It is still very challenging to be neighbors with the French these days, and you must always be vigilant.

The Rhineland region is an enclave and has a good neighbor. The Prussian government was mentally prepared to lose the Rhineland region a long time ago, but it did not expect it to be lost in this way.

The Prussian government is unable to admit the diplomatic pressure exerted by Britain and Austria and can only choose to compromise. In the short term, abandoning the Rhineland region is also a good thing for the Prussian Kingdom.

After selling the Rhineland region, you can not only get rid of the financial crisis, but also get rid of the threat from the French and concentrate your efforts to fight against the Russians.

If you insist on not selling, the French might go directly in the next Prussian-Russian War. After the Italian region was annexed, the Prussian government had no confidence in the French moral integrity.

If it weren't for the mutual restraint between the great powers, the Rhineland region would have been lost long ago. Don't look at the original space-time Prussian Kingdom that won the bet, but you think that the Prussian Kingdom's military strength is above France, but in fact it's the opposite.

Perhaps the current French Empire's military strength may not be much stronger than the same period in history, but its strength on paper is very amazing. The standing army is twice that of the Prussian Kingdom, and its comprehensive national strength is more than three times that of the Prussian Kingdom. (including French Italian regions and colonies)

Behind the great enemy of the Russian Empire, if you face France, you will definitely be in a state of mind.

After some symbolic struggle, Prussian Foreign Minister Jeffrey Friedman had no choice but to announce that the sale of the Rhineland region was sold publicly and the auction price was higher.

There is no doubt that this is a divisive alliance between Britain, France and Austria. If you really compete for financial resources, neither Belgium nor the German Federal Empire could be a rival to France.

Austrian Minister Hummel: "Your country has no problem in auctioning the Rhineland region, but the Rhineland is part of the German region, and the German people live on it.

Based on all factors, it is better to join the German country in the Rhineland region. I suggest that this auction will be participated by the German-speaking cultural countries: Switzerland, Belgium, the German Federal Empire, and the New Holy Roman Empire.

As the proposer, we can avoid suspicion and withdraw from this auction.”

"Avoiding suspicion" is completely about gilding one's face and putting an enclave under the eyes of the French. Who can sleep?

European countries do not want the French to expand in Central Europe, nor do they want Austria to expand in Central Europe. Even if they want to take the Rhineland region, they will not have a chance.

"Enclave" is also relatively speaking. If it is facing the French, it is indeed an enclave; if it is replaced by the German Federal Empire, it will be attacked on both sides.

French Foreign Minister Montero stood up angrily: "No, since it is an open auction, the higher the price will naturally be. All European countries are qualified to participate, so how can they be restricted to German countries in a narrow sense?"

How can you miss such a good thing to be able to buy the Rhineland region with money? Even if the opportunity is small, Montero must fight for it.

Hummel said tit-for-tat: "We are all civilized people. Everyone knows that to manage a good place well, it is inseparable from the support of the people.

Your country's cultural traditions are incompatible with the Rhineland region. How can we handle relations with the local people? As a civilized country, we must respect public opinion."

The "public opinion" was first created by the French. Napoleon III respected public opinion and was promoted to power. It was a real elected emperor, not a conspiracy to restore the emperor.

This does not mean that European countries really respect public opinion. The ruling class often chooses to respect public opinion when it is beneficial to them, and instead pretends not to see it.

In order to kick France out, Hummel raised the banner of "public opinion" without hesitation. This is both a need for interests and a political need.

As the leader of the German region, Austria has the responsibility to take this lead. Otherwise, Belgium and the German Federal Empire would have the courage to compete with the French.

Seeing that the temperature was almost done, the British Foreign Secretary Marquis McLean, who had been watching the show, said: "Sir Hummel is right. As a member of a civilized society, we must respect public opinion.

More than 95% of the people in the Rhineland region are German, and their cultural traditions are more suitable for merging with German countries.

Now that the new Holy Roman Empire has withdrawn, the most suitable countries to participate in the auction are Belgium, the German Federal Empire and Switzerland.”

The two countries of Britain and Austria have agreed and are still watching, and European countries are participating. At this moment, everyone is "respecting public opinion".

...

More than a dozen countries have the same position, and Montero cannot withstand the pressure. The reality is right in front of us, and no one wants to see France continue to expand. The so-called "public opinion" is a fig leaf, which is used by everyone to frame their own image.

If public opinion is really respected, the Ireland region has become independent, the Scotland region has become independent, and the major colonial empires have collapsed.

The facts are one thing, but what you say is another. Everyone needs face, and it is necessary to say one thing and do another.

If there is no fig leaf, France is too strong to spread, and everyone is worried that France will threaten its own safety after it grows. How can we get along with each other later?

"snort!"

After shouting coldly to express his dissatisfaction, Montero chose to remain silent. There was no way, this occasion was not suitable for fighting against all the heroes. Everyone's attitude was very firm and there was no way to convince them at all.

If you want to threaten and induce others, the leader is Britain and Austria. If you want to make a move outside, you will also humiliate yourself. France has not yet had the strength to fight Europe alone.

Montero's silence soon received high praise from everyone, and all kinds of flattery came to his face, such as: "considering the overall situation", "having an international sense of responsibility", "respecting the role model of public opinion"...

However, falling into Montero's ears all turned into irony. Without achieving the goal, no matter how many good things are, they cannot bring benefits.

As a politician, if you have received praise from all parties, don’t be in a hurry to be happy. It’s better to calm down and reflect first.

Usually, in two situations, you will receive praise from everyone. The first situation is that you die and you are always tolerant of the dead; the second situation is that your approach is in their interests.

In the second case in the international world, most of the time it can be explained as: if you do something wrong, you will benefit everyone. In this case, it is the easiest to gain praise, and you will have reputations during and after your lifetime.

Otherwise, it would be great if the enemy didn’t touch the dark, and you would also expect others to give you a good review?

Respect your opponent, that is to respect your opponent who has died, or fallen, or an opponent who is still in office. If you don’t find a way to defeat him, you have to make a name for your opponent. What kind of spirit is this?

After appeaseing the French, everyone's eyes gathered on the representatives of the three countries of Switzerland, Belgium and Germany, waiting for their reply.

Swiss Minister Podolsky took the lead in giving the answer: "Although we really want to buy the Rhineland region, due to our financial resources, we still have to give up."

Looking at Podolsky with a heartache, everyone almost believed it. The Swiss federal government is indeed poor, and due to its productivity and resources, Switzerland has not yet developed this year.

However, due to the limitation of financial resources, people are more willing to believe that the Swiss are afraid of the French and dare not make up for this enclave.

In this regard, Switzerland and Belgium and the German Federation are completely different. The latter two directly border the local area and can increase their national strength.

Taking the Kingdom of Belgium as an example, if you acquire the Rhineland region, your overall national strength will double soon. As the first country to complete industrialization in Europe, Belgium is at the world's leading level in many areas.

Unfortunately, due to the limited local area and lack of development potential, Belgium failed to find the threshold of the great powers and could only exist as a small country.

After getting the Rhineland region, they can complete the transition to a middle country, and their viability will be greatly increased by then.

If it falls into the hands of the German Federation, the increase in strength will be even more obvious. Not to mention, it is inevitable that heavy industry will pass through Spain.

There were only two buyers left, and Prussian Foreign Minister Jeffrey Friedman was not angry, as this was expected.

Either France and Austria will come out together to bid, or the two countries will restrain each other and get out together. Austria does not want to get into this trouble at this time, so she directly chooses to pull the French out together.

The auction cannot be held immediately. No one has completed insider trading, so how could it be a result so quickly? This is not enough to have money, but political influence must be considered.

...
Chapter completed!