Capítulo 1871: Chapter 806: Gentlen Always Learn to Compromise
“The short forces in Frankfurt and Paris haven’t weakened,” the Governor of the Bank of England said hoarsely. “Our intervention is like trying to ladle water out of the Thas River with a teacup. We’ve only got forty billion in foreign reserves left—at most it buys us another week.”
The Deputy Minister of Defense was staring at another screen, this one showing a satellite image: the English Channel, empty. The United States carrier strike group they’d anticipated was nowhere to be seen—not even a shadow.
“The Pentagon’s reply is that they’re ‘assessing the situation,'” the deputy minister ground out. “Assessing my ass—it’s been almost a month!”
The Pri Minister sat in a chair in the corner like a stone statue weathering away. Over the past two weeks he had secretly t with envoys from seven Commonwealth countries, signing away more than twenty billion British Pounds in “future fund” commitnts, and all he had got in return were vague lines about “maintaining communication” and “looking forward to progress.”
India had accepted the increased offer of twenty billion but insisted on seeing a concrete titable for the return of cultural artifacts. Kenya turned down fifty billion, demanding at least one hundred and fifty billion and a public apology. Jamaica was more direct, demanding that the United Kingdom give up jurisdiction over its military base in Kingston as “the first step in rebuilding trust.”
The money was thrown out like water, but the fire only eased slightly; it did not go out.
As for Scotland—after the Skye Bridge was bombed, McTavish released a video address, “regretful but resolute” in tone, stressing that this was “a forced response to London’s lack of sincerity,” and again calling on the international community to supervise the negotiations. This ti, the dia in France and Germany did not simply condemn him; instead, they began to discuss “whether the British governnt has missed the best window for a political solution.”
“Pri Minister,” Graham hurried in, his voice even lower, “Military Intelligence Five has confird that the Birmingham protesters have received funds from abroad. The money cos from several shell companies in Panama, ultimately pointing to xico City. Do we expose it? It could strip away their disguise.”
The Pri Minister slowly raised his head, his eyes bloodshot. “Expose it? And then what? The police go to the city hall and start making arrests? Blood in the streets? Let the BBC broadcast ‘the British governnt cracking down on peaceful petitioners’? Hand xico fresh ammunition for their United Nations speech?”
“Right now we’re Rats in a china shop—whatever we touch, we break.”
He stood up, swayed, and steadied himself against the edge of the table. “Notify the Cabinet. Ergency session, nine o’clock tomorrow morning. The agenda is…”
He paused, as if it took all his strength to squeeze out the words: “A ‘Feasibility Assessnt on Authorizing a Referendum on Scotland’s Status.'”
Everyone froze where they stood.
“Pri Minister! That’s surrender!”
“It ans that while we still have a sliver of bargaining power, we hand over our last card voluntarily.”
The Pri Minister cut him off, his voice eerily calm. “Otherwise, once other people start the discussion, once the British Pounds falls below 1.3, once the flas in Birmingham spread to London, we won’t even have the qualification to negotiate.”
He turned to Graham. “Get the secure line to xico City. Not that Bramo—I want soone higher. I want to talk directly to the person who can actually decide.”
…
Victor looked at the two docunts in front of him.
One was an “informal set of talking points” sent via encrypted channel by the British Pri Minister. The core: in principle, the United Kingdom did not oppose Scotland holding an Independence referendum, but it demanded that it be “orderly, lawful, and in line with international norms,” and that there be a complete ceasefire before any vote. In return, they hoped xico would “use its influence” to push the Scottish side to accept, and help “stabilize the British financial market.”
The other was an urgent cable Reinhardt had sent back from Europe: France and Germany had essentially reached a consensus that once the United Kingdom formally initiated the referendum process in Scotland, the European Union would provide “necessary assistance and supervision” to ensure a “smooth transition.”
Privately, diplomats from Germany and France hinted that an “independent Scotland” could expect “consideration for mbership” in the European Union “at an appropriate ti in the future.”
“They’ve bowed their heads,” Casare grinned. “Faster than we expected.”
“It’s a tactical dive.”
Victor circled a sentence in the British Pri Minister’s ssage with a red pen. “They’re buying ti, trying to use a referendum as a delaying tactic, dragging this out for months or even a year or two. In that window they can keep splitting the Scottish camp, lobby the European Union, and wait for a shift in the United States’ politics.”
Bramo pushed his glasses up. “So should we agree?”
“Agree—of course we agree.” Victor smiled. “But we’re going to help them speed it up.”
He turned to Bennett. “Tell McTavish: London is prepared to agree to a referendum, but it must be held within three months, jointly supervised by the United Nations and the European Union, the voting age lowered to sixteen, and Scots living in England also allowed to vote. Set the conditions high.”
“McTavish will be suspicious.”
“Which is why we sweeten the deal.” Victor turned to Casare. “Draft a frawork for a provisional governnt of Scotland, plus a ‘post-Independence Economic Cooperation Outline,’ with emphasis on xico’s investnt pledges and energy cooperation. Let him see a tangible blueprint of life after Independence, not just slogans.”
Then he said to Bramo, “On the financial side, we can ‘lend a hand’ a little. Have a few of the offshore funds we control buy British Pounds on a small scale, create a faint illusion of ‘stabilization and rebound.’ Give London a little hallucination, let them believe the trade is working.”
Finally, he turned to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. “The United Nations speech goes ahead as planned, but tweak the wording. Shift from ‘challenging British sovereignty’ to ‘urging the British governnt to respect the Scottish people’s right to self-determination and to set an example for global decolonization.’ Put the United Kingdom on a pedestal as a ‘responsible great power’ so they can’t climb back down.”
“The Old Empire is like an ancient tree,” he said softly. “On the surface it still looks Living, but the roots are already rotten. We don’t need to chop it down—just shake it from ti to ti. The wind will handle the rest.”
Casare stepped up beside him. “Who’s the next target? France? Germany?”
“No hurry.”
“Once Scotland gains Independence, once the British Pounds is completely relegated to a second-tier currency, once London slips from global financial hub to regional node, Europe will tear itself apart on its own. By then, all we’ll have to do is offer options.”
“But don’t assu the United Kingdom will collapse.”
Victor drew a long breath. “After all, they’ve plundered for centuries. Their accumulated capital is deeper than all of ours put together.”
“Oh, and send word to the British—have them return the artifacts they looted from us. Our people need to be able to see their own history, instead of having it locked in the British Museum.”
“Got it, boss,” Casare nodded.
Victor slid the window open and stretched out his hand, feeling the wind brush across his palm.
“History really does keep moving forward. The mont you stop, it ans you’re decaying and growing old.”
…
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