On December 1, 1789, the 140,000 Ottoman Empire troops who had completed their preparations, led by the heir to the throne Selim, marched toward the Moldova region in a mighty manner. Bidogago, on the other hand, also rushed directly to Izmail.
There he will lead an army of 60,000 to force Bilgorod.
After the departure of the Ottoman army, all Russian troops stationed on the border of Moldova have been withdrawn. Even part of the First Army in Chisinau returned eastward under the leadership of Army Commander Brankov.
They will march directly from Chisinau to Odessa, where they will board a ship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet and head to the Krasnopelekopsk area of the Crimean Peninsula to meet up with Akhovsky.
.............................
William was quite speechless as he looked at a piece of information in his hand. This information was sent by Hans, and it stated the results of the French army in Liang. When William saw that Napoleon actually burned the rebels in Enleize Town,
At that moment, William only felt waves of thunder rolling in his mind.
What surprised him was not that Napoleon defeated the rebels, but that Napoleon's method of fire attack was not similar to the turning point in his life - the Battle of Moscow. It was better now that he was not burned, but the enemy was burned.
.
It wasn't that he couldn't keep up with the times, but that the times were changing too fast. William suddenly had this feeling in his heart.
But then William put down this information. The better Napoleon's performance, the more uncomfortable William felt. Sure enough, gold will shine wherever it goes.
Although Lyon is now under heavy siege, Napoleon is not optimistic about the government of Louis XVI. You must know that even William has as many as 20 pieces of intelligence about the instability of French domestic cities, and this means that once
If the sparks of revolution are to flourish again, then the whole of France will turn into a field of fire.
While William was still thinking about the situation in France, Locks walked in and placed a copy of the Prussian cabinet's deliberations on William's table.
Before Rocks could speak, William picked up the report and read it carefully.
This report is the Prussian government's plan for a new round of military expansion headed by Lockes. This time, at William's request, the Prussian government decided to form three new divisions, and the designations of these three divisions are Prussian 16th and 10th.
Seventh and Eighteenth Divisions. However, unlike the previous fifteen divisions, the three expanded divisions this time will not be completed at one time. It will take two years for the three divisions to be fully staffed. And this
It also means that by the end of 1791, Prussia could have a full 200,000 troops (you will not forget the two divisions on the North American continent).
But when William finished flipping through the plan, his face became a little unhappy. The plan looked good, and it could create three new divisions this time. However, it can be said that it is good-looking but impractical, because three divisions are enough.
It would take two years to complete the expansion. According to the plan in William's mind, by the middle of 1790, Prussia must have enough strength to intervene in domestic conflicts in France or Russia.
And what is strength? The army is strength! Only the army is the expression of a country's strength. Some people may say that finance or industry are the signs of a country's strength, but it doesn't matter what finance or industry. As long as there is a strong army
, I’m afraid I don’t have these things! What I don’t have, I just grab it. When the German Third Reich was defeated in the First World War, it didn’t have anything. However, by marching into the Rhineland, annexing Czechoslovakia and Austria, and later
We don’t have everything yet! So not having money is a small problem. If you don’t have money to grab a big business, you won’t have money. The key is to have an army that can conquer and fight well, and dare to fight. Otherwise, everything else is just empty.
talk.
Just like now. If Prussia is short of money at home, then as long as France is in civil strife, will Prussia be afraid of running out of money when it invades France? There are a lot of rich people in France. The first-rate Duke of Orleans, for example, is extremely rich.
The owner robbed them, and everything was taken care of.
"Lokes, your report seems to lack feasibility. According to the report, the three newly-built divisions will not be able to form combat effectiveness until the end of 1791. It is two full years from now. Could it be that these two years have passed?
Are we in Prussia just sitting there looking at a table full of rich dishes but not being able to do anything about it?"
After hearing William's question, Rocks smiled and nodded and then said:
"Your Majesty the King, this plan is the best plan that everyone in our cabinet has come up with after hard thinking. The biggest advantage of this plan is that it will not affect the development of people's livelihood in Prussia. You must know that with the liberation of our Prussian serfdom, more and more people
The more liberated serfs left the land and went to towns, the resettlement of these serfs involved considerable energy of the government and most of the financial resources of the treasury. And you have already established three new divisions before, so it can be said that the treasury's
The burden has reached its peak, so it is undoubtedly the most appropriate plan to complete the establishment of three divisions in two years without causing the country's financial collapse!"
Rocks's answer made William a little troubled. Yes, he had forgotten that there were millions of newly liberated serfs in Prussia. These serfs were undoubtedly an extremely heavy burden on the Prussian government. Despite the Prussian National Bank,
It is a tool, but not all serfs have the courage to make loans, even for small amounts. For these serfs who have just been liberated, their ideas are still very conservative. In their view, land is the key to survival.
the only guarantee.
In order for these liberated serfs to have a better living environment, William not only used the Prussian National Bank to provide assistance, he also paid a state subsidy for each liberated serf. Although each person received a subsidy
There were not many, but Prussia had millions of serfs, and a huge sum of money weighed heavily on Prussia.
As mentioned before, if it had not been for the seizure of the Danish royal family's property, William's previous three divisions would not have been able to expand.
"Okay, Rocks, I admit that what you said is right, so for Karina's sake, is there any way you can complete the expansion of three divisions within one year?"
Hearing William mention Karina Locks, his pupils shrank, and he immediately became excited.
"Your Majesty, it is for Karina's sake that I racked my brains and led all the government officials to drive out this plan day and night. You should understand my initial attitude.
I can say that until now I am opposed to your military expansion plan!"
"Okay, Mr. Rocks, please don't get excited, let's talk slowly."
Seeing Rocks becoming more and more excited as he spoke, William had no choice but to immediately comfort the old prime minister.
"Lokes, you see, I don't mean anything else. I also know that our government officials are working very hard on this matter. I also know that Prussia's financial pressure is very huge, but a problem is before us. I
I got a piece of information, which is very important!"
After hearing William's words, Locks frowned. William mentioned that he had received an important piece of information, but Locks had not received any very important information recently. Could it be that...
............
Seeing the change in Rox's face, William knew that the old prime minister must have thought too much. He immediately said with a smile:
"My Excellency, Prime Minister, you don't have to make wild guesses. This information came from Buer's line."
Well, after hearing this, Locks breathed a sigh of relief. If the intelligence did not come from Buell's line, he would be shocked. Prussia has two intelligence agencies, one is headed by Locks
government intelligence agency, while the other is the royal intelligence agency run by Bouer.
Although William appointed Hans as the deputy of the government intelligence agency, Rocks, who has been in charge of the government intelligence agency for many years, has an unparalleled advantage. Being the chief of the intelligence agency for decades is not a sudden change like Hans.
The promoted person can compete, although behind Hans is William.
Until now, Hans can only control half of the government intelligence agencies, and if there is any important information, even if Hans wants to hide it from Rocks, it is impossible.
Buell was different. Although Rocks and Buell had a very good relationship, and the royal intelligence agencies and government intelligence agencies cooperated a lot, Buell also knew how to be a minister. He knew that William would not allow him to interact with Buell.
Rocks cooperated outside the scope of his authority, so it is natural that Rocks did not know the information obtained by the royal intelligence agency.
"Buer just told me a shocking news. That is that Joseph II of Austria has been seriously ill. If nothing happens, the emperor will be able to live until next year at most!" This news made Rocks wide open in shock.
Mouth, although Joseph II was anxious to meet with William before, he felt an unusual aura, but he did not expect that Joseph II was already seriously ill. But then he thought about it, Joseph II who was seriously ill wanted to
It is normal for the Habsburg throne succession to be anxious to meet William, the biggest unsettling factor in the Holy Roman Empire, right?
The most reasonable explanation is to reach an agreement that both parties can agree to through the meeting with William, thereby ensuring the excessive stability of the throne.
Locks's face suddenly became clear, and seeing this, William was overjoyed, and he quickly continued:
"That Archduke Leopold was established as the heir of the Habsburg family. You should know that once Leopold ascends the throne, according to our agreement with Joseph II, I will become the first of the Habsburg family.
The heir, that is to say, will become the crown prince of the Holy Roman Empire! Mr. Locks, do you think Leopold will be willing to make me the crown prince of the empire and the Habsburg family in accordance with the agreement we signed with Joseph II?
Heir?"
Locks shook his head bluntly. Obviously, he did not think that Archdeacon Leopold would be so generous. Indeed, no matter who this matter was dealt with, it would be impossible for him to be so generous.
Even if William married Anna, at most he would be Leopold's son-in-law. And Leopold did not have no sons, and he had more than one son. In the case where Leopold had an orthodox heir, no matter it was
How could he allow William to become the Crown Prince of the Holy Roman Empire and the heir to the Habsburg family when he was still her son?
"Loux, under such circumstances, it is no longer a matter of whether we interfere in the internal affairs of France and the Russian Empire, but a matter of how we should handle the relationship with the Habsburg family once Joseph II dies.
!”
"Your Majesty, is your information accurate?"
Looking at William's smiling face, Rocks asked with some anxiety.
"Of course it is accurate. This information was obtained at the expense of many spies. Originally, we did not include Joseph's serious illness in our plan. We thought that Joseph could at least continue to rule for a few more years, and this is
It is the basis for our agreement. Otherwise, why would we reach such an agreement with Joseph II? It is precisely because we believe that Joseph II will be fine in the short term, so that we can ensure our southern border
There are no hidden dangers, and we in Prussia will use this time to develop our own strength and wait for opportunities to come. But now it seems that we are overthinking.
Maybe Joseph II thought that Prussia didn't understand his body. That's why he made us reach such an agreement through concessions on the border, and then completed the deployment of a series of domestic matters after stabilizing us. Even though
Later, we in Prussia noticed it, and more than half of his plan was completed. At least since we in Prussia have signed, we cannot blatantly oppose Leopold's accession to the throne."
"You are right, we did not expect this."
As William explained, Rocks' frown deepened. When Joseph II met with William, he was also very confused, but he did not think of Joseph II's physical aspect. In his opinion,
The reason why Joseph II was eager to reach an agreement with Prussia was just to devote all his energy to developing national strength and temporarily eliminate border troubles.
"Loux, do you think that if Archduke Leopold comes to power next year, will he recognize the agreement signed between us and Joseph II, or will he really make me the crown prince and heir to the family?"
William's question left Locks speechless for a long time.
The reason why the two sides signed such an agreement in the first place was undoubtedly for the same purpose, which was to appease the other side to ensure a stable period of time and then develop their own national strength within this period of time.
The reason why Joseph II asked to meet William in the first place was because, as mentioned above, he was aware of his physical condition, but for the sake of the stability of the rule of the Habsburg family, he strictly sealed off his physical condition, and then knew that he would not survive.
In many cases, I hope to reach an agreement with Prussia to ensure that Archduke Leopold ascends to the throne.
However, because everyone did not know the physical condition of Joseph II, officials from both Prussia and Austria thought that Joseph II was doing it to ensure the stability of the Prussian-Austrian border so that he could have time to develop his own strength. Joseph II would not only
The Prussians had deceived them, even their own people.
Seeing that Rocks was silent for a long time, William felt happy. He knew that now he should take advantage of the victory and pursue the victory.
"Loux, once Joseph II dies, the agreement signed between us and Austria will become a piece of waste paper! I dare to swear to God that Archduke Leopold will never appoint me as his successor.
The Crown Prince, otherwise the turmoil of the Habsburg family is just around the corner. Under such circumstances, do you think we, Prussia and Austria, can still coexist peacefully?"
Rocks, who was silent for a long time, said:
"Your Majesty, I think this depends on your opinion!"
William stood up suddenly and said excitedly:
"No, I cannot accept the deception of Joseph II sadly, because this is not just a deception to me personally, it is a deception to the entire Kingdom of Prussia. If that Archduke Leopold does not recognize me after he comes to power,
I will immediately raise troops to attack Austria! This is an unshakable belief in my heart!"
Impassioned words came out of William's mouth, while William's eyes kept staring at Rocks' cheek.
"Lokes, when we signed the agreement with Joseph II, it was precisely because we saw that Prussia could get what we dreamed of without using force, but now the Austrians treat us as fools. They are using it like fishing.
A fat bait lured us to take the bait, but when we took the bait, we found out that it was a scam. There was nothing in the seemingly fat bait. Our Prussian ideals were trampled on by the Habsburgs.
Underfoot!"
As he spoke, William took a few deep breaths and then said:
"Once Leopold goes back on his word, then I will definitely declare war on Austria immediately, because we are on the side of justice! Under such circumstances, we Prussia must be prepared to go to war with the Habsburg family! But we
The current strength of troops is really too small, and our Prussian border is really too long, which makes our defense strength stretched. Therefore, my goal is very clear, that is, by the middle of next year, I must see three troops in full force.
With a full division, only in this way can we have the strength to make the Habsburg family surrender without conducting nationwide recruitment!"
After saying that, William stood in front of Rocks and said nothing.
"Okay, Your Majesty, you have convinced me, but I have to confirm the physical condition of Joseph II. Maybe this will take a certain amount of time. If I am sure that Joseph II will really die soon, then I will make your plan
Execute without hesitation!”
"Thank you very much, Mr. Locks!"
As he spoke, William saluted Rocks, but in his heart he was secretly glad.
William certainly didn't know about the news that Joseph II was seriously ill, but Joseph II had not appeared in public for some time, and most of the recent government affairs reported by spies had been handed over to Leopold, and there was no way to deal with more situations.
Know. Under such circumstances, William decided to take a risk. As long as he persuaded Rocks, even if Joseph II was found to be alive and well in the future, his goal had been achieved, right?
Rocks went to verify that William was not worried, because Viana itself seemed not to be very peaceful recently, and the decrease in the frequency of Joseph II's public appearances on the road could be entirely attributed to physical discomfort. And Leopold's rise to power made it even more difficult.
Rocks' new doubts, which were hinted by William's psychology, under such circumstances, what else does William have to worry about.
"May God bless Joseph II to die next year as he has in history!"
William couldn't help but pray in his heart, and he also remembered that he had to collude with Buell, otherwise it would be bad if the old fox found out that everything was an excuse made up by him. (To be continued. If you like this movie
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PS: Thank you all for your support. I will set off tomorrow. The one-week journey of pain begins. The updates these days are not accurate for everyone. But when I come back, I will resume the update next time. Please wait and see!