It's okay to pretend to be confused, but it's not okay to be really confused. Júnior was reluctant to investigate further, mainly because he was worried that the final outcome would be the last enemy they wanted to face.

If you don't open the lid, you can still pretend to be confused. Let's play this political game together, and once we find out something, we can't recover until now.

Marquis Taboada nodded thoughtfully, his expression a little gloomy. In the past, the empire on which the sun never set was reduced to the point where it was plotted by others, and it had to pretend that nothing happened.

It's just okay to pretend to be deaf and dumb, but the problem still needs to be solved.

One more hidden enemy meant that the Spanish government had to devote more energy to preventing emergencies.

This is undoubtedly a kind of torture for the Spanish government, which is already a headache.

Seeing that the atmosphere in the room was silent, Antonio decisively chose to change the topic: "Okay, the problem of the colony, everyone should be vigilant." Let's talk about borrowing first!

Unlike last time, there is no incense accumulated in the anti-French war, and it may not be easy to get an interest-free loan. ”

As an old empire, although Spain has declined, Antonio is still proficient in the rules of the political game between the great powers.

Frankly, Antonio was surprised to be able to get a large interest-free loan from the Vienna government.

According to the normal rhythm, the Viennese government should take advantage of the fire in the Philippine war. Unexpectedly, just because of a previous promise, the Vienna government gave up.

It's really good to talk to a boss who talks about credibility, but the boss also wants to eat meat. The Holy Roman Empire was able to possess the territory of today's Notau, and the Vienna government was by no means as harmless as it seemed.

The last time I was willing to help, maybe it was out of credibility, or maybe it was because the Holy Roman Empire needed a political show after becoming the hegemon of the European continent.

It is absolutely impossible for something like this to happen twice, and even if the Vienna government is willing to help without compensation, Spain cannot afford it.

Based on his political experience, Antonio is well aware that in this world "the more you want, the greater the price you have to pay".

The advantage of the hegemon is definitely not easy to take advantage of. Once it is stained, when it is repaid in the future, it will be possible to ask for half of Spain's life.

For example, if the Anglo-Austrian conflict escalates, Spain, which has taken the benefits, must act as a pawn.

Don't expect to be able to pay for it, Spain simply doesn't have that money. Just a France can't stop the revenge of the HRE.

Not wanting to become cannon fodder in the Anglo-Austrian hegemony struggle, Spain must maintain sufficient autonomy while hugging the thighs of the HRE.

That's what governments in Europe do. Despite the existence of the European Union of Europe, the Vienna government was not coercive on the countries, and it was still necessary to exchange benefits for something to do so.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Siegfried: "Don't think about interest-free loans, Austrians don't do charity.

Unless we can come up with enough benefits in exchange, otherwise this loan is an ordinary commercial loan.

The Ministry of Finance has already communicated with a consortium of domestic banks, who have asked the government to use the salt tax as collateral and only provide a maximum loan of 50 million game towers.

The loan handling fee is 8%, the annual interest rate is 8.9%, and it is repaid over 30 years, and the principal and interest are paid monthly.

I have calculated, the loan of 50 million actually received 46 million, and the total amount of principal and interest that needs to be repaid is 143.532 million.

This is already the best business loan we can get. For ordinary private commercial loans, the interest rate will be doubled.

With such a high interest rate, even the government cannot afford it, let alone ordinary people. The money has been made by these vampires, and it's no wonder that our economy can't grow.

We need to fight two wars at the same time, and 46 million game towers are only enough to pay two months' salaries for soldiers. If it is used in war, it is a miracle to be able to last for a month.

According to the most optimistic estimates, if we put down the rebellion in the Philippines within six months and suppress the rebellion in Cuba within this year, then the government will still have a funding gap of 880 million yuan.

If converted into Aegis, it is about 70 million. If the interest rate is calculated at 8.9 percent, the interest we need to pay every year alone will almost catch up with a quarter of our fiscal revenue.

The actual situation will be even more serious, and with our current financial situation, no commercial bank will dare to lend us so much money.

Even if there was some greedy vampire who dared to take the business, the interest would be terrifyingly high. The 8.9 percent yield alone is not enough for them to risk losing their money. ”

(1 game tower is about 0.29 grams of gold)

Since the outbreak of the Philippine War, the Spanish government has lived in debt, and the total debt of Spain has reached a staggering 330 million Aegis.

The debt has caught up with one-fifth of the total debt of the HRE, but Spain's fiscal revenue is far less than one-fifth of the HRE, and even less than one-twentieth.

There is no way, this is the difference between a semi-industrial country and an industrial country. Spain, which has one-seventh of the population of the HRE, has less than one-twentieth of the HRE's revenue.

Today, more than half of the Spanish government's annual revenue is used to pay off domestic and foreign debts.

Against this backdrop, the Spanish government's finances are not doing well. From his first day as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sigfried lived his days tearing down the east wall and making up for the west.

This was also in the context of the establishment of a large number of interest-free loans, otherwise the interest on the funds alone would have crushed the Kingdom of Spain.

At this time, the biggest problem facing the Spanish government is not the level of loan interest, but the ability to repay its debts.

The richer you are, the easier it is to borrow. The same applies to the country, and Spain, which has lost its ability to repay its debts, will not be easy to borrow.

You can't get a loan, let alone issue a bond. The capital market has always been the most realistic, and no one wants to lend money to a poor ghost.

Antonio rubbed his forehead: "The problem of high domestic financing costs, we will discuss it later." Now it's better to find a way to raise funds to get through the current difficulties.

If we were to get this loan from the HRE, what would it cost us? ”

Obviously, this is not the first time that these problems have arisen. In fact, the high cost of financing is also a common phenomenon in this era, and it is not unique to Spain.

The interest rate on a commercial loan of ten or twenty points may seem high, but in this day and age, it is really nothing.

Behind the high interest is accompanied by high overdue and high risk. It is not uncommon for the debtor to default and run away, and once the debtor leaves the country, the bank will not be able to pursue it at all.

Even if there are assets as collateral, there are often multiple and repeated mortgage loans. Limited by the poor exchange of information, even if a banking institution is cautious, it is inevitable that it will step on the thunder.

"High risk" does not intimidate bankers, as long as the interest rate on loans is raised and the losses of default are spread among other debtors.

This is also the reason why the cost of government borrowing is much lower than the interest rate of commercial loans, after all, the risk of default when lending money to the government is small.

Of course, the Spanish government is clearly not a good customer. Therefore, it is necessary to give collateral, and the interest rate on the loan cannot be low.

Sigfried shrugged his shoulders and said with a sense of humor: "It depends on what the Vienna government wants." Maybe they were in a good mood and suddenly showed kindness and lent us the money. ”

Sigfried himself didn't believe it, and the crowd didn't believe it.

70 million Aegis is not 7,000 Aegis, unless it is the brains of the high-level Vienna government, otherwise such charity will definitely not be done.

……

Carrying the blame for others for no reason, Franz was in the same mood as the British. It is impossible to explain, this kind of thing can only be smeared more and more black.

From the point of view of pure interests, the Vienna government's motives for the Spanish black hand were too sufficient.

Spain, which is "a child's downtown hugging gold bricks", was originally the object of everyone's watching. As long as there is strength, then there is motivation.

It's not happy, but Franz can't do anything yet. The Spaniards are just secretly suspicious, and they don't even check down, what else can they do?

After suffering this dumb loss, Franz also resented the black hand behind the scenes.

This method and method are so familiar, the same formula, the same routine, Franz really did not expect to use it on himself one day.

It can only be said that there are still many people in this world, and while provoking the Cuban independence movement, they not only hide themselves, but even find several scapegoats.

Had it not been for his calculations, Franz did not believe that the Spaniards would have discovered that other international powers were involved in the case of the British.

……

Franz asked, "Has the mastermind been found?" ”

The Spanish government is worried that it will not be able to end the investigation of the truth it does not want to see, and it is unwilling to investigate the next level, which does not mean that the Vienna government will not investigate it further.

Although it is not necessary to make a big deal about such a trivial matter, it is indispensable to find out the mastermind behind the scenes and take precautions.

Prime Minister Karl shook his head: "No! This black hand was hidden too deeply, and after provoking the Cuban independence movement, it quickly became invisible.

The clues left behind are all messy, some point to us, some point to the British, the United States, and the Confederates, and there is no way to distinguish between truth and falsehood.

However, most of the attention of the Spanish government was drawn to us by the British. In order to dismantle the continental alliance, the London government is on the verge of madness.

It's just that the British didn't expect that the Spanish government was so cowardly that they didn't look down at all, so that their arrangements were useless. ”

If it can't be found, it means that the Vienna government has betrayed this black cauldron. This kind of thing doesn't need proof, just think that it is.

Just as Chancellor Karl thought that the British were framing the HRE, Franz took it as true if he had just guessed it.

"If you can't find out, forget it. However, the importance that the government attaches to the United States and the Union States will be raised to a higher level.

Especially since there may be a mixture of British.

The current international situation is very unfavorable for Britain. Against the backdrop of the inability to break up the European Union, it is inevitable that the British will not run to huddle with the Americans in a panic to keep warm.

The best way to prevent the convergence of Britain and the United States is to raise the contradictions between the United States and the Allied States. As long as relations between the two countries do not ease, the British will have to choose one or the other. ”

Frankly, Franz was not too worried about the détente between the United States and the Confederates. Giving up hatred is easier said than done.

The resentment of the southern states of the original time and space towards the north has continued until the 21st century, and it has not been completely eliminated.

Not to mention now, not to mention the blood of the fighting between the north and the south, the key is that the two have been separated.

Today, hatred of the other side has become a form of political correctness.

Unless the external force is too oppressive and threatens their survival. Otherwise, there is no possibility of détente between the United States and the Confederates until this generation dies.

There is no doubt that such pressure simply does not exist. Neither Britain nor the Holy Roman Empire had the strength to destroy the United States and the Confederates.

The vast ocean was their best line of defense, limiting the power projections of the European powers.