Marshal Radetzky was the first to speak.
"Your Majesty, the French are already incapable of putting up a fight. We have secured the key strategic points for defending against a French offensive.
Whether they come from Italy or from Germany, the French have no way of threatening the Empire's heartland."
"What if they come through Switzerland? Napoleon crossed the Alps through Switzerland back then. We must guard against that."
A senior War Department official spoke with some displeasure, believing Marshal Radetzky's argument had far too obvious a flaw.
"There are many countries in the Swiss mountains, and the terrain is easy to defend but hard to attack. Neither the Prussians nor Fribourg will let the French pass through.
Moreover, the Swiss mountains are unsuitable for the march of a large army. As long as we block the main roads, we can send them back empty-handed."
Marshal Radetzky was extremely confident in his judgment.
"In fact, he very much hoped the French would choose the route through the Swiss mountains. It would greatly ease the pressure on their defenses.
The rugged mountain roads would make it difficult to move heavy artillery. In modern warfare, being without heavy artillery was as deadly as soup without salt!"
Just as Marshal Radetzky had said, France's strength had been greatly weakened, and it would pose a rather limited threat to the Austrian Empire.
At that moment, Franz spoke.
"Have you not considered other threats from the German direction?"
Threats from the German direction? The German Confederation had been far too quiet in recent years, so quiet that they had all forgotten Germany was not Italy—there were still countries there capable of threatening the Austrian Empire.
"Your Majesty, the Prussians are nothing to fear. If they dare attack us, they will have to face the counterattack