War Palace and Knee Pillow, Austria’s Destiny

(I’m not in a good mood, the two chapters have been merged into one.)

The gentry in the city of Milan and even the entire Lombardy region were excited. After all, under the Austrian Empire's official system, being able to become familiar with the royal family was really something worth celebrating.

At the same time, they also breathed a sigh of relief. After all, what happened in Milan far exceeded their previous expectations.

You must know that a few years ago, despite being betrayed by a traitor, the Carbonari rebel army with less than a thousand people could still deal with the two brigades of the Austrian Empire for nearly half a month.

The infantry regiments of the Austrian Empire were large regiments, usually consisting of 2,500-3,000 soldiers. A brigade usually consists of two regiments, as well as a number of directly subordinate units. Therefore, the size of the suppressive force at that time exceeded 10,000.

The real planners believed that this riot would last for a long time, at least until the great powers intervened or retreated.

This group of people obviously had no idea at all. In other countries, the Austrians might not dare to fight. General Li Qi, who used money to buy entertainment, could not be compared with the veteran Marshal Radetzky.

And to say the least, Milan is the core of the Austrian Empire's rule in northern Italy. No matter how many rebels there are, it is impossible to ignore it, unless the empire's center is paralyzed.

The local gentry in Lombardy still hope that someone will make a fuss. After all, with Hungary as a role model, it would be great to not pay taxes and have political and military control.

But before that, they need to squeeze out external officials.

So Franz received a lot of dirty information from officials, local outsiders, and even from the army and the Duchess of Parma who didn't want to care about anything and didn't care about anything.

Adjani smiled while watching, she seemed to have found the fun she had not seen for a long time.

"Franz, is this what you call 'well done'? They form cliques and attack each other. They don't look like they are a group at all."

Franz shook his head helplessly and smiled: "It would be really troublesome if they were all monolithic."

Adjani thought so, but then asked: "But wouldn't it be impossible for them to restrain each other like this?"

Franz: "It is true to contain each other, but not everything is achieved. Northern Italy has always been an important source of tax revenue for the empire. Its economic growth rate is also the fastest except for Bohemia, and the railway network is basically completed."

Adjani asked with some confusion: "Why is this?"

"Mutual supervision can curb corruption to a certain extent, and mutual competition can improve efficiency. Of course, if mutual opposition lasts for a long time, trouble will occur, just like now.

Although the two sides have deep grievances, the improvement of welfare benefits and economic development in the Austrian Empire have covered up this contradiction to a certain extent.

It's just that there are external powers infiltrating and deceiving, and the remnants of the Carbonari Party have been working on something to revitalize Italy.

It's really funny, Italy never existed, it was Rome that once ruled the Apennines. The Habsburg family once had a crown of 'Emperor of the Romans'. If you want it now, just go to the Pope and buy another one.

I believe that Gregory XVI would be happy to accept this deal. "

After hearing this, Adjani left thoughtfully. She went to complete the work that Franz had given her before and convert these "gifts" into money.

After Gregory XVI came to power, he devoted himself to amassing money and at the same time was extremely opposed to the Italian national movement. At this time, the Pope was suppressing the uprising.

(Dozens of uprisings broke out in the Papal States from 1841 to 1845, with various banners, including national independence, tax resistance, and opposition to religious laws.)

Pope Gaury XVI carried out large-scale capitalist economic activities in the papacy, and successively established financial institutions such as the Discount Bank, the Bank of Rome, the Holy Spirit Bank and the Savings Bank. He also established a holy water company, sold indulgences, and at the same time used his power to suppress , persecuting competitors.

Franz's previous letter asking for help written by Emperor Yongli of the Ming Dynasty to the Holy See was bought from this old magician.

At the evening banquet, celebrities from Milan, as well as the governor and senior officials of the Lombardy region were all present.

The decoration of the venue was extremely luxurious, with giant crystal chandeliers illuminating the hall as if it were daytime.

All kinds of delicacies and fine wines were placed on the table, and the ladies and beauties were already waiting eagerly for it.

At this moment the waiter suddenly cleared his throat and the band played solemn music.

"Archduke Franz Karl has arrived!"

"Archduke Franz Joseph has arrived!"

The door slowly opened, and everyone held their breath. At this time, the two archdukes entered wearing the iconic white military uniforms of the Austrian Empire.

It's just that Archduke Franz Karl seemed to have something under his arm. The waiter was confused after taking a look at it. Then the former seemed to suddenly remember something and handed a seal to the latter.

A seal weighing more than 60 kilograms instantly overwhelmed the waiter. After all, it was much heavier than a cape and hat. Then the little hairy fish bounced away.

Then the father and son walked straight to the center of the venue under the astonished eyes of everyone. Franz Joseph poured a glass of wine and handed it to his father, then poured himself a glass of juice, raised the glass and said.

"To the Empire!"

At this time, people recovered from the shocking appearance of Archduke Franz Karl depositing seals, and they all raised their glasses.

"To the Empire!"

Then came the long reception time, when Franz and his father had to accept the respect and greetings of others with high intensity.

After finally getting to the dinner table, Franz had to give a toast as usual. After all, his father was really not very good at this.

But this time, everyone was shocked again. After all, most people thought that the IQs of the two Grand Dukes might be about the same.

Although the Habsburg royal family tried their best to package Franz, their propaganda methods were obviously problematic. They were too fake and exaggerated, and in the end no one believed him.

In fact, before the banquet started, someone even set up a bet on whether the two Grand Dukes could finish a complete sentence.

Although Franz is only fourteen years old, his height is the same as that of an adult, but his face is still a little childish. However, the hard and shiny chestnut short hair, the cold white skin, the dark blue eyes, and the noble temperament cultivated since childhood are all stunning.

But Franz himself hated carrying it like this. After all, it was very troublesome and tiring.

Then there was a group of noble ladies and daughters who "happened" to pass by Franz in a group. According to traditional etiquette, at a banquet, the person in superior position does not speak, and the person in lower position is not allowed to take the initiative to strike up a conversation.

Compared with the son who is watertight, the father who goes to the dinner with a seal under his arm is much easier to deal with. After all, the latter likes to drink, but fortunately Franz has already passed the gas beforehand.

"Grand Duke, the people of Milan are taking desperate risks because they can't survive. And those outsiders, they are really hateful. They not only took away the jobs of the locals, but also seriously disrupted our public security environment.

Those Sicilians are all gangsters, thieves, and liars. I really hope the imperial government can find a way to punish them as they deserve. "

The speaker is an old man with a pale face and heavy wrinkles. He likes to show his yellow gold teeth when he rubs his hands. He is Vera Ivar, the president of the Chamber of Commerce in Milan.

What he said was not a lie. The arrival of a large number of immigrants did affect the local order, but what he said was not entirely out of justice.

In fact, outsiders have formed their own forces, are unwilling to pay membership fees, and compete with them for the market. And government officials don't care about competition among themselves, as long as someone pays taxes, that's enough.

The so-called president of the Milan Chamber of Commerce was a tax collector in the past. What he does is contract taxes and then earn the difference between the country and the people.

However, with the end of the Napoleonic Wars, the era of tax collectors also ended.

Nowadays, taxes are collected directly by the government, but the president of the Chamber of Commerce still has a strong influence in the local area, and he also has a title in the Austrian Empire, which provides the possibility of tax avoidance.

The situation in the Austrian Empire at that time was very special. The nobles traditionally had the right not to pay taxes. However, due to the reforms of Joseph II, the nobles were also included in the ranks of taxpayers. Then the nobles united to overthrow the emperor and his reforms.

What is interesting is that in the subsequent Napoleonic Wars, the Austrian nobility was completely defeated, and then the most conservative emperor Francis II resumed the most radical reforms of his uncle.

However, due to a lot of historical issues, some nobles do have the right to reduce or reduce taxes.

For example, the royal family and Hungarian nobles have tax-free privileges. In Netalenia and Northern Italy, even Prince Metternich must pay taxes, but those with titles above baron have a certain amount of exemptions.

In fact, the vast majority of Austrian nobles have no titles and only have an honorary title. These people do not have the privilege of tax reduction or exemption.

The previous president of the Milan Chamber of Commerce used his family's title to help people avoid taxes. The specific process was similar to the donation in the Ming Dynasty.

The Austrian Empire explicitly prohibited such tax evasion, but the rules were destined to provide huge benefits to violators from the moment they were formulated.

At this time, someone must have asked, if tax can be avoided, why would those foreign businessmen disagree? We are all Italians, can we cooperate and win-win to cheat Austria together?

But this approach is too risky for outsiders, and Mr. Ivar has a really bad reputation. He often embezzles other people's property without any reason, using many excuses ranging from breach of contract to spitting.

However, the reality is that the more Ivar eats, the more people are afraid of him, and his title changes from "vampire" to "sir". Over time, he becomes a local tyrant.

Until Austria established the Apennine Customs Union, a large number of foreign people poured into northern Italy. Among these people were not only laborers, but also many businessmen and craftsmen, as well as politically persecuted exiles.

The majority of them are from the Two Sicilian people, which is mainly due to the liberal reforms of Ferdinand II. What this king wanted was to develop the economy and the military. However, the first thing people wanted to do was to revolutionize his life.

As a result, this enlightened liberal became the most cruel and staunch conservative. Then as the economy of Northern Italy boomed, a large number of Southern Italians went there to make a living.

And in fact, the atmosphere in Northern Italy is relatively open, and ideological control is relatively loose. The Austrians here prefer to make money rather than stabilize their rule. The main reason is that the country was too poor after the Napoleonic Wars. The famous Four Corners Fortress It's all because of its long-term disrepair and its defense power has been greatly reduced.

Back to the main story, these outsiders have money and technology, coupled with Austria's good policies, and the two trends of opening up trade routes and colonial development, they have the momentum to catch up as latecomers.

As a result, those local snakes got upset and started causing trouble. However, by chance, this group of people beat up Marshal Radetzky's eldest son, and by chance, they attracted the attention of Vienna.

As a result, a decree that "evil people must not be tolerated and good people must not be wronged" wiped out the largest local gangster. Mayor Gabriel Cassati, Father Leonardo, the dean of Delmanda, and There are a lot of local gentry who are implicated.

The so-called strong dragon does not suppress the local snake, that is because the snake does not take the initiative to provoke the dragon, otherwise it will be nothing more than a ball of rotten meat.

Franz had investigated before coming, and this Vera Ivar was one of the biggest suspects in planning the riot.

At this time, a young man with a firm face and a straight body rebuked loudly: "You are talking nonsense!"

Then, as expected, he was pushed to the ground by two guards in the crowd before the ladies had time to scream.

However, his voice still startled Archduke Franz Karl and threw a glass of wine on Vera Ivar's face.

The latter glared subconsciously, and then returned to his original state, but he could not escape the eyes of the attendant at the side.

The hawk-like gaze on Ivar's face made him feel cold all over, and then several guards surrounded him and checked him over while helping him clean up the wine stains.

The leading guard shook his head slightly, and then Franz Karl's attendant, Kalga Willi, withdrew his gaze.

The young man who was pinned to the ground struggled and shouted: "Grand Duke, he lied! We have always paid taxes in accordance with the law. It is Ivar, the vampire! It is him."

"Drink! Drink!" The young man was interrupted by Archduke Franz Karl before he finished speaking.

When everyone was puzzled (after all, everyone was waiting to see the show) Archduke Franz Karl shouted loudly.

"I have an announcement!"

For a moment, no one knew whether the Grand Duke drank too much or was really ill. However, they did not dare to speak due to his identity, so the atmosphere was controlled.

"The empire will not treat its own people badly. It will provide work in exchange for relief!"

Everyone was a little confused. Fortunately, some people noticed the key word "relief for work."

Someone said with some confusion: "Work-for-relief? Lombardy has been doing well in recent years, and there have been no disasters?"

It was time for Franz to appear. He cleared his throat and said.

"The empire has investigated the situation in Northern Italy and found that the fundamental problem causing social unrest is caused by the lack of jobs. Therefore, the imperial family has decided to implement work-for-relief in Northern Italy. I hope everyone can unite and work together for the common good. Strive for a better future.”

Food-for-work is good news. After all, no matter what major projects the imperial government carries out locally, it will attract a large number of laborers.

This can indeed alleviate the competitive pressure brought by the migrant population to a certain extent, and at the same time increase employment and promote consumption, thus creating more business opportunities.

In the process of this virtuous cycle, if the local area can restore its own hematopoietic function, it will truly eliminate the crisis caused by the foreign population.

It's just that the country will be in debt because of this, but what does that have to do with them?

So people started partying all night, and the young people from before were let go.

Archduke Franz Karl walked up to the young man and handed him a glass of wine.

This moved the latter to tears. After all, he had been away from his hometown for so many years and was overwhelmed by excessive pressure. The former didn't quite understand and just said: "Have a drink. If you have a drink, you won't feel sad."

The next day, when people asked "how to provide relief through work," Archduke Franz Karl replied, "Tear down the wall!"