Vienna Conference and Bottomless Pit

In a sense, the refugee crisis had also accelerated the Prusso-Russian War. After replenishing his forces, Moltke hastily launched a counteroffensive.

There was no other choice. If they did not fight now, they would be even less capable of fighting later. They had originally hoped the refugees would slow the Russians' advance, but instead, this trouble had followed them all the way back.

The Russians had not launched an immediate offensive. Aside from needing to rest and reorganize their troops, they were even more constrained by logistics. Ivanov was a cautious commander; unless supplies were in place, he would never agree to a decisive battle ahead of schedule.

No matter how the Berlin Government mobilized, population had already set the upper limit. After losing most of its territory, the Kingdom of Prussia had only a little over ten million people left. Everyone strong enough to carry a rifle had gone to the battlefield.

They simply could not compare with the Russians in this regard. The longer the war dragged on, the more favorable it became for Russia.

Of course, that was only militarily. Economically, the Tsarist Government could not hold on either. If Ivanov had not insisted so firmly, the Russian Army would have launched its offensive long ago.

Naturally, these inside details were beyond Moltke's knowledge. Even if he had known, it would have made no practical difference. They still had to fight.

The government having no money did not mean money truly could not be found. At a critical moment, robbing Peter to pay Paul could still serve as an emergency measure.

The Russian Empire had deep reserves. So long as it was willing to pay the price, it could still scrape together several months' worth of war funds.

Moltke's efforts had not been wasted. The Prussian Army