Five hundred and fortieth chapters of their own minds
To end the war as soon as possible, neither Neserrodie nor Chernyshev, nor Duke Ordov nor Count Uvarov have any objections to this point.
Because originally according to their plan, this war would only last for half a year at most. Now it has been three months, and half of the estimated time has passed. Not to mention the end of the war, the scale is getting bigger and bigger. This
Isn't it fatal?
Of course, they also knew that this could not be entirely blamed on Duke Mikhail's incompetence. After all, no one expected that Britain and France would be so tough as to declare war on them over local chickens.
This was completely different from their previous imagination, and they had never made any predictions in this regard. They even didn't know what to do.
Especially the reactions of Prussia and Austria in recent days have shocked them even more. Who would have thought that even their die-hard allies have turned against them?
At one time, they were very worried that Duke Mikhail would make a mistake and be violently beaten when he was attacked from both sides. Now, the one who can tenaciously stabilize the situation of the battle and prevent it from deteriorating can be regarded as a famous general.
Of course they are lucky, but they all know that it is extremely unrealistic to expect Duke Mikhail to use the few troops at hand to deal with Austria, Turkey, Britain and France or even defeat Turkey. To put it bluntly, it is just a dream!
Anyway, these people in the imperial study all know that it is imperative to increase the number of troops, and the sooner the better. But how to increase the number of troops and how much to increase the number of troops also need to be discussed carefully. After all, the treasury is almost empty now.
If we continue to increase the number of troops, we will definitely have to increase taxes, and if not, we will have to increase taxes severely.
But think about how much money the serfs in Russia have to exploit. Shouldn't tax increases come out of the pockets of nobles and ministers like them?
Although Nicholas I's authority and methods were much stronger than those of Louis XVI back then, he didn't worry about anyone who dared to challenge him and refused to pay. But none of his ministers were good-tempered, so how could they sit back and watch his own affairs?
When their interests are damaged, they will inevitably shift the burden to the bottom of society. If they do this, problems may arise in the country.
And this problem can be big or small. If Prince Mikhail is like a god and can defeat the Turks as soon as possible, then these will be small problems in the glorious victory.
But if the war progress is not optimistic, or even delayed for a long time, and continues to be so time-consuming, then small problems will turn into big problems.
Nicholas I had a relatively clear understanding of these things. He knew that increasing taxes and increasing troops was equivalent to beating the chicken's blood, but they could not do both.
After deciding to increase troops, he must ask relevant questions clearly.
As Prime Minister, Neserrode must first make this issue clear: "If there is a temporary increase in taxes, considering the upcoming spring plowing and the lean season, I personally think it must be enough. At most, we can raise military expenditures of 100,000 troops to ensure operations."
That’s the limit!”
Before he finished speaking, Chernyshev was the first to jump out and object: "What's the use of a hundred thousand people? Prime Minister, don't you know how much pressure Duke Mikhail is now? If you just count Turkey opposite him,
There are nearly one million troops. In addition, Austria has stockpiled hundreds of thousands of horses on the Transylvanian front. If you only give it 100,000 people, what is enough for it?"
Of course Neserrodie knew that 100,000 people would definitely not be enough, but he certainly could not say more, because he wished that Nicholas I would just retreat. He deliberately said that it was only enough to mobilize another 100,000 people to fight.
His Majesty will probably back down, right?
He glanced at Chernyshev and replied calmly: "The state treasury and people's livelihood are like this. I can't help it. I can't force taxes and directly apportion them, right?"
Chernyshev suddenly stopped talking, because he knew that as long as he said that he could do this, Nesserroddie would definitely suck the blood of his party first when collecting taxes. How could it be possible if he is not stupid?
Fall for this evil!
It was just that Neserrodie's trick could scare Chernyshev, but it could not fool the other people in the study. Duke Ordorff immediately asked: "Isn't it right? When we quelled the rebellion in Hungary in 1848,
The total number of troops mobilized exceeds 700,000. There was no tax increase at that time. Now we have only mobilized 600,000 troops, which is less than that of back then. Why can we only mobilize another 100,000 troops?"
Neserrody sighed inwardly, knowing that it was easy to fool Chernyshev, who was not sensitive to numbers, but it was impossible to fool a man like Duke Ordov, but he also had the confidence to look at Nikol.
King Ra's attitude is that it is unlikely that he will be removed from office, and he will probably have to rely on him to negotiate with Britain and France, so even if you know that I lied, so what!
Suddenly he snorted and said contemptuously: "This time and that time are not the same!"
This attitude was naturally very irritating, but Neserrodie's judgment was very accurate. Nicholas I could not do without him for the time being and could only tolerate his arrogance. And Duke Ordorff also knew that there was no point in challenging this old fox.
It was meaningless, so he said directly to Nicholas I:
"Your Majesty, based on my experience, if we want to defeat Turkey as soon as possible and end the war as soon as possible, we need to send at least 500,000 additional troops to Wallachia. 100,000 troops are simply not enough!"
Okay, increase the number of troops by 500,000. Apart from scaring people, this kind of lion with its big mouth seems to have no other effect.
But Nesserrody knew that Duke Ordolph did it on purpose, because they all knew that Russia could not afford such a large number of troops with its national strength. Obviously half a million was impossible. The reason why Duke Ordorf came up
He asked for 500,000 people, which was obviously to challenge his earlier statement that he could only provide 100,000 people. This was to help Chernyshev raise the price.
"Duke, you are talking nonsense! Five hundred thousand people is impossible!" Neserrodie retorted through gritted teeth.
Duke Ordorf did not answer this question at all, but directly analyzed it for Nicholas I: "Your Majesty, half a million people are not many at all. This is only the number required based on Duke Mikhail's effective command.
troops, otherwise if someone else is to direct this war, it would take at least one million men to defeat the Turks!"
This is just telling lies. In fact, whether it is Duke Mikhail or other generals who command the battle, the number of troops required is almost the same. Duke Ordolph deliberately helped raise the price. On the one hand, he raised the asking price;
Speak well of Prince Mikhail.
Because during this period, many voices have been criticizing Duke Mikhail, saying that his command is incompetent. He has an army of 500,000 to 600,000 people but he can't even defeat a mere Turkish mob. He is simply a loser!