Holy Roman Empire

Even if there are deficiencies, they are imported from Russia.relatively less affected by the outside world.

Although prices have risen, the total trade volume between them and us has not increased but decreased.

Of course, the interception of the French navy is also one of the reasons for hindering our trade with Austria.

In many cases, even if a contract is signed, it cannot be performed normally. "

Gladstone frowned, the result was completely different from what he expected.It was originally hoped that France and Austria would consume each other's strength through this war and stabilize Britain's maritime supremacy.

The persevering plan did not change quickly.Taking advantage of this war, Britain really slaughtered France, but it was a pity that it ran away from Austria.

No matter how the prices in the international market skyrocket, it has little to do with Russia-Austria trade.After all, the Tsarist government was exporting industrial raw materials and Austria in exchange for strategic materials. If the price really increased, it would also increase together.

Wool comes from sheep, so the Russians naturally don't need to join in the fun.

Then France became the only victim. After all, it is easy to raise prices, but it is difficult to lower prices.

After hesitating for a moment, Prime Minister Gladstone said slowly: "The Foreign Ministry will negotiate with the French first. As long as the French are willing to exchange benefits, they will find a reason to lower the tariffs, or simply exempt them from tariffs."

This is the greatest help Gladstone can provide to the French within the scope of authority.As for whether the price can be lowered, it still depends on the French's own ability.

After all, capitalists are not easy to mess with. If the government forces them to cut prices, it will cause public outrage.

After all, it is the French government, not the British government, that is buying supplies now, so there is no need for Gladstone to offend people for them.

As for bargaining, the French still have to fight for it with the capitalists.How much they can gain depends on their bargaining power.

Foreign Secretary George: "There is no problem with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. However, just cutting tariffs may not be enough support.

If we want the French and the Austrians to consume their strength together, we must find a way to increase the economic strength of the French, or directly lend them money.

While providing economic support, we must also limit the military strength of the French, so as not to cause an imbalance of power between the two warring parties.To do this, very difficult. "

Being timid is a true portrayal of the British government.On the one hand, the Afghan war has dragged down most of the government's energy, and on the other hand, it has to maintain the balance between France and Austria.

I am afraid that something will happen and the situation will get out of control.It can be said that this is the most challenging moment for the British Foreign Office in decades.

Prime Minister Gladstone nodded helplessly: "Let's try it first! We will make adjustments later according to the actual situation.

Before the strength of France and Austria is greatly consumed, we must act cautiously to prevent the situation from getting out of control. "

……

While the negotiations between Britain and France started, Alexander III, who was far away in St. Petersburg, also ushered in his new toy-airplane.

Seeing the beautiful flight performance, Alexander III was in a particularly comfortable mood, and asked vigorously, "When will these planes be able to be put on the battlefield?"

After watching the performance, Alexander III still did not forget the real purpose of introducing the aircraft.

It has been proved in the European war that an airplane against an airship is a massacre.In order to increase the chances of winning on the front line, Alexander III eagerly hoped that these aircraft could be put into service as soon as possible.

Minister of War Ivanov: "Your Majesty, we don't have pilots yet. Airplanes and airships are different, and the requirements for pilots are also stricter.

The Ministry of War has reached an agreement with the Austrians, and they will help train a group of pilots, and preparations have already begun.

If there are no accidents, after three months, our first aircraft brigade will be able to enter the military service. "

In just three months, a group of pilots will be trained.At this speed, the pilots trained will naturally not be elite.

Anyway, the enemy is just an airship, and there is no need to test the overall quality of the pilot. It is almost enough to be able to fly the plane and launch an attack normally.

For the rest of the knowledge, the pilots can slowly accumulate experience in the actual combat later. Anyway, the Russian army should pay attention to efficiency now, and it will be enough to be satisfied soon.

After hearing "three months", Alexander III's smile suddenly disappeared.

"Why is it so slow, can't we speed up the progress?

We must know that the battle situation on the front line is urgent, and if we put the plane into the battlefield one day earlier, we will be able to seize the sky from the British one day earlier! "

Facing the tsar's request, Marshal Ivanov's heart was broken.According to the Austrians, it is very rare to be able to train pilots within three months.

No matter how fast it is, the quality of the already low-quality crash course may not be guaranteed.

Ivanov bit the bullet and replied: "Your Majesty, pilots are an emerging technical force. We have no training experience in this area, so we can only learn from the Austrians.

If you want to speed up, I personally recommend including the airship pilot in the training class, it should save a lot of time. "

Whether it was a bad idea or not, Ivanov still didn't know.Anyway, the Tsar had already asked, so he couldn't have no idea.

As for the effect, we will talk about it later.Anyway, it is a new type of arms, and the Ministry of the Army is not familiar with the situation, so it is reasonable to make mistakes in judgment.

Chapter 182 A Special Christmas

The value of the air show is not only for appreciation, but also for the tsarist government to show off its force to the outside world.It doesn't matter how these planes came from, as long as they are there, they are there.

In a sense, being able to buy an airplane is also a manifestation of strength.You know, more countries want to buy it but can't buy it.

Perhaps intentionally or unintentionally, during the air show, Alexander III also invited envoys from various European countries to participate, including French envoys.

According to European practice, an ally's ally is not necessarily an ally, and an ally's enemy is also not necessarily an enemy.

Both the Franco-Austrian War and the Anglo-Russian War are separate war instances that do not interfere with each other.

Therefore, when the European war was raging, France and Russia still maintained normal diplomatic relations.

After confirming that the Russians were equipped with planes, the French envoy immediately became interested.Since Paris was bombed, the French government has been worried about aircraft manufacturing technology.

It turns out that figuring it out on your own isn't that simple.Without technical experts in the aircraft field, the French government could only find a few folk enthusiasts and set up a grass-roots research and development team with a group of mechanical engineers.

It doesn't matter if the results are not mentioned, or if it cannot be produced industrially, the key is that the aircraft made in the laboratory are still in the primitive stage, the kind that never returns.

It takes a lot of time to experiment and explore if you want to simply realize free travel and landing. Anyway, the French army on the front line can't wait.

According to Minister Albon's knowledge, in order to develop aircraft manufacturing technology as soon as possible, the government did not hesitate to bow to the British to seek cooperation.

Then there is no more.Although Britain's industrial strength is stronger, in the field of aircraft manufacturing, like France, everyone is a layman, and there is no aircraft manufacturer in the whole country.

Now is undoubtedly an opportunity. You can't get aircraft manufacturing technology from Austria, but you can get it from the Russians.

Of course, the Russians do not have aircraft production technology, but they have ready-made aircraft!

Independent research and development requires a lot of time, and having samples for reference and imitation will undoubtedly save a lot of time.

Don't look at the awesomeness of European countries. In fact, most of the industrial powers in Europe started their business with copycats, including France is no exception.

For plagiarism and imitation, Minister Albon has no pressure.The only problem is how to get the plane from the Russians.

……

"Your Excellency, this business is too tricky, and it has exceeded my ability."

After finishing speaking, the middle-aged man pushed the check back.From the look in his eyes, it can be determined that the middle-aged man is full of deep reluctance, and he does not want to give up this check.

But there is no way, the French are not easy to mess with, they will leave endless troubles for themselves if they don't do things after collecting money.

"Your Excellency, you are too modest. If anyone does not know your name, there is nothing you cannot do in St. Petersburg.

It's just a trivial matter, your Excellency just..."

Praise, endless praise.In order to achieve his goal, Minister Albon also gave up the bottom line.

After speaking, Minister Albon pushed the check back, and took out a blank check and put it on it.

The meaning is very obvious, as long as the target can be achieved, the price can be opened at will.

Seeing the scene in front of him, Duke Olmedo's position wavered again.Although cooperating with the French may offend the Austrians, the French can't stand the high bid!

Although there were many people who asked him to do business, it was the first time he received a random check.

After hesitating for a moment, Duke Olmedo shook his head again: "Your Excellency, it's not that I don't help.

The problem now is that the Austrians are keeping a close eye on them, and they are responsible for the maintenance of the aircraft. It is impossible for us to send the aircraft out of Russia under their noses.

You know Austria's influence in Russia. Once they discover the problem, the government will definitely give them an explanation. "

Money is good, but life is more important.

Usually, Olmedo has a lot of ways to steal a piece of weaponry from the military camp, whether it is scrapped or retired.

But not now, the Austrians are watching too closely.In case of being caught by the Austrians, the Tsarist government will definitely give Austria an explanation for the relationship between the two countries.

In this context, no matter how powerful the relationship network is, it can't stand it.Olmedo hadn't lived enough and didn't want to die yet.

Rejected again, Minister Albon's face sank.With years of life experience, he could tell that the Russian duke in front of him was not trying to raise the price, but was really afraid.

After contemplating for a moment, Minister Albon asked unwillingly: "Your Excellency, the people responsible for maintenance are all Austrians. This situation will definitely not continue?"

Duke Olmedo nodded: "Of course, we have arranged for technicians to go in and study. Before long, the logistical maintenance will be done by our own people.

If your Excellency the Minister can wait, after two or three years, you should be able to achieve your wish. "

After waiting for two or three years, the day lily will be cold.After such a long time, France's own research and development should produce results, and there is no need to spend a lot of money.

Albon asked unwillingly: "Didn't your country want to imitate it? We can send engineers to help and decipher the technology. Our two countries can share it, and..."

Before Albon finished speaking, Olmedo interrupted: "Why do you want to imitate? What good does it do us?"

It sounds nonsensical, but it's the truth.At the beginning, after the import of arcane equipment, the Tsarist government was still keen to introduce technology and imitate it.

However, in the face of high production costs, the tsarist government had to accept the idea that "making is worse than buying".

This is true of ordinary weapons and equipment, let alone aircraft.With the industrial strength of the Russian Empire, even if they can decipher the technology, they cannot achieve industrial production.

……

For Lu Bu's sake, Olmedo finally agreed to arrange for several French engineers to join the logistics maintenance staff.

How much you can learn secretly depends on the luck of the French. Anyway, the Duke of Olmedo is not optimistic about the French.

Logistical maintenance and aircraft manufacturing are completely two concepts. Without in-depth research on the internal structure of the aircraft, there is no other way to deduce aircraft manufacturing technology except investing a lot of time and money in experiments.

The money invested is okay, there will always be crowds, the key to the problem is time.Reversing aircraft manufacturing technology within one or two months is completely different from spending one or two years developing aircraft manufacturing technology.

……

Snowflakes fluttered and fell, and the Rhine River was covered with a layer of silver.With the silence of the guns and guns, there is no smoke in the past, and it looks very pleasant under the soft sunlight.

It was another Christmas, and Marshal Patrice McMahon was not happy watching the soldiers celebrating with laughter.

At the beginning of the outbreak of the offensive and defensive battle on the Rhine, there were only 30 Austrian troops on the opposite side, and the rest were the remnants and defeated soldiers withdrawn from Beetle and Germany.

Not long after that, the total strength of the Austrian army exceeded 80. With the addition of the troops from Bee and Germany, the disadvantage of the anti-French alliance's strength is no longer obvious.

If the current situation continues, perhaps by next month, the ratio of troops between the two sides will be reversed.At that time, the offensive and defensive positions of the two sides will change positions.

There is no way, fighting for manpower, financial resources, materials, and industry, France is not an opponent of the anti-French alliance.

The only advantage is that the French army has the most prestige, is supported by past records, and has a psychological advantage when facing the enemy.

It's a pity that all of this was broken by the Austrians in the Battle of the Rhine not long ago.

The French army did not continue the myth of constant victories and invincibility, and the so-called superiority in combat power has now become a fantasy.

Frankly speaking, Patrice McMahon did not want a truce on Christmas, because it would buy the enemy a day and further increase the difficulty of breaking through the Rhine defenses.

"Marshal, the Christmas banquet will start in half an hour."

The guard on the side reminded.

This is the tradition of the French army. No matter what time it is, banquets are indispensable, not to mention Christmas.

Originally, Patrice McMahon was going back to Paris to attend the banquet held at the Palace of Versailles, but he stayed at the front line because the road was blocked due to heavy snow last night.

Now that he stayed here, as the leader of the front line, Patrice McMahon was naturally obliged to host the Christmas banquet and boost the morale of the army by the way.

"Understood, I will attend on time!"

After speaking, Marshal Patrice McMahon closed his eyes and recovered.Hosting a banquet is also physically demanding, and it was a burden for an aging Patrice McMahon.

……

The French were celebrating, and so were the Allies.In addition to retaining the necessary personnel on duty, most officers and soldiers are celebrating this special Christmas.

Unlike the French army, Archduke Albrecht, the commander of the coalition forces, was absent, and the protagonist of the banquet became King Leopold II of Belgium.

In the headquarters, Grand Justice Albrecht looked at the latest battlefield map, and in front of him were several high-ranking Austrian officers who were absent from the banquet.

Soldiers are expensive and fast on the battlefield. Although it is impossible to launch an attack on Christmas, it does not mean that there is nothing that cannot be done on Christmas.

"Just arrived at the armored unit, is it settled?"

There is no doubt that the major event that caused the high-level Austrian army to miss the banquet was the armored troops that had just arrived.

The movements of the armored forces are not small, and it is impossible to avoid the eyes and ears of the French army in normal times.Christmas, can be regarded as the only chance.

In order to hide their whereabouts, the Austrian army also carried out a series of camouflage.