Paris, France.

The French Ministry of Transport, stimulated by the delegates of the small German states at the recent meeting on the aftermath of the events in Lorraine, Alsace, proposed a package of radical reforms in order to get back on the ground.

This includes a series of railway construction works and the establishment of new train studies and renovation projects.

On the one hand, a group of officials are blushing over the right to build and operate railways by interest groups behind them, and on the other hand, a large number of people have jumped out against the so-called train research center.

The latter was not willing to see money wasted on railroad and train improvements, since importing technology from Britain across the Channel cost less than a tenth of what it would have been developed in-house.

If there are ready-made fruits that can be enjoyed at a low price, why should you reopen a path that others have already walked at a high price? What's the point?

While the Minister of Transport was engaged in a war of words with a group of opponents, someone jumped out to accuse the academicians of the French Academy of Sciences for taking bribes and deliberately slowing down the research process.

The nature of the question changed from whether or not to establish a train research project to whether the Minister of Transport accepted bribes.

Of course, in all fairness, people are creatures, regardless of their origin and skin color, they can always find faults in them.

After a series of inquiries, under the brainstorming of all the officials, the "sinister intentions" of the Minister of Communications were finally discovered.

The minister's distant relative, a mechanical engineer, had just been unemployed, so it can be concluded from his actions that this was entirely a false public interest.

As a result, the Minister of Transport had to resign, and the plan to set up the French train research center was declared bankrupt.

The winner of this feast of railway engineering projects was James Mayer Rothschild, of course, for only one reason - he had money.

Even if the Rothschild family does not want to participate in the division of the French railway, in the end the family will still get this opportunity, which is the charm of capital.

The second biggest winner was the bureaucratic financiers, the so-called Orleanists, who didn't get a lot of routes, but they were all prime roads.

The remaining sections of the road were openly divided by the public.

However, the French soon realized that they lacked funds, even for James Mayer Rothschild.

And it just so happened that Louis Philippe announced the establishment of the Texas Railroad Company to the outside world, openly backstabbing his subjects and supporters.

Although the Texas Railroad will be more expensive, it is not difficult to build on the plains, and the overall return is the highest because of the huge potential of the North American colonies.

However, the problem is that although the royal family of Orleans is rich, he may not be able to afford such a huge construction cost alone, unless their Yali King intends to sell his family's real estate.

At the same time when the news was spread by the Parisian financial circles, His Majesty's approach was once again shocking, and it was true that he intended to use public funds to build the railroad and then sit back and enjoy it himself.

Louis Philippe's move was not unexpected, after all, His Majesty the King really had nothing to do with cleverness.

Austria was also involved in the French railway frenzy this time, but Franz used someone else's vest.

As for the typical remote, short distance of the contracted railways, Franz did not fancy these lines because he knew about their future development and found business opportunities in them.

He knew very well that the Spring of Nations had begun with the collapse of the King of Orleans, so these lines had no value at all, let alone recovered their costs.

But the routes he contracted had one thing in common, that is, they were connected to the Franco-Sassard (French, Sardinian) border.

Franz's aim could not have been simpler: to delay the French advance into Italy. Due to the narrow coastline of Italy, the French could easily open up sea routes to the Apennine Peninsula.

But that's another story, and the seas are full of uncertainty, a factor that could be fatal when the two great powers play a game.

The British did something similar, with Lionel Rothschild having secret talks with his uncle, and the two finalized the ownership of several important railways between cups and glasses, and the debate in the French parliament was merely a show.

Robert Peel even approved a special payment in order to help the French. It's just that what he didn't expect was that before these railways were completed, the July Dynasty would be gone.

Far away St. Petersburg heard the rumors that the partition was already in full swing, and by the time their apostles arrived in Paris, everything had already been settled, and they were just enjoying a trip at public expense.

Of course, this was actually a rehearsal of a visit that Tsar Nicholas I was planning, and he intended to surprise the world.

Then Queen Victoria in Windsor Castle was frightened.

Victoria's lady-in-waiting informed her of the Tsar's imminent visit on April 1, 1845, and the latter did not take it seriously, but dismissed it as a clumsy joke.

At this time, the 26-year-old Victoria was at the age of a wolf, and she was ready to contribute more heirs to the British Empire.

Naturally, this required the help of Prince Albert, but the latter seemed a little overwhelmed, after all, it was enough for him to deal with the open and secret rivalry between the Whigs and the Tories, as well as the treacherous international situation.

I had to deal with four children when I went home, and I finally drove away the group of little devils, and the "big demon king" found me again.

Victoria is an attentive woman who keeps an eye on her husband's every move.

Although Prince Albert did not cheat, the queen did not accept the loss of interest in himself anyway.

So she began to look for ways to change that, from gorgeous clothes and jewelry, to expensive perfumes, and even playing polo with Albert.

After all these attempts, the sense of alienation between the two has not eased, especially when playing polo, when Prince Albert unabashedly criticizes his pig teammates for their behavior.

You must know that this prince is known for his good-tempered and good man's image, and he rarely behaves rudely or inappropriately with the law, whether in the outside world or in private, let alone does that to women.

However, playing polo with Victoria was nothing short of torture, and Prince Albert had broken all the way to see the goal close at hand.

At this time, the former suddenly shouted to let the latter wait, this is nothing, the female knight is weaker and has not shot much at the goal, so it is understandable to come and experience it.

But Victoria wasn't here to attack, she just wanted to be romantic. Originally, this kind of thing was not uncommon on the polo field, and the British in this era were still very gentlemanly, especially when the other party was the queen and the princess.

It's just that Victoria thinks completely differently from Albert, the former doesn't want to end it all at once, and is ready to kiss for a while.

This made the people present very embarrassed, and after a long time, some young people with strong blood couldn't help but take the opportunity to snatch the polo.

After repeated attempts at a close exchange, the two sides almost fell off their horses, which made Albert unable to bear to accuse Her Majesty of the unreasonable trouble.

Prince Albert was as irascible as a schoolboy who had lost ten qualifying matches in a row, and he was an all-round critique of Queen Victoria's technique, behavior, and even character.

And the latter obviously didn't think that he was at fault, but felt that he had condescended to be in order to get closer to the relationship between husband and wife, and he was so aggrieved that he yelled.

"You are ruthless! You are cold! You are unreasonable! ”

"I'm ruthless!? I'm cold!? I'm unreasonable!? ”

"That's right! It's ruthless! You are cold! You are unreasonable! ”

"Then you're not ruthless!?not ruthless!?not unreasonable!?"

"Where am I ruthless!? Where is the coldness!? Where is it unreasonable!? ”

"Where are you not ruthless!? Where are you not ruthless!? Where is it not unreasonable!? ”

"No matter how ruthless I am! No matter how ruthless! No matter how unreasonable you are, you can't be more ruthless than you! Colder! Even more unreasonable! ”

"At least when I play polo defense, I don't hold hands and form a human wall with people!"

"your polo! your defense! ”

Victoria angrily whipped her horsewhip and left the court, the discord between the queen and her husband was not a trivial matter, and the nobles present were naturally not in the mood to play.

After all, the queen is gone, and she still plays ball!

Victoria rode back to her castle in a huff, but after thinking about it, she felt as if she was wrong, especially when she was out of shape in public.

But soon her mind returned to her husband, after all, the old guys in the government didn't seem to like her being too active in politics.

At this time, Victoria suddenly remembered the medicine that the Indian merchant named Villawise had paid tribute to.

On the other hand, Prince Albert calmed down before Victoria, after all, he was much more politically sensitive.

So Prince Albert lied that everything was just an April Fool's joke.

He recognized his own problems and perhaps should do his duty as a husband.

Prince Albert returned to Windsor Castle with a slightly apologetic mood, and Victoria had everything ready.

The two had dinner as usual and drank some "wine", after which Prince Albert dismissed the servants.

"I'm sorry for my gaffe today, but I just wanted to tell you that your safety and health are more important than my life"

The misunderstanding between the two was quickly resolved, and then they complained to each other, peeled off the cocoon, and dried firewood

Just as the two were at the critical moment, there was a knock on the door of the room.

"Tsar Nicholas I of Russia has arrived, please Your Majesty."

Before the maid could finish her sentence, she was rudely interrupted by Victoria.

"Mary! Besides, your nasty joke will make you a horse boy tomorrow! ”

Mary, the maid, said, "Your Majesty, don't do this! But Nicholas I really came, don't believe you look out the window. ”

Victoria and Albert slowly moved to the window, and through the fold they saw that a mission had sailed into Windsor Castle.

"Oh my God!"

The two hurriedly got dressed, but the formal clothes of this era are not so easy to wear. Victoria had to pull her maid Mary into the room to help, and the latter and Prince Albert looked embarrassed when they looked at each other, but disappeared in a flash.

The queen was not at all mentally prepared for the sudden visit of the Russian tsar without warning, after all, this time Nikolai did not come for his own government, but intended to establish a personal relationship between the monarchs.

The Tsar paid a lot of attention to this, but Prime Minister Robert Peel didn't care at all, after all, he hated the Queen, and the Queen hated him, and he was only responsible to the Parliamentarians in Westminster.

In fact, Nicholas I was supposed to visit England in 1844, but that trip did not take place because Russia chose to side with Austria in the Luxembourg crisis.

This time the Tsar was still uninvited, which is why Victoria was so caught off guard.

Nicholas I's brother, Alexander I, was Queen Victoria's godfather, so the two were not too strange.

It's just that this kind of diplomatic behavior makes Victoria very uncomfortable, after all, she is not a traditional monarch.

Prince Albert, on the other hand, had little respect for the towering Tsar, for he felt that his rule lacked artistry, and that he did not like his reputation for cruelty.

What Prince Albert looked down on the most was the seemingly polite attitude of Nicholas I at this time, "bullying the weak and fearing the hard" This is the former's evaluation of the latter.

Although Tsar Nicholas I had been emphasizing the power of the Tsar and was known for being tough, Russia had avoided a head-on disagreement with Britain over the years, and had even taken refuge behind Austria, a more feudal and backward country.

Nicholas I also didn't like this "little man" who was staring at him all the time, especially the latter's lower body was obviously a little uncomfortable, and the former despised Long Yangjun to the extreme.

(Prince Albert is 178cm tall, and there are two historical records of Nicholas I's height, one is 190cm and the other is 206cm. ）

After a brief embarrassment, the Tsar spoke his mind.

"Osman is already a dead man, but he is not dead, he should be dead, and we should make sure he does. I think you understand what I mean, Your Majesty. ”

Victoria was amazed by the way the other side was diplomatic, whether it was studying in Germany or what she had seen and heard in England, and it was the first time she had experienced it.

But she quickly reacted and responded.

"I'm sorry, I don't quite understand what you mean, and I think you're looking for the wrong person. You should talk to those politicians in our country, not me, my dear Tsarist Majesty. ”

Nicholas I: "No! I insisted on talking to God's chosen people, not the moths who had usurped the king's power. As long as Britain and Russia join forces, the Ottomans will be ours. Your exploits will be comparable to that of Queen Elizabeth I."

"Ahem." Prince Albert interrupted Nicholas I.

"I don't think so, the greatness of the British Empire lies in the fact that it has found a balance between democracy and autocracy. It is a better reflection of public opinion and avoids abuses of power. And we don't want to upset that balance at this point."

Hearing this, Nicholas I immediately became very pale, he did not want democracy, let alone listen to the so-called "bullshit" public opinion.

"That's your answer?"

Prince Albert also had a tough attitude: "No! We don't have that power, so please go and talk to the gentlemen in the cabinet! ”

(End of chapter)