I'm playing whack-a-mole in Siberia

Chapter 574: A Rare Sucker

Loyalty is not a concept in the Slavic character. Compared with George, Nicholas is less like a Russian and can be described as an honest and reliable young man.

What really brought the Balkan countries around the Russian Empire was faith and interests.

If Nicholas failed to realize this, the Russian Empire would be burdened with heavy moral shackles and completely kidnapped by a number of Balkan countries.

George had no intention of tearing up the alliance. Germany had not yet begun mobilization, so why was the Russian Empire in such a hurry?

To deal with the Austro-Hungarian Empire, there is no need for the Russian Empire to take action personally, and George will not use tactical blackmail. When the time comes to attack the Austro-Hungarian Empire, George will be able to make clear arrangements for the Austro-Hungarian Empire with the Balkan Alliance.

"But this will cause the Balkan countries to no longer trust us."

Nicholas was hesitant, and the Balkan League was the brainchild of the Tsar of the time.

"No, the Balkan countries will only question it when the Russian Empire's power declines to a level that is no longer trustworthy to them."

George was not a son who sold his father's land without feeling sorry for it, and Nicholas had not found the right way to rule the Balkans.

If the Balkan countries are used well, they will become important helpers of the Russian Empire.

Otherwise it would become a yoke on the Russian Empire.

Little Nicholas was still very sensible and did not openly oppose George at the meeting.

But after the generals left, little Nicholas finally couldn't hold back any longer.

"George, you just need to do your job and don't interfere with my work."

Young Nicholas reminded George that he was the Secretary of State for War.

"So you just messed up all this!"

George was angry and said, "If you don't have the skills, don't take on the job."

Little Nicholas was considered the most capable general of the imperial royal family besides George.

Funny thing is, little Nicholas never commanded any wars.

George could understand little Nicholas' feelings.

But it must be said that little Nicholas really doesn't have that ability.

In another time and space, after the outbreak of the World War, little Nicholas was the commander-in-chief of the Russian army.

So within a year after the outbreak of the world war, the Russian Empire lost 400 million people.

It was because of the poor performance of Nicholas the Younger that Nicholas could no longer tolerate it, so he dismissed Nicholas the Younger and took over as the commander-in-chief of the Russian army himself.

This not only failed to save the situation, but also caused Nicholas to completely lose his prestige due to the continuous defeats of the Russian army.

Now that the Russian Empire has determined its overall strategy, it must implement it unswervingly. It would be best if the war broke out first between Britain and Germany.

It doesn’t matter if it doesn’t work. After the war breaks out, Germany’s first choice will definitely be France.

"Are we not going to do anything?"

Nicholas held his breath. George seemed not to take the death of the Tsar's envoy to heart at all.

"Of course!"

George was determined not to suffer any loss.

There are many ways to fight back against the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In George's view, the dual system of the Austro-Hungarian Empire is full of loopholes.

The Germans, the most populous people in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, only accounted for 23% of the total population, the second most populous people, the Hungarians, accounted for 21%, and the remaining ethnic groups accounted for only 12% at most.

Like the Russian Empire, riots and uprisings also occurred one after another in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Taking full advantage of this was enough to make the Austro-Hungarian Empire unable to take care of itself.

After hearing George's plan, both Nicholas looked confused.

George hoped that the ethnic minorities in the Austro-Hungarian Empire would take action and strive for independence, just like the ethnic minorities in the Ottoman Empire. There were more than 500 million Poles, about 280 million Romanians, and even 310 million Serbs in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which were rare favorable factors.

However, external output is indeed too complicated for the two Nikolas.

The Russian Empire has always been an object of export and has never attempted to export itself abroad.

Is it really possible to plunge the Austro-Hungarian Empire into chaos at a minimal cost?
"Let's try it first to see if it works."

George didn't even have to make arrangements himself, as the Galicia region of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was in rebellion.

Galicia originally belonged to Poland. When Russia, Austria, and Prussia divided Poland, Galicia was occupied by the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the main residents there were Poles.

The partition of Poland happened 100 years ago. During these 100 years, the Poles have never given up on restoring their nation.

There are also Poles in Russia.

Since the Poles in the Austro-Hungarian Empire were being massacred by the Austrians, it would not be excessive for the Poles in Russia to provide some support to the Poles in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Demeter is in Warsaw now.

"George, you're setting yourself on fire."

Little Nicholas is not optimistic about George's output.

It is hard to say how much trouble the Poles in the Austro-Hungarian Empire can cause to the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

If the Poles in the Russian Empire rose up in response, George would be in big trouble.

"What are you talking about? I'm just doing justice."

George spoke righteously, asking little Nicholas to correct his attitude.

Little Nicholas was very angry and was arguing with George when he left the Winter Palace.

So that night, rumors spread in St. Petersburg that George and little Nicholas had broken up. The two had a big quarrel at the imperial meeting, and Nicholas himself could not persuade them to stop.

The Russian Empire did not mobilize, which disappointed Serbian King Peter I who was in St. Petersburg.

Peter I came to power illegitimately. He also came to power through a coup, overthrowing the pro-Austro-Hungarian Alexander I and becoming the King of Serbia.

Therefore, Peter has always regarded the Austro-Hungarian Empire as his mortal enemy, and his hatred for the Austro-Hungarian Empire is even greater than that for the Ottoman Empire.

As early as the end of last year, Peter I ordered martial law on the border to guard against the invasion of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

This year, the Kingdom of Serbia carried out a general mobilization and its finances were almost exhausted. The main purpose of Peter I's visit to St. Petersburg was not only to lobby the Russian Empire to start mobilization, but also to hope that the Russian Empire could give the Kingdom of Serbia more help.

The relationship between Serbia and the Russian Empire was still good. Peter the Great had almost achieved his goal before, but with George's return, everything returned to the starting point.

Peter knew that the key to St. Petersburg lay in George.

So the day after George returned to St. Petersburg, Peter took the initiative to visit George.

"Of course, the Russian Empire has always valued its friendship with the Kingdom of Serbia. We are close brothers. The Russian Empire firmly supports Serbia in its request for the return of Bosnia and Herzegovina from Austria."

George's words sound nice, but he doesn't actually support it at all.

The Russian Empire's own finances were stretched to the limit, and it had to rely on borrowing to survive.

It would be easier if Peter the Great wanted a loan, but he wanted the Russian Empire to provide free aid, so George felt very sorry about that.

"Your Excellency the Grand Duke, if you can give Serbia the much-needed help, the Serbian people will never forget you—"

Peter is sincere.

George is calm and composed.

Of course I won't forget it. After all, it's rare to be a sucker.

(End of this chapter)