Greece to roman road

Constantine thought thoughtfully upon hearing Metaxas' sincere request.

"Metaxas, your judgment is based on purely military considerations and does not take into account the domestic and international situation," Constantine explained.

"Not to mention other factors, just after the Treaty of Berlin in 1881, countries have reached an agreement on the territorial issue of the Balkans: Unless countries reach a unified consensus, countries are prohibited from unilaterally changing the status quo of the Balkans." Constantine Said helplessly.

Even though it was as powerful as Russia, after the victory of the Russo-Turkish War in 1878, the British fleet sailed to the Sea of ​​Marmara. When the Anglo-Russian naval war was about to break out, it had to give up its gains and succumbed to international pressure.

The original issue between Russia and Türkiye turned into an international issue.

"Without the approval of the great powers, it is impossible for us to take military action," Constantine said helplessly.

As for resisting the pressure of the great powers and forcing a war, Constantine did not mention it at all, because it was absolutely impossible.

Although Constantine believed that Metaxas's suggestion was unrealistic, Constantine was still impressed by the other party's keen insight into changes in military power.

After all, the other party is just a division-level staff officer. It is really difficult for him to consider the problem from the perspective of the government and the international political situation.

"Okay, Chief of Staff Metaxas, please tell me the general situation of our Thessalian First Division."

"Yes, Your Excellency, the 1st Division mainly consists of the 2nd Infantry Regiment, stationed in Lamia. The 4th Infantry Regiment, stationed in Larissa. The 5th Infantry Regiment, stationed in Trikala. The 1st Field Artillery Regiment. 1st and 2nd Squadrons, stationed in Larissa. Engineer Battalion, headquartered in Larissa," Metaxas replied.

"The total number of people is about 11,000."

As one of the main divisions of Greece, the First Division of the Thessalian Army is undoubtedly Greece's ace division.

Metaxas then led Constantine to the playground to watch the army.

The soldiers lined up neatly, the rifles in their hands, and the bright silver curved bayonets made people feel chilly.

"Is this a Shaposi rifle?" Constantine said, pointing to the special rifle in the soldier's hand.

The reason why Constantine could recognize this rifle at a glance was because the bayonet of this rifle was very special.

One is the length. The Chaposi rifle with a bayonet reaches 3 meters and can be used as a long gun.

The second is its unique shape, which is based on the Turkish Atkan scimitar.

Metaxas, who was accompanying the review, came forward and said, "Yes, it is an improved model, using an all-metal copper bullet case."

The Charbosse rifle was the main rifle equipped by the French army in the Franco-Prussian War. Even though the French failed, various countries still believed that the Charbosse rifle was more advanced than the German Dresser rifle.

Xia Sebo's most convincing innovation is the rubber gas sleeve on the surface of the bolt to prevent gas leakage.

Although this method is not perfect, because after each shot, the rubber will shrink and harden due to the action of gas and eventually lose its function, and needs to be replaced at any time. However, compared with the hot-water firing pin of the Dresser rifle, how can this be considered a problem?

"What cannons are our artillery equipped with?" Constantine asked curiously.

Because the artillery's cannons are large and heavy, they are difficult to move around. They are just for reviewing the troops and there is no need to go to war.

Therefore the cannon did not appear.

"Since the Germans defeated the French, the reputation of the German Krupp breech-loaded cannon has become world-famous," Metaxas replied.

From the Shaposi rifles and Krupp cannons equipped by the First Division, we can see its important position in the Greek army.

These weapons are carefully selected from the weapons currently in service in various countries and purchased from overseas at a large cost.

The total number of Greek Army troops is about 50,000. Although this number is not large, the Bulgarian Army next door has nearly 100,000 troops.

However, for Greece, an agricultural country with a population of just over one million, this is already a heavy burden.

·······

Congo's Matadi-Kinshasa railway route has been confirmed after two months of exploration.

Banning notified Constantine of the news by telegram, and established a Congo Railway Corporation based on the plan to develop the Congo River Basin.

It is estimated that this railway company will need to raise 25 million francs in founding capital before it can build a railway in the uninhabited tropical jungles of southern Africa.

Faced with such a huge sum of money, Banning was almost bald. He knew very well that the Greek royal family had limited wealth and could not invest as much in Congo as before.

As for the bankers in Greece, their capital is weak, and it is impossible for them to collect such a huge sum of money.

This means that the new Kingdom of Congo must rely on its own strength to raise sufficient development funds.

Banning, prompted by Constantine, first came to Belgium and made contact with bankers in the Belgian banking industry.

Although King Leopold II of Belgium had previously expressed to Constantine that he was willing to contract the Matadi-Kinshasa railway operation rights, Constantine, who understood its important position, did not agree.

If the Belgians can get completely independent railway rights, out of their own interests, even if there are risks, Belgian bankers will be willing to bear it compared with the broad profit prospects in the future.

But the current situation is that the Congolese Railway Company is only seeking financial support from them for this project. They are only one of the shareholders, and risk is an important factor they need to consider.

According to Banning's reaction, bankers from various countries responded tepidly.

The current situation in Congo is that the main export commodities are ivory, rubber, and palm, all of which are primary products, totaling about one million francs.

It is difficult to imagine how the initial capital raising of 25 million francs would be carried out to build a railway in such a densely populated area of ​​primitive jungle and lack of important commodities.

Congo is rich in mineral reserves and types, and the experience of Constantine in later generations is unknown to contemporary people.

Moreover, a considerable part of Congo's mineral deposits are rare metals, and at this time when the second industrial revolution is in the ascendant, market demand is not strong.

For example, the uranium mines in Congo are now used to dye porcelain.

Congo Railways needs more enticing news to attract investors' attention.

Constantine sat in his office, racking his brains to think of ways to raise funds.

"Your Highness, the tea you asked for." Schmidt placed the exquisite tea cup in front of the frowning Constantine.

Seeing the restless Constantine, Schmidt kindly came up with an idea: "Duke, the news of the discovery of a large gold mine in South Africa has caused gold prospectors across Europe to flock to it. Can we also release some news, let's talk about the Congo region? New gold deposits have also been discovered.”

"In this way, under the temptation of gold, there will definitely be people willing to pay for the railway in Congo."

Constantine's eyes lit up after hearing Schmidt's prompt.