Holy Roman Empire

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The shifting fortunes on the Prussian-Russian battlefield directly impacted the European financial markets, which became panic-stricken. All the war bonds issued by the Prusso Federation plummeted in market value.

Anyone with a bit of common sense knew that if Maoqi couldn’t turn the tide in the upcoming battles, a Prusso Federation defeat would inevitably lead to a default on their debts.

A financial winter was coming.

Prime Minister Benjamin, far away in London, felt the chill.

Sometimes, being saddled with too much debt isn’t really a burden. Those fearing the collapse of the Prusso Federation the most were none other than the British themselves, aside from the Federation.

The more information he held in his hands, the clearer Prime Minister Benjamin saw the seriousness of the issue.

A defeat for the Prusso Federation wouldn’t just mean loans turning into bad debt and bonds turning into worthless paper, the key issue was the trade payables owed by the Berlin Government.

The earlier losses were mostly borne by financial institutions and speculators, who themselves were wealthy and had a strong capacity to absorb risks.

The trade payables, on the other hand, were a different story. Large corporations might weather the storm, but small and medium-sized enterprises, with their fragile financial chains, simply couldn’t withstand the turmoil.

If banks were to exploit the situation, the day the Prusso Federation collapsed would mark the beginning of Britain’s industrial crisis.

The actual situation could be even worse. After all, the capitalist world was already experiencing overcapacity. Post-war market competition would become fiercer, and a wave of corporate bankruptcies was inevitable.

For a great power like Britain, these small and medium-sized enterprises might not account for a high proportion of the economic structure, but they provided the majority of jobs.

A wave of bankruptcies and unemployment are inseparable companions. An unprecedented economic crisis was brewing in Britain.

Sometimes, knowing too much is also a burden.

Benjamin asked, "Sir Edward, what did the French say?"

To reverse this war was no longer something the British could do alone; the stance of the French was crucial.

Foreign Minister Edward shook his head, "The Paris Government rejected our proposal. They believe that the Prusso-Russian conflict is irreconcilable and that even if this war is forcibly halted, another war would soon follow.

The French hedged their bets in this war. A Prusso Federation defeat wouldn’t incur significant losses for them; they might even have reached a secret agreement with the Russians."

Prime Minister Benjamin helplessly nodded, aware of the longstanding grudges between England and France. How could the French wish for anything but misfortune for the British, much less extend a helping hand?

Take this Prusso-Russian war, for example. Initially, Britain and France both supported the Berlin Government, but the British got their hands on the Prusso Federation’s gold reserves, almost monopolizing the financial gains.

It turned out that hogging all the food wasn’t such a great feast. The more they consumed, the higher the price they paid. The British undertook most of the loans and bonds from the Berlin Government.

The French chose to let go for various reasons. Apart from the meager benefits, they also required substantial capital for the development of French African territories, with the Paris Government artificially limiting capital outflow.

Even though it didn’t completely stop capitalists’ greed, the total outflow of capital was significantly reduced.

Without government guidance, this capital not only flowed into the Prusso Federation but also into the Russian Empire.

Effectively, they bet on both sides, ensuring a slice of the winnings no matter who triumphed. With lesser interests at stake, the Paris Government naturally became disengaged.

Napoleon IV was different from his father; born during the revival of France, he inherited a natural pride and would not bow to anyone.

From France’s foreign policy, it was evident that the Paris Government’s stance was increasingly assertive, and in recent years, relations between England and France, as well as France and Austria, had been deteriorating.

The British Army had limited power and was therefore both eager and unable to intervene in the war.

Now that the French refused to play the enforcer, the London Government essentially lost the capability to directly intervene in the war.

After a moment of contemplation, Prime Minister Benjamin firmly said, "Then we must resort to alternative methods. By any means necessary, we must find a way to preserve the Kingdom of Prussia. We need the debtor to exist, to provide an explanation to our people at home."

A post-defeat Kingdom of Prussia naturally wouldn’t have the capacity to repay its debts. However, as long as the debtor existed, there was a possibility of payment.

After the war, the Berlin Government’s financial resources would be limited, and for many years to come, their annual repayments might not even cover the interest.

But hope is always better than no hope. The London Government needed a sign of hope to restore the public’s confidence in the market.

Chancellor Garfield said, "Prime Minister, you are too pessimistic. Perhaps things are not as bad as you think. The Prusso Federation is still fighting.

If Maoqi creates a miracle and beats the Russians to win the battle of Warsaw, they might still have the chance to end the war with dignity."

Foreign Minister Edward countered, "Sir Garfield, that is impossible. All signs indicate that the Austrians want the Prusso Federation to lose this war, to lay the groundwork for the unity of the German Region."

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Even if Maoqi created a miracle, he still couldn’t change the fate of defeat for the Prusso-Polish Federation. With the support from Vienna, the Russian Army’s troops would keep pouring in until they finally overwhelmed them to death."

"Numerical superiority"—perhaps that was the most profound concern for European countries. The Russians had proven with facts: "As long as our army has enough numbers, the enemy is powerless."

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While the British were trying to make up for their losses, the Prussian-Russian War entered a new phase. The Fourth Russian Army had been thoroughly beaten by the Prussian Army and could only struggle to survive behind simple fortifications. Stay updated with empire

Unexpectedly, the Prussian Army did not seize the moment to completely annihilate the Fourth Russian Army. Instead, after crippling it, they left behind two infantry divisions and a bunch of militia pretending to be the main force to besiege the Russians, while the main body quickly moved north.

To avoid detection by Russian Army zeppelins, the Prussian Army, for the first time, chose to sleep during the day and march at night, quickly reinforcing the Warsaw battlefield.

On November 10, 1880, the main force of the Prussian Army arrived in Warsaw, and together with the Warsaw garrison, launched a counter-attack on the Russians. Caught off-guard, the Fifth Russian Army suffered heavy losses.

This was just the beginning. After suffering heavy casualties, the Fifth Russian Army was forced to retreat with their remnants. The Seventh Russian Army, which was each other’s flanking support, was also exposed to the edge of the Prussian Army’s blade.

It was proven that once the advantage in numbers was lost, the Russian Army was truly no match for the Prussian Army. n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

The Seventh Russian Army could not create a miracle. The warning from their comrades came too late, and they failed to retreat in time. Under the assault of the Prussian Army, they lost a third of their forces.

The Battle of Warsaw ended with a victory for the Prussian Army. However, Maoqi’s expression showed no joy, because the time that belonged to them had already slipped away.

There was no choice; the Russian Army wasn’t made of paper. Defeating the Fifth Russian Army relied on a surprise attack, which only took them two days. However, it took them a full five days to defeat the Seventh Russian Army.

In the battlefield, time is life. At this point, Russian Army’s Third and Sixth Armies were only a little more than two hundred kilometers away from them.

Theoretically, it would be possible to intercept them halfway, delay the enemy’s marching speed, and drag it out for ten days or half a month.

In such a long time, they could also go to support the southern front. For example: first to take out the enemy besieging Poznan, the Eighth Russian Army, and the Ninth Russian Army staying in the middle.

In reality, this was just not feasible. Prussian soldiers were also human; to maintain the combat effectiveness of the troops, they also needed time to recuperate after battle.

Even if they rested for only two days, Maoqi would still not have enough time.

Even though it was only 278 kilometers from Warsaw to Poznan, and a train could make the trip from morning to evening, transporting hundreds of thousands of troops would not be something that could be done in a day or two.

The troops might reach there, but that didn’t mean the war could start immediately. It also depended on whether the enemy was willing to engage in a decisive battle—they could simply delay the timing.

For instance: by finding advantageous terrain to hold their position. As long as they weren’t annihilated, the Prussian Army’s rear would be insecure. The longer the time dragged on, the more it favored the Russians.

Without waiting for them to wipe out the Eighth Russian Army, the Russian reinforcements had already arrived in Warsaw. Without the main force, Warsaw could certainly not be defended.

The fall of the Warsaw region also meant the fall of the Polish Region. At that stage, even if they had taken out the Eighth Russian Army, Maoqi would only have to retreat in disgrace and conduct a defensive battle for the Kingdom of Prussia.

If they gave up the Polish Region, the Prusso-Polish Federation would already have lost the war. Having lost most of their territory and population, what was left of the Kingdom of Prussia had even less potential for warfare; there was simply no way to keep fighting against the Russians.

With no time to deal with the threat on the southern front, they could only hope that the domestic garrison was strong enough to hold on until they could defeat the Russian reinforcements and then return to support the homeland.

The premise, of course, was that this was the last batch of Russian reinforcements; otherwise, the Warsaw siege would continue. Judging from the current situation, it was more likely that the war would go on.

Looking at the map, Maoqi felt helpless for the first time.

"Marshal, here are the battle reports compiled for your review," a young officer said softly.

Maoqi raised his head and waved his hand to indicate that the young officer should leave the battle report and go out. After a moment of silence, Maoqi calmly opened the report.

The cold numbers on the paper seemed to drop the temperature in the room by a few degrees.

War meant death. In the past month, the Prussian Army had scored glorious victories, successively crippling the Fourth, Fifth, and severely damaging the Seventh Russian Armies.

They had annihilated or captured a total of more than 430,000 enemy troops, dissolving the Russian offensive on Warsaw and creating the world-shocking "Great Victory of Warsaw."

However, behind this glory were 110,000 Prussian soldiers who had fallen forever on the battlefield, and an additional 150,000 were wounded.

These were only the casualties. In fact, their costs were far more than that, not even to mention civilian casualties which Maoqi didn’t care for, as he didn’t consider the Polish significant.

Economic losses were not his concern as a marshal, but he couldn’t ignore the expenditure on weapons, equipment, and strategic materials.

In just one month, the Prussian Army had used up half of the ammunition in their warehouses and consumed nearly a third of their strategic materials.