The Rise of the Empire

　　 "This is a copy of the treaty, please look at it." In the Winter Palace, the Russian Foreign Minister Giles sent the text of the "Reinsurance" treaty before Tsar Alexander III.

　　 "Very well, the Germans finally chose the right path. They did not offend the powerful Russia because of a fragile ally." Alexander III nodded and said with satisfaction.

　　Although the content of this treaty and the treaty signed between Germany and Austria is far different, it can only be regarded as a preventive and even neutral clause, but relying on this treaty, the Balkans can maintain the status quo. Without the support of the Germans, the Austro-Hungarian Empire is at a disadvantage in the Balkan region. They will not take the initiative to attack, and Russia, which has drawn its strength, can put all its experience on the decaying empire of the Far East. This is the last place in the world that has not been divided, and Russia is determined to win it!

　　 "That place is too big, even if Russia does its best, it will take hundreds of years to conquer, but at least we have to control this place!" The tsar pointed to the northeast corner of the Manchu and Qing territory.

"Although we have solved the troubles in Europe, the battle in the Far East has just begun. We need to face Britain and the restless small country! It seems that they might have torn a piece from the decaying empire of Qing Dynasty before the empire started. ! And our current military power in the Far East simply cannot form a deterrent to potential opponents, and strengthening the power of the Far East requires a lot of money and the support of allies." The Chancellor of the Exchequer Witt respectfully said.

　　 "Well, tell me what you think. Do you have a new idea?" the czar asked in a good mood.

“We already owed 2.6 billion francs to the French bank last year, and if we are to build a railway system across Asia and Europe, we need more funds, and only the French can give us this money.” Witte said tentatively.

From the perspective of his job, continuing to maintain a good relationship with France is of great significance to improving Russia’s fragile financial situation and meeting the needs of His Majesty the Tsar’s army expansion. However, the problem is that he has just signed the " If the Reinsurance Treaty is closer to the French, will it cause a backlash in Germany? So he can only say it in some kind of euphemistic tone.

　　 "The Empire has given the French an order for 500,000 rifles. The reward is already very generous. The Empire is not incapable of manufacturing rifles. The French should understand what we mean." The Russian Prime Minister said with some dissatisfaction. As a conservative, he naturally hopes that the Russian-German friendship can be consolidated. Naturally, those domestic capitalists and their spokespersons would prefer to obtain large amounts of loans from rich French people.

"It is necessary to maintain cooperation with the French, but with the continuation of the Reinsurance Treaty, our relations with Germany should also be eased. The ease of relations with Germany will allow us to win the negotiation process with the French. A greater advantage." Giles immediately came out to round the field.

　　 "The Germans have what we need, and this thing is only available in Germany, but not in the French!" General Makanov, who was ranked relatively low, finally spoke under the sign of the Prime Minister. "They have developed a hardened armor. It is said that the bullet resistance is 150% higher than that of ordinary nickel steel armor. If our newly built warship can be equipped with this kind of armor, the performance will be greatly improved."

　　 "This can be handled by the ambassador to Germany Pavel Shuvalov. I believe he can persuade the German central government to give us armor first." Alexander III said calmly. In his opinion, ordering armor is an act of giving money to manufacturers, and it would be very convenient to negotiate with the Russian government. If there are German officials to provide help, it can be almost guaranteed.

"I am afraid it is difficult for Mr. Pavel to solve this matter alone. Because the company that produces this armor has a very strong background, the Bavarian royal family almost completely controls this enterprise, and they have received orders from the Navy to at least give Germany in the next 4 years. The Navy provides 10,000 tons of armored steel! In addition, they have also received orders from Britain and Italy. If we follow the order, our position will be lower." Giles said with some embarrassment.

　　 "The Wittelsbach family?" Alexander III frowned involuntarily. As the Tsar, he naturally knew the relationship and historical origins between the Bavarian royal family and the Austro-Hungarian royal family. Whether it is possible to buy new-style armored steel is an issue, and whether the closeness between the two families will affect the Russian-German relationship is a more important issue! A simple state royal family does not have this power, but if a state and Vienna act together, then the German center may really have to reconsider its relationship with Russia. Although the treaty has now been signed, the relationship between the two countries is not Without actual improvement, the trade war between the two sides has just ended. In fact, the relationship is still relatively fragile!

"I think it is necessary for us to contact the Kingdom of Bavaria alone. In addition to armor, they also designed a very good cruiser. I think it has a good reference for the development of our navy. In addition, from the maintenance of the treaty From the perspective of stability, it is also necessary to differentiate between the Wittelsbach family and the Habsburg family." The Prime Minister said.

　　 Although the "Reinsurance Treaty" guarantees that as long as Russia does not move, Austria-Hungary will not receive Germany's help to change the status quo in the Balkans. However, when the main force of Russia moves eastward, what will Austria-Hungary take the initiative to challenge? And this treaty is just a continuation, and it's only extended for 3 years! If Germany does not sign after the expiration date, will the great cause of Dongjin that I have already prepared halfway stop or not?

　　Although the czar recognized Bismarck’s abilities and thought he was able to grasp the political situation in Germany, after all, he was only a prime minister, and after the opening of the Bundestag, he was just a bystander. The Kaiser’s wife is a British princess, and the relationship between Britain and Germany is also good. Austria-Hungary is the younger brother of Germany, and Britain and Austria are not friendly to Russia. Russia is also very isolated now. It was not that the Tsar had never thought of Russia and France to move closer, but if that were the case, Russia would have become enemies with Britain, Germany, Austria, and Italy! This price is too great!

"Let’s get in touch first. In addition, we can inform the ambassador to Berlin that the trade war between Russia and Germany can be considered to end, and our tax rate on special steel can be lowered to the previous baseline." Alexander III thought for a while and said, UU Read www.uukanshu.com The Russians have always been willing to spend money on their own army building. Since 1890, every battleship used hardened armor. Historically, Harvey hardened armor was used, and this time, the Russians used KC three years earlier! Okay now called Bavarian Hardened Armor!

　　 And just when the Russians were thinking about how to bring Russia-Germany relations closer, so as to ensure that no one would disturb them when they moved eastward, the response from Vienna was much stronger than that from the Russian court! After all, the signing of the "Reinsurance Treaty" means that Germany is still in a nearly neutral position in the dispute between Russia and Austria. In the Balkans, Austria and Hungary still have to face Russian pressure independently. This was undoubtedly a very bad result for the old King Fritz. When he saw the note sent by the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the king said angrily: "Austro-Hungarian Empire has never had friends! This was the case of the Prussian War! It's still like this now!"

The suicide of the prince in 1889, the crisis in Romania and the betrayal of Serbia caused the king to suffer too many blows. After the Prussian-Austro-Prussian War, Vienna accepted the two-yuan empire condition proposed by the Hungarian nobles, the old king felt more and more. The powerlessness and fragility of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Now the seemingly huge Austro-Hungarian Empire cannot withstand the heavy pressure of other great powers. Before external pressure crushes this country, the empire may fall apart first!

　　 "We must change and find some strength to rely on!" Old King Fritz gritted his teeth, and looked at the silent great power in the north and the increasing separation from Germany in the Balkans. The Austro-Hungarian Empire was once again pushed to the cusp of the storm!

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