Holy Roman Empire

I have to admit the Japanese's acting ability. On the one hand, they promised Britain and France to join the war against Austria; on the other hand, they assured Austria that they would never invade Austrian Southeast Asia.

As for the gossip that spread, it was all a conspiracy by the French in an attempt to sow discord between Japan and Austria through such despicable means.

It doesn't matter whether it's true or not. Anyway, after a series of diplomatic slapstick operations, the Japanese government still got real benefits.

Relying on the Falun Dafa, on April 1891, 4, Ito Hirobumi signed the "Japan-France Far East Treaty" with the French Minister Gretelas, at the cost of joining the war against Austria, in exchange for the French government giving up its privileges in Japan and pulling away the Japanese government. Prelude to the abolition of unequal treaties.

Immediately afterwards, on April 4, Ito Hirobumi repeated his old tricks and signed the "Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Tokyo" with the British, taking back the privileges of the British in Japan.

Also relying on the Dafa of fooling around, on April 4, Ito Hirobumi signed the "Japan-Austria Security Treaty" with the Austrian Minister. The Japanese government paid the price of not forming an alliance with the French in exchange for Austria giving up its privileges in Japan.

The three major powers are settled, and the rest will naturally fail to become a climate.Relying on various methods such as coercion and temptation, the Japanese government miraculously abolished the unequal treaties signed by various countries and became the first country in Asia with complete sovereignty.

The news spread to Europe. Well, Japan's sense of presence is too low these days, and no one is interested at all. The media are busy reporting the news of the European war, so naturally they have no time to pay attention.

Not to mention that the people don't pay attention to it, even the governments of various countries don't take it seriously.It’s good to have privileges, but it’s okay to not have privileges. Anyway, there is only a small market in Japan, and there is not much left after Britain and France eat the rest.

In fact, it was only after seeing the treaty submitted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that Franz realized that Austria also had privileges in Japan.

Then there is no more, the Japanese are too poor these days.Only a limited number of commodities can sell well here, and the most lucrative one is naturally the arms trade.

It is a pity that the Japanese navy learned from the British, and the Japanese army learned from the French. The arms market has no share in Austria.

The Vienna government implemented the Mineral Export Approval Act, which blocked the way to sell resources. Except for some rubber and grain sold in Austrian Southeast Asia, only a small amount of industrial products were exported.

Export less and import even less.Compared with Japan, which is poor and white, Austria basically has everything.

Even raw silk, the flagship product of the Japanese, lost its market after the transformation of rice into mulberry was completed in Lombardy and Venice.

The total import and export trade between Japan and Austria is less than 30 Aegis each year, which is completely negligible, and there is really no reason to pay attention.

Having been emperor for so many years, Franz has already become a qualified politician. Apart from causing a little trouble for the Japanese government at the beginning, he has rarely done anything afterwards.

In fact, Austria also paid for the emperor's waywardness.The Mineral Export Approval Act of the Vienna government was originally aimed at cracking down on competitors, mainly targeting the French.

Austrian Nanyang is too far away from Europe. If you travel so far to import ore, the cost of freight will go up, and there is no need to restrict it at all.

It's just that when delineating the area, Franz drew a large circle on the map with a shake of his hand, and accidentally included the Austrian South Seas.

Then, if the Japanese government wants to import ore from Austria, it has to go through layers of approvals, and it will not be able to get it in a year or a half.

To this end, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also made a lot of efforts, but unfortunately for the Vienna government, this is just a trivial matter, and no one is willing to change a law for the sake of Japanese feelings.

To put it bluntly, the interests are still not enough. It is very troublesome to change a law in Austria, and the legislative session needs to be reconvened.

Even if the restrictions are abolished, at worst, the trade volume of hundreds of thousands of Aegis will be increased every year, and the tax revenue that falls into the government's pocket will only be tens of thousands of Aegis.

For this little money, I went to amend the law. The Vienna government is not so free.Even if you know you are wrong, you can only make a mistake to the end.

Affected by this, Japan-Austria relations have always been lukewarm.I have to admit that in this respect, the book is still talented, and it is absolutely unambiguous when it is time to pretend to be a grandson.

Putting down the treaty in his hand, Franz said slowly: "The negotiations between Britain and Russia have already begun, and it seems that our actions on the African continent have aroused the vigilance of the British.

According to John Bull's past style, they certainly don't want to see us connecting Asia, Europe and Africa.If nothing else, Britain and France are now close.

The main force of the British Army is still in Afghanistan. In the short term, they are unable to join the European war. The danger will only come from overseas.

Order the governors of Nanyang and Central America to strengthen their vigilance, be alert to all neighbors around them, and not give the enemy a chance.

As for other areas, our strength is too weak. If war breaks out, they will be allowed to surrender directly. "

Although he didn't think that the Japanese would run to attack the Austrian South Seas when they were full, but thinking of the Japanese's trick-or-treating strategy in the original time and space, Franz immediately ordered to strengthen his guard.

Other areas are naturally the result of brain supplementation. Against the backdrop of the possibility of Britain and France joining forces, it is not difficult at all to fool a few fools into charging forward.

There can be Japanese, but there can also be other countries.Among Austria's overseas colonies, except for Southeast Asia and Central America, which are doing well and have the strength to play a friendly match with their neighbors, the rest of the area is not very good.

Especially in Austrian Alaska, there is only one infantry battalion guarding there, and there are less than 5 immigrants, including one-third of criminals.

As long as the British do it, they may fall in minutes.If you can't win anyway, then just admit it.

It is not easy to run these places. If the family property is wiped out, they have to invest again.

Anyway, once the European War is over, no matter who takes it, they will spit it out with interest, and there is no need to make meaningless sacrifices.

After so many years of traveling, Franz has been influenced by European culture.When thinking about problems, he is becoming more and more like a European politician.

Foreign Minister Weisenberg: "Your Majesty, maybe we can dispel these guys' unrealistic illusions by releasing the news of the occupation of Egypt to the outside world."

Although the Austrian army has torn through the Suez line of defense and even approached the city of Cairo, the Egyptian war is still going on.

Not long ago, the French government sent reinforcements to the Egyptian region. Although it could not reverse the overall situation, it still delayed the Austrian army's occupation of Egypt.

But this does not prevent the Vienna government from releasing rumors to the outside world.Anyway, the Austrian army has already arrived in Cairo, and it is only a matter of time before the city is broken.

Careerists or speculators, anyway, these guys are fools, and they will fall to whichever side the wind is strong.

Although the combination of Britain and France can bluff people, the Austrian Tigers should not be underestimated. After receiving such news, no one can easily stand in line before confirming the authenticity.

It is not easy to verify the news these days. When the countries figure out the situation, it is estimated that the Austrian army will almost take Egypt.

When the strategic situation reverses, the fools will naturally know how to choose.The essence of politics is to increase the number of friends and reduce the number of enemies.

In the face of interests, people cannot stand the test, and the same applies in politics.Franz is not a war maniac, and he has no interest in playing tricks to lure snakes out of their holes and create enemies for himself.

"Give it a try, but don't make it too obvious. Just release some photos of our army's operations in Egypt and release a few gossips. Let them make up their minds about the progress of the battlefield."

True or false is the hardest thing to judge.If other battlefields release marching photos, it is natural to judge the progress of the battlefield through landmark buildings.

But the Egyptian battlefield is different. The Austrian army is attacking on three fronts. The French army can only stick to strategic points and big cities, and the rest of the area is completely left to the Austrian army to gallop.

Judging purely from the marching route of the Austrian army, it is easy for everyone to draw the conclusion that the French army is finished.As for the truth, that doesn't matter anymore.

……

Everything has two sides. Once the news of the Austrian occupation of Egypt came out, it caused a sensation all over the world.

Not only the fools who wanted to take advantage of the fire were shocked, but even Austria's good ally, the Russians, were also shocked.

Maybe it was too much stimulation, or maybe it was to let the British be able to hold back Austria well enough. The Tsarist government changed its previous negligence in the negotiations, and quickly completed the exchange of interests with the British, reached an armistice agreement, and ended the war. Anglo-Russian War.

The European countries that were still stuck on the neck of the French have also changed their positions at this moment, and opened the door to convenience when exporting strategic materials to France. It seems that the relationship between everyone and the French has entered a honeymoon period overnight.

However, this is the limit of what the governments of various countries can do. Just like they did not join the anti-French alliance before, it is also impossible for everyone to join the anti-Austrian alliance for no reason.

Relaxing the restrictions on the French is just to balance the strength of France and Austria, so that they can fight more fiercely on the battlefield, not everyone becomes friends.

In the eyes of most politicians, France has always been the biggest destabilizing factor in continental Europe, and it is a key target.

……

Chapter 193 The Strongest Brain Supplement

It was originally a good thing that European countries relaxed their material restrictions on France, but Napoleon IV was not happy at all.

There is no way, the changes in the political positions of various countries also mean that the European world is not optimistic that France can win this war.

The center of the world these days is Europe, and the views of the European world will directly affect the judgments of countries around the world.

Recently, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made efforts to win over allies overseas, and has achieved phased results, especially after the British joined, it is even more powerful.

Without this bad news, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, Mexico, and Japan may all become members of the anti-Austrian alliance.

Everything is impossible now. Politicians are not fools. It’s okay to let them take advantage of the trend to speculate. If they want to go upstream and fight side by side with France, then don’t even think about it.

Open the map and you will know that Egypt played a vital role in this war. Once it fell into the hands of Austria, the anti-French alliance would remain invincible.

Seeing that France is strategically passive, no matter how much benefits the Paris government promises at this time, it is impossible for the fools to make money for them.

Suppressing his anger, Napoleon IV questioned: "Why did Egypt fall so quickly?

You must know that we have just increased our troops not long ago. The 23 infantry divisions plus the troops in the Egyptian region have a total strength of more than [-]. Is our army full of wine and food? "

Rumors are not released casually. The Vienna government dares to use the occupation of Egypt to fool people, and it has capital.

Just a week ago, the French army lost its access to the sea in Egypt, and the French government also lost contact with the French army in Egypt. No one knows what happened on the front line.

From the standpoint of a bystander, France lost its exit to the sea just after adding troops to the front line. This is clearly the Austrians deliberately luring the enemy.

Since it is luring the enemy, it is natural to be sure of victory.It makes sense that the Egyptian region fell so quickly.

The outside world can make up their minds like this, but Napoleon IV couldn't bear it.Not only lost Egypt, but also lost more than [-] regular troops, which is simply a loss to grandma's family.

If he had known this earlier, he might as well withdraw the troops of French Egypt and fight against the Anti-French Alliance on the European continent, at least it would increase his chances of winning.

Facing the emperor who was about to go berserk, Luskinia, the Minister of War who was equally confused, explained helplessly: "Your Majesty, no one knows exactly what happened in Egypt. Maybe it's just fake news from the Austrians.

In addition to our sending of reinforcements, the regular army in Egypt alone exceeds 50, and Governor Jacob has rich combat experience. Even if the enemy cannot be defeated, it is impossible for the entire army to be wiped out so quickly.

Before the fall of the port, we contacted the Egyptian region for the last time. Governor Jacob also promised that we could persist for at least half a year. "

Persisting for half a year naturally has prerequisites.The war is fought with materials. With sufficient logistics, 50 French regular troops plus 30 cannon fodder troops are of course capable of fighting.

However, the plan did not change quickly. The heavily guarded port of the French army fell first, and the French Egyptian troops became alone.

According to the intelligence from the navy, they were attacked by the Austrian navy and air force at the same time, and after suffering heavy losses, they were forced to choose to evacuate, and then there was no more.

This is the tragedy of losing air supremacy, and the Mediterranean Sea is not big. Taking off from Libya, the Austrian Air Force can monitor every move of the French Navy, but the French cannot lock the movement of the Austrian Navy.

In this era without wireless telegraphy, even if the spies collected information, there was no way to send it back in time.

The information is not equal, and the French Navy had to adopt a conservative state in a series of actions.The main fleet did not dare to divide its forces at all, for fear of being ambushed by the Austrian Navy.

There is only a squadron stationed in Egypt, and its scale is very limited. It is naturally overwhelmed by the sudden attack by the Austrian sea and air.

The lack of annihilation of the entire army is enough to prove that the French navy generals are still reliable.As for the safety of the port, it is really embarrassing.

Without the support of the navy's firepower, and being attacked by the Austrian army's joint sea, land and air forces, the fall of France's ports in Egypt became inevitable.

After hearing this explanation, Napoleon IV's expression softened slightly: "You mean the Austrians are spreading rumors, but what good does it do them? Is it just to deter those fools?

In essence, we all know that winning allies to attack Austria's overseas colonies is just to get rid of the passive situation of political isolation and helplessness, and it cannot really affect the war.

For Austria, after winning this war, even if all the overseas colonies are lost, they will all be returned to them after the war.

Releasing this rumor now, of course, keeps the overseas colonies, but also pushes them to the opposite of European countries.Especially Britain and Russia, absolutely do not want to see them continue to grow. "

The release of such rumors is not worth the loss to Austria. This is the conclusion drawn by Napoleon IV based on the current international situation, and it is also the reason why the international community is willing to believe rumors.

Foreign Minister Karel Kadlecs: "Your Majesty, perhaps this is the Austrians planning for the post-war international situation.

After all, once our strategy is successful, Austria will add a large wave of enemies overseas.With so many countries involved, it would cost a lot of money if they all went to the door to retaliate; it would be impossible not to retaliate, this is related to the dignity of the country.

If so, then we have to be careful.The enemy may have the certainty of winning the war to do this.

News came from the embassy in Russia that Rio, Russia and Austria have been in frequent contact recently.We all know that the relationship between Russia and Austria is very close, and Austria has a great influence in the Russian Empire.

The brains of those Eastern European barbarians are relatively simple, and they often do things without going through their brains.If Austria is allowed to win over the Russians, then the subsequent war will be difficult to fight. "

The chain of contempt has always existed. For a long time, the European continent has been developed in Western Europe and backward in Eastern Europe. The Russians in Eastern Europe have naturally become the object of everyone's contempt.

There is no doubt that Karel Kadlec was deeply influenced by this concept and had always held a prejudice against the Tsarist government.

Whether it's strategy or interests, as long as people are stupid, it's not a problem at all.

According to the principle that one mountain cannot accommodate two tigers, as neighbors, Russia and Austria should be incompatible, but the reality is just the opposite. The relationship between Russia and Austria has exceeded everyone's expectations.

So much so that European international relations experts have been led astray, and many people even openly suggested that as long as politicians can exercise restraint, all contradictions can be resolved by political means.

Frankly, this view is not without chance of success.If there is no such thing as the British, it is really possible for the European continent to resolve disputes through political means.

You must know that Fao was still an ally 20 years ago.The conflict between the two countries began to escalate after the British joined the alliance.

With no confidence in the Tsarist government, the worst was feared.The French government reluctantly made a quick decision, forcing the front line to launch an offensive, and the European war was once again pushed to a climax.

……

London, Prime Minister Gladstone has been losing sleep since the news of French Egypt.

The contiguous Austria is really terrifying. The existence of this behemoth has seriously threatened the strategic security of Britain.

From this day on, Britain's maritime hegemony lost its role as a check on Austria. If the two countries turned their faces one day, Britain would have to go to land to fight Austria.

There is no way, the Suez Canal has fallen into the hands of Austria, and the Cape of Good Hope has become the only hub connecting Britain to India, and it has become a must-defend military place.

Losing here also means losing India.As for the detour, it is theoretically feasible, but in fact it is not feasible at all.

The detour is simple to say, but if the detour is tens of thousands of miles, it will not only increase the time, risk and cost of the sea voyage, but also weaken the British government's control over India.

If the Russians go south again, the British government has no way to guarantee that they can send reinforcements and strategic materials there in time.

In the conference room, Prime Minister Gladstone's face was clouded, and he said solemnly: "Everyone, the worst situation we feared has emerged.

With the fall of French Egypt, all our restraints on Austria have been rendered useless.Now we not only have to find a way to help the French, but also consider how to ensure the safety of the Cape of Good Hope. "

Whether it is crisis awareness or persecution paranoia.Theoretically speaking, as long as Russia and Austria reach a deal, it is possible for Austria to attack the Cape of Good Hope.