Chapter 507: The Correction Power of History

The cold wind is blowing, and St. Petersburg is already chilly in September. In the Winter Palace, Alexander II is still dealing with government affairs, and the wrinkles on his forehead tell the vicissitudes of the years.

After the Russian Empire changed from prosperity to decline, Alexander II had a strong sense of mission and did not allow himself the slightest indulgence.

A man in his 40s and 50s approached and whispered, "Your Majesty, this is top-secret news from Vienna."

After receiving the sealed information and confirming the imprint, Alexander II pointed to the secret document and said slowly, "Got it, Ferrens, go out!"

What can be called top-secret information is definitely something big happened. Alexander II has no hobby to share information with people around him, and it has nothing to do with trust. This is just the monarch's instinct.

Opened the secret file, the content has already happened in half a month. There is no way. There is no radio these days. If you use wired telegrams to spread the news, how can you hide the Austrians?

It's even worse to use a password. It's equivalent to telling people clearly that there is a problem with this news, come and check!

Telegrams in this era were charged by the number of words, and ordinary telegrams only had a few words. Obviously, information transmission cannot be so hasty. If the meaning is not clearly expressed, it will be a disaster.

It only took half a month to go from Vienna to St. Petersburg, and this efficiency is already the limit of the times.

As time passed by, the wrinkles on Alexander II's forehead became tighter and tighter. After finally reading the secret document, a sigh came out slowly.

At this moment Alexander II was confused, and things did not go according to his plan. The Vienna government did not place as much emphasis on monetary hegemony as he expected.

Of course, it was also possible that a smoke bomb was released, but he did not dare to gamble. The consequences of this misjudgment could be disastrous.

It is impossible to abandon the plan. If sufficient capital cannot be obtained from the outside world this time, the development of the Russian Empire will be affected.

It doesn't matter in normal times, as long as the development is slow, it will be better, and the foundation can be laid more firmly.

Not now, the enemy won't give them that much time. If the Russian Empire cannot increase its strength in the shortest time, it will be destroyed before they develop.

Don't think that the Russian Empire is still a giant, but there are too many enemies around it, and one family can't eat them. If more than a dozen families swarm up, it's not necessarily.

If it fails again, the prestige accumulated by the Russian Empire over hundreds of years will be lost in one fell swoop. The best result is to survive like the Ottoman Empire.

This is a dead end. If it falls to the British, it can get financial assistance, but it is very likely to lose Austria, the most important ally; to continue to maintain the Russian-Austrian alliance, there is no way to solve the financial problem.

If Russia wants to win the next war, Austria's support is crucial, at least if the Austrians do not fall to Prussia. This is a geopolitical decision, and Britain and France have to lag behind on this issue.

The Russian-Austrian alliance is still easy to manage, and it can get Austria's unconditional support without paying a price. If there is no covenant, it will use interests to speak.

A voice deep inside told him: Be careful, things are not that simple.

In order to dismantle the Russian-Austrian alliance and establish the currency hegemony of the pound, the British were naturally the reason to bid. But what if the goal is achieved? Who knows if the British will default?

A treaty is often just a piece of waste paper. What if the British didn't perform, or if there was a discount in the process?

It’s hard to take back the water, and once you take this step, it’s hard to go back. It is easy to dismantle the Russian-Austrian alliance, but it is difficult to build it again.

Alexander II had anti-Austrian tendencies, which were based on the strength of the Russian Empire. Now that the Russian Empire has declined, the Russo-Austrian alliance has become crucial.

Now he somewhat understands why Nicholas I insisted on establishing the Russian-Austrian alliance. The existence of this alliance is not only to capture Constantinople, but also to guarantee the strategic security of the Russian Empire.

As long as this alliance exists, there is no fear of foreign invasion of European territories. Even now, before the covenant was lifted, Prussia would never dare to attack them first.

After the failure of the Prussian-Russian War, Russia was able to successfully pass through the dangerous period, and the role of the Russian-Austrian alliance was also the most important factor.

After the establishment of the Russian-Austrian alliance, both countries have gained huge benefits. Russia successfully expanded in the Balkans, capturing the coveted Constantinople; Austria expanded in the Balkans and annexed South Germany to rebuild the Shinra Empire.

If desired, Alexander II could also acquire the Dardanelles through a territorial exchange and control the passage to the Mediterranean.

At the beginning of his succession, he would definitely try to make this territorial deal with Austria and expand Russia's power to the Mediterranean.

Now there are no more unrealistic fantasies. It is easy to enter the Mediterranean, but difficult to gain a foothold.

If it wasn't for the establishment of the British, French, and Austrian Tripartite Alliance, and the British were pushed out, why would Russia have a foothold in the Mediterranean?

...

The more you think about it, the harder it is to make up your mind. It is absolutely impossible to have no money, and the Russian-Austrian alliance is also very important, which is destined to be a difficult choice.

In fact, Alexander II did not have many choices at all. Whether the Russian-Austrian alliance could be maintained or not was not only up to him to decide, but the position of the Vienna government was equally important.

If the Austrian doesn't want to renew his contract, then he

If it does not cooperate with the British, the alliance will also go bankrupt.

It's just that Franz wants to save face. When the Russian-Austrian alliance was established, Austria was in a weak period. To some extent, the Russians pulled Austria.

Because of its shame, the Vienna government gave the outside world the impression that it has always maintained the Russian-Austrian alliance, and it has no intention of getting into trouble.

This illusion caused Alexander II to make a misjudgment. Only with this test, I want to raise its own price through Britain and France, and seek more loans from the Vienna government.

As a result, the first step was taken out, and now I am in an embarrassing situation. The Vienna government seems to be outraged and does not play cards at all.

Alexander II's headache, Franz didn't know, he was still bothered. The situation in Mexico finally collapsed, and within a week of the French withdrawal, Massimiliano I lost control of the country.

Now Queen Carlotta has returned to Europe for help, failed to convince the French, and has now returned to Vienna.

That's all it takes to ask for help, anyway, there are benefits. It is a pity that most of the property in Mexico is mortgaged to the French, and Massimiliano I did not have much leverage at all.

There was no money to recruit mercenaries. The lessons of history taught Franz that if the emperor was so poor, there would be basically no good results.

Franz will not go to the muddy waters of Mexico. Let Queen Carlotta persuade Massimiliano I to abdicate, but instead he was educated, and Franz was so angry that he left on the spot.

There is no way to communicate with people with abnormal thinking, what "the people of Mexico need..."? In Franz's view, the Mexican people are now eager to send Massimiliano I to the guillotine.

There is no such thing as talking nonsense with your eyes open. If at the beginning of his succession, Massimiliano I still had a chance to turn the tide, and now it would be impossible for anyone to go up.

The patience of the people has been exhausted. After so many years of reform, they have only stayed on paper, and they have taken it for granted: policies that benefit the country and the people have turned into policies that harm the country and the people in the end.

Having become a lonely emperor, Franz didn't know what to say.

With no support in Austria, Queen Carlotta went to other European countries for help. Don't even think about it, Franz knew that this was impossible.

There is no benefit, who wants to go to the muddy waters of Mexico. The French have learned from the past, and everyone should think twice.

Franz is now waiting for the rebels to break through Mexico City, and then lead Massimiliano I back home, even if it is over.

This time will not be too long, as soon as the French army withdrew, the rebels kicked off the big counter-offensive. It is better to expect the Mexican government army to suppress the rebellion than to expect the rebels to break out in infighting and torn apart in the internal conflict.

Now the Mexican rebel army is also full of internal contradictions, mixing in a large number of conservatives and racists. As long as these contradictions are detonated, they will be torn apart immediately.

But before that, they have a common goal to get Massimiliano I out of the way. When this goal is achieved, Mexico will start a century-long infighting.

It is worth mentioning that many of the leaders of the rebel army were from the royalists and constitutionalists, and even the hero who supported Maximilian in the first place.

Being able to turn them all into a revolutionary party, Franz had to admit that Massimiliano I was still capable. There are few emperors who have achieved this in the history of the world.

But these people won't be complacent for long. When the revolution succeeds, it will be their turn to be unlucky. If they were doing well, where would the Habsburgs' faces go?

Massimiliano's rubbish work in Mexico will only make them worse, and someone must set off to save face a little.

The original time and space group was not a climate, and they fell into infighting just after taking power. Now Franz is just pushing it. Let the warlord melee come early, and expand the sphere of influence by the way.

No, it cannot be said to be coming early, but it should be the corrective force of history, allowing history to return to its original track.

Because of Franz's butterfly effect, the French invested more power, allowing the Mexican Empire to persist for a few more years.