Chapter 588

The British took sides, making the war even more confusing. No one knew whether the Tsarist government's wallet would be emptied first, or the Kingdom of Prussia would be unable to hold on on the battlefield first.

With the loss of the sea transportation channel, Russia's plan to concentrate its forces and quickly defeat Prussia failed.

Since the Russians lost the Polish region, the price of food in St. Peter Castle had continued to increase, and it had increased by 30% compared to before the war.

This was the result of Alexander Ii Of Russia's timely measures to control, otherwise it was not impossible for the price of food to double.

Russia had a lot of granaries, and the only problem was transportation. The price of transporting food from Ukraine and Moscow to St. Peter Castle was inevitable.

At the Winter Palace military conference, Minister of War Hramed analyzed, "According to the current transportation capacity, we can put no more than 400,000 troops into the frontline.

It is almost impossible to win the war with such a small number of troops. The original battle plan was no longer suitable, and the Ministry of War decided to change the battle plan.

Carry out strategic defense in the Baltic Sea and Belarus, put the main force into the Ukrainian region, and attack the Polish region along the Russian-Austrian border.

In this way, our troops can get supplies directly from Austria, reducing the distance of logistics transportation.

First recover the Polish region, and then we can rely on the rivers in Poland to transport supplies from Austria to ensure the logistical supply of the troops. "

The battle plan looked good, and it solved the logistical supply problem. However, Alexander Ii Of Russia was very uncomfortable, and it meant that he had to ask Austria for help.

There was no free lunch in the world, and there was bound to be a price to pay for this war with Austria's support.

Alexander Ii Of Russia did not want to see the Russian Army fighting on the frontline, and the biggest benefits fall into the hands of others, even if it was an ally.

Minister of Finance Kristanval objected, "This plan looks good, but it is not easy to get the Austrians to cooperate. This is not just a matter of money, but also politics.

The Government of Vienna has been in a state of contradiction in this war. On the one hand, they want to use our hands to cripple the Kingdom of Prussia and create favorable conditions for unification; on the other hand, they want to preserve the territorial integrity of the German Region.

Unless we can pay a high price, they will not fully cooperate. Without their support, it will be difficult to get sufficient supplies even with Austria behind us. "

The Government of Vienna's position was not a secret. it was to see both Prussia and Russia suffer losses. This was in the best interest of Austria. It not only created the conditions for national unification, but also guaranteed the territorial integrity of the German region.

Only after being beaten by society would Prussia's separatism extinguish and merge with Austria.

Currently, the ones who advocated for the establishment of Greater Prussia were the Juncker nobles. Once they merged with Austria, the agricultural products of the country would inevitably be affected, and the interests of these landlords would be hard to protect.

The more badly Prussia was beaten, the more people would support the unification of Germany, provided that the Kingdom of Prussia could not be annexed by Russia.

Under such circumstances, it was not easy to count on Austria's full support to win the war.

Foreign Minister Clarence Ivanov continued, "We have already communicated with the Austrians regarding this issue.

The Government of Vienna's attitude is clear. They will abide by the Russo-Austrian Alliance, but it is limited to what is stipulated in the treaty.

If we want to change their decision, the price we have to pay is too high. It is not worth it. "

In the face of interests, the relationship between allies should be pushed back. The people present were not noobs. They would not naively think that allies should cooperate unconditionally.

Using interests to speak was the best way to maintain the relationship between allies. An alliance that only talked about friendship and not benefits would never last long.

Alexander Ii Of Russia ordered, "Send people to rent some warehouses at the Austrian border and store some of the supplies there. It will be used as a transit point for trade between the two countries.

The military will first recover some of the territories bordering Austria and then start trading nearby to save on transportation costs. "

This was playing on the edge. Stockpiling goods at the Austrian border in advance, and when the Russian Army arrived, they could resupply nearby.

Although there were still a lot of procedures to go through, it also saved time. Time was life on the battlefield. With sufficient supplies, the Russian Army could fight to the death with the Kingdom of Prussia.

They had an absolute advantage in this aspect. As long as they lost a few hundred thousand more people, the Kingdom of Prussia would not be able to hold on. Unless Britain and France personally joined the war, they would be the winner of this war.

Unfortunately, the winter in Poland was not cold enough. They could not take advantage of the Russian Army's winter combat ability.

…

In Vienna, Franz put down the information in his hands and became a spectator. He quietly watched the Prussia and Russia show off their abilities.

The 19th century was the last glory of the monarchy. Times created heroes, and this period was simply the eruption of heroes.

William I of Prussia, Alexander II Of Russia, Napoleon Iii of France, Emperor Meiji of Japan, Queen Victoria of England, and the protagonist himself. None of them were easy to deal with.

These few were more famous and had a relatively low sense of existence. For example, Rama IV of Thailand and Rama V of Thailand. To be able to protect themselves in troubled times, they were not easy to deal with.

Another example was Abdulmejid I of the Osman Empire. He promoted the modernization reforms and extended the life of the Osman Empire.

Including Sweden's Carr XV, Belgium's Leopold II, Montenegro's Nicholas I Of Russia, Luxembourg …

If these people were at another time, they would be able to set off the storm of an era. Unfortunately, they all met.

The king of a small country naturally did not have much room to play. To be able to survive in the narrow gap between the great powers was a kind of ability.

This required superb political art. It was definitely not something that a salted fish could do. Every time they chose a side, it was a test for the small country.

Now it was the turn of Alexander II Of Russia and William I. The winner would continue on the path of a hero, and the loser could only be eliminated.

The King of Sardinia had become the sacrifice of this era. He was the first to be eliminated and lived in exile in London.

The leisurely days were short lived and were soon broken.

The Foreign Affairs Minister Wesenberg reported, "Your Majesty, Francesco II sent a telegram asking for help. The rebel army led by Gápoli has crossed the Strait of Messina and continued to march north. The rebel army of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies has been defeated again.

Currently, the situation in the country is out of control. Rebellions are emerging one after another. There are already thirteen rebellious forces in the Kingdom of Two Sicilies.

Just three days ago, Gápoli called the rebels from all over the country to go to Naples for an alliance. The capital of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies is likely to be lost.

The most troublesome thing is that idiot Francesco II. He actually sent a telegram asking for help to Napoleon Iii at the same time. He made the problem even more complicated. "

Rubbing his forehead, Franz also realized the thorny problem. If it was just asking for help from Austria, then there was no need to say anything. He would immediately send reinforcements to help suppress the rebellion.

No matter how the future generations boasted about the Red Shirts, Franz did not care. The combat power of the army needed to be supported by the country's power. The Kingdom of Two Sicilies was an agricultural country.

The navy blockaded the port. Without ammunition replenishment, the rebels would become guerrillas in three to five months at most.

Not every country could play guerrilla warfare. The Kingdom of Two Sicilies had a limited area. It was also divided into two by the strait. Its population was only 8.7 million. It did not have the ability to fight for a long time.

In fact, these methods were unnecessary. They could just send troops to crush them. If they couldn't even deal with an Italian rebel army, the Austrian army could be disbanded.

Franz said with dissatisfaction, "Francesco II didn't ask for help from the Spanish. He actually looked for Napoleon Iii. It looks like the French have been playing a lot of tricks under our noses these years.

The General Staff should come up with a battle plan as soon as possible. The Kingdom of Two Sicilies can't fall into the hands of the French again. Otherwise, the Mediterranean will become France's private territory. "

Franz knew that the French were playing tricks, but he never thought that Francesco II would be affected.

Asking for help from the French now was completely inviting a wolf into the house.

When the time came, it would be easy to invite a god, but difficult to send him away. With such a good opportunity, it would be strange if the French didn't take root.

Even if they wanted to check and balance, they couldn't choose the ambitious France! Even if the British sent troops to intervene, it would be better than letting the French send troops.

Without Francesco II's request for help, the French would never dare to reach out to the Regions of Italy. Now the situation was different. The Kingdom of Two Sicilies had sent itself to the door.

The conflict between the Fao and the two countries over Italy was about to break out. For Franz, this might be a small problem. For the Kingdom of Two Sicilies, it meant life and death.

Franz could sell the Kingdom of Sardinia. Why couldn't he sell the Kingdom of Two Sicilies? As for whether the French would make it big or not, it didn't matter anyway.

As long as the benefits were right, many problems could be discussed. In turn, the French might sacrifice the Kingdom of Two Sicilies in exchange for concessions from other Austrian regions.

It wasn't fun to use barbarians to control barbarians. Even if the two countries couldn't come to an agreement, couldn't they still divide the Kingdom of Two Sicilies?

The moral principles of the great powers were so high. As long as the benefits were enough, they could do it. The Kingdom of Two Sicilies was not a core interest for Austria. It could only be regarded as a peripheral area. It was the same for the French.

Of course, if Napoleon Iii really wanted to unify the Regions of Italy, then there was no need to say anything. This was an indispensable part.

At worst, with Sicily as the boundary, the Fao and the French would divide the benefits of the Mediterranean and jointly exclude the British.

At present, the cooperation between the two countries was still very pleasant. The British were firmly suppressed in the Mediterranean, and the tentacles that extended to Egypt were blocked by the two countries.