NOVPUBAfter a pause, Napoleon IV nodded. "Indeed, it is not very good, the reply was too direct, and our allies might feel uneasy," he said.
"Why don’t you reorganize the language, talk more about the difficulties we face, and soothe their injured spirits?"
Karel Kadelitz was at a loss for words. No matter the response, it wouldn’t change the fact that the French government was playing the fisherman.
Perhaps before the outbreak of the war between England and Russia, the French government still had to consider their feelings, but now it was no longer necessary.
Even if England and Russia had grievances, that would be a matter for after the war.
The current international situation was clear: Austria supported the Russians, and France’s stance would directly affect the outcome of this war.
If France remained neutral, or supported Britannia, then the war could continue; if France supported Russia, Britannia would not be able to contend with the three major powers at the same time.
How could one give up such an opportunity to demand concessions?
To stimulate England and Russia was actually to make them offer a more sincere price, after all, people don’t always recognize their situation.
Prime Minister Terence Burke suggested, "Your Majesty, the war between England and Russia has broken out and it seems it won’t end any time soon; we should consider implementing the next strategy."
For the French Empire, extorting England and Russia could only be considered a petty gain.
The greatest benefit the war between England and Russia brought to France was the lifting of the shackles on them.
The only power left that could restrain France was Austria, but it was merely a check, not enough to frighten the French government.
Foreign Minister Karl Chardlets said, "We should still wait. The war between England and Russia has only just begun, and neither side has truly gone all out yet.
If our actions are too bold and touch their sensitive nerves, it’s very possible that England and Russia will cease hostilities first.
Just like in the Near East war some years ago, Austria wanted to unify the Germany Region, and the countries involved in the conflict stopped fighting first, did they not?
If the Austrians had restrained their emotions and waited until the Near East war was nearing its end before dispatching troops, the outcome might have been quite different."
The Vienna Government’s attempt to unify the Germany Region during the first Near East war failed, provoking intervention from various European countries, and in the end, they only managed to annex South German.
In Karel Kadelitz’s view, this was a ready-made negative example. If only they had waited a few more days and moved after the Russian Army had reached the gates of Constantinople, the result would have been completely different.
Economic Minister Elsa objected, "Austria’s failure to unify the Germany Region was not only due to intervention from European countries, but primarily because of the fierce opposition from the Kingdom of Prussia.
The Vienna Government did not have the confidence to fight a civil war, so they could only watch the Germany Region split, and even if they waited until the end, it would be the same.
Our situation is different now, we just want Prussia and Germany to cede a few coal mines, it’s not about annexing the two countries outright, and even if England and Russia are dissatisfied, they would endure it for the time being.
The only power capable of intervening is Austria, neither Prussia nor Germany has the courage to go to war with us, and I do not think the Vienna Government will fight us over Prussia and Germany, as it is not in their interest.
Once we create a fait accompli, the Austrians will most likely just rant, and the Foreign Ministry can step in to appease them.
In recent years, our economy has recovered quickly, but it is still somewhat difficult to surpass its peak period.
The main factor restricting our economic growth is the insufficient domestic supply and high prices of coal, which increase the cost of industrial production.
It may not be very intuitive to put it this way, so here’s a simple example:
After the outbreak of the war between England and Russia, the export trade of European countries has seen an increase, and just last month our total export trade volume increased by 0.7 percentage points compared to the previous year, reaching the highest growth rate in eight years.
But the total export trade of other European countries all exceeded 1 percentage point, and Austria’s export trade volume increased by at least 2 percentage points.
We’ve fallen behind again. It’s not that the domestic industrial sector isn’t trying; in fact, when it comes to making money, no one tries harder than the capitalists.
But there’s a shortage of coal in the country, and although Prussia and Germany have excess capacity, they hoard it, forcing us to spend more money to buy it.
They are a bunch of vampires, perched atop the heads of French industry and commerce, devouring our wealth.
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The difficulty in annexing Prussia and Germany is too great, even annexing one would bring big trouble.
Despite not having been battered by society, the shadow of the anti-French war still lingers.
To reduce risk, the French government quietly lowered their goal, subdividing the plan to annex the Prussia and Germany Region, preparing to first extort several mines from the two countries.
"Hoarding out of speculation" was just an excuse Elsa found, in fact, the rise in coal prices was only normal business behavior.
Capitalists wanted to maximize their profits and would not pass up any opportunity. After the outbreak of the England-Russia war, many commodity prices in Europe saw a slight increase.
However, French capitalists couldn’t stand it, originally prepared to make a fortune from the war, only to suddenly find the energy prices had also risen.
Expected profits of ten million francs were now reduced to nine million due to the energy price hike, which meant a loss of one million francs.
The French capitalists were naturally unwilling to share profits with others. To maximize profits, they all began exerting their influence, urging the government to seize the coal mines of the Prussia and Germany Region.
Foreign Minister Karl Chardlets shook his head, "Don’t forget those coal mines have owners. What if the Prussia and Germany government refuse our trade offers on the grounds of the sanctity of private property?
Going to war and seizing by force, are you sure they won’t dare to go to war with us?
We might let Belgium be, but the German Federation is not weak. Once that bunch of Sub-States unites, even we can’t take them down quickly.
If the war becomes a stalemate, the Austrians will take the opportunity to plunder, and Britannia and Russia will add fuel to the flames.
If it were only Austria, we could cope, but the problem is they will incite the countries of Europe to turn against us.
Even if the Imperial Army is formidable, it cannot match up against a united Europe. Once the war starts, we won’t be able to control the aftermath.
For safety’s sake, we’d better wait for Britain and Russia to really start fighting each other, forcing the countries of Europe to take sides.
Once the countries of Europe are split into two camps, we can then pressure the Prussia and Germany Region to concede. Even if the situation gets out of control, with the Alliance, we won’t be fighting alone."
Failure leads to growth. As France’s Foreign Minister, Karl Chardlets had a profound understanding of the root cause of France’s defeat in the Anti-French War—too few allies and too many enemies.
To avoid repeating mistakes, Karl Chardlets has always advocated stirring up the contradictions among European countries and dividing their relationships.
This England-Russia war also owes much to his contribution.
Upon hearing the Foreign Minister’s explanation, Napoleon IV’s eager heart cooled down. Having outgrown his years of youthful ignorance, Napoleon IV learned to weigh pros and cons.
"Karl is right, now is not the best time. What’s most important now is to continue promoting the progress of the England-Russia war.
Only when they have both sustained heavy losses can our plan to advance eastward proceed smoothly.
Let the Foreign Ministry stir up the Russians some more, tell the Tsarist Government that as long as they capture Herat, or the Wakhan Corridor, we will issue war bonds worth one billion francs for them."
Stirring the Russians was a necessity, as the British Government was too rational, and too difficult to cheat.
Once the British Army secures victory on the battlefield, driving out the Russians from the Afghan Region, the British Government will take the profits and withdraw.
The Tsarist Government would be different. Once they conquered the Afghan Region, the focus of the Russians’ strategy would shift to India.
Nobody could stop the Russians’ ambitions for India. On this issue, the British Government would not compromise, leaving both sides no choice but to clash to the end.
In this respect, France and Austria were in agreement, the Vienna Government was equally committed to supporting the Tsarist Government all the way to India with financial and military aid.
As for the concern that the Russians might dominate the Indian region after capturing it, such worries were entirely superfluous.
The Great Britain Empire of those days was not to be trifled with, and once they fought for their lives, it was enough to make any country take notice.
Given the capabilities of the Russians, taking India from the British was not something that could be accomplished overnight.
Prime Minister Terence Burke cautioned, "Your Majesty, the England-Russia war has already broken out. As an ally of the British, issuing bonds for the Russians is no longer appropriate."
Even cheating an ally has its methods. It’s all right to set traps in the dark, but open sabotage and backstabbing go against the rules of the game.
If word spreads, France’s international reputation will be utterly ruined, and no country will dare to ally with us.
Napoleon IV smiled faintly, "No matter, we just need to change our approach, and the British will have no reason to complain.
For instance, we issue one billion francs of commercial bonds for Austria, and then the Austrians lend that money to the Tsarist Government."
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