German Red Prince

Page 103

"You're welcome, it's all my pleasure."

As Thorne was leaving, he glanced at the crowded newspaper office and said, "This place is too small; it's time to find another place."

Having found a suitable reporter, Thorne should now get people busy with serious matters. He wondered what the situation was like over there regarding the suggestion he had made to his father.

If all else fails, Thorne will have to go again in person, but the most important thing is to find a suitable commander first.

Another purpose of this trip is to cultivate more influence within the military. More people means more power, and you can never have too many people in your hands.

Thorne was looking for officers from commoner backgrounds, since they would be helping him in a future rebellion. Officers from commoner backgrounds would have less of a psychological burden, so as to avoid unnecessary trouble later.

Selecting people from the army is a troublesome and technical task. First, one must exclude one's own people. Guderian is also busy forming and training the armored divisions of the Kingdom of the Rhine, Rommel is training the future motorized forces, and Model has to teach students and has many things to deal with at the school.

Thorne wants to find some officers in the army who have a clean record and good abilities, preferably those with some historical reputation. But now Thorne needs to talk to his father and see what they think.

At this moment, King Otto was looking at the report in his hand, which was Thorne's so-called ten-year development plan for the Kingdom of Rhine. Otto had read it three or four times and understood what Thorne wanted to say.

The entire report makes no mention of Prussia, but focuses entirely on Prussia; its main message is that the Kingdom of the Rhine should achieve economic independence.

The Kingdom of the Rhine must reduce its dependence on Prussia to the greatest extent possible and ensure its independent development.

As the most important kingdom in Germany, Prussia controlled several times more resources than the other two kingdoms.

In overseas colonies, the main officials were all from Prussia, and some local vassal states were also directly controlled by Prussia. Prussia held a much stronger advantage domestically than other kingdoms.

King Otto also noticed the recent unrest in Germany. With three kingdoms in one country, conflicts were bound to arise over time, and even he himself sometimes couldn't help but complain, let alone Prussia, which was in a dominant position.

If Prussia were to take action one day, they would have an absolute advantage in the early stages. As long as they quickly blockaded the two kingdoms at the beginning and trapped them for a period of time, they could wear them down.

Bavaria had the Austro-Hungarian Empire behind it, while the Kingdom of the Rhine was surrounded by enemies on all sides. If Prussia were to turn against them, it would be a terrible thing.

The Second Prussian War, the Austro-Prussian War, and the Franco-Prussian War—three dynastic wars that unified Germany—who knows if there will be a fourth one someday?

Chapter 172 Who Will Unify?

The Rhine Kingdom could achieve economic independence, which sounds simple but is actually quite difficult. Although the Rhine Kingdom had considerable autonomy within the German Empire, it did not receive a large share of the vast pie of the German Empire's overseas colonies.

After the war ended, Wilhelm II did not keep his promise to fairly distribute the vast overseas colonies. Although he said that all three kingdoms could receive land, it was just talk.

After the war, the Kingdom of the Rhine suffered heavy losses and had a lot of mess to clean up, so naturally they had no time to talk to Prussia about this.

This delay lasted for several years, and in the end, the other two kingdoms did not receive any land. The overseas colonies were managed by the German central government. Of course, that's a nice way of putting it; wasn't the German central government just the Prussian government?

The colony administrators were almost all from Berlin, while those from Frankfurt and Munich could only serve as deputies and had little power. This situation had been going on for more than a decade, and changing it was no easy task.

The golden age of the German economy is almost over. The German Central Bank has invited the economic ministers of the Kingdom of the Rhine and Bavaria to Berlin for a meeting to discuss the next economic policy. However, the outcome of the negotiations is unknown. No one wants to suffer a loss, and the negotiations may end in failure.

No one is going to sit idly by and wait to die. Bavaria has been flirting with Austria-Hungary lately, which has made Wilhelm II quite nervous. He's counting down the days; the Leipzig Conference is coming up soon, and the three kingdoms will have plenty to talk about then.

“Your Majesty, Chancellor Klaus has arrived,” an officer said to King Otto as he entered.

"Oh? What brings Chancellor Klaus to my office?"

King Otto was somewhat surprised to hear that Klaus had come. Since announcing his retirement, Klaus had rarely appeared in the public eye, let alone come to his place.

"Prime Minister Klaus, how have you been lately?" King Otto greeted Klaus, showing great respect for the old prime minister.

“Of course, I’m in good health.” Klaus chuckled, took off his hat, and sat down on the sofa next to him.

"Your Majesty, Prince Thorne came to see me today."

Hearing Klaus say this, Otto understood something. He took out the report Thorne had given him and handed it to Klaus.

"Thorn came to see you, it must be related to this report he wrote, right?"

"It seems His Highness Thorne has truly made up his mind," Klaus remarked after reading Thorne's report.

"What are your thoughts, Your Majesty?"

"I only hope that I won't see that day before I close my eyes," King Otto said slowly after a moment of silence.

"When Wilhelm I was crowned in 1871, he was still arguing with Bissmann about the title of emperor. Wilhelm I insisted on using the title Kaiser Von Deutschland, while Bissmann suggested that he use the title Deutscher kaiser."

"It is said that Wilhelm I threatened Bismarck that if he did not use the title Kaiser Von Deutschland at his coronation, he would refuse to be crowned emperor."

"I'm sure His Majesty is aware of this story, isn't he?" Klaus looked at King Otto.

"Of course, everyone knows about this."

Although the Kingdom of the Rhine joined the North German Confederation during the Austro-Prussian War, its true integration and legal assimilation occurred during the German Empire period following the Franco-Prussian War.

At that time, the Rhine Kingdom's army entered Paris along with the Prussian army. King Charlemagne was also present at the coronation at Versailles Palace, so King Otto was naturally familiar with the coronation of William I.

"William I insisted on using the title Kaiser Von Deutschland, but in the end, he used Deutscher kaiser instead."

“Bismarck and Wilhelm I argued for a long time about this issue during the coronation. Neither the Kingdom of the Rhine nor Bavaria expressed their opinions, nor did the other small principalities speak up.”

"Because the Franco-Prussian War signified the formal entry of the Kingdom of the Rhine into the German Empire, at Wilhelm's coronation, it was King Charlemagne I who announced Wilhelm I's imperial title. However, Charlemagne I did not explicitly state it, but instead bypassed the contradiction by shouting 'Long live His Majesty Emperor Wilhelm!'"

"The Kingdom of the Rhine, which formally joined the German Empire at the time, did not explicitly recognize Wilhelm I's specific title. However, Wilhelm I later accepted the title Deutscher kaiser. Your Majesty, even the composed Wilhelm I wanted to strive for the title Kaiser Von Deutschland. Do you think Wilhelm II will try to do so?"

"Wilhelm I established a German Empire, and Wilhelm II made it the most powerful country in the world. As you know, after the war, almost none of Wilhelm II's promises to the kingdom were fulfilled."

"Prussia's power has expanded unprecedentedly since the war, giving it a significant advantage over the other two kingdoms. Your Majesty, do you think Wilhelm II would like to become the German Emperor?"

People are inherently selfish. Although Germany has been incorporated into Germany, no one wants their interests to be harmed. Germany is not truly unified yet.

Emperor Wilhelm II's series of actions have shown that he is not content with being a symbol of German unity and the first among the monarchs of the German states; he wants to truly transform the German Empire into a monarchy with himself as its monarch.

Joining Germany did not mean accepting Prussia. No one wanted to be the one to be unified. Prussia wanted a truly unified Germany, but did the other two kingdoms not want that too?

"Does the prime minister believe that war is bound to break out in the future?" King Otto asked.

“Yes, Your Majesty. Especially after I met Prince Thorne, war was bound to break out. Prince Thorne will not stand idly by and watch the kingdom disappear.”

"Moreover, if a war breaks out within Germany in the future, with His Highness Thorne around, it's hard to say which kingdom will unify Germany."

"Oh? Chancellor Klaus thinks highly of Thorne?" King Otto was somewhat surprised. It was rare to see Klaus give such high praise to anyone. He hadn't expected the chancellor to value Thorne so much.

“Hasn’t His Highness Thorne been unwilling to inherit the throne as the next King of Rhine? This old man will retire in a few more years. Didn’t His Majesty ask me for a suitable candidate before? I think His Highness Thorne is very good.”

It's hard to believe that such a statement came from the mouth of an old prime minister; if it had been anyone else, King Otto would probably have kicked him out on the spot.

How old is Thorne to be the prime minister of the kingdom? He's only in his twenties, and he's a prince. It's really strange that the eldest son is the king and the second son is the prime minister.

"Let's talk about that later."

King Otto decided to skip the topic altogether. "What do you think of Thorne's report on the foreign policy plan?"

“I completely agree. Since Prussia is unwilling to share their overseas territories, then we will create them ourselves.”

“Since Chancellor Klaus has said so, I naturally have no reason to object,” King Otto sighed.

"People from the military have also come to me with advice. Compared to the commune, the biggest threat comes from behind. I really don't want to see that day come."

“Unification is an inevitable trend,” Klaus comforted her. “At least with Prince Thorne around, we still have a chance.”

"Your Majesty, Your Excellency, Prince Thorne has arrived."

"Perfect timing, just in time to hear what he has to say." Klaus smiled.

"Call him in quickly, let this German superman tell us what he's thinking."

Chapter 173 Let's Go All Out

Thorne chose to come at this time to see what King Otto's decision was; the Rhine Kingdom couldn't afford to waste its time here.

Time waits for no one. The United States’ influence has been greatly weakened in this timeline, and the world’s center is in Berlin. This means that the next economic crisis is very likely to break out in Germany first.

Thorne himself knew how powerful the economic crisis was; if he wasn't careful, he might have to reopen. Along with the economic crisis, there was also the possibility of war. No one could guarantee that Wilhelm II wouldn't act rashly and issue some orders.

Upon entering the house, he discovered that not only Otto was there, but also Chancellor Klaus. He had just visited the old man's estate that morning; how did he find this place so quickly?

"Your Majesty, Your Excellency the Prime Minister," Thorne said as he entered, bowing to the two men.

"I'm catching up with King Otto. Does Your Highness have anything to say? Should I excuse myself?"

“Of course not, Your Excellency,” Thorne said with a smile. “It’s good that you’re here; I was just about to talk about what happened this morning.”

“I’ve read your report, but how can you be so sure that the crisis will break out within the next five years?” Otto asked Thorne.

“Father, didn’t the president of the German Central Bank invite us and the Bavarian Minister of Economic Affairs to talk? Isn’t that obvious enough?”

"Germany's economy developed at an incredible speed after the victory in the war. Relying on the war dividends, Germany's economy entered a golden age. However, this also led to a loss of control. The rapid economic growth made our people like to overspend. I heard that the saying 'one mark for a down payment and one mark for monthly payments' is popular now."

"The stock industry lacks effective management, and speculative investment and lending activities are increasing day by day. The entire stock market price has been driven up to an unwarranted level, forming a huge bubble."

"The banking sector is also unregulated and lacks effective constraints and supervision. They provide loans to a large number of stock speculators and real estate speculators and are expanding their credit business wildly. If this bubble bursts one day, the German economy will definitely be severely damaged."

"At the same time, after the victory in the war, the German Empire gained a vast number of colonies and a large number of satellite states, where raw materials and labor were cheaper. This greatly increased Germany's productivity and led to the production of goods far exceeding market demand."

"Our agriculture has also been impacted by Ukraine. The cheap crops from the black soil of Ukraine have severely affected German farmers. Agricultural prices have fallen, farms have gone bankrupt, farmers' debts have increased, and incomes have decreased. If these problems are not resolved, a crisis will definitely break out. This terrible disaster will have an impact that will be no less than that of a major war."

"So that's how you came up with these plans?"

“Yes, Father, we cannot sit idly by and wait for the crisis to arrive before we are prepared; we must strike first,” Thorne replied.

“Your Majesty, what Prince Thorne said makes sense. Haven’t we heard some rumors coming from Berlin recently? It’s better to be safe than sorry. Although Berlin is handling this passively, we can’t ignore it. After all, we are much smaller than Prussia.”

"If a crisis really breaks out, Prussia has so many colonies and vassal states to support it. Even if its control over the colonies will decline later, at least it can survive the crisis."

"But if we are unprepared, Prussia will not be kind enough to come to our rescue when the crisis breaks out. If we cannot solve the problem, a very serious political crisis may occur."

“If the kingdom gets out of control, and Prussia comes to the rescue, it’s hard to say whether the kingdom will even exist by the time the crisis is over,” Chancellor Klaus advised from the side.

Adjusting the economy of an entire country is a very complicated matter, because the slightest mistake could lead the economy to another extreme. It requires a long period of discussion and solicitation of proposals before some policies can be implemented, which is very troublesome.

However, according to Thorne, Germany's economy is indeed facing some serious problems, and if these are not corrected in time, the kingdom will face even greater trouble.

With the economic bubble burst, King Otto dared not think any further, for it meant that the Rhine Kingdom's ten years of development could be wiped out overnight, or even worse than it had been ten years ago.

"Thorne, could you make this report a little more detailed? I'll call a meeting with the kingdom's economic experts later."

“Of course, Father. I will prepare a very detailed report for you.”

"If an economic crisis does indeed occur in Germany in the future, the Kingdom of the Rhine must not sit idly by. We must act as soon as possible to prevent the kingdom from being destroyed in this disaster. I will also convene a special meeting of the kingdom to discuss this matter in detail."

"A special meeting of the kingdom?"

Thorne vaguely remembered this. There was no difference between the Kingdom Special Meeting and the Kingdom Meeting; both meetings were chaired by the King. However, the Special Meeting lasted longer and was larger in scale than the Kingdom Meeting.

Special meetings are usually held only when there are special circumstances, because the Kingdom Council is a permanent body that can normally handle many matters within the kingdom.

King Charlemagne ruled the Kingdom of the Rhine for twenty-six years and convened six special councils. Therefore, according to the tradition of the kingdom, special councils are usually held once every four years. The last special council was held in 1926, which Thorne did not attend.

Logically speaking, the next special meeting should be in 1930, barring any unforeseen circumstances. Judging by this, it seems that King Otto still values ​​Thorne's suggestions quite a bit.

To be honest, Thorne was really looking forward to the Kingdom Council. The system of the Kingdom of Rhine laid the political foundation for the entire kingdom and also showed the difference from Prussia.

The main purpose of the Kingdom Council is to submit various proposals covering all aspects of the country. Once reviewed and approved, these proposals take effect and become the will of the Kingdom.

During the Kingdom Conference, the Rhine government also announces and introduces policies and makes adjustments to the country.

Although routine affairs are managed by a cabinet composed of officials selected by the prime minister from parliament and approved by the king, the royal parliament still plays an irreplaceable role.

In order to balance the interests of all classes, the Kingdom of the Rhine established a two-tiered parliament. The proportion of political parties in the lower house is not uniform, and the number of seats they occupy is also different. For example, the Central Party of the Rhine occupies 30 percent of the seats in the lower house.

However, each party in the parliament has the same number of seats in the upper house. They represent the interests of different classes, and the proportion of power among the classes is basically similar, which ensures fairness within the kingdom to the greatest extent.

"Father, now that you have agreed to my proposal, what are your and the military's opinions on the issue of overseas construction?"

"Of course, no problem. The people in the military are also anxious. You're right, the Kingdom of Rhine does need to start thinking about the future now."

Hearing Otto agree, Thorne felt relieved. Now that his father had agreed to his idea, he could go all out and make a big splash.

Chapter 174 Overseas Investment

Recently, the citizens of the Kingdom of Rhine have noticed that the kingdom seems to be very active lately. Not long after the military parade, newspapers reported that the kingdom will hold a special meeting, and various political parties will submit various proposals they have collected in the coming period.

Furthermore, there are now more unusual reports in the newspapers: stock speculation leading to family ruin and death, millionaires losing everything overnight, and various other seemingly tragic cases.

After Thorne discussed some economic issues with his father, under King Otto's instructions, the public opinion in the Kingdom of the Rhine also changed, reducing the promotion of financial investment and encouraging residents to save money and reduce excessive consumption.

Rumors are circulating that the kingdom will be cracking down on its financial sector in the coming period. This news, coupled with various reports in the newspapers, has indeed led to a significant decrease in stock trading volume in the kingdom. Many people are now choosing to wait and see what the kingdom will do next.

However, there are still some fearless financial speculators who recklessly test the limits of the law, walking the line between the kingdom's laws and reaping huge profits in the stock market. Thorne doesn't have time to deal with them right now, but these people are already on the list, and Heydrich is keeping an eye on them. The same principle applies to these people: fatten them up before slaughtering them.

Although the news in the newspapers changes every day, these are just topics of conversation for the citizens of the Kingdom of Rhine during their leisure time. As for the news, what they care about most is their own lives.

Men are concerned about whether their wages can increase, women are concerned about their figure and health, and more job opportunities, while children are mainly concerned about whether they can go to the movies more often each week. In short, everyone and every social class has their own needs that they want to have met.

These issues will be submitted to the Kingdom Parliament in the form of bills. In order to increase support and win seats in Parliament, the Kingdom Conference is basically the busiest time for each party. Each party represents different interest groups, and each bill passed means that the party may gain one more seat in Parliament.