Chapter 1376: Analyzing the Situation
“I’m sorry, esteemed envoys, could you give us some time to review these procurement agreements? The three of you may have some refreshments in the meantime, and we will provide you with a reply as soon as possible,” said a civil official beside them.
They were afraid the princess might agree impulsively without knowing what traps were hidden in the treaty, and once spoken, it couldn’t be taken back. Therefore, they needed to discuss and research internally.
“Of course, Miss Reya, please take your time to discuss. Additionally, we have another procurement list here, which we would also like you to consider,” said the Tsarist Russian envoy, speaking his German with a characteristic rolling “r,” and handed over another list. The second list was mainly for grain.
It was quite normal to leave during a meeting for discussions. There was a private room nearby, so the civil officials had the maids come in to entertain the envoy delegation. Several important civil officials then took the princess to the small conference room next door to begin studying the terms.
Among them were the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Trade, the Minister of Resource Management, and a Priestess from the Seven Gods Church. They were all professionals in this regard. The only one who didn’t understand was the princess, and if you included outsiders who were unfamiliar with the situation, then I was also one of them.
“Um, did we have a trade agreement with Tsarist Russia before? For purchasing coal and grain?” The princess was still a complete novice and could only ask these civil officials.
“We always have. We have a close relationship with the Romanov dynasty and have always had mutual imports and exports of goods. However, the sudden increase of such a large quantity is unusual. But the import prices are all normal, the prices we previously agreed upon,” said the Minister of Trade, looking at the terms.
The quantity of coal to be purchased on the list was tens of millions of tons, and the demand for grain was even greater. This was a considerable amount, and they hoped it could be transported to their homeland within this month.
“Why do they suddenly need so much coal? Is it because this winter is too cold and their consumption is high, or are Tsarist Russia making any major moves recently?” asked a warrior Priestess of the Seven Gods Church.
Inferring the movements of countries from their subtle actions, such as troop deployments, edicts, and procurements, was one of the daily tasks of think tanks. Therefore, their instinct was to first consider what the procurement terms meant and what they implied, rather than how they were written.
Coal is the most important industrial resource. This world relies on steam power. Coal that can provide high temperatures for boiling water for extended periods is a daily necessity. Tsarist Russia’s sudden increased demand naturally made them overthink.
“It shouldn’t be because of the cold. Although this winter is indeed colder than in previous years, Tsarist Russia uses energy towers for centralized heating, and they are already accustomed to extreme cold, so they wouldn’t suddenly be in short supply,” replied another minister.
I had also read in detail about the situation in Tsarist Russia in books on human geography. That region was subject to severe winter conditions, with many areas being uninhabitable for humans. The winter temperatures were consistently maintained below minus thirty to forty degrees Celsius, and in colder regions, they exceeded minus sixty degrees.
Even heating with coal was not enough. In the Middle Ages, witches and priests from the villages had to set up barriers to block blizzards, using witchcraft and magic to raise the temperature so that ordinary people could survive.
In large cities, Orthodox Christian priests from the Byzantine Empire were responsible, and in some smaller cities, shamans who were indigenous beliefs were in charge.
Therefore, the clergy in Tsarist Russia always held a very noble position in society. The clergy were completely unproductive and could live comfortably solely on donations. The Orthodox Church was the state religion, but many other beliefs were also allowed to spread by default.
The reason was still the extremely poor geographical location. If there were no clergy stationed in a place, they might not be able to survive the winter. Therefore, any church that could protect its village or town from frigid weather was accepted.
Even in some places lacking the protection of the clergy, those strong individuals came up with alternative ways to resist the cold, such as burning their own magic power to warm others.
With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, Tsarist Russia developed energy towers that utilized geothermal energy for heating. Tall energy towers began to be erected across the vast ice fields, with their roaring flames burning eternally.
These energy towers could provide centralized heating for a large area and could transmit heat through pipelines and steam hubs. With this, they could to some extent reduce their reliance on the clergy.
Moreover, although the energy towers were heavy consumers of coal, because they provided centralized heating and also utilized geothermal energy to a large extent, the overall utilization rate of coal was much higher than before, and the consumption was lower.
In addition, Tsarist Russia had alternative energy sources such as oil and natural gas and had ample experience in dealing with cold snaps. All cities had stored energy, making it difficult to imagine a sudden shortage of coal. A shortage of food, however, was common.
“If it’s not for daily consumption, then it’s for strategic reserves. Is Tsarist Russia preparing to go to war with any country, which is why they need so much food and coal?” The warrior Priestess of the Seven Gods Church speculated, as she generally viewed problems from a military perspective.
“It seems that’s entirely possible. Similar incidents have happened before. Before the last Russo-Turkish War, Tsarist Russian envoys also purchased large quantities of resources from us,” said the Minister of Finance after a moment of thought.
The Russo-Turkish War refers to the long-term wars between Tsarist Russia and the Ottoman Empire. There had been ten of them, spanning three centuries, with varying outcomes. Both sides suffered heavy losses but also harbored deep-seated grudges.
Tsarist Russia also had an ally, the Byzantine Empire. The two shared many similarities in politics and culture and had a good relationship. It was precisely because they attacked the Ottoman Empire from both the northwest and southeast that they were able to contain this powerful Arab force in West Asia.
“Then who do they want to go to war with this time? We can only think of two, right? It’s either the Ottoman Empire or the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth,” suggested the Grand Chancellor. These two countries were both mortal enemies of Tsarist Russia, and war could break out at any time.
The Ottoman Empire goes without saying. As for the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, I had also read about it previously. It was composed of the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Grand Duchy of Kyiv, possessing all the territories of former Poland and Lithuania, a large part of Ukraine, and some surrounding smaller regions.
This country was incredibly powerful. Records of its wars with other countries in modern times were almost always victories. It had even recorded defeating a coalition of the Holy Roman Empire and Tsarist Russia on both eastern and western fronts simultaneously, meaning it could easily deal with both.
“I don’t think we can reach any conclusions by guessing these things now, right? The key is whether we should accept their procurement agreements,” asked the princess. She didn’t understand any of this situational analysis.
“I think we can sell. The price is not at a loss, and it will help improve the relationship between our two countries. Besides, if Tsarist Russia loses the war, its damaged reputation will also affect us,” suggested the Prime Minister.
