Undercurrents

Berlin.

William III stared at the Austrian state letter resting on his desk and slammed his hand down hard.

"The audacity of the Austrians to shamelessly demand to join us!"

Seeing His Majesty the King so enraged, the high-ranking officials of Prussia remained largely unmoved. Many even spoke up for Austria, brazenly declaring:

"Only a Zollverein that includes Austria can be called a true Zollverein."

These words infuriated William III; he could not fathom how he had raised such a pack of ingrates.

Of course, these ingrates were also keen observers of the wind; sensing the shift in mood, they immediately changed their tune.

"The destiny of Brandenburg is to inherit the legacy of the Holy Roman Empire, annex Austria, expel Hungary, and establish a truly German nation."

Hearing this, William III's anger subsided slightly.

Clearly, Metternich's gold-fueled offensive had taken effect. After all, national interests were rarely as tangible as the money in one's own pocket.

Every nation has its share of the greedy and its share of the loyal.

Motz, the Prussian Minister of Finance, was the latter. As the initiator and de facto manager of the Zollverein, he knew exactly how much mischief the Austrians had been stirring up behind the scenes.

First, they had sat by as three separate customs unions emerged within Germany, then, mimicking the British, they had hovered outside these systems, keeping the three unions in a stalemate to ensure Prussia would wither away through internal friction.

Fortunately, the Central German Commercial Union was inherently unstable; it had collapsed after endless disputes over the issue of internal tariff unification.

As for the South German Customs Union, it was squeezed into a relatively narrow space between France and Austria, leaving it with little room to maneuver.

Not long after the Central German Commercial Union and the South German Customs Union disintegrated, the Austrians remained undeterred, attempting to court Saxony and the various South German states to form their own customs union, though all these efforts eventually came to nothing.

"Your Majesty, we must not let Austria join. Our industry is still too fragile. The Austrians have a first-mover advantage over us; if we allow them into the Zollverein, we will face endless exploitation."

"The Austrians will use the money they plunder from us to buy our resources, only to turn them into finished goods and sell them back to us. One day, we will become their slaves, just like the Irish."

"Gentlemen, what then should we do?" William III asked.

"Austria must be excluded. Otherwise, we must set up trade barriers and implement protectionist policies."

"But isn't the purpose of establishing the Zollverein to eliminate trade barriers and engage in free market trade?"

"That is only on the condition that we are the ones doing the harvesting, not the ones being harvested."

The man fell silent, though the murmurs in the room grew louder. Welich, the Prime Minister, knew how to persuade this group of idiots who understood nothing of economics, so he shouted aloud:

"Damn it! The Austrians must be kept out! If Hungarian grain is allowed in, who will buy our own?"

As soon as these words were spoken, they were immediately met with a chorus of approval from the Junker landlords.

What they did not know was that at this very moment, there was a group of people in Hungary just like them.

Budapest.

"Damn it! Damn it! The Emperor actually wants to join the Zollverein. What are we in Hungary to do?"

"What's so bad about that? Things might be cheaper to buy later. I'm tired of always buying Austrian goods. This time, we could go shopping in Berlin—I hear the prostitutes there are quite professional."

"Professional at spouting nonsense! If Prussian grain comes in, who will buy ours?"

The Hungarian landlords immediately responded, "We must not let Prussian grain enter Hungary! If the Emperor does not heed our pleas, we shall march on Vienna!" The roars were deafening.

Prince Esterhazy stood in a corner, silently watching the frenzied crowd. Although he enjoyed saying such things himself, he knew full well that Hungary could not defeat Austria at this moment; otherwise, it would have been more than just empty slogans.

Besides, he missed his palace in Vienna; in terms of entertainment, Vienna was centuries ahead of Budapest.

Hanover.

"What? The Austrians want to join the Zollverein? What are they thinking! Are they not afraid of a gold outflow?"

"If Austria can join, so can we," one minister remarked.

"Are you an idiot? Do those Germans have any money? You want us to trade real gold and silver for Austrian waste paper? Our gold must never be wasted on meaningless competition."

At the time, the seeds of an economic crisis had already appeared in Britain, and precious metals were in short supply. The British government's policy was to frantically raise trade barriers to prevent the outflow of precious metals and cope with the potential for bank runs.

Major European nations followed suit, but Austria's own debt had already exceeded dangerous levels; hoarding precious metals was pointless for them. Instead, this stable but irredeemable paper currency seemed safer.

Saxony, Dresden.

"The Austrians intend to join the Zollverein?"

"Yes. The Prussians are demanding that we oppose Austria and reject their request to join the Zollverein."

"Why reject it? Wouldn't it be better to let the Austrians come in and fight the Prussians? We in Saxony are the heart of Germany; neither the Austrians nor the Prussians can do without us. Let the tigers and wolves fight, and we shall play both sides to our advantage. Isn't that wonderful?"

"Your Majesty is wise."

France, Paris.

The decrepit Marshal Soult no longer resembled the soldier he once was; he remained in a state of semi-slumber.

"That is the situation. The Austrians intend to join the customs union initiated by the Prussians. The Prussians do not seem inclined to let them in, and there is internal chaos within Austria as well. I believe we should immediately organize the Franco-Belgian Union to counter the Austrians," Guizot said after finishing his report and offering his own thoughts.

"Very well. I am old. His Majesty trusts me, and he trusts you. I know you are capable, and I trust you as well. As long as you have a clear conscience and remain true to His Majesty and God, all will be well." The old Marshal, wanting only a peaceful retirement, washed his hands of the matter.

"Thank you for your trust. I will do my utmost not to fail the expectations of His Majesty and yourself." Guizot was accustomed to Soult's Teflon nature; he had no time to play games with the old man.

The Franco-Belgian Union had always been Guizot's dream. Although Belgium had only recently gained independence, it was the first country on the European continent to industrialize. Its industrial strength was formidable, and the quality of its citizenry was exceptionally high.

Furthermore, Belgium's location is uniquely advantageous; incorporating Belgium into France's sphere of influence would undoubtedly bolster France's strength and influence. One could even go a step further and bring the entire Low Countries into French territory.

Guizot's idea is sound; the Franco-Belgian Union is indeed a position that can advance to attack and retreat to defend, while also enhancing commercial competitiveness. However, he has overlooked the most critical issue: the British.

There is a joke that if a Belgian flies a kite, it might just end up in Britain. The Low Countries are absolutely the reverse scale of the British. The British will not allow any major power to lay a finger on the Low Countries. They have always feared that a nation might occupy the region and use it as a springboard to launch an invasion of the British mainland.

Regarding the Austrian Empire joining the Zollverein, the kind of military threat used last time might not be effective. It is unclear what has gotten into the Emperor of the Austrian Empire, but he has actually declared that he is willing to go to war.

The Austrian Emperor can afford to be erratic, as that family has never been normal to begin with. But Guizot cannot afford such madness; neither he nor France can bear that kind of risk.

However, the traitors within Austria could be put to good use. Furthermore, the Prussians will not be content to let the Austrians snatch away the pig they have been raising.

In all fairness, although France looks down on Austria's meager industrial strength, the Austrians still have a high probability of winning the competition against the Prussians.

The Prussians are well aware of this, which makes things much easier. Guizot already has a plan: to unite the anti-Austrian forces within Austria and inside the Zollverein.

Find a way to reject Austria's entry into the Zollverein; once the Austrians enter the Zollverein, it will no longer be an Austrian problem.

It will become an internal German affair. Although France has never abandoned its ambitions for the Rhine region, at this moment, France still lacks the strength to support such ambitions.