Holy Roman Empire

On April 15, 1882, the same day that an international conference was convened, several French Revolutionary Organizations jointly initiated an uprising, unanimously electing the socialist Blanqui as their leader.

The Rebel Army seized the police stations, captured the City Defense Military Arsenal, took control of the embassy district, and swept through the majority of Paris.

The flames of war reached the Palace of Versailles, and Napoleon IV, together with the Palace Guard, fled Paris overnight, remotely directing the still loyal troops to suppress the rebellion.

Upon receiving this news, Franz was completely shocked. When he came to, his first reaction was: When did the Revolutionary Party become so powerful? Is the French government made of paper?

No one could answer this question. Like previous Parisian revolutions, once the first shot was successful, it could quickly sweep across the entire city.

The Revolutionary Army occupied Paris, and that international conference became a joke.

During the day, they discussed how to contain the spread of revolutionary thought, and by night, they fell into the hands of the Revolutionary Party; it’s estimated that the delegates at the conference were all rather confused now.

Nonetheless, experienced through many trials, Franz quickly recovered and asked with concern, "How many troops can Napoleon IV still control, and does he have the capability to suppress the rebellion?"

"Uncertain!" Foreign Minister Weisenberg shook his head, giving a negative answer, and then explained, "Apart from the First, Second, Third, and Seventh Divisions, these few direct line units that can be confirmed to support the Emperor, the stance of other units is unclear for the time being.

The Parisian Revolution has just happened, and no one was prepared for it in advance. I estimate that many will observe the situation for now and will not make their stance clear just yet."

Disregarding the army units that did not make their stance clear, Napoleon IV still has an advantage in terms of the military forces he controls. The success of the Paris Revolution is due to the loyal troops not being in Paris.

The Seventh Division was suppressing the Lyon Rebellion, the First and Second Divisions were suppressing the Italian Independence Movement, and the Third Division was stationed outside of Paris.

On the same day the Parisian Revolution broke out, Gonesse, on the outskirts, also had a rebellion just five hours earlier, which drew out the main force of the Third Division.

The City Defense Army stationed in Paris, mostly composed of locals, sympathized with the revolution from the start. The failure of the City Defense Army to send troops to suppress the rebellion in time was also a key reason for the escalation of the rebellion.

This successful Paris Revolution was full of too many coincidences, almost as if someone was manipulating things behind the scenes, deliberately creating opportunities for the rebel forces.

It was said that only when the flames reached the Palace of Versailles did Napoleon IV receive news of the rebellion.

Someone capable of redeploying the troops and intercepting information must have significant power within the government and the army.

The French Revolutionary Party has not yet managed to infiltrate to this extent; those with the power and motive to do so are mostly the restoration forces of the Orleans and Bourbon Dynasties."

Franz rubbed his forehead and walked to the window to glance at the distant horizon, now he couldn’t help but feel anxious for Napoleon IV.

With the Revolutionary Party pillaging from without, former royal family forces holding back from within the government, and financial consortiums waiting to kick a man when he’s down.

In such a complicated situation, securing the throne was not going to be easy. It could be said to be the hottest throne in the world, without equal.

Prime Minister Felix: "It’s not so serious, the Revolutionary Party is also full of internal contradictions, and there are at least ten different factions controlling Paris. Within them, there are many forces from the Royalist Party looking for restoration, and they’ve only reluctantly united to overthrow the Bonaparte Dynasty.

As soon as they need to deal with political structure and benefit distribution, former allies will become enemies.

Perhaps, under pressure from the government forces, they will not turn on each other for the time being, but we cannot expect them to work closely together."

Napoleon IV has now left Paris and, with his father Napoleon III’s prestige and the financial resources at his disposal, it’s not difficult for him to win the military’s support.

Unless something unexpected happens, I think that within a month, the Paris Revolution will be over."

"Optimist vs. pessimist," from Franz’s personal perspective, he naturally hoped that Napoleon IV could suppress the rebellion quickly.

As for "manipulating behind the scenes, letting the Revolutionary Party and the government keep killing each other, stirring chaos in France," it’s just a thought, not at all feasible.

This is because of France’s unique national conditions, where the division of the three royal houses has weakened the power of the Protecting the king, causing the government to lose the capacity for prolonged warfare.

In other words: If Napoleon IV doesn’t suppress the rebellion quickly, the Bonaparte Dynasty is doomed.

It doesn’t matter if the dynasty changes; Franz doesn’t care which dynasty rules France, but it would be unacceptable if the French government fell into the hands of the Revolutionary Party.

With such a successful precedent, the European revolutionary tide might reach new heights. By that time, any thoughts of attacking the Ottoman would be futile, as there would be fires to put out everywhere.

After contemplating for a moment, Franz made a decision, "It would be best as such, but we still need to prepare for the worst.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs should communicate with both Britannia and Russia. I’m sure they too do not wish to see France lose control of the situation. When necessary, we can mobilize interventionist Allied Forces."

"Europe is what really matters," a fact Franz had always refused to acknowledge until now, but he had to admit that there was a lot of truth in it.

As a European country, no matter the strategic core, it is inevitable to be influenced by the European situation.

On the surface, it might seem best for Austria to send troops to unify the Germany Region during a civil unrest in France. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

However, not one politician in the Vienna Government has brought up this issue.

Clearly, things are not that simple. Currently, the Germany Region is also experiencing a revolutionary surge, wave after wave.

If troops were sent to unify the Germany Region now, it would be tantamount to drawing the revolutionary tide into Austria, and for a long time into the future, the Vienna Government would have to deal with internal strife and conflicts.

If one looks at the map, it’s clear that Austria’s strategic position is not at all favorable, surrounded by strong adversaries.

To the east lies greedy Mao Xiong, to the west is the formidable France, to the south the arch-enemy Ottoman Empire, and should they unify the Germany Region, to the north they would face the Nordic Federation and Britannia.

On the surface, it may appear that France is in turmoil and the Russians are still licking their wounds, which gives Austria a chance to take preemptive action to neutralize threats.

Yet France and Russia are both major powers; they cannot simply be annihilated in one go. If they don’t die, there would come a day for recovery. Driven by the power of hatred, all would eventually be drawn into a long-term confrontation.

Politics is not a simple game of distinguishing friends from enemies. There are no eternal friends or foes among nations; the relationship of "friend and foe" can be reversed at any time in the pursuit of interests.

If a country were to blindly wage war on its neighbors because of potential threats, a day when the whole world becomes an enemy would not be far off.

The Vienna Government’s choice of the Ottoman Empire as a breakthrough, besides strategic needs, is largely because they are weaker and can be dealt with swiftly and permanently.

...

Tuer, this ancient city, has once again become the political center of France following the Renaissance.

After fleeing Paris, Napoleon IV had rushed straight to Tuer, which had thus become the temporary office location for the French Empire Government.

Frankly speaking, the Bonaparte Dynasty is quite popular. From the older Napoleon who is the pride of France to the recent Napoleon III who is also a hero of France.

Although Napoleon IV hasn’t achieved any great feats, he also hasn’t committed any major wrongdoings, and the general populace doesn’t harbor much resentment toward him as emperor.

The incessant rebellions within the country are not an indication that everyone is eager to revolt. Many rebellions are provoked by the capitalists.

In the economic crisis, by kicking someone who is already down, hoarding goods, and driving up prices, they forced the lower classes into desperation, which led to revolts.

In the numerous uprisings that have taken place in France, many involved people rushing to seize food, and once the food was gone, the crowd dispersed.

The revolutionary fervor is intense only in Paris. In medium and small cities like Tuer, the enthusiasm for revolution amongst the people isn’t very high.

The best evidence of this is the warm welcome that Napoleon IV received from the residents of Tuer. Of course, this has something to do with the news of the Paris revolution not having reached there.

"Have the Fifth and Sixth Divisions set out?" Napoleon IV asked.

Army Minister Luskinia Hafiz answered, "The Fifth Division left yesterday morning, and the Sixth Division set out this morning. In at most three days, they will arrive in Paris to suppress the rebellion."

Hearing this news, Napoleon IV breathed a sigh of relief. The fact that the army was willing to follow orders meant that the situation hadn’t yet reached an uncontrollable point.