CHAPTER 245: CHAPTER 234: WANTING TROUBLE WITHOUT EFFORT FROM ERNST

Just as Franz and Ferdinand, the two brothers, were having a "cordial and harmonious" conversation, another unexpected guest arrived at the door.

"Your Majesty, Grand Duke, His Highness Ernst has come again," the maid announced.

Usually, the servants and guards would allow Ernst to pass freely because he visits Mei Quan Palace too frequently, to the point that Franz granted him this privilege. However, as Ferdinand was also present today, the maid chose to report first.

"Hmm!" Franz and Ferdinand exchanged a glance. Today was indeed fortuitous, for Ferdinand, Ernst’s future father-in-law, had never met Ernst before. On the other hand, Princess Charlotte (Queen Carlota) had seen Ernst once, but in her eagerness to reunite with Ferdinand, Princess Charlotte didn’t engage much with Ernst.

"Shall we let him in?" Franz inquired of his brother.

The mischievous Franz eagerly wanted to see Ernst’s reaction upon meeting Ferdinand, the slight upward curve of his lips had already betrayed his inner thoughts.

"Hmph! Let the lad in, I want to see if he’s worthy of my Karina."

Franz waved his hand, and the maid immediately understood: "Yes, Your Majesty!"

...

How is today different from usual? Ernst stood outside the palace gates waiting. Normally, he could enter freely, but today he was stopped. Could it be that Franz had some urgent matter or was meeting an important figure? Yet there had been no word of any dignitary visiting Austria!

The more he thought about it, the more uneasy Ernst felt, as if he had become prey. What was going on? Since awakening to memories of his past life, he had never felt this sense of crisis.

Instinct told Ernst, perhaps it would be better to leave today. The matter he intended to discuss wasn’t urgent; returning tomorrow would suffice. Just as he was about to retreat, the maid approached.

"His Highness Ernst, His Majesty has invited you in."

"Oh, alright!"

Ernst readily agreed.

"By the way, did someone special visit the palace today?"

"Someone special? I don’t think so," the maid replied. How could there be someone special? This was Mei Quan Palace, after all. As for Ferdinand, naturally, he didn’t count, being a member of the royal family who had lived here before – definitely not someone special. That’s how the maid understood it.

"Alright then, I’ll head inside," Ernst said, speaking to himself as he walked in.

...

As soon as he stepped inside with his left foot, Ernst immediately felt two pairs of eyes watching him. Looking closely, he noticed someone next to the sofa usually occupied only by Franz.

Ernst surveyed the newcomer while Ferdinand scrutinized Ernst intently.

"Oh my!" Ernst felt a chill, as if the room’s temperature had dropped several degrees. "Isn’t this Grand Duke Ferdinand? What’s he doing here?"

Ernst instantly recognized who his future father-in-law was. In his previous life, Ernst had known Ferdinand, mainly because the iconic image of Ferdinand in a coffin was deeply etched in memory.

(Image: Viewers with a faint heart should refrain from clicking to view.)

Anyone with even a basic understanding of Mexican history knows they can’t avoid Maximiliano I. If there were rankings for modern executed foreign monarchs, after England’s Charles I, France’s Louis XVI, and Russia’s Nicholas II, Maximiliano I would certainly be among them.

Since Ernst’s engagement to Princess Karina, he naturally paid more attention to Ferdinand, having come across several photos and portraits.

Although Ferdinand for some reason had shaved his beard, Ernst recognized him immediately. Without the beard, Ferdinand appeared quite spry and clean-cut. This habit was actually one Ferdinand adopted while in East Africa, where few immigrants kept beards due to the generally younger population. When Ernst moved to East Africa, he arranged grooming for them altogether. In East Africa, people trim their hair and beards monthly, as neglecting hygiene could indeed be fatal. Coincidentally, the Heixinggen Daily Necessities Company produced razors and clippers at low costs, promoting them thoroughly.

Having lived in East Africa for so long, Ferdinand adopted the local style of shaving his beard, which proved quite convenient. In places like Mombasa, Dar es Salaam, and now Bajamojo, the temperatures usually stayed above thirty degrees. With such heat, dense hair and beards combined with sweat were indeed untidy.

"Are you Ernst?" Ferdinand, having scrutinized Ernst for a while, was the first to speak.

"Yes, father-in-law." Ernst immediately became polite and alert.

Meanwhile, Franz, not quite kindly, covered his mouth to snicker on the side, although he pretended to stroke his chin. This was his first time seeing Ernst in such a state.

"You certainly know how to cozy up; Karina hasn’t married you yet!" Ferdinand said.

"This, father-in-law, we’re family, let’s not speak as two families. We still have three years, and by then we’ll be completely one family." Although Ernst had lived two lives, it was his first time meeting his father-in-law, so he somewhat awkwardly managed the conversation.

The two started a question-and-answer style conversation, with Franz somewhat dampening the mood on the side.

...

"By the way, those few small gunboats you procured, I went to the shipyard to see them, their performance is not bad. However, I think you should also set up a shipyard in East Africa. Even if there’s no money, just build some small fishing boats first. After all, the neighboring Sultanate of Zanzibar has a ready-made one; you can just replicate their shipyard. It may not match up to European shipyards technologically, but it’s good enough for coastal fishing and also helps train a batch of good sailors, which would ease naval expansion later." Ferdinand suggested.

This planning was, besides considering the navy personnel, also very feasible, and it might not even require any spending. Allocate some immigrants to go to the Sultanate of Zanzibar to learn the technology, as the Zanzibari wouldn’t dare to object anyway.

"I will arrange it, but why didn’t you propose this to my father when you were in East Africa?"

"It just occurred to me recently. By the way, what brings you to Mei Quan Palace?" Ferdinand asked.

"Of course, I have important matters!"

Franz finally spoke: "You’re not here to ask for help again, are you!"

"Not at all, this time I came to deliver intelligence."

"What intelligence?" Franz asked with curiosity.

"This shouldn’t be considered crucial intelligence, or you could say it’s a result I predicted." Ernst said, "Prussia and France are probably about to engage in conflict."

"Dare you speak nonsense?" Both Franz and Ferdinand were excited, especially Franz, who asked, "Did William I tell you this?"

Ernst shook his head.

"I guessed!"

"Guessed!" The two were incredulous. Was it really a time for jokes?

"But I’m not speaking nonsense. This is based on feedback from my German company: Prussia is preparing for a war, and who Prussia’s most strained relations are with right now goes without saying. It couldn’t possibly wage war with Austria again!"

In reality, Ernst was talking nonsense. So far, Prussian forces hadn’t mobilized, nor had there been large-scale orders of supplies from Ernst’s enterprises. The feedback Ernst mentioned was entirely fabricated.

"If it’s true, then it might indeed be possible. If this Prussian military movement is preparation for unifying Southern Germany, then encountering France is indeed possible," Ferdinand said.

"Exactly, the French couldn’t let Prussia achieve such success so easily." They would position themselves as a gift, propelling Prussia to a major power status, Ernst mentally added.

"Have you come here to remind us to guard against Prussia’s ambition to dominate Southern Germany? In reality, there’s nothing the Austro-Hungarian Empire can do now," Franz said.

Upon voicing this, Franz’s tone turned somewhat somber. The Austro-Hungarian Empire indeed couldn’t do anything. If they took action, Prussia would master the narrative. An accusation of colluding with the French was inevitable, and then the hearts of the German populace would turn entirely to Prussia, and even the Hungarian government within the Austro-Hungarian Empire would likely drag their feet, as Southern Germany being taken by Prussia would be advantageous to them. They didn’t wish to see Austria or the German strengthened.

Really can’t do anything? That’s wrong, Ernst at the moment had something for the Austro-Hungarian Empire to do.

"Actually, Majesty, the success or failure in the German region is no longer relevant to the Austro-Hungarian Empire now. The empire’s true enemy is no longer Prussia! Your true enemy..." Ernst intentionally paused.

"France? Russia? Are you here as an emissary for William I?" Franz questioned, the Hohenzollern name alone giving him reason to suspect William I had instigated Ernst to come and caution him against acting rashly.

"You think too highly of me. It’s impossible for William I to make me an emissary. Moreover, you know my temperament well enough, and Majesty, you’re too extreme!" Ernst, having kept up this act for so long, finally dropped it. His usual image at the Mei Quan Palace resurfaced.

"No matter what Prussia does, as you said, there’s nothing Austro-Hungarian Empire can do. What need would there be for me to act as an envoy? Besides, the true enemy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire is Prussia’s ally, the soon-to-be unified Kingdom of Italy."

"Italy?" Franz and Ferdinand were stunned by Ernst’s sudden twist.

"Isn’t it? Italy has already completely escaped its former domination by Austria and France. If Italy unifies Pope Country amidst the Franco-Prussian War, the Austro-Hungarian Empire will have to live by Italy’s whims in the Mediterranean!"

"Moreover, I’ve seen Italy’s next territorial ambitions after unifying Pope Country, the southern part of Austria looks promising, with many Italians residing there."

Ernst finally revealed his ulterior motive, intending to irritate Italy, the double-faced traitor. As for whether or not to prevent Italy from annexing Pope Country in the future, it’s up to the Austro-Hungarian Empire to handle it. After all, without putting in effort himself, it’s like taking a shot in the dark.