Chapter 469 Deja Vu
Ferdinand still doesn’t understand Nicholas well enough.
George witnessed with his own eyes how Nikolai beat a good card to pieces. Sometimes George couldn't help but doubt that even if Mikhail, who was thinking about the queen's former sister-in-law every day, succeeded to the throne, the Russian Empire would be destroyed. It will not be reduced to this situation today.
In October last year, Mikhail finally married Princess Victoria Melita, making all European royal families happy.
Love affairs among royal family members are not uncommon and occur in all countries.
But the Romanovs were the only ones in such a state of chaos.
If Mikhail only hooked up with Victoria and did not get together publicly, there would be fewer rumors.
The two of them got married directly, and together with Nicholas and Alex, they became the laughing stock of the European royal family.
When Makarov's flagship hit a mine and sank, Mikhail served on the ship and was lucky to be rescued.
After being rescued, Mikhail returned to St. Petersburg at the speed of light. Afterwards, he came to a realization and married Victoria despite the strong opposition of Nikolai and Alex.
Nicholas therefore suspended Mikhail's salary.
But this is useless, because the Russian Empire still has a queen mother who dotes on her young son.
Now Mikhail and his new wife are sunbathing on the warm beaches of Italy. The tragic defeat of the Russian Empire has not affected their happy mood at all.
Ferdinand was unhappy.
The disastrous defeat of the Russian Empire allowed the Austro-Hungarian Empire to see an opportunity, and the Kingdom of Romania was under increasing pressure.
Kaiser Wilhelm II wanted the Kingdom of Romania to abandon its alliance with the Russian Empire and instead ally with Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Carol I was determined and was not tempted by William II.
But some forces in Romania have lost confidence in the Russian Empire.
Ferdinand came to Amur this time in the hope that George could provide some assistance to the Kingdom of Romania and strengthen the confidence of the Kingdom of Romania.
“Why not go to St. Petersburg?”
George did not want to have much to do with the Kingdom of Romania.
The Kingdom of Romania is too far away from Amur. If something changes, George will not be able to provide timely help.
As the Governor of the Far East, George's excessive contact with the Kingdom of Romania will arouse suspicion in St. Petersburg and make the relationship between St. Petersburg and Amur worse. This is also what George does not want to see.
“St. Petersburg is disarmament, how can we care about the Kingdom of Romania——”
Ferdinand came to George out of desperation.
The alliance with the Kingdom of Romania was one of the most important political legacies left to Nicholas by Alexander III.
George also didn’t know why Nicholas didn’t pay enough attention to the Kingdom of Romania.
It is not just the Kingdom of Romania, but also the four Orthodox countries, including the Kingdom of Bulgaria, the Kingdom of Serbia, the Kingdom of Greece, and the Kingdom of Montenegro. St. Petersburg does not pay enough attention to it. The influence of the Russian Empire on the Balkans is declining rapidly. .
George knew that Ferdinand would not come to him unless he had to.
But aiding the Kingdom of Romania is no small matter, and careless operation will lead to serious consequences.
So George called a meeting of wise men to brainstorm ideas.
“This is the responsibility of St. Petersburg and has nothing to do with us!”
Mikhail was the first to object. Ferdinand not only needed military assistance, but also economic assistance.
The Kingdom of Romania is an agricultural country with a very low proportion of industry. The output value of machine manufacturing and metal processing only accounts for less than one-tenth of the total output value.
The fiscal revenue of the Kingdom of Romania is also very low, so it is unlikely that the Kingdom of Romania will pay.
Andre and Peter looked at each other, worry in both of their eyes.
Assistance is not impossible.
The key is the attitude of St. Petersburg.
The relationship between Amur and St. Petersburg is very delicate now. After the Russo-Japanese War, George became famous. Many Russians even regarded George as the savior of the Russian Empire. How could this make Nikolai feel embarrassed?
The army is the foundation of the empire. In the army, George has greater prestige than Nicholas. Although the war has ended, more and more people are coming to Amur, including many who are completely dissatisfied with St. Petersburg. Disappointed officer.
Follow George and you can win the battle!
Russian people have very simple feelings, they will help whoever wins.
“We should inform St. Petersburg of this situation and let St. Petersburg make a decision.”
Yerokhin also does not want to arouse suspicion in St. Petersburg.
Brushinov, who attended the "cabinet meeting" for the first time, did not speak. This was not an area he was good at at all.
"Military assistance will definitely not work, but we can strengthen economic cooperation." Milyutin hopes that Amur can help the Kingdom of Romania within its ability.
As for military assistance, Milyutin is not in a hurry.
Witt also received an invitation to attend the welcome dinner hosted by George for Ferdinand.
Witt is also a mature man and will definitely report this matter to St. Petersburg.
Therefore, as long as Nicholas does not want to lose the Kingdom of Romania as an ally, no matter how tense the economy of the Russian Empire is, Nicholas will help.
So Milyutin advised George not to rush and give St. Petersburg some time to react.
Then wait and see.
Winter is about to enter Vladivostok in September, and everyone is very busy during this time, trying to store enough supplies for the winter.
The Amur people have accumulated rich experience in storing supplies. Dried vegetables and smoked meats can basically be stored for a year or even longer.
This year, thanks to its monopoly on Hokkaido's fishing grounds, Vladivostok has had a bumper harvest of aquatic products, which is not only enough for the Amur people to eat, but can also be exported in large quantities.
So George reached an agreement with Ferdinand to use aquatic products in exchange for grain.
This agreement will not be of much help in relieving the plight of the Kingdom of Romania. It can only be said to be better than nothing.
The Kingdom of Romania is right next to the Black Sea, and there is no shortage of seafood.
What Romania lacks is artillery.
Artillery George does have it, but it cannot be given to the Kingdom of Romania for free.
George and Ferdinand reached a new agreement. The Kingdom of Romania handed over the operation rights of Romanian oil fields to George, and then used the money from the oil sales to purchase weapons and ammunition from Amur.
Romania’s oil reserves are second only to the Russian Empire in Europe.
In the Russo-Japanese War, armored fighting vehicles appeared on the battlefield for the first time, and all countries have paid more attention to armored fighting vehicles.
George is very happy that the oil era is coming. Whoever can control oil in this era will have the initiative.
At present, Britain, France, Germany, and Austria have all begun research on armored fighting vehicles.
Fortunately for Britain and France, Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire are short of oil. If they want to increase their research on armored fighting vehicles, then they will have to rely on the oil supply from the Russian Empire.
Or Romania.
This——
George suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu.
Before the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War, George cut off the supply of resources to Japan. Japan had to purchase high-quality coal from the United Kingdom for use in warships at high prices, and the cost greatly increased.
George controlled the iron ore and directly starved Yawata Steel to death. Until the end of the war, Japan did not make steel.
Now it was the turn of Germany and Austria-Hungary.
The Germans started early in automobiles, but at the St. Petersburg World Expo, Germany's fledgling automobile industry suffered a devastating blow from Amur Automobiles and failed to recover.
The Germans still have some technology.
Although German cars are seriously lagging behind in performance compared to Amur, at least they have solved the existing problems and are still much better than Japan.
Now the relationship between Germany and the Russian Empire is not bad, and oil can be imported from the Russian Empire. The First Lady is Germany's main oil supplier.
Once the war breaks out, the Russian Empire will definitely stop selling oil to Germany. By then, the Russian Empire will be able to easily determine the direction of Germany's attack.
There is no need to judge.
Similar to World War II in another time and space, if Germany equipped a large number of armored fighting vehicles, it would have to choose the Kingdom of Romania as the main direction of attack to obtain a stable oil supply.
Since Germany and the Kingdom of Romania are separated by the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the troops attacking the Kingdom of Romania must be dominated by the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
At that time, George can ask Nicholas to be the commander-in-chief of the Eastern Front, Dangdang, and teach the Austrians a lesson.
And the Ottomans.
Milyugin was right. St. Petersburg was indeed unwilling to lose the Kingdom of Romania as an ally.
At the end of September, news came from St. Petersburg that the Russian Empire was preparing to increase its garrison in the Kingdom of Romania.
This news immediately triggered strong opposition from Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire.
(End of this chapter)