Empire Rise: Spain-Chapter 30: The Bigger The Waves, The Pricier The Fish

Why are things in Spain always so terrible?
Carlo faces a very difficult choice, and it is extremely likely to affect the future destiny of Carlo and the Kingdom of Spain.
Once Primó’s deepened reforms are fully successful and deal with the church and capitalists who might oppose them, Spain’s comprehensive national strength will thrive, and it is not impossible to return to the ranks of the great powers.
But if this reform provokes opposition from the church and capitalists, and allows the republican faction and Carlist faction to take the opportunity to launch a major rebellion, the situation Carlo will face will not be much better than that of Queen Isabella one and a half years ago.
Although Carlo still has the ultimate fallback of returning to Italy, the church and capitalists he has offended may not be willing to let Carlo return to Spain.
Moreover, if he returns to Italy in such a disgraced manner, it would absolutely be a heavy blow to Carlo, who has only just obtained the Spanish throne.
To bet or not to bet? How to bet? This is the most headache-inducing problem for Carlo right now.
“What we may face could be the church, could be the capitalists, or could be the Carlist faction and republican faction. But Your Majesty, if our reforms are successfully implemented and gain the support of the public, we will have the support of 16 million Spanish people, and this is also the confidence behind my promotion of the reforms.
I plan to start promoting army reforms from this year, and equip the army with more cannons. Our enemies will definitely not expect us to push the reforms so firmly, and to go to war with them without hesitation.
As long as the public chooses to stand with us, victory will be within our grasp.” Primó laid out his plan in full and tried to win Carlo’s support.
No matter what identity Carlo had before becoming king, from the moment he was crowned King of Spain, he possessed a certain prestige and status in Spain.
Spain has a large number of farmers, and most of these farmers support monarchy. If Carlo can support his comprehensive reforms, the success rate of the reforms will undoubtedly be much higher.
Of course, Primó also knew the degree of difficulty of this reform and how powerful the enemies he would face were.
He was already prepared to struggle alone, and even if it was just for that sliver of hope for Spain’s revival, he would absolutely not abandon it.
“How is Minister Serrano’s situation in Cuba?” Carlo did not immediately agree to Primó’s plan, but instead asked a seemingly unrelated question.
“Minister Serrano arrived in Cuba two and a half months ago and immediately launched a suppression campaign against the Cuban rebellion army. If there are no accidents, perhaps in a few more months we will hear the news of Cuba’s recapture.” Primó said with a smile.
Serrano is indeed one of the most influential figures in the current Spanish Army, and his military talents are still worthy of affirmation.
More importantly, Serrano himself served as Governor of Cuba a few years ago and is relatively familiar with the situation in Cuba.
In history, Spain was unable to suppress the rebellion in Cuba for these years, and only at the time of Alfonso XII did it regain control of Cuba at great expense.
But by then, the Cuban independence forces had already gained momentum, which is why Spain took a full ten years to annihilate the Cuban rebellion and spent seven hundred million pesetas.
That is a full 27 million pound sterling, enough to build ten capital ships in the dreadnought era, let alone an era even earlier than the dreadnoughts.
Primó’s reforms have not consumed so much funds so far. If all the money spent on suppressing the rebellion in Cuba were used for reforms in Spain, Spain’s comprehensive national strength could at least rise one small step.
“Very good, Prime Minister Primó.” Hearing that Cuba could be pacified in a few months, Carlo was in a good mood.
After thinking carefully for a moment, Carlo said to Primó: “Prime Minister Primó, I support your reforms. But I also hope you can prepare for any possible rebellion. We must annihilate any enemies who might stand against Spain’s reforms.”
“As you command, Your Majesty. Please rest assured, Spain’s army is always ready to fight for Your Majesty and Spain. We will not fear any enemies standing against Spain.
Before promoting comprehensive reforms, I will approve a portion of funds to help the army purchase weapons and equipment and cannons. If those Carlist faction and republican faction want to obstruct Spain’s reforms, then I will send them to see God, and let God reason with them.” Hearing that Carlo supported his reforms, Primó stood up instantly, and guaranteed to Carlo very firmly and solemnly.
“Excellent, Prime Minister Primó. I am glad that Spain has ministers like you and Serrano. Once we annihilate these enemies obstructing Spain’s advance, I will personally reward you and celebrate your victory!” Having received Primó’s guarantee, Carlo nodded in satisfaction and painted a big pie for Primó.
In this high-stakes gamble, Carlo still chose to stand with Primó. The reason was simple: the great capitalist class and republican faction opposing Primó could not possibly stand with Carlo either.
In plain terms, Carlo and Primó were in a state of shared glory and shared loss.
If Primó failed in the reforms and lost power and status, it would not be a good thing for Carlo either.
After all, Carlo was essentially propped up by Primó, and Carlo’s initial status also came from Primó’s support.
If these enemies blocking Spain’s path forward are not dealt with, how can Spain achieve revival?
If he just wanted to be a noble enjoying life, Carlo could do that in Italy. But if he wanted to realize the ambitions in his heart and elevate the country of Spain from a second-rate power in Europe to a first-rate one or even great power level, he absolutely could not shrink back because of some domestic opposition.
So what about the Carlist faction? Queen Isabella was able to defeat the Carlist faction twice in a row, and Carlo did not believe that with the full support of Serrano and Primó, he could still lose to the Carlist faction, these rebels who had already suffered multiple defeats.
As the saying goes, the bigger the waves, the more expensive the fish. Although promoting comprehensive reforms in Spain today seems very risky, the rewards once successful will absolutely not be small.
The support of the public and the improvement of Spain’s comprehensive national strength are only part of it. Carlo can also take the opportunity to solve the church and Carlist faction problems that have plagued Spain for many years, and make the Spanish people disgusted with republicanism.
In this way, the domestic problems in Spain will be mostly solved, and the separatists in various places that have not yet gained momentum will also disappear due to Spain’s thriving national strength.
Thinking of this, Carlo’s mood became exceptionally relaxed. Whether the Carlist faction or the church, they were just clowns who had lost the general trend.
If he didn’t even have the courage to defeat these forces, then Carlo’s ambitions could be dispelled early.
First update, seeking support!