Holy Roman Empire-Chapter 923 - 186: A Dumbfounding Strategy

Vienna Palace was thoroughly flabbergasted upon receiving the news of the refugee crisis erupting.

There was no helping it; the news was simply too astonishing. One must know that Belgium and the Rhineland region were at the heart of Europe, not some irrelevant backwater.

It was imaginable that once the news spread, all the diplomatic efforts previously made by the French government would go down the drain. Even their allies, the British, would start to view the Paris Government in a different light.

Having been immersed in politics for many years, Franz had become very resilient and quickly came to his senses.

"Is the news confirmed? Are the refugees truly a result of the French expelling the locals and not a consequence of the war?"

The creation of refugees by war and the expulsion of locals are two drastically different concepts—the former is inevitable, while the latter signifies the ambitions of France.

Despite the current war being initiated by the French in their desire to capture territories west of the Rhine, the French government had never openly acknowledged plans to annex these areas.

Expanding territory on the European Continent nowadays not only triggers public ridicule and diplomatic hostility but also represents a political taboo.

Legal foundation is an inescapable hurdle. Violating this is akin to undermining the European political system. Breaking the rules will inevitably result in being bitten back by those very rules.

The French initiated the war under the pretext of soldiers going missing—an excuse for war all too common on the European Continent. Wars have been triggered over a jar of honey, let alone missing soldiers.

Without openly revealing their ambitions, it’s a quiet operation. Everyone can feign ignorance, and all countries enjoy watching France and Austria battle it out.

Many politicians are covertly maneuvering, waiting for France and Austria to exhaust themselves before stepping in to pick up the spoils and restore the balance of Europe.

With the French acting this way, the situation is now different. Especially for smaller nations, with the lid blown off, if they don’t take action, what will happen if the great powers follow suit? How will they survive?

Of course, these are only theoretical considerations. In a sense, politics is a prostitute. In an age of survival of the fittest, no problem is insurmountable with sufficient power.

Prime Minister Carl responded with a grim face, "The news has been verified. The French Army has inflicted devastating looting on the people in the occupied areas, seizing their food, burning their homes, and forcing them to leave.

In addition, the French Army has also blockaded the ports in the Belgium area and the roads to Switzerland and the Netherlands. It seems they’re preparing to expel all the refugees toward us.

According to intelligence from our informants, the French Army is facing logistical issues, incapable of sustaining the consumption of the frontline troops. The reason is that the Allied Forces destroyed local roads and bridges and also burned down granaries and supplies before withdrawing.

If the war continues, not only will the French government have to support its frontline troops, but it will also have to resolve the sustenance problem for tens of millions of local people, which far exceeds the capabilities of the French.

Consequently, someone proposed the plan to expel the locals. Aside from a few who turned traitors in support of France, nearly all residents are within the scope of expulsion.

If nothing unexpected happens, we may end up taking in close to ten million refugees, far beyond the government’s initial plans."

Hearing this explanation, Franz had no choice but to believe it. This was no longer a question of whether the French wanted to do it but a necessity. Discover stories at novelbuddy

How else to solve the food problem if not by expelling the locals?

There are tens of millions of people in the area. Once the civilian grain stores are depleted, it will be up to the French government to provision them. Otherwise, when hunger strikes, these people are going to rebel.

Food is only a short-term problem; the troubles that follow are even greater. Just look at the Italian Area. Despite many years having passed, it still hasn’t fully settled down.

Assimilating Italians is already challenging, let alone the fierce-natured Germans.

While the former currently lacks a nation, all their problems are internal; the latter is different. Even if France were to win this war, it couldn’t possibly destroy Austria.

Since they can’t assimilate them, keeping these people no longer represents wealth but rather a significant burden.

Whether looking at the short-term demands or from a long-term strategic perspective, to France, these locals all pose a potential threat.

Rather than keeping these risks, it’s better to expel them and cause trouble for the enemy.

It proved that France’s actions were successful. Despite extensive preparations, Austria wasn’t ready to receive so many refugees.

Causing trouble is always easier than solving it. The French Army doesn’t need to consider civilian losses; a simple and brutal expulsion of the locals could be done in a month’s time.

By contrast, Austria’s task of settling these people is an entirely different situation.

Never mind a month, even within a year, accommodating so many people is no easy task.

The Vienna Government might have extensive experience with refugee resettlement, but it doesn’t have the capacity to settle nearly ten million people within a short period.

Especially now that the sea routes are blocked, Austrian ships can only operate in the Eastern Mediterranean, which further adds to the difficulty of settling the refugees.

It is certain that as a result of the refugee crisis, for a considerable time in the future, the Anti-French Alliance has lost the initiative on the Central European battlefield.

"Now that things have come to this, let’s first focus on properly settling the refugees! Since the French have made their move, we must follow suit.

Not all refugees are old, weak, women, and children. Some of the able-bodied can be arranged to maintain the roads, reducing the number of laborers conscripted domestically.

From Central Europe to Africa, along tens of thousands of kilometers of railways and roads, we should be able to settle quite a few people. Anyway, we must give the refugees a job and not let them idle around.

These refugees share similar cultural traditions with us, so integration should not be hard. How many of them can stay after the war would be up to our capabilities.

As long as we can keep one-fifth, our current investment will not be in vain.

The Foreign Ministry should also take action, exposing the atrocities of the French to the whole world, calling for all European countries to join in boycotting them."

The strategy for settlement is simple, though it does cost a fair bit of money. Yet, compared to the associated benefits, Franz is willing to be the generous fool.

Of course, this is based on the premise that Austria is not short of food. With plenty of food, we don’t need to worry about feeding all the refugees, otherwise, this would be a poisoned chalice.

Foreign Minister Wessenberg: "Your Majesty, the Foreign Ministry has already taken action, but I fear the results may not be too optimistic.

The French’s actions, while certainly provoking hostility from the European nations, have also implicated us. From the current situation, it is possible that not only France but also Austria could end up annexing the German Region and Belgium.

The French have created an opportunity; after the war, the Rhineland and Belgium will hardly have any people left, they might as well be considered no man’s land.

As long as we win this war, we will have ample justification to annex the aforementioned areas. Due to historical reasons, our difficulty in annexing these regions is much less than it would be for the French.

I estimate at this time, the vigilance of European countries against us will also rise to a new height.

Under these circumstances, the sanctions imposed by European countries on the French will largely be all bark and no bite. The French must have calculated this before taking their actions."

Explanation is impossible, in a sense, to explain is to cover up, and no matter how the Vienna Government tries to explain, no one will believe it.

The source of this c𝐨ntent is freeweɓnovēl.coɱ.

Besides, the annexation of the German Region was already in the plan, to which the Vienna Government has dedicated decades of effort.

Anyone who dares to talk about abandoning the plan would be buried under the spit from the public.

As for Belgium, it indeed was not within the Vienna Government’s plan, and Franz has no interest in Belgium.

But to make a promise not to annex Belgium could not only be ineffective but could also expose the plan to annex the German Region.

Even though this plan is almost an open secret, saying it out loud is completely different from doing it quietly. In politics, there are many things that can be done but not said.

Under such circumstances, all the Austrian Government can do is to pretend to be unaware. Neither admitting nor denying, leaving the world to speculate.

If our international image is poor, then drag the competitor down to our level. Facing such a reluctant strategy, Franz could only sigh.

"We’ll do our best. After all, the key to deciding the outcome of this war still lies on the battlefield.

As long as England and Russia do not enter the war, other countries, even if they wish to intervene in this war, will find their capabilities lacking.

Since the refugee crisis has delayed our time of decisive battle, the next phase of our war plan should stall the European battlefield and focus the counter-attack on the African Continent.

The age of scrambling for Africa has long passed, and now there’s an opportunity to redistribute interests. We must not miss this opportunity."

At some point, the world began to popularize the reasoning method of established facts. For the great powers, as long as they create an established fact, they can generally swallow the gains.

By capturing French African, the decline of France has become inevitable. Even if Napoleon were to be reborn, he would be powerless to turn the tide.

Prime Minister Carl cautioned: "Your Majesty, a sudden shift in strategic focus might not be wise!"

National strategy is like a complex web; once set, it is almost impossible to make large-scale strategic adjustments.

Especially such an unconventional strategy of Africa before Europe, is enough to refresh the European world’s norms.

...