"My Count, what is the current financial situation of the Empire, can it support a large-scale, long-term war?" Nikolai turned his gaze to Werther, whom he did not like, and inquired. Nicholas, who had been Tsar for 10 years, had some experience in maintaining the war. Napoleon, who swept across Europe, once said that there are three elements of war, the first is money, the second is money, and the third is money; With enough financial backing, Russia, with a population of 140 million, can continue the war forever.

"Your Majesty, the French promised to provide us with a loan of 4 billion rubles (about 476 million pounds) for the war, of which the first 1 billion rubles have already arrived. Together with the funds we raised ourselves, it was enough to keep the war going for more than 3 years. After all, we cannot devote all our efforts to the Far East, and the consumption will naturally not be as drastic as the general mobilization of the Napoleonic Wars. With our current financial resources, it is still enough to cope with this kind of local war. But......," said Vitra in a long tone, with some apprehension, "the interest on the loans issued to us by the French was frighteningly high, with an annual interest rate of six percent, which was too high, even though they gave us most of the money to finance the war. As a result, our finances will be shackled in the future, which will be very detrimental to the development of the Russian Empire. ”

Nikolai waved his hand and said in an unobstructive tone: "As long as we can defeat Japan and plunder Manchuria, Korea, and Japan as our colonies, then we can completely solve the problem of repayment by collecting military expenses and war reparations from the occupied territories." Workers can also work longer hours at home, and issue government bonds and raise taxes to support the war, and anyone who dares to resist is a reactionary element with ill intentions, and the military, police, and gendarmerie can immediately arrest and deal with it. The empire has more than 1 million regular troops who cannot reach the Far East due to capacity problems, and it is just used to suppress the situation in the country, and I would like to see which one dares to come out and make trouble. ”

Seeing that Nikolai had put on such a brutal oppression and suppressed battle by force, Witt was greatly displeased, he paused, and then slowly spoke: "But now there is a trend of change in the country. According to the reports sent back by our informants planted in the people, after the defeat in the naval battle, the revolutionaries who claimed to be the saviors began to stir up again, and although they remained calm on the surface, their hearts of the Romanov dynasty remained undead, and a turbulent torrent began to flow under them. There is also information that these revolutionary party movements contain elements of the Japanese to a greater or lesser extent, and that the funds for the distribution of printed propaganda materials are all provided by Japan. It seems that the Japanese gave them material and financial assistance, at the cost of allowing them to start a riot to the best of their ability and stab us in the back. ”

Nikolai's expression gradually turned cold, and he said coldly: "I knew that the Dao would be like this." When the survival of the motherland and foreign enemies are at stake, instead of wanting to do their part for the country, these thieves have figured out with the enemy country, instigating riots everywhere, intending to overthrow the government and realize their ambitions by betraying the motherland. For this kind of traitor who does not have the slightest basic bottom line, we do not need to adopt any soft policy. Later, I will go to the next order, that the revolutionaries who fornicated with Japan should be hanged without trial, and that all their families should be sent to Eastern Siberia to build railways, so that they could be enslaved forever for all generations. ”

Witte Gong claims to be. Although he was not accustomed to the fact that the Tsar's behavior was always so violent and wanton, and he often carried out bloody suppression in the posture of slaughter, he was a staunch royalist, and he hated this kind of traitor who carried out revolutionary ways during the national crisis, and even accepted Japanese aid to start a rebellion. He did not oppose this repression, but accepted the Tsar's strategy.

"Well, my chief of staff, tell me that the Far Eastern Fleet is still capable of defeating the Japanese?" Nikolai turned his head to look at Rozhdestvensky, his gaze noticeably softer than when he looked at Werther. The 56-year-old lieutenant general made the Tsar earn enough face in front of the Kaiser's cousin because he made a great appearance in a gunnery exercise attended by the German and Russian emperors, and since then he has become Nikolai's favorite minister, and his official fortune has also risen step by step. At this moment, in the face of the tsar's expectant eyes, Rozhdestvensky wanted to nod his head with a clear conscience and said that he was trying to win the tsar's favor, but the victory or defeat of the war was not solved just because the tsar was happy. He swallowed a mouthful of saliva and said stubbornly: "It's a pity, Your Majesty, the Far East Fleet is no longer capable of defeating the Japanese Navy. ”

"As a result of this battle, six of our main battleships were sunk, the other four were also greatly wounded, and there was only one dry dock in the port of Dalini for large warships, which undoubtedly made our situation even more disadvantageous. According to preliminary estimates, it would take more than 3 months to repair even the two lightly damaged battleships, Borodino and the Emperor; The bridges of the Prince were completely destroyed, and the restoration of the Retvizan was even delayed until the end of this year. It only takes one month for Japan to return the three capital ships that were lightly damaged in the naval battle to the battlefield, and the repair of the rest of the ships will be completed within four months. By that time, Japan's two Kasuga-class armored cruisers had also initially formed their combat effectiveness, and we had to use two Borodino-class battleships and two mounted cruisers to fight against Japan's five battleships and eight mounted cruisers, and our strength would be at an absolute disadvantage. This was true even after the restoration of the Crown Prince and Retvizan. Rozhdestvensky said softly.

"In addition to this, the officers and men who operate the battleship are also a very important factor. The sailors on the four surviving battleships suffered many casualties in this fierce battle, and it was difficult to muster enough qualified men to keep the warships full; If new sailors are recruited as fillers, it will be difficult for the battleship to use its original combat effectiveness. The most important thing is that General Makarov is still seriously wounded......" Rozhdestvensky said this, seeing that the Tsar's face gradually became gloomy, and the fierce light flashed in his blue eyes, he wanted to choose someone to devour; A trace of cold sweat oozed from his forehead, and the already small voice died like a deflated ball.

"Phew!" Nikolai slammed another punch on the table, his heart blazing with rage. In the past few days, the news of the defeat of the Russian fleet has spread throughout Europe; Britain and Austria, which were at odds with Russia, did not care in the slightest about the feelings of his supreme tsar, and both the government radio and the civilian press issued extremely wanton sarcasm and ridicule of the defeat of the Russian fleet at the hands of Japan. For Nicholas II, who was blinded by the appearance of the country's power, and had always regarded himself as a monarch who surpassed Peter the Great and was determined to achieve it, this great contrast between ideals and reality and the ridicule of his long-cherished rivals undoubtedly pierced his chest like a sharp sword, making him smothered and resentful. Although the comments of France and Germany were relatively low-key, the factual reports were still difficult for Nikolai to accept. In his mind, Russia was the terrifying steamroller that terrified the whole of Europe, possessing the most powerful force in the world; No matter how you look at it, the elimination of Japan must be as simple as chopping melons and vegetables, and defeat is absolutely intolerable!

Nikolai's face was cloudy, his brows furrowed, his teeth clenched, and he didn't know what he was thinking. After a while, the anger on his face subsided, and he said lightly: "In other words, with the strength of the Imperial Far East Fleet alone, it is impossible to defeat the Japanese Navy?" ”

Rozhdestvensky breathed a sigh of relief in his heart and said respectfully: "That's true. Even if we repair all 4 damaged battleships and General Makarov recovers safely, the Imperial Far East Fleet can only take a defensive position, after all, the difference in the number of capital ships on both sides is too great. Speaking of this, an electric current suddenly flashed in his mind, and he couldn't help but be stunned: "Your Majesty, I seem to have heard you say 'alone' the Far East Fleet just now?" Do you want to ......"

Nikolai said categorically: "That's right, I will use the Baltic Fleet in Europe to go to the Far East to support!" The warship was built to make it fight for the interests of its country. Now that the situation in the Far East is unfavorable, how can they stay in the Baltic and bask in the sun all day and do nothing? The Black Sea Fleet is stuck inside the Dardanelles and cannot get out, so it can only hope for our Baltic Fleet. I intend to draw out the elite ships of the Baltic Fleet to form the Second Pacific Fleet and immediately rush to the Far Eastern front! ”

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Hearing the Tsar say such an earth-shattering death-defying act, Rao is Rozhdestvensky no matter how dare he disobey the Tsar, he can no longer remain silent at this moment. He took a deep breath, and then slowly spoke: "Your Majesty, why do you want the Baltic Fleet to go on an expedition? If we were to defeat the Japanese, we would be able to do it without an expedition. Although General Makarov was defeated in the naval battle, he brought more than 40,000 troops and 50,000 tons of supplies to the Far Eastern Army; As long as General Kuropatkin can use this force to stabilize the front, then when our supplies and reinforcements continue to flow to the Far East, the Japanese will not be able to resist our iron fist. By that time, we would still be able to occupy the whole of Manchuria and the Korean Peninsula. ”

Nikolai shook his head slightly, and his eyes revealed a resolute look of having made up his mind. Rozhdestvensky saw it in his eyes, and a cold current of despair welled up in his heart.