When Li Junwei arrived in Lisbon, the city had been completely renewed. Pedro spent more than 300,000 taels to decorate his capital and welcome the arrival of his most important allies, but with them were also envoys from European countries in Lisbon.

With the end of the war in the Caribbean, China did not continue to march into Central America after occupying Cuba Island and Panama, but instead continued to send signals of peace to the Kingdom of Spain. All countries knew that the war was about to end. European countries not only sent envoys to Lisbon, but also sent envoys to Madrid. Especially the Great Alliance countries that were allied with Spain, Britain, the Netherlands, etc., these countries are persuading the Kingdom of Spain to continue to fight.

"His Royal Highness, the war will not continue because of the participation of some clowns. You should be clear that the British and Dutch people have bad intentions for Spain's overseas colonies." Li Junwei explained seriously in the face of Pedro's doubts. In Li Junwei's view, those Spanish allies were not supporting Spain, but just to destroy the peace talks between Spain and the Empire. As long as the peace talks are destroyed, the war will continue, or the peace talks are stalemate, and the empire will continue to invest in the newly occupied American colonies. The Spanish hard-working attitude will eventually lead to the American colonies quickly becoming negative assets overseas in the empire, and the purpose of these countries will be achieved.

The best way for the empire to deal with these negative assets is to sell it to friendly countries that Li Junwei proposed it himself, and all countries are ready to divide these Spanish colonies.

Pedro invited Li Junwei to enter his palace. Since the War of Independence ended twenty-two years ago, Portugal did not participate in any European war. The booming overseas colonies and Atlantic trade allowed Portugal to quickly get rid of the debt crisis. The Portuguese royal family has become one of the richest royal families in Europe. Once upon a time, Portugal also continued to lend money to European bankers. But now, the Portuguese royal family has not only paid off all debts, but also loaned money to other countries.

Because he had long learned that the Chinese liked to eat and talk, Pedro prepared a sumptuous lunch for Li Junwei. What satisfied him was that King Yu did not bring anyone else or asked someone to accompany him. This sumptuous dinner became a more private banquet, which was what Pedro hoped. Pedro always hoped that Portugal would be a special one on the empire. The two countries had to have a common position in the face of overseas colonies and European situations. Now, everything seemed to be going well.

Li Junwei did not ask King Pedro to ask questions anymore, but instead asked him back to take the initiative in his own hands. Li Junwei asked: "His Royal Highness, what do you think of the war breaking out in the continental region?"

Pedro couldn't help but feel helpless. The current state of continental Europe is that France is fighting most of Europe alone, and he is still at ease. During Pedro's administration, Portugal not only became rich, but also established a standing army with a population of 25,000. If the army is expanded, the number of this army can reach 50,000, which is also a force that cannot be underestimated on the European battlefield. Pedro had ambitions to expand Portugal in this war, but the key is that Pedro felt that he had no idea how to start in the situation in the European continent.

"The war has been outbreak for more than a year. We either become enemies of France or allies of France. But unlike other countries, our Portugal Kingdom has only one land neighbor, Spain. And our war with Spain has ended." Pedro said his heart helplessly.

If it is an alliance with France, it can be said that Portugal can only attack Spain. If it is an enemy of France, Portugal does not border with France, and the weak Portugal does not have the ability to open up a new battlefield alone. Pedro actually wants to develop colonies overseas, especially in the New World, but this is also a bit difficult.

Because the Portuguese navy was very weak, after Portugal was rich, it did not expand its navy. In Europe, Pedro married Britain and pursued a relatively neutral foreign policy. Moreover, the country was weak and could not support a large-scale navy. All the overseas colonies of Portugal were under the protection of China, and there was no need to develop a large navy. Assuming that Portugal formed an alliance with France and attacked the colonies of other European countries, after the war, it would definitely be counterattacked and might not be able to defend it.

When fighting against France and seizing French colonies, the problem is that France does not have any decent colonies overseas. There is only Haiti Island in the Caribbean. New France, the largest colony in the New World, is located inside the North American continent, and there is no way to get off the ground.

Pedro is actually seeking a possibility, that is, to form an alliance with France and seize other countries' colonies in the Americas, especially mature colonies in the Caribbean, but the premise is to obtain China's promise to allow these newly obtained colonies to be fully protected by China, like Brazil, East Africa and India's colonies, and advance and retreat together. Of course, it would be even more convenient to buy some Spanish colonies that China has occupied, after all, Pedro has money.

Li Junwei understood Pedro's meaning and said, "His Royal Highness, the so-called colony is the place of dumping goods and the origin of raw materials, not something a country or king shows off his strength. If you have money, I would rather suggest that you, like Louis XIV, make a gem clothes worth four million Chinese yuan, or spend 25 million Chinese yuan to build a Palace of Versailles that belongs to you. That way, your financial resources can be demonstrated.

And if you want the kings and nobles of Europe to fear you, you can build an army and defeat powerful enemies. Expanding your territory is useless. Not to mention that your country still has many colonies around the Indian Ocean, and just one Brazil is enough for your country to use. Didn’t you control immigration to Brazil a few years ago? What if you have another colony on the New World?”

Pedro felt a little uncomfortable after hearing these a little reproachful words, but this was a private place and Pedro could accept it. At least at the welcome ceremony, Li Junwei also said in front of all the envoys that Portugal and the Empire were brotherly countries, and King Pedro was the imperial emperor's most sincere friend in Europe.

"In fact, this was proposed by some of my consultants. Obviously they think you are really interested in auctioning the occupied Spanish colony. And I have been keeping your attitude towards Spain for you." Pedro said carefully. What he said is also the fact that since Li Junwei contacted Spain, Pedro himself has helped a lot, and of course he has known the relationship between Spain and China more than others.

Li Junwei smiled and said, "Your consultants are just some businessmen, they are not politicians. Well, King Pedro, given the friendly relations between you and me, I will give you a suggestion. You can ask your consultant, which of the three colonies of Brazil, East Africa and India has the highest fiscal revenue?"

"It's the Indian region! I don't need to ask about this." Pedro said: "India can provide many best-selling products needed by Europe, such as twill, spices, gems and gold. India is also a huge market. Of course, it is still a very good source of raw materials, such as cotton and coal, which are needed by your country's Penang."

"Yes, king, you know very well. The colony that the kingdom needs may not be what you, the king. Let me give you an example. If I sell Cuba to you Portugal, you will attack the Spaniards on the island and resist the Spaniards in future wars. Even if you win every time, it will take ten years to resolve, and your local victory will also take victory. This requires a lot of money. The taxes of the new colony may take a hundred years to make up for the losses. Unless it is a colony with gold and silver mines, there is no room for operation at all.

On the contrary, the nobles and merchants of your country will constantly instigate you to explore overseas because the plantations on the island are very important resources. Simply put, you can use the money of your king to explore your own interests, which is something our country has always avoided. Have you not seen that even if my army conquered Peru and the West Indies, it still needs to be spit out?" Li Junwei explained.

"But..." Pedro was still hesitant.

Li Junwei raised his hand and said, "King, please let me finish it. Your kingdom really needs a colony. This colony can be used as a raw material production area for Portugal or as a market. Obviously, this is not a colony like the New World that can be used as both. But there is indeed such a place around you."

"Please be sure to give advice." Pedro originally thought that Li Junwei taught him this lesson just for the benefit of China. He hoped to negotiate a ceasefire with Spain and would not accept the "extraordinary" such as Portugal's struggle for the colony. However, Li Junwei was reasonable and gave advice for himself. Obviously, he was prepared and sincere.

Li Junwei said: "I mean the Maghreb region, especially Morocco!"

The so-called Maghreb region means sunset, which is between the Atlas Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea, which is the later countries of Morocco, Algiers and Tunisia, and of course it later expanded to all North African regions except Egypt.

In the 156th century when Portugal rose, Portugal also occupied this area, but it gradually expelled with the decline of Portugal. During the period when Portugal reconciled with Spain and the British mediated, Portugal also gave Ceuta, which controlled the Strait of Gibraltar, to Spain. Especially after the establishment of the Alavi Dynasty thirty years ago, it defeated Britain and Spain one after another, and regained a large number of land occupied by colonists. Now Portugal only has one or two small strongholds in Morocco.

After hearing this, Pedro felt enlightened because Morocco is rich. This land between the Sahara Desert and the Mediterranean Sea has a Mediterranean climate, and agriculture and animal husbandry are very developed. Morocco alone has more than two million people. This is a huge market. Moreover, the local grains produced in Morocco are very suitable for Portugal, which is short of food. At the same time, there are precious commodities such as sand and ivory. Indigo is even needed by the dyeing and weaving industry. Morocco's climate and irrigated agriculture are very suitable for cotton, and it is also the most suitable place near Portugal.

"Your proposal is very good, but that Ismay Sultan is not easy to mess with. It is said that he has 80,000 elite troops." Pedro said.

Li Junwei said: "You don't have to worry about this. First of all, you have sufficient funds to expand the army, and conquering Morocco does not require the establishment of expensive battle fleets. Secondly, you can get moral support from all European countries, because there are many pirates, Barbary pirates, Salé pirates, etc. Lastly, we can act together, whether it is pirates or Ismay Sultan of Alavi."

"Really? Your country is willing to participate?" Pedro asked.

Li Junwei nodded: "Of course, of course we will participate."

There are many reasons for the Empire to participate. Pirates affected the Empire's commercial expansion, and the Strait of Gibraltar is also the main thrust. The Empire needed to own a piece of its own land here, and the Maghreb region was also a relatively isolated area. It was also the African region that was the least like Africa in later generations. The Empire once planned to build Morocco's colonies into a rich overseas province and a powerful industrial center like South Africa. Of course, this is all a story, and it was a failure in the end.

Morocco is too close to Europe, and no European country supports the empire to build Morocco into South Africa, even its best ally, Portugal. The most realistic reason why Li Junwei is willing to participate is to focus on the current continental situation.

Pedro asked urgently: "When will your country start? Do you have any specific plans?"

Li Junwei said: "It is obvious that conquering a powerful Tianfang country is a very slow thing, so it must be carried out slowly, and our first goal is Ceuta. In fact, our country has prepared a second expeditionary force, just in Xijin and Suez. After receiving my order, the first army will arrive within a month."

Pedro stared at Li Junwei with wide eyes and suddenly said, "His Royal Highness, this... this is really a perfect plan."

Pedro had the keen sense of a politician. He knew that attacking Ceuta was not just a military operation, but also a political activity. Ceuta was opposite Gibrotto, and was the Spanish stronghold in the Maghreb region. Attacking it could prove to Spain that the empire had the ability to directly attack the Spanish mainland. If they cooperated with the alliance with France and friendship with Portugal, all the Spanish nobles could feel the disaster of destruction.

By that time, the Spanish nobles would not hold on to the colony and would still save their lives as soon as possible.

"So, is the king willing to support it?" Li Junwei asked.
Chapter completed!