Prussian Foreign Minister Friedrich reminded from the side, “As for Saxony…”
Baron Tugut turned slightly and nodded, “His Majesty can only accept Prussia acquiring Leipzig and Wittenberg.”
Friedrich and Grenville exchanged a glance and reluctantly replied, “Fine, we’ll defer the discussion regarding the eastern bank of Dresden to a later date. Our nation will abide by the agreement and continue reinforcing Shanghai Reel.”
Indeed, under England’s “coordination,” Prussia and Austria decided to partition Saxony after the war’s conclusion.
During this war against France, Saxony, one of the top four principalities of Germany, firmly refused to deploy troops due to dissatisfaction with Prussia and Austria’s earlier aggression against Poland. It even sent envoys to France twice to clearly declare its neutrality.
This defiance greatly angered both Prussia and Austria.
Furthermore, the two nations had long coveted Saxony’s population and skilled handicraft industry—more than a quarter of Prussian territory had previously been seized from Saxony, while Austria had once briefly extinguished Saxony during the Bavarian throne dispute.
If they could take Saxony, it would undoubtedly be a major gain for Prussia and Austria.
Even England, which had long been unwilling to see Prussia and Austria grow stronger, agreed to this shameless conspiracy under the pressure of the war against France.
After satisfying England and Prussia, Baron Tugut finally heaved a slight sigh of relief, turning to the two of them and saying, “Now, regarding the reinforcement of the Southern Netherlands…”
“Rest assured, His Grace the Duke of York will soon lead his army southward.”
“The Walrys Corps will move from Luneburg into the Southern Netherlands and, after joining forces with the Prince of Coburg, head together to Wavre.”
…
Holland Channel.
As twilight approached, most captains urged their sailors to dock quickly, but the Special Trade Committee’s “Leisure” raised its sails, departing Ostend Port and heading toward the Atlantic Ocean.
The ship was clearly loaded with cargo, pressing the waterline dangerously low. Yet, under the skilled hands of the sailors, its speed quickly reached an impressive pace.
A sailor on the mast vigilantly scanned the surroundings. Just as the sun was about to disappear completely beneath the horizon, he suddenly shouted frantically to those below, “Eleven o’clock direction, British battleship spotted!”
Second mate Maderno hurriedly relayed the alert through the speaking tube leading to the bridge. The entire ship immediately executed a hard starboard turn, leaving a curved trail on the sea in a desperate attempt to evade pursuit.
The British ship clearly also spotted the “Leisure” and immediately raised its sails to give chase.
Maderno widened his eyes, watching the approaching battleship, and shouted orders to the sailors to throw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship and increase its speed.
Using their familiarity with the waterways, the “Leisure” managed to keep a distance of over half a nautical mile from the British battleship, successfully dragging the pursuit into the darkness of night.
Under the cover of night, the “Leisure” swiftly made a sharp turn and disappeared into the vast Atlantic.
However, at dawn the following morning, before they could breathe a sigh of relief, they were once again discovered by a British battleship—this time, a larger escort ship.
Following the captain’s orders, Maderno instructed the crew to discard almost everything except the silk cargo, barely managing to shake off the British pursuers.
The captain looked at the empty hold with a heavy sigh, “It seems we won’t be able to hold out much longer…”
Since the war began, the Special Trade Association had already lost over 70% of its ships due to the British fleet’s blockade.
The captain ordered a course change toward Sweden in hopes of replenishing some cargo there before continuing westward.
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