Chapter 385: Stimulus of Interests


    Outside the city of Venice, a few kilometers away in an ancient castle, Viscount Orabi was hosting avish wee banquet, the guest of honor being the recently returned Baron Falkner.


    This wasnt Baron Falkners first visit here, but unlike the previous one, the scale of the wee banquet was much grander.


    It was evident that Viscount Orabi was very enthusiastic this time, unlike thest time, which was merely a perfunctory reception.


    As the saying goes, When youre poor, no one cares about you even in a busy city; when youre rich, you have distant rtives even in remote mountains.


    Baron Falkner deeply felt the truth of this saying. Ten years ago, when he went into debt to develop colonies, he was often mocked. But now, those former mockeries had turned into praises.


    Even though he was far away on the African continent, this was no obstacle for the well-informed nobles.


    Times had changed. Ten years ago, the African continent was seen by everyone as a ce infested by venomous insects and ferocious beasts, ravaged by disease and gue. Now, the African continent has be and of hope.


    Sessful individuals are exempt from criticism. As a sess story, Falkner was enjoying the treatment orded to one, satisfying his vanity.


    There were many Austrian nobles involved in the development of Africa, but once they spread across the vast African continent, they became few and far between.


    Moreover, everyone was busy getting rich. How many of them would have had the leisure to hold banquets every day?


    Baron Falkners attendance at the banquet was not without purpose. To promote the integration of the colonies, the support of local nobles was indispensable.


    Currently, aside from those involved in Africas development, local capitalists are also a significant force supporting colonial integration. However, this is still far from sufficient.


    Austria was not like Ennd or France  capitalists had very little political say. Even nobles like Baron Falkner developing in Africa had greater political influence than capitalists.


    The main force behind promoting colonial integration this time would be these nobles.


    It might be an exaggeration to say that by connecting with five individuals, one can establish connections with everyone in the world. However, it is not difficult to connect with all the nobles in Austria through five nobles.


    Baron Falkner said with a smile, Orabi, its been ten years since west met. I didnt expect Harrington, Gardner, and Dewington to have all grown big now. You can tell they will all be excellent soldiers.


    Viscount Orabi responded naturally, Yes, I am proud of all of them.


    Joining the military was an Austrian noble tradition. Noble children received strict military training from a young age, and bing excellent soldiers was the pursuit of many of them.


    Modesty was not considered a virtue in Europe. It only makes people perceive it as a disy of hypocrisy.


    Since Viscount Orabi believed his sons would be outstanding soldiers, he would openly admit to it. It was his true inner thoughts.


    Baron Falkner inquired with concern, Are you nning to send them to serve in the army or the navy?


    In recent years, the status of the Austrian navy has been significantly elevated, almost on par with the army.


    Many noble children who initially chose to join the navy seized the opportunity of its expansion, rising swiftly and making remarkable progress.


    Now, for noble children entering service, there was an additional option  the navy.


    Orabi proudly said, Harrington and Dewington are joining the army, while Gardner is going to the navy. They have all been epted into military academies.


    Harrington studied at the Vienna Artillery Command Academy and has already graduated. Hell be enlisting in the army in a little over a week. Gardner and Dewington havee back this time to see him off.


    Dewington is in his third year at the Munich Infantry Command Academy, while Gardner is studying at the Austrian Naval Academy right here at home, just starting his first year.


    Falkner, youvee back just in time. If you hade anyter, you wouldnt have been able to see them.


    This is a typical case of hedging bets on both sides. With the continuous expansion of overseas colonies, the aristocrats who were well-informed recognized the importance of the navy.


    In the face of uncertainty over the nations future strategic focus, many nobles were hedging their bets on both fronts. Since there is little conflict between Austrias army and navy, there is no harm in doing so.


    Having all three sons admitted to military academies did give Orabi reason to be proud.


    Although aristocrats have a naturally higher starting point, Austrian military academies are not easy to enter either. There are a total of nine national military academies for both army and navy, with an annual admission of just over 3,500, while the number of applicants has never been less than one hundred thousand.


    This is the impact ofpulsory education. With the increase in basic education, students with good grades who are admitted to secondary schools can apply for student loans to continue their studies, leading to a sharp increase in the number of secondary school students.


    Admissions for Austrias military academies and universities were separate processes. Applicants could apply to both, as there was a three-month gap between them which would not affect the oues of admissions.


    Undoubtedly, this is an era where thousands of soldiers are crossing a narrow bridge. Whether its the university or military academy, students apply first and then decide.


    Commoner students who manage to emerge from thispetition are not much inferior to academic elites, at least in terms of cultural subjects.


    Even though they are limited by resources and their education cannotpare to that of aristocrats, but there are always geniuses and lucky ones who stand out.


    If it were justpetition amongmoner students, it wouldnt be much of an issue. The problem is thatpetition among aristocratic children is also intense. In this era, only-child families were not popr in Austria; most households had at least three to five children.


    There are also numerous children from branches of noble families. Although they dont inherit titles, it doesnt mean their childrens education iscking.


    Nowadays, Austrias middle ss isrgelyposed of these people. Doctors, teachers,wyers, small businessmen, most of them have noble ancestry.


    Truemoners who can rise to prominence are very few. Without a solid knowledge base and social connections, those lucky enough to grow despite this are truly children of destiny.


    Currently, in Austrian universities, the proportion of noble students is only 31.1%, while students from ordinary families are a mere 1.2%. The rest belong to this middle-ss group.


    In military academies, aristocratic children still dominate, ounting for about 64.8% of the total student poption, while the middle ssprises 34.3%. Students from ordinary families are negligible, even fewer than international students.


    Unfortunately, this is the result of fairpetition. Reality is just that cruel; starting from publicpulsory education, they are already at a disadvantage from the very beginning.


    In primary school, students from ordinary families are the majority, but by the time they reach secondary school, they be the minority. On the surface, the probability of Austrian primary school students transitioning to secondary school is about 8%.


    However, oncepulsory education ended, children of the wealthy progressed to higher education almost 100% of the time, skewing the percentage upwards.


    Unless they were top students, children frommon backgrounds basically had no opportunity. They had to ce in the top 1 percentile in entrance exams to qualify for schrships.


    This is originally intended for geniuses. In an era of limited educational resources, Austria adopted an elitist education system.


    This is most evident in military academies, where students who undergo rigorous military training from a young age naturally have an advantage. However, this requires significant investment, which ordinary families cannot afford.


    No matter how high the cultural scores of ordinary students are, when all the scores from various professional exams are added together, they still face the fate of elimination. It can be said that the more subjects they are examined, the fewer opportunities ordinary students have.


    Unfortunately, improving the quality of public education and increasing the number of these specialized courses seems to be an unattainable ideal.


    Adding a new course means increasing education expenditure. Implementingpulsory education standards based on those of children of nobles would bankrupt the Austrian government ten times over.


    Unless there was greater societal demand formoner talent, university expansion was impossible. Higher education in this era was just too costly.


    Currently, even aristocratic children who can afford university education or military academy education do not exceed 35%.


    Of course, there are no restrictions on attending second-tier technical colleges or mediocre universities as anyone with money can enroll.


    Baron Falkner said calmly, Is that so? It seems I truly am fortunate!


    Viscount Orabi replied confidently, Of course!


    Baron Falkner took a small sip of wine and continued, In which unit will Harrington be assigned, and is he nning to develop in the African continent? The opportunities to distinguish himself there are much greater.


    This was Baron Falknerying out the groundwork. There was no other choice. To gain the support of local nobles for colonial integration, it was natural to speak in terms of interests.


    Most nobles faced amon problem: they had many descendants, but only one title. If the eldest son inherited the title, then what about the younger sons?


    ording to the customs of Germany, those with wealth could allocate a portion of their estates to them. For those without wealth, either they were left to make their own way in the world or they were sent to the church to be priests.


    After the religious reforms, the churchs profits werent as plentiful. Churches in economically prosperous areas fared better. Some had lucrative businesses, but if luck was not on their side and they were assigned to impoverished areas, they could only make do with meager resources.


    Going out to seek ones fortunes was only suitable for the destitute nobility. Most relied on family connections to secure them respectable positions. This was how nobles fromteral branches or those who bought their way into the middle ss came about.


    Opportunities are scarce andpetition is fierce in the homnd, but its a different story in the colonies. If one has a substantial fortune, one can invest resources to secure a title.


    If they gained the cooperation of the local powers, then this difficulty could be further reduced. After all, for the colonies, war was something that urred every few years.


    Apart from gaining military des, one can also pursue a career in colonial government. Once colonial integration is achieved, these positions will rise in importance.


    Alternatively, engaging in business or establishing ntations in the colonies are viable paths, and the chances of sess are quite high.


    Orabi was enticed. In receiving Baron Falkner at such a grand scale, apart from their rtionship as cousins, he was also prepared to invest resources to acquire noble titles for his sons.


    Do not just look at his sons entering military academies, with seemingly bright futures ahead. In reality, Orabi understood that in peacetime, very few could truly rise to prominence.


    Not to mention the descendants of viscounts, even those entering the military with the title of duke might not necessarily rise to the rank of general upon retirement.


    Without military aplishments, everyone could only umte seniority.


    After all, they all received military education from a young age, and no ones abilities were toocking. With no way to prove outstanding capabilities, on what grounds would they promote you first?


    The military is a ce where strength matters the most, and the best way to assert oneself is through military achievements. Unfortunately, the wars of this era at most involved bullying natives in the colonies  opportunities were few and far between.


    Orabi pondered for a moment and said, Its not confirmed yet. Right now, hes just a recruit who hasnt been assigned to a unit, and it will be at least another six months before that happens. If he ends up in the African colonies, then Ill have to trouble you, his uncle, to look after him.


    Without a doubt, bi hasnt made up his mind yet.


    As an old-line aristocrat, he still has quite a few connections in the military, and its not difficult to use these rtionships to decide which unit his son will serve in.


    However, pushing for the integration of the colonies is not that simple. Like many others, Orabi is also worried that the integration of the colonies will impact his own estates.


    After all, the colonies had little else besides abundantnd. Once so muchnd was developed, agricultural products would likely be driven down to dirt-cheap prices.


    Not receiving a definitive reply, Baron Falkner still responded with grace, Of course, I am his uncle after all!


    Inwardly, he could onlyment not catching an opportune timing. If only Orabis sons were a bit older, that would be better.


    It would be best if they had just retired from the military and were worried about their futures. Then without him having to say anything, these fellows would help persuade their father.


    At this banquet, Falkner had already sessively persuaded three nobles to support colonial integration. Basically, all of them only supported it for the sake of the next generation.


    The concern about the colonial impact on local agriculture was only shared by nobles with abundantnd. If they had nond left, why worry about such matters?


    After thend redemption, the amount ofnd in the hands of Austrian nobles had actually diminished significantly. By now, thend held by nobles had decreased to less than 20% of the total nationalnd area.


    Since the overseas colonies were opened up, many prominent nobles including the royal family had been gradually selling off theirnd holdings.


    This was determined by interests. With the funds from sellingnd, opening ntations overseas often resulted in obtaining several times, or even dozens of times, thend area they previously held.


    Although colonialnd was not valuable, it did not affect the economic value of the agricultural produce from thesends. Perhaps the per-acre ie was lower than in the homnd, but with so muchnd, the quantity made up for it!


    With the increase in quantity, the ie also increased. The emergence ofrge ntations also drove advances in agricultural cultivation techniques.


    Mechanized agriculture was bing increasingly widespread in Austrias African territories. Unfortunately, the internalbustion engine had not yet been invented, and steam-powered machinery was too cumbersome and inconvenient.


    Under the stimulus of interests, the actual driving force behind the integration of the colonies was still the prominent nobles led by Franz.


    It was just that everyone was mindful of political implications, not directly dering their stance. Instead, they pushed forth minor nobles like Falkner to test the waters and gauge domestic public opinion.