Chapter 817

"Someone's dead!"

"Take the body away and cremate it as soon as possible!"

…

Numbness and despair could be heard in the shouts. A large number of people died every day. The more people died, the more numb they became.

Unlike the previous casualties, this time it was a plague. Even the medical staff were not spared from the plague. Even a Major General of the French Army was sent to the crematorium because of this.

Safety measures? Unfortunately, the safety measures in this era were very primitive. They couldn't even perform basic disinfection.

The cries of the patients could be heard from time to time in the corner of the quarantine area. This place was already a dangerous place that everyone feared. The medical staff came every day, but they only hurriedly distributed the medicine and quickly left.

Check the patient's condition? That was impossible. How many doctors were there in the French army?

Moreover, there was no cure for the plague. The medicine they used now could only comfort the patients, which was more effective than actual treatment.

The soldiers in charge of distributing provisions avoided this place as much as possible. They placed the food at the entrance, shouted a few words, and then quickly left.

"Adolf, can you still hold on?"

"No problem. Thank you, Alphonso. I feel much better. I should be able to pull through this time."

"Rest well. You'll be fine after this."

Alphonso repeated the same conversation many times a day. As the earliest victim of the plague, Alphonso was lucky to survive.

According to the usual practice, God wouldn't summon him again for a while after he survived the plague. He had to stay and be a nurse.

According to the doctor, he needed to stay in the hospital for observation and treatment. He could only be discharged after ensuring that nothing went wrong.

In fact, he was asked to stay and do manual labor, such as taking care of the patients, distributing food, and disposing of the corpses. These dreaded jobs fell onto his shoulders.

For the sake of the extra pay, Alphonso gladly accepted this dreaded job.

Alphonso was a veteran. He was one of the first French soldiers to enter the Balkans. Half of the people who came with him had already died.

To the veterans on the battlefield, the dead were nothing to be afraid of. Countless people died on the battlefield every day. Flesh and blood splattered everywhere was a common occurrence.

In his opinion, helping here was much easier than being on the battlefield. He only needed to take care of 30 patients a day. After that, he was free.

After staying here for a while, Alphonso found that this place wasn't as scary as the outside world imagined. He stayed here for more than a month. A total of five people died, and seven recovered.

…

Ambroise brought bad news to the French army in Constantinople.

"Commander, the Russians' attack caused our epidemic to fail. the spread of the plague is inevitable!"

This news did not come as a surprise to Pellissier, the French commander. With the outbreak of the plague, the Russians would definitely not give up this opportunity.

Apart from the French army, there were also the citizens of Constantinople. The Ottoman Empire was their ally, and it was impossible for Pellissier to chase the people of Constantinople out of the city.

The more densely populated the population, the more difficult to prevent. Coupled with the Russians' attack, the situation became even worse.

Pellissier asked calmly, "Tell me about the plague situation in the city."

Ambroise said sadly, "This plague may have come from the cholera in London not long ago. The Crimean Peninsula also had an outbreak of the plague. The symptoms are similar to ours.

What's strange is that the plague in Constantinople is very contagious. It's much stronger than in other areas. Our initial guess is that it's spread through insects such as mosquitoes and flies.

The mortality rate is only average. Most of the young and strong can survive, and the mortality rate will not exceed 15%. The mortality rate for the old and weak is much higher.

The most serious are the injured. Once they are infected with the plague, they will basically die. "

Pellissier could only curse the British in his heart. The cholera outbreak in London wasn't serious. The epidemic was quickly controlled and didn't spread. Instead, they were the ones who suffered.

…

London

Foreign Minister Thomas said solemnly, "Prime Minister, we just received news that the French army in Constantinople wasn't able to control the plague. It has now begun to spread.

Last night, Napoleon Iii met the Austrian ambassador in Versailles Palace. The two had a secret talk for more than two hours.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs analyzed that this secret talk might be related to the war in the Near East. The change in Constantinople made the French lose confidence in the war.

The Government of Paris might end the war with the Russians unilaterally. Now they are sending a message to the Russians through the Austrians.

According to the information we gathered, the Austrian ambassador in London has been very active recently. He has been in frequent contact with the leaders of the peace faction in the country. The Government of Vienna seems to want to mediate the war. "

After pondering for a moment, George Hamilton Gordon asked, "It's not surprising that the French want to end the war.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs judged that the Austrians want to mediate the war. What's the reason? From the perspective of interests, the longer the war lasts, the better it is for Austria. "

International political interests were always the decisive factor. If the war in the Near East continued, not only would it consume the strength of Britain, France, and Russia, Austria could also make a fortune from the war.

From the perspective of interests, the Government of Vienna had no reason to let the three countries end the war prematurely.

Thomas replied confidently, "The Austrians don't want us to really have a winner. Although the Vienna system has collapsed, the Government of Austria has not given up the European balance strategy.

Whether the Russians win or we win, Austria's transcendent position will no longer exist, and a new round of international struggle will inevitably break out.

Although it is in Austria's interest to continue the war in the Near East, the final result is uncontrollable.

In this war in the Near East, Austria has already obtained too many benefits, and now it is urgent to digest them. Metternich's style has always been to seek stability, so it is normal for her to stop now. "

Prime Minister George nodded. Compared with the national strategy, some economic benefits were not worth mentioning. Sandwiched between France and Russia, the Government of Austria had no choice but to implement the European balance policy.

"What's your plan?" Prime Minister Henry asked.

Thomas replied, "Your Excellency, the war in the Near East has been fought until now. Our plan to contain the Russians has failed.

If we continue, it will not have any practical significance other than increasing casualties.

Our advantage is on the sea. Only the previous idiots would run to the land and fight with the Russians.

Our future strategy is still to provoke conflicts between Russia and France, Russia and Austria, and Russia and Prussia. We will use the power of the European countries to contain the Russians, and we will just encircle them at sea. "

War always taught people a lesson. The war in the Near East made the Government of London come to the conclusion that it was very idiotic to run to the land and fight with the Russians.

Using one's weakness to attack the enemy's strength.

It was enough for such a thing to happen once, and they would not make the same mistake a second time.

…

Vienna

Looking at the map of The Balkans, Franz was in a daze.

It seemed that they had played too big this time. If the Russians really annexed these areas, not only would Britain and France have a headache in the future, but Austria would also be in trouble.

At the government meeting, Franz repeatedly emphasized the importance of the Russo-Austrian Alliance. That was only a political need. He had also done a lot of things in the dark.

For example, right now, Franz was thinking about how to restrict the Russians. To attract the attention of Britain and France, the Russians who occupied Constantinople were enough to do it.

The Istanbul area was also very rich. In addition to Constantinople, this area gathered most of the industry of the Osman Empire.

Even if they suffered heavy losses because of the war, as long as the foundation was there, it would not take long to recover.

If all of it fell into the hands of the Russians, then after Alexander II Of Russia completed the serf reform, the Hairy Bear would be too powerful.

The maid said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, Mr. Metternich is here."

Franz said lightly, "Let him in."

…

Metternich reminded, "Your Majesty, the Osman Empire does not have the ability to stop the expansion of Russia. According to the current situation, it will not be long after the war that Russia will be able to annex the Balkans.

In this case, we do not need to fight against the Russians. The more territory they annex, the more vigilant the European countries will be. If they are not careful, they will become the public enemy of Europe.

If the Tsarist government can't handle all this, Napoleon the Great is an example. We don't need to worry too much. "

Franz pointed to the map of the Balkans and said, "You see, this is the current control of the countries. According to the Russian-Austrian secret treaty, we have already obtained the territory that belongs to us.

The remaining areas, except for Bulgaria, which is controlled by Russia, and Montenegro, which has been driven back to its home by the coalition forces, are in the hands of the coalition forces.

If there is no accident, these areas will be handed over to the Osman Empire after the war. But we all know that as long as the Constantinople falls, the Government of Sudan will not have the power to control these areas.

If the Russians want to annex these areas, there is almost no difficulty. Because of the treaty, we can't intervene.

Once the Russians control these areas, we will be under great pressure in the The Balkans. If we change the owners of these areas and let them block the Russians, will the result be better? "

Metternich asked in surprise, "Your Majesty, are you going to give these areas to the French?"

Franz explained, "It's not that I want to give these areas to the French, but that Napoleon Iii needs to take these areas to give the people of his country an explanation.

After two or three years of war, hundreds of thousands of people died, and a lot of military expenses were spent. In the end, there was nothing to gain. How can the proud French people bear it?

Now the Constantinople is still in the hands of the French. As long as they don't let it go, it won't be easy for the Russians to take it.

The Tsarist government also doesn't want to fight anymore. They just need to occupy the Constantinople and give the people of their country an explanation.

If we secretly contact each other and let France and Russia take what they need, won't it be more in line with our interests? "

After pondering for a moment, Metternich said, "Your Majesty, I can't answer this question. If we push it, the possibility of France and Russia secretly reaching this deal is indeed very high.

But where are our interests? After this war, the Russians won't start a war in the The Balkans for at least ten years.

Introducing the French to balance the Russians is only an ideal situation. It is more likely that France and Russia will ease their relations or even further form an alliance. "

Franz nodded and said, "That's right. In theory, France and Russia have no core conflicts of interest. As long as a common enemy appears, the possibility of the two countries forming an alliance is very high.

But in the current international situation, who is qualified to become the common enemy of France and Russia?

The answer is clear to everyone. Other than the British, there is no other choice. The Government of London will not let this happen.

If the Government of London makes a mistake, we can just join this alliance. "

…