Just when everyone thought that the Russo-Prussian war was at a stalemate, on November 2, 1879, a Prussian division suddenly bypassed Kamenn and headed straight for Pinsk.

After the outbreak of the Russo-Prussian War, Franz has been paying close attention, occasionally sending airships to reconnoiter at high altitudes.

Austria is the country with the most developed airship technology, and the most advanced reconnaissance airships can operate at an altitude of up to 8,000 meters.

In those years, air defense weapons were not yet developed, and as long as they were above 3,000 meters, there was no threat from anti-aircraft machine guns or artillery.

There is no security threat, and the Austrian airship naturally often penetrates into the airspace of other countries. At first, Franz was not used to this domineering style, but seeing that the neighbors did not react, he slowly got used to it.

At an altitude of several thousand meters, if you don't use a telescope, many people will think that it is just a bird, and the chance of being spotted is still very low.

Even if it is discovered, it can be denied that the pilot has been lost. Anyway, this kind of thing often happens, especially the airships of small European countries, flying out of their own airspace.

The unusual movement of the Prussian army attracted the attention of the pilots, and after the report, it attracted the attention of the idle and bored Franz, who directly called a meeting of the staff officers on duty.

"Everyone has read the information, what do you think Moltke's purpose is?"

Whatever the reason for Franz's concern about this issue, everyone was very excited to be able to show his abilities in front of the emperor.

Deputy Chief of Staff, Colonel-General Morks: "Your Majesty, the real target of the Prussian army should not be Pinsk, this may be a distraction from the Russians.

Pinsk is located on the main river route, about 180 kilometers from Brest, which is already considered a rear. It is a very bad choice militarily to go deep alone.

Even if the Russians are concealed and not discovered in advance, there is still a regiment of troops stationed in Pinsk, and even if it cannot stop the attack of the Prussian army, it is no problem to delay for a few days.

As soon as the surrounding Russian troops reacted, this Prussian army was finished. It is not strategically valuable unless they can capture Pinsk in a day and defend it for more than a month with local fortifications.

The risk is too great, as a European star Moltke can't be unaware, then his real target can only be Brest. ”

A staff officer objected: "It doesn't have to be Brest, maybe Moltke is the Pripyat River." Of course, this is very unlikely, and it is the dry season, and even if the river is blocked, the damage will not be great.

I think it's more likely that it's just a false shot, deliberately attracting the attention of the Russians, and covering the real strategy of the Prussian army.

As for penetrating into the rear of Brest, it looks very good, but what is the use of just one infantry division? ”

……

The staff officers' brains were indeed very powerful, and after a while, more than a dozen possibilities were analyzed, and Franz was directly confused.

There is no way, Franz is just an ordinary person, and it is really embarrassing for him to figure out the strategic deployment of military masters.

But Frederick, who had come with him, was discussing with the staff officers with great interest. Perhaps the son had a talent for becoming a military strategist, Franz thought to himself.

Of course, one can only think about it, as the Austrian crown prince, Frederick has no chance to become a military strategist.

It is no longer the Middle Ages, and the era of emperors leading troops into battle is over. As the crown prince, even if he goes to the battlefield, he is only gilded, and he has no chance to perform at all.

Frankly speaking, Franz thought that listening to the discussions of the staff officers was much more interesting than reading the newspapers, and it was really just as exciting.

All of them are right, and whether they can do it or not will only be known after trying, and it is theoretically feasible anyway.

The more he learned, the more Franz felt that luck was important and stopped believing in the so-called halo of famous generals. Just like the 28 generals of the Yuntai combined, they are not as powerful as meteorites falling from the sky.

……

The Russo-Prussian War was still in a stalemate, and the South American battlefield took the first turn. Ever since the British Navy was off the rails, tragedy has begun in Peru and Bolivia.

The sea lanes are gone, and supplies can only be transferred from neighboring countries. Originally, this was nothing, everyone likes war money, but it's a pity that everyone's relationship is not good!

Since its establishment, the countries of South America have been full of contradictions. If France and Austria come forward to coordinate and warn careerists to settle down, it is estimated that these countries will fall into the trap by this time.

Foreign Secretary Wesenberg: "Your Majesty, as of three days ago, the British had seized more than two hundred ships bound for Peru and Bolivia, forty-five of which were registered in our country.

In order to break the blockade of the British, the Foreign Office proposed to join forces with the countries where these ships were located to put pressure on the British. ”

What should come will still come, and it is still difficult to choose two with Chile's strength alone.

Without the severance of sea transport between Bolivia and Peru and the steady influx of supplies, the two countries would be able to arm far more armies than Chile.

In the case of a small gap in quality, the number of troops will determine the outcome of a war. In the early stages of the battle, Chile was actually at a disadvantage.

After pondering for a moment, Franz made a decision: "Not only should the British be ordered to open the shipping lanes, but they should also be asked to compensate for the damages, and if they do not agree, they will encourage the countries to make trouble together."

If the conditions are ripe, pull the French to make a posture of trade sanctions against the British, pull some more countries to make a strong noise, and disgust the British. ”

That's right, it's disgusting to the British, and if you want to trade sanctions against the British, it's simply impossible.

In these years, John Bull is still the leader of international import and export trade, accounting for nearly half of the total global trade.

Sanctions are impossible, but it is still possible to block them. Austria could not stand such a great grievance, and Franz did not think that the arrogant French could endure it.

The British can't be defeated at sea, it's always okay to fight with words. Stir up public opinion, and not be afraid that the British will not comply. We can't offend all countries for the sake of Chile.

……

In fact, the capitalists who had seized the ships did not wait for the Viennese government to act.

This time the media on the European continent was surprisingly unified, and everyone was scolding the British for their shameless behavior and accusing the British government of sabotaging the normal conduct of free trade.

Not only the mainland newspapers are scolding, but also the British newspapers are also scolding the government. The opposition parties have organized mass demonstrations to denounce the London government's unauthorized intervention in the South American war.

The capitalists have used practical actions to explain what it means that capital has no borders and only interests are eternal.

Outside the Prime Minister's residence on Downing Street, protesters were already gathering outside, holding high the banner of free trade and demanding that the London government lift the lockdown.

Prime Minister Benjamin, who was confused, slammed the table: "Sir John, now I need an explanation, an explanation that can be explained to the people." ”

The Minister of the Navy, John Vasier, had a sad face: "Your Excellency, Prime Minister, we have reached an agreement with the Chileans that they will pay for the purchase of the supplies on these ships.

The front went very well, and the Chilean government and the capitalists reached an agreement not to transport goods into Peru and Bolivia for a year.

However, after receiving the compensation, these people immediately organized the transportation of materials, and the capitalists broke the contract, and the Chilean government naturally did not agree to continue to fund the purchase, and the ship was seized. ”

Listening to this explanation, Prime Minister Benjamin only wanted to scold. Isn't it to expect the capitalists to keep their promises?

Just change the vest, and the previous contract will be null and void. There is no legal way to hold them accountable for breach of contract, and these people obviously want to take advantage of the fire.

Benjamin also had a bit of a headache, it would definitely not work to let these ships go, if Chile lost the war, the dominance of the saltpeter trade would fall into the hands of Fao.

It is also not possible to let the Chilean government continue to buy these materials, with the and urine of the capitalists, as long as they get explosive profits, they will not be long before they organize a larger fleet to come over.

You can't let the Chilean government buy and buy all the time, even if the saltpeter trade makes money, Chile is not so rich!

Benjamin rubbed his forehead and said, "First send someone to explain to the people outside that it was the Chilean government that seized the ship, and we were just conducting military exercises in South America."

Anyway, find a way to get the people outside to leave. If it goes on like this, the impact is really bad. ”

Foreign Secretary Edward: "It's not just the protesters outside who need to be evacuated, but the international pressure we are under so far, and so far we have received diplomatic protests from 22 countries, including Faw.

It doesn't matter if it's a single country, if they are connected in series, things will be difficult.

Especially in France and Austria, the Franco-Russian war has restrained their energy, but more in the military, and the foreign ministries of the two countries are still very idle. ”

Bolivia and Peru are both small countries, and there are not necessarily twenty-two countries that trade with them in normal times, and there must be a problem behind the emergence of so many protest letters.

Edward didn't say it, because he knew very well that it was better not to open the lid.

In addition to the possible behind-the-scenes manipulation by France and Austria, it is more likely that it is the work of the capitalists. The crowd of demonstrators outside is proof that absolutely domestic shipping companies are behind the scenes.

In those days, there was no Internet, communication between countries was very inconvenient, and the nationality of the ship was very difficult to check.

For the sake of convenience, many ships are registered in multiple countries at the same time, and the nationality is decided according to the actual needs.

In order to increase the momentum and force the London government to make concessions, not to prevent everyone from making war money, of course, the more countries involved the better.

Small countries also need to brush up on their presence, and now happens to be a good opportunity, and there is nothing wrong with them coming to protest that the ships registered in their countries have been seized for no reason.

There are so many countries involved, even if the British want to settle accounts after the autumn, France and Austria will stand up and carry it, otherwise they will not be able to call on people next time.