As soon as 1856 arrived, Franz received the good news that the Empress was pregnant. Now the entire Vienna court revolved around Princess Helen, and everyone attached great importance to the new heir of the House of Habsburg.
Sometimes, Franz couldn't help but think, what if it was a princess? Of course, it wasn't that he didn't like daughters, but that he needed an heir politically.
Although the House of Habsburg had a precedent of an Empress, it didn't mean that conservative Austria was willing to accept another Empress.
Ever since Princess Helen was pregnant, Empress Dowager Sophie had been nervous. In this era, a woman's pregnancy was like a trip to the gates of hell. She couldn't be careless.
"Franz, now that Helen is pregnant, you must keep a certain distance from her. Being too close will affect the safety of the fetus. You know what I'm talking about, right? "
Franz, who was embarrassed, could only nod passively. He really wanted to reply, "Am I someone who doesn't know how to behave?"
He couldn't help it. In his mother's eyes, he was still a child who hadn't grown up. The result of arguing would be scolding.
Franz changed the topic. "By the way, Mother, how are the preparations for Massimiliano's marriage going?"
Massimiliano's marriage partner this time was Princess Charlotte, the daughter of King Leopold I of Belgium. It was a purely political marriage without any impurities.
Franz attached great importance to his younger brothers, who followed him around. He had strict military management, and any thoughts that broke down would be immediately suppressed.
Empress Dowager Sophie said confidently, "Don't worry, I'll take care of it. It's just that after Massimiliano's wedding, what are you going to do with him? "
The children of the European royal family also needed to do things. It was useless to be a simple worm.
Franz replied, "It depends on what he likes to do, and what level of personal ability he has reached."
Franz didn't know how to deal with this younger brother. In history, Massimiliano had just gone out to work, and it didn't take long for him to be fooled by liberalism.
When he was the governor of the Regions of Italy, he directly shook the foundation of the House of Habsburg's rule in the region.
Based on history, Franz believed that Massimiliano was best suited to be an artist or a botanist.
This was completely determined by his personal ability and hobbies, but Franz did not dare to say this suggestion. In the eyes of Queen Dowager Sophie, Massimiliano was still very outstanding.
If he didn't let this younger brother hit a wall a few times and let him be a worm at home, the outside world would probably think that Franz was suppressing his younger brother.
Moreover, would Massimiliano really be willing to accept his arrangement? In history, he went to Mexico to become an emperor.
If he didn't have any ambition, why would he get involved in that mess? Franz was very clear about Mexico's situation. It was a country that had been fooled by liberalism.
An emperor was not afraid of the country being conservative. What he was most afraid of was too much freedom and losing the most basic binding force.
Franz didn't want to get involved in this mess. If Massimiliano's personal ability was heaven-defying and he had the talent to rule the world, then he could still get back the investment. Obviously, he wasn't.
Not to mention Massimiliano, even Franz himself didn't think that he could settle the internal conflicts in Mexico. Otherwise, the crown wouldn't have fallen on Massimiliano's head so easily.
…
Palace of Vienna
Metternich said worriedly, "Your Majesty, the situation in the Gulf of Guinea is getting more and more complicated. The forces of various countries are gathering, and armed conflicts may break out at any time.
Two months ago, a Portuguese infantry battalion went out to confirm the property rights of the gold mine. There were more than 500 people, including the civil armed forces, but they all disappeared.
Now there are different opinions. Some people say that they found a super gold mine and were killed; others say that they encountered the devil and were all killed … "
The situation in the Gulf of Guinea was created by Franz. If it weren't for the Government of Vienna's propaganda, there wouldn't be so many gold miners.
The order on the African continent hadn't been established yet. In the colonial strongholds of various countries, there was still order, but once it was out of the stronghold, it was completely out of control.
It was fine if they didn't find the gold mine. Even if they fought, they wouldn't go too far. After the gold mine was found, it was time to fight.
When a small colonial armed force found a gold mine, the first thing they did was to keep it a secret and then sell it to the colonial government. There was no free mining.
Without enough strength, they wouldn't even know who the murderer was if they were killed outside.
In the beginning, to confirm the property rights of the gold mine, the colonial government only needed to send a few people to investigate. Now that there was no army to accompany them, no one dared to go.
This was the first time they attacked the government's army. Usually, no one would do this. If they couldn't kill them and the slightest leak, it would lead to a disaster.
Franz asked, "Could it be the work of a country's army?"
The combat power of the Portuguese army wasn't very good. It was easy to defeat a Portuguese infantry battalion, but it was not easy to kill them all.
Franz dismissed the idea of the devil. Austria had colonized Africa for so long, but they hadn't found these extraordinary creatures. How could they be born all of a sudden?
Metternich replied, "I don't know, but it's certain that there was a traitor in the Portuguese team. If there was no one inside and outside, they wouldn't have been wiped out.
Now that so many people are missing, there is obviously a serious problem. Someone is covering up the truth. "
Franz didn't care what the truth was. The problem was that Austria was the most suspected. There weren't many armed forces in the Gulf of Guinea that could do this, and Austria's local colonial forces had the strength to do so.
There were 12 armed teams registered in the Austrian colonial stronghold with more than 500 people, all of which were formed by the German Region states or several aristocrats.
These people had the strength to do this. With so many suspects under their command, it was inevitable that they would be suspected.
Franz wasn't worried about this suspicion. Without evidence, the Portuguese couldn't do anything.
Moreover, the disappearance of the troops didn't necessarily mean that they were wiped out. It was possible that they were lost and were savages in the jungle.
Although the probability was small, there were precedents. Some colonial teams suffered heavy losses in the jungle because they got lost.
"The truth is not important to us. The place where the Portuguese disappeared is not under our control. We have no obligation to investigate for them.
The problem now is that we must stabilize the situation in West Africa as soon as possible. Otherwise, if the countries continue to conflict, it is likely to lead to greater contradictions.
In case there is a big fire and the situation gets out of control, many people who originally wanted to migrate to the Gulf of Guinea will give up and migrate to the American countries.
Without enough people, it is difficult for us to control the West African region. In order to stabilize the local situation as soon as possible, we must cooperate with the governments of various countries to establish the most basic order in the local area. "
It wasn't that they didn't want to find the real culprit, but they didn't dare to continue investigating. Franz could only be sure that the Government of Austria didn't attack the Portuguese. As for whether the civilian armed forces did it, it was hard to say.
In case there was a conflict over a giant gold mine and they did something like killing people, Franz wouldn't be surprised at all. In the face of interests, people's moral integrity was often not online.
If they found out that it was him, then it would be a big problem. Franz was not interested in asking for trouble, and a bigger political crisis would break out if he was not careful enough.
Except for the Portuguese themselves, it was estimated that the governments of various countries had the same attitude. If they investigated seriously, everyone would be worried about getting into trouble, so it was better to pretend to be confused.
Metternich replied, "Your Majesty, the situation in the Gulf of Guinea is very complicated. The forces of various countries are intertwined. It is very difficult to divide the territory at the negotiating table.
The best way is international co-management. Everyone will jointly form a colonial government. As for the gold mine, let the civilian armed forces compete freely, and everyone will rely on their own means. "
Whether this was the best choice, Franz wasn't sure. The only thing he was sure of was that this was the best choice in Austria's interest.
Free competition, and the more people would definitely have an advantage. And this kind of order only existed in the colonial government-controlled area. Once it was in the wild, who could control it?
Franz smiled and said, "Yes, no matter what kind of order it is, it is better to have order than no order."
…
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