Once Pandora's box is opened, it can no longer be closed. The controversy over the French army headquarters in Aswan is just one of the episodes, and similar things continue to play out in Egypt.

How to surrender reasonably has become the focus of controversy. This is not the instigation of the French generals, let alone their unpatriotism.

Just because high-level officers know the importance of the Egyptian region does not mean that lower-level officers and soldiers can understand the importance of Egypt to France. In the eyes of most soldiers, the Egyptian region was nothing more than a colony, and if it was lost, it would be lost, and it was no big deal.

Since it is destined to be undefended, it is better to simply give up, anyway, it is not a little bit that France lost its colony, and it is much richer than Egypt, and life is not the same.

With no morale and insufficient strategic materials, this kind of battle will certainly not be fought.

Against this background, it is natural for shrewd high-ranking officers to think about the back road and strive for a decent ending as much as possible.

Since June, the Austrians have slowed down their offensive and switched to a long-term siege, and the situation in Egypt has gradually eased.

What was originally a military struggle has gradually turned into a political one. At the negotiating table, the deputies fought with each other, and the intensity was no less intense than on the battlefield.

A political offensive was launched, which Franz personally instructed. As a good peace-loving emperor, of course, it is necessary to reduce casualties as much as possible.

So far in the war, the Austrian army has also paid hundreds of thousands of casualties, and when the war is over, this number will be even further.

The French army in Egypt was already a turtle in an urn, and time was on the side of the Austrian army, and the lack of food and the destruction of the water source made it impossible for the besieged French army to drag it out.

Instead of forcing the French to fight, it is better to use political means to make them surrender and reduce their losses.

As for the consumption of the living forces of the French, it was equally possible in the prisoner of war camps, and even much easier than on the battlefield.

The effect of the political offensive is naturally significant. As time went on, realizing the futility of struggling, more and more French troops laid down their arms and went into prisoner of war camps.

The dust is coming down on Egypt, and the continent is on the right track. The expulsion of the French certainly increased the burden on Austria, but also made the people of Germany feel the same hatred.

Stimulated by the power of hatred, the Bede army, which was originally only second-rate in combat effectiveness, also underwent an astonishing metamorphosis. The combat effectiveness is not enough, so it is used to make up for morale, and now there are some shadows of elite troops.

This change was directly reflected in the Central European battlefield. The anti-French alliance, which originally fell into disadvantage because of the lack of strength of its allies, has gradually begun to turn around.

You must know that Austria's hidden armored forces have not yet been put into use, and the total number of troops invested in the Central European battlefield is only a million, so it is impossible to talk about doing its best.

The harvest on the battlefield is nothing; What really pleased Franz was the political gains.

Under the influence of this war, the idea of Greater Germany was thoroughly rooted in the hearts of the people. Even in Hanover and Prussia, it became the mainstream of society.

Under the threat of the French, the interest groups that had resisted Austria had also changed their positions and sent representatives to contact the Vienna government.

If it weren't for the fact that the positions of the two sides were wrong, Franz would have genuinely wanted to award Napoleon IV a medal of the Order of German Unification in recognition of his contribution to the unification of the German region.

The great cause of unification, which the Habsburgs had worked hard for hundreds of years but had not completed, finally saw the light of day with the selfless help of the French government.

So far, the Viennese government had signed secret treaties with twenty-three states to agree on the re-establishment of the Holy Roman Empire.

That's right, to rebuild the Holy Roman Empire, and the word "new" in front of it is to be removed to signify the inheritance of the complete legal system of the HRE.

As for the current North Germany, it will become history and disappear from this world just after the war is over.

……

Just when everything was going in a good direction, suddenly came a piece of news that Franz couldn't believe.

"Are you sure you're not mistaken, the Japanese are going to invade the South Seas?"

It's not that Franz is making a fuss, it's just that the news is so abnormal. He would have understood if the Japanese and the French had allied to invade the Austrian South Seas before the news of the fall of French Egypt spread.

Now it is different, since the Vienna government released rumors of the complete occupation of Egypt, the countries of the Americas, which had been encouraged by Britain and France, have retreated.

Even Colombia, which is at odds with Austria, has now stopped all anti-Austrian propaganda and never mentions revenge.

Since the outbreak of the European War, the French have seemed to be soaring, but in fact they have only achieved a series of tactical victories, and they have been completely defeated strategically.

The inability to break through the Rhine defense line in the Central European battlefield, the pressure and defeat of Austria on the battlefield in Southern Europe, the loss of the African battlefield is even more messy, and now the loss of the vital Egypt gives people the feeling of declining days no matter how you look at it.

At this time, not to mention that the British secretly supported it, even if they ended up in person, they might not be able to turn the situation around.

In this context, who would dare to run and jump into the giant pit of France?

The Japanese are not stupid, and even if the French promise more benefits, there is no reason to get involved in the abuse.

Foreign Secretary Wesenberg: "Yesterday morning, the Japanese government announced that it would send troops to Nanyang on the grounds that it had harmed its own interests due to the ongoing disputes in the Nanyang region.

Immediately afterward, Britain and France issued a proclamation inviting the Japanese Navy to enter the South Seas to help restore order in the region.

The current chaos in Nanyang is just a small episode of the war against France. After the outbreak of the war, we and the French also tore their dough in the South Seas.

As a result, the social order in the Nanyang region was also broken. Pirates are endless, and the once bustling Strait of Malacca is now nearly cut off from trade. ”

There is no doubt that the chaos in the South Seas must have something to do with Austria. Piracy was rampant, and it was also inseparable from Austria.

Because of the war, the route from Austria mainland to the Austrian South Seas was basically cut off, and even if it could be taken, it had to go around in a big circle.

With the presence of the African continent and sufficient preparation in advance, Austria does not have a sufficient demand for resources in the South Seas, and the demand for this route can be said to be minimal.

Based on the principle that I can't use it, and I can't let the enemy use it, I naturally want to destroy it. At first, it was just a blockade of the Strait of Malacca with the Germans occupying the Malay Peninsula, and the passage of French merchant ships was prohibited.

Later, it was found that the effect was not ideal, and people just changed the national flag. In these years, there is no accurate satellite positioning, and it is impossible to judge the owner of the ship and the destination to go.

The best course of action is to naturally ban all shipments of strategic goods. It's a pity that there are too many countries involved in doing this, and it's very easy to offend people, and it's impossible for the British to agree to it in the first place.

In order to reduce the impact, Austria also had to make a bad move. For a time, a group of thieves gathered in the South Seas, staring at the ships transporting strategic materials.

Since the outbreak of the European War, more than 100 ships have had accidents in the South Seas, and the total tonnage has exceeded 200,000 tons.

Austria is doing things, and the French are not idle. It was too embarrassing to rob in person, so both sides supported a group of white gloves and played pirate tactics.

Interestingly, the losses of ships in France and Austria were not the greatest, but the largest number of sunken ships were the British.

Of course, this is only judged by the national flag hoisted, and no one knows the real country of ownership of the ship, and does not want to know.

From the fact that the British did not jump out, it can be proved that among the ships that were sacked by pirates, there were not many that really belonged to Britain.

Now it is false to let the Japanese navy enter the South Seas and encircle and suppress pirates, and it is the goal to help the French restore the route and attack Austria, and it is even possible to directly invade the Austrian South Sea.

Although everyone does not look down on the strength of the Japanese, in the Nanyang region, the Japanese family is also capable of influencing the outcome of this competition between France and Austria.

Prime Minister Karl: "The situation in the South Seas is complicated, our naval forces there are limited, and it is very difficult to defeat the Franco-Japanese forces.

Once the enemy launches a full-scale attack, we can only choose to temporarily avoid the edge. If you want to turn this situation around, you can't bring in new allies, such as Spain, Portugal, or the Dutch.

It's almost impossible, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has tried many times, and even if we offer a high price, they don't have the courage to participate. ”

Aside from the sleeping Far Eastern Empire, there are only a few countries that have influence on the South Seas. The British could not win over, and the Vienna government could only choose generals among the short ones. It's a pity that these short people don't want to get involved.

Foreign Secretary Wesenberg: "Maybe it's not as bad as we thought. In order for the Japanese to enter the South Seas, they must first cross the Philippines, preferably with the Ryukyus.

Under the premise that the anti-French alliance has the upper hand, as long as the Japanese government is not stupid, it will not choose to bind itself to the French at this time.

Compared to being our enemy, those two old-school empires that are dying are obviously better to bully. As long as we show a certain amount of goodwill, the Japanese should make the right choice. ”

……