Holy Roman Empire

In the Vienna Palace, the contents of the negotiations between Great Britain and Prussia had already reached Franz. It wasn’t due to the effectiveness of the intelligence department but rather because the British deliberately leaked the information.

Such high-level negotiations involve only a handful of insiders, all of whom are high-ranking officials at the ministerial level, making it nearly impossible for intelligence organizations to buy them off.

It’s not surprising that the Prussian-Polish Federation is aligning with the British. After all, John Bull is a maritime power and can never become a continental hegemon, so there’s no direct conflict between Britain and Prussia.

In contrast, Austria is a different story. The Austrian government constantly advocates for the unification of the German territories, and the core territory of the Prussian-Polish Federation lies within those regions. It’s only natural for the Prussian government to be wary.

From Austria’s standpoint, a mutual weakening of Prussia and Russia serves its interests best. Cooperating with Austria is like making a deal with a tiger. Given a choice, the Prussian government would naturally lean toward the British.

“The British are pushing for closer Prussian-French relations. What do you think is their ulterior motive behind this?”

Historically, the British have always sought to isolate the French. Now that they’re suddenly promoting cooperation between Prussia and France, it’s hard for Franz not to suspect the worst intentions.

Foreign Minister Wessenberg analyzed, “Your Majesty, there could be two reasons for this. First, the outcome of the Russo-Prussian War is uncertain.

The British alone may not guarantee the victory of the Prussian-Polish Federation, but they’re unwilling to forgo the benefits at hand. Therefore, they need to bring in another party to share the risk.

If they can win over the French, an Anglo-French alliance could, even in unfavorable circumstances, secure the survival of the Prussian-Polish Federation and ensure their investments are not a total loss.

Secondly, this could be aimed at us. The British government might believe that the balance of power between France and Austria has tilted and now feels the need to draw allies for the French to maintain continental equilibrium.

The second possibility is less likely. With the legacy of Napoleon’s reputation, the British would overestimate, not underestimate, French power.

Since supporting the Spanish royal restoration, France’s strategic position in Europe has reversed. The British government is still struggling to dismantle the Franco-Spanish alliance, so it’s unlikely they would further strengthen French alliances.”

In the mid-19th century, after Napoleon III’s restoration, France broke free from the constraints of the Vienna System, fully reviving its military strength.

European countries, concerned about the military threat posed by France, signed a mutual defense treaty under Austria’s leadership. This included Spain, Prussia, the German states, Switzerland, Belgium, and the Netherlands, forcing France into a strategically passive position.

However, France’s path to expansion wasn’t entirely blocked. For example, due to the poor relationship between Austria and Sardinia, the Kingdom of Sardinia was excluded from the joint defense agreement, leaving France with the option to expand into Italy.

To overcome its diplomatic predicament, Napoleon III initiated a series of political and diplomatic efforts to improve relations with European countries.

When civil unrest broke out in Spain, the French government supported the restoration of Alfonso XII, leading Spain to withdraw from the joint defense agreement and effectively breaking the strategic blockade.

Given the geopolitical dynamics, closer ties between France and Spain made Britain uneasy. For its own strategic security, the British consistently sought to divide France and Spain.

Prime Minister Felix remarked, “Whatever the reasons, closer ties between Prussia and France have already become a reality. Without British cooperation, it would be difficult for us alone to prevent this from happening.

The French are ambitious and have always aimed to achieve continental hegemony. They would not turn down the opportunity presented by the Prussian-Polish Federation.

The two sides already have a foundation for mutual interests. Even if they don’t form an alliance, their relationship will still deepen. We need to prepare in advance to avoid being caught off guard when the time comes.”

There was no alternative. Since the Prussian-Polish Federation had chosen to side with the British, Austria could only support Russia. This was dictated by national interests.

Franz had no interest in continental hegemony, but that wasn’t something he could say outright! The idea that Austria had no ambitions for Europe would be unbelievable even to Franz himself.

It wasn’t a matter of ambition but rather a matter of capability. Whether one wanted it or not, once a country’s power reached a certain level, interest groups would push the government forward.

Austria hadn’t acted yet because the battle was still ongoing. The French tiger still had its roar, and on the surface, the military strengths of France and Austria were comparable, with Britain watching from the sidelines.

Austria’s rise was one part military and nine parts political. Domestic radicals were relatively few, and most people’s strategic vision was limited to unifying Germany. World domination wasn’t even on the agenda.

Of course, this is also related to the distribution of benefits. Austria had gained a considerable share during the colonial expansion. As a vested interest, it wasn’t in any hurry to overthrow the global order.

Foreign Minister Wessenberg remarked, “The situation isn’t as dire as it seems. The rapprochement between Prussia and France isn’t entirely bad news.

At the very least, the German Federal Empire is more likely to lean toward us now. If we’re lucky, we might even win over Belgium.

As long as Russia hasn’t collapsed, the Prussian-Polish Federation will always be constrained. Our primary challenge remains France.

The only headache is the uncertainty of Britain’s stance. However, this isn’t too difficult to handle. The anti-French faction in the British government is undoubtedly stronger than the anti-Austrian one, giving us a diplomatic advantage.

Moreover, when it comes to Belgium and the German Federal Empire, the British government can’t completely ignore the interests of its smaller allies. It’s more likely to join forces with us to curb the French.”

The reality was clear. France imported tens of millions of tons of coal from Belgium and Germany each year, and that number was still growing.

This has already seriously affected the development of France’s economy, particularly in heavy industry, where France has fallen significantly behind Britain and Austria.

Even if the French government wants to exercise restraint, domestic capitalists won’t allow it. If the French government doesn’t want the Italian issue to escalate, it must address the energy problem.

Looking around, aside from Belgium and the German Federal Empire, the only nearby coal-rich regions are Britain and Austria. The answer to this dilemma is practically predetermined.

For now, it hasn’t come to that. The French are still actively searching for coal mines, hoping to make discoveries in their North African colonies. Only after completing their exploration would they resort to the most extreme measures.

Everyone is a realist. When France takes action, Belgium and the German Federal Empire will realize they can’t rely on Britain and that Austria is their only option.

Franz shook his head and said, “It’s not that simple. Hatred won’t dictate Britain’s decisions, only interests will.

From the current situation, France’s resource demands are continuously increasing. Within no more than twenty years, the French will extend their reach toward Belgium and the German Federal Empire for resources.

By then, we’ll either passively get involved or take the initiative to participate in the game. The British will continue their balancing strategy, suppressing whichever side becomes stronger.

Looking at the economic data, the French are already on the wrong track. To maintain rapid economic growth, some ‘genius’ came up with the idea of developing an industry chain centered on finance.

At this rate of development, how long do you think the Franco-Austrian balance can be maintained?”

The essence of the usury empire hasn’t changed. Since Napoleon III’s death, the French government has been unable to restrain domestic capitalists, and the economy has been involuntarily tilting toward finance.

As the energy crisis intensifies, France’s industrial costs continue to rise, exacerbating the situation. The proportion of manufacturing in the country’s GDP keeps shrinking.

In the short term, the illusion of inflated numbers hides these contradictions, so no one notices the crisis. But once war breaks out, all these problems will surface at once.

There’s no denying it, the world’s top power always suppresses the second. When France’s bubble bursts, that will be when Austria and Britain turn against each other.

Minister of Economy Reinhardt Haldergen commented, “The duration of military balance depends on changes in the international situation. However, economically, the balance has long been broken.

Based on data collected by the Statistical Bureau, France’s industrial capacity is only 68.1% of Britain’s and 58.6% of ours, with this ratio continuing to decline.

The disparity in heavy industry is even more pronounced. Take the steel industry as an example. France’s steel output is only 37.2% of Britain’s and less than one-third of ours.

The gap in coal production is even wider, with France producing less than one-third of Britain’s and less than one-fourth of ours.

These figures already reveal many issues. It’s worth noting that the newly added Italian regions have contributed almost nothing to France’s heavy industry. Coal production is negligible, and the steel industry consists of only a few small workshops.”

It’s not that they’re underestimating Italy, there really aren’t many resources there. Back then, capitalists supported Napoleon III to gain access to more cheap industrial raw materials.

No one anticipated that France itself was equally resource-poor. Annexing Italy only nominally increased France’s national power. In reality, it added more burdens.

Aside from other things, France’s resource shortages wouldn’t have reached their current severity without Italy.

After hesitating for a moment, Franz made a decision, “Accelerate the negotiation process with the Russians. As long as the Russians are willing to deposit their gold reserves in the Austrian National Bank, we’ll accept land collateral for any shortfalls.

If the Russian government agrees to use 90% of the funds to purchase Austrian goods, we can accept industrial raw materials as payment for their debts.”

Whether the loans would be repaid was no longer important. Since the Prussian-Polish Federation had made its choice, Austria couldn’t remain passive.

Besides, this was inevitable. With the Russian government’s international reputation, who besides Austria would dare lend them money?

If the Austrian government didn’t support the Russians, the war’s outcome would be decided before it even began.

Finance Minister Karl’s expression darkened, and he hurried to object, “Your Majesty, the Russian financial situation is dire. Even if they win the war, they won’t have the means to repay the loans.

Gold collateral is fine, but land collateral is entirely unnecessary. Austria doesn’t need these worthless lands right now.

Dividing the Prussian-Polish Federation is nothing but an empty promise. Britain has already decided to support the Federation, and the chances of French support are high as well.

With Britain and France backing them, even if the Russians manage to win, they won’t be able to destroy the Federation. At best, they’ll reclaim Poland’s worthless lands, which we don’t need.”

Karl repeatedly emphasized the term “worthless lands,” leaving Franz with a significant headache. Since the onset of African integration, the Austrian government’s appetite for territorial expansion in Europe had dwindled.

It’s not that the land offered by the Russians as collateral was genuinely worthless. On the contrary, it was quite fertile but the costs associated with it were too high.

Franz reluctantly explained, “This is a strategic necessity. We need both Prussia and Russia to weaken each other, thereby eliminating two potential threats.

If we don’t provide the Russian government with funding, what will they use to fight? As for the collateral issue, we can negotiate further with the Russians.

For now, we can placate the Russian government, assuring them that if they win the war, they can exchange their gains from the Prussian-Polish Federation for the collateralized lands.

For ancestral lands in the region of Germany, we can offer a 1:3 exchange ratio, while steering them toward mortgaging Ukraine as much as possible.

If the Russian government insists on using the Bulgarian territories as collateral, then we’ll demand they include Constantinople. We can even allow them to redeem the land later but with compounded interest.”

Finance Minister Karl expressed deep concern, “With the Russian government’s credibility, it will be challenging to ensure they honor the treaty. It’s likely to lead to yet another dispute.”

It wasn’t just “likely”—disputes were inevitable. Given Russia’s track record, the odds of them voluntarily fulfilling their promises were nearly zero. Ultimately, it would all come down to strength.

On this point, Franz felt reassured. The Prussian-Polish Federation wasn’t weak, and a post-war Russian Empire would be severely weakened, if not entirely devastated.