Even a single spark can set the prairie ablaze. Revolution is contagious, especially in a country like France, rich in revolutionary thought. Napoleon IV has swallowed the bitter fruit of his concessions to the consortium. He had expected that with their support his rule would be more secure, but reality unfolded in the opposite direction. It has proven that capital must be kept in check. Once unrestrained, capital will devour people. According to the agreement with the consortium, the French government handed over economic control to the market, refraining from interfering with commodity prices. Undoubtedly, this is the root cause of France’s soaring prices. Against the backdrop of global overcapacity, the fact that prices can skyrocket speaks for itself. At Versailles, Napoleon IV sat there with a melancholic expression, motionless. The successive rebellions at home had plunged him into self-doubt. “Your Majesty, the ministers have arrived. When will the meeting begin?” The voice of a maid roused him from his reverie. “Please have them come in. Today’s meeting will be held here,” he replied offhandedly. By protocol, meetings are meant to be held in designated venues. However, in France there is no such thing as a censor. When the emperor is in a bad mood, no one fusses over such minor details. “Yes, Your Majesty!” … Minister of War Patrice de MacMahon stated, “Your Majesty, after two days of fierce battle, the 7th Division finally broke through Lyon yesterday afternoon. We expect to eliminate the remaining rebels in Lyon within the next two days. The 5th Division arrived in Toulouse last night and has already begun suppressing the insurgents. It won’t be long before we receive good news.” As expected, this French revolution once again demonstrated the principle of “swiftly it comes, swiftly it goes.” Lyon, the origin of this revolution, was also the first place to be subdued. The so-called fierce battle was, in reality, just a performance to claim credit. Simply put, as long as the Paris revolution failed, no other region, no matter how much turmoil it experienced, stood a chance of succeeding. Napoleon IV nodded in satisfaction. The army had performed well, and at this rate, the rebellion would soon be crushed. The Minister of Police Ansochi reported, “Your Majesty, last night we uncovered another conspiracy in Paris and arrested 36 revolutionaries. This is already the fourth conspiracy we have foiled this month. All signs indicate that there is a hidden hand behind these plots, manipulating events from the shadows. At present, the intelligence we have gathered is insufficient to determine who this hidden hand is. The main suspects include international anti-French forces such as Britain and Austria, remnants of the former regime seeking restoration, and the domestic bourgeoisie.” The reason the revolutionaries were not specifically mentioned is that France’s revolutionary forces are highly fragmented. There are over a hundred revolutionary organizations of various sizes, most of which have only fleeting enthusiasm, constantly forming and dissolving. Today’s revolutionaries could become royalists tomorrow—their identities are interchangeable. Many factors influence these shifts. It could be a single government policy, a speech by an official, or even something as trivial as the weather. This is no exaggeration. There have been revolutionary groups that canceled an uprising simply because the roads were too slippery from rain. Of course, their official reason was never “The roads are too slippery due to rain.” Instead, they claimed to be “heeding God’s call to abandon the revolution.” There was nothing wrong with that. After all, in Europe, God is believed to have a say in everything. If it rains on the day of an uprising, it must be a sign that God disapproves of bloodshed. As devout believers, they could hardly go against divine will. Most of France’s revolutionary groups at this time are little more than bands of amateurs. They lack political programs, a unified leadership, and any real cohesion where members come and go as they please, making large-scale action beyond their reach. Even the previous uprisings were, in reality, led by labor unions. As for the revolutionaries, their main role has been spreading revolutionary ideas and waving banners. Napoleon IV frowned. His intuition told him that all of these suspects might be behind the scenes. The former royalist factions required no further explanation. They wanted to put their own king back on the throne, so, of course, they had to stir up trouble. Britain and Austria had just delivered a heavy blow to France in the financial markets. It was only natural for them to continue scheming. The Lyon uprising, in particular, had severely damaged France’s textile industry, making Britain the biggest beneficiary. Their level of suspicion was off the charts. Austria, as France’s main rival for continental dominance, also had every reason to be involved. The Austrian government was certainly not above playing dirty. Even if Britain and Austria had nothing to do with the initial Lyon uprising, by now, they were almost certainly involved. As for the last suspect, the domestic bourgeoisie, there was hardly any need to speculate. With so many capitalists, they were far from a united front. It was only natural that some of them would sympathize with the revolution. Napoleon IV let out a sigh. The complexity of the situation made him feel as though he were sitting on a bed of nails. A single enemy was not frightening. The real nightmare was collusion between internal and external forces. That could indeed be fatal. After pondering for a moment, Napoleon IV made a decision. “Notify the financial consortium and order them to stabilize prices within a week. If they fail to do so, all previous agreements will be nullified, and the government will not rule out taking special measures to stabilize the domestic situation.” This was a blatant threat. Napoleon IV was well aware of the foundation of his rule. If things continued spiraling out of control, it wouldn’t be long before he met the same fate as the July Monarchy. Compared to that, offending the financial consortium was a minor issue. No matter how powerful they were economically, their strength lay solely in the market. As long as he could secure his political base, they wouldn’t be able to stir up much trouble. Capitalists, with their vast wealth and influence, might engage in covert manipulation, but expecting them to take to the streets and personally lead a revolution? That was out of the question. Just as everyone was weighing their options, another piece of bad news arrived. “Your Majesty, a major crisis! Last night, uprisings broke out in multiple cities, including Rome, Turin, Cagliari, Chambéry, and Nice. Cagliari and Chambéry have already fallen, while fighting continues in other regions. The local governments are requesting military reinforcements.” The Italian revolutionaries were not the same as France’s domestic revolutionary factions. Their combat capabilities were in an entirely different league. Unlike the scattered revolutionaries in France, the Italian revolutionaries had nationalism as its guiding ideology and were led by seasoned military and organizational talents. Many loyal followers had accompanied the Sardinian royal family into exile, waiting for their chance to strike. In recent years, under the banner of the Sardinian royal family and with covert support from Britain and Austria, the Italian revolutionaries had gradually unified. Despite numerous efforts by the French government to eradicate them, their attempts had yielded little success. With financial backing from multiple benefactors across Europe, the Italian independence movement had not only survived but had grown stronger over time. Napoleon IV, visibly alarmed, exclaimed, “The Ministry of War must immediately deploy troops to suppress them! We cannot give them any chance to catch their breath!” Unlike domestic uprisings, where European nations might engage in minor subversive activities but within limits—after all, their political systems made it unlikely for them to openly support revolutionary factions—the Italian independence movement was an entirely different matter. Its leaders were the Sardinian royal family, and their banners bore the slogans of “independence” and “restoration.” As monarchs themselves, they were part of the established monarchy system. If they managed to secure a foothold, the anti-French factions in Europe would undoubtedly rally behind them. At that point, crushing the rebellion would become far more difficult. … In Vienna, the Austrian government received France’s letter of protest. How could they stir up trouble without leaving any traces behind? That was simply impossible. Unsurprisingly, Austria’s support for the Italian independence movement had been discovered by the French government. Yet, the protest note from France barely caused a ripple in the Austrian government. Franz simply tossed it aside without a second thought. One had to admit, France had a talent for making enemies. Especially after establishing the “Greater French Empire,” they might as well have been walking around with the label “Final Boss” written on their foreheads, practically inviting the rest of Europe to team up against them. Aside from Britain and Austria, the two main players who had actively orchestrated this rebellion, most other countries hadn’t contributed much. Some nations, having suffered diplomatic and political bullying from France, provided funds and resources out of sheer spite. For the majority, however, their involvement was mostly symbolic. Either out of sympathy or due to royal family prestige, donating to the Italian independence movement was merely a token gesture. With so many countries involved, the French government wouldn’t even know where to start if it wanted revenge. Lately, almost every major European nation has received a protest note from France. And that was the end of it. This was truly a case of “the law does not punish the masses.” Whether now or in the future, France could never realistically hold everyone accountable. Otherwise, they would only succeed in reviving the Anti-French Coalition. Franz asked with concern, “Is the French government really in danger?” Striking at the French Empire was one thing but completely destroying it was another. If France were to collapse right now, it wouldn’t necessarily be good for Austria either. Revolutions were contagious, especially at a time when Europe was already in the midst of an economic crisis. If a French revolution were to succeed, it would undoubtedly trigger a new wave of revolutionary uprisings across the continent. By then, Austria will have no choice but to send troops to help extinguish the fires across Europe. Franz dislikes this kind of thankless, yet unavoidable, chore. Chancellor Felix said, “Your Majesty, Paris is now a powder keg. The slightest spark could cause an explosion at any moment. If the French government responds effectively and promptly calms the lower classes, the crisis might still be contained. Otherwise, the Bonaparte dynasty could very well collapse because of this. Compared to the crisis in Paris, the rebellion in Lyon and the Italian independence movement are minor issues. As long as Paris remains stable, the French government will eventually manage to resolve these smaller troubles.” Franz nodded. Countless facts have proven that the biggest “powder keg” in modern Europe is no longer the Balkan Peninsula, but Paris, the holy land of revolution. To avoid igniting this powder keg, Austria’s covert actions have only gone as far as supporting Italian independence organizations, never inciting revolutionaries to start rebellions. On this issue, the positions of Britain and Austria are aligned. The revolution in Paris is fraught with too much uncertainty, and neither wants to bring trouble to their own doorstep. Due to the butterfly effect, European history has already been drastically altered. Franz cannot guarantee that another Napoleon will not emerge in France. The current French Empire still has a substantial foundation. With a talented leader, it could still make Austria suffer greatly. For safety’s sake, it’s better to adopt a strategy of slowly boiling the frog. After several rounds of turmoil, once the French have squandered their resources, that will be the time to move in for the final blow.
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