Expedition to Europe

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The Elysee Palace was built in 1718. The French Third Republic issued a decree in 1873, officially designating the Elysee Palace as the French presidential palace.

Qin Zhiyuan's car can only drive to the square in front of the Elysee Palace, and then walk into the presidential palace.

Raymond's secretary was waiting at the door. Seeing Qin Zhiyuan coming, he immediately led Qin Zhiyuan to the second floor and went directly to Raymond Poincaré's office.

As a former royal palace, the interior decoration of the Elysee Palace is magnificent. All the room walls are decorated with gilded precious wood. Famous oil paintings and exquisite handmade tapestries are hung on the walls. Gilded furniture from the 17th and 18th centuries and precious artworks from various countries are displayed around. This is a museum.

Raymond Poincaré's office was equally magnificent. When the secretary pushed open the gilded wooden door that was more than two people tall, Qin Zhiyuan felt that the French had piled up the entire country's gold in the Elysee Palace.

No wonder the French can still fight. If they really have no money, they can sell this place for a lot of money. Qin Zhiyuan made malicious speculations, and he had the urge to pick some gold from the door and bite it with his teeth to see if it was pure.

"Hello, Qin, wait for me for a while." Raymond Poincaré greeted without raising his head.

Raymond Poincaré sat behind the huge desk and wrote furiously. At least three or four secretaries were holding thick documents waiting for his signature.

Fortunately, he didn't sign every page. Every time Raymond took a document, he would turn directly to the last page and sign his name in a flamboyant manner. Strictly speaking, the French president is a symbolic position. The power of the government is concentrated in the hands of the prime minister and the parliament. The documents sent to the president have been decided by the prime minister and the parliament. As the president, Raymond Poincaré only has the right to sign, and he has no interest in even flipping through them.

What if he flips through them? Even if he makes an opinion, it doesn't count. The prime minister and the parliament need the president's signature, not the president's opinion.

This is the sadness of the Western republic.

Soon, Raymond signed the last document and fell on the chair with a sigh of relief.

"Oh, sorry, this is my job." Poincaré slapped his head and remembered that there were people in the office, so he stood up and let Qin Zhiyuan sit on the sofa.

The republic has its advantages. At least when meeting the head of state, you don't need to kneel or be cautious. You just need to be open and generous.

"Originally, I wanted to wait until the evening to have a good talk, but unfortunately I can't wait until then. Things are unpredictable, aren't they?" Poincaré asked the secretary to bring coffee.

"I'm sorry about the Renault factory." Qin Zhiyuan said "sorry" but his tone and expression showed no apology.

"No, no, no, it's not your fault, nor is it my fault, nor even Colonel Marcus's fault. If you trace it back to the root, it's all because of this damn war." Poincaré has a huge forehead, and his beard is thicker than his hair. When he shakes his head, his hair swings wildly.

Qin Zhiyuan smiled, didn't talk much, listened more and talked less, which made communication easier.

"You Chinese have a saying called 'Autumn of Trouble', which is not accurate enough. Look at this winter, there are not few things, and they are all very difficult." Poincaré is a little fat, but it's not serious for a man in his sixties.

"If I can serve you, please give orders directly." Qin Zhiyuan bowed to show just the right respect.

"Of course, I have two difficult things to deal with now. One is the First Brigade of the Foreign Legion stationed in Paris, and the other is Corsica, where a rebellion is taking place. I hope you can give me some advice on how to solve these two problems at the same time." Poincaré's way of thinking is quite unique, and his way of expression is also unique.

"Mr. President, if possible, I will set off as soon as possible and then quell the rebellion in Corsica." Qin Zhiyuan took the initiative to ask for battle.

"Of course, this is the meaning of my calling you here. I'm very sorry that you can't attend the banquet tonight. It's still snowing in the sky, but you have to lead the troops on a long journey. Thank you for your hard work." Poincaré did not give Qin Zhiyuan time to refuse or delay.

"No problem, if possible, I want to go back and prepare now." Qin Zhiyuan didn't want to delay at all. He wanted to fly to Corsica with wings on his ribs now.

"Go, go, go to General Winnington, he will give you some advice." Poincaré was very satisfied and returned to his desk to continue working.

Just a few words, two more secretaries were waiting beside them, and there were several guests waiting outside the door. Judging from their height and skin color, they seemed to be Japanese.

Japanese? Qin Zhiyuan was alert.

Wennington was a middle-aged man in his fifties. Perhaps because of his long-term civil service, Wennington was seriously fat, so that the originally straight general uniform looked like a cloak on Wennington.

"Corsica, the people on that island are really hateful. Here are some materials. You can take a look." Wennington took out a folder and handed it to Qin Zhiyuan across the desk.

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Corsica, with an area of ​​8,680 square kilometers and a population of 13,000, has a current population of 8,000. It has beautiful natural scenery and is known as the "Beautiful Island". In 1768, the French sold their rights on Corsica to the French. Since then, except for a brief occupation by the British from 1794 to 1796, Corsica has always been a French territory.

Corsica is resource-poor and its industry and commerce are backward. The local government relies on transfusions from the French government to survive. The residents on the island live mainly on agriculture and animal husbandry, but what they produce cannot even feed themselves. They rely on agricultural subsidies from the French government to survive. When it comes to Corsica, in the eyes of the French, it is generally associated with poverty and backwardness. In their habits, the French have never listed Corsica as a French territory. Of course, on the other hand, the Corsicans do not consider themselves French.

After the outbreak of the World War, France issued a conscription order, but only a handful of Corsicans enlisted, and most of the young people of military age shirked their duties for various reasons and tried to evade military service. This made the French government very dissatisfied. There has always been a voice within the French government, that is, since the Corsicans want independence, then let them be independent, so that the French government can at least get rid of a financial burden.

As time went on, the French government's finances had problems, and the agricultural subsidies given to Corsica could not be fully and timely issued, which caused dissatisfaction among the Corsicans. On Christmas Eve, the government office building in Ajaccio was blown up, and four sheriffs were assassinated in Ajaccio and Bastia respectively. Subsequently, an organization calling itself the "Corsican Democratic Alliance" claimed to have created all this and formally put forward its own political demands.

This is the most serious violent incident on Corsica since it became a French territory.

"If possible, Qin, you can't be soft-hearted. You must quickly quell this rebellion with thunder and lightning." Wennington said sternly.

"If I encounter resistance, what can I do?" Qin Zhiyuan asked.

"Do everything you can!" Wennington's face was grim.

Well, Qin Zhiyuan had a plan in mind.