Facts have proved that life is still more important than money, and the richer people are, the more they cherish their lives. After weighing the pros and cons, everyone still felt that this protection fee had to be paid.

It is not easy to have a business in an unfriendly foreign land, whether it is from scratch or inherited from ancestors.

By pulling Austria's tiger skin, we can not only survive the immediate threat, but above all avoid taking sides in this war.

Compared with the robbery of the Japanese army, the political side is the real deadly. After all, in Nanyang, where the anti-Chinese movement often breaks out, it is not once or twice that people are robbed, and everyone has experience in dealing with it.

Even if it was robbed by the Japanese army, it only lost a part of the floating wealth on the surface. It's different when you take a political position, and if you make a wrong bet, you will die.

Without the support of a strong country, the diaspora is a mustard. Honorino wants to make money and make political achievements, why don't the people present want to find a backer?

There is a precedent for the Lanfang Company, and Austria's reputation among the Chinese in Nanyang is quite good. Taking money to do things, saying that if you don't interfere in internal affairs, you won't interfere, and the powers that talk about rules like this really can't find a second one.

The deal was concluded, and a diplomatic note on behalf of the Austrian government appeared in front of General Aritomo Yamagu.

If it weren't for the repeated warnings at home not to clash with the foreign powers, and for the navy to watch, Youpeng in Shan County really didn't want to pay attention to this informal note.

Hundreds of thousands of expatriates have been added overnight, and such a joke is clearly fooling people. Unfortunately, there is no way, the Japanese government cannot now give the powers an excuse to intervene.

The Tokyo government still underestimated the political impact of an attack on the Philippines. In these days, it was a white man's world, and the duck was not as capable of hatred as the Russians, and international public opinion was naturally inclined to Spain.

Even Britain and France, which invited the Japanese army into the South Seas, have now changed their faces, not only do they not recognize them as quasi-allies, but even the conditions negotiated earlier have all been nullified.

"Tell the Austrians and let them provide relevant evidence. As far as I know, there are several hundred Austrian expatriates in the Philippine Islands, and the Chinatown side is inhabited by Far Eastern Empire expatriates. The difference in skin color is so obvious, can you still be wrong? ”

It's not that the county is not generous enough, let alone the little wealth he covets to loot, the key is that the plan has been disrupted.

According to the original plan, after conquering Luzon, he used coercion and inducement to subdue the Nanyang Chinese and lay the foundation for ruling the Philippines.

"Your Excellency, Commander, it's useless. News came from the inside that just yesterday evening, Chen Taoyue, a Chinese leader in the Philippines, reached an agreement with the Austrian foreign minister in Honorino in the Philippines to pay 350,000 Aegis in exchange for Austria's security protection, and the two sides have signed a treaty.

I've dealt with Honorino, and that's a vampire. Unreasonable has to stir up three points, which is very difficult. It is simply impossible to make him give up the benefits he has acquired. ”

It was Kazuo Yamamoto, an intelligence officer sent to the Philippines by the Japanese government, who spoke. He personally presided over the completion of the cooperation between the inside and the outside in the offensive and defensive battle of Luzon.

Shan County Youpeng frowned, his eyes full of murderous intent. If possible, he wouldn't mind sending someone to kill people all at once.

It's a pity that this can only be imagined, there are too many people in the know, and the risk of killing people is very high.

Moreover, it is not fashionable to talk about evidence these days. For the great powers, suspicion is enough, and who cares what evidence is not evidence.

As a high-level member of the Japanese government, Aritomo Yamayama is also concerned about the international situation.

Judging from the current situation, the chances of winning the anti-French alliance are very high, and no matter how bad it is, it will be able to achieve a lose-lose result.

Whatever the outcome, the anti-French alliance was an important force in the European world. Against this background, it is undoubtedly unwise to offend the boss of the anti-French alliance.

After a pause, Shan Shan Youpeng said helplessly: "That's it, they can't run away from the island anyway, and order the troops not to enter Chinatown for the time being."

Yamamoto-kun, your next task is very important. It is necessary to win over the local powerful faction as soon as possible and form a colonial government to deal with the next Spanish counterattack. ”

Having just regained their national sovereignty, the Japanese in these years are still not strong, especially when facing the European powers, they have no confidence at all.

……

St. Petersburg, Alexander III was very entangled. I don't know when it started, but the voice of the main battle in the country rose again.

There is no doubt that the Anglo-Russian war has just ended, and Central Asia is still in shambles, and it will certainly not be with the British; Russia and Austria are traditional allies, and the main battle faction will not think of doing something to their own people.

In addition to these two big bosses, there are only the French who are qualified to go neck and neck with Russia. The main battle faction's target this time was the French.

The reason was very simple: disrupt France, crush the Anglo-French alliance, cut off one of the arms of the British, and prepare for the future seizure of India.

It's definitely far-fetched, but it's barely plausible. According to the logic of the main battle faction, as long as the French fall, the future will be the British alone against the Russian-Austrian alliance, and the two-on-one game is settled.

Stable is stable, the problem is that Britain and Austria have to follow the script. It would be embarrassing if France fell down and Britain and Austria died down.

Austria's credibility was good, but the stakes were too great for Alexander III to express deep doubts about the Viennese government's ability to fulfill the treaty.

Doubts alone are not enough, in recent years, the Russian Empire has won the Russo-Prussian War and the Central Asian War, and the morale of the people in the country has recovered.

In addition to the fact that the government's pockets are not bulging enough, the Russian Empire, which is so awesome, has returned.

Strength is courage, and although the war in Central Asia finally ended in Afghanistan, the ambition to peek into India has already arisen.

Just because the top of the government can see the hidden crisis does not mean that ordinary people can also see the crisis. Otherwise, it wouldn't have lit a firecracker and exploded with such a big momentum.

"The voice of the main war in the country is rising, do you think it is appropriate to declare war on the French now?"

Alexander III asked.

The people were clamoring fiercely, but the tsarist government was extraordinarily calm. Everyone knows that Austria is behind the rising call for the main war, but the people's voice cannot deceive people, and if it were not for the subjective tendency of the people, Austria's promoters alone would not have been able to create such a big momentum.

This judgment is not wrong, but if someone conducts long-term public opinion guidance and brainwashing, it is not necessarily.

Of course, the tsarist government cannot be blamed for this. For a long time, the relationship between Russia and Britain and France has not been good, and the domestic media has been politically correct in promoting the black history of Britain and France.

Since it is politically correct, it is nothing to be caught in some private goods, after all, newspapers and magazines also need to attract attention!

It doesn't matter once or twice, after ten or twenty years, quantitative changes have caused qualitative changes. Coupled with the just-concluded Anglo-Russian War, the people's hatred of Britain and France was even more serious.

Journalists also have to eat, and since the people are hostile to Britain and France, they naturally have to meet the needs of readers.

Against this background, Austria spent more money to add fuel to the fire, which soon detonated public opinion, and the call for declaring war on France suddenly rose.

For the Jamahiriya, public opinion could influence and even dominate government decisions, but in the conservative Russian Empire, it was the tsarist government that could really make decisions.

War Minister Ivanov: "Your Majesty, judging by the current situation in the European theater, the anti-French alliance has turned the tide and the probability of winning the war is very high.

If we were to join in, it would be a matter of time before the French were defeated. Even if the British themselves end up, they will not be able to return to the sky. ”

There is nothing wrong with it, now that the war with the French can be won militarily. Even if the French suddenly open up and pull all the neutral countries, they will not be able to turn the tables.

Although the main battle was not explicitly stated, from Marshal Ivanov's expression, everyone could still see that the military was eager for war.

It's right to think about it, this kind of war to beat the water dogs is the most suitable for brushing up on war exploits, and the military is naturally impossible to refuse.

Foreign Minister Oscar Jimenez analyzed: "The marshal is right, now joining the anti-French coalition, there is almost no military risk. However, we also have to consider the political implications.

Our accession will allow the anti-French alliance to easily win the war, and the post-war situation on the European continent will be fundamentally reversed.

According to information gathered by the Embassy in the German Federal Embassy, Austria has reached agreements with several states to restore the Holy Roman Empire after the war.

Legally, this is an internal affair of Austria. As allies, we can't directly oppose it.

If there is no intervention, a giant spanning Asia, Europe and Africa, an empire that is not inferior to the ancient Roman Empire in history, will emerge.

There is no doubt that with this giant, the battle for continental hegemony has naturally come to an end. For a long time to come, we on the European continent will be able to play a supporting role. ”

European hegemony was the goal that the Russian Empire struggled for hundreds of years, but unfortunately each time it ended in failure. If possible, no one would want to give up now.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Alischer: "It is not in our interest for Austria to become bigger, but it is too late to find a way to contain it. From the beginning of the fall of Egypt, the French were doomed.

Whether we join or not, the final outcome cannot be changed. That being the case, why don't we prioritize the interests of the Empire?

A war with France does not mean that troops will be sent immediately. We could have made an excuse to stall for time, to wear down the strength of the Austrians, and then to send troops at the last minute to share the fruits of victory.

We don't know how much we will get in the end, but we don't have to pay back the money we owe to the French. This gain alone is worth declaring war on France. ”

No matter what the international situation or the balance of the European continent is, it is not as good as the real interests. The tsarist government is really poor now, and it is a fortune to be able to save a fortune.

A mere nominal declaration of war would wipe out a billion francs of debt, and Alexander III really couldn't find a reason to refuse.