The next day, Franz received mixed news. Chancellor Felix had regained consciousness the previous night, but the cause of his coma had yet to be identified. There was nothing to be done about it. 19th century medical technology was limited. Without diagnostic instruments, doctors could only rely on past experience to make judgments. For an ordinary person, a single doctor would examine the patient, and there would be no such complications. One could only hope for divine intervention. If the doctor guessed correctly, the treatment would be effective. If not, the patient would have to rely on luck. Chancellor Felix, however, was not an ordinary person. When he fell ill, Austria’s top doctors were called in. As a result, they reached different conclusions. If even the experts could not agree, others were even more confused. Faced with this situation, Franz was powerless. As someone with no medical expertise, he had no choice but to wait. Before Felix’s condition could be diagnosed, another international crisis emerged. The collapse of the Ottoman Empire prompted the British government to accelerate its invasion of Persia. On February 16, 1885, under British military pressure, Persia was forced to grant telegraph rights for a line running from British India through Kerman and Tehran to Bushehr. It was bad enough that the British were forcing Persia to allow the construction of telegraph lines, but what was worse was that Persia itself had to cover the costs. As a country reduced to semi-colonial status, Persia was impoverished. To afford the expensive telegraph construction, it had no choice but to take out loans from the British. Foreign Minister Wessenberg handed Franz a document and said, “Your Majesty, the British are being far too greedy. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has just received intelligence indicating that, three days ago, the British covertly signed a loan-for-lease agreement with the Persian government. This agreement covers a wide range of areas, including tariffs, mining, railways, factories, and water conservancy projects. If its terms become reality, Persia will essentially become British territory, and we will lose almost all of our commercial market in the region.” Taking the document, Franz began reading through it. The more he read, the deeper his frown became. The butterfly effect had still failed to change Persia’s fate as a British colony. Provisions regarding mining, resources, and factories had little impact on Austria and could be set aside. However, the treaty stated that the British had obtained a 25-year control over Persian tariffs for a mere 20,000 pounds. No wonder Wessenberg called the British excessive. This was more than just excessive, it was outright monopolization. In the last Anglo-Persian War, Russian intervention had prevented Britain from achieving its strategic objectives. As a result, Persia had enjoyed a more favorable international environment compared to its historical counterpart. After the war, British, Russian, and Austrian influence had all expanded into Persia, creating a new balance of power. Austria had no intention of expanding into Persia and had made only limited investments in the region, primarily focusing on commercial interests. The main struggle for influence remained between Britain and Russia. Due to the Russo-Prussian War, the Russians were busy recovering from their losses and had reduced their resource investment in Persia. The British took advantage of the situation and increased their own presence. The emergence of this all-encompassing leasing agreement was a direct result of the disrupted balance of power. After finishing the document, Franz took a deep breath. “The British want to extend the railway to the Caspian Sea. I doubt the Russians will just sit back and watch.” By gaining control of Persia’s railways and extending them to the Caspian Sea, the British were pushing their influence deep into the region, posing a serious threat to Russian interests. Wessenberg replied, “Of course. However, at this moment, the Russian government is probably most enraged not by the railway but by something else. The Russians control nearly 30% of Persia’s tobacco trade, yet the British have secured the exclusive tobacco rights for just 15,000 pounds. This will directly reduce the Russian government’s revenue. On top of that, there are the tariffs. Persia is one of the few countries that imports Russian industrial goods. Now that the British control its tariffs, they can essentially push Russian products out of the Persian market.” Hearing this, Franz nearly forgot about tobacco. The massive profits of the tobacco industry were already becoming apparent. Persia was a major producer of tobacco leaves. Before the discovery of oil, tobacco had been its largest export commodity. During his reforms, Alexander II had followed Austria’s example by implementing a state monopoly on tobacco and alcohol. Every year, the Russian government imported large quantities of Persian tobacco leaves. After processing, some were sold domestically, while the rest were exported back to Persia. The Russian government earned a considerable income from this trade, accounting for 1 to 2 percent of its total revenue. In comparison, the export of industrial goods was relatively insignificant. After all, Russian industrial products were known only for their durability; in all other aspects, they were completely unremarkable. Even if they managed to sell them, the sales volume was never going to be high. Still, having some exports was better than having none. No matter how small, exports held symbolic importance for the Russians. As the saying goes, “Cutting off a man’s livelihood is like killing his parents.” With the British monopolizing profits in this way, Franz could already imagine how the Russian government would react once they found out. After pondering for a moment, Franz asked in confusion, “Do we know why the British are doing this?” The more he thought about it, the more bizarre their actions seemed. Monopolizing profits was certainly appealing, but they had to consider the consequences. Russia and Austria were not pushovers. If pushed too far, they could completely overturn the table, ensuring that no one would have a good outcome. The British government surely understood this, yet they still went ahead with their actions. It couldn’t be that they were deliberately provoking a conflict to lure Russia and Austria into attacking Persia, could it? Foreign Minister Wessenberg explained, “It might be related to the Central Asian conflict. The British government has repeatedly protested against Russian actions, but to no avail, so they might be taking countermeasures. As for why we are being affected, it is likely because the British believe we have been encouraging the Russians to stir up trouble in Central Asia, and they want to teach us a lesson.” Hearing this, Franz was left speechless. What happened to trust between nations? A completely unwarranted disaster. Even if he wanted to encourage the Russians to stir up trouble in Central Asia, Franz would never choose to do it now. The Russians were indeed warlike, but they were not fools. They were currently in a critical period of recovery, so how could they possibly start a war at this time? An explanation would only seem like an excuse. Even though Franz knew they were being falsely accused, he had no way to argue against it. In international politics, evidence was unnecessary. As long as something was believed to be true, it was enough to justify taking action. “What is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs planning to do?” Franz asked. Foreign Minister Wessenberg replied, “The Anglo-Persian agreement is still just a secret treaty. It will take some time before it becomes a reality, so it is not yet worth directly confronting the British. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs plans to expose the secret treaty, stir up public opposition in Persia against this traitorous agreement, and then coordinate with the Russians to pressure the Persian government into abandoning it.” Austria could not do much against the British, and neither could the Russians, but that did not mean they were powerless against the Persian Empire. Frankly, Franz could not understand the reckless behavior of the Persian government. Was it a case of “ignorance is bliss,” or had all the Persian officials simply lost their minds? The influence of Britain, Russia, and Austria had already penetrated deeply into Persia. If any one of them attempted to take full control, the other two would surely unite to resist. With such a stable structure, as long as the Persian government did not act recklessly and instead leveraged the rivalries among the great powers, preserving its sovereignty should not have been an issue. Yet, despite having such a strong hand, they played it terribly, going so far as to foolishly sign a traitorous treaty with the British. British military threats? At worst, it would mean fighting a war, and it would not be the first time. With support from Russia and Austria, Persia would not face total destruction. If they were lucky, they could even use this opportunity to train an elite army, allowing the Persian Empire to rise from the ashes. But there was no doubt that the opportunity for revival had been completely squandered. From the moment the treaty was signed, the Persian government was on the path to becoming isolated and abandoned. The people would not tolerate such a traitorous regime. Even if they did not rebel, the government’s prestige among the populace would plummet to the lowest depths. Due to the secret treaty, Persia’s relations with both Russia and Austria would also deteriorate to the freezing point. As for the British, just by looking at the treaty’s contents, it was clear they intended to annex Persia. Any rational person would see them as the enemy. Indeed, the downfall of an empire never happens without reason. Putting aside all other external factors, one only needed to look at the rulers to see the truth—there was no “dumbest,” only “even dumber.” One ridiculous policy after another was not a matter of misfortune. It was simply the limit of their abilities. After inwardly expressing deep contempt for the corrupt Persian government, Franz made his decision: “Proceed as planned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs!” *** https://postimg.cc/gallery/PwXsBkC (Maps of the current territories of the countries in this novel made by ScH)
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