Franz naturally knew what these officials were thinking. A sedan chair carried by many hands was easy to lift; only when everyone stood to gain would people be willing to do their part.
Money invested in the colonies benefited only the emperor's confidants, some merchants, and the common people.
In fact, the Austrian Empire had weathered its famine thanks to food from the colonies. The cheap tobacco, sugar, tea, coffee, and tropical fruits now available at home were also the result of running those colonies.
But these things didn't matter to the officials. They couldn't feel these so-called benefits, since they had never needed to worry about such things in the first place.
Franz hadn't neglected development at home, either: compulsory education reform, the Austrian Empire railway plan, the Galicia urban belt plan, industrialization, urbanization, development of the east, and postwar reconstruction.
Domestic spending outweighed foreign spending by a ratio of nine to one. Indeed, much of the money for these projects came from the gold and silver mines in the colonies.
Yet these officials weren't satisfied. They were not only insatiably greedy; they also wanted to tame Franz.
Unfortunately for them, Franz wanted to tame others, and had no desire to be tamed himself.
"Does the fact that we need something mean we can plunder it? The British want our colonies. Does that make it right for them to wage war against us?"
The emperor's sudden challenge left the officials somewhat bewildered. Those who had argued that Austria needed Cuba—a colony that could bring enormous profits without requiring heavy investment—looked particularly astonished.
Judging by the minister's reaction, someone had probably used him as a pawn, leading him to say those words.
Such things were hardly uncommon in government. That clever person might not even have been present today. But