly half a century of war and chaos in the Kingdom of Spain.

In fact, from the mid-17th century to the mid-19th century, the monarchs of the Kingdom of Spain gave outsiders a unified impression of being fatuous and incompetent.

Therefore, the people of the Kingdom of Spain have been waiting for a wise and capable king for too long.

So Alfonso simply ended the civil war that lasted for many years and stabilized social order. It was enough to label Alfonso as a wise man.

Not to mention the impact that the "Compulsory Education Law" and the "Veterans Protection Law" promulgated by Alfonso after this had on the people of the Kingdom of Spain!

"The government of the Kingdom of Spain can be changed, but the one who rules the Kingdom of Spain must be His Majesty Alfonso!"

This is the most authentic answer from the people of the Kingdom of Spain to Alfonso’s rule at this time!
  But even Alfonso can't do anything about it now, because the strength gap between the two countries is really too big at this time.

"Beep, beep."

When the warship arrived at the port, Alfonso also stopped his inner thoughts.

He immediately rushed to the shore to greet her, waiting here for the arrival of his sister Isabella and two younger sisters Maria and Oralia.

When the three of them stepped off the warship, Alfonso could no longer hold back his excitement and immediately hugged the three of them in his arms.

At this moment, all four of them shed tears of excitement!

His sister Isabella married Prince Gaetano of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies in 1868.

But this prince is a coward and incompetent man. After the Kingdom of Two Sicilies was unified, he couldn't bear the sadness in his heart and committed suicide in Switzerland, leaving only Isabella alone.

Isabella, who was alone, could only live with the underage Alfonso and his two sisters.

However, because of their mother's absurd behavior and her husband's cowardly suicide, they suffered a lot of bullying and ridicule over the years.

So these three women: a widow and two girls under the age of 16, now their only support is Alfonso.

And Alfonso now successfully obtained the throne of the Kingdom of Spain through his own efforts.

So after Alfonso successfully ruled the Kingdom of Spain, the nobles who had laughed at them over the years personally apologized for fear of provoking Alfonso's revenge!
  …………

In the restaurant of the Royal Palace of Madrid,

A family of four was eating lunch together. Alfonso was eating the steak that had been prepared and said softly to Isabella:
  "Sister, don't go anywhere else when you come back, this is your home.

And I need your help, sister. Now that my mother is gone, I want you to discipline two naughty little girls for me. "

Isabel glanced at Alfonso, her eyes filled with tears, and she was sobbing speechlessly.

At this time, she looked at Alfonso: his frowning brow and serious face made Alfonso look quite majestic as a king.

Now she suddenly discovered that little Alfonso, who always pretended to be an adult when he was a child, had grown into an upright man and no longer needed her to take care of him.

She was always watching the ruling measures implemented by Alfonso in Spain this year.

She also knew that the common people outside the Kingdom of Spain had already called her brother Alfonso the wise king of the Kingdom of Spain once in a century.

The support from the common people of the Kingdom of Spain made Isabella, who had been in a turbulent political situation since she was a child, feel stable and happy for a long time.

"Oh, I see."

Although there is a lot of activity in her heart, she doesn't talk much. This may be Isabel's state at this time.

"Alfonso, now that you are of age, I should look out for a suitable wife for you."

Isabel solemnly said to Alfonso, after all, her brother was her only support in her heart.

"Actually, it's still early for this matter. I'm only 18 years old now, so there's no need to be so anxious..."

At this time, Alfonso suddenly choked when he heard Isabella's answer and immediately retorted. Oops, I didn’t expect Isabel to have thought of this, Alfonso thought to himself.

Alfonso has traveled through time since he was born. It can be said that there is no barrier between the four brothers and sisters, but they are very close.

"No, it's getting late now. You are already 18 years old and have reached the age where you should get married. You can no longer follow your own whim.

Don’t worry, my sister will help you find a suitable wife. "Isabella immediately said seriously.

Isabella, who had become a widow without a child, actually felt very sorry. She suddenly thought of little Alfonso in her mind, which gave her the idea.

At this time, Maria and Eulalia were snickering on the sidelines, obviously amused by the conversation between the two.

"Hurry up and eat. After you finish your meal, hurry up and go do whatever you need to do."

At this time, Alfonso's face became even darker. He was urged to marry by his sister Isabella and laughed at by his two sisters.

Alfonso, a once-in-a-hundred-year wise king of the Kingdom of Spain, he has to save face after all, right?
  Although Maria and Eulalia were already seated formally on the surface, their hands under the table were still communicating.

"Sister, don't mention my marriage for now. I want to discuss something with you now."

Alfonso did not pay attention to the little actions of the two little girls, but turned to Isabella and said seriously.

"Alfonso, what's going on?" Isabella was a little confused.

“The population of the Kingdom of Spain is now far different from that of major European countries such as Britain, France, and Germany.

The Kingdom of Spain's population has been greatly damaged due to years of war, and there is no spare labor force to develop industry.

At this time, women still accounted for one-third of the population in the country, and most of them worked at home!
  They will be a large labor force for the current Kingdom of Spain and can greatly promote the economic development of the Kingdom of Spain.

If women can be liberated and allowed to appear in various jobs in the Kingdom of Spain, I think this will be of great help to the economy of the Kingdom of Spain. "

Alfonso said seriously that he hoped to use his sister Isabella's identity as the widow to complete this matter.

Isabella, a woman who lost her husband and fought for women's rights, was the best person that Alfonso envisioned to lead the women's organization.

After all, in Europe in the 19th century, the second industrial revolution had not yet been completely completed, and factories did not need so many workers.

At this time, women are just accessories to men, they have no property rights, and all women's property belongs to their husbands.

This situation only changed initially when the second industrial revolution was completed.

As a woman who lost her husband and lived independently on her own, Isabella has already thrown away the synonym of accessory.

If we really want to awaken the women who led the Kingdom of Spain in the dark era of the 19th century, I am afraid that only Isabella can do it now!

Because Isabella, as the female prince of the Kingdom of Spain, has a noble status and an independent life, giving women who live at home an enviable goal! After all, only with the goal of envy can there be hope and the awakening of female dignity is possible.

"To sum up, I hope to liberate women across the Kingdom of Spain, and sister, you are the person I have chosen to represent the women across the country." Alfonso said in a deep voice.

"But what should I do?"

Hearing that this matter would be of great help to her younger brother, Isabella also changed from her initial hesitation to determination.

"Sister, you can make friends with the wives and daughters of the great nobles, officials, and capitalists of the Kingdom of Spain.

After all, as women they also crave recognition, and I think they will definitely become your supporters. "

At this time, Alfonso put down the knife and fork in his hand and said solemnly to Isabella.

“Actually, women are not inferior to men. Women can do what men can do, so I hope that you, sister, can lead women to spiritual awakening.

Now when the Kingdom of Spain became an empire on which the sun never sets since the 17th century, there was a shortage of labor in the country.

After all, this population is too small for a huge colony!
  I think sister, you can follow this approach and work hard to convince them.

If you need support, sister, you can come to me and I will do my best to support you. "

Alfonso said this and looked at Isabella, for his sister was the one he thought best represented the women of the kingdom of Spain.

"I understand, Alfonso. Leave this to me and I will try to get it done."

Isabella said firmly, then stood up.

"On behalf of women across the country, I would like to thank His Majesty for your kindness!"

Well, now Isabella has stepped into this role...

"By the way, sister, remember that this matter needs to be done step by step. This is different from the previous compulsory education. This will be opposed by many citizens of the Kingdom of Spain." Alfonso explained seriously.

After all, the issue of women’s liberation cannot be solved overnight.

Ideological changes are always much more difficult than actual construction changes, such as the magical Asan country in a certain South Asian subcontinent in later generations.

Even in 2023, in this magical country, the number of women with jobs in the entire country will be less than one-tenth of the number of men in the country, and most of them are women of higher castes.

At this time, after Alfonso and his sister Isabella finished discussing, they turned to look at the two little girls behind them who were making bigger and bigger moves.

His fists clenched involuntarily, and a tic-tac-toe appeared on his forehead.

"You two, tomorrow I will personally examine the knowledge you have learned over the years.

During the year I left, if I found anything that failed me.

Hum! Then just wait and accept the punishment..." Alfonso smiled at the two little girls with a distorted expression.

Alfonso looked at these two lively little girls, and he vowed to let these two little guys experience the happy education of a big Eastern country in the future from 6 to 9!
  At this time, the two little girls saw Alfonso's twisted smile and were immediately frightened by him!
  Don’t worry, you will definitely feel the happiness of my previous life! Alfonso thought to himself.

…………

(End of this chapter)