Holy Roman Empire

Chapter 409: Immediate Benefits vs Long-Term Benefits

St. Petersburg, the continuous bad news, Alexander II can't bear it anymore.The decadent trend of the Russian Empire is evident, and the prestige established in the Near East War is being eroded.

The international situation is still a minor issue, and the biggest trouble is still inside.At the beginning, Alexander II was using war to divert internal contradictions, attempting to use military expansion to plunder profits and quell domestic disputes.

As the situation on the battlefield deteriorates, the domestic situation also deteriorates.This time it was not a battle between conservatives and reformists, but the people at the bottom were almost unable to sustain it.

With the blockade of the maritime passage, the supply of living materials in St. Petersburg is seriously in short supply, and prices continue to rise.This is still the case in the capital, not to mention the surrounding cities.

The Winter Palace, Alexander II said aggressively: "I don't care what method you use, you must quell the price as soon as possible to ensure the supply of materials in St. Petersburg. If you can't do it, I will do it for those who can do it.

Now is the critical period of the Russian Empire. No matter any individual or interest group, as long as they stand on the opposite side of the empire, all will be severely punished!"

Alexander II is not easy to fool, the shortage of supplies is a fact, and the rising prices are absolutely abnormal.

At least food prices cannot be so perverted.As the capital of the Russian Empire, how could Saint Petersburg have no grain left?

The capitalists were elites. As early as the Polish uprising broke out, everyone began to hoard food in tacit agreement.

The tsarist government was not completely unprepared. There was still more than two months between the Pudan War and the Russo-Prussian War. During this time, they also stored a lot of supplies.

Coupled with the original grain inventory of the capital, it is absolutely impossible to run out so quickly.What's more, Saint Petersburg itself is one of Russia's grain producing areas, and the grain self-sufficiency rate is inherently high.

If no one is engaged in things, St. Petersburg will not be short of food.As long as the food supply is guaranteed, other issues are easy to handle.

For example: coal, around St. Petersburg.

The Russian Empire of this era can basically be self-sufficient, except for importing a part of machinery and equipment. The trade surplus is proof.

Interior Minister Mikhail said sternly: "Your Majesty, snow and ice are melting in many areas, and the roads are muddy, which seriously affects the passage. There is a shortage of supplies in a short time, just one or two months."

What is the reason for the skyrocketing prices, Mikhail is clear.But the interest groups involved are too powerful, and this layer of window paper is not easy to break.

Alexander II smiled coldly and said, "Really? Since that is the case, then the government will provide a unified supply of materials. Presumably all patriots will support it!"

Support, how is it possible!This is cutting everyone's meat. I don't know how many people want to make a profit from it. Now, if the government takes over and provides them with overall supply, what else will they earn?

The Minister of the Interior, Mikhail, panicked and said: "Your Majesty, this involves too much, and the government's overall supply of materials is probably in trouble."

Broke people's money, such as killing parents.

When such a thing happens, the tsar may not be very good, and these specific executors are dead.

Haha Alexander II smiled and said: "This is the last resort. If the price does not subside, we have only this way.

If anyone dares to make trouble, it depends on whether our knife is sharp enough.

The fourth and seventh divisions will arrive in St. Petersburg three days later. If the price does not subside within three days, the army will be responsible for coordinating the supply of materials."

Obviously, Alexander II was smart enough not to count on the St. Petersburg City Defense Forces, and directly transferred the troops that had just been withdrawn from the battlefield to rest.

These frontiers are obviously not influenced by the capitalists and bureaucrats in St. Petersburg. They only listen to the orders of the tsar.

If the capitalists know the current affairs, then hello, hello, everyone, and Alexander II is not willing to break the rules of the game.

Otherwise, I'm sorry.The tsarist government can't solve the problem of skyrocketing prices, so it can only start at the source and eliminate those who drive up prices.

Copying home is a compulsory course for almost every master.None of the prestigious monarchs in history has ever made a fortune.

Usually such emperors kill more people.Generally, those who cause problems are eliminated, and the world will be ruled out.

The situation in Europe is special. Generally, nobles are not killed. This does not mean that nobles cannot be killed.

Alexander II wasn't a bully, he just talked about his fists if he couldn't reasonably, and once his face was torn, he didn't mind killing.

To some extent, this head was still opened by Franz.The reform has never been bloodless, and the Austrian reform was also irrigated by the blood of the dead.

Only with the cover of the Great Revolution, and many diehards were revolutionized during the revolution, the following reforms can be smoothly implemented.

Alexander II was also aware of this. The Russian reform he promoted was met with resistance from interest groups, and the progress was very uneven.Now Alexander II needs to kill the chicken and the monkey, depending on who will become the chicken.

Mikhail's face changed greatly, and his political mind was still very bright, knowing that the Tsar was dissatisfied with his work.Quickly answered: "Yes, Your Majesty!"

The Minister of the Interior, Mikhail, decided that friends of the dead will not die.Within the scope of the rules of the game, the capitalists seem to have no problem playing this way, and the cover of the noble bureaucrats is even safer.

However, when the tsar wants to overturn the table, the question will change.Why would a bureaucrat like Mikhail confront the Tsar for a bribe?

Obviously, this is impossible.Their power comes from the tsar. As long as they are still in position, the money can be slowly recovered. Why not take the risk?

Perhaps many people also have the triple identity of nobility, bureaucracy, and capitalist, but for them, the most important thing is to first retain their position.

Money can be slowly harvested, but there is only one life!The Tsar who raised the butcher knife was absolutely not allowed to provoke it and cut it off if it was not good.

Foreign Minister Clarence-Ivanov made a relief statement: "Your Majesty, the Fao conflict has ended, and the two countries are currently in secret negotiations.

Based on the information from the source, preliminary analysis shows that this negotiation may involve deep-level strategies between the two countries, and may even affect the war between us and the Kingdom of Prussia.

Austrian Foreign Minister Weisenberg has arrived in Milan and is said to strengthen communication with the Kingdom of Lombardy. This should be a smoke bomb.

At the same time, French Foreign Minister Abraham also arrived in the Kingdom of Sardinia, the official statement is on vacation.

Yesterday, Weissenberg and Abraham met once in the border area between Sardinia and Lombardy, and the two had a five-hour meeting.

The content of their conversation was highly confidential and sent all the attendants, only two parties knew."

This information was obtained by Clarence-Ivanov at a great cost, mainly to prove that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is not really incompetent.

Recently, the Tsarist Government has frequently failed in diplomacy. Although there are special reasons for not blaming them, the voice of criticism against them within the Tsarist Government is still growing.

Clarence-Ivanov will naturally make achievements, and the Fao conflict is an opportunity in his eyes.The fact that the two countries did not really fight each other made him both disappointed and surprised.

This complex mood is not limited to Clarence-Ivanov, it is also true of most people in the Tsarist government.

On the one hand, they want the war between France and Austria to expend each other's strength in order to maintain the continental dominance of the Russian Empire.

On the other hand, they did not want to see Fao start.Once Austria was involved in the war, their logistics supply system would collapse.

The Franco-Austrian War broke out, and Austria was naturally unable to continue to export strategic materials to them.This gap needs to be filled.

Unfortunately, this gap cannot be filled at all.There are just a few industrial powers in the world, and the French will be able to fill the vacancies when Fao starts.

This kind of unrealistic fantasy, the tsarist government dare not think about it.Expect the British to provide them with logistics, this is not a dream?

Alexander II thought for a while and said, "Contact the Austrians first and try to see if their position has changed. If necessary, you can make appropriate concessions.

We can promise that without plotting the land in the German region, the cutting of the Kingdom of Prussia will be limited to the Polish region."

Despite the blood in his heart, Alexander II gritted his teeth and made this decision.At this stage of the war, it is outdated to think about expanding to Central Europe.

This world speaks in terms of strength. As much strength as possible is divided into as many cakes as you eat, and you will choke on death.

"Strength" is comprehensive strength, not just military strength.Regardless of whether or not to admit it, the current comprehensive strength of the Russian Empire has fallen behind in the four major powers.

Foreign Minister Clarence-Ivanov replied: "Yes, Your Majesty!"

After a pause, he added: "Now the Prussians and the British are wooing Sweden. To avoid the worst, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs suggests making appropriate concessions to Sweden.

We can support Karl XV ’s plan for the reunification of the three Nordic countries. Once Denmark, Sweden, and Norway merge, they will be dragged into the Putin War."

This is a very clever way to break the game. The Kingdom of Denmark can exchange Sweden for troops at the expense of supporting the unification of the three Nordic countries.

Before the outbreak of the war, the three countries had negotiated for a joint statehood. Sweden and Norway are now co-sovereign states. The two countries have basically reached an agreement, but the Danish kingdom has not made up its mind.

This hesitation caused the Pudan war to erupt.It is not for no reason that the Junker nobles launched this war last year.

In case the three Nordic countries really merge, it will be difficult to take back the Principalities of Schleswig and Holstein.

Alexander II hesitated to unify the three Nordic countries. It was indeed beneficial to the Russian Empire in a short period of time. However, the emergence of a unified Northern Europe will also threaten the Russian Empire in the future.

Denmark + Norway + Swedish add up, it is another Kingdom of Prussia.Perhaps the Nordic region is limited by climatic conditions, and the population growth rate is too slow, which will be inferior to the Kingdom of Prussia. This gap will not be too large.

Ambition is always stimulating strength, will they still be so peaceful after the reunification of the three Nordic countries?For example: the attention of Finland, or the idea of ​​playing the three Baltic countries.

There is no doubt that this situation is very likely to happen.Nordic barbarians have also been bullying in history. Once great powerism is stimulated, the northern frontier of the Russian Empire will become lively.

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