Loss of Control

Two stone pillars stood at the entrance, one tall and one short, like a pair of imposing sentinels, while an iron gate remained tightly shut.

The security guards inside seemed to have slacked off, paying no mind to the people calling at the gate outside.

"What should we do, Sergeant? The people inside the school aren't cooperating. Should we take our men and storm in?"

A police officer spoke up, eager to show his loyalty, never noticing that his overzealous attempt at flattery had backfired.

"Storm in? Are you out of your mind?"

"Do you think the people inside are just ordinary folk?"

"It's pitch black in there. If we storm in and an accident happens, or someone ends up dead, are you going to take the responsibility, or am I?"

Winston unleashed a torrent of abuse upon his subordinate, venting the frustration pent up in his heart.

He was a seasoned veteran of the workplace and knew that the rebellious youths inside the school were not to be trifled with; each one was a master of courting disaster. If they charged in now, they might very well end up getting bludgeoned in the dark.

If they didn't use their guns, they might not even be able to handle the students; if they did use them, he didn't dare, for if he killed someone with powerful connections, he wouldn't even know how he died when the retaliation came.

These were lessons learned from his extensive experience in the field; otherwise, Winston could never have climbed from an ordinary man to the rank of sergeant.

He was already satisfied; if he wanted to go any further, he would have to get involved in politics. Winston had self-awareness—with his education level, which hadn't even finished primary school, playing at politics would surely lead to his ruin sooner or later.

"Everyone, hold your positions! Don't let the suspects inside escape!"

Winston came up with a clumsy plan: just block the gate. As long as the people were contained and prevented from going out to cause trouble, things would be easier to handle.

Compared to the school, other places were not so lucky; they lacked the protection that made the police wary, and many people were thrown into prison.

The actions of the Vienna government did not intimidate the public; instead, it fueled their shared indignation. Orchestrated by the revolutionaries, an even more massive demonstration erupted in Vienna the following day.

Inside the government building, Prime Minister Metternich was already panicking. According to precedent, as long as the ringleaders were arrested, anti-government movements would crumble.

Unfortunately, this time was different. Everyone had been pushed into a corner; since the government could not solve their real-world problems, how could they possibly let it go?

The massive procession of protesters broke through the police blockade and headed straight for the Imperial Palace. The Vienna government panicked, and in his haste, Prime Minister Metternich ordered the City Defense Force to enter the city to maintain order.

A fast horse galloped along the mountain path; every Austrian knew this was a messenger. In front of the military camp, the messenger dismounted and was led inside.

"Your Excellency, Commander, urgent military intelligence!"

Albrecht, who had been prepared, took the urgent report and opened it on the spot. It was no surprise: Vienna was in chaos, and the government, fearing the situation was spiraling out of control, had ordered the troops training in the field to return to the city immediately.

"Pass the order: stop training immediately, pack up, and prepare to return!"

Albrecht said calmly. It had only taken the messenger half a day to arrive, but it would take the main army at least two or three days to return. That much time was enough for many things to happen.

Franz did not stop the army from returning to the city; doing so would have been too deliberate. He needed the Austrian Empire to be broken and rebuilt, but he certainly did not need Austria to truly fall apart.

The rebellion in Vienna could erupt, but it had to be extinguished immediately. He needed to use the opportunity of the rebellion to clear out the parasites within the government, but he had no intention of letting the rebels overthrow it.

"Franz, the situation in Vienna has become dire. One hundred thousand people participated in the demonstration yesterday. If the government handles this poorly, the consequences could be grave!"

Albrecht said gravely. At this moment, he was somewhat worried about Franz's layout, fearing it would evolve into the February Revolution of Paris.

Franz smiled slightly, then pointed to the military camp and said in a measured tone, "Do not worry. Austria is not like France; we still have troops loyal to the royal family in our hands!"

This was the source of his confidence. There was still a Palace Guard in Vienna that could hold the palace. As for the remaining five thousand men of the City Defense Force, even if they were all useless, they were useless men loyal to the Emperor.

Unlike in France, not just anyone could enter the Austrian military. The officers were essentially all aristocrats, and they would not easily betray their own class.

An uprising without military support was, at most, a massive riot that would eventually be suppressed.

Franz was already prepared; once he returned, he would first dismiss the Metternich cabinet to give the public an explanation.

Then, he would announce the abolition of serfdom and the implementation of the Labor Protection Act to appease the people. Afterward, naturally, he would not hold the coerced accountable, pursuing only the primary instigators.

At worst, he would arrest a few corrupt officials, sentence them, and divert everyone's attention.

Even after the First World War, the Habsburg Family held a very high status in the hearts of the common people. If not for the fact that their descendants were truly hopeless, the Austro-Hungarian Empire would not have collapsed.

Historically, after the Vienna Revolution broke out, some had proposed abolishing the Emperor, but this was opposed by the people of Vienna.

Vienna.

The demonstrating crowds had surrounded the government, the palace, and the parliament, demanding that the government agree to their terms.

Dismiss the cabinet, release political prisoners, carry out constitutional reform, open up election restrictions, abolish serfdom, confiscate the fiefs of the nobility and distribute the land to the serfs, abolish press censorship...

The situation had reached the brink of collapse. The Vienna government could not possibly agree to these terms, as it would mean the destruction of the Empire.

History had changed. At this time, the bourgeoisie could no longer be satisfied with ordinary reforms; they wanted to seize the power of the country in order to survive the crisis.

To achieve this goal, they no longer cared about the future of Austria. Patriots were being used by conspirators, who had never considered the consequences of such actions.

The common people were even less discerning, with most of them just blindly following the crowd. Even more workers participated in this march because they were being paid.

That's right, there were wages for participating in the demonstrations; otherwise, the revolution would not have had the capability to organize so many people in such a short time.

If not for the cooperation of the capitalists, in an era where communication relied entirely on shouting, trying to indoctrinate these hundred thousand people would have been impossible for those few dozen revolutionaries, even if they had been given a month.

It was unclear who had shouted "Metternich, get out," but the cry spread rapidly, and thousands upon thousands of people began to chant in unison:

"Metternich, get out!"

"Metternich, get out!"

By this time, the situation had spiraled out of control. The elderly Prime Minister Metternich stood there, his face deathly pale, stripped of his former grandeur.