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"Distinguished Ambassador, I would like to know why the amount of franc loans has decreased this year? And the interest rate rose by another 0.5 percentage points. This is not in line with what we agreed on last year. "Russian Chancellor of Finance Witte met with the French ambassador to Russia, Jean Witte. The Count of Sánchez raised his own doubts.

"Don't you really know why? Honorable Chancellor of the Exchequer, the ruler of the ruble, Mr. Witte? Count Sanchez smiled and poured a glass of wine for Witte and brought it to the other party.

"This is a matter for the Navy, and it doesn't have much to do with us. Moreover, the two sides were only normal trade relations, and the Germans bought our grain, while we bought their warships, which was a means of balancing the trade between the two sides. This is not to blame, and we still order shipbuilding equipment from your country. Witt thought for a moment and said.

"It is true that this matter has little to do with Your Excellency, but the French Government considers it very intolerable for your country to use our loans to buy weapons from the enemies of France. If you use the mark, then we will not say a word, but in francs, our government is very upset. Count Sanchez said unceremoniously.

"If that's the case, you're meddling in Russia's internal affairs! His Majesty the Tsar will not accept such a threat! And what you do will inevitably invite the Empire to fight back and retaliate! As you said, we can get this loan from Germany to buy German warships, and if things do come to this point, then I think the things behind this are definitely not something you can afford, and I give you a chance to retract what you just said. Witte shot back without hesitation, who is Russia? Now the rollers of Europe! How could Russia succumb to the French threat when the confrontation between France and Germany was still at a disadvantage and depended on Russia?

"Germany is also our friend, and for the sake of Russia's strength, they have provided a large number of valuable materials and technology. So if you and the French government behind you are trying to change the status quo with a little money, you'd better give up this unrealistic idea. As if feeling that the momentum just now was not enough, Werther emphasized again.

"Would your government accept what the French government is asking for is not to offend the German government, but to have a force within Germany?" Sanchez quickly grasped a loophole in Werther's language and said.

"You mean Bavaria?" Werther quickly thought of who he was referring to by a certain force within Germany. The two Russian-class armored cruisers accounted for more than 70 percent of the arms deal between the two sides, and the rest was Russia's purchase of armor, rapid-fire guns, and semi-automatic rifles from Bavaria.

"Yes, of course, we are not demanding that the trade between your country and the Kingdom of Bavaria be cut off, as long as the two armored cruisers are abandoned." Sanchez said.

"That can't be! The Reich had already paid £400,000 for the two armored cruisers. If the contract is broken, then the funds will be all lost! Werther vetoed flatly.

"It's okay, we'll pay for it! An additional 300 million francs for a loan with half the interest we had previously agreed upon! And the order of your navy is handed over to us to do, and we sell it at a flat price! I guarantee that the profit point of the French shipyard will not exceed 5%! And this is only the first batch, if relations between our two countries can go further, the amount of such special loans will be increased, and the conditions will be relaxed! Sanchez threw out his killer move.

"Is it good for your country to do this? From my point of view, you're going to waste a lot of money. Werther's face changed slightly, and I have to say that he was really a little tempted by this plan, from the perspective of the Russian economy, the French loan and low interest rate are more useful than 400,000 pounds! 300 million francs! The interest alone is enough to make up for the £400,000. 1 pound is about 25 francs, and 300 million francs is about 12 million pounds. If the current interest rate is halved, it will be reduced by about 4%. Russia can still have a slight surplus.

And the point is that Russia is now undergoing a large-scale military expansion and infrastructure construction, which requires a lot of money to buy equipment, and this money will certainly be of great significance to Russia's plans when it is in place, such as the expansion of shipyards, the fortressing of the Far East and the Trans-Siberian Railway, of course, as Minister of Finance, this loan will also give Witte more say in front of the Tsar.

"Is it good? How do you say this? Mere pecuniary interests are no longer sufficient for France's needs, do you think, with your knowledge, that Russia will one day be able to repay all the franc loans? We give money to your country, and your country should be a friend of France! "Although Sanchez's statement is vague, the meaning is self-evident, French loans have become the backbone of the Russian economy, we control your purse, do you want to be close to Germany? Have you asked France?

"I think this is a much more threatening and provocative than what you just said! What you said today will surely come to naught if it gets out there." Werther was very unhappy, but he must admit that the French had indeed grasped the sore spot of Russia! The Russians are not afraid of war, and this great power has already proven itself in Napoleonic times that it cannot be crushed by military pressure. But as the ambassador said, the Russians did have a weakness in their economy, and in 1890 the Russians had borrowed billions of francs from France! If you want to say that you can pay it off, Werther himself doesn't believe it!

The aim of the French was to control Russia with money. Although Russia and France are not as close as they have historically been in this plane for some reasons, the financial dependence between the two sides is still very high. This seemingly harmful behavior of the French actually has a significant political effect. France must prevent the further approach of Russia and Germany. And this time it is aimed at Bavaria, not Germany, as a kingdom, although this plane has been mixed well, but Bavaria still does not have the ability to wrestle with the French! As for Prussia? There doesn't seem to be a possibility of taking over.

"It's hard, it's very hard." Werther wanted to do it, but he had to admit that it was stressful to do so. He was not willing to face the pressure of the Admiralty alone.

"You're not fighting alone! Your Foreign Minister Lobanov is also interested in this matter. And Rozhdestvensky in the Navy considered battleships more useful than large cruisers. The French ambassador said with a smile. The French know that it will be difficult to rely on a chancellor of the exchequer to get the nearly £2 million worth of business out of the way. Since France can afford even 300 million francs, then naturally there will be no shortage of bribes for high-ranking officials, and Witte is the third! And the reward for him was 500,000 francs!

The second more present~~~, ask for collection, ask for reward~~~!

[It's about to be 515, I hope to continue to hit the 515 red envelope list, and the red envelope rain will be able to give back to readers and promotional works on May 15. A piece is also love, and it must be better! 】