"Where does the money come from?"

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Pavel Lisizian, issued a soul torture.

How poor the tsarist government was, no one can give a definite answer to this question. In short, there is no money to build the Trans-Siberian Railway.

Back in 1891, the tsarist government organized road specialists to launch a program of exploration of the Trans-Siberian Railway. That's right, it was Nicholas II who started it after his assassination in Japan that year.

Alexander III, although a pacifist among the tsars, was also a good father. If it weren't for the limited transportation, it is estimated that after the end of the Anglo-Russian War, the Russo-Japanese War would have started earlier.

Whether it was out of anger or preparedness, the Trans-Siberian Railway project was launched.

The results were terrible, and from Moscow it was through vast pine forests, across the Ural Mountains, and through the vast tundra of Siberia before reaching the Pacific Ocean.

It's just a long way, no matter how far it is, it can't compare to the Ring Railway of the HRE, the key is the harsh natural conditions.

If the construction cost of the plain railway is 1, then the construction cost of the Trans-Siberian railway may be 2, 3, 4......

I don't have any money in my pocket, and I don't do things hard. Just when the tsarist government was hesitant to start the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway, the Vienna government intervened.

The equally tempting "Central Asian Railway Plan" was released, which made the tsarist government even more hesitant. It's just that before the Russians hesitated, the Vienna government helped them make up their minds - "aid construction"!

If you open the map, you can see that whether it is the Trans-Siberian Railway or the Central Asian Railway, the construction cost is astronomical.

It is undoubtedly fatal for the tsarist government, which is not wealthy, to bear this expense. In order to build the Trans-Siberian Railway, the Russians were also frugal.

In just one year, the tsarist government spent 1.46 billion rubles, which far exceeded military spending over the same period.

After 13 years of hard work, the world's longest railway line was opened to traffic on July 13, 1904, and the follow-up work was finally completed in 1916.

In contrast, the construction conditions of the Central Asian Railway are still so good, and of course only a little better.

You don't need to be surrounded by permafrost all year round, but the mountains of Afghanistan can be just as miserable.

Whether it was for strategic needs or for the sake of its own wallet, the tsarist government decisively chose the Central Asian Railway.

Even knowing that the Vienna government was calculating Anglo-Russian relations, the tsarist government had no room for refusal.

In the words of one of the optimist ministers of the tsarist government: "No matter how calculating the Austrians may be, the Central Asian railway is always beneficial to the Empire." Whether to go south or not, the initiative is still in our hands. ”

Theoretically, there was nothing wrong with it, the initiative to go south was indeed in the hands of the tsarist government, and it was impossible for the Vienna government to make decisions for them.

It's just that this can also fool ordinary people, such a large piece of fat meat in India is almost placed on the dining table, and it doesn't use a knife and fork to divide it, is it still a hairy bear?

In essence, the Minister of Economy offered to help the Russians build the Trans-Siberian Railway. As long as the railroad is open, nothing needs to be done, and the greedy woolly bears themselves will go out to forage for food.

Although the eastward march of the woolly bear would harm the interests of Britain, it was clear which was more important than the southward march to India.

When the time comes, it will not be the business of the British family to curb the growth of the Russians, and the HRE will not watch the Russians complete the "Yellow Russia Plan".

If done right, the end result will be: Britain and Austria pit the bears together.

It is estimated that after a proxy war, the Russians will be injured again. There are so many that I dare not guarantee that it will not be difficult for them to settle down for ten years.

The most important thing is that a thorn has been planted in the middle of the Russian-Austrian alliance, with which the two countries would not be as close as they are now, even if they do not fight each other.

If everything goes well, in the future Anglo-Austrian hegemony, the tsarist government will try to hold back the HRE.

The plan was perfect, the only question was: where will the money come from for the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway?

The relationship between Britain and Russia was not as close as that between Russia and Austria, and the Vienna government only helped the Russians to build the Central Asian Railway, but only helped to advance part of the funds.

It is mainly the cost of exploration, design, management and other expenses of the project, and the labor and raw materials are still provided by the tsarist government itself.

For the sake of the Russian-Austrian alliance, even if there are objections at home, the Vienna government will be able to cope with it.

If you put it on Britain, you can't do it, and the blood of the Anglo-Russian war in Afghanistan hasn't dried yet?

At this time, I contributed money and efforts to help the Russians build the railway, and the families of the soldiers who died in the Anglo-Russian War may have torn their hearts.

If it does provoke public outrage, the opposition parties will certainly add fuel to the fire. While national interests are important, partisan interests are even more important.

I oppose what the enemy supports, and I support what the enemy opposes. It has always been common in politics, and it doesn't matter if it's right or not, it depends on what is needed.

If it is only a funding gap of 1.8 million pounds, everyone can still find a way to hide from the public's attention and settle the account with special expenses.

But for the Trans-Siberian Railway, without hundreds of millions of pounds of investment, it will not be open to traffic at all.

Even if the Russians were to provide labor and materials, it would cost tens of millions of pounds. To use such a large sum of money, no matter what method is adopted, it will not be possible to keep secrets.

Admiral Flora: "It's not just about money. Our relations with the Russians are so strained that even if we offered to help build the Trans-Siberian Railway, I am afraid that the tsarist government would not believe it.

Unless we just pay for the railway exploration design and construction, otherwise they will not be at ease. ”

This is an inevitable result. Suddenly, one day, the enemy suddenly comes to the door to help you build the railway, and anyone who rests on it will suspect that there is a conspiracy.

From the standpoint of the tsarist government, the British offered to help build the Trans-Siberian Railway, and it is estimated that the first reaction of the Russians was: this is to sabotage.

After all, the construction of the Central Asian railway has reached a critical moment, and it will be opened to traffic in a few years, and it is normal for the British to feel pressure.

For the sake of India's safety, Britain sabotaged the construction of the Central Asian Railway, and there was nothing wrong with it.

Although the Russian Empire was large, the tsarist government's capacity for material mobilization was limited. The construction of the Central Asian railway has already mobilized a lot of manpower and material resources, and if the construction of the Siberian railway is started again, it will obviously increase the logistical pressure.

The explanation is a cover-up, and no matter what the British government says, the Russians will think that it is a conspiracy of the British to use the Trans-Siberian Railway project to delay the construction of the Central Asian Railway.

Help with exploration design and construction, not to mention. The railroad that the British helped build, who knows if it will be used in the end?

As Flora said, unless it was just money and everything was left to the Russians themselves, otherwise the tsarist government would not be at ease at all.

The problem is that the British government is not at ease just by giving money. Who can guarantee that the Russians, after getting the money, will spend it on the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway, and not on the military expenses to go south to India?

The British government didn't have it, and neither did the tsarist government. It is too difficult to get the two countries, which lack the most basic trust, to cooperate.

Foreign Secretary Cameron: "The problem of trust is actually not difficult to solve, it is not convenient for us to come forward, and we can communicate with the Russians through a third country."

It was not difficult to convince the Russian military industry to agree to the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway, and the current tsar was Nicholas II. An unpleasant trip to Tokyo has always been a source of nostalgia for Nicholas II.

From Nicholas II's personal standpoint, the temptation to go east to seek revenge on the Japanese is probably greater than that of going south to India.

After all, we are not soft persimmons either. Even with the opening of the Central Asian Railway, the Russians' chances of victory are still not high.

Compared with going south, the success rate of eastward expansion is significantly higher, and the benefits will be greater.

If the Russians can realize the Yellow Russia plan before the hegemony struggle ends, then it will be a three-legged pattern.

can be the boss by himself, no one wants to be the little brother, let alone the arrogant hairy bear.

Don't look at the Russian-Austrian relations seem to be very good, in fact, many Russians are not convinced by the European hegemony of the Holy Roman Empire.

This bait is enough to bait the Russians. As soon as the tsarist government took this step, the Russian-Austrian alliance would be over.

Vienna could tolerate a strong Russian Empire, but it could never tolerate a Russian Empire that could threaten itself.

In a sense, the Russians posed a much greater threat to the Holy Roman Empire than we did.

After all, they are both land-based countries and happen to be neighbors. Although the European continent is vast, it cannot accommodate two hegemons.

In contrast, the problem of funding is not easy to solve. The old men in Congress would not agree to fund the Russians, even if it was a strategic need. ”

"The enemy is in Parliament", this is the feeling that every British government will have. Regardless of whether it is blown or blackened, the British Parliament has indeed caused more trouble to the government than any other enemy.

Without the National Assembly and the opposition parties dragging their feet, the international situation would not have evolved into the current situation.

As early as the middle of the European War, the previous British government wanted to intervene with troops, but it wasted a lot of time by quarreling with Congress and playing games with opposition parties.

Before the discussion could come to a conclusion, the French were gone. I don't have to say that the dust has settled, so naturally I have to sell my teammates. It is possible to consider being an ally with Britain, but it is impossible to share suffering.

Something similar happened not only once, but also in the previous Ottoman Wars, the annexation of Italy by France, and the annexation of South Germany by Austria...... and a series of international events.

Britain in 1895 could not help the Holy Roman Empire, but Britain forty years ago was absolutely capable of stopping Austrian expansion.

Not to mention preventing Austria from annexing South Germany, at least it was able to disrupt Austria's colonial program, and the absolute superiority of the Royal Navy lasted until the early 80s.

Before that, the Austrian Navy was a little brother. It wasn't until the advent of the former dreadnought that the gap was narrowed to the point where it had the ability to lose both.

Of course, because of the times, the two big bosses of France and Russia attracted firepower at the front, so much so that the politicians of the time underestimated the Austrian threat.

By the time the British government began to pay attention, the Holy Roman Empire was about to come out, and it was too late to do anything more.

There is everything in this world, there is just no regret medicine. As soon as he did not pay attention to the hegemony of Britain, he encountered the most serious challenge.

The problems that our predecessors had encountered now fell on the British government once again.

If Congress is not done, there will be no funding for the Trans-Siberian Railway; Without this railway, there would be no way to talk about the diversion of trouble; If the tsarist government does not look eastward, then the ultimate plan to divide the Russian-Austrian alliance will eventually turn into "the moon in the water, the flower in the mirror".

After hesitating for a while, Robert Cecil nodded: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will first find a third party to contact the Russians, and we can at least avoid the anger of the people."

As for the issue of Parliament, you should first communicate with the members of the party in private, and I will visit the Queen. ”

There was no way, and Prime Minister Robert Cecil, who was under pressure from Congress alone, had to seek more help.

In the Victorian era, the British royal family was not a rubber stamp. Although the aging Queen Victoria has rarely paid attention to politics, no one can ignore her existence.

The Conservative Party alone is not enough to silence opposition in Parliament. For the sake of the bigger picture, Robert Cecil had to turn to Queen Victoria for help.

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