Chapter 31: The Crisis of the British Empire

Crash! A piece of precious porcelain, worth enough to support an ordinary family for decades, was destroyed in an instant. In a lavishly decorated study within Norman Castle, Victoria smashed everything she could lay her hands on in a fit of rage.

The trusted subordinates standing before her watched their Grand Duchess, once renowned for her elegance and composure, at a loss for how to react.

"Damn Sun Li, that wretched dwarf! You have ruined everything I have!" Grand Duchess Victoria ranted aimlessly, like a petulant schoolgirl. It must be said that, given her beauty, even her shrewish cursing possessed a strange, captivating charm—a fact evident from the way her attendants couldn't help but steal glances at her from time to time.

It was no wonder Victoria had lost her usual cool. The colonial wars were one thing; they hadn't cost the English Empire its elite forces, and those who died were not of the Norman family’s direct lineage.

Upon learning of Sun Li’s true identity and actions, Victoria’s anger was less about the Song Emperor’s betrayal and more about her own failure to identify him as an emperor in the first place. After all, compared to national interests, her brief friendship with Sun Li meant nothing. But the realization that she had been played for a fool, with a sovereign monarch parading right before her eyes without her noticing, wounded her pride—a pride rooted in her own vaunted intelligence.

Even if the colonies were lost, the colonial navy annihilated, and the 100,000-strong army invading the Madrid Empire wiped out, it meant little to the English Empire or the Norman family. There were still hundreds of thousands of reservists in the homeland.

The true catastrophe was that the 120,000 elite English troops in the Phunipo region had been decimated by the Dwarf Empire, along with the English Empire’s main fleet! These two forces were commanded by the Norman family’s direct confidants—vital leverage for their control over English politics.

With the annihilation of these core troops, the once-calm domestic situation shifted violently. From the high nobility to the commoners, everyone condemned the government’s incompetence. The continuous defeats and the loss of so many loved ones ignited the fury of the populace. The sitting government was forced to step down, and the outgoing Prime Minister was none other than a member of the Norman family.

In an instant, the Norman family, led by Victoria, fell from the height of power. They lost a significant portion of their influence in both military and political spheres. While the family remained the most powerful in England based on their past foundations, their actual authority was a shadow of its former self. This was the root of Victoria’s total loss of composure.

"Your Grace, many capitalists have announced their withdrawal from our industries, and..."

"Enough! If those greedy fools want to leave now, let them. Sooner or later, I will make them regret it!" Victoria had been hearing nothing but such news for days.

Just then, a man ran in and shouted urgently, "Your Grace, the new government assembly has passed a resolution to negotiate peace with the Dwarf Empire! The Dwarves have agreed, and we have entered a ceasefire!"

Victoria slumped into her seat, defeated. It seemed her political rivals had slammed shut any chance for the Norman family to make a comeback.

During the series of English defeats, the nobles and capitalists who resented the Norman family's monopoly on power had seized upon the surging public sentiment to strike at them, eager to topple them once and for all.

However, thanks to Victoria’s hardline stance and the Norman family’s vast remaining resources, a compromise was reached. The opposition, not yet confident enough to defeat the Normans in a civil war, settled for further weakening their military authority. The most significant blow was the dissolution of the hundreds of thousands of reservists the Norman family had personally raised, aided by the fact that the soldiers, terrified by the string of defeats, were no longer loyal to their cause.

No sooner had the opposition disbanded those troops than they passed a parliamentary motion to establish a new 100,000-strong standing army equipped with modern weaponry. Under the King’s intervention, this new force was no longer under the sole control of the Normans; Victoria could only manage to secure command over 10,000 of them. Added to her remaining loyal units, the Norman family had fallen from military titans to a "First Family" whose power was limited to self-preservation.

The upper echelons of English society celebrated, toasting their first victory in political combat against the formidable Norman family, showing that little girl Victoria where the true power lay. The common people, oblivious to the power struggles above, were simply happy that their kin would no longer be conscripted. With the shadow of defeat receding through peace negotiations that involved ceding remote territories—territories the commoners cared little about—the homeland remained untouched.

And so, amidst the cheers for peace across England, the Norman family’s influence plummeted. The factions previously suppressed by the Normans united, waiting for any opportunity to deliver a fatal blow. Beneath the surface of a seemingly harmonious England, undercurrents surged. Clearly, the failure of the external war had shaken the nation’s very foundations. Should another spark arise, the English Empire would face a crisis of unprecedented proportions—and this time, there would be no powerful Norman family to soothe or suppress it. The fate of the English Empire had become shrouded in uncertainty.

***

Golden State, Governor’s Mansion of Mexico.

It had been over a month since the Song Empire completely annihilated the English colonial fleet. Golden State had become a battlefield where three forces clashed. The English Empire and the Franconian Empire had easily formed an offensive and defensive alliance to confront the powerful Song.

But today, that situation seemed ready to be shattered.

Sun Li held the latest intelligence from the European continent provided by the Jinyiwei, observing the sudden rise of the Dwarf Empire.

"The Franconian Empire has been destroyed! By now, the Franconian colonies in Golden State must have received the news. The Dwarves are truly efficient, wiping out the English Empire’s main legions in the process. They’ve done me a huge favor."

With the Dwarf Empire now the dominant power on the European continent, the English Empire in decline, the Franconian Empire vanished, the remaining human powers forming defensive alliances, and the Elf Empire mired in guerrilla warfare, there was no better time for the Song Empire to rise.

After months of scavenging and gold mining, Sun Li’s forces had increased to 60,000.

Interestingly, the English Governor in the Caracas region, upon confirming the total destruction of the colonial fleet, had sent envoys to seek peace—or, more accurately, to surrender.

The Governor’s request was simple: if they were granted the status of second-class citizens, they would surrender unconditionally. Sun Li refused, of course.

"You’re trapped like rats in a cage; do you really think you’re in a position to negotiate?"

After the diplomatic envoys returned, another man came from Caracas—the Governor’s nephew, acting as a secret special envoy. This time, the terms were modest: ensure the Governor’s family and his inner circle were granted "upper-class citizen" status and guarantee the safety of their assets. In return, the Governor would secretly assist the Song army by opening the city gates and providing every convenience, even going so far as to poison the defenders!

The English Governor was ruthless, a fact that even Sun Li had to admire. The outcome was highly favorable for the Song; with the highest authority colluding from within, the cost of taking Caracas would be negligible.

Sun Li happily agreed to the conditions, stipulating only that they could not participate in the Song’s political or military systems. Otherwise, there were few restrictions. This served as the first model of a "foreign citizen" of the Song Empire. The event was worth promoting, and with added incentives, he believed more "white traitors" would emerge. Saving his own men was always a priority.

One week after receiving the European intelligence, 10,000 Song troops advanced on Caracas by land and sea. The battle was easy and pleasant. The defenders received baffling orders, while the Song army coordinated perfectly, leading to one defeat after another for the English. Under the Governor’s stern commands, the officers dared not question him—after all, he was the boss, and if the Song won, wouldn't he be the first to be executed? The small fry like them would at most be sent to the mines.

In the end, Caracas was captured smoothly. The captured officers watched in stunned silence as the former Governor, under the protection of the Song army, swaggered off to enjoy his life with his plundered wealth. Only then did the sacrificed soldiers realize they had been betrayed by their own superior.

Information asymmetry was a deadly weapon indeed.

Alas, the outcome was set. The hopeless English prisoner-commoners had no choice but to settle into their lives as second-class citizens.

From then on, the Song Empire’s territories were fully linked, connecting the Orc Continent and the Mexico region into a single expanse. Thanks to the diligent labor of the orcs and second-class citizens, the Song’s town centers received a steady influx of gold resources daily. To bolster his numbers, Sun Li recruited mostly line infantry. By the time peace returned to the European continent, the Song Empire already had 70,000 troops in the Mexico region, ready for further expansion.