Chapter 24

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Chapter 24: Prime Minister Anna’s Iron Speech

Anna drew lessons from her defeated life experiences.

Diplomacy cannot get pregnant.

Oh wait, just relying on diplomacy isn’t enough to secure one’s position as the main wife.

To become a real winner, you need to be the unique person, the irreplaceable one, making unparalleled contributions to Prussia.

If Elizabeth can be queen, then why can’t others? Of course others can, there must be someone who can replace her, childbirth is not a big deal, Catherine was the first, who can’t give birth?

Anna thinks palace intrigue is too childish, her vision is narrow, go big or go home!

So she found Cabinet Secretary Schultz.

"Baron Schultz, I need you to dismiss the Prime Minister."

"Oh? I am just a humble Cabinet Secretary, a servant of the people, how do I have the right to dismiss the Prime Minister," Schultz said with a smile.

"Don’t I?" Anna asked.

"What?" asked Schultz, then he said after a while, "The current prime minister is such an excellent person, he is only seventy years old and still in his prime."

"Stop talking nonsense, let’s get straight to the point, what price are you looking for."

"Mrs. Bismarck, I must remind you that you are being too hasty. The appointment of the prime minister is decided by the prince regent, not by us humble public servants. I believe that the prince regent will choose the right prime minister at the appropriate time."

Baron Schultz did not continue talking with Anna, he came out of the Prime Minister Palace and immediately went to see the prince regent at the Redel Palace.

No one knew what the prince regent and the Cabinet Secretary discussed, even the director of the royal affairs office responsible for recording the prince regent’s actions was asked to leave the office while the two were in private discussion.

After two hours of private discussion, Schultz walked out with a smile on his face.

Anna was still too young, she hadn’t understood the core workings of the Prussian political scene, and she didn’t know the prince regent’s goals for restructuring the functional agencies.

Originally, the prince regent had been weakening the power of the civil service system, gradually transitioning real power to government officials, aiming to achieve a balance of power between government officials and civil servants in the end.

Schultz is the Cabinet Secretary, also the Chief Secretary of Parliament, the Director of the Prime Minister’s Office, the chief personal advisor to the prime minister, and the personal advisor to the king.

The prince regent wanted to gradually reduce Schultz’s power, but now, because Anna showed too aggressive an attitude, the prince regent decided not to diminish Schultz’s power and plans to keep him around forever.

If Schultz falls, Anna’s leadership of the government officials will take full control, and the consequences of the officials’ power will be worse than that of the civil servants’ power.

Anna could become an outstanding politician, but what about the next one? The system of government officials cannot mass-produce politicians, only mass-produce politicians who tend to cause more trouble than one can imagine.

The civil service system can produce elites in large numbers, ensuring long-term stability of national policies, but also leading to conservatism and corruption. With a wise monarch in power, the country can steadily progress, but with an incapable or reckless monarch, it might decline.

When the government officials hold power and an incapable or reckless monarch is in charge, the country could easily be destroyed.

For the future of Prussia and even Germany, Leader One does not allow the government officials to become too powerful. The civil service system must have enough strength to control politicians and prevent them from gaining too much power. Since Anna is aiming for power with an aggressive approach, Schultz must confront her.

Schultz must not help Anna rise to power, and he must show determination to oppose her. The more Anna tries to undermine him, the stronger his position will become in the eyes of the prince regent.

Anna is unaware of this. Mrs. Bismarck, who has not reached her peak yet, is angry that Schultz, who she considers worthless, did not help her. She then approaches Leader One and straightforwardly expresses her desire to become the prime minister.

"Let me be the prime minister. I can solve the military service issue; no one else can change the two-year service to three years, only I can if I become the prime minister."

Leader One, "Okay, you go prepare your speech for taking office, and go to the parliament tomorrow."

Anna, "??"

Anna thought Leader One wouldn’t agree easily. She had prepared a lot of arguments, but didn’t need to use them. She became the prime minister easily.

On April 5, 1841, at the age of 27, Anna became the prime minister.

She achieved a big goal in her life. Happily leaving the palace, she prepared her speech with joy, and also dealt with a troublesome person named Schultz.

"Even if you don’t help me, I would have become the prime minister. Wait and see how I handle you!" she said angrily.

The Crimean War was intense. The British and French fleets bombarded the Black Sea Fleet’s home port. Tsar Nicholas I was furious and determined to fight to the end with other countries.

Inside Prussia, a "war" began as the seventy-year-old prime minister announced his retirement. The prince regent appointed Anna von Bismarck as the new Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Anna’s bad reputation among the people was well known. When she became prime minister, the news was met with criticism. That night, thousands gathered in protest at Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, some coffins were labeled with Anna’s name.

People were so angry that they almost stormed the Prime Minister Palace, but they decided not to because Queen Elizabeth was pregnant and they didn’t want to disturb her.

"Why would the prince regent appoint such a national criminal as prime minister?"

"The prince regent is being manipulated by the wicked Bismarck! It’s Bismarck who put a curse on the prince regent!"

"May the traitor be punished! Restore order! Down with Bismarck!"

This demonstration by the public was intense, even more chaotic than the peak of the Liberal Revolution. Throughout the night, Berlin City was in unrest, with crowds growing larger. By morning, over thirty thousand people surrounded the parliament building, preventing Anna from taking office.

Early in the morning, Leader One entered his office to find several people already waiting inside.

Ron, Moltke, Catherine, Freeman, and some trusted allies from the Ministry of Finance and the Foreign Affairs Department came to see him. They were concerned about Anna’s situation, as the public’s anger was intense. They weren’t sure if Anna could handle it…

Your Highness, the Regent, showed no concern, even enjoying a cup of tea. He believed the chaos outside had nothing to do with him, and the people wouldn’t direct their anger towards him.

"Let them do as they please, no need to worry about her. If she can’t handle it, then she’s simply not capable enough."

At nine in the morning, a carriage left Prime Minister Palace and headed towards the Parliament.

Sitting in the closed carriage, Anna closed her eyes, holding a crumpled piece of paper in her hand, which was her prepared speech for her inauguration.

Becoming the Prime Minister was a major goal in Anna’s life, and today it was going to be fulfilled. She was still young and had a bright future ahead of her.

The carriage had a rough journey, encountering many obstacles on the nine-kilometer road. The people of Berlin were trying to block her inauguration, filling the streets with barriers.

With the protection of the Teutonic Knights, the crowd was unable to harm the carriage, and it continued on its way despite the difficulties.

The Teutonic Knights deployed over a hundred Magic Energy Knights, using their magic energy to peacefully push back the crowd, stopping bricks, mud, and eggs from being thrown, ensuring nobody was hurt.

At ten fifty in the morning, the carriage arrived at the location of the Berlin City Palace Parliament.

Anna stepped out of the carriage, surrounded by the Magic Energy Knights forming a human shield to protect her. The crowd around the parliament was blocking any passage, making it difficult for the Knights to clear a path without hurting anyone.

On either side of the human shield were countless angry citizens, their faces twisted with curses, but their noise and angry stares were ignored.

Anna walked down the small path, step by step, climbing the stairs, entering the parliament.

The behavior of the parliament members was like the people outside. They were supposed to represent the public opinion, but they also carried the hatred directed at them by Bismarck on a daily basis.

Anna reached the front of the platform to give a speech, turned around, and slightly bowed to the high-ranking speaker.

"I, Anna von Bismarck, officially assume the position of Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Prussia today. I swear to always be loyal to the great Your Highness the Regent, and I will dedicate everything, including my life, to Prussia."

"During my term, I will continue to promote the industrial development of the country, firmly follow the path of Prussian-style capitalism, and further promote Redelism…"

"The first task after taking office is to implement military reforms. The conscription system for the Prussian national defense army must be extended from two to three years. The annual military training time for reserves should be extended to three weeks, and military spending needs to be increased."

Amidst the noisy shouts, Anna delivered her inaugural speech in a calm and steady voice, even if no one listened, even if her voice was completely drowned out.

Prime Minister Bismarck’s inaugural speech lasted for five minutes, very brief. After finishing, she stood up straight, with a fiery gaze looking straight ahead.

The members of parliament were shouting, but Anna remained unaffected, her expression showing an extremely annoying calmness. The members eventually found it boring and quieted down under the speaker’s gavel.

At that moment, Anna spoke loudly to all the members of the assembly:

"Since the Vienna Treaty, our borders have not been properly designed for a strong political entity. The division caused by those countries has led to the weakening of Germany and Prussia, hindering the unified aspiration of the German people for centuries."

"The division of Germany, the separation of Prussia’s territory, has resulted in a series of international and domestic issues. Can democracy and freedom solve these problems? During the Great Revolution, the Frankfurt National Congress wanted to unify Germany through words. Is this possible?"

"I believe that the current significant issues cannot be solved by speeches and majority decisions. You, members, liberals, cannot solve any problems at all. The only way to solve them is through iron and blood."

"Strength is truth! Strength is justice! Truth lies within the range of cannons, justice is above the blade of a sword! Stop your useless chatter, support me, support me to support Prussia, only by supporting me can we have a powerful and unified German Empire!"

She advocated for war, praising it, indicating that only "iron and blood" could unify Germany. Her tone was firm and domineering, her words concise and powerful. Undeniable, unchangeable, unquestionable, her words were the law. This speech was a true reflection of Anna’s character throughout her life.

And thus, the Iron Chancellor was born.