After Palmerston spoke these heavy words, the three ministers present were momentarily stunned, somewhat unable to believe what they had heard.

After a while, the Duke of Newcastle, coming to his senses, sought confirmation from Palmerston: "Your Excellency the Prime Minister, has the Russian Empire indeed declared war on the Kingdom of Britain?"

"No!" Palmerston shook his head and answered the three ministers present.

Before the three ministers could breathe a sigh of relief, Palmerston continued, "It's worse than a declaration of war! According to intelligence from the Near East, the Russian Empire's fleet is treating our fleet as a helper of the French Fleet and has launched attacks on our ships!"

The three ministers present could hardly believe their ears; the Russian Empire's fleet attacking the British Fleet? That would be like lighting a candle in a latrine—seeking death!

"What are the casualties for the fleet?" the Duke of Newcastle quickly inquired.

"There are no large-scale casualties; the attack on the British Fleet was by three Russian steam clippers and a double-deck battleship!" At this point, Palmerston's voice involuntarily carried a touch of the unique Anglo-Saxon arrogance and disdain: "However, they are facing our British Empire's latest steam double-deck warships! The Imperial Navy not only withstood the Russian Empire's attack but also sank a Russian steam clipper!"

"So, the Russian Empire is already in a state of war with us?" The Duke of Newcastle spoke with a tone of eager excitement.

As long as the Kingdom of Britain goes to war with the Russian Empire, the "shackles" binding the British Army could be lifted, allowing the British Army to receive more resources.

At this moment, the Duke of Newcastle was truly thankful for those Russians.

If it weren't for them, the Duke of Newcastle would have to have a lengthy wrangle with Gladstone.

The Duke of Newcastle suppressed his inner excitement, sneaking a glance at Gladstone.

Currently, Gladstone stood there absentmindedly, his mind echoing with "The Russian Empire is at war with Britain."

"Now, we must do something!" Although Lord Clarendon's voice was small, it was extraordinarily clear in this quiet "secret chamber".

"Yes! We must do something!" The Duke of Newcastle echoed immediately, and then he observed Palmerston.

After a brief lapse, Palmerston readjusted to his original state. He first glanced at Gladstone, then at Clarendon and Newcastle, and finally, gritting his teeth, made up his mind: "Since we've entered a state of war, the previous talk of 80,000 can be overturned, Minister Pelham!"

"Present!" the Duke of Newcastle responded solemnly to Palmerston, but internally he was already calculating his own petty gains.

"From now on, Britain will massively recruit people willing to join the British Army! The number should be around 140,000, meaning you still need to recruit 100,000 people!" Palmerston strictly ordered Newcastle, "Remember! I want a cohesive fighting force, not a disorganized mob!"

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister, can the Ministry of War go to the factories to 'recruit workers'?" The Duke of Newcastle tentatively inquired if Palmerston would allow coercive recruitment in the factories.

After all, in these times, workers showed far more discipline and obedience than the unruly proletarians grabbed from the streets.

However, arbitrarily grabbing workers could cause unnecessary trouble.

"You may!" Palmerston did not hesitate much; he also understood the challenges faced by the Ministry of War, so he appropriately relaxed the conditions.

As part of the Empire, how could workers be "wasting away" in factories when the battlefield was their ultimate destination?

"I guarantee that I can train qualified soldiers in the shortest time!" With Palmerston's assurance, the Duke of Newcastle could freely let the soldiers below apprehend workers.

"Minister Gladstone, I leave the matter of military appropriations to you!" Palmerston sincerely said to Gladstone.

Such vast expenditure in a short period would inevitably cause financial turmoil for the Empire, testing a competent Minister of Finance's abilities under such circumstances.

"I can only do my best!" Gladstone replied to Palmerston with a reluctant expression on his face.

Having assigned tasks to Gladstone and Newcastle, Palmerston looked at Clarendon and pointed a hand at Lord Clarendon, saying: "Minister Villiers, you must immediately go to Buckingham Palace and deliver this news to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert!"

"Yes!" Clarendon accepted the order and left, followed closely by Gladstone and Newcastle.

In the room, only Palmerston remained, sitting alone on the sofa, gazing out of the window. After a long time, the Prime Minister's secretary pushed the door open once again, "Prime Minister!"

Returning to his senses, Palmerston still looked at the secretary with a somewhat vacant stare, then pointed at the secretary and commanded, "Bring Baron Brunoer, the Russian Envoy, here!"

"Yes, Prime Minister!" The Prime Minister's secretary straightened his posture and replied firmly to Palmerston.

About half an hour later, Baron Brunoer, the Russian Envoy, appeared before Palmerston, looking at Palmerston with a face full of confusion.

Facing Brunoer's confusion, Palmerston still announced with courtesy that the Kingdom of Britain was about to draft a declaration of war against Russia!

"What! Your Excellency, you cannot do this!" Blonov couldn't help but shout excitedly.

"I'm very sorry! If it hadn't been for the Russian Empire launching an unauthorized attack on the Kingdom of Britain a few hours ago, our two countries' relationship might not have reached this point!" Palmerston sighed with a pretense of melancholy, as if saddened by the impending war.

"It's utterly ridiculous!!" Brunoer shook his head and sincerely said to Palmerston, "Your Excellency, I don't know where you heard this news, but please believe, the Russian Empire has always respected the Kingdom of Britain, we would never commit such atrocious acts, it must be a framed setup!!"

"Mr. Ambassador, I do not wish to investigate who is right or wrong!" Palmerston said to Ambassador Brunoer with a firm attitude, "Since the Russian Imperial Navy has attacked Britain, it must bear the corresponding consequences!"

"Your Excellency, do you insist on turning the originally harmonious relationship between the Russian Empire and the Kingdom of Britain into a deadly enmity?" Brunoer humbly tried to maintain the friendship between Russia and Britain.

"Since the Russian Empire fired upon Britain, we have become deadly enemies!" Palmerston responded uncompromisingly to Brunoer.

Since Palmerston took up the pro-war faction, he was destined to go all the way down this path.

If Palmerston's attitude were less pro-war, those who originally supported him would immediately abandon him and turn to those even more pro-war.

Since the people of London could not wait for the truth to be revealed, Palmerston simply declared war directly.

Once the war begins, the British Cabinet will find it difficult to make changes.

For himself, as well as for all of Britain, the Russian Empire must bear the corresponding consequences.

"In that case, I have nothing more to say!" Brunoer responded coldly to Palmerston, "Then we shall meet on the battlefield!"

"See you on the battlefield!" Palmerston also replied.

On November 2, 1853, after several days of continuous rain and cold wind, London finally welcomed the sunshine.

In such weather, Lord Clarendon went to Parliament to read Queen Victoria's declaration of war against the Russian Empire.

The letter not only positioned Britain as a savior standing on the defense of the Ottoman Empire but also criticized the Russian Imperial Navy for its "unannounced" attack on the British Fleet.

After Clarendon finished reading, Prime Minister Palmerston stepped forward to deliver a war speech, receiving continuous applause, so much so that Palmerston had to pause several times to wait for the applause to end.

After the speech, Palmerston immediately announced a vote to decide whether to declare war on the Russian Empire.

Ultimately, both Houses of the British Parliament agreed by an overwhelming majority to declare war on the Russian Empire.

Following that, Palmerston proposed whether to increase military spending, asking for a 50% increase in the military budget for the British Army, meaning the Parliament needed to allocate an additional £4.75 million, totaling £14.25 million in expenditures.

This proposal received the vast majority of support in the Upper House, but it was resisted by some in the Lower House, who believed that increasing the budget was merely to benefit the aristocrats without improving the quality of the army; some extremists even chanted slogans to drive the nobles out of the army.

However, after Palmerston used nationalism as a mediation, the Lower House also approved the order.

The following morning, Prime Minister Palmerston informed Queen Victoria of the Parliamentary decision and accompanied Queen Victoria to St. James's Palace.

At St. James's Palace, dressed formally, Queen Victoria received the Russian Ambassador Brunoer, in the presence of numerous great nobles, the Prime Minister, and the Foreign Minister, and conveyed Britain's declaration of war to Brunoer.

After Baron Brunoer angrily received Britain's declaration of war, he left the Kingdom of Britain with members of the embassy.

Having completed the declaration of war, the Kingdom of Britain did not immediately take action but rather focused on selecting a commander for the British Expeditionary Army.

After several rounds of intense debates, it was finally decided to appoint the sixty-five-year-old Lord Raglan as Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Army, and the forty-two-year-old Sir John Burgoyne as Commander of Engineers.

It could truly be termed an "old men's club."

In the command center that Raglan was about to prepare, five senior officers were also set to assist; most of them were about the same age as Raglan, with the youngest being the Duke of Cambridge, Queen Victoria's cousin.

Meanwhile, as Britain was entangled in prolonged bickering, its mortal enemy across the channel, the French Empire, was proceeding with industrial production in an orderly manner.

The Minie Gun, Grand Napoleon Cannon, rails, and locomotives became production priorities; batch after batch of Minie Guns were quickly packaged after production and transported by railroad to Toulon Port. From Toulon Port, they were shipped by transport ships, most of them arriving in Constantinople to be handed over to Abdul Majid I's forces, while a small portion was quietly sent to the Syria Province (composed of the Ottoman Province of Syria, Jordan, Palestine, and part of Saudi Arabia).

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