bookandnovel Chapter 790 Cabinet Meeting
Chapter 790 Cabinet Meeting
Chapter 790 Cabinet Meeting
Frankfurt, Würzburg Palace.
A closed-door meeting limited to the emperor and cabinet members was quietly held as Bavarian Crown Prince Rupprecht returned from the New World.
The old emperor, sitting on the throne, slowly said, "Ladies and gentlemen, this is the agreement that Crown Prince Rupprecht reached with the Texans during his trip to the New World. What do you think?"
Everyone looked at each other in silence. The Prime Minister spoke first, "Your Majesty, Texas is just a small country on the border, while the Empire is the Roman Orthodox and the hegemon of Central Europe. The two are not equal in status, which means there is no premise for cooperation. Moreover, Your Majesty is the guardian of Catholicism. Cooperation with a wolf nation may damage your reputation."
The Foreign Minister also frowned and said, "The mineral resources in Texas are indeed in short supply in the Empire, but isn't it a bit of a loss to make enemies with our allies in order to cooperate with Texas?"
"cough!"
The Navy Minister couldn't help but interrupt, "My dear colleagues, according to the observations of our intelligence personnel, the warships of Britain and France have already used the most advanced magic stone power. Only we are still studying how to use the inferior magic stone ore powder that has long been eliminated by Britain and France as the power of warships. Do you intend for our navy to use such warships to protect the empire's sea borders and overseas colonies?"
The Minister of War nodded slightly: "I agree with Gustav's opinion. We should not only cooperate with the Texans, but also make them a protectorate of the empire as much as possible, and then migrate some immigrants there. In a few years, a new Germany will be born in America."
The ministers of the navy and the army were united in their hatred of the enemy, which made everyone look at them sideways. You know, the former was the main supporter of the theory of "territory in the sun", clamoring to expand the navy and conquer overseas.
The latter were supporters of continentalism, demanding that the direction of expansion be focused on the Balkans and the Apennine Peninsula, and that they accumulate strength in preparation for war with the "Franco-Russian Entente".
The two of them are incompatible. After all, the annual military budget is limited. If they allocate more to the other side, they will have less.
The Minister of Finance also spoke up: "The energy crisis has become the biggest factor restricting the development of the Empire's industry. Although a small amount of magic stone mines have been discovered in the Rhineland and Schleswig, the quantity is too small to be sufficient for the entire country. Now, except for agricultural products and some light industrial products, the international market is almost full of British and French goods. It is because we want to produce products of the same quality, but the cost is higher, forcing capitalists to cut corners and reduce workers' wages."
He paused for a moment, and then continued, "The former makes it impossible for our industrial products to compete with those of Britain and France, and they can only be sold in our homeland and the crown territories; the latter brings great security risks."
The problem of energy shortage is there, and opponents cannot lie with their eyes open.
Soon, all the cabinet ministers unanimously passed a resolution to cooperate with the Texans, but they were more inclined to the opinion of the Secretary of War and tried to turn Texas into their own colony.
The great powers of that era were not merciful. Seeing Britain and France making a lot of money from their overseas expansion, the Germans had been jealous for a long time.
Franz remained noncommittal and said, "Too harsh conditions may cause the Texans to side with the French. France's power in Central America is far beyond our reach. I actually agree with what the other leader said, 'We and the Texans now have different needs', just like us and the Hungarians, peace is beneficial to both sides."
Since the unification of Germany, Hungary has in fact become its economic colony.
The reins around their necks were tightened, but the Hungarian nobles became more obedient.
The Hungarian nobles who once clamored for independence did not have the courage to abandon the Germans and face the "Tsar father of all Slavs" in the era of rising nationalism.
After all, Hungary, also known as the so-called Crown of St. Stephen, is home to a large number of Slavic peoples such as Croatia, Slovakia, Ruthenia, etc. As long as the emperor no longer protects them, the huge Transleithania will be torn apart in an instant.
"In that case, I have made the decision, Gustav, to inform the British ambassador that if they experience another defeat in Texas, we will mediate the war."
The Minister of Foreign Affairs frowned and said, "Your Majesty, if we intervene in this way, I'm afraid we will have to pay a lot more."
Franz shook his head and said, "Prince Eugen should discuss this with you. When we fought the French, we spent 70 million florins in less than half a year. If the French had not paid us a war reparations, our country would have gone bankrupt."
The Foreign Minister reminded: "But Your Majesty, we mobilized nearly a million troops for the Austrian-French War, while the British Expeditionary Force only had more than 100,000 people."
"But we are fighting on our own soil, while the British are on a sea expedition. No matter how wealthy they are, they still have to consider the cost of continuing the war."
Franz thought for a moment and then said, "If necessary, we can transfer some of our interests in the Near East to them."
"If they don't agree, then ask their Queen whether she wants our boys to fight alongside them with fire sticks when a war breaks out in the future."
"That's it!"
Franz made the final decision and gave a summary of the cabinet meeting, although the old emperor, who was now old, had gradually transferred power to the Regency Council and Crown Prince Ferdinand.
But this wise old man still firmly holds the helm of this Central European empire.
In his opinion, paying a small price to solve part of the energy crisis for the empire was already enough profit - being too greedy was not a good thing.
The news of the finalized cooperation was quickly delivered to Lothar by the "military observer" left behind by Crown Prince Rupprecht.
Hearing this, Giuliano, who had been depressed all day due to the tragic casualties of the war, became excited. What he was most worried about was that even if he defeated the British, the British would not admit defeat and turn the war into a long-term hostility and blockade.
At that time, it would be a defeat without being defeated. Even if the price paid by the British was far greater than ours, the gap in size between the two sides was too big.
Just a squadron of cruisers and destroyers can block Texas' sea route in the Gulf of Mexico.
Seeing that he looked relaxed, as if a huge rock had fallen from his chest, Losa reminded him again, "Don't forget to ask the Germans for more industrial assistance. After the war, Texas will have a 20-year golden period of development. Only by seizing these 20 years of opportunities can Texas be qualified to gain sufficient benefits in the future war. Otherwise, it can only eat some leftovers under the table and watch others feast on the table."
Giuliano replied "yes" seriously, but said unconfidently: "The 'military observation group' sent by the Habsburg Emperor will arrive soon. Don't you plan to participate in the consultation on the specific cooperation matters?"
Losa shook his head. "Mr. Patriarch, I can only see farther than you because I can travel through the long river of time. Don't underestimate yourself. You just need to remember that our cooperation with the Germans is for our mutual benefit. We should neither ask for too much nor give in because of their intimidation."
He paused, then continued, "By the way, Mr. Patriarch, how is your contact with the French going?"
Don't put all your eggs in one basket. This is the way for small countries to survive, although in the eyes of big countries, this kind of back-and-forth behavior is extremely abominable.
Giuliano said in a deep voice, "Their attitude is somewhat arrogant. They plan to use Texas as a base to rebuild French New Orleans. I guess they are sure that after we fall out with the British, we will have no choice but to side with them."
Losa smiled and said, "It's only natural. I think it's time for you to pass on the news of our cooperation with the Germans to the French."
The French do not lack magic stones and white crystals like the Germans, and the cooperation between the two sides is limited. For them, the greatest role of Texas is to serve as a fulcrum for their threat to British North America.
Losa planned to take advantage of the other party's thinking and cooperate with them in an ambiguous way, like a goddess hooking up with a dog.
Of course, no matter what, Texas would not really tie itself to the French chariot.
It can be seen from the map that the whole of North America is dyed with the red of Britain, with only a small piece of blue in Texas, lonely, like the lone star on its flag.
As for whether the situation will collapse or not, it depends on Giuliano’s subsequent measures.
(End of this chapter)