Chapter 578 Take From the People and Give Back to the People.
The scandal in Milan made the top leaders in Vienna very angry. Such a large-scale riot, such a large number of casualties, and it happened in the core city, which had only happened in Hungary before.
However, they seemed to only intend to deal with local officials and garrisons, thinking that this was caused by the incompetence of officials and the dereliction of duty of the garrison.
But Franz's view was just the opposite. Both the local officials and the garrison were very capable. After all, a riot of this scale could turn into a massacre if not carefully, just like the French in Lyon and Alsace-Lorraine.
The great powers could make a big fuss about this, and even the effect that the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was not even considered a secondary power, could be proposed to the Austrian Empire for Lombardy's independence (Milan belongs to the Lombardy region) as long as they had enough strength.
Although it sounds like a joke now, it was this small country with an area less than one-eighth of France that unified Italy in history and eventually expelled the forces of Austria and France.
In fact, riots/uprisings often occurred in Europe during this era, and not many of them could be discovered and stopped in advance due to technical limitations.
Whether it was the workers' uprising in Britain, the assassination of politicians and celebrities by radicals, or several large-scale uprisings in France (Lyon workers' strike, Provence peasants' tax uprising), or the Silesian uprising in Prussia, the Polish uprising in Russia, or even the Decembrist coup.
The above are much worse than what happened in Milan in terms of actual results, so Franz thinks that local officials and the army should be rewarded.
Franz knew very well how difficult it was for those Italian officials. They were constrained by local forces all day long, and they did not have many capable people under their command. Although they had the emperor's imperial order as a guarantee, at most they could only strike at the local separatist forces (local tyrants) on the surface.
But in fact, local merchants, churches, and gangs have long formed an interest group, and under the banner of tradition and religion, they have coerced the people, corrupted and kidnapped officials.
This is also one of the main reasons why local people cannot serve as the chief executive and military chief.
As for the army, this kind of extremely restrained security war often causes great losses and great psychological pressure on the soldiers.
Long-term repression can even drive ordinary people crazy, and as a soldier is a high-risk profession and has no social status at the time, it is hard to say what these people will do in the future.
Franz did not intend to let this group of people bleed and cry, or even have no money to bury and rest after death.
However, the state system cannot be changed casually, and naturally it is impossible to start with wages and pensions, so it can only appear in the form of rewards, otherwise it will only cause jealousy from other regional armies.
Of course, Franz did not intend to pay for this money alone, and he applied for this job to the imperial government.
In fact, Lombardy is nominally the territory of Archduke Franz Karl. As the eldest son of the former, it is understandable that Franz Joseph went to inspect the people's sentiments and comfort the army.
The top leaders of the empire were a little uneasy, because an uprising had just occurred in the area, and Franz might be in danger, which would be a heavy blow to both the royal family and the empire.
Franz didn't think so. If the royal guards were so weak, he might die even if he stayed in the palace.
Look at the Archduchess Louise of Parma, who was doing evil things all day and offended the most radical people in France, but she still raised a group of young men and lived a luxurious and corrupt life.
Franz sympathized with his aunt's experience, but he didn't agree with her approach.
However, Franz didn't plan to go to Parma this time. He just wanted to solve what happened in Milan.
Since Franz's attitude was very firm, the empire had no choice but to agree. The imperial government and Madame Sophie both felt that Franz needed a guardian.
Then Franz Joseph and his father, Archduke Franz Karl, boarded the train to Milan.
This operation confused Franz. He didn't know who would watch over whom in the future.
Franz suspected that Madame Sophie was planning something, but the latter denied it and said that she just wanted the former to have a better relationship with his father.
The train was a bit boring. More than a thousand people were all guards and servants. The railway company even made temporary modifications to welcome the two royal grand dukes.
A giant bulletproof glass window was installed in the middle carriage, which could clearly see the scenery outside the window.
Archduke Franz Karl shouted excitedly as he watched the scenery passing by quickly outside the window.
"Look! Franz! The tree is moving!"
"Father, it's the train that's moving."
"Look! Franz! The birds are flying backwards!"
"Father, it's us moving forward."
"Wow! Wow! Wow! Wow!! Too fast! It's better than riding a horse!"
"Father, you might consider sitting down for a drink, and then take a nap, we'll be there."
"Good suggestion, a glass of tequila."
Ajani immediately stepped forward to fill a glass for Archduke Franz Karl.
"Please enjoy your meal."
"Thank you." Archduke Franz Karl was not used to it because his attendants or servants usually poured wine for him. He instinctively looked at his son twice before speaking to him.
"Franz, don't you want a glass?"
Ajani, who was a good person, immediately picked up the bottle, and Franz quickly held the glass.
"I want juice, thank you."
Ajani glanced at Kagura, who immediately lowered his head and walked away backwards.
"When will you grow up like this?" Archduke Franz Karl said meaningfully.
"Father, age has nothing to do with drinking."
"Why not?"
"Age is only related to the passage of time."
"Why does time pass?"
"Because that is an objective law!"
"What is an objective law?"
Franz held his forehead and didn't want to continue this endless question. "Father, you drank too much."
"I didn't."
"Drunk people are like this."
"Well, then I'll go to rest, you eat and drink well!"
The Lombardy government held a grand welcome ceremony at the station, and then the two royal dukes were arranged to stay in a palace of the Habsburg family.
Then there were overwhelming gift lists and boxes of gifts. After all, they are members of the royal family, especially the father and son who are the first and second heirs to the throne.
In fact, these local nobles and merchants usually don't have the opportunity to give gifts to the father and son, and usually those things will not be accepted.
This time, these people were very surprised, because the two archdukes accepted everything. But think about it, after all, according to the legend, the father and son were not normal.
Ajani actually didn't understand it, after all, the gifts from the gentry in Lombardy were too shabby compared to the gifts received in Vienna.
And even if it was a generous gift, Franz rarely accepted it.
In response to Ajani's question.
Franz's answer was "Take from the people and use it for the people."