Chapter 5
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Chapter 5: Prelude
“I heard she went to sleep.”
“Lieutenant General Catherine never misses a day of sleep.”
“Are you still talking back?”
Anna was very angry, extremely angry. She paced back and forth in her office, while the Chief of the Royal Affairs Department, Freeman, lowered his head in reflection.
“I heard she slept with the prince regent, didn’t I tell you to stop her?”
Freeman explained, “As per your instructions, I prevented Catherine from meeting the prince regent, but Redel-Catherine Palace is Lieutenant General Catherine’s hereditary domain. I cannot prevent a lord from entering her own domain.”
Anna suddenly remembered another matter and asked Freeman if it had been taken care of properly.
Freeman replied that the letters received earlier had been burned. If the prince regent asked about it later, the blame could be shifted to the former Chief of the Royal Affairs Department. But what about the letters received after Catherine left?
“Some were put in the ‘read and not replied’ box, some were put in the ‘awaiting approval’ box, some were burned and reported lost. In any case, a letter from that person should not reach the prince regent,” Anna said very seriously.
After sorting out their private matters, Anna and the other person started working together officially. They were no longer like a boss and employee, but more like the Chief Secretary of Foreign Affairs and the Director of Royal Affairs.
First, there was the Schleswig War. Prussia sent secret military advisors and provided lots of weapons to support the local people in Germany against Denmark. At first, they were losing, but later Austria also began secretly supporting them. Both Prussia and Austria helped in the Schleswig war, causing a lot of trouble for Denmark. The proxy war was proving effective.
Next came the political storm in England. Queen Victoria was facing difficulties with her power struggle, mainly because Emperor Napoleon III was supporting the Duke and Duchess of Kent. If France was causing trouble, Prussia had to increase its support for Queen Victoria.
Lastly, there was turmoil in Austria. Liberal ideas had been gaining momentum in Austria over recent years. The Austrian Prime Minister, Metternich, was planning a major crackdown and wanted Prussia to help suppress the Liberal Revolution in Austria. Anna, Baron Schultz, the Prime Minister, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs were going to Vienna to discuss how Prussia and Austria could crush the liberal movement.
The situation in Austria was still unclear, and Anna wasn’t ready to draw conclusions yet. Her trip to Vienna was to gather information and hope that the prince regent back home could decide on a strategy quickly.
“Tell the prince regent about these matters and ask him to think carefully. I am getting ready to depart.”
“Yes, Mrs. Bismarck.”
The scene changed to the prince regent’s office.
Freeman explained everything to Leader One, who listened quietly and seemed lost in thought. Amongst all the other issues, the main concern was Austria.
In the early 19th century, the liberal faction was indeed powerful, but now it is only the end of 1838, the liberal movement has not yet reached its peak intensity, but based on the message relayed by Anna…
The Austrian Prime Minister is planning a large-scale purge, which indicates a high level of liberalism awakening within Austria.
Due to various changes, Blue Star has advanced many historical events on Earth, so the 1848 revolution in Earth’s history may also happen sooner…
When oppression worsens, resistance grows stronger.
The feudal reactionary forces on Blue Star are more intense than on Earth, initially the cruel strategy of bloodshed is effective, but as time passes, there are more ways to access knowledge, the cost of gaining knowledge reduces, and the oppressed people gradually become smarter… Simply put, the people will eventually awaken and will definitely resist.
We will have to wait for the visiting team to return to know the specific situation in Austria, Leader One needs to focus on domestic issues now. If the 1848 revolution really happens ahead of time, it will trigger too many chain reactions.
Prussia is in a period of rapid development, once turmoil erupts, it will be disastrous. Leader One doesn’t want them to have unrest, and… to be honest, Leader One can be considered the least reactionary monarch in the entire feudal world, Prussia’s treatment of its people is the best in all of Europe and even the world.
Prussian workers work seven days a week, around 14 hours from Monday to Saturday, and only need to work ten hours on Sundays. Look at other places in the world, who else has such good treatment.
Under Leader One’s leadership, Prussia enacted the world’s first workers’ rights protection law and child protection law in human history.
The factory must have lights, even though most factory owners just use torches or candles.
The factory must have ventilation equipment, even though most just have a small fan.
Factory owners must provide medical insurance for workers in high-risk industries, even though this led to a slight decrease in worker wages. For example, before the “Prussian Workers’ Rights Protection Act,” workers earned 10 silver coins a month with insurance costing 0.5 coins. After the law, wages decreased to 9.5 coins.
This law provides many protections for workers, even though many are not effectively implemented. Some just barely meet the legal requirements, greatly reducing the impact.
Undoubtedly, this is a revolutionary progress as other countries lack similar laws and worker protections. The Prussian Ministry of Industry predicts that workers in our country will live 5-8 years longer on average, even though… perhaps not for much longer.
Leader One is not only compassionate towards workers, but also towards every social group within the country. Compared with other nations, his actions are almost saintly.
Will the revolution impact Prussia significantly?
Yes, it will.
Leader One urgently summoned the Minister of Interior, inquiring about the stability within Prussia.
“Oh, in our country, there’s been very few violent protests since you took office. Most of the time, the protests have been peaceful and rarely caused harm to society, infrastructure, or the military and police.”
“Comparatively, this year Austria had 702 riots of all sizes, Russia had over 500, and England and France had more than 50 each. Italy is very chaotic with ongoing wars that are hard to count.”
According to the Minister of Interior, Leader One’s achievements are remarkable, as Prussia remained stable and peaceful while the rest of the world was in turmoil.
However, there have been over 200 peaceful protests in Prussia this year.
The people of Prussia have many demands, including more political rights and wanting more from Prince Regent despite his generosity.
The liberal movement in Prussia is growing, and while they haven’t resorted to violence yet, a major revolution is sure to impact Prussia.
“Minister of Interior, you may leave, Freeman! Bring Ron Moltke, Hans, and Catherine to me!”
Translator: Book 4 has been translated and published on Amazon (https://amzn.to/4fN7UYB);
