The Rise Of Australasia

Aside from the allocation of military and financial interests, this Entente Powers Conference brought an additional benefit to Australasia, which was to acknowledge and confirm the productivity of grain supplies in Australasia.

According to the agreement among the Four Great Powers of the Allies, after the outbreak of the war, two transport routes would be opened within the Allies, Sydney-Vladivostok and Sydney-Marseille, with both routes being secured.

Australasia would transport a large amount of food, beef and mutton, livestock, weapons and equipment, ammunition and medical supplies, industrial products, and daily necessities to the Far East and Marseille. From there, these supplies would be transferred to the hands of the Three Great Powers of Britain, France, and Russia.

The choice of these two transport routes was also meaningful. It goes without saying that aside from the Island Nation and the United States, there is no other country that could pose a threat to this transport route from Australasia to the Far East.

These two countries would not likely dare to openly oppose the Allies, especially since the Island Nation had previously been under the assistance of the British Empire, and the possibility of them directly joining the Allied Nations is not high.

As for the United States, their withdrawal from the Argentine and Chilean war indicates that at least before the outcome of the European War becomes clear, the Americans will not directly enter the conflict.

Marseille is the third-largest city in France and is located on the Mediterranean coast. It belongs to the southern part of France and is relatively far from the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Italy, making it theoretically safer.

If the plans of the Allies go smoothly, after the outbreak of the war, the Four Great Powers of the Allies could potentially control the entire Mediterranean.

As long as German submarines cannot enter, the sea route from the Indian Ocean, through the Suez Canal, and into the Mediterranean is the safest, and undoubtedly much safer than the Atlantic Ocean.

It is important to note that most of the foreign merchant ships sunk by Germany during World War I were in the Atlantic Ocean.

Although transporting supplies to London would be more convenient, the threat of German submarines could cause Australasia to pay a heavy price.

Transporting to Marseille may be somewhat cumbersome, but the safety of subsequent land and sea transport is much higher than that of transport to London.

Therefore, the British, French, and Russian nations had no objections, and the agreement on the opening of transport routes was confirmed.

This treaty has no drawbacks for all four nations. The three Great Powers of Europe could obtain food supplies from Australasia during the war, and Australasia would have a sufficient market for their supplies, allowing them to profit enough from the war.

On February 27, 1914, the week-long Entente Powers Conference officially came to an end, with the Four Great Powers making a preliminary and clearer division of their respective responsibilities and interests.

This conference greatly strengthened the ties between the Four Great Powers and improved their relationships with each other.

The four countries have made detailed divisions on matters before, during, and after the war, showing the current confidence and strength of the Allies.

From the amiable laughter of the heads of the four countries at the end of the conference, it can be seen that the Four Great Powers of the Allies have, up to this point, become staunch allies. At least until the end of the war, nothing can destroy the relations between the Allied countries.

After the conference, the French representative left first, as there were still a large number of affairs to be dealt with in France.

As for the United Kingdom, King George V chose to stay in Saint Petersburg for a few more days. After all, since his reign, the power of the British monarch has been greatly reduced, and King George V has little involvement in political matters.

As for Arthur, he decided to stay in Saint Petersburg for a few more days at the invitation of Nicholas II

If the week prior was more of a formal Four-Nation Conference, then the next few days were a more relaxed and enjoyable time for the royal families of the three nations.

By the end of February, the temperature in Saint Petersburg was frighteningly cold. However, for Arthur, who often resided in the warm and comfortable environment of Australia, the cold was somewhat refreshing.

While it was summer in Australasia, the extreme north of Russia was covered in snow and ice.

There were many fireplaces in Saint Petersburg, which created a clear temperature difference between the interior and exterior of the rooms.

Fine food, wine, music, dance, and maids were part of the daily lives of Nicholas II, King George V, and Arthur during these days.

As for the currently powerful and stable European royal families, there was nothing they could not enjoy.

Although monogamy is generally practiced in European countries, behind monogamy, for the European royal families and nobles, mistresses and maids are common and indisputably normal.

There was even a time when Europe had a fad of comparing the attraction of monarchs and nobles by the number of mistresses they had: the more mistresses, the more it demonstrated the nobility's power.

Arthur, Nicholas II, and King George V are arguably among the people in the world with the highest positions, power, and authority at this time.

Nicholas II and Arthur wield substantial power, while King George V, although less powerful, is the monarch of the British Empire by birthright, which inherently enhances his reputation.

At any banquet, the three of them would undoubtedly be the center of attention.

Furthermore, with Nicholas II having voluntarily extended his hospitality to King George V and Arthur, both of them found themselves frequently invited to dance by noble ladies during the couple of banquets held over the following days.

Among them, Arthur, with the highest monarch power, whose royal assets were not inferior to the British and Russian royal families, attracted even more attention.

It is not an exaggeration to say that, if Arthur were willing, he could easily choose from most of the ladies in Russia within just a few days.

However, after all, this is in Russia, and Arthur has a marital relationship with Russia, which is equivalent to Queen Mary's maiden family, so Arthur is not so unrestrained.

But inaction is also a mistake. For the current Europe, not having mistresses and maids is considered an alternative in the eyes of most European nobility.

If Arthur rejects all advances, he even risks being suspected of his sexual orientation.

In order not to tarnish his reputation, Arthur reluctantly chose two beautiful ladies from the noble ladies and maids these days and formed a dewy relationship with them.

The lady in question is the wife of a small Russian nobleman, and such a dewy relationship is an understanding among European nobility, so there's nothing to say about it.

As for the seemingly simple and elegant maid, Arthur took her for himself and had her serve as his personal maid for the past few days.

Originally, Arthur, George V, and Nicholas II were related, and because of their shared experience carrying guns, the relationship between the three has become closer.

In addition to their equal status, their later interactions would refer to their relationship rather than their names.

Unfortunately, happy days are always short-lived. After staying in Russia for a few days, Arthur and George V must return to their respective countries.

In order to catch the conference of the Entente Powers, Arthur took the risk of travelling by airship, only to arrive in Saint Petersburg safely.

However, for this return trip to Australasia, Arthur decided not to take the airship again due to the lack of urgency.

After all, there are still certain risks for the current airships. Although the probability of accidents is not high, maybe only one accident would occur in thousands of flights.

But who can guarantee that an accident won't happen to himself? As the monarch of a country, such risky behavior is naturally kept to a minimum.

Arthur specifically borrowed a battlecruiser from George V to serve as a means of transportation back to Australasia.

If he had to wait for his own warships from Australasia, it would waste at least half a month's time.

Anyway, there is now an alliance between Australasia and the United Kingdom, and given the friendship built between Arthur and George V in the past few days, it was not a problem to borrow a battlecruiser.

After all, once they arrive in Australasia, the borrowed warship can return - all it would cost would be a bit more oil money.

George V was very generous and agreed to Arthur's request to borrow a battlecruiser for the return trip.

The British Empire's battlecruisers boast good speed, and the two battlecruisers that George V brought with him could already break through 26 knots.

Such speed has far surpassed that of super battleships and is currently the fastest warship.

To be able to ride such a battlecruiser back to Australasia would generally take just over a month.

After all, it departs from Russia, and the journey would take a more circuitous route compared to departing from London.

After bidding farewell to Grand Duke and Duchess Sergei and the couple Nicholas II, Arthur embarked on a British battlecruiser for his journey back to Australasia.

When he returned to Sydney, it was already April, and Arthur spent a total of one month and four days at sea before finally making his way back to Sydney in early April.

Although this trip to Europe took nearly two months, it was undoubtedly worth it considering the achievements gained.

The Conference of the Entente Powers, for Australasia, not only consolidated its alliance with Britain, France, and Russia but also found a good dumping ground for Australasia's arms, equipment, food, and supplies.

As for Britain and France, there is no need to elaborate, as these two old colonial empires never lack money; trading with them would not be a loss for Australasia.

Although Russia's financial situation is not that good, after all, a starving camel is still bigger than a horse, and with support from Britain and France, the Russians would not be short of money.

In the original history, the Russians were in a situation where they had money but could not buy any weapons or equipment.

For Australasia, this is not a problem. As long as the three countries of Britain, France, and Russia have sufficient funds, no matter how many weapons and supplies they need, Australasia can produce them.

More than a month has passed since leaving, and many issues have accumulated in Australasia, waiting for Arthur's handling.

The most pressing of these is the geological survey team that Arthur dispatched to the Mure River Basin two and a half months ago.

After two and a half months of geological surveys, the team gained a preliminary understanding of the geographical environment of the region and wrote a report to Arthur.