Chapter 1036： The enemy is in Congress

"Where does the money come from?"

The Chancellor of the Exchequer Pavel Lisizian issued a soul torture.

How poor the tsarist government is, no one can give a definite answer to this question. In short, it is certain that there is no money to repair the Siberian Railway.

As early as 1891, the Tsarist government organized road experts to launch the Siberian Railway Exploration Project. Yes, it was started after Nicholas II was assassinated in Japan.

Although Alexander III was a peace sect among the czars, he was also a good father. If it were not limited by traffic, it is estimated that after the Anglo-Russian War ended, the Russo-Japanese War started ahead of schedule.

Whether it is because of a moment of anger or preparations, the Siberian Railway project has been launched.

The results of the exploration are very terrible. Starting from Moscow, you have to pass through a vast pine forest, cross the Ural Mountains, and pass through the tundra of Siberia before finally reaching the Pacific Ocean.

The distance is far away, no matter how far it is, it is not as far as the ring railway of Shinra. The key is the harsh natural conditions.

The same is for railway repair. If the construction cost of the plain railway is 1, then the construction cost of the Siberian railway may be 2, 3, 4...

There is no money in his pocket, and he doesn't do things hard. Just when the tsarist government hesitated whether to start the construction of the Siberian railway, the Vienna government took action.

The equally alluring "Central Asia Railway Project" was released, making the Tsarist government even more hesitant. It just didn't take long for the Russians to hesitate, the Vienna government helped them make up their minds-"Building aid"!

Open the map and you will know that whether it is the Siberian Railway or the Central Asia Railway, the construction cost is an astronomical figure.

It is undoubtedly a terrible thing to let the not-rich tsarist government bear this expenditure. In order to build the Siberian Railway, the Russians also lived frugally.

From 1891 to 1901 alone, the Tsarist government invested 1.46 billion rubles, far exceeding the military expenditures during the same period.

After 13 years of hard work, on July 13, 1904, the world's longest railway trunk line began to open to traffic. The follow-up project was eventually bumped and bumped and continued until 1916.

In contrast, the construction conditions of the Central Asia Railway are still better, but of course they are just a few things.

Although there is no need to be with the frozen ground all the year round, the endless mountains of Afghanistan are also miserable.

Whether it is for strategic needs or for the sake of its own wallet, the Tsarist government decisively chose the Central Asia Railway.

Even if it knew that the Vienna government was calculating the relationship between Britain and Russia, the tsarist government had no room for rejection.

In the words of an optimistic minister in the tsarist government: "Regardless of the number of Austrians, the Central Asian Railway is always beneficial to the empire. Whether or not to go south, the initiative is still in our hands."

There is no problem in theory. The initiative to go south is indeed in the hands of the tsarist government, and it is impossible for the Vienna government to make decisions for them.

It's just that this can fool ordinary people. India has such a large piece of fat almost on the dining table without using a knife and fork to divide it. Is it still a bear?

In essence, the Minister of Economy proposed to help the Russians build the Siberian Railway. As long as the railway is open to traffic, nothing needs to be done, and the greedy bear will go out for food.

It is true that Mao Xiong's eastward advance will harm Britain's interests, but it is clear at a glance which is more important than going south to India.

When the time comes to curb the growth of the Russians, it will not be a matter for the British family. Shinra will also not watch the Russians complete the "Yellow Russia Plan."

If done properly, the final outcome will evolve into: Britain and Austria pit a bear together.

It is estimated that after a proxy war, the Russians will suffer a lot of hard work. There are too many to guarantee that it is not difficult for them to settle down for ten years.

The most important thing is that a thorn was buried in the Russian-Austrian alliance. With this thorn, even if the two countries did not meet each other in battle, they would not be as close as they are now.

If everything goes well, in the future Anglo-Austrian hegemony, the tsarist government will find ways to drag Shenluo behind.

The plan is perfect. The only question is: Where does the money for the construction of the "Siberian Railway" come from?

The Anglo-Russian relationship is not as close as the Russian-Austrian relationship. The Vienna government helped the Russians build the Central Asia Railway, but only helped to advance part of the funds.

Mainly the project exploration, design, management and other expenses, labor and raw materials are provided by the tsar government itself.

For the sake of the Russian-Austrian League, even if someone in the country raises objections, the Vienna government can handle it.

It won’t work if you put it on Britain. The blood of the Anglo-Russian Afghan war hasn’t been done yet?

At this time, I spent money and effort to help the Russians build railways. The families of the soldiers who died in the Anglo-Russian War might have their hearts broken.

If it really arouses public outrage, the opposition party will certainly help. Although national interests are important, party interests are even more important.

I oppose the enemy, and I support the enemy. It has always been common in politics. As for whether it is correct or not, it doesn’t matter, it depends on what is needed.

If it's just a funding gap of £1.8 million, everyone can still find a way to get together, hide from the public's sight, and flatten the account with special expenses.

But as far as the Siberian Railway is concerned, without an investment of hundreds of millions of pounds, it will not be able to pass the train.

Even if the Russians were to provide labor and materials, it would cost tens of millions of pounds. To spend such a large sum of money, no matter what method is adopted, the confidentiality cannot be kept.

Secretary of the Navy Flora: "It's not just a question of money. Our relationship with the Russians is so tense, even if we offer to help build the Siberian Railway, I am afraid the tsarist government will not believe it.

Unless we are just paying for the railway exploration design and construction, otherwise they will not be at ease. "

This is the inevitable result. Suddenly one day, the enemy suddenly came to help you repair the railway, and you would suspect a conspiracy if you put it on anyone.

From the standpoint of the Tsarist government, the British offered to help build the Siberian Railway. It is estimated that the Russians’ first reaction was: This is for destruction.

After all, the construction of the Central Asia Railway has reached a critical moment, and it will be opened to traffic in a few years. It is normal for the British to feel pressure.

For the safety of India, Britain took the initiative to destroy the construction of the Central Asia Railway without any problems.

Although the Russian Empire is huge, the Tsarist government's ability to mobilize materials is limited. The construction of the Central Asia Railway has already mobilized a lot of manpower and material resources. If the construction of the Siberian Railway is restarted, it will obviously increase logistical pressure.

The explanation is to cover up. No matter what the British government says, the Russians will think this is a conspiracy by the British, trying to use the Siberian Railway plan to delay the construction of the Central Asia Railway.

Help with prospecting design and construction, not to mention. The railway that the British helped build, who knows if it will work in the end?

As Flora said, unless it's just giving money and leaving everything to the Russians to toss about, otherwise the tsarist government won't be at ease.

The problem is that the British government is still worried about just giving money. Who can guarantee that after the Russians get the money, they will spend it on the construction of the Siberian Railway, rather than on the military expenditures for the south to India?

The British government doesn't have such a thing as morality, nor does the Tsarist government. It is too difficult for the two countries that lack the most basic trust to cooperate.

Foreign Secretary Cameron: "The issue of trust is actually not difficult to solve. It is inconvenient for us to come forward. A third country can come forward and communicate with the Russians.

It is not difficult to persuade the Russian military industry to agree to the construction of the Siberian Railway. The current Tsar is Nicholas II. The unpleasant trip to Tokyo has always made Nicholas II feel good.

From the standpoint of Nicholas II, going east to seek revenge from the Japanese is probably more attractive than going south to India.

After all, we are not soft persimmons either. Even if the Central Asian Railway is opened to traffic, the Russians' odds of winning are still not high.

Compared with going south, Dongjin has a significantly higher success rate and will bring greater benefits.

If the Russians can realize the Yellow Russia plan before the end of the battle for hegemony, then it will be a three-legged pattern.

Being able to be the boss by himself, no one wants to be a little brother, let alone an arrogant bear.

Despite the fact that Russia-Austria relations seem to be very good, in fact, many Russians are not convinced of the position of the European hegemony of the Holy Roman Empire.

This bait is enough to make the Russians hooked. As long as the tsarist government takes this step, the Russian-Austrian alliance will end.

Vienna can tolerate a powerful Russian empire, but it absolutely cannot tolerate a Russian empire that can threaten itself.

In a sense, the Russians pose a much greater threat to the Holy Roman Empire than we do.

After all, they are all land-powered countries, and they happen to be neighbors. Although the European continent is vast, it cannot accommodate two hegemons.

In contrast, the problem of funding is difficult to solve. The congressmen would not agree to subsidize the Russians, even if it is strategically necessary. "

"The enemy is in Parliament", this is the emotion that every British government will have. If you don't talk about it, you can't black, the British Parliament is indeed more troublesome to the government than any enemy.

If there is no Congress and opposition parties dragging their feet, the international situation will not evolve to the present situation.

As early as the middle of the European War, the last British government wanted to send troops to intervene, but a lot of time was wasted in parliament quarrels and gambling with opposition parties.

Before discussing a result, the French are gone. Needless to say, the dust has settled, naturally only selling teammates. It can be considered to be an ally with Britain, but it is impossible to share suffering.

Similar incidents have not only happened once, and going back further, there are also a series of international events such as the previous Ottoman Wars, the invasion of Italy by France, and the annexation of South Germany by Austria.

Britain in 1895 could not help the Holy Roman Empire, but forty years ago, Britain was absolutely capable of preventing Austria’s expansion.

Not to mention preventing Austria’s annexation of South Germany, at least to destroy Austria’s colonial plan, the absolute superiority of the Royal Navy continued until the early 1980s.

Before that, the Austrian Navy was a little brother. It was not until the advent of the former Dreadnought that the gap was narrowed to the point where it had the ability to lose-lose.

Of course, because of the times, the two big bosses of France and Russia attracted firepower in the front, so that politicians at that time underestimated the threat of Austria.

When the British government began to pay attention, the Holy Roman Empire was about to come out, and it was too late to do anything.

There are everything in this world, but there is no regret medicine. The most serious challenge is encountered when one is not paying attention to British hegemony.

The problems encountered by the predecessors have now fallen to the British government again.

If the Congress cannot be settled, the funds for the construction of the Siberian Railway will not be available; without this railway, there will be no way to talk about disasters; if the tsarist government does not look east, then the ultimate plan to divide the Russian-Austrian alliance will eventually become "underwater". Moon, flowers in the mirror".

After hesitating for a while, Robert Cecil nodded: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs first finds a third party to contact the Russians. There is a gap between them. We can at least avoid the anger of the people.

As for the issue of Congress, you first communicate with the members of the party in private. I will visit the Queen. "

There was no way, Prime Minister Robert Cecil had to seek more help when facing the pressure of Congress alone.

In the Victorian era, the British royal family was not a rubber stamp. Although the elderly Queen Victoria has rarely been involved in politics, no one can ignore her existence.

To suppress opposition in Congress, the strength of the Conservative Party is not enough. For the sake of the overall situation, Robert Cecil had to turn to Queen Victoria for help.