Chapter 1858: Who Approves, Who Opposes

Tick-tock, tick-tock...

The expression of the Councilor who had proposed the motion was frozen forever in that instant.

The Councilors watched the smile on Weikeduo's face, trembling like cicadas in late autumn, their bodies unable to stop shaking.

Now, all the guards in Austria were under the jurisdiction of Weikeduo.

Directly controlling the Councilors—this was a mutiny!

But they dared not say it.

With their lives now held in someone else's hands, who would dare to spout nonsense there?

Even that Councilor who held a portion of military power was shaking like chaff at this moment; although he held military power, he had never been to the battlefield like Weikeduo.

It was military power inherited from his father's generation; what kind of backbone of a soldier did he have!

Weikeduo tapped the table again and said indifferently, "Who opposes, who approves?"

This voice pulled the Councilors' thoughts back to reality, remembering what Weikeduo had said earlier: Grand Duke Theresa had ordered him to take over the government.

It was unknown whether this statement was true.

But even if it were false, so what? Did they dare to risk their lives?

Wasn't that Councilor the most direct outcome?

The Councilors wore bitter smiles, and a fence-sitting Councilor with military power said, "I approve. He colluded with the Lorraine Family and his crimes are unforgivable; he deserved to die. General Weikeduo, you handled it excellently."

"Grand Duke Theresa handed the government to you, and I am the first to submit."

This scene fell into the eyes of the Councilors in silence, seeing that this Councilor who had jumped the highest before had completely surrendered.

He was even licking around like a loyal dog.

Begging to save his life.

Although the other Councilors were unhappy, they still echoed, "Approve, I also approve..."

Weikeduo watched this scene coldly, a sneer rising in his heart; he had only revealed a small method, and these people were swaying with the wind like grass on a wall.

Weikeduo felt a trace of sadness; although the country now practiced a Constitutional Monarchy, and although the entire policy had led the whole country to prosperity.

It had also exposed a drawback: the Upper House was now controlled by Nobles, and many motions proposed were merely to satisfy the selfish desires of a certain family.

Moreover, these current Councilors all had the potential to be fence-sitters, completely lacking any thought for the country.

These vermin, it was a pity that he was old and had no way to wipe these vermin out; this problem would have to be left to

Theresa.

Thinking of this, Weikeduo said, "Since everyone approves, guards, carry this corpse out and throw it to the Lorraine Family."

"Tell them, when they break through Prussia, then we can talk about other things. As for Grand Duke Theresa's marriage, I, as her grandfather, have spoken; if they bring it up again..."

Weikeduo's eyes were filled with murderous intent; for a moment, everyone felt as if they saw the old general who had slaughtered countless people on the battlefield return.

"Don't blame me for exterminating their entire family!"

Once he spoke, the entire room seemed to be filled with killing intent, and the Councilors felt an invisible, suffocating sense of impending death.

The Councilors stared at Weikeduo's figure, their eyes filled with horror; was this that former Austrian War God?

Terrifying!

"Alright, other matters are finished; next, we should talk about the Longyan matter." Weikeduo spoke plainly.

The killing intent filling the room vanished instantly, but it remained like a haze, always hanging over everyone's heart.

They gasped, looking at the somewhat hunched old man.

"General Weikeduo, whatever you say to do, we will do. We will absolutely not say half a word that shouldn't be said."

Weikeduo laughed once. Theresa, you were right to leave; such an Upper House simply cannot play the role you want.

It is even somewhat of a burden.

However, for Weikeduo, this was a good thing; he could stretch his hands and feet and focus entirely on dealing with Longyan.

Originally, he just wanted to lure the enemy into the trap, but he didn't expect that Longyan was about to chisel through the trap; if he continued to let Longyan go on like this, it would be ruined.

Weikeduo recalled the military report sent by his ally, France; the news was absolutely reliable—Longyan did not have that much grain and fodder.

Starting a great war now was not a good thing for Longyan, as it meant further consumption of grain and fodder, which was difficult to maintain.

But as long as he delayed a little, the Longyan army would definitely be defeated due to a lack of grain and fodder; however, his side would likely be beaten by the dying Longyan army to the point of being unable to recover its vitality.

This kind of mutually destructive situation was something Weikeduo absolutely did not want to see.

If he was not mistaken, the purpose of the Longyan army this time was to force his Austrian Army to withdraw from Prussia.

So as to let Prussia catch its breath.

Thinking

of this, Weikeduo narrowed his eyes slightly; although he had thought of this layer, he could not figure out why Longyan had to adopt this method to force them, Austria, to withdraw their troops.

This move was very effective; if it were any other general, perhaps under assessment, the first choice would definitely be to protect the capital of Austria, Vienna.

What exactly was Longyan's purpose in forcing Austria to withdraw its troops?

They clearly had better methods, such as attacking Austria's neighbors; they were also besieging Prussia, and attacking them was much easier than attacking him.

They wouldn't even need to expend much effort; not only could they solve the problem of Prussia, but they could also gain a large piece of territory, but why did Longyan not choose to do so?

Instead, they had to force Austria to withdraw its troops?

Weikeduo frowned and said, "Bring me the military reports on the recent European war situation."

Weikeduo flipped through the military reports; they were unremarkable. Although wars had been frequent these days, there was nothing particularly eye-catching.

The most significant thing was that Poland had been partitioned by Prussia, Tsarist Russia, and the Ottoman Empire.

Poland was partitioned...

Weikeduo murmured, "Poland was partitioned by Prussia, Tsarist Russia, and the Ottoman Empire..."

A sharp glint suddenly appeared in his eyes; thinking of a possibility, he immediately revealed a smile.

"A fine move, feinting to the east while attacking in the west," Weikeduo chuckled in a low voice.

The countries partitioning Poland consist of one that is Longyan's greatest adversary and two that are Longyan's allies.

"No wonder they wanted to force Austria to withdraw its troops," Weikeduo thought, grasping the crux of the issue.

Prussia is now in imminent danger, with vast swathes of its territory already annexed; marching into Poland was originally a brilliant strategic move.

But he had not expected Tsarist Russia's interception to leave Prussia in such a desperate, besieged predicament.

No wonder Longyan is forcing Austria to withdraw its troops; it turns out it is because of Prussia's current situation, as the strongest force besieging Prussia is none other than Austria itself.

Austria must withdraw its troops, and since the Austrian forces are currently positioned near Poland, if Austria were to attack Poland, it would inevitably destroy Prussia's influence there.

If successful, it could even tear Prussia in two.

"Councilors, I propose a military motion: Austria shall aid the Polish government-in-exile to counterattack Prussia. What are your thoughts on this?"