Holy Roman Empire

Vienna Palace, the contents of the English-Prussian negotiations had already reached Franz’s hands. It was not due to the effectiveness of the intelligence department but rather the British deliberately leaking the information.

Such high-level negotiations were known only to a few and they were all ministerial-level officials, simply not the kind that intelligence organizations could buy.

The prussian-Polish Federation turning toward the British was not surprising. After all, John Bull was a maritime nation and couldn’t possibly become the master of the European Continent; there was no direct conflict between England and Prussia.

By contrast, Austria was different. The Vienna Government cried for the unification of the German Region every day. The core territories of the Prussian Federation were all in the German Region, and it would be strange if the Berlin Government was not concerned.

From Austria’s standpoint, mutual harm between Prussia and Russia was most in alignment with its own interests. Cooperation with Austria was akin to "negotiating with a tiger for its skin." Given a choice, the Berlin Government naturally leaned toward the British.

"The British actually want to promote relations between Prussia and France, what do you think is their ulterior motive?"

The British had always been trying to isolate the French, and now they suddenly promoted the closeness between Prussia and France, which made it difficult for Franz not to speculate with the greatest malice.

Foreign Minister Weisenberg analyzed, "Your Majesty, there may be two reasons.

The outcome of this Prusso-Russian war is hard to predict. Relying solely on the ability of the British to ensure victory for the Prusso Federation, and not wanting to give up the benefits that come knocking on their door, they must find others to share the risk.

If they drew France to their side, under the combined efforts of England and France, even if the situation was unfavorable, they would be able to preserve the Prusso Federation and ensure their investments don’t go to waste.

The other reason is aimed at us. The London Government believes there is an imbalance in strength between France and Austria and needs to help France attract allies to continue maintaining the balance in Europe.

The likelihood of the latter is small. With the legacy of Napoleon, the British would only overestimate the strength of France and not underestimate it.

Since supporting the restoration of the Spanish royal family, the strategic situation of the French in Europe had already reversed. The London Government was still troubled by the breakup of the French-Spanish Alliance and had no reason to continue helping them attract allies."

In the mid-19th century, after the restoration of Napoleon III, France broke free from the constraints of the Vienna System and its military strength was fully restored.

Allied countries in Europe worried about the military threat from France. Under the lead of Austria, Western, Prussian-German, Swiss, Belgian, and Dutch nations signed a mutual defense treaty, leading France into a strategically passive state.

Of course, the French path to expansion wasn’t blocked. For instance: Relations between Ausa and Sardinia were poor, and the Kingdom of Sardinia was excluded from the joint defense organization, leaving France with only the option of expanding towards the Italian Area.

To change the diplomatic embarrassment, Napoleon III took a series of political and diplomatic actions to improve relations with European nations.

After the outbreak of civil unrest in Spain, the French Government supported the restoration of Alfonso XII. Spain announced its withdrawal from the joint defense organization, and the strategic blockade was declared bankrupt.

Due to geopolitical relations, the closeness between France and Spain meant that John Bull could not sleep easy. For its own strategic security, the British had always been trying to break apart the French-Spanish bond.

Prime Minister Felix said, "Whatever the reason, the closeness between Prussia and France has become a reality. Without the cooperation of the British, we alone will struggle to stop this from happening.

The French are ambitious and have always wanted to seize control over Europe; they would not refuse the Prusso Federation that has presented itself on a platter.

Both sides already have a foundation of mutual interest for cooperation, even if they don’t form an alliance, their relations will advance further. We need to prepare in advance to avoid being caught off guard."

There was no choice, the Prusso Federation chose the British, and Austria had to support the Russians; this was determined by national interests.

Franz was not interested in European hegemony, but he couldn’t say that out loud! Austria not having ambitions on the European Continent was something Franz himself did not believe when said.

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It wasn’t about ambition, mainly it was dictated by strength. Whether willing or not, once the power was there, interest groups would push the government upward.

Austria hadn’t made a move, as the game was still in play. The French tiger’s might lingered, and openly, the military strengths of France and Austria were comparable, with the British at their side.

Austria’s rise was one part military and nine parts political; the Radical faction within was small. For most, the dream strategy was to unify the German Region; world domination wasn’t in the plan.

Of course, this was also related to the distribution of interests. Austria got a not small share in the colonial movement, and as those with vested interests, naturally, they were not so cynical as to rush to disrupt the world order.

Foreign Minister Weisenberg said, "The situation is not so grave; the closeness between Prussia and France is not entirely bad news. At least the German Federation is inclined toward us. If we’re lucky, we might even draw Belgium to our side.

As long as the Russians don’t fall, the Prusso Federation will always be restrained, and our main concern remains France.

The only headache is the uncertainty of the British choices. However, this is not difficult to resolve; in the London Government, the anti-French faction is definitely larger than the anti-Austrian faction, and we have greater advantages diplomatically.

Moreover, with Belgium and the German Federation, the London Government cannot completely ignore the interests of its smaller partners; the possibility of joining hands with us to suppress the French is higher."

Reality was clear, every year the French had to import tens of millions of tons of coal from Belgium and Germany, and the number was still increasing.

This had seriously affected French economic development, especially in the heavy industry sector, where France had completely fallen behind the Anglo-Austrian countries.

Even if the French government wanted to exercise restraint, the capitalists within the country would not agree. If Paris does not want to see the escalation of the Italian problem, it must solve the energy problem.

Looking around, besides Belgium and the German Federation, the nearby countries rich in coal resources were only the Anglo-Austrian two countries. This multiple-choice question had a fixed answer.

Right now, it hadn’t come to that, the French were actively searching for coal mines, hoping to find some in the North African colonies. After they completed their exploration, they would take the most drastic measures.

Everyone is a realist; once the French make a move, Belgium and Germany will realize they cannot rely on the British, and Austria becomes the only option.

Franz shook his head, "It’s not that simple; hatred cannot sway the British decision—they are only influenced by interests.

From the current situation, France’s demand for resources is steadily increasing. At most, in no more than twenty years, the French will reach out to Belgium and Germany for resources.

At that time, we will either be forced to enter the fray or actively participate in the game. The British will continue their strategy of balance, suppressing whomever is strong.

Looking at the economic data, the French have already deviated. To maintain high economic growth, some genius came up with the idea of developing an industry chain centered on the financial sector.

At the current rate of development, how much longer do you think the balance between France and Austria can be maintained?"

The nature of the Usury Empire hasn’t changed; ever since the death of Napoleon III, the French government has been unable to suppress domestic capitalists, and the economy has inevitably tilted towards finance.

With the intensifying energy crisis, France’s industrial costs are continually rising, exacerbating the situation. The manufacturing industry’s share of the Gross National Product is declining.

In the short term, the illusory numbers hide the contradictions, and no one can see the crisis. But once a war breaks out, all the problems will surface.

There’s no question about it; the world leader always suppresses the runner-up. When the French bubble is burst, it will be time for Austria and the British to fall out.

Economy Minister Reinhardt Halden said, "Military balance can be maintained for only as long as the international situation remains unchanged. However, economically, the balance has already been broken.

Based on data analysis collected by the statistical bureau, France’s industrial power is only 68.1% of the British and 58.6% of ours, and this ratio is still falling.

The gap is even wider in the heavy industry sector. Take the steel industry as an example: France’s steel production is only 37.2% of the British, less than a third of ours.

Coal production is even more disparate, less than a third of the British and only a quarter of ours.

These data already explain a lot of problems. It’s worth mentioning that the newly-added Italian Region has almost made no contribution to the French heavy industry; coal production can be ignored, and there are only a few small steel workshops."

It’s not an underestimation of the Italian Area; there are truly not many resources there. Capitalists were willing to support Napoleon III initially to obtain more cheap industrial raw materials.

No one expected that France was also resource-poor. The annexation of the Italian Area was only a nominal increase in France’s national power; in reality, it was more of a burden.

Not to mention, without the Italian Area, France’s resource shortage would not be as severe as it is now.

After hesitating for a moment, Franz made a decision: "Accelerate negotiations with the Russians. As long as the Russians are willing to deposit their gold reserves into the Austrian National Bank, we will accept their territorial collateral for the shortfall.

If the Tsarist government agrees to use ninety-percent of the funds to purchase Austrian goods, we’ll accept industrial raw materials as debt repayment."

Whether the loan is recoverable is no longer important. Since the Prusso Federation has made a choice, Austria cannot be without a response.

Furthermore, it was inevitable. Given the international credibility of the Tsarist government, who else would dare lend them money except Austria?

If the Vienna Government does not support the Russians, the war would be decided before it even starts.

Finance Minister Karl’s face changed dramatically as he hastily advised, "Your Majesty, the Russian financial situation is extremely bad. Even if they win the war, they will not have the ability to repay the money.

There is no problem with the gold collateral. But territorial collateral is completely unnecessary; Austria does not need these worthless lands now.

The division of Prusso Federation is nothing but a bad check. Now that the British have decided to support the Prusso Federation, there is also a high probability that the French will support them.

With England and France backing them, even if the Russians can win, they cannot destroy the Prusso Federation; at most, they can only recover the Polish Region, and we do not need these worthless lands."

Karl repeatedly emphasized "worthless lands," giving Franz a headache. Since the decolonization of North Africa, the Vienna Government’s high-level desire for expansion on the European Continent had faded.

It wasn’t that the land offered by the Russians for collateral was truly worthless. On the contrary, it was quite fertile; the main issue was the high costs involved.

With gritted teeth, Franz explained, "This is a strategic necessity; we need a Prusso-Russian mutual defeat, thus eliminating two potential threats.

Without providing funds to the Tsarist government, what can the Russians use to fight?

As for the issue of collateral, we can discuss it slowly with the Russians. We can first cheat the Tsarist government by saying that as long as they win the war, they can exchange the Prusso Federation territory.

For any native lands in the Germany Region, we can exchange at a ratio of 1:3, trying to get them to collateralize the Ukraine Region as much as possible.

If the Tsarist government insists on using the Bulgarian region as collateral, we’ll ask them to add on Constantinople. We can even allow them to redeem it, but interest must be compounded."

Finance Minister Karl worriedly said, "Given the Tsarist government’s credibility, it will be difficult to get them to honor the agreement. It might lead to even more disputes."

It’s not a "might be"; disputes are bound to arise. Given the Russian reputation, the likelihood of fulfilling promises proactively is almost nil; it will still depend on power in the end.

Franz was quite assured on this point. The Prusso Federation is not weak; the Russian Empire will be seriously weakened after the war.