Holy Roman Empire

The Prussian Army was in action, and the Russian Army was not idle either. Perhaps learning from the lessons of the last war, the Russians were much more cautious this time.

No matter how the Prussian Army attacked, they were fixated on Smolensk; other regions relied on previously constructed fortifications for defense.

From the standpoint of an observer, the Russians were a bit conservative in their strategy, but it has to be admitted that this was the safest option.

Smolensk is the gateway to Moscow; without taking this place, the Russian Army simply cannot rest assured and advance to the west.

Those who have studied the Prussian Army know that they prefer to concentrate their superior forces in a local battlefield for a decisive battle; they excel in outflanking maneuver, rapid breakthroughs, external line operations, and quick resolutions.

In the last war, the Russians suffered heavy losses, so naturally, they had to learn from their mistakes.

Steady and firm actions are undoubtedly the best choice. By concentrating forces in one direction for a key offensive and relying on fortifications for defense in other regions, the Prussian Army, even with concentrated superior forces, would find it hard to break through in a short time.

Defense is always more advantageous than offense; with bunker fortresses as support, without an advantage of two or three times the strength, it’s practically impossible to breach under normal circumstances.

Inside the Vienna Palace, Franz furrowed his brows as he looked at the Russian military deployment map. The Russians had stabilized their position, but what about the Prusso Federation?

A battle of equal strength was what Franz wanted to see. Now, the Russian Army’s tactics lack any technical content and are fully engaged in a war of attrition with the Prusso Federation.

"Albrecht, if you were in Maoqi’s position, how would you fight this war?"

After a brief contemplation, Albrecht picked up a command baton and pointed on the map: "Here is Smolensk, located in the middle of the Eastern European plain, and militarily regarded as the gateway to Moscow.

In recent years, Prussia and Russia have built many defensive works along the border. Smolensk, in particular, is crowded with bunker fortresses.

If I were in charge, since the Russians want to attack Smolensk, I would simply defend in place and use the fortress works to exhaust the Russian Army’s strength.

The Russians are defending other areas, and the Prussian Army can do the same. Winter is coming soon anyway; even if a breakthrough is achieved now, it wouldn’t be possible to expand the victory.

The issue of a decisive battle can completely be delayed until next spring when muddy roads will become the Russian Army’s biggest adversary in movement."

After a pause, Albrecht added: "Actually, apart from the army, the navy can also be considered.

In recent years, constrained by financial resources, the Russians have neglected their navy. Although the navy of the Prusso Federation isn’t great either, they can seek help from England and France.

Purchasing or leasing a fleet and directly raiding St. Petersburg – if lucky, the war could end within the year.

Even if the Tsarist Government isn’t captured, it doesn’t matter. With the capital lost, the front-line Russian Army would definitely be shaken.

To recover from the failure, the Tsarist Government might even alter its previous strategy, ordering the front-line Russian Army to come out for a decisive battle, and the opportunity would naturally arise."

Franz was taken aback, suddenly realizing there was such an obvious flaw in the Russian’s side, he couldn’t help but be surprised.

Calming down, Franz shook his head: "Maoqi would not do this, and neither would the Junker nobles allow the glory of defeating the Russians to be handed to the navy.

An attack on St. Petersburg requires close coordination between the army and navy. The Prussian Army has not undergone landing training; if coordination is poor, this plan simply cannot be realized.

Moreover, purchasing a fleet would be such a large movement that keeping it secret would also be difficult. Even if England and France cooperate as much as possible, entering the Baltic Sea would expose them, unless England and France send troops personally."

The dispute between land and sea is an unavoidable topic. Although the army holds an absolute advantage in the Prusso Federation, the navy also has its supporters.

In the last wave of colonial expansion at the end of the fifties, Prussia also triggered a naval development trend and even built its own ironclad ships, establishing a colony on the Indochina Peninsula.

If it weren’t for the army taking the initiative to start the Second Prussia-Denmark War, which led to the situation spiraling out of control, perhaps the Kingdom of Prussia might have become a new colonial empire.

Even now, Prussia’s industrial and commercial sectors are still supporters of the navy. It’s too late to carve up colonies, but our overseas investments still need protection!

International trade is difficult these days; without a strong navy to back you up, everything is challenging. Even pirates pick their targets based on who’s behind them.

If one were to carefully calculate, it would be found that landlocked federations like the Prusso-Polish Federation have ships suffering mishaps overseas at several times the rate of naval powers.

The capitalists’ losses don’t concern the Junker nobility—whose core interests lie in their land. If it weren’t for the pressure from the Russians, they would even oppose the establishment of the Prusso-Polish Federation.

To prevent agricultural products from the Polish Region from impacting the domestic market, the Prusso-Polish Federation still maintains tariffs within its borders.

In this context, unless absolutely necessary, Maoqi, as a representative of Junker interests, would definitely not sacrifice class interests.

As for England and France personally sending troops, that’s wishful thinking. They support the Prusso-Polish Federation, true, but that doesn’t mean they want to see the Russians fail immediately—at least the French only wish to see the Federation win miserably.

Albrecht nodded, "Indeed, once the navy becomes the key to winning this war, it’ll be difficult to suppress their development afterward.

The strength of the Prusso-Polish Federation is still insufficient. It’s impossible to maintain a world-class army and build a great navy at the same time."

This problem is not unique to the Federation; even Austria shares similar concerns.

Maintaining both a world-class army and navy is a strain even for Austria. The annual disputes in the Vienna Government’s budget are the best proof of this.

It’s normal not to guess Maoqi’s moves. Albrecht is just the chief of staff of Austria; his understanding of the Prusso-Polish Federation is limited, and inevitably his judgments are influenced by Austrian military thought.

In fact, each country’s military thought differs, often influenced by its national power. Different countries’ military tactics also differ.

There are no right or wrong tactics, only what is suitable and what is not. What seems perfect now may be outdated in a few years; what seems like a fantasy now may become mainstream in a few years.

With the evolution of the times, this situation will occur more and more frequently.

Franz asked nonchalantly, "Hmm, let’s put this issue aside for now; time will reveal the answer soon enough.

Let’s talk about overseas matters. How is the war in South America progressing, and are the British up to something again?"

Based on his understanding of the British, if the London Government doesn’t take advantage while England and France are focused on Europe, it wouldn’t be characteristic of John Bull.

Foreign Minister Weisenberg, "Yes, Your Majesty. According to the intelligence we have collected, the second squadron of the British Pacific Fleet is on its way there.

If all goes as expected, there’s a high probability they are intending to blockade the coastal regions of Peru and Bolivia to create an opportunity for Chile to win the war."

Hearing this news, Franz was quite irritated, yet he was also powerless. Unless France and Austria intervened together, there was no stopping the British actions.

In this era, Bolivia and Peru, apart from their land area, were truly tiny nations. The combined economies of both countries didn’t even amount to half of Vienna.

For such small interests, expecting a joint effort from France and Austria was undoubtedly a pipe dream.

Europe is the center of the world at this time. If intervention in South America led to a dispersion of powers that caused the situation in Europe to spiral out of control, that would be a tragedy.

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After hesitating for a moment, Franz made a reluctant decision: "Our strength in the South American region is limited. Without domestic support, it is difficult to compete with the British.

For the time being, let’s abandon our positioning in South America. As long as it doesn’t directly harm our interests, let the British do as they please!"

…

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