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Chapter 226: Double Happiness (1)
🕑 Added 2025-02-16 13:42:33 +0000 UTC"What? Make Carol the Queen? Are you crazy, or am I?" At the dinner table, Margaret stared at Josh with wide eyes, then looked at Mike and Carol in complete shock.
Meanwhile, the two little ones, unaware of the conversation, were busy stuffing food into their mouths.
Tonight's main course was Chinese yellow croaker, which tasted amazing. The children loved it.
Thanks to the era they lived in, this fish—almost extinct in the 21st century—was still abundant. Its near-extinction in the future was largely due to destructive overfishing after the 1980s.
Josh was able to get this fish because, after the launch of the Boeing 707—the world's first jet airliner—Continental Group officially entered the commercial aviation industry and quickly established multiple international routes.
For airlines, convenience, efficiency and comfort matter the most.
And in both aspects, propeller planes could never compete with jet airliners.
So when Continental Airlines introduced its new planes, they became a worldwide sensation. Especially when people learned that the U.S. president's new plane was also a Boeing 707, demand skyrocketed—even though the price was much higher than the older propeller planes.
Business was booming.
As Continental Airlines flourished, airlines around the world flooded the U.S. and Austria with orders. Since Boeing had already worked on jet fighters, it had no trouble setting up a branch in Bavaria.
It wasn't just commercial aviation—militaries from the U.S. and multiple European countries also saw the Boeing 707’s potential for modifications and placed huge orders.
Now, Boeing's factories were running 24/7, struggling to keep up with demand, forcing them to expand production lines.
Although Continental Airlines focused on U.S. and European routes, it also operated flights between Europe and Asia, as well as America and Asia. However, due to long distances, layovers were still needed.
Their main stop in Asia? Victoria City, of course.
Even though Josh had secretly worked against Britain multiple times, his public relationship with the country remained good—unlike with France.
Despite Britain's tendency to dodge international debts, they had never defaulted in their dealings with Josh.
Their greatest conflict was over Austria.
But to outsiders, Josh was just an American businessman with Austrian heritage—a middleman for U.S.-Austrian cooperation.
Even the Americans didn't fully realize how much control Josh had over Austria, let alone the British.
So, while Britain disliked Austria, they had no reason to resent Josh—a wealthy American who had contributed significantly to their war efforts.
In addition, the introduction of Carter, a "British Captain America" figure secretly created by Josh for U.S. intelligence, further improved British officials' impressions of him.
Although Carter's existence was a secret to the public, it was an open secret between U.S. and British intelligence—something Josh had planned and Truman had approved.
As a result, Continental Airlines had no trouble establishing routes in Victoria City.
And the yellow croaker they ate tonight? It had been flown in directly from there.
Although the fish was delicious, Margaret had lost all interest in eating after hearing Josh say that Austria was planning to make her daughter, Carol, Queen of the Austrian United Kingdom.
"I know it sounds crazy, but when you think about it, it's not necessarily a bad thing, right? Besides, I haven't agreed to it yet—that's why I'm discussing it with you," Josh said, spreading his hands.
When Karl Renner first suggested making him king, Josh had immediately refused. But he did consider having his son, Mike, take the throne instead.
But he quickly realized that wouldn't work either.
As Josh's eldest and only son, Mike carried too much weight.
The preference for male heirs wasn't unique to Asia.
Although there had been many queens throughout European history, male heirs had always had a much stronger claim to the throne.
Even in the 21st century, the first in line to the throne in most royal families was still a man.
So making Mike king of the newly formed Austrian United Kingdom would be no different than Josh himself taking the position.
Karl Renner’s cleverness had exceeded Josh’s expectations—he suggested making Carol the monarch instead.
Josh hadn't thought of that.
But the idea had potential.
The importance of a daughter and a son was very different.
If Carol became queen, while Josh and the rest of his family received only honorary titles with no right of succession, it would be seen as Austria simply expressing gratitude to an Austrian-American businessman and trying to strengthen ties with the United States.
It would be a symbolic move, not one of real power.
Especially since the new monarch would only be a three-year-old girl.
With such an arrangement, Austria's throne would remain in the hands of the Kahn family, and Josh wouldn't be seen as a threat by the U.S.—in fact, the American government might even encourage it, allowing Josh to gain more influence over Austria under their approval.
It was a win-win situation.
"I understand that this isn't necessarily bad, but it just feels too crazy... And if Carol becomes queen of Austria, does that mean she has to live there permanently? Are we moving to Austria?" Margaret hesitated.
Skipping the princess phase and going straight to queen was exciting, but the thought of her daughter having to stay in Austria forever made her unhappy.
There was no way her entire family would move permanently.
Neuschwanstein Castle was beautiful, but living there long-term would feel too empty—especially when Josh wasn't around.
"Of course not. Until Carol grows up and finishes her education, she won't leave us. She'll just have more people to take care of her, and she'll get an annual fund from Parliament. Until then, her role will be largely symbolic. At most, we'll have to bring her to a few public events, but other than that, not much will change," Josh reassured her.
That was part of his agreement with Karl Renner.
By ensuring that Carol grew up in America and received an American education, the U.S. government would be more convinced that her role was purely symbolic.
It would also help strengthen ties between Austria and the U.S.
But if Carol really did become queen, Josh would surely give her a proper royal education in secret.
A mere symbol?
Not a chance.
As long as Josh was around, when Carol came of age, she would be a queen with real power.
By then, Josh believed, Austria would be strong enough to stand up to the U.S., and he himself would be completely in the shadows.
Ten plus years would be more than enough for him to accomplish many things. (TL/N: Seeing how fast everything is going, he will probably conquer Earth before the MCU timeline even starts.)
