Holy Roman Empire

Affected by the environment, Austrian revolutionary groups moved overseas one after another, almost cutting off from the country.

The warriors who dare to return to the country to do things don't know where they have gone to contribute to the country's construction. Maybe the Vienna government will not have a record if they die.

The government doesn't keep records, the intelligence organizations certainly do.As an embarrassing emperor, Franz didn't want to see the records in the history books: strangling millions of rebellious parties.

This is not a joke. After so many years of emperor's career, even if the chaotic party killed by Franz did not have 100 million, it would not be much worse.Otherwise, how could Austria stabilize?

The Balkan Peninsula, which is a powder keg, did not explode; Lombardy and Venetia, which had always wanted to be independent, were silent; active and noisy Hungary became the most stable place in the empire.

Behind the stability, swords and swords are naturally indispensable.After cleaning these dangerous places again and again, all the ambitious and idiots who wanted to rebel were killed, and a new batch of ruling class was replaced, so that the country really stabilized.

To some extent, the Great Revolution of 1848 gave Austria a chance to be reborn from the ashes.Taking advantage of the opportunity of suppressing the rebellion, Franz was able to exchange blood for the ruling class.

The turmoil in the Balkans did not affect Austria, so Franz could naturally read books and newspapers leisurely, and Alexander II, who was far away in St. Petersburg, couldn't sit still.

Alexander II didn't care about the Greek coup, that was Austria's sphere of influence.But he couldn't help watching the Bulgarian rebellion.

Geographically speaking, Bulgaria is far away from the heart of the empire, and it is dispensable.But there is Constantinople next door, which immediately improves Bulgaria's status.

The tsarist government has a special affection for Constantinople. Over the years, Alexander II has invested in the city. Today, Constantinople has been reborn from the flames of war.

Relying on its geographical advantages, Constantinople once again became the largest and most prosperous city in the Near East, and it was also the financial and taxation center of the Tsarist government.

The outbreak of rebellion in Bulgaria is bound to affect the stability of Constantinople. If it is not extinguished quickly, the flames of war may burn out.

Throwing the battle report in his hand on the table, Alexander II roared: "They are all a bunch of idiots. It is a shame that a division's troops can't beat a group of mobs..."

There is no doubt that the situation on the front line is very grim.A Russian infantry division ran over to suppress the rebellion, only to be beaten to shame by the rebels.

Minister of War Kafukis lowered his head, and waited until Alexander II finished cursing before explaining: "Your Majesty, this Bulgarian rebel army is not simple.

According to the information received from the front line, the enemy is a regular army. Although it is still immature, it is still in order, and there is no confusion of ordinary rebels.

There must be someone behind this scene supporting them, otherwise their weapons and equipment and officers would not have fallen from the sky. "

Kafukis did not lie, the Bulgarian rebels did behave a bit like the regular army.It's just that they don't rely on the support of outsiders, but they have it themselves.

There is also the credit of the Russians. During the Near East War, a large number of Bulgarian guerrillas were recruited as cannon fodder.The unlucky ones who died passed away with the wind, and those who survived became veterans, and many high-ranking guerrillas turned into qualified officers.

After the battle is over, these people will naturally disarm and return to the fields.The tsarist government was poor, and they couldn't arrange for their own people well. The treatment of these second-class soldiers was even worse, and it was over with a symbolic bounty.

Except for a few high-level people who gained benefits, most of the guerrillas did not gain much, and naturally they did not have a good impression of the Tsarist government.

After the agreed division of land and land, most of the land fell into the hands of the Russian nobles stationed in Constantinople, and many Bulgarian people became serfs again.

After Alexander II's reforms, the land problem was solved by opening up wasteland.If no one is doing anything, the hearts of the people will settle down.

It's a pity that nationalist ideology has been rampant in Bulgaria, and the revolutionaries flickered for a while, which aroused the dissatisfaction in the hearts of these guerrilla veterans, and many of them revolutionized in a daze.

The Near East War has only been over a dozen years, and most of these people are only in their 40s and [-]s, and they can still fight with guns.With these backbones and a group of young men recruited, the Bulgarian rebel army was released in shock.

Some of the weapons and equipment were left over from the Russian army, and some were sponsored by Bulgarian "patriotic businessmen".

The combat effectiveness of the rebel army may not be stronger than that of the Russian army, but the morale of the army must be higher than that of the Russian army.The Russian army who went to counter the rebellion was unlucky, and dared to go to the wave of the peak morale of the rebel army.

If a few battles were fought, or if it was delayed for a while, the morale that was built up because of dissatisfaction with the tsarist government would be almost exhausted, and the rebels would be the best to deal with at that time.

Of course, the premise is that the rebels cannot win.If they win a few more times and convince them that victory is just around the corner and that an independent Bulgaria can be established immediately, it will probably be even more fierce.

Alexander II glared at him fiercely: "I don't want to listen to such nonsense, no matter what use it is, I must immediately put out the rebels.

If someone is playing tricks, just find out the mastermind behind the scenes, instead of complaining and complaining to me here, do you want me to find the mastermind behind the scenes myself? "

The Secretary of the Army, Kafukis, looked helpless. It is not his specialty to investigate the black hand behind the scenes. If you want to ask, you should ask the intelligence department!

Well, the tsarist government did not pay enough attention to intelligence work, did not spend a lot of effort to build it, and the intelligence organization was scattered and had many part-time jobs.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has an intelligence-gathering team, the Police Ministry has an intelligence team, and the Army Ministry also has an intelligence-gathering team. The division of powers is not clear, and it is often determined by the will of the chief officer.

"Your Majesty, the information we have received is very vague, and there are too many suspected countries.

The merchants who provided weapons and equipment to the Bulgarians came from the Ottoman Empire. Logically speaking, the Sudanese government is very suspicious.However, the Bulgarians and the Ottoman Empire had a deep hatred, and it was impossible for the two sides to cooperate.

We inspected the weapon system, and all of them are equipped with the standard equipment of arcane weapons. Besides us, Austria, Greece, Montenegro, and the Federal Empire of Germany are also equipped with these weapons.

These small countries can be ruled out, it is impossible for them to plan this conspiracy, the suspicion of the Austrians is not small.However, we have just joined forces with the Vienna government to attack the Ottoman Empire, and they shouldn't be playing tricks at this time.

Later we investigated the source of funds of these businessmen and found that it was provided by a French bank.But the French didn't need to stir up trouble, and they didn't have enough interests. They had no reason to support the Bulgarian Revolutionary Party. "

After hearing this explanation, Alexander II also felt dizzy.They are all suspects, but they can all be overthrown. Who knows who the real black hand is?

Foreign Secretary Chris Basham asks of the difference: "Why aren't there Britons?"

Chris Basham couldn't help but be surprised, usually in this kind of thing, shouldn't all the big countries be withdrawn, why are there fewer British people?

Kafukis explained: "No, it's just that the suspicion is relatively small. The ship responsible for the transportation was British. The ship departed from the port of Karasu in the Ottoman Empire and was sent directly to the port of Burgas and handed over to the rebels.

Britain, France and Austria have all been involved, and the businessman who provided weapons and equipment to the Bulgarians has disappeared. Our Ministry of War is really incapable of making a judgment. "

This is a muddled account, full of suspicions, and smoke bombs everywhere.It's just that compared with the first aid, this weapon aid exposed more information.

Alexander II slammed the table and made a decision: "Continue to investigate secretly, and at the same time announce to the public that the Bulgarian rebellion was planned by the Ottoman Empire. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a note to the Sudanese government to make them responsible for it."

Persimmons need to be pinched softly. The Russian Empire is no longer as domineering as it used to be.

The best result is to let the real culprit become the Ottoman Empire. Otherwise, Britain, France or Austria will be found, what will you ask the tsarist government to do?

Of course, it is also very important to investigate secretly and find out who the enemy is, but it is impossible to lift the cover, lest the situation be brought to an end.

Not only the Russians are investigating, but the Austrian intelligence organization is not idle either.Since Black Hand's second aid to the Bulgarian rebels, many things have been hidden.

First of all, it is impossible for such a large amount of arms to leave no clues, and it was quickly determined to come from the Field Arsenal.

Originally used by the Austrian Army, it was decommissioned more than a month ago, then sold to a Deklaas arms dealer, and flowed into Bulgaria via the Ottoman Empire.

In this era, arms exports are not so strict, especially ordinary weapons such as second-hand rifles, which do not need to be carefully reviewed at all.

However, being able to complete a series of operations in such a short period of time obviously required some strength.After checking these things, many things were exposed.

Looking at the information in his hands, Franz couldn't help but mourn for the Russians.It's good that the real culprit can't be found out. If it is found out, the tsarist government probably won't be able to sleep.

The British took the lead and were responsible for contacting transportation, the French provided funds, and the Austrian capitalists were responsible for providing arms.

Well, it was the British who really contributed. The total price of this batch of arms was less than [-] Aegis, which was not worth mentioning to the financial predators.

This is reflected in the fact that capital has no borders. Franz secretly raised his vigilance and decided to strengthen the monitoring of private capital.

It seems that in this operation, the Austrian capitalists participated very little, nothing more than promoting the arms transaction. From the beginning to the end, there was only one cannon fodder arms dealer.

But if you investigate deeply, you will find that someone has hooked up with British and French capital.Although Franz had expected this kind of thing, he still felt uncomfortable.

Austria's capital is insufficient, and British and French capital has been used in the development process, so it is inevitable to have connections in the capital circles.

Now for the benefit, they can quietly cooperate with the British, so in the future, they will not care if they betray Austria when they encounter greater interests.

Of course, things are two-sided. The British can buy Austrian capitalists, and Franz can also buy British capitalists. The loyalty of this group has always been the lowest.

Vigilance is all about vigilance. In addition to increasing the surveillance of big capitalists, Franz still did not take any targeted actions.

Anyway, it's still within the rules.Excellent arms dealers sell their weapons to their enemies. They did not directly provide door-to-door service to the Bulgarian rebels, which proved that they could still be rescued.

Chapter 113 No Bottom Line Operation

After figuring out the ins and outs of the matter, Franz watched the fun with peace of mind.Deep down, there is a moment of silence for the Bulgarian Revolutionary Party, which launched a wrong uprising at the wrong time.

If the time is changed, maybe the tsarist government will compromise.For example, during the Russo-Prussian War a few years ago, taking the opportunity to launch an uprising, and then mixing with the victors, they had already succeeded independently.

It is a pity that the Russian Empire was too powerful at that time, and people in the country were stable, so everyone did not think that the Russian rule could be overthrown.

After the success of Poland's independence, it stimulated the development of the national independence movement in Russia.Bulgarian nationalism has only spread in recent years, and the agricultural crisis has magnified the contradictions.

The basis for the revolution is in place, but now is still not a good time.No matter how you look at it, it is not a wise choice to single out the Russian Empire with a corner.

Even if the Near East War broke out, it would be better than the present time, at least one more ally.

The British who secretly supported the Bulgarian revolution did not take the lead at all. The capitals of France and Austria were purely for profit, and their goals were achieved by igniting the flames of war.

Regardless of whether this excuse will be enough, anyway, there are still many fools who believe it.Watching a group of speculators think that food prices are going to rise, and frantically joined the ranks of raising food prices, Franz said silently: "You have committed evil, you can't live!"

If you can't find the receiver in time to withdraw, and the speculators who join in will count as one, and no one wants to escape.

It was hard to trap them in, how could the consortium let them go?Once they set foot on the pirate ship, these people can only bite the bullet and go on, trying their best to advocate "the price of food will rise and expand the influence of the Balkan situation."

Recently, there has been a lot of good news, such as: Argentina suffered floods, India suffered locust plagues...

There are pictures and the truth, but no one told them that even if these countries have no food harvest, it has nothing to do with European birds.

Argentina in this era was not a major food exporter, and it did not export food to Europe at all, nor did it import food from Europe.Even if some areas are affected by disasters and rely on other areas for good harvests, there will be no shortage of food.

Not to mention India, food shortages are useless, can they afford it?With such a large local population, it doesn't matter if a few starve to death. Don't expect the British to provide relief.

In short, any disaster in any part of the world will appear in European newspapers.This meeting is really "a scholar who knows the world without going out", and everyone suddenly finds out that the world is so big and there are so many countries.

It is true that there is a "food shortage" in the world as a whole, but this does not affect the outbreak of the agricultural crisis.People who are short of food are poor ghosts who simply cannot afford to buy food. No matter how much food is produced in the international market, it has nothing to do with them.

Chicken soup jokes are not popular now, and there is not even a living environment.If you think that this is a big market that no one pays attention to, and you foolishly jump in and develop it, no matter how big your family business is, you can go bankrupt.

The initial investment does not make money to cultivate the market. Some persist for several years, and some last for more than ten years. Franz has never heard of those who waited for hundreds of years.

Capitalists are not stupid, if they could do it, they would have done it long ago.For example: Africans don't wear shoes, so they go to sell shoes.

No one studies whether the locals can afford it. Even if they can afford it these days, it is useless. The colonists are used to robbing.

Although the benefits of killing sheep are not as high as long-term sheep shearing, if you don’t kill sheep, you will starve to death now, so why worry about the future?

The 19th century was the darkest and cruelest era. Everyone was struggling to survive. Only those who survived would have a future. If you look too far, you will become a martyr.

After a series of bombings, many people have come to the conclusion that the world is short of food, and panic buying of food broke out in many areas.

These have little impact on Austria, where no one thinks there will be food shortages, despite concerns about rising food prices.If the world's largest exporter of agricultural products is short of food, how else can it survive?

After stabilizing the price in the domestic grain retail market, Franz pretended not to see the changes in the stock market and futures market.

If you want to speculate, you have to bear the corresponding consequences.These fields are essentially a gamble.They have all turned into wool, so they still have to run away?

In order to reduce the number of people involved, at the end of 1873, the Austrian Securities Regulatory Department raised the capital access threshold, rejecting small transactions with a capital of less than 500 Aegis.

The power of capital is huge. The grain market, which was originally overcapacity, forced them to operate through capital, creating a situation of shortage.

This is a good thing for grain exporting countries, at least someone will take over this year's grain.It doesn't matter when the international grain market will collapse.

To some extent, the tsarist government should thank the black hands behind the scenes for allowing them to survive this year's financial crisis.Although the export price of grain is not high, it is sold out anyway.

Let’s talk about future problems in the future. Besides, isn’t Austria trying to reduce production? Maybe the market will return to normal in a few years.

Moreover, the war is also a big consumer of food. If the Ottoman Empire is beaten up, there will be no need to worry about overcapacity in the next two or three years.

Without any hesitation, the Russian army that was originally intended to be used on the Ottoman battlefield was now thrown into the Bulgarian battlefield by the tsarist government.

The vigorous Bulgarian Uprising lasted for more than two months before falling into a trough. The rebel army was forced to abandon the city and go to the mountains to continue fighting.

The Russian-Austrian alliance was not over, and Franz did not support the Bulgarian rebels despite his desire to drive the Russians out of the Balkans.

Of course, whether there is arms smuggling or not is none of his business.Anyway, arms smugglers have no human rights. If the Russians have the ability to catch them, they can handle them themselves, and the Vienna government will not intervene.

Vienna Palace, Foreign Minister Weisenberg: "Your Majesty, the special envoy of the Sudanese government is here. They want to resolve the dispute between the two countries through negotiations."

Talk if you can't win, this is the habit in continental Europe.Especially for a big country, it is simply not realistic to destroy the country. Otherwise, Napoleon III's annexation of the Italian region would not cause an uproar.

Do the Habsburgs and the Ottoman Empire have anything to talk about?From the perspective of family hatred, there is naturally no need for negotiation, and both parties can't wait to kill each other.

From the perspective of interests, it is natural to talk about it first.Franz is not a mercenary, so he made a decisive decision: "Don't talk about it!"

Strategically, it is necessary to create an enemy for Austria. Who else is suitable besides the Ottoman Empire?The European continent is a mess, and once you rush in, you will be trapped.

It would be great to beat up the Ottoman Empire, attacking a notorious enemy, you can stand on the commanding heights of public opinion, and you don't have to worry about being pushed back.

The waning Ottoman Empire, even if it completed the modernization reform, was still completely abused by Austria.This is determined by comprehensive national strength, and there is no possibility of making up for it.

If Britain and France are willing to give blood to the Ottoman Empire, Franz welcomes it, which means that the two sides can entangle for a longer time.

It is best to let European countries think that Austria is caught in the quagmire of war and cannot extricate itself, so everyone can feel at ease to fight.In case he kept his eyes on Vienna, Franz didn't dare to play small tricks.

"Send someone to urge the Russians to speed up their preparations. This war must be launched in March. If it doesn't work, just let them send soldiers, and we can provide everything else."

Franz will not discount the promised strategic materials.Pulling the Russians together is mainly to share international pressure and create opportunities for the Prussians by the way.

If Russia and Austria are not restrained, how could the Berlin government have the courage to attack Poland?Of course, William I will certainly not be as extreme as Napoleon III, and Franz guesses that he will probably inherit the Polish throne first.

There are precedents for co-kings in Europe, including Sweden and Norway, which is acceptable to everyone.Take control of the Polish government first, and then slowly realize the annexation plan, the difficulty will be greatly reduced.

Franz used the same plan to embezzle the Kingdom of Bavaria, and now Bavaria has only one name left, which is actually a province of Austria.

Not only the Kingdom of Bavaria, but even several other states did not run away.Whether they admit it or not, they are only equivalent to a highly autonomous region.All interests are connected with Austria, and the Austrian government is the central government of Shinra.

This is the original time and space, and the Kingdom of Prussia has also done it.It's just that because of religion and legal authority, the Berlin government has insufficient control over the South German region, and Bavaria still has its own system.