Prince Metternich witnessed the drastic change in Von Bismarck’s expression and gaze within a short time (from a perfunctory smile to blatant hostility). He was somewhat puzzled as to why Von Bismarck would show such great hostility towards him, an old man with one foot in the grave.

Ah, young people nowadays truly do not know how to respect the elderly!

Prince Metternich felt a wave of emotion in his heart, then withdrew his gaze from Von Bismarck and turned back to look at the train parked at the platform.

At this moment, Emperor Franz Joseph was assigning tasks to the carefully selected "Young Turks" inside the carriage. Grand Duke Albrecht and General Benedek were assigned to the front of the coffin, while Minister Bach and Grand Duke Leina were positioned in the middle, with the rear end being taken care of by Franz Joseph and Richard Metternich.

After Franz Joseph had delivered the tasks to those present, most immediately objected to the Emperor’s decision, with the most intense opposition coming from Grand Duke Albrecht and General Benedek.

"The task of carrying Count Radetzky’s coffin can be entrusted to the subordinates! Your Majesty only needs to command from the side, you don’t need to do it yourself!" Grand Duke Albrecht immediately said to Franz Joseph.

"Your Majesty, the Grand Duke is right!" Benedek added in agreement, "If the old Marshal knew you were doing this, he surely wouldn’t approve of your arrangement!"

Franz Joseph certainly understood the reasons behind the objections from Albrecht and Benedek.

They were afraid that while carrying Count Radetzky’s coffin, they might accidentally get hurt.

At that time, the Empire’s ministers and those jealous of them would blame the Emperor’s injury on them.

Then, Albrecht and others would be caught in endless trouble.

"It is only right that Count Radetzky’s coffin be carried by us, who are also subordinates! 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

It makes no sense for an Emperor to carry a subject’s coffin!" Minister Bach also objected to Franz Joseph personally carrying the old Marshal’s coffin.

Among the five people summoned by Franz Joseph, three expressed opposition, leaving Franz Joseph somewhat hesitant.

He looked towards Grand Duke Leina, hoping to gain some support from fellow Habsburg Clan member, Grand Duke Leina.

However, when Franz Joseph cast a pleading glance at Grand Duke Leina, Leina instinctively avoided Franz Joseph’s gaze.

In an attempt to gain Leina’s support, Franz Joseph started by asking Grand Duke Leina, "Leina, do you think I should heed their advice?"

"Your Majesty, I..."

Seeing that he could no longer remain uninvolved, Grand Duke Leina reluctantly replied to Franz Joseph, "I believe, your act of personally carrying Count Radetzky’s coffin would indeed be beneficial for fostering imperial unity!

If the subjects of the Empire knew about it, they would surely be in awe of your kindness and wisdom.

Franz Joseph’s lips curled into a smile, just as he thought Grand Duke Leina supported him.

Grand Duke Leina’s next words, however, shattered Franz Joseph’s illusion, "But I also believe Grand Duke Albrecht, General Benedek, and Minister Bach are right!

Your Majesty, as the Monarch of a nation, you really shouldn’t place yourself in such a position!

If anything were to happen to you, we would be speechless with guilt!"

Grand Duke Leina then bowed to Franz Joseph.

Upon hearing Grand Duke Leina’s response, Franz Joseph’s smile immediately vanished.

He scanned the gathered people with a severe gaze, replying with a touch of anger, "Is that what all of you think?"

The attendees felt a shiver from Franz Joseph’s calm exterior and hidden fury.

No one dared speak, reacting to Franz Joseph’s gaze with silent deference.

Franz Joseph scrutinized them individually until his gaze landed on Richard Metternich.

"Richard Metternich, do you share their thoughts?" Franz Joseph asked Richard Metternich with a firm tone.

In hearing Franz Joseph’s question, Richard Metternich instinctively wanted to declare that he agreed with them.

Yet, the next second, Richard Metternich recalled his father’s views on Emperor Franz Joseph’s character.

"Our Emperor is like a stubborn mule!

If you can’t suppress his actions with a strong attitude (similar to Prince Schwarzenberg), you have no choice but to act according to his wishes to succeed!

Currently, those who could use strong measures to suppress him have passed away, so everyone can only choose to follow his wishes.

If your ideas differ from his, you must choose a roundabout method to make him heed your suggestions!

"Remember, absolutely do not have a conflict with him!"

Thus, Richard Metternich decided to adhere to his father Metternich’s teachings and not align with Bach and others.

After all, whether it was Albrecht or Bach, both had enough political capital to veto the Emperor’s decisions.

Their appointments were not entirely dependent on the will of the Emperor himself.

Take Bach for instance, as Minister of Internal Affairs, he could be considered the financial steward of the entire Austrian Empire, under his leadership the finances of the Austrian Empire were gradually relieving from the previous deficit situation.

Even though the Austrian Empire was still living on borrowed funds, the Austrian Empire’s bonds were more sought after on the international market than before.

Thus, the Emperor would not dismiss them over such minor matters.

His (Richard Metternich’s) political capital was far less than that of Bach and others; he must accumulate political capital cautiously.

Therefore, in certain situations, siding with the Emperor is a necessary step to accumulate capital.

Understanding this, Richard Metternich decisively answered Emperor Franz Joseph, "Your Majesty, I do not agree with Minister Bach and Governor Albrecht’s remarks!"

Richard Metternich’s firm response caught Emperor Franz Joseph’s attention.

Bach’s expression was slightly stiff, he hastily "rebuked" Richard Metternich loudly, "Mr. Metternich, please do not incite the Monarch to undertake actions against etiquette!"

Franz Joseph, having finally found an ally, was unwilling to let Richard Metternich back down, he quickly supported, "Minister Bach, please don’t be so rigid!"

"But... Your Majesty!" Minister Bach protested softly, greeted by Emperor Franz Joseph’s stern gaze.

Richard Metternich continued to speak eloquently, "Minister Bach, I do not believe that the Emperor carrying Count Radetzky’s coffin is a breach of court etiquette!

Remember when His Majesty toured Galicia, did he not wash the feet of Galician peasants?

If carrying the coffin for a meritorious minister is against etiquette, then would not personally washing the feet of peasants be even more so!"

Bach stammered and couldn’t refute because he himself was the originator suggesting the Emperor wash the feet of Galician peasants to win over Galician hearts.

Now, Richard Metternich used this matter to counter Bach.

After a moment, Bach explained to Richard Metternich, "Mr. Richard, that was merely a step in the foot washing ceremony[1]!"

However, Bach’s explanation was evidently somewhat forced.

Even in the Maundy ritual foot washing, the role of the Emperor was only that of the organizer, not a participant.

Of course, this does not mean that the Emperor participating in the foot washing is a violation.

But since the Middle Ages, Emperors/Kings rarely personally participated in such activities, mostly acting as hosts, which has become a tacitly accepted rule.

"Minister Bach, you are being somewhat pedantic!" Emperor Franz Joseph’s voice revealed displeasure upon hearing Bach’s justification.

Coming to his senses, Bach hastily apologized to Richard Metternich, "Your Majesty, I was disrespectful!"

"It’s nothing," Franz Joseph responded lightly, and then continued, "I think Mr. Richard Metternich (Richard Metternich was secretly delighted hearing this title) is right, back then, I was able to stoop down and wash the feet of Galicia’s peasants!

Why can’t I stoop down today to carry Old Marshal Radetzky’s coffin!

Minister Bach, do you believe Count Radetzky should not be given such honor!"

At this point, Franz Joseph’s eyes sharpened like a sword piercing Minister Bach’s heart.

Minister Bach was instantly restrained by Franz Joseph.

To be fair, Minister Bach had a certain respect for Count Radetzky.

Because in the Austrian Empire, few were like Count Radetzky, a purely military figure who did not interfere in politics, as most soldiers within the Empire were, to some extent, politically involved.

When appointed as Governor by the Emperor, they often have their own governance methods and policies, which sometimes conflicted with Vienna, creating difficulties for Bach (the now deceased Hainau being a typical example, during his tenure as Governor of Hungary, he constantly indulged his soldiers in bullying Hungarians), Bach’s biggest headache was these individuals.

Therefore, a Governor completely adhering to Vienna’s instructions like Count Radetzky was Bach’s favorite.

And with Radetzky’s assistance, Bach was able to govern Lombardy and Venice better.

[1]The foot washing ceremony, known in Catholicism as the Maundy, is a religious ritual performed by some Christian denominations.