Watching the French jump up and down in their diplomacy, Franz just laughed. Obviously, Napoleon III did not make adequate preparations in advance for this coup.

Otherwise, as early as a few years ago, the chips should have been prepared in advance, and at this time they have been taken out for the exchange of interests.

In international politics, there is no problem that cannot be solved by interests, and if there is, it must be that the benefits given are not big enough.

This time, the French offered inconspicuous benefits, such as the promise of Austria's annexation of the Ottoman Empire, which was hardly tempting Franz.

It's not that this piece of meat is not tempting, the key is that it is not easy to digest when you eat it. The Ottoman Empire also had more than 10 million people, how could it be so easy to solve?

Even if they could be expelled from Central Asia, the political implications of the destruction of the Ottoman Empire would push Austria to the forefront again.

Even the Federal Empire of Germany, which was close at hand, Franz could put it down first, not to mention the Ottoman Empire.

It was not easy for the French to take the thunder, and now they are jumping out to share the pressure for them, how could Franz do this kind of loss-making business?

As long as the flag of the Great French Empire flew on the European continent, Austria could develop without worrying about becoming the target of public criticism.

Unless the French were really able to assimilate Italy, the empire was a threat. It is useless to buy people's hearts and minds, there are too many Italians, more than any people of a nation in France.

It also has a long cultural heritage, which is not inferior to the French. With the exception of Greece, there is no European country that can compare with the Italians in terms of history.

As the birthplace of the Renaissance and the enlightenment of modern thought, Italians still have their own pride, which is not so easy to shatter.

Colonial Minister Stephen analyzed: "Your Majesty, the French are carrying out strategic contraction overseas, and we are afraid that the pressure will increase.

Especially in the United States and Asia, our local strength is weak, and it is very difficult to compete with the British, and we will have to shrink these areas in the future. ”

This is one of the drawbacks, without the French to share the pressure, Austria does not have enough confidence to face the British in the American and Asian regions.

Asia was relatively better, and the good neighbors of the Austrian colonies were the Dutch, and the threat was relatively small. Even if there is a conflict, it can threaten them in Europe itself.

The Americas are different, Alaska is the worst, and there is no resilience at all. If the British lose face, they can pretend to be pirates and seize this place.

Austrian South America's ability to resist risks is also low, and both Argentina and Chile are a threat.

A few years earlier, the two countries had offered Austria to buy the colony, and the Vienna government had scared them off by quoting a whopping price of 100 million Aegis.

Intimidated by Austria's strength, under normal circumstances, they would not dare to be presumptuous. In case John Cow Ginseng gets in, the situation may change.

The Central American colonies appeared to be strong, but they also faced the greatest challenge, and the Confederate States of America had their sights on them, and had repeatedly tentatively asked Austria for purchases.

These planters are more interested in land than they can imagine, and most of the land in the United States was cultivated during the Democratic administration, and the plantation owners are the main force among them.

Now it is not that they are settled, the main reason is that the losses in the American Civil War are too great, and the European countries are against their expansion.

Austrian Central America is not a wild place, and after the original immigrants and the original residents, the number of white people in the area now exceeds one million.

Coupled with the Indians and a large number of mestizos, the total population of the region is as high as more than 3.5 million, which is not weaker than a country in Central and South America.

However, it is limited to this, the possibility of Central and South America developing is very small, and without Austria's backing, it would not be possible to get to this point.

If you want to go further, you can't go any further, unless you annex Colombia in South America, or Mexico in North America. None of this is easy to do, neither the United States of America nor the Confederate States of America are obstacles.

Unless Austria puts its strategic focus on the Americas and invests its efforts, it will hardly be able to do so.

In fact, Austria Central America has not expanded in recent years. Even in the Panamanian region, it is only infiltration.

Franz smiled slightly, and said very calmly: "It's okay, the more colonies the better." Today, the areas that can be colonized are almost divided, and it is time to stop our expansion.

Not only us, but in fact the British have reached the limit of expansion, but they are not yet aware of it.

Now that the good places are all divided, the remaining areas are either hard bones, or they are tasteless and abandoned rotten land.

Let's start building the Colonial Department, as long as the continent is indigenized, we will be able to meet any challenge. ”

With enough advantages, Franz naturally sat still. Even the ongoing war in South Africa, he didn't mean to ask.

Strength is confidence, and the Boers of the original time and space can make the British tired. Now Austria's power on the African continent is equivalent to one hundred and eighty Boer republics, so what is there to worry about.

The nobles who can gain a foothold on the African continent are not wine bags and rice bags, and the real waste has long died on the way, and any one of them has been killed in the war.

Even Franz suspected that their military literacy surpassed that of the regular army, at least the regular army had moral integrity, and they could do anything in order to win.

Neither humanity nor the bottom line exists, and colonizers are equal to executioners, which is not a joke. If the crime is investigated, the colonists in the world can be pulled out to shoot the target.

Perhaps occasionally there are wrongdoers, but it is just that they have not had time to sin.

The crows in the world are generally black, and this is not the case with the major colonial empires in Europe, and naturally no one has lifted this lid.

Not doing anything to the Ottoman Empire now does not mean that you will never do anything about the Ottoman Empire, and the last wishes of the Habsburg kings will still be fulfilled.

Moreover, Franz was also very interested in recovering the Holy Land to gain political prestige.

The olive branch thrown by the French, Franz still took it, and then there was no more. With the commitment of the Paris government, Austria will have the upper hand in the future when the Middle East issue is wrestling.

As for the British, they can ignore that the establishment of the Empire of Greater France has already divided the Mediterranean in two, and it is a matter of time before John Bull's forces are squeezed out of the Mediterranean.

Even if Malta occupies the heart of the Mediterranean, what can it do?

Surrounded by the spheres of influence of France and Austria, sandwiched between two great powers, the British needed to invest too much force to ensure their influence.

In case one day everyone turns their faces, it is impossible to hold this lonely archipelago overseas. The more resources you invest, the bigger your future losses.

The Royal Navy is the first in the world, which does not mean that it is the first in the world in every region, and it is normal for other countries to have regional maritime supremacy.

Austria was not tempted by the French, but it did its part in containing the British, and the two countries had a very tacit understanding of the British in the Mediterranean.

Such conflicts are played out almost every day in various parts of the world, for example, Austria has been squeezed out of the Far East by Britain and France, and even its interests in Japan have not been preserved.

Another example: the French were squeezed out of the South Seas by Britain, Austria and the Netherlands, and only a few isolated islands were left to support themselves.

There is also the Australian region, Austria just stretched out its tentacles, and was blocked back by the British.

……

Something like that, too many things have happened. Here they are still allies, but in another place everyone has become enemies again.

This era is an era of cooperation and confrontation, as long as you don't tear your face and do it, you can become an ally.

Allies whose real interests are completely identical only exist in theory. In reality, as long as they can fulfill their covenants, they are good allies.

Napoleon III was not surprised by the Viennese government's approach, and everyone acted in their own interests.

Austria's annexation of the Federal German Empire was completely different from their annexation of Italy, the former had a popular base and did not need to take any risks.

The Vienna government's choice to go step by step is actually the best option. The consequences of merging with force and force are completely different.

If possible, Napoleon III also wanted to get the Italians to join France on their own initiative, which was obviously impossible.

Therefore, he could only adopt the oldest way, the first generation of monarchs used force to unify, and the second generation of monarchs adopted gentle measures to buy people's hearts, which was the most effective method of ruling in the feudal era.

With the merit of governing the world, the throne will be stable. In the third generation, the foundation is solid, and the orthodox status is established, as long as it does not die.

In order to pave the way for his son, Napoleon III also broke his heart.

The biggest victim of the strategic contraction of the French abroad was Massimiliano I. As reforms progressed, rebels emerged in Mexico.

If it had not been for the contracting of the extermination of the rebels to the French army, Massimiliano I would have been overthrown by the rebels long ago.

You must know that this contract was a misery for the French, in order to exterminate the Mexican rebels, in the past few years, the French army has paid at least 8,000 casualties.

In return, most of Mexico's minerals and tariffs fell under the control of the French, but unfortunately due to the civil war, it was still unable to cover the expenditure.

Before you know it, the Mexican government owes the French more than a billion francs, the British £8.6 million, and Spain more than 30 million pesos.

On the verdant, Massimiliano I's reforms were of some positive significance to the country, striking a blow to the conservative wing and promoting the modernization of Mexico.

The price paid was also very obvious, the emperor became a loner, and except for a group of like-minded idealists, the original royalists were about to become revolutionaries.

Now that the French are making a strategic retrenchment abroad to concentrate on possible changes on the European continent, this means that Mexico is about to lose its biggest backer.

Even if Napoleon III had a good face and did not give up Mexico, the French army in Mexico alone could not deter the Americans who were ready to move.

No one liked the emperor who shouted that he wanted to reclaim his homeland, neither the United States of America nor the Confederate States of America wanted to overthrow the rule of Massimiliano I.

With the support of the French in front, and the principle of unanimity between the great powers of Britain and France and Austria on the American question, the Americans naturally did not dare to act rashly.

Now it is different, the French themselves are not safe, the crown prince of Massimiliano I has fallen out with the Habsburgs, and Austria is unlikely to intervene.

If Americans don't know how to take advantage of such a good opportunity, they don't have the family business they have now. From the news of the decision of the French to strategic retrenchment spread, both the United States and the Union States began to act.

With the support of external forces, the Mexican rebels became active again. Numerous uprisings broke out in Mexico, and the reign of Massimiliano I was once again in jeopardy.

……