Chapter 235 Ernst wants to cause trouble but doesn’t want to contribute
Just when the two brothers Franz and Ferdinand were "cheering each other, brother and brother," they didn't know what kind of luck Franz had gotten today, but another uninvited guest came to the door.
"Your Majesty, Grand Duke, His Highness Ernst is here again." The maid reported.
Normally, servants and guards would let Ernst go when they saw him. Because Ernst came to Schönbrunn Palace so frequently, Franz gave him this privilege. However, Ferdinand was here today, so the servant People choose to inform them first.
"Hmm!" Franz and Ferdinand glanced at each other at the same time. What a coincidence today. Ferdinand, Ernst's future father-in-law, had never met Ernst before, but Princess Charlotte (Card) Queen Lotta) met Ernst once, but Princess Charlotte, who was eager to reunite with Ferdinand, did not communicate much with Ernst.
"Let him in!" Franz asked his brother.
Franz, who had malicious intentions, wanted to see Ernst's reaction when he saw Ferdinand. The slightly raised corners of his mouth betrayed his inner thoughts.
"Hmph! Call that boy in, I want to see if his quality is worthy of my Karina."
Franz waved his hand, and the servant immediately understood: "Yes, Your Majesty!"
…
Why is today different from the past? Ernst stood waiting outside the palace gate. In the past, he could enter easily, but now he was stopped. Could it be that Franz had something important to do or was meeting some important person? I haven’t heard of any big names coming to Austria!
The more he thought about it, the more he felt uneasy. Ernst felt as if he had become a prey. What was going on? I have never had this sense of crisis since I awakened my past life memories.
Intuition told Ernst, otherwise it would be better to go back today! Anyway, what I came to talk about was not important, and it would be the same if I came back tomorrow. I was about to retreat and run away, when the servant had already arrived.
"Your Highness Ernst, Your Majesty invites you to come over."
"okay!"
Ernst complied.
"By the way, is there someone special coming to the court today?"
"There shouldn't be any special people!" the servant replied, how could there be any special people! This is Schönbrunn Palace, so Ferdinand doesn’t count. After all, the Archduke of Austria is still a member of the royal family and lived here before, so it definitely doesn’t count! This is how the servant understood it.
"That's good, I'll go in first." Ernst said, then walked inside on his own.
…
As soon as he stepped into the door with his left foot, Ernst immediately felt two pairs of eyes staring at him. He looked closely and saw that there was an extra person next to the sofa where Franz was usually alone.
Ernst looked at it, but Ferdinand observed Ernst carefully.
"I'm going!" Ernst's heart felt cold, and the temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees in an instant. "Isn't this Archduke Ferdinand! Why is he here?"
Ernst recognized his father-in-law at a glance. In fact, Ernst had known Ferdinand in his previous life. After all, the picture of Ferdinand lying on the coffin board was so impressive.
(Picture, readers who are less courageous should not click on it to view it.)
Anyone who knows a little bit about the history of Mexico cannot avoid Maximiliano I anyway. After all, if there is a ranking of the foreign monarchs who were executed in modern times, Charles I of England, Louis XVI of France, and Nicholas II of Tsarist Russia are the three. After this, Maximiliano I will definitely be on the list.
Ever since Ernst got engaged to Princess Karina, he naturally paid more attention to Ferdinand and had seen several photos and portraits.
Although Ferdinand shaved his beard for some unknown reason, Ernst recognized him at first glance. Ferdinand without a beard looked energetic and clean. This habit was actually developed by Ferdinand in East Africa. Yes, East African immigrants originally had fewer beards (the population as a whole is relatively young), so Ernst fixed them all up when they immigrated to East Africa. East Africans have to trim their hair and beards once a month. After all, failure to pay attention to hygiene can really lead to death in East Africa. And the Hechingen Daily Necessities Company happens to produce razors and hair clippers, and the cost is very low, so it is promoted Very thorough.
After living in East Africa for so long, Ferdinand learned to shave his beard like the East Africans, and it was indeed very convenient in East Africa. He lived in Mombasa, Dar es Salaam and now Bagamoyo. The temperature is relatively high, above 30 degrees most of the time. Think about it on such a hot day, the thick hair and beard plus the sweat are really sloppy.
"Are you Ernst?" Ferdinand spoke first after looking carefully.
"Yes, father-in-law." Ernst immediately became well-behaved and alert.
Franz, on the other hand, covered his mouth and snickered unkindly. Although he was stroking his beard, this was the first time he saw Ernst like this.
"You are good at clinging, but Karina hasn't married that brat yet!" Ferdinand said.
"Here, father-in-law, if one family doesn't speak the same language, there are still three years left, and then we will be completely one family." Although Ernst had lived two lifetimes, this was the first time he met his father-in-law, so he was a little unskilled. 's response.
The two people then started a question-type conversation, but Franz on the side was a little embarrassed.
…
"By the way, I went to the shipyard to see the few small gunboats you purchased. The performance is not bad, but I think you should also build a shipyard in East Africa. Let alone the lack of money, just build some small fishing boats first. Anyway, next door The Sultanate of Zanzibar has ready-made ones. You can just copy its shipyard. The technology may not be as good as the European shipyards, but it is still possible to fish along the coast. It is also convenient to cultivate a group of fishermen with good water skills, and the navy will expand in the future. It’s also more convenient.” Ferdinand suggested.
In addition to considering the naval personnel, this plan is also highly feasible. It doesn't even cost money. Just allocate some immigrants to the Sultanate of Zanzibar to learn the skills. Anyway, the Zanzibar people don't Dare to have opinions.
"I'll arrange it, but why don't you propose it to my father while you're in East Africa?"
"I only remembered it recently. What are you doing here at Schönbrunn Palace?" Ferdinand asked.
"Of course I have something important to do!"
Franz finally spoke: "You won't come to ask for help again!"
"That's not enough. I'm here to deliver information this time."
"What information?" Franz asked curiously.
"This is probably not important information, or it is a result that I predicted." Ernst said: "The law enforcement should start soon."
"Don't you dare to lie?" Franz and Ferdinand were both excited, especially Franz who asked: "Did William I tell you?"
Ernst shook his head.
"My guess!"
"Guess!" the two of them said in disbelief. Is this the time to joke?
"But I'm not talking nonsense. This is the result of my feedback from German companies. Prussia is preparing for a war, and it is obvious who the relationship between Prussia and Austria is the most tense at the moment. It is impossible for it to fight Austria again!"
In fact, Ernst is talking nonsense. So far, the Prussian army has not mobilized at all, nor has it ordered large-scale supplies from Ernst's companies. The feedback from Ernst's companies is completely false.
"If it is true, it is indeed possible. If Prussia's military changes are to prepare for the unification of South Germany, it is indeed possible to encounter France." Ferdinand said.
"That's right! It's impossible for the French to let Prussia achieve its achievements so easily." They would regard themselves as a gift and bring Prussia to the status of a great power, Ernst added mentally after finishing his words.
"Are you here to remind us of Prussia's ambition to rule South Germany? In fact, the Austro-Hungarian Empire can't do anything now." Franz said.
When these words came out, Franz's tone became a little lower. The Austro-Hungarian Empire really couldn't do anything. If the Austro-Hungarian Empire took actual actions, Prussia would control the public opinion. It would be impossible to escape the charge of colluding with the French. , then all the people in the German region will belong to Prussia, and the Hungarian government in the Austro-Hungarian Empire will probably try its best to hold back, because it is beneficial for them to lose South Germany to Prussia, and they do not want to see Austria or Germany People are strengthened.
Really nothing can be done? Wrong, Ernst had something to do with Austria-Hungary right now.
"Actually, Your Majesty, the success or failure of the German region has nothing to do with the current Austro-Hungarian Empire. The real enemy of the empire is no longer Prussia! Your real enemy..." Ernst paused deliberately.
"France? Tsarist Russia? Are you here to be a lobbyist for William I?" Franz doubted. The surname Hohenzollern gave Franz reason to believe that William I encouraged Ernst to stop him from acting rashly. .
"You think too highly of me. There's no way William I would let me be a lobbyist. Besides, you don't know what my character is like. Besides, Your Majesty, you are too extreme!" Ernst pretended like this. I finally stopped pretending, and my old image at Schönbrunn Palace reappeared.
"What about Prussia? As you said, the Austro-Hungarian Empire can't do anything. Why should I be a lobbyist? Moreover, the real enemy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire is Prussia's ally, the soon-to-be-unified Kingdom of Italy."
"Italy?" Franz and Ferdinand were a little confused by Ernst's turn.
"Isn't it? Now Italy has completely got rid of the past state of being dominated by Austria and France. If Italy takes advantage of the war between Prussia and France to unify the Papal States, then the Austro-Hungarian Empire will really depend on the Italians in the Mediterranean. Your face is getting better!"
"Furthermore, Italy has unified the Papal States, and I have seen all its territorial demands. Southern Austria is good, there are many Italians."
Ernst finally realized that he just wanted to make Italy a fool. As for whether he could prevent Italy from annexing the Papal States in the future, it would depend on what the Austro-Hungarian Empire did. Hit three poles.