Chapter 249
"One died here!"
"Get the body away and arrange for cremation as soon as possible!"
...
In the shouting, numbness and despair were also revealed. A large number of people die every day, and everyone will become numb when they die.
Unlike the previous deaths of the wounded, this time it was a plague, and even medical staff were not immune to the plague. Even a major general in the French army entered the crematorium because of this.
Security? Unfortunately, the protective measures in this era are very primitive, and basic disinfection cannot be done.
In the corner of the quarantine area, there are still the screams of sick patients from time to time. This place is already a Jedi that everyone fears. The medical staff come every day, and they just hurriedly distribute the medicine and then leave quickly.
Check the condition? This does not exist, how many doctors are there in the French army?
What's more, there is no specific medicine for the plague at all, and the medicines used now have a more psychological comfort effect on patients than actual treatment.
The soldiers who were responsible for distributing rations were even more shunned here. They put the food at the door, shouted, and then left quickly.
"Adolf, are you still holding on?"
"No problem, thank you Alfonso, I feel a lot better, I should survive this time."
"Have a good rest, you'll be fine after you get through it."
Such dialogue, Alfonso speaks many times a day. As the first infected with the plague, Alfonso was lucky to survive.
As usual, he had escaped a wave of plague, and God would not call him again for a short time, and then he had to stay as a nurse.
According to the doctor, he still needs to stay in the hospital to continue observation and treatment to ensure that nothing is wrong before he can be discharged.
In fact, it was to let him stay and work as a coolie, such as taking care of the sick, distributing food to them, and disposing of corpses. These jobs, which everyone feared, fell upon him.
For the sake of the extra salary, Alfonso happily took over the job that everyone feared.
Alfonso is a veteran. He was the first French army to enter the Balkans. He came with him, and half of them have fallen.
The dead, for veterans on the battlefield, have long been fearless. Too many people die every day on the battlefield, and it is common for blood to fly.
In his opinion, helping here is much easier than going to the battlefield. Only need to take care of more than thirty patients a day, and then there are free people.
After staying for a long time, Alfonso found that this place is far less scary than the outside world imagined. He stayed here for more than a month, and in total, five died and seven recovered.
...
The French command in Constantinople, Ambroise brings bad news.
"Your Excellency Commander, the Russian attack has made our epidemic prevention work fail, and the spread of the plague is inevitable!"
This news did not exceed the expectations of the French commander-in-chief Perlisier. When the plague broke out, the Russians would certainly not pass up this opportunity.
In addition to the French army in Constantinople, there were also citizens who remained. The Ottoman Empire was their ally, and it was impossible for Pelissier to drive all the people of Constantinople out of the city.
The denser the population, the more difficult it is to prevent plague. Coupled with the Russian attack, it was even worse.
Perissier asked calmly, "Tell me about the plague situation in the city?"
Ambroise said with some sadness: "This plague may have come from cholera in London not long ago. Plague also broke out on the Crimean Peninsula, and the symptoms are similar to ours.
It's just strange that the plague that broke out in Constantinople is very contagious, much stronger than other areas. Our preliminary judgment is that it is transmitted by mosquitoes, flies, and other insects.
The mortality rate can only be regarded as average in the plague, the young and the strong can resist the past, the mortality rate will not exceed 15%, and the mortality rate of the old and the weak is much higher.
The most serious are the wounded. Once infected with the plague, they will basically die. "
Pelissier could only greet the British once in his heart. The cholera outbreak in London was not serious. The epidemic was quickly brought under control and did not spread in an all-round way. Instead, they suffered.
...
London
Foreign Secretary Thomas said solemnly: "Your Excellency, Prime Minister, I have just received news that the French army in Constantinople has not been able to control the plague, and it has now begun to spread.
Last night, the Austrian ambassador to France, who was received by Napoleon III at the Palace of Versailles, had a secret conversation for more than two hours.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs analyzed that the secret talks may be related to the war in the Near East. The changes in Constantinople made the French lose confidence in the war.
The Paris government could unilaterally end the war with the Russians, and now they are sending the message of peace talks to the Russians through the Austrians.
According to the information we have collected, the Austrian ambassador in London has been very active recently, and he has been in frequent contact with the leaders of the peace faction in the country. It seems that the Vienna government intends to mediate the war. "
After a moment of contemplation, George Hamilton-Gordon asked: "It's not surprising that the French want to end this war.
What is the reason for the Foreign Ministry's judgment that the Austrians want to mediate the war? From an interest point of view, the longer the war lasted, the better it would be for Austria. "
International political interests will always be the decisive factor. The continuation of the war in the Near East will not only consume the strength of Britain, France and Russia, but Austria can also make a fortune from the war.
From the point of view of interests, the Vienna government has no reason to let
The three kingdoms ended the war ahead of schedule.
Thomas answered confidently: "The Austrians don't want us to really decide the winner. Although the Vienna system has collapsed, the Austrian government has not given up on the European balance strategy.
Whether the Russians win, or we win, Austria's detachment will no longer exist, and a new round of international struggle will inevitably break out.
The continuation of the war in the Near East was in Austria's interest, but the final result was uncontrollable.
In this war in the Near East, Austria has already gained too many benefits, and now it is urgent to digest it. Metternich's style has always been to seek stability, and now it's normal to take it as soon as possible. "
Prime Minister Henry nodded. Compared with the national strategy, some economic benefits are not worth mentioning. Sandwiched between France and Russia, the Austrian government will not be able to implement the continental balance policy.
"What are your plans?" Prime Minister Henry asked
Thomas replied: "Your Excellency, the war in the Near East has come to a point where our plan to contain the Russians has failed.
Going on, it doesn't really make sense other than increasing casualties.
Our advantage is being at sea, going to land and fighting the Russians, only the idiots of the predecessors could do it.
In the future, our strategy is to provoke the contradictions between Russia, France, Russia, Austria and Russia. The reason is that the forces of European countries contain the Russians, and we only need to contain the Russians at sea. "
War always teaches lessons, and the Near East War led the London government to conclude that it would be idiotic to go out on land and fight the Russians.
Use your own shortness to attack the enemy's longness.
It's enough for this kind of thing to happen once, and they won't make the same mistake twice.
...
Vienna
Looking at the map of the Balkans, Franz was in a daze.
It seems that this time it is a big game. If the Russians really annex these areas, not only Britain and France will have a headache in the future, but Austria will also have trouble.
Don't look at the government meeting, Franz repeatedly emphasized the importance of the Russian-Austrian alliance. It was only a political need, and he did not do anything about it.
For example, Franz is now thinking about how to limit the Russians. To attract the attention of Britain and France, the Russians occupying Constantinople were sufficient.
The Istanbul area is also very wealthy. Except for Constantinople, this area gathers most of the industry of the Ottoman Empire.
Even if it was a heavy loss due to the war, as long as the foundation is there, it won't take long to recover.
If all fell into the hands of the Russians, then after Alexander II completed the serfdom reform, Mao Xiong's strength would be too strong.
The maid whispered: "Your Majesty, Mr. Metternich is here."
Franz said lightly: "Please come in."
...
Metternich reminded: "Your Majesty, the Ottoman Empire has no ability to stop the expansion of the Russians. According to the current situation, it will not be long after the war that the Russians will be able to annex the Balkans.
In this case, there is no need for us to fight hard against the Russians. The bigger the territory they annexed, the more vigilant they would arouse in European countries, and one bad thing would become the public enemy of Europe.
If the tsarist government can't handle all this, Napoleon the Great is their example, and we don't need to worry too much. "
Franz pointed to the map of the Balkans and said: "You see, this is the scope of control of various countries. According to the Russian-Austrian Secret Treaty, all the territories that belong to us have been obtained.
In the remaining areas, except for Bulgaria, which was controlled by the Russians, the Principality of Montenegro was also driven back to its hometown by the coalition forces, and other areas were in the hands of the coalition forces.
If nothing else, these areas will be handed over to the Ottoman Empire after the war, but we all know that as long as Constantinople falls, the Sudanese government has no power to control these areas.
The Russians wanted to annex these areas with little difficulty. Because of the covenant, we can't get involved.
Once the Russians took control of these areas, our pressure on the Balkans increased. Wouldn't it be better if these areas were given a different owner and kept out of the Russians? "
Metternich asked in surprise: "Your Majesty, are you going to hand over these territories to the French?"
Franz explained: "It's not that I want to hand over these areas to the French, but Napoleon III needs to take these territories and give an account to the people at home.
After fighting for two or three years, hundreds of thousands of people died, and a lot of military expenditure was spent. In the end, nothing was gained. Can the proud French people bear it?
Now that Constantinople is still in the hands of the French, as long as they don't let go, the Russians won't be able to take it so easily.
The tsarist government doesn't want to fight anymore, they just need to occupy Constantinople and give an explanation to the people at home.
Would it be more in our interest if we all had secret contact and let France and Russia get what they need? "
After pondering for a while, Metternich said: "Your Majesty, I can't answer you this question. If we push it, France and Russia are very likely to reach this deal secretly.
But where are our interests? After this battle, the Russians will not start a war in the Balkans for at least ten years.
Introducing the French to check and balance the Russians is only an ideal situation. It is more likely that France and Russia will ease relations or even further alliances. "
Franz nodded and said, "Yes, in theory, France and Russia have no core interests.
In conflict, as long as there is a common enemy, the two countries are very likely to form an alliance.
But under the current international situation, who is qualified to become the common enemy of France and Russia?
The answer is clear to everyone, there will be no choice but the British, and the London government will not watch this happen.
In case the London government makes a mistake, the big deal is that we join this alliance. "
...