I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 1017: Whatever he does, he will not succeed

Talleyrand immediately modified his plan to meet Francis II directly. He did not even make a public appearance. He only inquired about the news through his network of connections in Vienna, and then reported the situation here to Paris through the Schap signal tower in Baden.

Six days later, he received the latest order from His Royal Highness the Crown Prince - to immediately summon the "rich businessman" Schulmeister, the Security Service's number one agent in Austria.

……

In the study of Franz II, Austrian Foreign Minister Kobzl the Younger was talking:

"…In some respects, the British are right. If the consumption in Silesia continues, the French will benefit the most.

"We may not be able to retake Italy for more than a decade."

Yes, although the Queen of France provided some help to her dear nephew, it was only an internal matter of the royal family. Now, Austria was very hostile to France because of the disastrous defeat in the previous war, and everyone was eager to take back Italy and the Southern Netherlands.

Finance Minister Count Stadion nodded: "And the war also consumes Prussia. This is what the French want to see."

Admiral Horndorf immediately said: “But we cannot give up the territory of Silesia just to prevent the French from benefiting.

"If we accept British mediation, you know that they are allies of Prussia and will definitely join forces to suppress our country's interests!"

Yes, now Austria is divided into two factions on whether to cease fire.

The reformists represented by the Kaunitz faction hoped to end the war as soon as possible and invest funds and energy in domestic reforms.

The hardliners represented by the military advocated taking advantage of Archduke Charles's advantage to completely recover Silesia.

A few days ago, British Foreign Secretary Fox proposed to Vienna that Britain should mediate and that Prussia and Austria should hold armistice negotiations in Thuringia.

This time Britain also has great ambitions - the Grenville government plans to use this mediation opportunity to bring Prussia and Austria together to sign the "Silesia Permanent Boundary Agreement" to end once and for all the situation where the two countries are fighting over this territory.

Austria then "looked southwards" to expand its influence in the Balkans. Prussia, on the other hand, "looked eastwards" to try to nibble away at the weak Poland, and at the same time occupied Sweden's enclaves of Pomerania and Wismar in Central Europe - at this time, Sweden still occupied three provinces in Germany. Britain would pull Russia and Denmark to recognize Prussia's rule here.

Only by ending the hostility between Prussia and Austria and joining hands again can it be possible to contain the powerful France on the European continent.

But the problem was that Prussia could not afford to lose Silesia, so Fox had to do his best to suppress Austria and force them to sign the "Permanent Boundary Agreement".

Count Stadion said coldly: "General, if you reject the British proposal, it is likely that they will intervene in the war in Silesia."

Hohendorf shook his head in disdain: "Have you forgotten? Their troops are all in Portugal. They can't spare any troops to come to Central Europe."

"Even if Britain only provided financial assistance to Prussia, it would have a huge impact on the war situation."

Marshal Leo, who had been silent before, suddenly raised his hand and said, "Everyone, I think that we must never let the British interfere in Silesia's affairs."

Francis II and several ministers were startled when they heard this and turned to look at him.

Leo said in a deep voice: “Please think about it, everyone. We originally had the upper hand in Glogau, but the Ottoman army appeared in Wallachia without any warning, and a few days later, Mr. Fox came to Vienna.

"The people in Europe who fear most that we will defeat Prussia are the British.

"I have sufficient reasons to suspect that the Ottomans attacked Wallachia at their behest."

He naturally thought of these words under Talleyrand's "prompt". Upon hearing this, Francis II frowned.

Leo continued: "Not long ago, the British aided Potsdam with hundreds of thousands of pounds. It was this money that helped the Prussians stabilize their defense line."

Hohendorf immediately added: "And before that, when the French army arrived at Klagenfurt and we needed help the most, the British shamelessly abandoned us."

Now, even the few ministers who had originally been neutral began to whisper.

Leo shouted: "I think we should handle Silesia alone. Let Fox leave Vienna immediately!"

Yes, with Britain's intervention in mediating between Prussia and Austria, it was unlikely that Prussia would be completely defeated by Austria, so Joseph would not be in a hurry to end the war.

Since the British are going to tow the car, they might as well put a few more stones on it.

Seeing that the two sides, the pro-war camp and the pro-War camp, were arguing endlessly, Francis II immediately announced in annoyance that the meeting would be adjourned and the discussion would continue the next day.

That night, Kobzl Jr., as a representative of the reformists, quietly came to the residence where Fox was staying.

After he briefly stated the hardliners' claims today, the British Foreign Secretary's face suddenly darkened: "This is a complete slander! We have nothing to do with the Ottomans!"

Little Kobzl nodded: "We think so too. However, I am worried that Your Majesty will be influenced by those soldiers."

Fox suppressed his anger and asked, "So what do you mean?"

"Perhaps you can show your country's sincerity to His Majesty," said Kobzl Jr. "Then His Majesty will surely believe that you are here for peace. And you also know that our country has a military advantage in Silesia, and a ceasefire now will result in a loss of interests."

Fox could not help but frown. Britain attached great importance to this mediation, and he certainly could not return without success.

He took a deep breath and said, "Our country can provide a loan to His Majesty the Emperor. I heard that your brother is preparing to implement reforms, and there will definitely be financial pressure at that time."

Little Kobzl probed: "30 pounds?"

The Englishman gritted his teeth and nodded: "I will apply to Parliament."

At the same time, "Vienna grain merchant" Schulmeister visited the estate of Baron Walter on the recommendation of an official from the Ministry of the Interior. After all, the latter was a member of the royal family, and Kobusl did not dare to make things too difficult for him. After consolidating his power, he released him.

More than a dozen officials have gathered in the manor, all of whom are pro-British and anti-French officials in Vienna. After Thugut stepped down, they have weakened, but they still have a certain influence when they unite.

And all these people gathered here due to the activities of Mr. Schulmeister.

The emperor's cousin waved his disabled arm and said excitedly: "This is a great opportunity!

“If Mr Fox can successfully mediate this, Britain will be able to increase its influence in Vienna.

"The Francophiles in Kobzl will no longer be able to be as arrogant as they are now!"

Kobzl actually took the path of balancing Britain and France, but this time he cooperated with the pro-French Kaunitz family, so he was somewhat labeled as pro-French.

(End of this chapter)