St. Petersburg, a succession of bad news, Alexander II could no longer bear it. The decadence of the Russian Empire is on full display, and the prestige built up in the wars of the Near East is being eroded.

The international situation is still a minor problem, and the biggest trouble is still internal. From the very beginning, Alexander II used the war to divert internal contradictions, trying to expand and plunder interests through force and quell domestic disputes.

As the situation on the battlefield deteriorates, so does the situation in the country. This time it is not a struggle between conservatives and reformers, but the people at the bottom are about to lose their hold.

With the blockade of sea lanes, St. Petersburg is seriously short of supplies of daily necessities, and prices are constantly rising. This is true in the capital, not to mention the surrounding cities.

In the Winter Palace, Alexander II said murderously: "I don't care what methods you use, you must calm prices as soon as possible and ensure the supply of goods to St. Petersburg." If you can't do it, I'll replace it with someone who can do it.

Now is a critical period for the Russian Empire, and any individual and interest group, as long as they stand on the opposite side of the empire, will be severely punished! ”

Alexander II was not easy to fool, the lack of supplies was a fact, but the rising prices were definitely abnormal.

At least the price of food, it is impossible to be so perverted. As the capital of the Russian Empire, how could St. Petersburg not have grain in stock?

The capitalists were human spirits, and as early as the outbreak of the Polish uprising, everyone tacitly began to hoard grain.

The tsarist government was not completely unprepared, and there was a gap of more than two months between the Prussian-Danish War and the Russo-Prussian War, during which time they also stockpiled a lot of supplies.

Coupled with the grain stocks in the original capital, it is absolutely impossible to deplete them so quickly. What's more, St. Petersburg itself is also one of Russia's grain producing areas, and the grain self-sufficiency rate is already very high.

If no one did anything, St. Petersburg would not be short of food. As long as the food supply is secured, everything else will be easy to deal with.

For example: coal, there are in the vicinity of St. Petersburg.

The Russian Empire in this era, except for the import of some machinery and equipment, was basically self-sufficient, as evidenced by the trade surplus.

Interior Minister Mikhail stubbornly said: "Your Majesty, the snow and ice are melting in many areas, and the roads are muddy, which seriously affects traffic. There was a shortage of supplies in a short period of time, and it would have been good for another month or two. ”

What is the reason for the skyrocketing prices, Mikhail is clear. However, the interest groups involved are too powerful, and this layer of window paper is not easy to pierce.

Alexander II smiled coldly and said, "Really? In this case, then the government will supply materials in a unified manner, presumably as long as it is patriotic, it will support it! ”

Support, how could it be! This is cutting everyone's meat, I don't know how many people want to make a profit from it, and now if the government takes over, what else will they earn by coordinating the supply?

Interior Minister Mikhail said in fear: "Your Majesty, this is too wide-ranging, and the government is afraid that there will be a big mess in coordinating the supply of materials." ”

Cutting off people's financial routes, such as killing parents.

If such a thing happens, the tsar may not be able to do anything, and they, the specific executors, will die.

Alexander II laughed and said: "This is the last resort, if the price of goods cannot be calmed down, we have only this way."

If anyone dares to make trouble, it depends on whether our knives are sharp enough.

The 4th and 7th Divisions will arrive in St. Petersburg in three days, and if prices do not subside within three days, the army will be responsible for coordinating supplies. ”

Apparently, Alexander II was smart enough not to count on the city defense of St. Petersburg, and directly transferred back the troops that had just been withdrawn from the battlefield to rest.

These border troops, apparently, were not within the influence of these capitalists and bureaucrats in St. Petersburg, who only listened to the orders of the tsar.

If the capitalists are aware of current affairs, then hello I am hello everyone, Alexander II is not willing to break the rules of the game.

Otherwise, then I'm sorry. The tsarist government could not solve the problem of skyrocketing prices, so it could only start at the source and eliminate the people who raised prices.

Copying the house is a compulsory course for almost every male master. None of the famous monarchs in history have taken their homes.

Usually such emperors kill more people. Generally speaking, the people who create problems are eliminated, and the world will be ruled greatly.

The situation in Europe is special, and under normal circumstances, nobles are not killed, which does not mean that nobles cannot be killed.

Alexander II was not a bully, he would talk about fists if he couldn't be reasonable, and once he tore his face, he didn't mind killing.

To some extent, this head was still opened by Franz. The reform has never been bloodless, and the Austrian reform was also watered by a sea of corpses and blood.

It was only under the cover of the Great Revolution that many diehards were defeated in the revolution, and the subsequent reforms were successfully implemented.

Alexander II also realized this, and the reforms in Russia he promoted, which were resisted by interest groups, did not go very well. Now Alexander II needs to make an example of the chicken, and it will be up to him to see who will be the chicken.

Mikhail's face changed greatly, he was still very politically minded, and he knew that the tsar was dissatisfied with his work. He hurriedly replied, "Yes, Your Majesty!" ”

Interior Minister Mikhail decided to die and not die. Within the rules of the game, it seems that it is not much problem for the capitalists to play like this, and with the cover of the aristocracy and bureaucracy, it is much safer.

However, when the tsar was about to overturn the table, the problem changed. Would a bureaucrat like Mikhail go against the tsar for a bribe?

Obviously, this is not possible. Their power comes from the tsar, as long as they are still in the position, the money can be made slowly, so why take the risk?

Perhaps many people have the triple identity of aristocrats, bureaucrats, and capitalists at the same time, but for them, the most important thing is also to maintain their status first.

Money can be made slowly, but there is only one life! The tsar who raised the butcher's knife must not be provoked, and if it is not good, it will be cut down.

Foreign Minister Clarence Ivanov opened his mouth to relieve the siege and said: "Your Majesty, the Franco-Austrian conflict is over, and the two countries are currently conducting secret negotiations.

According to the preliminary analysis, this negotiation may involve the deep-seated strategy of the two countries, and even affect our war with the Kingdom of Prussia.

Austrian Foreign Minister Wessenberg had arrived in Milan, supposedly to strengthen communication with the Kingdom of Lombardy, which should be a smoke bomb.

At the same time, French Foreign Minister Abraham also arrived in the Kingdom of Sardinia, officially on leave.

Yesterday, Wessenberg and Abraham met once on the border between Sardinia and Lombardy, and the two had a five-hour meeting.

The content of their conversation was highly confidential, and all the attendants were dispatched, and only two parties were aware of it. ”

This information was obtained by Clarence Ivanov at great expense, mainly to prove that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is not really incompetent.

Recently, the tsarist government has suffered frequent diplomatic failures, and although there are special reasons that cannot be blamed on them, the voices of criticism within the tsarist government are still getting louder and louder.

Clarence Ivanov is naturally going to make a difference, and the Franco-Austrian clash is what he sees as an opportunity. The fact that the two countries did not really fight was both a disappointment and a surprise to him.

This mixed mood was not only shared by Clarence Ivanov, but also by most of the people in the tsarist government.

On the one hand, they wanted a Franco-Austrian war to deplete each other's strength in order to maintain the European hegemony of the Russian Empire.

On the other hand, they don't want to see Fao fight. As soon as Austria was drawn into the war, their logistical supply system would collapse.

With the outbreak of the Franco-Austrian war, Austria naturally had no ability to continue exporting strategic materials to them. This gap needs to be filled.

Unfortunately, this gap cannot be filled. There are only a few industrial powers in the world, and the British will be able to fill the vacancy when Fao-Austria starts.

Such unrealistic fantasies, the tsarist government could not have dreamed of. Counting on the British to provide them with logistics, isn't it a dream?

Alexander II thought for a moment and said, "First contact the Austrians, to see if there is any change in their position, and if necessary, to make appropriate concessions."

We can promise not to seek the lands of the German regions, and to cut off the Kingdom of Prussia only in Poland. ”

Despite the blood dripping from his heart, Alexander II gritted his teeth and made this decision. At this point in the war, it is no longer appropriate to think about expanding into Central Europe.

This world speaks with strength, how strong the strength is, how much cake you share, and if you eat too much, you will choke to death.

"Strength" is comprehensive strength, not just military strength. Whether you admit it or not, the overall strength of the Russian Empire has fallen behind among the four great powers.

Foreign Minister Clarence Ivanov replied: "Yes, Your Majesty! ”

After a pause, he added: "Now that both the Prussians and the British are courting Sweden, in order to avoid the worst, the Foreign Office proposes to make appropriate concessions to Sweden."

We can support Karl XV's plan for the unification of the three Nordic countries, and once Denmark and Sweden and Norway are united, they will be dragged into the Prussian-Danish War. ”

This was a clever way to break the game, and the Kingdom of Denmark could support the unification of the three Nordic countries in exchange for Sweden's troops.

Long before the outbreak of the war, the three countries had been negotiating a joint state, and Sweden and Norway were now co-monarchies, and the two countries were basically in agreement, except that the Kingdom of Denmark did not make up its mind.

This hesitation led to the outbreak of the Prussian-Danish War. It was not for nothing that the Junker aristocracy started this war last year.

If the three Nordic countries do merge, it will be difficult to recover the Duchy of Schleswig and Holstein.

Alexander II hesitated to unify the three Nordic countries, which was indeed beneficial to the Russian Empire in a short time, but the emergence of unified Northern Europe was also a threat to the Russian Empire in the future.

Denmark + Norway + Sweden combined, another Kingdom of Prussia. Perhaps the Nordic region is limited by climatic conditions, and the population growth rate is too slow, and it will be inferior to the Kingdom of Prussia, but the gap is definitely not too large.

Ambition is always stimulated by strength, will they still be so peaceful after the unification of the three Nordic countries? For example: the attention of Finland, or the idea of hitting the three Baltic states.

There is no doubt that this is very likely to happen. The Nordic barbarians have also been bulldozed in history, and once the great power doctrine is stimulated, the northern frontier of the future Russian Empire will be lively.

……