Chapter 665: Woe is not a one-way street
Chapter 650: Woe is not alone
The Tsarist government was on the move, and the Berlin government was not idle. Unlike the Russians, who had a strong family and enough collateral, the Pupo Federation was much poorer.
Take resources as collateral?
Sorry, the PBU’s mineral resources are limited, the most valuable is probably the agricultural products of the Polish region.
Unfortunately, the agricultural crisis has not completely passed, and the international agricultural market is still characterized by an oversupply of agricultural products, which are not worth much at all.
If it’s just a question of price, it’s not non-negotiable. Capital seeks profit, and a discount is still negotiable.
The key is that the security can not be guaranteed, once the defeat of the Pupo Federation will all go down the drain, the Russians will not recognize these loans.
Resources collateral can not, then territory, taxes, railroads, ports?
Theoretically all of these things have collateral value, provided the bankers are willing to buy into them.
The amount of money involved is so large that unless the consortium can be persuaded to take it over, it won’t work, even with the support of governments.
There was no way around it, no one could be sure that the Pupo Federation would be able to win the war. If we lose the war, all the promises made by the Berlin government will be empty checks.
Unlike the Russian Empire, even if it lost the war, it could not die. Now the Czarist government has come up with collateral that even if the Pupo Confederation wins the war, it will not be able to afford to occupy.
Unlike the Pupo Confederation, they had a limited home base, and once they lost the war, they lost it all.
No one doubted the Russian appetite, even if they couldn’t swallow the Pupo Commonwealth, they could still take it against their debts. The Vienna government had no interest in Poland, but its ambitions for the Prussian region were well known.
Slogans have been shouted for a long time, and the false has become true. Franz’s Greater Germany program, shouted for so many years, has long been deeply rooted in people’s hearts.
In addition to a limited number of people at the top of the government, the rest of the Austrians were all striving for the unification of the German region.
The Berlin government could not, and dared not, use its own core territory as collateral. Otherwise, before the Russians hit, the Junker nobility in the country would have coup d’état first.
Don’t get into the big picture with them, if the Junker nobles all had a big picture mindset, the original time Germany wouldn’t have been so tragic.
In the Berlin palace, Wilhelm I asked expectantly, “Is there a bank willing to take over?”
International loans and bond issues these days, the best way is to fix the bank consortium first, and the bank will step in to smooth out the government.
As long as an agreement is signed with the bank, basically it can be approved, which can save a lot of political strings attached.
Foreign Secretary Jeffrey Friedman: “As of now, just five banks have expressed interest.
These are small banks that want to make a big bet and gamble, and even if the negotiations are successful, they will at most issue bonds in the tens of millions of marks. It’s a far cry from our desired target.”
(1 mark is about 0.358 grams of gold)
There was never a lack of gamblers in this world, and even if the outside world was generally not optimistic about the Pupo Federation, there were likewise people who dared to take on business.
After a moment’s effort of silence, William I slowly spoke, “Contact the Jews! As long as they are willing to issue bonds for us, or provide loans, support their independent statehood.”
William I did not like the Jews, but now had to cooperate with the Jews. Because of the Czarist government’s anti-Semitism, the Jews in Russia had been massacred in blood, and the relationship between the two sides was very bad.
The enemy of the enemy was an ally. There was no security for the Jews in this era, especially after the outbreak of the anti-Semitic movement in Russia, and for their own security the Jews had to fight back and show the world their power.
In the Russo-Japanese War in the original time and space, the Japanese government was able to sustain itself, and in addition to the support of the British, Jewish capital also contributed.
Foreign Minister Jeffrey Friedman: “Your Majesty, I’m afraid this is not enough. It’s not true that the Jews are anti-Russian, but Jewish capital is more concerned with practical benefits.
Those who advocate for an independent state are only a portion of ordinary Jews, and their own voice is not high. Even if they are willing to cooperate with us, they don’t have the ability to take on many bonds.”
The call for Jewish statehood is not yet high these days, and the Jews scattered all over the world are still scattered and not united.
Jewish capital then had no concept of statehood and was loyal only to profit, and was ostracized by European society, and its situation had never been very good.
Most of the Jewish capitalists were afraid that if a Jewish state was established, they would be suspected or even suppressed by the governments of the countries in which they lived, and they were always opposed to the establishment of an independent state.
The anti-Semitic campaigns of the Czarist government really shook up a lot of people. Unfortunately, it didn’t do much good. Most of the unlucky ones were ordinary people, and the capitalists, relying on the power of capital, got the message early and ran away.
“Hey!”
After sighing, William I helplessly said, “Try it, raise as much money as possible. Foreign Ministry get ready, I’m going to visit Europe.”
Reality is very cruel, even if again unwilling, in order to raise enough funds for the war, but also had to send to the door to let people ruthlessly slaughter a knife.
……
Prime Minister Mauch: “Your Majesty, news has just been received that at 8:15 this morning, Field Marshal Albrecht von Roon passed away.”
The house has fallen, and at the very moment when the Russo-Prussian War is on the verge of breaking out, another one of the military’s prime ministers has fallen.
Albrecht von Roon was the least known of the Prussian trio, but his contribution to the Kingdom of Prussia was nothing less.
The fact that he led the reform of the military system and established the powerful Prussian Army alone is enough to leave a mark on history.
Ron held a pivotal position in the Prussian army, acting as a lubricant in the power struggle between the military and the government. He was instrumental in stabilizing the transition of power in Berlin after the Russo-Prussian War.
William I said in a deep voice, “Prepare for the state funeral!”
It could be seen that he was in a very bad mood now. As early as two months ago, Ron’s had been bedridden, and Wilhelm I had already prepared for it. Now that it had really happened, he still found it hard to accept.
Politicians’ ability to resist blows were all powerful. William I quickly came out of his grief and began to consider the effects of Ron’s death.
It was never easy to balance the military and the government. After Ron’s death, a new replacement had to be found to act as a lubricant.
This person could not be chosen well, he had to be prestigious enough in the military to be able to convince everyone, and he also had to have keen political judgment.
William I first thought of Mauch, and quickly ruled it out. Mauch did have enough prestige in the army, but unfortunately his political vision was really not very good.
It was for this reason that Mauch was able to become prime minister. If it had been a different lord with superb political ability and influence in the army, William I would not have dared to let him become prime minister.
The power of the monarch and the power of the pharaohs are also to play with each other, and the matter of high merit is the same in the East and the West. Killing the ministers is not so bad, if the people under him are too strong, check and balance, suppression is still inevitable.
After hesitation, William I decided to stabilize. With the Russo-Prussian War on the horizon, the Berlin government could not afford to be in a state of turmoil, and even the biggest problems could only be solved after the war.
He could no longer care about the aftermath. Winning the war is the only thing that needs to be solved; if you lose the war, you are all exiled abroad, worrying about it is useless.
(End of chapter)