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

Chapter 1818 My Home in Alaska

Franz may not have many goods, but that doesn't mean others don't.

In reality, the gold mines in Alaska could not be kept secret. Although Alexander the Great did not discover them, immigrants sent by the Austrian Empire often found gold and exchanged it with Austrian officials for the opportunity to leave.

After all, money is useless in this freezing cold, and nobody likes this godforsaken place.

Austrian imperial inspectors soon discovered this clandestine transaction and, by tracing its origins, quickly located the gold mine.

To maintain secrecy, Austrian imperial oversight officials dealt with most of those who knew the truth.

According to the official's suggestion, the Austrian Empire could mine gold privately because the Russians were extremely thick-skinned and difficult to detect, and Alaska was simply too vast.

Even the Russians found that they could shift the blame to private companies or even to the outsourced foreign workers.

The Austrian Empire had the technology and could import enough cheap laborers from regions like Hawaii and Japan. In fact, in a barren place like Alaska, there was no need to worry about labor costs at all.

One of the officials spoke so eloquently that it seemed the Austrian Empire would have an endless stream of wealth simply by appointing him governor; clearly, he mistook Alaska for California.

However, Franz did not intend to take his advice. Instead, he chose to confront Russia directly, or more precisely, to confront Nicholas I, the ruler of Russia.

When Franz's letter reached Nicholas I, the latter was utterly shocked.

After all, Russia was desperately short of money at the time, and Nicholas I didn't quite understand Franz's actions.

"I never imagined there was so much gold in that ice cave."

Alexandra Feodorovna asked with some confusion.

"Isn't this a good thing?"

"Of course it's a good thing, but why would Franz do this? Why didn't our foolish son, or the previous governors, notice this?"
Or did they discover that we were lining our own pockets without telling us?

Nicholas I's expression gradually turned grim. Although Russia's tax revenue had undergone tremendous changes in recent years, fiscal revenue alone had reached 500 million silver rubles, almost double that of the same period in history.

But he felt poorer than before, always needing money, unable to afford anything, and his expenses were outrageously high. The most direct manifestation of this was the ever-increasing debt that was suffocating him.

Nicholas I was even considering declaring bankruptcy, as the debts seemed endless, but his idea was opposed by almost everyone.

If the country goes bankrupt, then all the prestige and credibility that Russia has accumulated over the past century will be lost.

Although not many countries believed in Russia at that time, if Nicholas I dared to do such a thing, Russia would have no hope at all.

Then came a sharp deterioration in relations with the Austrian Empire and the German Confederation.

At this time, Russia's main borrowing came from Austria and Germany, and Russia's bankruptcy would directly harm the interests of its allies.

Given the sheer size of the debt, it's difficult to say whether the Austrian Empire would organize its creditors to seize the assets by force.

Even the most radical anti-Austrian elements in Russia had to admit the power of the Austrian Empire. If a war had broken out between Russia and Austria at that time, it would have been an absolutely devastating war, and at least the Balkans and Poland would have been turned into a sea of ​​fire.

Moreover, this war is highly unpredictable. Britain, France, and other countries will definitely choose sides, and it could easily turn into a major war that sweeps across all of Europe.

Most importantly, these Russians realized that Russia might find itself in an embarrassing situation of isolation and helplessness.

Although everyone believed that a war between Russia and Austria was inevitable, those who had been the most vocal in their predictions were actually the most anxious when the time came. This was because they had genuinely understood the strength of their enemy, Austria, and were well aware that this was Russia's weakest moment. Nicholas I, on the other hand, was more concerned with his personal friendship with Franz, who was, after all, his son-in-law, and he didn't want to go too far.

However, Franz's mention of the gold mines this time made Nicholas I very unhappy. The previous governors, plus his good-for-nothing son, had really failed to discover the gold on the ground.
So many social elites are not as good as a group of natives sent from Austria.
Nicholas I did not believe it, and considering Russia's financial difficulties at the time, he had reason to suspect that his money had gone into other people's pockets.

Alexandra Feodorovna, seeing Nicholas I's unpredictable expression, quickly smoothed things over.

"That Alexander boy is probably just slacking off on the southern islands. Why would he go digging for gold on the ice fields?"

Nicholas I thought about it and realized it made sense. He couldn't even imagine Alexander the Great, that carefree guy, wrapped in a thick fur coat and braving the sub-zero winds to patrol the ice fields.

It's more likely he'd be using his military funds to indulge in wine and affairs with his mistress. After all, Nicholas I could only recall Alexander asking for money and being caught cheating, hiding at home.

Thinking of this, Nicholas I couldn't help but sigh, lamenting the bleak future of Russia.

"Ugh."

"Stop sighing! Alexander isn't as bad as you think, and Franz isn't as good as you think."

Don't forget that Russia still owes the Austrian Empire a debt.

Alexandra Feodorovna's words served as a reminder to Nicholas I.

"Darling, did I mention the suggestion Franz gave me before?"

Alexandra Feodorovna thought about the many letters that the father-in-law and son-in-law had exchanged, few of which were related to Alaska, but one of them was recently related to the colony.

"You mean the two companies are jointly developing the colony?"

“That’s right! We can get the Habsburg family to invest as well, and then give them a share. What do you think?”

Nicholas I said with some excitement.

"But what about the Austrian Empire's debts?"

Alexandra Feodorovna clearly couldn't quite understand Nicholas I's thought process.

"Giving the Austrian Imperial government two gold mines as a token gesture will suffice; Franz will agree."

Nicholas I firmly believed this.

Nicholas I wanted to move the capital to Constantinople, but faced numerous obstacles. The biggest problem was a lack of funds, and the gold mines of Alaska seemed like a godsend to him.

With these gold mines, Russia's fiscal revenue will surely reach new heights, and then the problems caused by lack of money, such as debt, capital relocation costs, and military spending, will be easily solved.

Nicholas I was well aware that the Austrian Empire had risen to prominence in recent years thanks to the gold mines in the Americas and Africa.

Now it's Russia's turn to be lucky, and he must seize this opportunity.

Nicholas I was troubled again. Although the gold mines were valuable, if the news got out, it would soon attract the covetous eyes of the great powers.

"It seems necessary to strengthen the defenses of Alaska. Perhaps we should consider larger-scale colonization; what if we can gain more?"

(End of this chapter)