"Thank you for the compliment, Your Highness." Charles thanked Prince Metternich once more. "It is because my heart is full of respect for you that I can talk to you in the most honest manner, as you say, and I will not decorate the façade with hypocritical words, which can be easily seen by people as sophisticated as you."

Although he said this on the surface, of course he would not believe that he only needed to say a few words to shake someone like Metternich and put himself in an advantageous position, so no matter how the other party praised him, he would only listen to it, and he would not really be as "completely sincere" as he said.

This kind of enthusiasm and distance are necessary for diplomats.

The prince looked at Charles warmly, and then waved at his son Richard, motioning for him to sit down as well.

"Mr. Treville, you considered yourself a pro-Austrian faction before you took office, and now you have made such a deep impression on all European countries, and even my son has spoken to me about your friendliness towards Austria, which I have to say is very gratifying." He looked at Charles again, but his expression began to become serious, "However, after all, I have been doing this for too many years, so I can't be moved by unexpected kindness as unexpected malice, I think, there is a basic principle that in international affairs, interests are greater than favor, and favor is greater than words, I don't know if you agree with my opinion?" ”

Charles didn't expect that the veteran diplomat would be so unkind to him as soon as he met, and he faintly put on a posture of an veteran diplomat pointing out to his juniors. However, for the sake of politeness, he did not intend to compete with the old man - after all, everyone had already fallen to this point. There is only the past to recall, so why should I compete with an old man in his last years?

"You're right, you're right." He immediately nodded in agreement.

"Sir, you are very young, and young people will have some passion, and they will also have some emotional impulses, and I don't think that's a bad thing. It was the same when I was younger. But we can't treat foreign affairs as a personal matter, and there is not much room for emotion. The prince continued to ask. So. I would like to ask you whether your affection for Austria is motivated by love or genuine interests. ”

The question is a bit acute. But the charr wasn't out of the cracks.

"Which one do you want me to be?" He was Fan Wen first.

"Both are good things. After all, friendship is always more pleasant than bad fighting. Prince Metternich shrugged his shoulders, "but we all know that the former is noble but hardly to last, and the latter is vulgar but very reliable—and I prefer the latter in comparison, because a solid relationship between the great powers must be based on a solid bond of interests, if they come together impulsively by good feelings." Then, when the favor fades, the relationship breakdown is just around the corner. ”

"My passion for Austria comes from passion. Of course, it also comes from practical interests, and in fact I don't think it's a contradiction. "I think that, as far as ******** is concerned, unlike Puritan-worshiped England, Protestant Prussia and Orthodox Russia, among the great European powers, we are the only truly Catholic powers, and we should cherish each other, and we should not go our separate ways, so that God's prestige is declining day by day......

Everyone knew that he was not a man of religious fervor, and that he still spoke so seriously, as if he really took religion seriously, certainly did not impress Metternich.

"I appreciate your passion for God, and I share your painful feeling that the preservation of the true Catholic world requires the cooperation of the Catholic powers." Metternich quietly agreed with him, "Of course—it is a great pity that I have always misunderstood this idea, and that it has not received an adequate response. ”

"In the same way, France and your country have always been old European powers, and although there were some regrettable struggles between us a long time ago, I think that at least for the present time the interests of the two countries are identical, and they want to preserve the position they once held. Since we share the same religious values and the same practical needs, in my opinion, the best way for the two countries to safeguard their interests is to join forces and work together to defend peace in Europe. ”

"This is a very correct consideration, Monsieur Tréville, and I even think that if the present rulers of France had thought like you, all the difficulties we now face would have been much easier." Prince Metternich smiled slightly, "However, with all due respect, all the countries of Europe have a lot of misgivings about France today, and everybody is afraid of France—well, I mean that some people in France will have some ideas that are too dangerous, and that such dangerous ideas will be an obstacle to your friendship with them. ”

"There are certain people, especially the military, who are making dangerous noises in France, but this does not endanger Europe and does not damage relations between the two countries." Charles immediately asserted, "Neither Monsieur Bonaparte nor I want to deal with nations in a very radical way, for the lessons of the past are so profound that any serious and reasonable person will be deterred from the abyss." ”

"That is, you really do not intend to disrupt the order in Europe?" Prince Metternich immediately asked, "Is it a rumor that I have heard that 'France is about to use force against Russia'?" ”

"No, it's not a rumor, I'll be honest with you, it's true." Charles suddenly interjected, "And I can assert to you that such a war will happen soon, though not tomorrow." ”

"What?" Prince Metternich's eyes widened suddenly, apparently surprised.

He was not surprised that France wanted to fight the Russians—the matter had spread throughout European diplomatic circles, was talked about everywhere, and everyone thought it was imminent—but he was really surprised by Charles's unreserved candor.

He received a report from his son Richard about how the Charles dealt with Emperor Franz-Joseph. It was a very professional grasp of the essence of diplomatic language, saying everything, but admitting nothing. He didn't expect that Treville would be so honest in front of him.

"Your Highness, this I am telling you is confidential, and I hope you can keep it a secret for me, so as not to stir up unnecessary controversy elsewhere." Seeing the other party so shaken, Charles couldn't help but laugh.

"Oh, of course. I'll keep it a secret for you. You are willing to be so honest with me because you believe in me, and I will not fail that trust, and besides. I'm retired, and I don't want to make waves in the diplomatic world anymore. Metternich quickly came to his senses, and then immediately nodded, "You can speak as much as you want with me." I promise that not a word will be leaked to the outside world. ”

"That would be great. Thank you. "I've been talking for too long, and it's nice to finally have a place to rest." ”

"I'm glad I was able to hear from you." Although he still didn't quite understand Charles's purpose for suddenly being so candid, Prince Metternich had fully pulled himself up, "That is, you admit that war between France and Russia may be imminent, right?" ”

"Yes. Indeed it is. ”

"How can you be convinced of your zeal to defend the existing order in Europe, since you were first in power and engaged in a war with the great powers of Europe?" Prince Metternich asked sharply. "I think that's going to be a hard thing to do?"

"If anyone sees the defense of Europe as inaction, as in the past, then he may not be able to believe in our sincerity, but ......" Charles suddenly raised his head, then raised his voice, "on the contrary, in the present, the defense of European order requires action!" And it's right away! Now it is not us who are destroying the order, but another group of people, full of aggressive desires, who only want to expand everywhere, and who have occupied an unspeakable land, and who must fight to keep what is left of Europe from their encroachment. ”

Prince Metternich was somewhat surprised by Charles' sudden outburst, and he looked at his son, then frowned.

"That is, you think that starting a war against Russia is an active action to preserve the existing order in Europe?"

"There is no European order anymore, Your Highness." Charles calmly replied, "You see, who still respects the order of decades ago?" Everyone wants to expand their power, the big powers are doing their own thing everywhere, and we are just doing it like everyone else, which is a necessary emergency measure. Now that the European order has been shattered, it is only true that we, each of the responsible powers, should stand up and show our courage and strength to seek a new stable order for Europe, so that peace can come back to every great power. ”

Such a blunt remark made the prince's face even pale, because he could hear the implication. "You mean that your goal is to re-establish a more positive European order?"

"If you tell me the truth, then I will tell the truth once and for all, the Vienna system that you have built is crumbling, and many people do not regret it, but they are very excited about it, they are eager to try it for their own country's own interests in a new era, they are ambitious, and their desires are endless, and if you do not stop it with the strongest will and the strongest determination, everything will be out of control, and all your previous efforts will be in vain. It is on your mind that we want to restore a satisfactory and sustainable order of European powers, in other words, we act in the footsteps of your ideas - so this is not contrary to our original intentions. ”

Prince Metternich's face became more and more strange.

The young man in front of him said that the use of force against Russia was a necessary move to maintain the European order, and even said that it was 'the inheritance and development of his own ideas', and he had to admit that he had never seen such a brazen person before.

It's really capable.

The prince suddenly felt a kind of vitality peculiar to a young man who had not been seen for a long time from this high-spirited young man.

The young man's assertion that the Vienna system, which he had worked so hard to build, had collapsed was hard to hear, but he had to admit the reality.

"I see, you want to construct a new European order?"

"An order that embraces your ideas, in which every great power can be put in a reasonable position, rather than that of any one country, I believe is exactly what you need, and which is exactly what you want to see in Europe, isn't it?" Charles confidently asked, "Your efforts need to be inherited, and France has the strength and I am willing to inherit your spirit and efforts." ”

"I'm very touched by that." After a long silence, the prince spoke again, "So, you want Austria to join you in your efforts to rebuild a new order in Europe?" ”

"I believe that this is beneficial to Austria and it should join." Charles nodded, agreeing with the other party's understanding, "We can all see that Austria is facing too many challenges now, and it is impossible to stay in the old days. In this era of rapid change, Austria will bear the brunt of the changes if it does not make some revolutionary changes, and these ambitious countries that want to achieve a higher status outside the Vienna system will look around for every opportunity at their disposal, and at certain times they will ...... Austria may be used as a victim. I hope that your Highness, you will not take my words as alarmist. ”

Prince Metternich was silent again. He knew that Charles's words were not unreasonable, among the major European powers, Austria was now the inferior one, just a little better than Prussia, and it had so much land and wealth that every disgruntled power would want to bite off it and strengthen its own strength.

"In a way, I admit that what you said makes a lot of sense." After another moment, he nodded gloomily, "We do face too many risks, so we do need to actively act to defend ourselves. ”

After a moment, as if he felt that he had spoken too explicitly, he immediately changed his tone, "Of course, our country is still strong enough to dispel all the covetousness of people with bad intentions about us, and all that is needed is to actively participate in maintaining a stable European order." ”

"It seems to me that our ideas are naturally aligned." Charles laughed again.

Just as the prince was about to say something, there was a sudden sound of footsteps outside, and Richard got up and opened the door.

After a few words of conversation with Madame, he immediately returned, and then gave a brief explanation.

"Mr. Bismarck has arrived." (To be continued.) )