Make France Great Again

Prince William's attitude did not surprise Ron. Although in Ron's heart, having Prince William, who was closer to the military forces, serve as the Regent of Prussia was much better than the current King of Prussia, it did not mean he unconditionally supported Prince William's use of coup methods to seek this position.

Ron clearly understood that King Frederick (William I's brother) was not like Austria's dethroned Emperor Ferdinand. Even if his ideas were not favored by the military high command, he still had a group of soldiers loyal to him.

Not to mention that the newly established "Prussian Constitution" forced King Frederick to gain the support of some liberal parliamentarians. If the military chose to depose the King of Prussia, then there would inevitably be large-scale turmoil within Prussia, which could even lead to a civil war.

Faced with both internal and external troubles, the overall interests of the Kingdom of Prussia would inevitably suffer, possibly even leading to its downfall.

Ron was regretful that William I could not become Regent, but at the same time, he looked at William I with relief.

Prince William had already acquired the strategic vision befitting a king.

[Ron did not know that Prince William was only retreating because he feared he couldn't handle the complex domestic issues.]

"Your Highness!" Ron meticulously inquired, "Should I send someone back to Berlin to explain to the Count?"

"Go ahead!" William I nodded, agreeing with Ron's idea.

"Yes, sir!" Ron promptly pulled the reins slightly on his horse, which had undergone rigorous Prussian training, and turned the horse around upon receiving Ron's signal.

As Ron turned his horse back towards the command post, William I's voice once again reached Ron's ears.

"By the way, send someone to tell my wife not to do anything harmful to the Kingdom of Prussia during this period!" William I said, with a voice slightly tinged with weariness.

Ron turned back and nodded to William I, departing under William I's watchful gaze.

Watching Ron's figure gradually fade into the distance, William I couldn't help but sigh again.

Silently praying that his ambitious wife would not engage in any meaningless foolish actions.

The Kingdom of Prussia could no longer afford internal strife!

After Ron left, William I continued with his hunt.

…

On the other hand, the mayor and councilmen, having left the Prussian army camp, attempted to make contact again with the Austrian Imperial Army camp located not far from the Prussian forces.

The "notables" of Fulda faced examinations several times stricter than those they encountered in the Kingdom of Prussia upon entering the territory of the Austrian Imperial Army.

At this time, the Austrian Imperial Army differed from the landowner-and-noble blended army of the Kingdom of Prussia, as well as from the "civilian" army of the French Republic; the entire Austrian force was controlled by various nobles, making it a veritable noble army.

Within the Austrian Empire, children of nobility had the privilege of admitting to military schools without exams, meaning they could become officers simply by wanting it. With the strict execution of primogeniture in the Austrian Empire, many minor nobles were willing to send their second sons into the army or church to prevent conflicts over inheritance.

In this era of noble decay, ambitious and capable nobles were incredibly scarce. Most nobles adhered to a lifestyle of idle indulgence, doing the same once entering the army. Moreover, the pay for the Austrian Imperial Army was miserably low, and unable to survive on this paltry income, many began enacting fraudulent practices and earning side income, thus causing a severe decline in the combat effectiveness of the Austrian Imperial Army.

Things were better in Venice and Lombardy under the oversight of Marshal Radetzky, at least.

The armies in Hungary, Austria, Bohemia were severely corrupted, easily routed in battle during two years of the Great Revolution, routinely suffering mass defeats with nonexistent troops and soldiers ostensibly being "wiped out" by invincible Hungarian revolutionaries.

New Emperor Franz Joseph could not help but fly into a rage upon seeing reports from the frontlines; Felix Schwarzenberg understood the behind-the-scenes manipulations in the army but did not intervene.

Once the fraudulent payments met Felix Schwarzenberg's psychological expectations, Felix Schwarzenberg decisively invited Tsarist Russia, and the Austrian Imperial Army immediately engaged in a counterattack as if revitalized.

During the Transylvanian campaign, another comical large-scale battle loss farce unfolded between Russia and Austria.

After a commotion that bordered on farce, the Austrian Imperial Army finally eliminated much of its fraudulent payrolls and improved its combat effectiveness, but its inherent noble characteristics persisted.

Arrogance continued to run deep in the bones of the Austrian Imperial Army.

After an exhaustive examination, the humiliated mayor and councilmen of Fulda finally reached the castle where Grand Duke Albert resided.

The castle located in the suburbs of Fulda was originally the mansion of a wealthy merchant. After the Prussians and Austrians stationed in Fulda, the merchant, seeing the unfavorable situation, hurriedly took his family to Frankfurt.

The castle also turned into Albrecht's command post.

When the mayor and councilmen met Grand Duke Albert, they were all amazed at Albrecht's age.

Born in 1817, Albrecht was only 33 years old. It was indeed surprising that at 33, he could serve as the highest commander of an army.

After the adjutant introduced Albrecht's family background to the mayor and councilmen, they finally understood that this excessively young general was actually the son of Grand Duke Karl.

No wonder he could serve as a commander in the Austrian Empire at such a young age.

Everyone instinctively labeled Grand Duke Albert as a military scion, and their eyes revealed a hint of disdain.

In their hearts, how could a military scion like this possibly command well in this war!

Grand Duke Albert, who was focused on examining the map, did not notice their gazes. Facing the arrival of the people of Fulda, Albrecht merely calmly inquired about the purpose of their visit to the military camp.

"Your Highness!" the mayor respectfully spoke, "We represent the residents of Fulda and hope that your army can conduct artillery shooting during the daytime!"

Albrecht suddenly looked up, and the mayor, feeling like he was stared down by a prehistoric beast, instantly held his breath and displayed a smile more unpleasant than crying.

The councilmen also couldn't help but swallow a mouthful of saliva, fearing that Grand Duke Albert would immediately order them to be executed.

After a long while, Albrecht finally spoke, "I cannot accede to your request! All military deployments of the Empire are conducted according to plan, and even as a commander, I cannot arbitrarily alter these plans. We have come here solely to help you resist the invasions of the Kingdom of Prussia! If there is nothing else, then please leave now!"

Grand Duke Albert issued an order for the mayor and city councilmen of Fulda to leave, then lowered his head to continue studying the map of the Fulda Region.

The adjutant, seeing this, hurriedly ordered two soldiers to "escort" the mayor and city councilmen out.

The mayor and city councilmen were "escorted" out of the Austrian Empire's camp, and upon returning to the City of Fulda, they explained to the people the situation regarding the Austro-Prussian military.

The citizens of Fulda had no choice but to continue enduring the oppression of Prussia and Austria.

Of course, some considered fleeing Fulda to seek refuge in Frankfurt.

However, all roads leading to Frankfurt were blocked by Prussia and Austria. Anyone wanting to go to Frankfurt or any other region had to pay significant tolls, goods fees, army maintenance fees... In simple terms, to cover the military expenses of the prolonged occupation, Prussia and Austria had begun ruthlessly extorting the entire Hesse-Kassel Duchy.

On the morning of November 3rd, when the forest mist had not yet dissipated, a carriage entered the Austrian Empire military camp under the escort of a group of Austrians wearing eagle-helmeted cuirassiers.

Led by Albrecht, senior military officials came out to welcome them. The carriage slowly stopped in the garden outside the castle.

The carriage door opened, and Prime Minister of the Austrian Empire, Minister of Foreign Affairs Felix Schwarzenberg stepped out.

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister!" Grand Duke Albert quickly stepped forward and spoke to Felix Schwarzenberg.

"Commander!" Felix Schwarzenberg nodded slightly to Albrecht.

The two, along with numerous generals from the Austrian Empire, entered the castle.

After everyone sat at the long dining table, Prime Minister Felix Schwarzenberg, seated at the head, glanced over the eager generals in front of him. He cleared his throat and said lightly, "I know you all want to teach a hard lesson to the oblivious Prussia. I share the same thought. The German Region can only have one leader, and that leader must be the Austrian Empire. The Kingdom of Prussia merely needs to follow the arrangements of the Austrian Empire and obediently act as a follower!"

Felix Schwarzenberg's words resonated with the generals of the Austrian Empire present. Many officers, whose minds were still in the Napoleonic Wars era, believed Prussia succeeded through mere opportunism.

If it weren't for the fact that the Austrian Empire suffered a significant overextension of national power in the confrontation with Napoleon, which later forced mutual compromises at the Vienna Congress, Prussia wouldn't have flaunted itself later on.

They, who regarded themselves as the big brother of the German Region, would absolutely not allow any transgressive actions by Prussia.

"All of you should understand that I have come on behalf of His Majesty to the Russian Empire to discuss the matter of chastising Prussia. Emperor Nicholas I of the Russian Empire has promised us that he will not interfere with our punishment of Prussia. So, feel free to do what you want to do!" Felix Schwarzenberg subtly issued a mobilization order.