Forcing the Palace

With the mindset of watching a spectacle and hoping for chaos, Franz paid a visit to Count Kolowrat, another heavyweight of the Conservative Party, to express his concern regarding the current situation.

Everyone involved was well-informed; in the high echelons of government, the role Franz had played in this political conflict was no secret at all.

However, everyone possessed a sense of propriety. Franz's background destined him to be one of their own; at the very least, when facing a bourgeois revolution, they were all in the same boat, so naturally, no one would leak the information.

Of course, even if someone had leaked it, it would have been useless. The conflict between the aristocracy and the bourgeoisie had reached a point where it could no longer be mitigated; what had to be done would be done regardless.

Should the aristocracy abandon their suppression of the bourgeoisie? Or should the bourgeoisie abandon their quest for power?

At this juncture, no one could afford to concede, nor did they dare to. Taking a step back now would not lead to a vast, open sky, but rather to a bottomless abyss.

It must be said that being young had its advantages; otherwise, Franz would have been forced to step into the spotlight immediately.

Naturally, it was more a matter of the Regency Council not wanting to relinquish the power in their hands so early, so they were forced to shoulder this blame.

It was possible to let Franz take the lead in drawing fire and striking at the bourgeoisie, but the consequence would be his early regency as Crown Prince, relegating the Regency Council to history.

On the other side, life was not easy for Prime Minister Metternich. Representing the interests of the aristocracy while styling himself as a reformer made him look rather inconsistent.

Originally, the two factions within Austria were locked in a life-or-death struggle, and with Franz stirring the pot, the Conservatives had now started playing the reform game as well.

In the past, people had always used serfdom as a talking point, attacking the Conservatives for hindering Austria's progress, depriving serfs of their personal freedom, and subjecting them to cruel exploitation.

Now, the aristocracy had begun to fight back. By comparing the lives of workers to those of serfs, everyone suddenly realized that there were people living in even more miserable conditions.

No matter how deranged the aristocrats were, they could not force serfs to work fifteen or sixteen hours a day; aside from the busy farming seasons, where would there be so much work to do?

In this era, lighting costs were not cheap. Capitalists made workers work night shifts to make money, but if aristocrats made serfs work at night, they would only lose money.

There was no need to say anything else; the lives of workers and serfs were the same—miserable!

Relatively speaking, however, the workers of this era were even more wretched. Factories were like prisons; once inside, it was difficult to leave, and the slightest mistake resulted in a brutal beating.

As for wages, whether one could actually receive them depended entirely on the integrity of the capitalists. If one encountered someone with a shred of conscience left, they might get a little, but if they ran into someone ruthless, they could work for years for nothing and end up owing a debt instead.

The problem of difficulty in collecting wages was not just an issue of this era; even in the 21st century, it remained unresolved in many regions.

Happiness is found through comparison, and misery is found the same way.

Under the manipulation of the aristocracy, the working class suddenly felt that they were the most miserable of all. At this moment, if the government wanted to enact the Labor Protection Act, they had to support it!

With their own interests at stake, the so-called constitutional reforms, universal suffrage, and the abolition of serfdom—this entire series of issues could be postponed indefinitely.

The bourgeoisie were not pushovers either; when their own interests were involved, they would not yield an inch. Any sense of patriotic integrity had long since been eaten by dogs.

Prime Minister Metternich, caught in the middle, felt a headache coming on. This diplomatic powerhouse found himself powerless when facing internal strife.

Just like the previously pushed reforms to abolish serfdom, he was still negotiating with bourgeois representatives, attempting to gain their understanding to draft a solution that everyone could accept.

"Your Excellency, Prime Minister, I would like to know when the Labor Protection Act will finally be released?" Count Kolowrat asked coldly.

As a political rival of Prime Minister Metternich, how could he not stir up trouble at a time like this? Even without Franz's hints, he would have taken action, though his objectives were now much clearer.

"Count Kolowrat, the drafting of any law requires a period of time. We must conduct practical research and then perform a comprehensive analysis. You will just have to wait patiently!" Metternich said dismissively.

He couldn't be bothered to be polite to political rivals; no matter how nicely things were phrased, they were enemies all the same.

"Your Excellency, I can wait, but the workers outside cannot. You must know that every day in Austria, hundreds of workers die because of the unscrupulous exploitation by the capitalists!

Do they not style themselves as patriots? They point fingers at us every day, haughtily accusing us of immorality for depriving serfs of their freedom, yet how are they acting now?

Are workers not Austrian citizens? You must realize that the vast majority of these workers are the very serfs we released. Liberating the serfs did not make their lives better; instead, it plunged them into another abyss!

This abyss is even more terrifying; it seeks to devour everything and ultimately destroy all of Austria!" Count Kolowrat roared, pointing at Prime Minister Metternich.

This was a checkmate. The purpose of abolishing serfdom was to allow serfs to live better lives, but the current results were the exact opposite, with too much evidence showing their lives had become even worse.

This was a heavy blow to the abolition of serfdom that Metternich advocated. Before this issue was resolved, all the work he had done previously would have to come to a halt.

However, resolving this issue meant he would have to break with the bourgeoisie who supported the abolition of serfdom, or even strike the bourgeoisie down.

Currently, most of the domestic reformists were bourgeois, which would shake his position as Prime Minister unless he leaned entirely toward the aristocracy.

Very well, Prime Minister Metternich himself was a representative of the high aristocracy and had always stood with them. Aside from the abolitionist movement, he did not reject compromising with the aristocratic class again, but the problem was that there was nuance in this alignment.

He could not be forced into taking a side; this concerned the issue of future dominance. Metternich still wanted to be the leader of the aristocratic class, not a puppet supported by them.

"Enough, Count Kolowrat. The government will provide an answer to this issue as soon as possible. You may return and wait for news!" Metternich said, his brow furrowed.

"I certainly hope so, otherwise our Prime Minister will be quite disappointing!" Count Kolowrat said with a sneer.

After seeing Count Kolowrat out, Prime Minister Metternich's expression darkened instantly. Having been cornered in his own palace, it was no wonder he was in a foul mood.

After a moment of contemplation, Metternich slammed his hand on the table and muttered to himself, "To think they would try to seize power with such petty tricks—Kolowrat seems to have truly grown old!"

He said this as if he were young himself, though in reality, Metternich, born in 1773, was already 74 years old.