Chapter 1249 Masquerade
Vienna, Schönbrunn Palace.
A grand masked ball with the theme of changing seasons is being prepared, which makes Franz feel strange. After all, in theory, there are safety risks in doing so.
Moreover, masked balls always remind people of the bad practices of the old aristocracy. Although there is only a mask between them, it is possible to infinitely magnify the dirtiness and filthiness in some people's hearts.
Similarly, masked balls are often used for conspiracy activities. Austrians usually don't hold banquets like the French. They like to use masked balls as a cover.
Now the royal family of the Austrian Empire wants to do this, which makes people feel a little confused. Franz doesn't quite understand Mrs. Sophie's approach, and he doesn't think the latter's political sensitivity is so low.
Then there is only one truth, and concern leads to confusion.
Franz calculated that Maximilian is already 17 years old, and his sister Maria Anna is also 14 years old. Both of them are old enough to talk about marriage.
But Franz still frowned. It's too unreliable to get to know each other through a masked ball.
What Franz didn't know was that he was an unreliable man in the eyes of Madame Sophie, and in Madame Sophie's stereotype, unreliable men always like to find love in such unreliable occasions.
However, Madame Sophie never expected that Franz would directly send a substitute for the masked ball she carefully planned.
In fact, Franz had no interest in this, and because it was a masked ball, the risk of the substitute being exposed was minimized.
The young nobles in Vienna had a lot of fun, and it did create an opportunity for some people to fall in love freely.
But Madame Sophie was very unhappy. Franz sent a substitute, and the second son Maximilian was even more dismissive of such things. Maria Anna was her only daughter and was reluctant to leave, so she didn't attend.
As for the youngest son Victor, he was only 7 years old this year and was a little shy. On the contrary, Ludwig, who was already engaged, let himself go after putting on the mask.
Madame Sophie sighed, it seems that everything needs to be considered in the long run.
Franz did not consider changing his marriage partner. In fact, marriage with Russia is the most favorable choice for the Austrian Empire at present.
Franz has linked the two countries together in terms of politics, economy and military, so some people must think that blood ties are useless. After all, interest relations are the most stable relations.
This has to be said about the breadth and depth of Chinese. Is there a possibility that blood ties are also a kind of interest relationship, but it is not just a kind of interest relationship.
"Since ancient times, kings have been unlucky, and the most ruthless are the imperial families." However, Nicholas I was not a typical king. He did not even take the required courses for kings.
Blood ties may be meaningless to most kings, but not necessarily to Nicholas I.
And the so-called bond is not a rope that can tie people to death. It is enough to make decision makers hesitate or even reconsider.
If the interest relationship is really so strong, there will not be so many accidents in the world.
However, Franz is not in a hurry to get married, and the issue of heirs is not a problem in his eyes. After all, Franz still has a long life.
On the contrary, the Spanish affairs made him feel a little irritated. With the help of the former regent queen, Franz's third brother Ludwig and Princess Luisa Fernanda of Spain made an engagement.
The result of the initial discussion was that the wedding would be held in the Austrian Empire, and the Habsburg family did not need the dowry of the Bourbon family.
However, due to tradition and consideration for the face of the two families, the Austrian imperial government gave Princess Luisa Fernanda a gift of two million florins.
The purpose of this money was to let her buy a dowry for herself so as not to appear too shabby.
However, what Franz never expected was that the regent queen actually took the money away and ran to Cuba.
Although the Spanish civil war lost the support of Britain and France, the chickens fighting each other was only low-level, but it did not mean that it was not tragic.
It was common for both sides of the civil war to slaughter each other, and their wars refreshed the understanding of the bottom line of human beings again and again.
Regent Queen Maria Christina was not a military genius, nor a calculating politician.
To put it bluntly, she was just a small figure who appeared on the historical stage with a special identity in a special period.
Maria Christina hated her husband, her two daughters born to him, and she hated war even more.
So Maria Christina fled to Cuba with her lover. Two million florins may not be a huge sum of money in Europe, but she is the god of wealth in Cuba!
This kind of life of luxury and debauchery is what she wants
But when Maria Christina left, Austria and Spain were dumbfounded.
The Austrian Imperial Government had already paid the money, but the Spanish government did not receive it. Senior government officials headed by Prince Schwarzenberg firmly opposed giving gifts to Spain again.
As for the reason.
"They don't deserve it!"
Prince Schwarzenberg roared angrily.
"Your Majesty! The Spanish are too much! This is a humiliation to our country! I suggest that the navy be sent immediately to occupy Cuba and arrest the former Spanish regent queen Maria Christina!"
"That's right, Your Majesty! We should seize Cuba as compensation for the gift money. Cuba's sugar and tobacco are exactly what our country needs. If we can have Cuba as a colony, we can get rid of our dependence on Mexican sugar and tobacco."
There has always been a group of people in the Austrian Empire who are very distrustful of the Mexican government. They are eager to get rid of their dependence on Mexican sugar and tobacco.
With the current consumption scale of Austrians, the sugar beets and tobacco produced by Austria itself are far from enough to fill the gap in Mexican goods.
"Yes! Cuba has developed for hundreds of years in the hands of the Spaniards. It can make huge profits without a lot of investment. Our Austrian Empire needs such a colony."
In fact, the official did not say it clearly. In fact, most of the colonies of the Austrian Empire are in a loss or semi-loss state except for a few that are supported by gold minerals.
The initial investment in the colony is huge, and if it is not well developed, the maintenance cost is even more amazing, so the speed of colonization in this era is so slow.
Imagine if the colony is really as profitable as the bull market, then why can't Franz find colonists?
"Some people do business that gets them killed, but no one cares about business that makes them lose money."
Franz's huge annual investment in the colonies has long caused dissatisfaction among some officials, but almost no one dares to show it.
If this money is used in Austria, it is hard to know how many factories, railways and roads can be built. How much benefit can they get from it?