Holy Roman Empire

As soon as the Russian embassy case spread, European public opinion exploded. This thing is much more serious than the previous case of the Church, since in recent times there is no case of "reunion" of embassy staff abroad.

There was a lot of shouting and shouting, and it was incessant. "Barbaric", "brutal", "uncivilized" and a series of other labels were once again put on the heads of the Japanese.

It is unknown how many people were behind it, but there were many people who wanted to provoke the Russo-Japanese war.

The support of public opinion is important, but excessive support would be bad. For the Tsarist government, the support of public opinion at the moment is not what they want.

To send troops to punish the Japanese, it is easy to say, if the actual implementation, it is very different.

The Siberian Railway is not yet open to traffic, and to rush into war at this time is simply a death wish.

Unlike the original time and space, the Tsarist government has been suffering from logistical losses in recent decades. The Tsarist government is no exception.

......

"Public opinion is making so much noise, what is everyone's response?"

Nicholas II asked, holding back his anger.

Having suffered such a big loss, not only can not retaliate, but to suppress the domestic anti-Japanese and pro-war public opinion, this is simply to let the world know the tsar again.

There is no way, at the moment really do not have the conditions for military means to retaliate against Japan. For the sake of the overall strategic situation, Nicholas II could only endure a moment of anger.

Prime Minister Sergei Vetter: "Your Majesty, there are two main reasons why public opinion is now in such an uproar: one is that the people are enraged by the tragedy that took place in Tokyo and now need to vent their anger; the other is the instigation of the main war faction and international forces.

To quell the people's anger is simple, as long as we get an explanation that satisfies everyone through diplomatic means.

Now the international community is supportive of us, the Japanese simply do not have the courage to refuse, it should not be difficult to get such a condition.

The real trouble is the main war faction and international forces provocation. The current wave of anti-Japanese civil society, that is a wave higher than a wave.

The domestic main war faction we can still come out to do the work, although a little more trouble, but still find ways to shut them up.

The international forces of provocation, it is difficult to stop.

The British have gone to great lengths to lure us to the Far East, even going so far as to put themselves down and ally with the Japanese. Having prepared for so long, now that the opportunity has come, it makes no sense for them to stop.

In addition to the British, there are the Far Eastern Empire, Spain, the Nordic Confederation, and other countries that need to be wary. Although each has different motives, they all want the Empire to go to war with the Japanese.

What we have to do now is to be calm, first use diplomacy to maneuver with the Japanese government, and use the power of the international community to suppress the Japanese."

Frankly speaking, Nicholas II was not the master of composure. Can endure until now, for one reason: the top government are anti-war.

Even the military hierarchy, which supports war with Japan, does not want to start a war immediately. We all want to live with it first, the soft-hearted Nicholas II, naturally, is as good as it gets.

After a few moments of contemplation, Nicholas II slowly said: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs to take action, public opinion has been created, it can not be wasted.

Now is the time when the European countries are most disgusted with the Japanese, first take the opportunity to make the Japanese reputation.

Britain, in particular, should focus on public relations. The best is to be able to dismantle the British-Japanese alliance, and at the very least, to make the London government throw in the towel and not dare to explicitly support the Japanese government.

Next is the Holy Roman Empire. Whether with the power of the international community to pressure Japan, or the future to send troops to the Far East, it is necessary to use their power."

It can be seen, making this decision Nicholas II is very reluctant. One of the most important characteristics of the fighting people is that they do not allow the government to be "weak".

The general public does not know how difficult it is to send troops to the Far East, and in the eyes of the general public, the difficulty of attacking Japan is similar to squashing a bedbug.

Now provoked by a bedbug, the government did not immediately send troops to retaliate, but played the so-called "diplomatic means", that is simply a disgrace.

In fact, the situation will be more serious, civilian military enthusiasts, even the Tsarist government to help the battle plan.

It does not matter if the navy is not strong, it can pull allies to form a coalition, replicating the planning against the Far Eastern Empire a few years ago.

As for whether other countries are willing to follow the troops, that is the work of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, can not do is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs incompetence.

Especially after the media published the news of the Southern Ocean Fleet of Shinra and the Far Eastern Fleet of Britain going to the Sea of Japan, everyone was more determined to make their own judgment.

Against the backdrop of civil groups calling for war, the choice to hold back for the time being was a major blow to Nicholas II's own reputation as a monarch.

For Nicholas II himself, it is now "tolerate a moment of anger", and then "the more you think about it, the more angry".

......

In the Vienna Palace, looking at the snowflakes flying in the sky, Franz sighed helplessly, it was another cold winter.

Perhaps because of the age of the reason, the last few years Franz to Vienna's winter, that is more and more dissatisfaction.

There are a lot of cities where the seasons are like spring, but unfortunately, they are not close to Vienna. Want to go out for the winter, are a trouble.

Frankly speaking, the Holy Roman Empire has developed to the present day, Vienna can no longer be considered the center of the empire.

If you ignore the proportions, simply from the map, Vienna can be counted as a border city.

Despite all these flaws, it still does not change the fact that Vienna is the capital of the Holy Roman Empire. It was impossible to move the capital.

As a matter of fact, it is not that no one has ever mentioned moving the capital after the reunification of Shenandoah, and there was even a big discussion.

Unfortunately, everything is afraid of contrast, Vienna has flaws, the other cities of the divine Law have even more flaws, the best city in every respect only exists in a dream.

After synthesizing the full range of historical, political, cultural, economic and strategic factors, Vienna is still the most suitable to be the capital of Shenandoah.

Since there was no better choice, Franz naturally would not make a blind move. In fact, even if there was a better choice, Franz would not move away from his old nest.

The Habsburg dynasty has been operating here for hundreds of years and has a very deep mass base, which is incomparable to other cities.

As for the winter, if it is colder, it is colder. Compared to the Russian Empire and the Nordic Confederation next door, every winter in Vienna is a warm one.

Next winter, I'll spend it outside. Anyway, my son is already old enough, and as a semi-retired emperor, I have the capital to wander around.

......

Frederick: "Father, the delegation of the Tsar's government has departed from St. Petersburg, and it looks like the Russians are going to give up sending troops in retaliation."

One has to admit that these days the hairy bears are just straightforward, and anyone who knows them a little can judge their decisions by their behavior. Can not guarantee 100% prepared, but guess a eight or nine or no problem.

If it were the British, it would be completely impossible to judge. People can talk and laugh with you while sending troops to fight over.

Looking at his son with snowflakes on his head, Franz nodded: "I guess he's waiting for the Siberian railroad to open! It is almost impossible to send troops to the Far East without a railroad.

But the Russians' plan this time, I'm afraid, is going to fall through. They want to wait, does not mean that the Japanese are also willing to wait.

The embassy case has forced both Japan and Russia to the edge of the cliff. The war is inevitable.

From the current situation, neither Japan nor Russia is ready for war, and the two countries should not be able to fight in the short term.

The next step will be to see which of them is fast. The side that takes the lead in completing war preparations will have a very big advantage in the ensuing war."

Frankly speaking, Franz was also very surprised at the restraint shown by the Tsarist government.

Since when was Nicholas II so calm?

According to the past practice of the Tsarist government, this kind of thing happened, regardless of three or seven twenty-one first fight.

Not only the tsarist government, it is estimated that most of the powers encountered this situation, the first thing to consider is - to go to war, or how to fight.

Including Shinra is no exception, if the victims of the tragedy replaced by their own diplomatic staff, Franz will not be able to resist launching a war in retaliation.

Of course, the prerequisite is to be able to win the fight. If you encounter an opponent that you can't handle, you have to concede when you should.

Frederick asked incredulously: "The Japanese dare to initiate a war, this is impossible, right?

This time, they are the ones who are in the wrong. If they take the initiative to start a war, once the war is lost, the Russians will be able to colonize Japan as a matter of course.

There is a huge gap between the strength of Japan and Russia, even if the Japanese government gains an advantage in the short term, with the opening of the Siberian railroad and the arrival of Russian reinforcements they will still have only one way to defeat."

It was not just his idea; few people in all of Europe thought Japan had the courage to start a war.

"Why wouldn't you dare?"

Franz asked rhetorically.

"It has come to this point, and everyone knows that a Russo-Japanese war will break out sooner or later, so what does the Japanese government have to fear?

If they do it before the opening of the Siberian Railway, they still have a few hopes of winning, and the further they go, the lower their chances of winning.

Not to mention that there are still the British cheering behind the scenes. The British government has been preparing for such a long time, is not to consume the strength of the Russians in the Far East, to reduce the military pressure on India?

As long as the Japanese government reacts quickly enough, it can seize the Far East before the opening of the Siberian Railway.

Then, it is the British government to pay money, the Japanese government to pay people, using time, space and the Russians slowly consume on the line.

Anyway, Japan's population is large, and the army's combat strength is also reasonable, as long as the British support can keep up, it will last for eight or ten years.

Regardless of the final victory or defeat, the Russians will be greatly wounded. The Russian-Austrian alliance will also be in trouble."

It was not that Franz was pessimistic, but the Russian-Austrian alliance had been fractured for a long time. It was only with the efforts of the Vienna government to heal it that it persisted until now.

The outside world could not see anything, but Franz, as the party concerned, knew very well that the conflicts between Russia and Austria were rapidly accumulating.

Not only the political imbalance of power between the two countries, but also the increasing crisis awareness of the Tsarist government, but also the intensifying friction in economic and trade affairs.

The old aristocrats of the Russian Empire, who had a vested interest in the Russian-Austrian alliance, might not think too much about farming and mining, but the new Russian national bourgeoisie and intellectuals were very dissatisfied with the current situation.

In the opinion of these "educated" people, if we do not break the current position as a source of raw materials and a market for goods, sooner or later the Russian Empire will be reduced to an economic colony.

To change all this, the first step is to break the economic dependence on Shinra. This includes withdrawing from the free trade system, implementing tariff barriers, etc.

If possible, it is better to erase even the debt. Lest the heavy burden of repayments hinder the modernization of the Russian Empire.

Although this part of the population does not have much say in the tsarist government, it is always easier to want to do bad things than to achieve them.

As for the consequences of doing so, Franz did not think that a group of middle-aged idealists would be afraid, much less that a group of profit-oriented capitalists would care.

In fact, the situation was much worse than that. The opposition to the Russian-Austrian alliance within Shinra is likewise growing by the day.

The military nobility and farms that are attached to the agricultural chain are also very unhappy with the massive imports of Russian agricultural products.

In the past, the Russian Empire was strong enough, and the Empire needed this ally to deal with France in the west. For the sake of the greater good, everyone could still grudgingly accept it.

Along with the end of the European War, the Holy Roman Empire flew straight to the sky, and the strategic need for the Russian Empire has been infinitely reduced.

Against this background, there was a natural dislike for the economic policy of taking care of the Russian Empire economically.

The Russian-Austrian alliance has continued until now, and the economic care policy of the Vienna government is also inseparable.

Grain and ore exports bring foreign exchange earnings every year, occupying 94.6% of all foreign exchange earnings of the Russian Empire, and most of these raw materials are exported to the Shenandoah.

Cut off this income, the tsarist government bankruptcy is only a matter of time, want to struggle without room. The alliance naturally can not sustain.

This group of people is not no voice master, if not Franz to fight for world hegemony need to hang, estimated that the following has already turned over the sky.

According to the current situation, once the decline of Britain, the Russian-Austrian alliance will almost come to an end.

Ultimately, it is the interests of the trouble. The existence of the Russian-Australian alliance, harmed their interests, naturally want to find ways to kick off.

To be able to hold back for a few years in the interests of the empire, that is already very big picture. Further, even God can not stop.

Of course, at that point the mission of the Russian-Austrian alliance has been accomplished, and it is really time to kick off.

Obviously, this is only the most ideal state. The Russians are not fools, and the Tsarist government has long been aware of the danger, otherwise Nicholas II would not have wanted to get rid of his dependence on Shinra.

Since it was destined to be abandoned in the future, the Tsarist government was naturally making preparations. For example: the southward strategy and the eastward strategy were the Russians' countermeasures.

To sum up, in one sentence that is: make money in the pockets.

The Russian Empire with money in its pockets was fearless, and even if it could not defeat Shinra, it could still defend itself.

The British now calculate, is to increase the Tsarist government's sense of crisis, forcing the Russians to jump over and embrace them.

This is not impossible to happen, although the market of Britain can not compare with the Shenandoah, but eat half of the Russian grain, ore exports, or hope to do.

The government will be able to get through the short-term shock by lending the Tsar's government another sum of money. As for the aftermath of the gods and horses, I guess the British government is not the Russians consider so much.

As if in deep thought, after a long time Frederick said indifferently: "Once the British have fallen, the Russians are our biggest rivals.

After all, the Russian-Austrian alliance has lasted for so many years, there is no good reason for us to attack them.

If the Tsarist government insists on maintaining the alliance, there is no way for us to carry out even an explicit suppression.

For the sake of the Empire's reputation, then we will have to let the Russians decline early. They won't be needed for the next struggle for supremacy anyway."

"Ruthlessness", not just "maturity".

In Franz's view, Frederick's ability to make such a decision was a sign of maturity. As a king, if you are not ruthless, you will not be able to stand firm.

The Russian-Austrian alliance has lasted for so many years, although there is no shortage of opponents in both countries, but civil friendship that is really deep.

Other than that, there are countless marriages. In the past cultural exchanges, commercial trade, Russia and Austria from the upper class of the nobility, to ordinary people are not lack of marriage.

Really if for no reason on the allies, the domestic public that off are not easy to pass, not to mention the damage to international reputation.

It is not convenient to do it yourself, then you can only use the knife to kill.

The British want to pull the Russians over, the premise is that the Russian Empire still has some strength. If the Russians are ruined, even if they are pulled over is useless.

"The Siberian Railway is not yet open to traffic, the Russians can put limited forces into the Far East, even if the defeat is limited losses.

When the railroad is opened, the Russians can go all out, and the Japanese are seriously underpowered. Even with the support of the British, it could not make up for the difference in strength between the two countries.

After all, we and the Russians are still allies, and the support that should be given is still indispensable. At the very least, loans should be granted, weapons and equipment and strategic supplies should be sold."

The prerequisite for borrowing a knife to kill is that the knife is sharp enough, and it is clear that Japan is still short of fire. The Russians may have a few possibilities, want to cripple the Russian Empire that is dreaming.