When the discussion with Adolf was almost settled, Franz II suddenly raised another issue: "If we are to form a marital alliance with the Ming Empire, should we form it with their Emperor or their Prince?"
Adolf said confidently, "Of course, it should be with His Majesty the Emperor of the Ming Empire. You should know that the Ming Emperor has two brothers, both of whom have already become kings of their own countries and are very far from the Ming Empire.
"Under such circumstances, if we want to form a marital alliance with the Ming Empire, the best choice is naturally His Majesty the Emperor of the Ming Empire."
"From what I've learned, His Majesty the Emperor of the Ming Empire is only in his late twenties or early thirties, still quite young."
"Furthermore, the customs of the Ming Empire are very different from ours in Europa. While in Europa, we generally have only one wife, the Emperor of the Ming Empire can have many wives. Therefore, if our Habsburg family can form a marital alliance with His Majesty the Emperor of the Ming Empire, we don't have to worry about the women of the Habsburg family only becoming underground mistresses to the Ming Emperor."
After Adolf finished speaking, Franz II couldn't help but nod.
In terms of age, the Emperor of the Ming Empire was in his prime. Moreover, it was said that the Emperor of the Ming Empire already had several sons, so his physical condition was definitely not a problem. There was no need to worry about the daughters of the Habsburg family marrying him and remaining widows.
From a national perspective, the Ming Empire's power was at its peak. The entire "little broken sphere" respected the Ming Empire. If the Habsburg family could really form a marital alliance with the Ming Empire, it would be the Habsburg family climbing to a higher social status.
Of course, these were not the most important points. The most important thing was that once the alliance was successful, the position of the Habsburg family in Europa would far surpass that of France. How could a friendship built on correspondence be as firm as a relationship built on kinship?
The current troublesome issue was which daughter of the Habsburg family to choose, after all, it was a marital alliance with the Emperor of the Ming Empire. Nobility of birth, appearance, and figure were all important considerations.
Just as Franz II was pondering which daughter of the Habsburg family to choose, Adolf continued, "Additionally, if we successfully form a marital alliance with the Ming Empire, our Habsburg family must also prepare a fiefdom to give to the Ming Empire in advance. This is also considered a tradition of the Ming side."
Franz II waved his hand decisively and said, "Let Bavaria be the fiefdom. No matter which daughter of the Habsburg family is chosen, she will be the Grand Duchess of Bavaria. If she has a son with the Ming Emperor, her son can even become the Prince of Austria, and he must become the Prince of Austria."
Hearing Franz II say this, Adolf felt a little uncertain. If a daughter of the Habsburg family successfully married the Ming Emperor and had a son, and then her son was crowned Prince of Austria, it would mean that the Austrian royal family would be entangled with the Ming imperial family!
From this perspective, such a situation was naturally the most beneficial for the Habsburg family.
However, would the Emperor of the Ming Empire allow his son to be crowned Prince of Austria?
According to the knowledge Adolf had previously learned from the Ming Empire, the sons of the Ming Emperor would definitely be enfeoffed as princes, but their fiefdoms were generally within the territory of the Ming Empire, and not outside the territory of the Ming Empire. Furthermore, it was in such a remote place as Bavaria in Europa.
Yes, it was just a remote place.
Although Bavaria was considered wealthy within Europa, compared to the territory of the Ming Empire, Bavaria was simply a desolate and poor region!
Not to mention that Bavaria itself was not large in area.
A small and extremely poor place, what qualifications did it have to be the fiefdom of a Ming prince?
However, from another perspective, it was not entirely impossible.
For example, the eldest son of the Ming Emperor was enfeoffed as the Prince of Liao, with his fiefdom being the Eastern Siberia and Central Siberia that originally belonged to the "Sand Goose." Compared to the territory of the Great Ming, Eastern Siberia and Central Siberia, which had only completely belonged to the Ming Empire a few years ago, were also considered remote and desolate regions. The reason why the eldest son of the Ming Emperor was enfeoffed as the Prince of Liao was because one of the Ming Emperor's wives was from the Solon tribe, and she happened to be closer to Eastern Siberia.
From this logic, if a daughter of the Habsburg family could indeed marry the Ming Emperor and have a son, she might indeed become the Prince of Bavaria?
The only problem was whether this future Prince of Bavaria would be crowned Prince of Austria.
After thinking for a long time without reaching a conclusion, Adolf simply shook his head, clearing his mind of these chaotic thoughts, and then bowed to Franz II, saying, "Your Majesty the Emperor, I wish to visit the Ming Empire again and go there as a student."
Franz II frowned, "I remember you studied art?"
After Adolf nodded, Franz II continued, "Although you have great talent in governance and military affairs, you are, after all, an art student. If you go to the Ming Empire, what do you plan to study? Are you going to study Ming art?"
"Furthermore, the situation in Europa is so chaotic now. Both I and Austria still need your wisdom. If you go to study in the Ming Empire, what will become of the Habsburg family and Austria?"
Adolf bowed and said, "Your Majesty the Emperor, although the situation in Europa is chaotic, no matter how chaotic it becomes, the ultimate core still lies in the war between our Habsburg family and the 'Sand Goose,' and also in the issues of interests between France, England, and the Ming Empire. In the final analysis, it is still the issue of Ming interests."
"Therefore, what we need to do next is to figure out how to align the interests of the Habsburg family with the interests of the Ming Empire."
Franz II frowned, "And what about you? What are you planning to study when you get to the Ming Empire?"
Adolf bowed and said, "I plan to study Ming military affairs. Just as I proposed a quick surprise attack on the capital of the 'Sand Goose,' this is what I learned in the Ming Empire – but you absolutely cannot imagine how I learned this theory."
With Adolf's words, Franz II became interested. He let out an "Oh" and asked, "How did you learn it?"
"I heard it from others!" Adolf bowed and replied, "When I was in the Ming Empire, I visited a teahouse. In the teahouse, people were telling stories, and those stories mentioned the importance of speed in warfare!"
"Even the folk tales of the Ming Empire are filled with wisdom about warfare. One can imagine how formidable their military theories and art of war must be!"
After careful consideration, Franz II couldn't help but nod, acknowledging Adolf's suggestion: "Since that is the case, then you may go. I hope you can manage the students well and ensure that more students return to Austria."
...
Just as Franz II and Adolf were plotting against the "Sand Goose," Louis XVI and George III were also plotting against the "Sand Goose."
The main reason was that the "Sand Goose," like the Ottoman Empire, wanted to integrate into the European circles and actively participate in European affairs and even wars. However, the European nations never considered the "Sand Goose" as part of Europe.
Louis XVI said with a smile to George III, "This time, as long as the Habsburg family is not as foolish as before, they should be able to bite off a piece of flesh from the 'Sand Goose.'"
George III also chuckled and nodded, saying, "The 'Sand Goose' has truly stumbled this time. This fellow is too close to the Great Ming and too close to Europa. The result is that it pleases neither side."
Speaking of this, George III suddenly changed the subject and said, "But speaking of which, if the Habsburg family does bite off a piece of flesh from the 'Sand Goose,' won't the strength of the Habsburg family increase? This is not a good thing for us, is it?"
Louis XVI smiled and shook his head, retorting, "No matter how strong they become, how strong can they be? Will their flintlock muskets turn into the percussion-lock rifles we use? Or will their cannons surpass our cannons?"
"You know, the percussion-lock rifles we are currently using are new equipment recently equipped by the Ming army. In terms of range, rate of fire, or accuracy, they far exceed the flintlock muskets used before."
"As for cannons, do you think there are cannons in this world that surpass those of the Ming Empire?"
With Louis XVI's words, George III was immediately reassured.
As the King of England, George III was actually not very capable in military matters. His understanding of muskets and cannons was far inferior to Louis XVI, this inconspicuous locksmith king.
However, George III also clearly knew that since the Ming Empire's cannons had been continuously updated, the decisive factor on the battlefield was no longer muskets, but the cannons produced by the Ming Empire. Just the fact that the cannon barrels produced by the Ming Empire were the most durable, with a usage time of an unprecedented three minutes, made Ming cannons the undisputed kings of artillery!
Yes, while the barrel life of cannons produced by other countries was still struggling within the one-minute mark, the barrel life of cannons produced by the Great Ming had now reached a terrifying three minutes!
Perhaps many people thought that cannon barrels should not have a lifespan of only three minutes, as the time it took to fire a single cannonball could even last for days or months, and should not be measured in minutes.
In reality, the lifespan of a cannon barrel was calculated from the moment the projectile was ignited until it was fired from the muzzle, and this time was usually calculated in fractions of a second. A three-minute service life was already astonishing!
Thinking of these, George III steered the conversation back to the "Sand Goose": "You say, how great will the losses of the 'Sand Goose' be this time?"
Louis XVI shook his head and said, "I can't guess. Although the 'Sand Goose' is quite powerful, this time it is the Habsburg family leading a number of small European countries to fight the 'Sand Goose.' This war will not end in a short period of time."
George III nodded and pondered for a moment before speaking, "In that case, how should our two countries cooperate? You know, in Europa now, it is your France and our England, and within the framework of the 'little broken sphere,' our two countries now have more room for cooperation."
This was also why George III had traveled from England to France. Although both were following the Great Ming, George III clearly understood that the closeness, distance, and relative strength of each country to the Great Ming would greatly affect their status in the "little broken sphere."
For example, the "Sand Goose" was slightly stronger and had more bordering areas with the Ming Empire, so the Ming Empire naturally supported the Habsburg family to weaken the "Sand Goose."
Although England and France did not have such concerns for the time being, George III still hoped that England could become stronger. Even if not comparable to the Ming Empire and France, it should at least maintain its current status – slightly stronger than the "Silly Eagle" and the "Sand Goose."
And to maintain the current status was not something that could be achieved by mere words.
For example, Jefferson from the "Silly Eagle" family unhesitatingly sold off other countries on the American continent, thereby successfully aligning the interests of the "Silly Eagle" with the interests of the Ming Empire.
In other words, it was successfully binding the "Silly Eagle" to the chariot of the Great Ming.
This maneuver greatly elevated the status of the "Silly Eagle" in the "little broken sphere." It was no longer the inconspicuous minor player it once was. It not only subtly surpassed the "Sand Goose," the eternal fourth place, but even threatened England, the eternal third place!
This was something George III could not accept.
It was precisely for this reason that George III had come to Paris to see if there were any opportunities for cooperation.
Louis XVI was also happy to cooperate with George III, as the act of Jefferson sending someone to find Louis XVI to purchase Louisiana had greatly disgusted Louis XVI.
As for whether cooperating with England would make England stronger and thus threaten France's status, Louis XVI was not worried at all, because there were no direct conflicts of interest between England and France. England's core interests lay in its overseas colonies, while France's core interests were to rely on the Great Ming, and like a fox borrowing the tiger's might, to leech off the various countries in Europa.
Of course, the most important thing was that Louis XVI did not consider France as a European country at this moment. Since deciding to wholeheartedly follow the Emperor of the Great Ming, Louis XVI had copied the Great Ming in almost every aspect, whether it was the Great Ming's social education system or its massive infrastructure projects. Louis XVI had directly replicated them in France, to the point that Paris was now nicknamed "Little Ming Country"!