Holy Roman Empire

With the departure of Prime Minister Felix, the political scene in Austria also faced a reshuffle, and Franz appointed Finance Minister Karl as Prime Minister.

In fact, this was just an interim appointment. Carl-Ludwig Von Bruck was born during the Anti-French War, only seven or eight years younger than Felix.

Against the backdrop where stability was paramount, Franz didn’t make any fuss. It was completely in accord with the government’s operational rules that the Prime Minister resigned in advance and the second-ranked Finance Minister stepped up. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

The Cabinet reshuffle would have to wait until the end of the term, which would be in 1889. In terms of timing, Karl’s term as interim Prime Minister was not short.

By the time this term ended, Karl would also be nearing the age of retirement, conveniently making room for his successor.

Austria did not undergo any significant changes in its political reshuffle, and the transition of power was carried out very smoothly, which disappointed many people.

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Paris, Napoleon IV, who was closely monitoring the situation in Austria, was one of the disappointed ones.

Whether they liked it or not, France and Austria had become each other’s biggest competitors on the European continent.

Although both governments maintained restraint on the surface, in secret, neither country spared the other from backstabbing manoeuvres.

Especially after the Paris revolution, the weakened France gradually fell behind in the international competition.

In order to stabilize the situation, the Paris Government was forced into a strategic defensive phase, intensifying Napoleon IV’s resentment towards Austria.

Though he enjoyed watching the tumult, he was still incapable of interfering with the power shift in Austria.

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"Your Majesty, good news!"

The voice arrived before the person did, echoing from tens of meters away. Seeing the delighted Foreign Minister, Napoleon IV’s sullen mood also dissipated considerably.

"Let’s hear it, what’s the good news?"

Foreign Minister Terence Burkin handed Napoleon IV a thin file and gleefully replied, "The Annam War is over.

We’ve got everything we wanted at the negotiation table. This is the contract sent back by the Envoy in the Far East."

Hearing this, Napoleon IV understood why Terence Burkin was so excited.

What wasn’t obtained on the battlefield was acquired at the negotiation table, an absolute miracle in diplomatic history.

With this achievement, Terence Burkin was fully qualified to compete for the next Prime Minister of France.

This was the change after the Paris revolution. Napoleon IV needed a figure to buffer the contradictions and, after some internal struggle, decided to restore the Premiership system.

Having reviewed the contract, Napoleon IV said, "This is indeed good news. The Foreign Ministry has done an outstanding job!"

It was a sincere compliment; the gains in the treaty far exceeded his expectations. Initially, he had only sought to end the war with dignity.

Ever since the Paris revolution, the large and prosperous France had begun to decline, and multiple far-flung expeditions had exceeded the French government’s capacity.

The importance of Annan couldn’t compare to that of Egypt. From the moment negotiations began, the French government had already decided to temporarily abandon the plan to annex Annan.

The world is so wonderful when something you yearn for is unattainable, but when you decide to give up, it comes back. Experience tales at empire

However, joyous times are always fleeting. Just as everyone was celebrating, Army Minister Luskinia Hafiz arrived with a grim face to report, "I’m sorry to interrupt the good mood, everyone.

News just came in from Egypt, Governor Adolf, leading the Rebellion Suppression Army, finally defeated the rebel army’s main force in the Aswan Region after enduring great hardship two days ago."

Defeating the main force of the rebel army was clearly good news. The crowd was bewildered, looking at Luskinia Hafiz and waiting for the rest of the story.

"However, at the moment of victory, the despicable enemy destroyed the upstream dam. Under the onslaught of the flood, the Rebellion Suppression Army suffered heavy losses."

The faces that heard this news were not pretty, ranging from angry to baffled...

After a moment to process this grave news, Napoleon IV inquired, "How extensive are the losses?"

Army Minister Luskinia Hafiz, with a gloomy face, pressed his voice to the lowest as he answered, "As of yesterday afternoon, of the nearly forty thousand men of the Rebellion Suppression Army, less than six thousand soldiers have returned to the ranks, and two-thirds of them are Egyptians.

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Governor Adolf estimated that the final number of troops and officers who could return to the ranks would be around ten thousand, with regular forces numbering over four thousand.

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The army’s carried supplies were almost entirely lost, with more than 80 percent of weapons and equipment destroyed, especially the artillery which was all lost.

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To avoid unnecessary losses, Governor Adolf was currently leading the troops to retreat back to Cairo.

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Egypt is now in its most dangerous moment, and the Colonial Government hopes for reinforcements from the homeland."

There was no choice, no one could have known that the Rebel army would even betray its own people. The main forces were engaging in a decisive battle with the French when the dam upstream was blown up.

In this day and age, without wireless telegraphy, and the Rebel army lacking the capability to install wired telegraphy or telephone, they encountered a flood immediately after the battle ended.

Based on the timing, the Rebel army must have destroyed the dam while the battle was still ongoing. This meant from the outset, the main Rebel forces present on the battlefield were all expendables.

More heartbreakingly, the "Aswan Dam" was funded and constructed by the French government.

Egypt is a crucial part of France’s large-scale African development, built to protect the downstream areas from floods and to preserve the Delta’s fertile regions.

In 1875, after the French government decided to restart the African development program, one of the first projects initiated included the Aswan Dam, which was 23 years earlier than when the British built it in the original timeline.

An angry Napoleon IV tore up the documents and roared, "Why fall for a trick, is Adolf’s brain full of shit?"

As an experienced military leader, he should not have neglected the upstream dam; under normal circumstances, even while marching, there should have been cautiousness.

Army Minister Luskinia Hafiz tentatively explained, with a heavy heart, "The Colonial Government indeed received a message beforehand that the Rebel army was planning to use a water attack.

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However, it wasn’t about destroying the Aswan Dam but was planned to be in the downstream Isna area, intending to blow up a mountaintop barrage to cut off the river and redirect the flow of the Nile to strike the Delta downstream.

In fact, there’s a distance between the Aswan Dam and the Delta, and as it is not the flood season right now, destroying it would have limited impact on downstream areas.

If it wasn’t for the fact that the chosen battle site for the Rebel army was situated in a low-lying area, luring the Rebellion Suppression Army to fight there, even if the dam were destroyed, it wouldn’t have resulted in such significant losses for us.

According to information sent back from the front lines, the losses of the Rebel army are at least three times ours, but no one could have known that the Rebel army would use its main forces as bait, so…"

Army Minister Luskinia Hafiz understood Governor Adolf, this was more than a desperate ploy, the enemy was clearly a madman.

In an era of difficult communication, using the main force as bait could backfire massively. If the French hadn’t taken the bait and the upstream dam had been destroyed, a tactic intending mutual destruction would have turned into a one-sided suicide mission.

There are no hypotheticals in reality; even though the Rebel army may have suffered greater numbers in losses, they still achieved a strategic victory.

The Rebellion Suppression Army suffered heavy casualties, and the Egypt Area is currently incapable of organizing a second Rebellion Suppression Army in a short time, only being able to wait for reinforcements from the homeland.

For at least half a month, the Rebel army will be able to expand its territory uncontested and incite even more people to join the uprising.

With this victory, the Rebel army has earned sufficient regard from the two financial backers behind them to receive more substantial support.

Napoleon IV interrupted, "No more excuses, regardless of the reasons, failure is failure.

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"Since when has the French Army fallen so low as to make excuses for defeat?"

Confronted with the enraged Emperor, Luskinia Hafiz judiciously chose to agree wholeheartedly. Deep down, he had already mourned for Governor Adolf.

In this situation, escaping unscathed would be nothing short of divine providence. If it weren’t for the fact that changing commanders on the eve of battle was a grave military taboo, Adolf would now be on his way home to face a military tribunal.

After calming down a bit, Napoleon IV slowly said, "The Army Department will redraw the plans for the suppression of the rebellion, I do not wish to hear news of failure again.

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Remember to select capable leaders from the homeland to take charge of the situation in Egypt, there is no need for idiots like Adolf to go."

A defeated general is still a defeated general, no amount of reasons can cover up the fact of defeat.

Holding back from immediately holding Governor Adolf responsible was already Napoleon IV considering the bigger picture.

Army Minister Luskinia Hafiz promptly assured, "Your Majesty, please be assured. This time the Army Department will be careful in its selection, there absolutely won’t be any more problems."

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