Chapter 8: Fight if You Disagree

Returning to the throne, Franz II picked up Franz.

“In this world, no one can bully the Emperor, no one can bully me, and no one can bully you! Today, Grandfather will teach you how to be an Emperor!”

Having just bullied Prince Esterházy, that poor wretch, Franz II was in high spirits. He felt as though he had returned to his former self—the man full of ambition, determined to sweep across France and conquer the European continent.

“Where were we in our discussion?” Franz II asked, feeling slightly awkward.

“Joining the German Customs Union,” Metternich whispered as a reminder.

Upon hearing this, Kolowrat thought, *Good heavens!* He inwardly exclaimed, *Good heavens!* This was pure deception of the Emperor. So, he spoke up: “Prussia has already joined the German Customs Union ahead of us. As the presiding power of the German Confederation, the Austrian Empire has no reason to lag behind others!”

Baron Bruck thought to himself, *Damn, these two guys, how can they be so shameless? There isn’t even a shadow of a plan yet, and they’re acting like it’s a done deal, even starting to vie for leadership against Prussia.* He immediately added

“Joining the German Customs Union will not only help consolidate our leadership among the German states, but it will also increase the state’s fiscal revenue and facilitate the return of precious metals. According to Count Kolowrat’s estimates, the Empire’s debts can be paid off in twenty years. If not, I am willing to resign in disgrace alongside Count Kolowrat.”

After the Napoleonic Wars, various countries had set up extremely high trade barriers to prevent the outflow of precious metals and stop other nations from siphoning off their gold and silver. Austria’s current reserves of precious metals were severely insufficient, and its paper currency lacked credibility (the Empire was buried in debt). Therefore, what Baron Bruck said hit the Austrian Empire’s pain point, and it piqued Franz II’s great interest.

Metternich and Count Kolowrat exchanged looks of disdain, cursing inwardly, *So you, the thick-browed and big-eyed one, are the most shameless of us all.*

The dignitaries had not yet recovered from the previous shock, and now they were stunned by the shamelessness of these three ministers.

However, the cautionary tale of Prince Esterházy made these dignitaries hesitate. After all, the old Emperor before them was acting like he’d been injected with adrenaline, and no one wanted to touch that bad luck. Consequently, the dignitaries turned their gazes toward Prince Windisch-Grätz; after all, he held a high title and commanded military power, so surely there would be no problem.

Under the gaze of the crowd, Prince Windisch-Grätz had no choice but to bite the bullet and say, “Your Majesty, as you know, the French once demanded that the three South German states withdraw from the customs union we formed. What if—”

It would have been better if Windisch-Grätz hadn’t mentioned the French. As soon as he did, the hot-headed Franz II became instantly enraged.

“The French? Damn them! This is the German Customs Union! This is an internal affair of the German Confederation! By what right do they interfere? They wouldn’t dare!”

“Send a diplomatic note to the German states: if France dares to interfere, we go to war! Notify the nations of the Holy Alliance that if the French declare war on us, we demand they fulfill their sacred obligations. In short: if the French want war, we will accompany them to the very end!”

The ministers in the Hall of Mirrors were also infected by the Emperor’s emotions and began to applaud. Count Latour, the Minister of War, even had tears in his eyes. The monarch he had followed for decades had finally shown some backbone, and he shouted

“March on Paris!”

However, this time, no one echoed him.

Everyone shook their heads, signaling that it was impossible. Seeing this, Count Latour had to pretend nothing had happened.

Metternich also sighed, thinking how wonderful it would be if the Emperor could be this firm every time. It was just that this diplomatic note would be a bit difficult to handle.

Prussia was not only an important German state but also a member of the Holy Alliance, yet it was also the country most opposed to Austria joining the German Customs Union. He wondered what the King of Prussia would think when he saw this note.

As for the French, having just experienced internal strife, the possibility of them intervening by force was almost zero. Besides, if the French really took action, the Holy Alliance was not just for show. After a few decades of peace, he believed France would not produce another Napoleon.

Franz also took the opportunity to clap, coaxing the old man to make him happy.

The dignitaries saw that there was no point in continuing this, but passion always burns out. The strategy of delay—being able to delay and knowing how to delay—was very important in politics.

The excuses were simple: needing to contact the envoys of the various states, preparing the venue, and other related matters.

Although these were trivial matters, they were impossible to refuse. After all, while the matters were small, the implications were not, and they could only go along with what these nobles said.

During this time, the dignitaries would seek foreign aid, offer bribes, send money, and spread rumors. In short, each showed their own magical powers, all to prevent Austria from joining the German Customs Union.

However, since the Emperor had already agreed to today’s events, it would be very difficult to change things now.

On the other hand, Metternich, Count Kolowrat, Baron Bruck, Count Latour, and that almost invisible Minister of the Interior, Pillersdorf, were also preparing to deal with the final counterattack from the dignitaries.

After all, with these people who had no bottom line, heaven only knew what they might do.

Count Latour had already dispatched a large group of old generals who had participated in the anti-French wars—such as Haynau, Radetzky, and Anton von—to the most critical positions, instructing them to be extra careful. Now, all he had to do was provide these generals with enough soldiers and sufficient authority.

He did not want to let anyone stage another uprising under his nose.

Baron Bruck needed to contact Austrian bankers to make them believe that this country still had a future, and to raise as much money as possible.

Because once tariffs were abolished and border trade opened, the amount of money required would be astronomical.

To this end, he had to squeeze the last drop of blood from those bankers.

Metternich, meanwhile, needed to persuade as many domestic dignitaries as possible; after all, one more friend meant one less enemy.

Of course, besides the domestic opposition, there were the princes and nobles of the German states. His secret police and lovers had already found out the preferences of the various kings, princes, and ambassadors. Based on this, Metternich prepared a special gift for each of them. This included gifts for the King of Prussia and the Prussian ambassador, and, of course, for the chief architect of the German Customs Union—Friedrich List.

He had heard that Friedrich List’s investments had failed and he was now living in great distress. And now, after joining the German Customs Union, the Austrian Empire was in urgent need of such talent.

*How did I think of this person? Oh, right. It seems it was that paper airplane thrown by the Archduke. Archduke Franz really is the lucky star of this country,* Metternich mused, though he didn’t think much of it. Children liked to fold strange things out of paper and throw them around; wasn’t that normal?

And most importantly, he had to ensure that Franz II did not go back on his word.

After all, this Emperor’s fickleness was not a one-time occurrence. Today, he had to thank that future Emperor; otherwise, they wouldn’t even have this last chance to fight.

(End of chapter)