Chapter 949 Two Fools

Maradin did not want war, let alone see the scene of rivers of blood, but he had to start the war with his own hands.

In addition, he still felt a little guilty, ashamed of himself, his friends, and France.

However, his official career was not smooth, but his poetic career was smooth. The country was unlucky, but the poet was lucky. During this period, Maladin created a series of romantic elegy.

In fact, he quite liked the city of Vienna. The artistic and cultural atmosphere here was stronger and purer than that of Paris at that time.

Maladin couldn't bear to let the war engulf this place, but he couldn't betray his motherland. He only hoped that the emperor of the Austrian Empire would not insist on his own way.

Hofburg Palace, Hall of Mirrors.

Ferdinand I was dangling his two short legs on the throne. He didn't like the guests in front of him very much.

However, as Emperor Ferdinand I had to personally receive two foreign ambassadors, Viscount Stratford and Maladin finally met the rumored mentally retarded emperor.

Before arriving, Viscount Stratford had already decided that he would tease and humiliate Austria's retarded emperor like those famous envoys in history.

However, when he actually entered the hall of mirrors and looked at the high-ranking person, his heart beat faster and his throat became tight unconsciously.

No matter how funny Ferdinand I looked, Viscount Stratford couldn't laugh, and he didn't even dare to look at him. He just wanted to complete his mission quickly and leave.

In fact, Viscount Stratford is not a person who has never seen the world. He is a monarch of various German states, a sultan of the Ottoman Empire, and a barbaric chief of an African tribe.

Those people may be shrewd, cunning, powerful, or cruel, but Viscount Stratford has always been able to deal with them calmly, just treating them as a group of clowns.

However, at this time he felt pressure and the fear of death.

Grand Justice Franz Karl stood next to Ferdinand I with a shotgun and looked around for the target.

Viscount Stratford wanted to yell and tell the other party not to let fools play with guns.

But he didn't have the courage, for fear that he would attract a bullet to himself.

Viscount Stratford could only choose to lower his head and read loudly, hoping to end this unpleasant journey as soon as possible.

It's just that people will inevitably make mistakes when they are nervous, and once they start making mistakes, they will continue to make mistakes.

"My stupid brother, why did the British send a stammer as their ambassador?"

"My poor brother, you can be an emperor, why can't you be an ambassador if you stutter?"

"It seems to make sense, but his German is so poor, I might as well read it myself."

"This is easy to handle."

Viscount Stratford, who was lowering his head and reciting fiercely, suddenly felt that his vision went dark, and a figure just happened to shine down from the royal steps.

He looked up just in time to see a man with thinning hair standing in front of him holding a gun, and he was immediately frightened and took two steps back.

Viscount Stratford immediately realized his gaffe and coughed twice to cover up his embarrassment.

"Give me."

Franz Karl said in his own extremely broken English.

"ah?"

Viscount Stratford was a little confused.

Seeing that the other party did not understand what he meant, Franz Karl had to use his not very clever brain to reorganize the language.

"Throw me the paper in your hand."

"Throw?"

Viscount Stratford looked around, and there were Austrian royal guards everywhere. He wasn't sure if he would be able to leave Vienna alive after doing such a disrespectful act of "throwing".

After all, under British propaganda, Austria is an extremely barbaric country, and like Russia, it still uses eunuchs.

Although it was a rumor, even if it was a lie a hundred times, it would make people full of doubts, so Viscount Stratford was frightened by his own imagination at this time.

On the other hand, Archduke Franz Karl did not notice the abnormality of Viscount Stratford.

"Throw it! Come here!"

Maladin on the side did not have much prejudice against the somewhat eccentric Grand Duke in front of him. Although Austria was also home to a group of monsters and monsters under the propaganda of the French government, he personally believed that seeing is believing.

"The Grand Duke does not seem to have any ill intentions."

Maladin said with a smile, hoping that his smile would comfort his frightened companions.

However, the reality is that Viscount Stratford has something evil in his mind, and he cannot believe the kindness of the French. He subconsciously thinks that this man has a smile and has evil intentions.

"I won't be fooled."

Viscount Stratford thought, but the other party in front of him directly asked for credentials, and he had to give it, but throwing it over was not an option.

At this time, Viscount Stratford suddenly had an idea and thought of a good way, a way that could make both parties decent.

He stood on tiptoes and raised the document above his head with both hands. Archduke Franz Karl also squatted down and took the document.

But at this moment, there was only a "bang" sound, and Viscount Stratford felt a bolt of lightning flash across his eyes. He was stunned for a while and turned around to find that a photographer was taking a picture of him.

The flash of lightning just now was actually the strong light emitted by the burning aluminum and magnesium powder in the fire flash held by the photographer's assistant.

Aluminum-magnesium mixture can also be used as illumination bombs and flash bombs, but due to technical limitations, it can only be equipped with some special forces at this time.

At this time in history, magnesium had not been used on a large scale, and there was no method to produce magnesium in large quantities. Therefore, although the price was not high, it was expensive but not marketable.

Franz was very clear about the future direction. Steel, aluminum, and magnesium are called the three major metals, and their status in later generations can be seen.

As for the method of producing magnesium, it is actually very simple, that is, electrolysis, which is similar to the method of large-scale production of aluminum.

So after Siemens' new generator was completed, the problems of aluminum and magnesium were completely solved.

However, even without the generator, Austrian scientists also reversed the thermal reduction method.

It's just that the technology is not yet mature, but it is enough for military and photographic purposes.

In history, this kind of "fire flash" was not invented until 1887, so Viscount Stratford could not have seen such a thing. He just subconsciously associated the white light with the explosion.

Viscount Stratford suddenly felt a pain in his chest, his head sank, and the world almost turned upside down, shouting to the sky.

"I'm shot! Ugh. Ah!"

Viscount Stratford was seen swaying on the spot like a drunk, and then, as if replaying in slow motion, he spun around in place and fell backwards like a puppet without a soul.

After falling to the ground, his feet twitched. The expression on his face was even richer, his neck tilted, his mouth slightly opened, and his tongue stuck out.

Maladin on the side was not much better. Although he did not fall to the ground like Viscount Stratford, he also stood there with a pale face.

Maladin, who saw Huoshan for the first time, looked forward with unfocused eyes like a puppet with its soul taken away.

Looking at the exaggerated performance in front of them, the guards and royal photographers in the Austrian court were a little confused. After all, cameras were not particularly rare in Vienna.

At this time, the two brothers on the royal steps laughed.

"Hahaha, two fools."