"Am I not treating them well? Germany almost lent them a loan of 300 million marks."
Kaiser Wilhelm II asked Prime Minister Bernhard in front of him with an angry look.
The prime minister who was asked actually thought that this was nothing. In a country eager to develop industry, who would refuse to give itself low-interest loans? Everyone talks about interests between countries, but who talks about feelings. Now it's just the emperor's own face.
Only when you feel sorry will you vent. After all, William II had previously asked the General Staff to add the Romanian army to the war plan. Unexpectedly, something went wrong in what was a sure thing. Of course, the Prime Minister would not say what was in his heart.
After thinking for a moment, Prime Minister Bernhard expressed his opinion. "Your Majesty, it's not that you are too good to Romania, but that you are too good to them."
After hearing the Prime Minister's words, William II thought in his heart that this was indeed the case. The Kaiser rarely refused Romania's requests. In this regard, Edel understood the Kaiser (this is what future generations must understand when writing about Germany)
On the other hand, it was also related to his cognition, because he believed that Romania was already a cooked duck and could not fly. Who knew that such a situation would happen again, and as a result, the Kaiser was a little embarrassed about his face.
"Should we take some action against Romania?" William II said to himself.
The Kaiser's words were heard by Bernhard, and the Prime Minister hurriedly persuaded the Kaiser. "Your Majesty, after all, Romania is just a loan. There is no need for us to have a stalemate with them. This is not good for either of us."
After hearing what the Prime Minister said, Wilhelm II calmed down. He knew that he had just spoken out of anger. If he made small moves against Romania because of the loans from Britain, France and Russia, then he would not be the Kaiser who had controlled the power of Germany for more than 20 years. Before the Prime Minister
After being dissuaded, William II thought about it carefully, and for the sake of the overall situation, there was really nothing he could do about Romania. Finally, when he saw the telegram on his desk, he said angrily: "Send a reprimanding telegram to the ambassador to Romania and ask him what he is doing in Romania."
What are you doing?"
"Your Majesty, I will ask the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to send this reprimand telegram shortly."
For the Prime Minister who has many things to do, it is not a big deal if an ambassador is scolded. At most, he will just change the ambassador, so he agreed simply.
This is really terrible news for the Ambassador to Romania, Baslob. He has worked hard enough. He is just an ambassador and cannot control the Romanian government. How can we blame him for this? But
Seeing the telegram from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the Kaiser had reprimanded him, he did not dare to defend himself. He was a nobody and could only take the blame for the disaster. However, the news that he had been reprimanded by the Kaiser also spread to the embassy, and he was
Someone who was interested listened and listened.
Edel quickly received the news that the German ambassador had been reprimanded in the palace. He did not care about the poor ambassador, but was concerned about why the Kaiser reprimanded the ambassador.
"There is no news from Germany this time. They just reprimanded the ambassador, which shows that our actions are within their tolerance. This is good news for us." Edel, who was sitting on a chair, said to the captain of the guard who sent the news.
own judgment.
"Your Highness, will this have too great an impact on Romania?" the head guard asked, a little worried.
Carlust asked this because Germany currently has the largest amount of investment in Romania, accounting for 47% of Romania's foreign investment. Adding the proportion of Austria-Hungary's investment, the Allies account for two-thirds of Romania's foreign investment. If Germany uses divestment as a warning, then
Romania's economy will be very uncomfortable, which will drag down Romania's development momentum for several years.
"Didn't you just rebuke the ambassador?" Edel explained to his captain of the bodyguard calmly.
In Eder's eyes, he had to break ties with Germany if necessary. Joining the Allies in World War I was not within his scope, and Romania could not act as a decisive force to change the situation.
The British-German naval competition is now fierce. The British Royal Navy has just received parliamentary approval for the budget to build four Iron Duke-class "super-dreadnoughts" and one battlecruiser. Germany immediately followed up and started building three König-class ships with a standard displacement of 25,796 tons.
Battleships. According to the current situation, the trend along the historical trajectory is very large, which makes the crown prince even more afraid to bet on Germany.
While Edel looked at the current European situation from the memory of later generations, the Prime Minister analyzed the situation using previous cases. In the Prime Minister's Office, Prime Minister Bretianu also discussed Germany's reaction with his cousin in his office. Although he was more
He is close to Britain and France, but as Romania's prime minister, his first concern is Romania's interests.
"Germany did not react to our actions this time, which means it is still within the tolerance range. However, try not to irritate German emotions during this period. Just let them think Romania is like a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy."
After hearing what his cousin Bretianu said, Ventiler asked doubtfully, "But we have just signed a loan agreement with the governments of Britain, France, and Russia. Is this okay?"
"They are not innocent in this loan. They are doing this for Romania." Prime Minister Bretianu explained to his cousin. Seeing Ventiler who was still a little unwilling, he continued. "Now the domestic economy is
We still need help from Germany, and during this period we cannot take any actions that will affect the relationship between the two parties too much."
"I know this, but the smell of gunpowder in Europe is too strong now. I'm afraid that Romania will be forced to get involved, which will be unbearable for the country." Ventiller expressed his worries.
The current competition between the major powers has led most politicians to believe that a war is inevitable. Now the military expenditures of each major power are more than 30% of fiscal revenue, and Romania's military reorganization has not reached their level. Such high military investment plus
The rising antagonism between countries cannot wake everyone up without going through a war. As a small country, Romania has no choice but to be cannon fodder no matter which side it takes, which is why Ventiler is anxious.
"Wintile, you are too anxious. Although most people in the country have a favorable impression of Germany, the decision-making power does not rest with them." Prime Minister Bretianu persuaded his cousin.
After hearing what his cousin said, Wen Tile sighed and said, "I hope I am too worried."
After finishing speaking, Wendile walked out of the room. Seeing his cousin leave, Bretianu closed the door and lay on the sofa exhausted. Before he became the Prime Minister, he always thought that this was someone that everyone envied.
After becoming Prime Minister, he found that many unsatisfactory things were waiting for him.
Looking back on the position of prime minister now, Bratianu was secretly sad. From the beginning of the kingdom when his uncle was the prime minister, the king needed the approval of the prime minister to make decisions. When he became the prime minister, he also needed the approval of the royal family to do things.
Frustrated. In recent years, the royal family has gradually taken back its power. Especially in recent years, the royal family has increased its investment in industry. Now, half of the large and well-developed enterprises in Romania are owned by the royal family. Among them, former Prime Minister Stuart
Bearing the main responsibility, if he had not obeyed the royal family, it would not be like this. Prime Minister Bretianu has not told anyone about this hidden thought in his heart, including his cousin Ventiler and his own family.
