The Rise Of Australasia-Chapter 1031 - 775: Choose One of the Two Bottles of Poison_2

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The second reason is that Nicholas II had already been steadily retreating and essentially saw no hope of victory.

One of the main reasons why European countries were supporting Nicholas II was actually to invest, in hope of a return from him after the unification of Russia.

The most striking example of this was France. The Frenchmen wanted to secure a steadfast ally in support of France through supporting Nicholas II and the unified Russia afterwards.

When they realized that Nicholas II could no longer win, the Frenchmen naturally gave up their support for Nicholas II and turned to look for other allies.

The French first turned their eyes to Poland. Although not a strong country within Europe, Poland has a favorable geographical location.

Moreover, compared to the weakening Russia, it was easier for Poland to become the new overlord of Eastern Europe.

At this point, Poland's attractiveness to France was greater than that of Nicholas II's Tsarist Russia.

After all, one of the purposes of the French in seeking allies was to counterbalance the ever-strengthening Germany.

Beyond Poland, the French also set their sights on the Austrian Empire.

Although the Austrian Empire was not as strong as the former Austro-Hungarian Empire, it was still recognized as one of the great Powers and was considerably stronger than Poland.

The Austrian Empire's level of industrial development was significant, with its industry even now being stronger than Italy's.

More importantly, the Austrian Empire had conflicts with Italy and its policies in the Balkan Region were not approved by the British, making it a more natural ally for France.

As a result, the relationship between France and Russia gradually grew distant as France moved closer to Poland and the Austrian Empire.

Nicholas II was not unaware of this, but there was nothing he could do about it.

This is the nature of national interests. When Nicholas II's Tsarist Russia lost its last vestiges of value, being abandoned became inevitable.

Unless Nicholas II could regain the initiative in the war and even take advantage of the situation to defeat Poland and the enemies to unify the whole of Russia.

Otherwise, Nicholas II would not see any supporters come his way, and the aid he once received would vanish like smoke in the air.

"How much longer can our finances last?" Nicholas II rubbed his eyebrows, his face showing an exhaustion that seemed almost palpable.

"The treasury can hardly spare a single ruble," the Minister of Finance said solemnly, giving an answer that filled Nicholas II with despair.

"Issue another batch of war bonds and mortgage all the mineral resources we can," Nicholas II said after a long silence.

"Use all the funds we can gather to buy weaponry, ammunition, and supplies. I want to fight a fight to the death with the enemy," Nicholas II closed his eyes, his words resolute.

"Yes!" The entire Cabinet had no objections; they understood this might be the last resort.

Arthur was well aware of the situation in Russia. In fact, if Australasia chose to support Russia, Nicholas II might have been able to hold on a while longer.

But it was clear that Arthur had no reason to support Russia gratuitously, nor was it likely he would expend Australasians' taxes to help the Russians.

However, an exchange of interests for his own goals was still a possibility.

On the 11th of March, European royal family affairs Chief David personally went to Saint Petersburg and had a secret conversation with Nicholas II's Butler lasting over two hours.

The next day, Chief David was personally received by Nicholas II himself and discussed matters in Nicholas II's Travel Manor for over three hours.

When Chief David left Saint Petersburg, he wore a smile and appeared quite satisfied.

Meanwhile, in Saint Petersburg, Nicholas II also shed his previous tiredness, regaining some of his vigor.

Chief David's discussions in Saint Petersburg were extensive, achieving compromises with Nicholas II on nearly all matters.

Although many details of the negotiations were not disclosed, some of the disclosed content was indeed thought-provoking.

First of all, Nicholas II's only legitimate granddaughter, Anna Miller, had gained both a godfather and a godmother.

Her godfather was Arthur's eldest son, William, Crown Prince of Australasia, and naturally, Anna Miller's godmother was his wife, Crown Princess Alexandrine.

It is worth mentioning that as a member of the Russian royal family, Anna Miller's religion was originally Eastern Orthodox Church.

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However, before William and his wife became Anna Miller's godparents, the Russian Monarchy publicly announced the change of Anna Miller's religion to Australasian Protestantism.

Such a change in religion was very meaningful. By convention, Tsarist Russia, as a purely Eastern Orthodox nation, the heir to the throne should also follow the Eastern Orthodox Church.

After Anna Miller converted to Australasian Protestantism, did this imply she lost her right to the throne?

But if Anna Miller lost the right to the throne, then who would become the next Tsar in the event of Crown Prince Aleksei's severe illness?

These two ensuing questions made the change in religion—a seemingly minor issue—take on major significance, even affecting the stability of Tsarist Russia.

However, at this time, it was clear that these concerns were beyond Nicholas II's immediate worries. In return for his concessions, Nicholas II received aid valued at 20 million Australian dollars, most of which consisted of weaponry, ammunition, and medical supplies.

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