Chapter 1898: Giving Birth

"It still needs to be thoroughly stirred so that the flavors of these ingredients blend together, forming a balanced composition; only then will they be delicious enough."

Princess Sophia nodded in agreement: "Your Majesty, you are quite right."

Elizabeth I, however, suddenly sighed: "If governing a country were as simple as making pastries, that would be wonderful."

"The current Tsarist Russia only appears stable, but I know that once Prussia is crushed and we obtain an ice-free port, the conflicts lurking beneath the surface will emerge."

Princess Sophia listened quietly without speaking.

Elizabeth I turned her head to look at her and said calmly: "Sophia, Tsarist Russia needs stability. I think you should understand what I mean."

Princess Sophia nodded and said: "Your Majesty, I understand."

"You want me to have a child with Peter III."

"Yes, even if it is a girl." Elizabeth I suddenly felt her throat was uncomfortable and coughed twice lightly. Princess Sophia hurried forward, but was stopped by Elizabeth I.

"It is nothing, I am just a little uncomfortable."

She patted Princess Sophia's hand lightly and said: "You are four years older than Little Peter. He is already fourteen now; according to the age of our ancestors, he can also have children."

"I hope you two will not make me wait too long."

Princess Sophia nodded and said: "I understand, Your Majesty..."

When evening came, Princess Sophia waited in her room for the arrival of Peter III, with a book placed in front of her.

This was given to her by Elizabeth I, and it recorded how men and women have children.

It made Princess Sophia's heart thump; even though she was mentally mature, this matter was stressful no matter how one looked at it.

Creak.

The door opened, and Peter III poked his head in. Seeing that the lights were still on in the room and Princess Sophia's back was in his view, Peter III held his breath and carefully pulled his head back.

"Come in, I have already seen you." Sophia's voice sounded softly.

Peter III was stunned for a moment. He deliberated for several seconds, but finally pushed the door open and walked in.

Princess Sophia looked over, and he avoided Princess Sophia's gaze.

After marrying Princess Sophia, it did not make his life in Tsarist Russia any better; instead, it became worse.

It changed from Dolgorukov teaching him to Princess Sophia also joining the side that taught him.

Every night, it was nothing but education after education.

To avoid them, Peter III returned every day only after Princess Sophia had fallen asleep.

Princess Sophia looked at Peter III, who was as afraid of her as if she were something terrible, sighed, and said softly: "Today, I will teach you how to be comfortable."

"Ah..."

Peter III was extremely puzzled; Sophia was actually not teaching him to learn Russian or some etiquette.

Before he could react, he was pinned down by Sophia.

The lamp was extinguished, and the room went dark.

But it became more intimate.

When he woke up the next day, Peter III pulled up his trousers, and Princess Sophia was already sitting in front of the dressing table.

Peter III still did not understand what had happened last night; the teachers had never taught him this.

But it was very comfortable...

He shook his head, casting these things to the back of his mind. If he did not leave now, he would be late for today's class. In his impression, Dolgorukov was a fierce old man.

Peter III was just about to go out when he heard Princess Sophia say: "Come back early tonight, to continue doing..."

Peter III froze for a few seconds, nodded, and then ran out quickly.

After Peter III left, Princess Sophia wished she could bury her head in a crack in the ground; she was dying of embarrassment!

At this time, Ling Chen, who was on the Hanover front, did not follow Li Hongtian's order to withdraw his troops; instead, he submitted a letter explaining the reasons for not withdrawing now.

Li Hongtian frowned upon seeing the contents of this letter.

It was his intention to have Ling Chen withdraw, but it was also under the hint of Liu Zheng.

Letting Ling Chen withdraw was mainly to make Frederick II yield; it was a form of sanction.

But in his letter, Ling Chen said: "Withdrawing now is undoubtedly damaging the image of the Longyan Army. If we really withdraw, all the efforts we have made before will be in vain."

"Although this Hanover belongs to Prussia, it also belongs to Britain. There is British territory here, though there is more Prussian territory."

"We can take this opportunity to encroach upon and occupy Hanover."

"Moreover, there is Hamburg here, which has a port. If our troops can expand in Hanover, we can threaten the position of Hamburg. At that time, we will have no problems whether we advance or retreat."

"We can even control the port of Hamburg to directly exert geopolitical deterrence against Britain."

In short, what Ling Chen emphasized were the benefits of not withdrawing now.

This gave Li Hongtian a massive headache. In his view, withdrawing could reduce the army's external expenditures, and there was no need for their Longyan to continue participating in the European battlefield.

Now that they had controlled Saxony, they already had sufficient conditions to intervene in Europe.

The strategic goal had been achieved.

The current Longyan controlled the Suez Canal and the Red Sea Strait, which was equivalent to indirectly gripping the throat of the countries around the Mediterranean Sea.

In this era where railways were not developed and steam trains only existed in Longyan, their energy depended on navigation as the only choice for import and export.

But once the Mediterranean shipping routes were controlled, these European countries that only had ports in the Mediterranean would have to purchase energy from France or other places at high prices, and the money required would be several times higher.

There was little point in Ling Chen continuing to stay in Hanover; eventually, these countries would still have to come and beg their Longyan.

After much deliberation, Li Hongtian decided not to let Ling Chen withdraw for the time being.

He was the person in the Longyan Army hailed as the one who best understood the thoughts of Lord Liu Zheng. If he did not want to withdraw now, it meant he knew Liu Zheng's intentions, which was why he had not withdrawn.

Finally, Li Hongtian wrote in his reply to Ling Chen: "You may delay the withdrawal, but everything must prioritize the interests of Longyan."

Li Hongtian did not concern himself with this matter anymore; he still needed to handle another affair.

Regarding the matter of Jiang Xuelan.

After Jiang Xuelan passed the news of Hu Xi'er to Li Hongtian, she did not leave.

In return, Li Hongtian tacitly allowed her to get involved in the business in Saxony.

This was already the best reward for her; Jiang Xuelan decided to open a textile mill in Saxony, to be built on the Elbe River, the river that leads directly from Hamburg to Saxony.

In fact, entering Saxony with a textile mill was not a wise choice, because cotton is not produced here, and it would still need to be imported.

However, Jiang Xuelan did not care about this at all; she chose to build the textile mill here because she was aiming for the European market, and although importing goods here was difficult, the sales channels were not difficult at all.

Only after interacting with her did Li Hongtian learn that Jiang Xuelan possessed a large plantation in the Atlantic Ocean, and that it was on an island without a sovereign territory.