Chapter 477

Soon, Franz witnessed the power of Alexander II Of Russia. The news of the secret negotiations between Russia and Austria spread as expected, but there was a slight change in the content.

This change made Franz grit his teeth and approve the loan. The amount was negotiated from 30 million SD to 50 million SD, and it was an interest-free loan.

Of course, the Russians also took out a new collateral, the revenue from customs duties in Ukraine, to avoid losing everything.

If the Tsarist government took over Prussian Saxony after the war, the debt would be written off, and the Tsarist government would use Prussian Saxony to pay off the debt.

There was no other way, the Russians were too good at flattery. The big-mouthed Russia Minister went around proclaiming the efforts of the Government of Vienna to take back Prussian Saxony.

He also said that Franz had communicated with Alexander II Of Russia by telegram many times, and the two sides had reached a preliminary agreement. After the war, the Tsarist government would sell Silesia and Prussian Saxony to the new Holy Roman Empire.

Without a doubt, this must have been tacitly approved by Alexander II Of Russia. The Russian Minister held high the banner of friendship between Russia and Austria and repeatedly emphasized Franz's contributions. In the eyes of ordinary people, this was an effort for the unification of the Empire.

After all, the Paris Conference broke up the German Region, and it was very difficult to reunite it. Now, they could only take roundabout measures and slowly promote the unification of the country.

Taking back the country was always a good thing. The nationalists were happy and sang praises.

The domestic public opinion was stirred up, and Franz was roasted on the fire. If he were to step down, he would inevitably lose his prestige, and he had no choice but to take the blame.

Now he understood that the Tsarist government's promise to give Silesia to Austria was a bait.

If Austria took back Silesia after the war and watched the Russians annex Prussian Saxony, what would the consequences be?

Franz was the Emperor of Austria, and also the Emperor of the Saxon people. Once this bowl of water was not maintained, the hearts of the people below would disperse.

Not only would the Saxon people be dissatisfied, but other states would also be dissatisfied with the central government. At that time, the newly unified Holy Roman Empire would once again return to its fragmented state.

Franz didn't dare to bet on the Russians losing the war. He had to swallow this loss.

After all, the Prussian war this time was entirely the result of his butterfly effect. Now that the Russians had the upper hand and possessed strong strength, under normal circumstances, the Russians would have won the war in the end.

If it was only a matter of money, this deal was a win-win situation. The Tsarist government didn't quote him, and it was a low price.

But Prussian Saxony was not yet in the hands of the Russians, and the price was reasonable.

However, Franz knew that the Vienna government had already guaranteed for the Russians for the sake of Silesia. They had borrowed a large amount of strategic materials from the country, and now there was a loan of 50 million DER.

If they didn't want to lose everything, the best choice for the Vienna government was to support the Tsarist government to win the war.

Otherwise, it was unknown how long it would take to collect these debts.

For the sake of their ally, the Tsarist government probably wouldn't renege on the debt directly. However, if they didn't have the money to pay back, the Vienna government wouldn't be able to collect the debt by force.

At least until the Tsarist government's finances improved, they wouldn't be able to pay back the debt. At least before the Tsarist government's finances improved, they wouldn't be able to pay back the debt.

Not only did they kidnap Austria economically, but they also completely broke the relationship between Prussia and Austria. Now the Government of Vienna was almost openly supporting the Tsarist government. Naturally, they were standing on the opposite side of Prussia.

Incidentally, it also divided the Anglo-Austrian alliance, making the two countries stand on opposite sides again.

Britain and Austria had the same national policy on maintaining the balance in Europe. From the first establishment of the Vienna system, Britain and Austria were secret allies. The two sides only lacked a contract.

After the outbreak of the war in the Near East, the relationship between the two countries fell to the freezing point. However, because of common interests, the relationship between the two sides quickly warmed up again. The two countries jointly promoted the establishment of the second Vienna system.

Provoking the relationship between Prussia and Austria and Anglo-Austria was not the end. The relationship between Austria and France and England and France was also in Russia's calculations.

Once the French ate the bait given by Russia, the relationship between England and France would also be broken, and the relationship between Austria and France would be directly finished. In any case, Franz couldn't sit back and watch the French annex the Rhineland.

Even if he could endure it, the nationalists in his country would push Austria to the battlefield.

Franz wasn't afraid of going to war with the French. The covenant to defend against the French was still there. At worst, he could form an anti-French alliance. The Government of Vienna had experience in this area.

The problem was that since the era of Metternich, the situation of Austria's allies all over Europe had changed. Diplomacy could no longer be so calm.

That's right, the Fao and Austria were now quasi-allies. Otherwise, Franz wouldn't have watched Napoleon Iii annex the Kingdom of Sardinia and remained indifferent.

A verbal promise didn't count. In the end, it was still about interests. Since the Orleans Dynasty, the Fao and Austria had maintained a quasi-alliance relationship. If necessary, they could form an alliance at any time.

There was a break during the French Revolution, but with the emergence of the Fao secret agreement, the relationship between the two sides warmed up again for the sake of common interests.

Especially after the French annexed the Kingdom of Sardinia, the relationship between the two countries reached a new height.

Now that the pro-British faction in the Government of France was strong, the pro-Austrian faction was actually not weak at all. It wasn't surprising for a person to be pro-British and pro-Austrian at the same time. Politicians changed their positions according to the actual needs.

Napoleon Iii wasn't easy to deal with. As a master of political struggle, how could he not pay attention to the balance of power?

A dominant pro-British faction was not in line with the interests of the emperor. If one day he went against the British, and all his men were pro-British, then who would be sent to fight?

Although Napoleon Iii appeared as a pro-British faction, in fact, most of the people he promoted were not pro-British, but anti-British people.

This was also applicable in Austria. In the case of the Russo-Austrian Alliance, the anti-Russian faction in the Government of Vienna had always been strong.

Many politicians didn't really want to be anti-Russian, but they were politically required to be anti-Russian. This was taking sides, or political speculation.

After figuring out the calculations of the Russians, Franz could only sigh. How could a person who left an illustrious name in history be ordinary!

From the time he succeeded the throne to the present, Alexander Ii Of Russia had been focused on domestic affairs and had performed mediocre in diplomacy.

This performance was also in line with the position of the Tsarist government. After all, the previous Tsar basically fought with strength rather than wits.

After a long time, Franz also relaxed his vigilance against him. Diplomacy also required talent, which had always been the shortcoming of the Tsar family. No one in later generations said that Alexander Ii Of Russia was good at diplomacy.

In the end, he didn't make a move. Now that he made a move, it was earth-shattering. At the same time, Britain, France, Austria, and a bunch of small European countries were also involved.

If the plan went smoothly, the final result would be: the rupture of relations between Prussia and Austria, the rupture of relations between Prussia and France, the rupture of relations between Britain and Austria, the rupture of relations between Britain and France …

If the diplomatic relations of various countries were broken, then the isolated Russian Empire would have an opportunity.

The ambition of the Tsarist government had never been small. How could it be possible to defeat the Kingdom of Prussia without biting a piece of meat?

In this context, it was very necessary to divide the European countries. This time, they started with the British FAO to cut off the possibility of other countries interfering in the war between Prussia and Russia.

Apart from the fact that the conflict between Britain and Russia was too deep and related to their core interests, the two sides could not compromise.

Russia and Austria were allies, and the relationship between France and Russia was not impossible to ease. As long as these two countries were settled, the European continent could no longer organize to interfere with the coalition forces.

The British were indeed strong, but unfortunately, it was all in the navy. With the poor strength of the British Army, no country would be stupid enough to form a coalition with them and go to war with Russia.

This determined that John Bull must have an ally on the European continent. Otherwise, it would be difficult for them to get the right to speak that matched their own strength.

After the Near Eastern War, the British tried their best to reduce their involvement in the European continent's disputes.

Under this background, even though the civil organizations of Britain, France, and Austria often fought against each other in the overseas colonies, the relationship between Britain and Austria and France could still be maintained.

This time, Franz was not angry, nor did he immediately retaliate. After so many years as an emperor, his temperament had long been honed.

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