Holy Roman Empire

It is not necessary for all countries to participate together, as long as a few major powers participate, international law can be formed.

Even if opium cannot be banned, it can still disgust the British and damage their international image.

Louis von Lavalet reminded: "Your Majesty, the British themselves smoke opium. There is a large amount of opium in the mainland and the colonies. It may be far-fetched to accuse them of using opium to weaken the strength of countries."

I have to admit that the opium merchants are powerful. While harming the world internationally, they have not forgotten to go back and harm their compatriots.

After all, it's for making money, and it doesn't matter who makes money.

Franz smiled slightly: "It doesn't matter, it's enough to announce this crime to the international community. Just change the rhetoric in Britain, for example: capitalists are trying to use opium to control Britain.

It is important to emphasize that smoking opium is addictive. Once you become addicted to opium, you will never be able to do without opium, and then you can only be at the mercy of the capitalists behind the scenes. "

It doesn't matter if you talk nonsense, anyway, someone will believe it.Even if the opium merchants didn't dare to do it, no one can guarantee that they haven't thought about it.

The British government's bill to ban opium has never been passed. There is only one "Drug Pharmacy Act", which is equivalent to no restrictions.

Chapter 127

""On the Hazards of Opium", what the hell is it written about, how the hell can this content be reported!

Henry, get over here, now you need to give me a reasonable explanation..."

The man who was furious was the famous British opium baron George Grande, who was enough to rank in the top ten of all opium dealers in the world.

As one of the vested interests, like all opium dealers, George Grande has always firmly believed that opium is a universal drug, and selling opium is for salvation.

George Grande has always hated the outside world's criticism of the harmfulness of opium.

With the development of science and technology, more and more people are aware of the dangers of opium and stand up to call on the government to ban the circulation of opium.

In order to continue to make huge profits through the opium trade, opium merchants naturally have to cover up these different voices.For this reason, they do not hesitate to spend a lot of profits to buy government officials, newspapers, and congressmen.

The opium trade, which seems to be dominated by opium dealers, is actually a loot-sharing meeting involving British bureaucrats, MPs, and the media.

Driven by interests, those with vested interests worked together to barely suppress the voice of banning opium in the country.

Now seeing newspapers publishing articles exposing the dangers of opium, George Grande is naturally unhappy, which means that he will have to spend a greater price to suppress different voices.

Henry, who was in charge of public relations, hurried over and explained: "Sir, this incident is very special, and the source of public opinion is not in the country.

It may have something to do with the recent international disputes, the Austrian newspapers were the first to slander the panacea, and the domestic newspapers just reproduced it..."

Don't be nervous, opium dealers are ruthless people.If an opium tycoon like George Grande didn't have hundreds of lives under his command, why should he gain a foothold in this circle?

It would kill him if he screwed up.If it wasn't forced by life, Henry wouldn't take this high-risk job.

As one of the parties involved, no one knows better than him how loud the people are calling for the ban on opium sales.

The promotion of the Austrian government is just one of the triggers.Some newspapers dared to publish such news, mainly due to the growing domestic groups opposing the opium trade.

There are not one or two people who are harmed by opium, and there is no distinction between rich and poor, and many British dignitaries have also become victims.

Although the power of the opium merchants is great, they have not reached the point where they can cover the sky with one hand.Public relations and public relations cannot buy all the newspapers. It is normal for some people to dare to criticize.

In fact, the newspapers that George Grande saw were relatively moderate. They only reprinted the contents of foreign newspapers and did not express their own opinions.

The content on many street tabloids is truly shocking, and they dare to publish any content on them.Before they came to the door, they changed their vests again.

Henry has clearly felt that there is a force behind this, which makes him worried.

George Grande interrupted: "Don't talk to me about these useless things, no matter what method you use, you will suppress these voices for me.

If these people don't accept our goodwill, there is no need for them to exist, so choose this active one to make an example to others.

Let the outside world know that our Panacea Association is not easy to mess with! "

Facing the furious George Grande, Henry really didn't have the courage to refuse, and replied anxiously: "Yes, sir! It's just oh..."

Before he could finish speaking, George Grande slammed the table and cursed: "Damn the Austrian bastards, they should have been abolished in the first place, but now it has become a climate, and you dare to hold your hand..."

As early as decades ago, when Austria legislated to ban the opium trade, the opium dealers wanted to retaliate, but the rulers of their British government were not stupid.

In any case, Austria was also one of the four major powers in the world at the time.Going to fight Austria for the sake of the opium trade is a manifestation of brain flooding.

It cannot be said that the government cannot be moved, and it is naturally impossible for the opium dealers to confront the Austrian government head-on with their own strength.If it is not legally allowed, then smuggle it secretly.

However, the smuggling trade is not easy to do.The Austrian government has been severely cracking down on the opium trade. It catches opium dealers one by one, killing everyone directly.

Although it has not been completely eradicated, most opium dealers are still intimidated.Major opium merchants, including George Grande, have been afraid to go to Austria these years.

Isn't it good to sell opium legally in other places? Why go to Austria to die?

Seeking wealth and insurance is what poor and white dicks need. They are big business owners, and there is no need to take risks at all.

It turns out that it can be tolerated because there are more markets to choose from.It is no longer possible. If the British government follows up, it will destroy the foundation of George Grande.

Under the new and old hatred, George Grande didn't care about the nobles' cultivation anymore, and started to vent his heart.

This was a pain for Henry. He didn't dare to leave, and he didn't dare to persuade him. He could only stand there in embarrassment, trying to put on an expression of listening carefully.

After venting the grievances in his heart, George Grande gradually calmed down. When it comes to international political disputes, he is not capable of mixing.

The era of capitalism has not yet come, and if you play too much, you will have to pay a price.

Don't look at him also bearing the title of nobility, but George Grande is very clear about how much moisture there is in the purchased title compared with the real nobility.

After pausing for a while, he said slowly: "You don't have to worry about political matters. I will communicate with my colleagues and work together to overcome the crisis."

Being able to stand out from many competitions, George Grande is naturally not an easy person.He is naturally aware of the people's deep aversion to the opium trade.

The "Drug Stores Act" introduced in 1868 was enacted under the strong dissatisfaction of the people.

It's just that it's about your own interests, so you can't bear to let go.

We must know that in 1888 alone, the sales of opium-related products in Britain amounted to tens of millions of pounds, and the surrounding industrial chain was as high as hundreds of millions of pounds.

Not to mention overseas, the benefits that can be obtained are definitely much more than those at home.

Once the government promulgates the anti-crow bill, not only the local interests will be gone, but the overseas income will also drop sharply.

……

Downing Street, Prime Minister Gladstone is now having a very headache. The public's attention has indeed shifted from the "Minister case", but Britain is still at the center of the whirlpool of public opinion.

"The atrocities of the British army in Afghanistan", "Britain's black colonial history", "the biggest behind-the-scenes man in the European war", "the biggest slave trader in human history", "drug empire"...

The focus of this series of public opinion is directed at them.In the face of the facts, all their defenses are pale and powerless.

If he knew from the beginning that the situation would get out of control, Prime Minister Gladstone would rather resist the pressure of the "Minister Case" than fight the Russians.

With such a toss now, not only is the Anglo-Russian war unavoidable, but it has also made itself notorious.

European countries are very disgusted with their methods of dragging people into the water. The major colonial empires have a pile of black history, and some are even going on.

In this context, everyone can only push a more exaggerated one out to attract the attention of the public.

Austria made a head start, everyone gave a push, and Britain took the top spot by virtue of its strength.

It's still the kind that can't come down after going up. The black history far exceeds the sum of the second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth, and has become the focus of international public opinion.

Prime Minister Gladstone: "International public opinion is becoming more and more unfavorable to us, and now we will be magnified if we do anything casually.

As it turned out, our plan to divert attention from the public had failed.European countries are very dissatisfied with our exposure of their black history, and this is only the beginning of retaliation.

If we can't handle these problems properly, we will encounter more troubles later.Do you have any good solutions? "

Few countries would dare to confront Britain directly, but if they work secretly, everyone will have no pressure.

Anyway, it was Austria who lifted the lid, and the Russians rushed to the front line, and everyone just beat the side drums.

If the British government wants to retaliate, it must first get rid of the two leaders, otherwise it will be counterproductive.

Colonial Secretary Primrose replied: "The Prime Minister is right that these issues do need to be addressed.

But right now there is not much we can do, and any drastic measures will cause an uproar.Continuing to entangle on this issue will only be more detrimental to us.

According to past experience, to suppress a focus of public opinion, it can only create a larger focus of public opinion.

We failed to divert public attention this time, mainly because we made too many enemies, and we should learn a lesson now.

In essence, this incident was just an accident and did not have any substantial benefits, so there was no need to persist.

The Russians have already started preparing for war, and the defense of Afghanistan is imperative.I think it can appease the dissatisfaction of various countries, and then stir up conflicts between Britain and Russia to divert the attention of the domestic people.

The public opinion this time has affected the interests of some capitalists, and I believe they will help us guide public opinion.As for international public opinion, let them be! "

Although the opium trade is not an important source of income for the government, opium dealers are definitely the big money backers for newspapers, bureaucrats, and congressmen.

These days, British businessmen have controlled most of the world's drug trade, and nearly half of the profits have flowed into the pockets of bureaucrats and parliamentarians through various channels, forming a huge interest group.

Although many people are not interested in this interest group, they have to admit that this group is powerful.

After hesitating for a moment, Prime Minister Gladstone nodded. Being able to become the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom would naturally allow sand in his eyes.

……

Chapter 128 Anti-Drug Campaign

The momentum of public opinion has been created, and Franz will naturally not give up this opportunity to increase his reputation and combat the positive energy of the drug trade.

Others are afraid of being retaliated by opium dealers, so they need to be cautious when speaking, but he, the emperor, is not afraid!

On June 1889, 6, Franz published the "Proposal to Declare War on Drugs", calling on all countries in the world to act together to ban the drug trade.

The natural opium trade that has been criticized heavily, Franz will not save face for the British, and directly asks the British government to be responsible for the opium flood.

On the same day, the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also issued a diplomatic note to countries around the world, inviting them to participate in the International Anti-drug Conference to be held in Vienna one year later.

If the time interval is long, there is no way.

Communication is inconvenient these days, and it will be a few months before the news spreads all over the world, and one year is really not enough time for representatives from various countries to arrive in Vienna.

The main purpose of holding an international anti-drug conference is to increase momentum and put pressure on the British government. Naturally, the more representatives attending the conference, the better.

Franz has always liked to plan before making moves. Since he decided to crack down on the British opium trade, he naturally had to make results.

Without asking the British government to compromise, at least the international law must clearly prohibit the sale of opium, and limit the use of opium to the field of medicine, rather than health products that can be sold at will.

Franz's personal platform naturally greatly encouraged the confidence of those who opposed the opium trade.With the release of the proposal, Franz also became the leader of the international anti-drug campaign.

No one competed with him for this position, and the opium dealers were not easy to mess with.In the past hundred years, I don't know how many people of insight who opposed the opium trade died under their butcher's knife.

It was not easy for someone to stand up to the counterattack of the opium dealers, so everyone naturally pushed him to the front.

Especially for countries suffering from opium poisoning, the impact is even greater.

After waiting for so many years, finally a master who can compete with the British came out to carry the banner of smoking ban.

……

Foreign Minister Weissenberg: "Since His Majesty issued the declaration, we have received the support of Russia, Greece, Montenegro, Switzerland, France, Spain, the Nordic Federation, and some states in the German region.

The situation is about the same as we expected.If there is no accident, after the news spreads, there will be several countries outside of Europe supporting us.

The opium trade is harmful to everyone. The remaining countries did not express their views publicly, mainly because they were worried about retaliation by the British. Most of them also hoped that the anti-smoking campaign would be successful.

Once the international conference is convened, there should be no problem in passing a bill prohibiting the circulation of opium. "

The British plundered the wealth of all countries in the world through the opium trade, which seriously damaged everyone's interests.

No one lifted the lid. In addition to being afraid of the British's revenge, there are more domestic interest groups that profit from the opium trade.

With the efforts of interest groups, voices of opposition have been suppressed.But all of this disappeared with Franz's declaration.

People of insight who opposed the flood of opium stood up, and the harmfulness of opium was exposed, and the lid finally couldn't be covered.

Interest groups can influence the government, but cannot make decisions for the government.At critical moments, politicians will naturally kick off these dirty foot wraps.

Except for France, Spain and the Nordic Federation, these countries that openly support the smoking ban have a common feature: they are heavily influenced by Austria and largely unaffected by the British.

It doesn't matter even if it offends the British, anyway, John Bull's tentacles can't reach it, and he is not afraid of retaliation.

Frankly speaking, Franz was not surprised to receive the support of Spain and the Nordic Federation. The British plundered their wealth through the opium trade, so they naturally opposed it.

The performance of the French is quite weird.Don't forget that Britain and France are allies, and the recent relationship between France and Austria is very bad. For political considerations, the French government has no reason to support it.

However, this was useless, and the French government jumped out to support it. It was still one of the first countries to express its position, and it was tied for first place with the Russians almost at the same time.

If it weren't for the support of the French government, Austria might not have been able to receive the support of so many European countries in such a short period of time.

"Is there something wrong with the relationship between Britain and France? Recently, why has the French government always caused trouble for the British?"

It's not that Franz is sensitive. From the beginning of the alliance to the present, the French government has been causing trouble for the British. Of course, the British government has also dug holes for the French.