Chapter 578

One had to admit that the Hairy Bear's deterrent power was strong. A small move caused panic in the European world, and many people were worried that the international situation would be broken again.

Whether it was the acquisition of warships or the expansion in Central Asia, it was a declaration to the outside world that the arrogant Russian Empire was back.

If the Russians wanted to do something in Central Asia, Britannia would be the first to bear the brunt. It was not easy to be the boss. When it was time to stand up, one had to stand up.

Compared to before, Prime Minister Gladstone was much more confident now. There was no other reason than that he had money in his pocket.

In this anti-Semitic movement, the Government of the United Kingdom also gained a lot. One-third of the old debt was directly cleared, and the government's finances became more abundant.

Money naturally had to be spent. Only money spent could be turned into political achievements.

Unless something unexpected happened, every qualified British Prime Minister would leave a debt for the next one.

Gladstone was no exception. After he made a fortune, he immediately approved the "food self-sufficiency plan."

In order to enhance the competitiveness of his own agricultural products, Prime Minister Gladstone also submitted a "food subsidy draft" to parliament.

That was, through the government's cash, seeds, fertilizers, and other means to subsidize farmers and encourage people to invest in farms in the colonies.

Currently, parliament was still discussing it. Once the draft was passed, the Government of the United Kingdom could bypass the free trade system, support its agriculture to achieve food self-sufficiency, and get rid of its dependence on food-producing countries such as Russia and Austria.

There was naturally a reason why Gladstone dared to propose such a plan.

"Food self-sufficiency" was just a cover on the surface. The real reason was because of the impact of the "Aegis – Gold System" on the "British Pound – Gold System."

Britannia's territory was small, and apart from coal and iron ore, most of its natural resources relied on imports from the outside world.

Affected by this, Britannia was in a state of trade deficit most of the time. For the world's hegemon, this was a small problem that was not worth mentioning. This problem could be solved by printing money.

Unfortunately, Britannia's position as the world's hegemon was not stable. It had been challenged by Russia, Fao, and Austria, especially now. The Aegis – Gold System had threatened their monetary hegemony.

In the past, everyone had no choice. In the case of insufficient gold reserves, they had to hold a large number of pounds. Even if the Government of the United Kingdom printed a little more money, it did not matter.

Now, under the impact of the Aegis, in order to stabilize the value of the pound, the Government of London did not dare to increase the banknote lever.

The ability to print money was limited, and the trade deficit was particularly glaring. If this nail was not pulled, Britannia's funds would flow.

Of course, this was a small problem for Britain, which was a large country with a lot of assets, for a while. After all, they were still in a state of surplus capital.

However, how could the far-sighted Prime Minister Gladstone let this kind of thing develop in the long run?

There are only two ways to reduce the trade deficit: to reduce imports or to increase exports.

It was obvious that the Earth had been carved up, and the so-called "international market" was only left in a corner. Most of the areas had been colonized by various countries.

If he wanted to increase exports, he could only fight with his competitors in this corner of the market.

Unfortunately, as European countries gradually completed industrialization, the market competition became increasingly fierce.

Not to mention expanding exports, even the market share that Britannia currently occupied was constantly being squeezed out by competitors.

Of course, the economy was moving forward. Although the market share had declined, the total amount of Britannia's exports was still increasing.

However, the rate of increase in imports was far faster than the rate of increase in exports, and the trade deficit was constantly widening.

In order to stop the continuous outflow of wealth, under the advice of economists and the influence of domestic public opinion, Prime Minister Gladstone accepted the "food self-sufficiency plan."

"There is news of Russia expanding into Central Asia. What is going on?"

Gladstone really didn't know why Russia was expanding into Central Asia now.

In his opinion, the tsar's government was either out of their minds, or they were trying to take advantage of Britain. There was also a very small possibility that Austria was behind this.

However, these reasons did not make sense. War was about money. The British army might not be able to win against Russia in Central Asia, but the Government of the United Kingdom could drag the Tsarist government until it went bankrupt.

Even if Austria was willing to support Russia, the Government of Vienna couldn't throw all their money at it. They might be able to afford a loss of one or two hundred million, but if it was 1.8 billion, the Government of Vienna would be 100% afraid.

In the end, it was still about interests. The effort had to be proportional to the gain. A normal person wouldn't be able to bear it if there was no return.

Foreign Minister George: "It is not possible to determine the true purpose of the Tsarist government for the time being. According to the information collected, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs believes that this is likely to be a test by Russia.

Perhaps it has something to do with the anti-Semitic movement not long ago. The Tsarist government should have more money in their pockets and are starting to get restless again. "

The Colonial Minister, Primrose, said, "I don't think this is just a test. I am afraid that the ambitions of the Russians can't be contained anymore.

You know, this is not the first time something like this has happened. After the end of the Third Near East War, the Russians also extended their hands to Central Asia.

Although under our intervention, the Tsarist government stopped their little tricks, their sphere of influence in Central Asia still expanded.

According to the information reported by the Governor of India, the Russians have encroached on at least 50,000 square kilometers in Central Asia in recent years.

If we don't pay attention to it and find a way to cut off the ambitions of the Russians to expand into Central Asia, I am afraid that the Russians will annex Central Asia again.

Now the Nordic Federation, North Germany, and Austria have formed an iron wall, blocking the westward path of the Russians.

In the east, there is the ice and snow world of Siberia and the Far East. The harsh weather conditions restrict the eastward movement of the Russians.

If the Tsarist government still wants to continue to expand, the only strategic choice left for them is to go south to the Indian Ocean.

Whether it is Persia or Central Asia, they are likely to become the next expansion targets of the Russians.

Compared to Central Asia, the Persia area still has Austria's power. If the Russians don't want Austria to participate, the best choice is Central Asia. "

He had to admit that the Colonial Secretary's analysis was very reasonable.

After the failure of the westward march to dominate Europe, the most suitable direction for the Russians to expand was Central Asia, followed by Persia, and then the Far East.

There was no need to doubt this. When he opened the map, he knew that this was God's arrangement. Going against God's arrangement would result in the harsh natural conditions.

Something felt wrong, but Gladstone couldn't tell what was wrong, but this didn't prevent him from making a decision.

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued an official note to the Tsarist government, ordering the Russians to withdraw from Central Asia and warning the Tsarist government not to play with fire.

The 11th Division stationed in India is ordered to immediately rush to Central Asia and join forces with the Central Asian countries to hold military exercises. "

…

The Government of the United Kingdom moved, and the Government of France didn't stay idle. Of course, the French didn't care about Central Asia. France's tentacles couldn't reach Central Asia.

After launching the anti-Semitic campaign, the Government of France's finances flipped. With money, Napoleon Iv began to make big moves.

The urban transformation plan of the Napoleon III era was restarted again. This time, it wasn't just Paris that was transformed. Many major cities in the country were covered.

The large farm plan, which was slow due to funding constraints, was immediately allocated funds to speed up the progress.

The ongoing reconstruction of Egypt was also fully expanded. Not only did they have to empty the river, but they also had to restore the farmland after the flood.

Even the towns, plantations, roads, and bridges destroyed by the rebels were rebuilt after the war. For a time, the Egyptian area was booming, and there was a different kind of prosperity.

Affected by this, the refugees produced by the war also got jobs and had a stable livelihood. The situation in Egypt suddenly stabilized.

There were advantages and disadvantages. As the first to open the prelude to anti-Semitism, Napoleon Iv didn't dare to go out recently.

In the past month, he had been the target of four assassination attempts. If it weren't for the influence, he would have already started a massacre.

Although the French anti-Semitism movement was huge, not many Jews were actually killed, and most of the victims were civilians at the bottom of the social hierarchy.

Napoleon Iv only wanted the Jewish capitalists' money. He wasn't as evil as his next-door neighbor, who took their lives as well.

Unfortunately, his self-perceived tolerance didn't win the Jewish capitalists' understanding. Instead, he was greeted with round after round of assassinations.

In the temporary palace, Napoleon Iv roared, "Adonis, are you people from the police force eating sh * t?!

It's been so long, and you still haven't found the mastermind. Are you going to make it so that I can't go out in the future? "

The Minister of Police, Adonis, had a bitter expression. He didn't know how to answer. He didn't know when it started, but the position of the Minister of Police had become a hot potato.

In the past decade, the French government had changed seventeen police ministers, with an average term of seven months.

This number was still decreasing, and Adonis had no confidence that he would be able to stay in this position for a full term.

"Your Majesty, we've already strictly interrogated the assassins. According to the information they provided, when we found the contact, they had already been killed.

The suspect that the police had locked onto had already left the country before the assassination broke out. The murderer is very cunning, so … "

Napoleon Iv interrupted, "So you found nothing, and then told your emperor that it's dangerous outside and that he shouldn't go out for now?"

Adonis immediately shut up. The situation in Paris was very complicated. It was filled with various forces, and most of these forces were enemies of the Bonaparte dynasty.

Perhaps these forces wouldn't normally send people to assassinate the emperor, but they would still hinder Napoleon Iv.

The police couldn't find any results, so naturally, these forces would cause trouble.

Had it not been for the restraint of these forces, the Jewish capitalists would have been exposed by their repeated assassinations.

After a fierce internal struggle, the Minister of Police, Adonis, slowly said, "Your Majesty, although there is no concrete evidence, based on the analysis of the motive and strength, the mastermind is most likely Jewish. Why don't we arrest the Jews in the country first … "

This was the simplest method. If they couldn't find any evidence, then they wouldn't look for evidence. Whoever had the motive and strength to commit the crime would be arrested first.

After they caught the person, they would slowly investigate. There would be results sooner or later. Even if they couldn't tell who the real murderer was, it didn't matter. They could just kill all the suspects.

It didn't matter if they killed the wrong person, since they were all enemies. It would be better to take precautions and eliminate hidden dangers in advance.

Napoleon Iv shook his head. "No! The government has already reached an agreement with the Jewish capitalists and made a promise to guarantee their personal safety. We can't go back on our word. "

Even a cunning rabbit had three burrows, not to mention the Jews who were often "slaughtered."

Most Jewish capitalists wouldn't put all their eggs in one basket. In addition to their assets on the surface, they also had many businesses in the dark.

Napoleon Iv didn't send anyone to keep an eye on the Jewish capitalists. They hadn't wavered for decades, so they could only confiscate the businesses on the surface.

If they encountered ruthless people who valued money more than their lives, they wouldn't be able to squeeze anything out of them. In order to stabilize employment, the government would have to pay to maintain the businesses after confiscating the factories and businesses.

In this context, the real unlucky ones in the anti-Jewish movement were ordinary Jews who didn't have money.

The powerful Jewish capitalists had the capital to negotiate with the government, such as paying a sum of money to buy their lives in exchange for the government's protection of their personal safety.