The War Court and Lap Pillow, Austria's Mandate of Heaven

Chapter 1603 Vienna (Part 1)
Early in the morning, the train station was already bustling with activity. The platform was crowded with people, some dragging suitcases, some dragging sacks, and all wearing a variety of clothes.

The quick-thinking porters rushed over the moment they saw the customer, amidst the sounds of train whistles, rumbling wheels, and shouts of people and neighing of horses.

Platform staff are working hard to cram passengers and cargo onto the train.
The only clean spot in the entire station is probably the small chapel next to the platform. Although the function of the shelter has been greatly reduced, people coming and going will still get a piece of bread for good luck.

Sunlight streamed through the huge glass windows onto the ground, and the massive steel frame easily reminded people of the legendary Crystal Palace.

In fact, the engineers of the Austrian Empire were imitating the Crystal Palace. Although they did not think the Crystal Palace was particularly outstanding, they believed that if other countries had it, their own country should have it too.

Although Franz thought it was pointless, the people liked it so much that he didn't say anything more.

In Vienna, bicycles have surpassed horse-drawn carriages as the most common mode of transportation in the city. Compared to expensive and cumbersome horse-drawn carriages, bicycles are cheaper and more flexible for navigating the city.

Newsboys, on the other hand, would choose cheaper scooters, carrying canvas bags as they weaved through the crowds, waving newly printed copies of the Vienna Daily.

"Extra! Extra! The Empire has conquered another colony."

"New fertilizers will change the world! The era when everyone can have enough to eat is coming!"

In fact, another major reason for the rapid development of bicycles was that they did not produce waste like horse-drawn carriages, which greatly improved Vienna's urban environment.

In an effort to promote bicycles, the Vienna City Council even implemented a horse manure tax. This tax virtually eliminated horse-drawn carriages used for work in the city center, leaving only the truly wealthy able to continue using this expensive mode of transport.

However, this also triggered a series of changes, such as the resurgence of rickshaws, and even spurred the development of an entire industry.

In fact, at that time, human labor was cheaper than horses in the transportation industry. Many more mechanics appeared on the roadside, since repairs at specialized shops were quite expensive.

The Austrian Empire's bicycle company also timely expanded its business to selling spare parts, which in a sense was a win-win situation.

The three-wheeled vehicle and the backward-riding donkey almost completely replaced the horse-drawn carriage in the city for freight transport. The Austrians even invented a super-large freight bicycle driven by multiple people.

Especially in the city, the backward-riding donkey is practically a mobile cargo container, with a large number of vendors standing next to their donkeys and hawking their wares along the street.

People no longer need to adhere to the fixed markets of the past. Of course, spontaneously formed markets can easily cause traffic congestion and infringe on the interests of those market vendors.

Franz wasn't very interested in Legalism, so he refrained from imposing severe punishments for minor offenses, at least not for the survival of ordinary people.

Of course, it's impossible to avoid penalties, so new legislation is constantly being improved. Finding a balance is a problem for Vienna government officials to worry about.

Unsurprisingly, street racing gangs have also emerged in Vienna. In fact, similar organizations and individuals have always existed, but in the past they raced horse-drawn carriages or warhorses, which would inevitably cause civilian casualties if they were not careful.

Now that bicycles have been replaced with those that have less impact, the number of people who die in traffic accidents has decreased significantly.

At least Franz never heard of any young nobleman or local tyrant daring to trample Vienna on horseback again. The city was constantly expanding, its population was increasing, the old city walls were demolished, parts of the moat were filled in, and no one criticized the straight and wide avenues for wasting land anymore; instead, they sang praises for Franz.

With the widespread adoption of reinforced concrete structures, buildings throughout the city are becoming increasingly taller. The Imperial Diet, City Hall, and Senate have also been renovated, but the overall Baroque style remains largely intact.

Whether you're a stranger or a traveler returning to Vienna, you'll experience a wonderful feeling.

The proliferation of bicycles also spurred the development of a new component: the bicycle bell. You could always hear that melodious bell ringing on the streets, though the people ringing it weren't musicians who loved art; they were just a group of people in a hurry.

Of course, there would also be a few fashionable or unconventional women riding bicycles on the street, which would attract the attention of those around them, and the priests would call it "immoral".

Where there is demand, there is business; savvy businessmen have already launched women's bicycles.

Meanwhile, because the traditional crinoline skirt was clearly unsuitable, the crinoline skirt was abandoned before it even gained traction in the Austrian Empire.

Women in the Austrian Empire wore increasingly shorter skirts, at least among commoners and the middle class, with some even going so far as to wear trousers in public.

As more and more cafes and beer halls appeared on the streets of Vienna, the two sides looked down on each other. However, coffee drinkers usually looked down on beer drinkers more, and among beer drinkers, there were more working-class people and ordinary soldiers.

However, the emergence of numerous cafes and beer halls has intensified competition within the industry, forcing some businesses to start thinking creatively to explore more markets.

Gradually, some coffee shops started selling beer, while some beer halls started selling coffee.

It's not so strange that coffee shops sell coffee during the day and beer at night, and beer halls sell beer during the day and coffee at night. Some people have even started selling beer and coffee directly, and it's unclear whether drinking this stuff will make you sober or drunk.

Furthermore, although the Austrian Empire did not yet have teahouses at this time, tea began to appear as a beverage on Austrian tables.

However, some people see a group of men in suits and gold watches drinking coffee and enjoying desserts while quietly watching people come and go. It is such a classy thing.

However, right next to them, a group of people were drinking beer, singing songs, and shoveling roast chicken and cooked beans into their mouths.

It's such a killjoy
Such scenes are not uncommon in this era; at least for most Viennese, they are already quite commonplace.

People with such different social statuses, personalities, and interests are naturally unlikely to reach a consensus on politics, economics, technology, music, and fashion.

Therefore, the discussions are usually very intense, but these ideas also spark more inspiration through constant collision.

All sorts of strange and wonderful inventions and ingenious ideas keep emerging, making it hard for people to feel bored in this city.

In addition, various languages, including but not limited to German, Italian, Czech, Croatian, Transylvanian, and other languages ​​and dialects, are mixed together.