"Between nations, there are only eternal interests, no eternal enemies." This laid bare the essence of international diplomacy. Hadn't Britain and Austria just been at each other's throats over the Near East War? Yet in the blink of an eye, they were cozying up again.
That was hardly excessive. Britain and Austria were still allies; even if they often quarreled unpleasantly, it did not stop everyone from playing happily together.
If anyone learned that Prussia and Russia had made secret contact, it would certainly cause a tremendous uproar. The Russians were now sharpening their weapons and training their troops, preparing to seek revenge on the Kingdom of Prussia; the Kingdom of Prussia was much the same, constantly preparing for war.
Yet before interests, nothing was impossible. Even during the Prusso-Russian War, the two countries' private contacts had never been cut off.
After failing to persuade the Vienna Government to send troops to intervene in the Polish royal election, the Tsarist Government knew things had become troublesome.
Alexander II was no simple figure either. He decisively chose to temporarily cast aside hatred and use this incident to secure the greatest possible benefit for the Russian Empire.
An elderly man dressed in lavish clothes said coldly, "Have you considered it, Your Excellency? So long as your country agrees to the previous conditions, we will acquiesce to your annexation of Poland."
The middle-aged man seated opposite him remained unmoved and shook his head. "This is not allowing us to annex Poland, but dividing Poland between our two countries. Your country's appetite is far too great—you have taken half of Poland for yourselves outright.
"How could we agree to that? If word gets out, would the Polish people not turn the heavens upside down? Besides, we have no plans to annex Poland. This election