Early the next morning, old Sabatier waited with his entourage at the gate of the Prussian barracks outside Frankfurt, and when he saw Sawyer, he was astonished that the man in front of him, who was being taught to moan like a pig's head, was actually his younger brother, which made old Sabatier not react for a while.
But Sawyer's moans confirmed that the unknown creature in front of him was really his own brother, the former powerful magistrate in Frankfurt, Sawyer.
Just when the old Sabatier was furious and ready to ask the Prussians for justice, his eyes met the eyes of several guards at the gate of the Prussian barracks, which made the old Sabatier's body tremble a little.
In the eyes of those Prussian soldiers, the old Sabatier saw the other party's contempt for his group and the unconcealed naked murderous aura, and even after the soldiers saw the eyes of the old Sabatian, the soldiers actually began to load ammunition as if no one was around, which made the old Sabatiane's original idea of asking for an explanation also extinguished.
In desperation, old Sabatier had no choice but to order his servants to carry the sheriff, who was worth three and a half million silver coins, and left the Prussian barracks in disgrace.
After seeing old Sabatier go, Buel, who was sitting in the carriage not far from the Prussian barracks, showed a contemptuous smile on the corner of his mouth, and then said as if to himself: "If I could make a fuss today, I would be impressed by you, but now, hehe....."
Today is the fourth day of the Electoral Council, and a result must be decided today no matter what.
Otherwise, the meeting would have been delayed, which would have been somewhat unacceptable to the Electors who had left their respective territories.
After all, everyone has been out for a while, and the incidents that need to be dealt with in their respective countries must have been piled up very high.
William's eyes kept looking at Maximilian's face, yesterday's meeting, Maximilian had fallen into the upper hand, if he didn't have the means to reverse the situation today, then Maximilian would be completely hopeless for the supreme throne of the empire.
It's not just William who is looking at Maximilian, as Maximilian's biggest opponent and his dearest brother.
Leopold's eyes were also on Maximilian at all times.
Unlike yesterday, Maximilian's expression did not look haggard at this moment, which made the Electors feel a little suspicious.
Could it be that Maximilian had any other means?
Sure enough, just as Sigel announced the opening of the meeting, Maximilian stood up as if he had made up his mind, and said: "In the past few days' meetings, I think Your Highness the Elector may have misunderstood one thing.
That is, the reason why Zai Xia proposed to convene a council of electors to decide who would be the next emperor did not represent what kind of ambition Zai Xia had for the imperial throne!
” After Maximilian finished speaking, he immediately caused an uproar.
And William, like everyone else, was puzzled by the meaning of Maximilian's words!
Could it be that Maximilian knew that he was no match for Leopold, so he had to throw in the towel?
If this is the case, it is completely inconsistent with the image of Maximilian in the minds of everyone!
William immediately looked at Eltal, who was sitting next to Maximilian, but the expression on the face of the Elector of Mainz was also full of consternation, and it was obvious that Maximilian's words were also unexpected as his closest ally.
Before everyone came to their senses, Maximilian continued: "As His Excellency Kautz said yesterday, first the Elector of Cologne and then the heirs to the Habsburgs, and today we are gathered not to decide the patriarch of the Habsburgs, but to decide the supremacy of the Holy Roman Empire.
Therefore, I never thought of becoming the master of the empire myself!
” There was an uproar in the council hall, what is Maximilian doing here?
As the saying goes, if you don't die, you won't die.
But listening to him now, it's a prelude to death!
Didn't he know that Leopold already hated him to the core!
Some time ago, it was himself who made Leopold anxious, and under his actions, Leopold spent all his efforts to pacify Austria, even if Maximilian withdrew from the imperial throne now, Leopold would never forgive him, didn't he understand this truth?
"It is a sacred and difficult responsibility that God and the Emperor's previous emperors have given us a sacred and arduous responsibility for all of us to come together in order to elect a generation of heroes who will lead the Holy Roman Empire to the greatest power in the world.
There is no doubt that His Royal Highness Leopold is the heir in line to the imperial throne, but there is not only one heir to the throne, and His Royal Highness Leopold has not been able to clear his innocence in the cause of the death of His Majesty Joseph II, so he believes that the Holy Roman Empire's throne should be inherited by Archduke Ferdinand, the brother of His Majesty Joseph II!
” A good move to retreat into advance, William sighed a little in his heart.
Previously, everyone thought that Maximilian had fallen into the upper hand and that defeat was only a matter of time, but now Maximilian's words stunned everyone, especially Leopold.
Everyone knows that Ferdinand and Maximilian wear a pair of pants, and before in the Habsburg family, Ferdinand was Maximilian's most important supporter and ally, and it was when the two worked together that Leopold was anxious before.
It's just that Maximilian was on the front line before, so Ferdinand, who has been standing behind him, has been somewhat downplayed, although Leopold hated Maximilian and Ferdinand after coming to power, but after all, Ferdinand was not as high-profile as Maximilian, and within the Habsburg family, Ferdinand has always shown a kind appearance, so that he has a very high reputation in the family.
Therefore, when Leopold came to power, he did not punish Ferdinand too harshly, but only exiled him to his fiefdom of Modena.
But now Maximilian's words made Leopold sound his younger brother, Ferdinand is not only the third brother of Joseph II but also the Grand Duke of Modena, in any way, if Ferdinand is crowned on the throne, it will not cause any controversy, after all, he also has the qualifications to inherit.
Maximilian sat down after he had finished his words, not paying any attention to the uproar caused by his words, but the look on his face was not very good, and Richard, who was sitting behind him, laughed slightly.
Pushing Ferdinand to the fore was exactly Richard's idea, in Richard's opinion, Maximilian had fallen into a disadvantage at the Electoral Conference, and even blindly resisting in the end at this time could not change the fate of defeat, so it was better to take a step back.
The phrase "taking a step back and opening up the sky" is not empty talk, sometimes if you take a step back, the room for maneuver is greatly increased, and Ferdinand's accession to the throne and Maximilian's own accession to the throne are no different except for the name, after all, even if he ascends the throne of the emperor, but in addition to his own territory, how can there be princes who willingly obey the emperor's orders.
Sometimes taking a step back is just to make a better future move.
Eltar pondered for a moment after Maximilian had finished speaking, and then the old fox naturally figured out the joints, and then he also smiled.
Not only Eltar, but also the people sitting in this conference hall at the moment who are not human spirits, as for Maximilian's intentions, who can not know!
But even if it were clear, the cause of Joseph II's death was the biggest obstacle to Leopold's accession to the throne.
If there is no other candidate, but once there are other candidates, the stain on Leopold himself will be infinitely magnified, even if the result of the electoral council ends in Leopold's victory, but as long as Maximilian spreads the suspicion of the cause of Joseph II's death to all parts of the empire, then Leopold, the emperor, will definitely be unstable, and at that time, not only Leopold, but even several electors who support Leopold will be questioned by the entire empire.
In the face of Maximilian's killing move, even Kaunitz was very troubled at the moment, and at this moment Leopold himself spoke: "Electors, I beg no mischief with Maximilian's words, both in the Imperial Code and in the Salic Code, which has been the norm throughout Europe since ancient times, it is clearly stated that all tangible and intangible assets, such as titles and property, shall be inherited by way of succession, and no one shall pass the succession.
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I am the crown prince designated by His Royal Highness Joseph II, and I am also the first in line of succession to the emperor, and although Ferdinand is the heir in line, he is only the second in line, so Ferdinand will never inherit everything left by the emperor until I go to God!
” Leopold had to rely on his greatest dependence, that is, his status as the first in line to the throne of Joseph II.
"In addition, several edicts of His Majesty Joseph II on posthumous affairs are kept in the archives of Vienna, and my inheritance is recognized by law and protected by God, and anyone who attempts to seize my inheritance will be severely punished by law and sanctioned by God!"
This was said very generously and forcefully, and if it were not for the wrong occasion, William would definitely applaud Leopold.
"Your Excellency Leopold, please don't change the subject, until you have cleared the suspicion of murdering His Majesty Joseph II, I don't think you are qualified to inherit the imperial throne!"
At this moment, Maximilian seemed very aggressive, and he was obviously still angry about Leopold ruining his dream of emperorship.