Berlin

Wilhelm III looked at the Austrian credentials on the table and slapped it hard.

"The Austrians shamelessly asked to join us!"

Seeing that His Majesty the King was so angry, but the top of Prussia was mostly unmoved. There are even quite a few people who are speaking for Austria, and they are not ashamed to say it.

"Only the German Customs Union, which includes Austria, can be called a real German Customs Union."

These words made William III angry, how could he raise such a group of white-eyed wolves.

Of course, the white-eyed wolf will also look at the look, and when he sees that the situation is not good, he immediately changes his words.

"Brandenburg's destiny was to take over the legacy of the Holy Roman Empire, annex Austria, expel Hungary, and establish a truly German state."

Hearing this, William III's anger subsided slightly.

Clearly, it was Metternich's Jinyuan offensive that worked. After all, the interests of the country are not as good as the money in their own hands.

There is no shortage of greedy people in any country, and there is no shortage of loyal people.

Prussian Chancellor of the Exchequer Merz was one of those people, who, as the initiator and de facto administrator of the German Customs Union, was well aware of how much the Austrians had messed with in the middle.

First, they sat back and watched the emergence of three customs unions in Germany, and then, like the British, wandered outside the various alliance systems, and kept the three alliances in a three-legged situation, intending to make Prussia continue to decline in internal friction.

Fortunately, however, the Sino-German business alliance itself was not stable, and the issue of internal tariff harmonization was debated endlessly, and finally fell apart.

The South German Customs Union, on the other hand, was sandwiched between France and Austria, and the relatively small space made it difficult for them to make a difference.

Soon after, the Sino-German commercial alliance and the South German Customs Union collapsed one after another, but the Austrians did not give up, and successively co-opted the Saxony and South German states with the intention of forming their own customs union, but they were all in vain.

"Your Majesty, Austria must not be allowed to join, our industry is still too fragile. The Austrians have a first-mover advantage over us, and if the Austrians are allowed to enter the German Customs Union, we will be cut down endlessly. ”

"Then the Austrians will use the money they have plundered from us to buy our resources and sell them to us. One day, we will be their slaves like the Irish. ”

"Gentlemen, what are we going to do?" William III asked.

"Austria must be excluded, otherwise trade barriers can only be erected and trade protections can be carried out."

"Isn't the purpose of the German Customs Union to eliminate trade barriers and trade freely in the market?"

"That's on the premise that we can harvest others, not let others harvest them."

The man was silent, but the discussion was louder. Prime Minister Richard Wei knew how to convince this group of idiots who didn't understand economics, so he shouted loudly.

"Damn! The Austrians must be excluded! If we let Hungarian grain in, who will sell our grain. “

This remark was immediately echoed by a Junker landlord.

What they don't know is that at this moment, there is a group of people like them in Hungary.

Budapest

"Damn! Damn it! The emperor is actually going to join the German Customs Union, what should we Hungary do. ”

"What's so bad about this, I can buy things cheaper in the future, I always buy Austrian goods, I'm tired of it. This time I went shopping in Berlin, and I heard that the prostitutes there were serious. ”

"Serious nonsense! Let the grain of Prussia come in, and to whom will our grain be sold! ”

The Hungarian landlords immediately responded, "Prussian grain must not be allowed to enter Hungary!" If the Emperor does not accept our plea, we will go to Vienna! The roar shook the sky.

Prince Erthhazy just silently watched the frantic crowd in a corner, although he also liked to say that, but he knew very well that Hungary at this time could not defeat Austria, otherwise it would not have been as simple as shouting slogans.

And he misses his palace in Vienna, which is centuries ahead of Budapest in terms of entertainment.

Hanover.

"What? The Austrians actually wanted to join the German Customs Union? What are they thinking! Aren't you afraid of the outflow of gold? ”

"If Austria can join, so can we." Said a minister.

"Are you an idiot? Are those Germans rich? Let's exchange real money for the waste paper of the Austrians? Our gold must not be wasted on meaningless competition. ”

At that time, the signs of an economic crisis in Britain had already appeared, and there was a serious shortage of precious metals. The policy adopted by the British government is to frantically raise trade barriers to prevent the outflow of precious metals in order to deal with a possible run.

The mainstream European countries followed suit, but Austria's own debt was already above dangerous levels, and there was no point in stockpiling precious metals, but this stable but unpayable paper money seemed safer.

Saxony, Dresden.

"The Austrians intend to join the German Customs Union?"

"Yes, the Prussians demanded that we oppose Austria, refusing Austria's request to join the German Customs Union."

"Why refuse? Wouldn't it be nice to let the Austrians come in and fight the Prussians? We in Saxony are the center of Germany, and neither the Austrians nor the Prussians can do without us. Wouldn't it be beautiful to let the tigers and wolves fight, and we wait for the opportunity to meet the source? ”

"Your Majesty, wise."

Paris, France.

Marshal Soul, who is old, has completely lost the appearance of a soldier, and he has been in a state of half-sleep.

"That's it, the Austrians intend to join the Customs Union initiated by the Prussians. The Prussians did not seem to intend to let them join, and there was some internal mess among the Austrians. I think we should immediately organize a Franco-Belgian alliance against the Austrians. Kizo finished his debriefing and spoke his mind.

"Well, what about me, I'm old. His Majesty trusts me and trusts you. I know you're very capable, and I trust you. All you have to do is have a clear conscience and be worthy of His Majesty the King and worthy of God. "The old marshal just wanted to retire peacefully, so he pushed it clean.

"Thank you, for your trust, I will do my best to live up to the high expectations of Your Majesty and you." Guizo was also used to the non-stick pan in Sirte, and he didn't have time to play Tai Chi with the old man.

Franco-Belgian alliance, which has always been Guizot's dream. At this time, Belgium was the first country to industrialize on the entire European continent, although it had just become independent. The industrial strength is extremely strong, and the quality of the people is very high.

Moreover, Belgium is in a unique position, and the inclusion of Belgium in France's sphere of influence can definitely enhance France's strength and influence. It could go a step further and include the entire lowlands in France.

Guizo's idea is very good, the Franco-Belgian alliance can indeed attack, retreat and defend, and can also enhance commercial competitiveness. But he ignored one of the most important issues, and that was the British.

There's a joke that Belgians can fly kites to England. The Low Countries are definitely the reverse scales of the British. The British would not allow any of the great powers to get their hands on the Low Countries. The British had always feared that one country would occupy the lowlands and use the lowlands as a springboard to attack Britain itself.

For Austria's accession to the German Customs Union, the same threat of force as last time may not work. I don't know what kind of wind the emperor of the Austrian Empire smoked, and actually said that he wanted to go to war.

The Emperor of Austria could have convulsions, because the family was not normal in the first place. But he and France couldn't afford to take the risk.

But those traitors in Austria can be put to good use. Coupled with the fact that the Prussians would not be willing to raise their own pigs, the Austrians cut off their beards.

To be sure, although France did not look down on Austria's industrial prowess, the Austrians and Prussians had a good chance of winning.

The Prussians also knew this, and it was much easier to do so. Guizot already had a plan to unite the anti-Austrian forces in Austria and within the German Customs Union.

Find a way to refuse Austria to join the German Customs Union, and when the Austrians enter the German Customs Union, it will no longer be a problem for Austria.

It was an internal problem for Germany, and although France had never given up its ambitions in the Rhine region, it was not yet able to support its ambitions.