Franz merely chuckled at the Russians’ far-fetched ideas. In truth, wild and unrealistic plans like these had never been uncommon in real life. Politicians are human too, and being human means they can also be foolish at times. Especially when interests are involved, the chances of them losing clarity only increase. On the surface, it looked like the Russians, under the banner of alliance, could occupy France ahead of everyone else, and Austria would be powerless to stop them. However, the Austrian government could simply delay. They might not be able to force the partition of France, but nothing was stopping them from dragging out the peace negotiations. If one year wasn’t enough, they could stretch it to two, or even three to five years. Would the Russian army be able to coexist peacefully with the French public for that long? Austria could just sit back and watch. Once the Russians were forced to withdraw in frustration, only then would it be time to decide how to deal with France. If it weren’t for the complexity of coordinating the interests of Britain, France, and Russia—and the near impossibility of success—Franz might have even considered encouraging the idea, just to watch the drama unfold between the Tsar’s iron hand and French nationalism. “Send a message to the frontline troops. Tell them to end the war as soon as possible. The soldiers are still waiting to be home for Christmas!” It was only July now, and Christmas was still five months away. Simply defeating the French would not be difficult, but to have a treaty signed and the troops withdrawn before Christmas would be a tight schedule. Under normal circumstances, a postwar conference involving the interests of multiple nations would be filled with disputes and delays. It was not uncommon for such talks to drag on for two or three years. Franz, however, had no intention of dragging things out. All signs pointed to the Hanoverian government becoming active again, with British influence behind the scenes. Internal enemies were far more dangerous than external ones. If those people managed to persuade the various German states’ interest groups, the resulting complications would be enormous. Franz had no intention of putting human nature to the test. When faced with self-interest, human nature was the least reliable thing. What mattered most was to establish a clear political order and authority as quickly as possible before new troubles arose. With that formal legitimacy in hand, Franz no longer feared these people making trouble. If he could not touch the kings beneath him, he could still replace the governments of the smaller states. Anyone who dared to stir up chaos would be taken down with a collection of damaging evidence. As long as he could centralize control over the military forces, customs, diplomacy, currency issuance, and then unify the judicial system, education, and culture, it would not matter how much resistance came from below. No serious waves could be stirred. Times had changed. Back then, it had taken Franz and his allies over a decade of political maneuvering and power struggles with the state governments just to slowly gather these authorities. Now, everything could be secured in one sweep. As for the resistance of the state governments, that could easily be addressed through negotiation. As long as the benefits were right, there was nothing that could not be resolved. Franz was already well-practiced in the usual methods—persuasion, bribery, forming alliances, pressure, and promises. The key was always the same: while drawing allies to his side, he would eliminate his enemies in the process. In fact, compared to the strategy of making an example out of the weak, sometimes it was even more effective to take down the powerful to scare the rest. The louder someone shouted now, the faster they would fall later. Franz was not afraid of those who made a fuss. What he truly feared was those who remained silent and did nothing. After all, the more active someone was, the more likely they were to expose their flaws. If there really were politicians who were pure and flawless, there would be little Franz could do. Even emperors had to play by the rules. But those who truly acted in the public interest would not become obstacles to unification. After experiencing this war, the ideal of national unity had already taken deep root in people’s hearts. … At Franz’s command, war once again ignited across the continent. From Central Europe to the south, smoke and fire filled the skies, leaving no land untouched by conflict. At the allied command in the southern front, representatives from the various Italian states had gathered for a conference of great political and military significance. Historically, the Italian peninsula had always been a land of divided lords, its chaos second only to that of the German states. Now that German unification was near completion, it was time to address the situation in Italy as well. Previously, in an effort to unite all possible allies and win over Italian nationalists, the Austrian government had refrained from making any public statements about the future of the Italian territories. But with the broader situation now settled, there was no longer any reason to delay. A clear decision was needed. Whether to jointly establish a unified Kingdom of Italy, or to formally divide the peninsula into several independent states. In a sense, this conference was more of a formality. The influential figures present all clearly understood Austria’s intentions. No one voiced opposition. Aside from the fact that weaker powers could not challenge stronger ones, the deeper reason was the question of interests. Establishing a unified Italian kingdom might sound simple, but the real issue was who would take the lead. Even before considering the detailed distribution of power and territory, the matter of the crown alone posed a major dilemma. Previously, the Italian independence movement had held a dominant position. Though fragmented, it at least had a nominal figurehead—Victor Emmanuel III. Now, however, royal houses from various Italian states had joined the scene. None was considered inherently superior to the others, and each had powerful interest groups behind them. No one was willing to compromise. Since an agreement could not be reached, separation became the only practical solution. After all, Italy had never truly been unified before, so continuing separately was not considered a major issue. Dividing the territory might be simple, but dividing the assets was far more complicated. Even before the war, territorial disputes existed between the Italian states. Due to the French occupation, those disputes had now become even more messy. With disputes growing and no resolution in sight, it fell to Austria, as the dominant power, to act as arbitrator. However, since the Italian state governments had not yet been fully restored, the Austrian Foreign Ministry could not officially intervene. The responsibility for mediating these conflicts now fell squarely on General Morkes’s shoulders. “The reason I’ve invited everyone here today should be obvious to all of you. The French are on the verge of defeat, and to avoid any unnecessary trouble, we must now clarify the postwar structure of the Italian region. First, each state will regain its independence. The formation of new governments and the restoration of production and daily life will be the responsibility of these new governments. As for how to carry that out, it will be up to each of the future state governments to decide on their own. Today, what we need to do is make a preliminary outline of each state’s territorial boundaries. In principle, we will base this on historical origins, but we will also take into account each state’s contributions during the war against France. These factors will be considered together. If anyone has requests or suggestions, please speak up. We will discuss them together and do our best to reach a result that satisfies everyone.” “Discuss them together” was a nice sentiment, but overly optimistic. The so-called “historical origins” basically meant restoring prewar borders, with only minor adjustments. Overall, the boundaries would remain largely unchanged. The only real point of negotiation was how to divide the rewards based on each state’s contributions. Since every Italian state had shown good judgment by joining the anti-French coalition, the Austrian government had no intention of giving any one state’s land to another. So the only land that could be divided would have to come from France. In a way, this gathering was a rehearsal for the postwar division of spoils. General Morkes chose to hold the meeting at this moment primarily because the battle for Turin was about to begin. Without offering some form of incentive, the other Italian states, aside from the Kingdom of Sardinia, were not showing much enthusiasm. The idea of seizing French territory was deeply exciting for the Italians, who had long suffered under French rule. As for the concern that Austria might use the division of France to expand its own power, that was not something anyone here cared to dwell on. As enemies, the Italians naturally hoped France would be weakened as much as possible. Ideally, they wanted it split apart and dealt with once and for all. Victor Emmanuel III proposed, “Commander, the disagreements among us are relatively minor. The real issue is driving the French out of our land. Since 1870, the French have been exploiting and plundering the Italian territories. We have every right to demand reparations from the French government for the damage they've caused. As long as France pays an adequate price to compensate all parties for their losses, the few disputes between us can be easily resolved. To drive the French out as quickly as possible, the Kingdom of Sardinia is ready to give its full support. Three hundred thousand Sardinian troops are already fully equipped and prepared to launch an offensive at any time.” Among the Italian states, only the Kingdom of Sardinia shared a direct border with France, so it had borne the greatest military pressure. At the same time, once French territory was divided, Sardinia stood to benefit the most. Now that Austria’s intentions had been made clear, Victor Emmanuel III naturally aligned himself with them. This was especially true given that the next objective was to recover Turin, Sardinia’s own capital. They had every reason to take the lead. General Morkes gave a small smile as he replied, “Very good. The upcoming battle for Turin will be entrusted to your forces. On behalf of the Austrian government, I hereby make this promise. After the war, each party will receive at least 30,000 square kilometers of territorial compensation, along with a substantial amount of war reparations. However, this land and money will only be distributed to the states and individuals who contribute to the war effort. You need not worry about the complications of managing non-contiguous territories. If a state is awarded land, we will coordinate land exchanges to consolidate it. For individuals, independent statehood will be allowed, and Austria will provide security and protection.” He scanned the room, noting the lack of excitement on their faces, which left Morkes a little disappointed. Then again, it made sense. Having just been battered by reality, this was a moment when people were yearning for a strong and united nation. Those with foresight all hoped to see a unified Italy. No one would be foolish enough to declare independence for their own little fiefdom. Not to mention Italy’s nobles, even Austria’s own military nobles, who had won great honors over the years, had never voiced such ambitions. It wasn’t that no one wanted to be in charge. The problem was that the world had moved on. The age of local strongmen proclaiming themselves kings was long gone. In a world that valued legal authority and noble bloodlines, having an army was no longer enough to become a ruler. Without the support of the people, declaring independence was tantamount to suicide. Unless someone was already a member of a royal family, with a legitimate claim to a throne and public backing, even the combined support of the great powers would not be enough to secure a crown. From this perspective, Morkes’s promise to individuals was nothing more than a mirage—visible, but unreachable. In the end, it would be the states that truly stood to gain. Aside from Sardinia, whose monarch was personally present, the rest had sent mere representatives. And since they were only delegates doing their job, it was no surprise they did not react with enthusiasm.
*** https://postimg.cc/gallery/PwXsBkC (Maps of the current territories of the countries in this novel made by ScH) Support the translation and read more chapters at https://ko-fi.com/dragonlegion
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