As time passed, California's gold mines had long since ceased to be a secret. Though no nation still knew exactly how much gold the Austrian Empire had dug out of California, a colony with a population exceeding one million was alluring enough in itself.
The new territories acquired in the 1848 war against France had long been carved up among the great families, but those lands were almost entirely undeveloped wilderness. They still required investments of manpower, resources, and time before they could be turned into wealth.
California, however, was plainly different. Under the Austrian Empire's long-term management, it had already become more prosperous and affluent than Mexico proper.
If California could be placed upon the dining table, they would surely feast until their bellies were full.
Naturally, other nations were stirring the pot as well. Otherwise, the Mexicans simply would not have had such a large appetite.
The United States and Britain were the prime suspects. After all, there were truly not many countries at this time capable of swallowing a colony with a population of over one million.
Franz was quite confident in the California colony itself. Metternich might have been unable to command all of Europe at this point, but commanding thunder and lightning in California was no problem at all. After all, not everyone was as unreasonable as the Mexicans.
California's governor, Karl Ferdinand, was a member of the imperial family after all. Even if someone truly wished to incite a rebellion, they would have to take that into account.
The Americans had never given up infiltrating California, but neither had the Austrian Empire ever abandoned its efforts to purge them.
Moreover, the threats posed by the United States and Mexico had strengthened Californians' cohesion and sense of belonging. Naturally, the heart they rallied around was