Chapter 397 Some things are up to you
“That woman is so outrageous!” The Archduke of Mainz, who was nearly ninety years old, slapped the armrest of the sofa angrily, “She actually did such a thing Come on!”
“I knew those Gauls were uneasy!”
Beside him, Maria kept patting his back and said softly: “Godfather. , don’t ruin your body, it’s not worth it.”
The Archduke of Mainz sighed and said, “Bring me a bottle of wine.”
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Maria went aside and poured him and Frederick a cup of tea.
Frederick was sitting on the sofa opposite. The helmet he wore when he came back from riding the dawn was still aside, holding several letters in his hand.
While watching, he said expressionlessly: "Our Crown Princess is truly a talented person."
The Grand Duke of Mainz snorted coldly, his face terrifyingly gloomy.
After reading the letter from Cologne, Frederick leaned on the sofa, closed his eyes, tapped the armrest rhythmically with his fingers, and started thinking.
The Helvetic Federation is located in the southwest of the Rhine League, across the lake from the Principality of Mainz. To the east is the westernmost end of the Osmaga Empire, to the northwest and west is the Kingdom of Gaul, and to the south is the Kingdom of Sardinia. It covers an area of about 40,000 square kilometers and has a population of more than one million, with tens of thousands of people making a living in Wesson.
Its terrain is quite special. There are mountainous areas on the north and south sides, and a fertile river valley in the middle. There are large lakes 60 to 70 kilometers long and more than 10 kilometers wide on both sides of the river valley. The terrain is easy to defend but difficult to attack.
Except for the long and narrow river valleys, the mountainous areas in the north and south of the country can be described as barren and harsh, rich in bears and mercenaries. The royal capital is called Bear City, and the national coat of arms is a black bear.
There are many mountains but lack of ordinary minerals. There are only iron ores and coal mines that are barely enough for their own use. Only some mineral salts can be traded for foreign trade. The white mountain area in the south is rich in wind magic crystals and ice magic crystals.
The government system of the Helvetic Federation is quite special in this world. The king is elected by the votes of the 26 counts in the country and is prohibited from being re-elected.
Now that the king is old and his children are only mediocre, he thought that he should leave some dignity for himself and let other families inherit the favor, so at the beginning of the year he announced that he would abdicate on the Harvest Festival and hold a vote for the new king.
The other 25 families immediately took action, and as before, staged a drama of collaboration, exchange of interests, and sale at a price.
They used to just play by themselves behind closed doors, but something changed this year. The Kingdom of Gaul was preparing to send troops to the south. Naturally, they needed their neighbors here to wear the same pants as themselves, so the Gauls found a agent.
The Kingdom of Sardinia looks at the Kingdom of Gaul as if it wants to attack itself. While sending troops to the north, it is also looking for agents in the Helvetia Federation to prevent the north from opening up.
Some people quit. Since you don't abide by the rules, we don't abide by the rules, so we sent representatives to ask for help from the Rhine League.
Then something happened.
The Grand Duke of Mainz said angrily: "I have been running that hidden line for more than thirty years. The first time was to build the railway to the border of the Helvetia Federation to increase foreign trade tax revenue, and the second time was to build the railway to the border of the Helvetia Federation to increase foreign trade tax revenue. Let him propose asking us for help so that we can get involved inside them."
"Well, that woman, let that fool Rudolf send the messenger away with just one word."
< br>Frederick opened his eyes and sighed after him.
The Grand Duke of Mainz wants to obtain a full authorization from the royal family, and has already communicated with the royal capital for this purpose.
Rudolf was about to agree after listening to the opinions of the ministers, but then Antonia privately told him that the Helvetia Federation had its own national conditions, and the intervention of other countries was probably a lie by a small group of conspirators. If the alliance intervenes, it will have a very bad impact.
Between the messenger and his wife, Rudolf chose to believe in his wife.
Just at this time, another more serious thing happened in the royal capital.
His Majesty William, beloved by all people (stick reading), was in a coma. After Rudolf rejected the envoy, he only cared about his father's condition.
Frederick frowned and said: "Is it possible that His Majesty's condition..."
The Grand Duke of Mainz said with a gloomy face: "There is no evidence at present. Although the timing is too coincidental, anything can happen to His Majesty after he has been ill for so many years."
"If the Rhine League can agree this time, then Several Helvetic Federation nobles requested to intervene in the election for the throne. This incident was a good experience for Rudolf, and it was also a signal that the Rhine League has become a country with a say. It shows that we have completely changed from eleven years ago. He completely came out of the shadow of defeat."
He sighed deeply again when he said this.
In 1023, the Rhine League suffered a disastrous defeat in the lowlands and lost all face. At that time, Frederick had been busy protecting his territory and did not feel the pressure from outside like the Grand Duke of Mainz.
In 1027, during the Battle of the Elbe, the Rhine League defeated the sneak attack of the allied forces of the Kingdom of Piast and the Kingdom of Denmark. Frederick successively defeated King Valdemar of Denmark with a peace formation of 800 and 100,000, ending with a huge military victory. The decline of the Rhine League was overturned, and the external situation improved.
In 1034 of this year, the Universal Exposition showed the world the terrible wealth of Frederick.
The Grand Duke of Mainz continued: "Military, economic, and political, you have saved the face of the Rhine League militarily and economically, and our internal morale has also been boosted."
"Rank What Shakespeare and others wanted was to cultivate Rudolph's political ability and achieve a balance by dancing on several eggs despite military and economic backwardness."
"They also hinted to me. Then, let your heirs marry the royal family to strengthen the relationship between the two parties.”
"Alas..."
The last sigh of the Grand Duke of Mainz was full of disappointment.
The Rhine League restored its military confidence after the Battle of the Elbe, so the victory of the noble coalition to capture Linden City in the war a few months ago shocked the world.
Politically, the previous secret assistance to the Kingdom of Lisenberg to drive away the Kingdom of Gaul also restored the confidence of the nobles of the Rhine League in foreign politics, but this matter was not easy to publicize, and Hull The election for the throne of the Viti Federation can be used as a demonstration project.
The Grand Duke of Mainz added: "The royal capital is ready. After I succeeded in leading this matter and the Rhine League gained prestige, everyone worked together to prepare for the eastward crossing of the Elbe River."< br>
Frederick shook his head helplessly.
Rudolph's advantage is to listen to others' advice, and his disadvantages are those of everyone.
This matter is very obvious. Antonia's job in marrying the Rhine League is to hold back. Otherwise, instead of letting Rudolf directly reject the envoy, he should choose a proper approach and let the Grand Duke of Mainz act according to the opportunity, which will be advantageous. Just take it, if it’s a scam, leave.
Frederick thought about it and said: "It seems that this year's Cooperation Cup football match will not be played."
When the leaders of the three parties of the upstream cooperation organization meet, they will organize a single-cycle football match. , everyone is happy.
Now Archduke Byrne is waiting to attend Anna's coronation ceremony in the Osmaga Empire. His Majesty William is in a coma and needs the Archduke of Mainz to sit in the royal capital. The affairs of the Helvetia Federation can only fall on Frederick.
The Grand Duke of Mainz asked: "What step are you sure of achieving?"
Frederick said helplessly: "I am not sure either. Politically, it will be considered a success if we can return to the past. , but there is not much hope."
The Grand Duke of Mainz also said helplessly: "At least restrict the Kingdom of Gaul."
Now the Helvetic Federation has become the Kingdom of Gaul. The diplomatic battlefield of the Din Kingdom, the former is adjacent to the Rhine League, and the latter is separated by the White Mountains occupied by the Osmaga Empire. It is self-evident who should be restricted.
Moreover, the Helvetia Federation is right next to the Principality of Mainz. If the Kingdom of Gaul goes to war with the Rhine League, and the Kingdom of Gaul does not go to the lowlands but to the river valleys of the Helvetia Federation, the first one to be beaten will be the United States. Archduke Inz.
Frederick added: "The only bargaining chips I can offer are economic. For example, we can build the railway."
The Grand Duke of Mainz picked up the teacup and drank slowly. , After thinking about it, he said: "According to your theory of 'economic base determines superstructure', this is a good method."
"As long as they agree, they can walk along the lake from the train station in Trout Harbor "Bianxiu went over."
Frederick nodded.
The Grand Duke of Mainz asked him again: "When are you going to come over? I'll make preparations here."
After thinking for a while, Frederick said: "I'm going over in the name of doing business. I won't make any noise for now. Say it's a market survey, so that others won't be wary."
The Grand Duke of Mainz nodded. Gaul and Sardinia are the national teams, and his side is just a "private" force, so it is better to keep a low profile.
"Alas..." The Archduke of Mainz leaned on crutches and wanted to stand up. Maria and Frederick immediately went over to help him.
The Archduke of Mainz whispered to Frederick: "There are some things that Rudolf can't do, so do it."
(End of this chapter)