Chapter 360

The reality was harsh. Whether the French were willing to accept it or not, what had to happen had already happened. Since the war had already started, it was no longer within the control of the Government of France.

In this world where the strong preyed on the weak, it was far more reliable to speak with their fists than any reason.

If they could defeat the Russians on the battlefield, then there was still room for negotiation. If they were defeated again, then from now on, France could be at ease as a third-rate country without military power!

For the future of the country, the French could only fight to the death. If they wanted to regain everyone's respect, the only way was to return from the battlefield with weapons.

The Government of France had no way out, so did the Tsarist government.

The Russian Empire's illustrious reputation was based on their stubbornness. If they retreated at the slightest difficulty, how could they make the European countries fear them?

The war between France and Russia was caused by the Russians themselves. If they couldn't even deal with a defeated and weakened France, the Tsarist government would lose face.

It was one thing to lose face, but their deterrence to the outside world could not be weakened. Looking at the history books of the Russian Empire, it was a history of war and expansion.

In the process of continuous expansion, the Russians also offended their neighbors one after another. No one dared to provoke the powerful Russian Empire, but once it fell into decline, it was a different story.

The first Russo-Prussian War was the best example. As soon as the Russian Empire showed signs of weakness, their neighbors from all directions pounced on them.

If it wasn't for the Government of Vienna helping them at the critical moment, there would be no Russian Empire today.

The lessons of history were there, and it was impossible for the Tsarist government not to learn them. What's more, the current Shinra Empire didn't need to rely on Russia for warmth.

If it happened again, the possibility of Vienna hitting them while they were down was far greater than the possibility of helping them.

Both sides had their reasons to win. The bloodiest scene occurred as soon as the war between France and Russia broke out.

In order to clean up the area and avoid the endless attacks of the guerrillas, the Russian Army stationed in Paris resisted international pressure and used the simplest and most effective method.

Whenever there was an attack by the guerrillas, if the residents of the villages within five kilometers didn't report it, they would all be punished. Even in a metropolis like Paris, if the guerrillas attacked, the residents of the entire street would be held responsible.

There wasn't a direct massacre, but the punishment adopted by the Russian Army wasn't much different from a massacre.

Exiling them to Siberia to dig potatoes seemed to leave a way out, but in fact, it was the same as sending them to God.

Everyone knew about the moral integrity of the Tsarist government's bureaucrats. They often mistreated their own people, let alone their enemies.

Insufficient supplies were a must. The old, the weak, the sick, and the disabled were all loaded onto the ship. There were no medical measures, and those who had a fever and coughing would be thrown into the sea to feed the fish.

The exiled French were often thrown into the sea on the way to the Russian Empire. In fact, less than one out of ten people were able to walk to Siberia.

Even if they were lucky enough to reach the place, they might not be able to keep their lives. The Tsarist government often forgot to distribute the necessary supplies.

The thinly clothed and unarmed exiles had to experience the double test of nature and their stomachs if they wanted to survive in the snowy Siberia.

To borrow a comment from Leo Tolstoy, the biggest significance of the Tsarist government's exile policy was to add "fertilizer" to the land of the Russian Empire.

Fortunately, it was winter, and the temperature in the Russian Empire was low enough. Otherwise, the Tsarist government would have been plagued by a plague.

Fortunately, the virus hadn't evolved these days. If the Tsarist government had experienced the power of COVID-19 and SARS, they wouldn't have dared to do this.

Of course, with the medical ability of this day and age, and the sparsely populated nature of the Russian Empire, it was estimated that even if an epidemic broke out, it wouldn't be discovered.

What was the difference between an infected person's death rate and a cold? A common flu could achieve such lethality, so it would be strange if it attracted attention.

What was truly appalling was the kind of highly lethal virus that directly disappeared a village or a small town, such as the plague.

Needless to say, the hatred between France and Russia was added. The onlookers, who had seen enough of the excitement, also turned into a group of critics, one by one standing on the moral high ground and pointing out the country.

The literati who were unwilling to be left out did not hesitate to write, and one open letter after another appeared in the newspapers. Regardless of whether the senior officials of the French and Russian governments saw it, it didn't affect the enthusiasm of everyone's writing.

The news media didn't forget to add fuel to the fire. Today, they criticized the brutality of the Russians, and the next day, they criticized the French for not following the rules.

In short, France and Russia became the big villains, and they belonged to the common target of disdain. It could be seen that political correctness was still important on the European continent.

The one-sided public opinion that the Government of France expected did not appear. In terms of public opinion, they even fell into a disadvantageous position.

No matter how excessive the Russian Army was, it couldn't withstand the whitewash. Using the Holy Roman Empire as an example, the newspapers subconsciously ignored the tragic experience of the French people on the way to exile.

The news needed to be notarized, but the reporters had a standpoint. France was the enemy, and Russia was the ally. It was self-evident who they were leaning towards.

The conscience of the reporters made them unwilling to distort the facts, but they could still selectively report.

History could be said to be surprisingly similar. A similar scene also appeared in the original time and space, but the time and the victims had changed.

With political correctness, any evil could be covered up. Identity determined the standpoint. The tragic experience of the French people was actually still paying for the previous aggression.

After the avalanche, no snowflake was innocent. Similarly, no snowflake could escape the law of nature's punishment.

…

In the blink of an eye, 1895 was coming to an end. The flames of war burned from the beginning to the end, from the Philippines to the Far East, then to Cuba, then to Morocco, and finally to France.

It was rare to see a war break out on four continents at the same time in human history. The scope and the number of people involved were no less than the previous war in Europe.

It was another Christmas. The outside world was in flames of war, but Vienna was still as prosperous as ever. After the celebration party ended in a hurry, Franz went alone to the highest point of the palace and looked into the distance.

It was easy for people to be sentimental when they were old. Franz had to admit that he was getting old. He was over 90 years old in both of his lives.

Even though he took good care of himself, the years didn't wait for him. Franz, who was in his sixties, could no longer find the vigor of his youth.

"Maybe it's time to retire."

Franz thought to himself.

He had to admit that he was old. This wasn't the Mythological Era. Looking at the whole world, the only supernatural trace was himself, an unscientific time traveler.

Even if he wanted to imitate the ancient empires and pursue immortality unrealistically, there was no goal to look for!

Once people were "tired" and "tired", they wanted to rest. Franz was no exception.

In recent years, he had been strengthening the training of his sons in preparation for this day.

But now, Franz couldn't retreat. The territory of the Holy Roman Empire was too big, and there were many problems that came with it.

Some problems could be left for later generations, but there were also some problems that must be solved by him, the powerful emperor. Otherwise, it would become a chronic disease in the future.

But before that, the last stumbling block in front of the Holy Roman Empire must be kicked out.

Before the world situation was stabilized and the unstable factors were kicked out, Franz didn't dare to make major internal changes. Always being in awe was an important factor for him to be where he was now.

After making up his mind, Franz felt a lot more relaxed.