The Crown Prince of France - Chapter 153

Chapter 153: The Future Minister of French Industry

Count Morneau stood up nervously, leaning toward Joseph and whispering,
“Ah, Your Highness, you’re my best friend! Please, this must never be spoken of…”

In these times, having a lover was hardly a scandal. In fact, some “enlightened” noble couples even introduced lovers to each other.

But Count Morneau had an insatiable appetite for risky affairs—his choices of mistresses were exceptionally audacious.

Take, for example, the wife of Count Messaye. She was her husband’s great love. When a foolish noble dared to court her, Messaye broke the man’s arm.

Then there was the Marchioness of Saint-Priest, who had just fled the room. Her husband was obsessively controlling, forbidding any man from approaching her. Her first lover ended up framed for a crime by the marquis and was sent to the Caribbean as a laborer.

Nevertheless, these two women had both succumbed to the daring pursuits of Morneau.

Of course, Morneau feared their husbands’ wrath. Though his rank protected him from underhanded schemes, he dreaded being challenged to a duel—his 170-pound frame would make him little more than a stationary target in a sword fight.

Thus, today’s situation was proving troublesome.

Joseph had heard tales of how the Minister of War dealt with his wife’s lovers. Seeing Morneau’s expression now, he immediately realized this was an opportunity falling into his lap.

He nodded sincerely. “Don’t worry. My greatest virtue is keeping secrets.”

“Thank you so much…”

Before Morneau could finish his sentence, Joseph gestured toward his cousin Clementine, who was busy searching for a cat in the adjacent suite. Lowering his voice, he said, “However, you know my cousin. She loves to chatter…”

The Minister of the Interior froze, panicked at the idea of her letting the secret slip. He hesitated, unsure how to approach her—how could he possibly explain such a matter to a young girl? And would she even heed his request?

Desperately, he turned to Joseph with a pleading look. “Your Highness, please help me one more time! You’re her older brother; she’s sure to listen to you.”

Just then, Clementine’s soft voice called out, “Cousin, Mr. Whiskers isn’t here! Let’s check the next room.”

Joseph patted Morneau’s shoulder solemnly. “I’ll try, but I can’t guarantee success. Wait for my news.”

With that, he left, Morneau watching anxiously as he disappeared into the adjoining room.

…

The search for the cat dragged on for more than an hour, disturbing nearly half the nobility in the Palace of Versailles. Finally, Joseph and his group found Mr. Whiskers in Princess Thérèse’s reception room.

The cat was proudly perched on the back of the princess’s Chartres cat, clearly on the brink of committing a “feline misdeed.”

Clementine, however, let out a delighted cry and lovingly called, “My dear Mr. Whiskers!” She scooped him up in her arms despite his angry, despairing struggles. She thanked everyone present, apologized to Thérèse, and turned to leave.

It was then, for the first time in her life, that Mr. Whiskers scratched her.

…

The next morning at 10:00, Joseph reluctantly dragged himself out of bed, yawning.

He’d been up with the little girl until past 3 a.m.

Still, his efforts hadn’t been in vain. As he pondered how to “extract” some benefit from Morneau, Eymond approached quickly, bowing.

“Your Highness, you’re awake. Count Mirabeau has been waiting for some time.”

“Very well, I’ll see him,” Joseph replied, hastily dressing and washing before heading to the reception room.

“It’s a pleasure to see you, Crown Prince!” Mirabeau greeted him warmly, bowing deeply. “I bring good news!”

“Oh? What news is that?” Joseph smiled, gesturing for him to sit.

Mirabeau settled into a chair and began,
“First, our paper mill has completed its trial runs and is now officially in production.

“The first batch, made three days ago, totaled 20,000 pounds of high-quality paper. It sold out instantly! Pre-orders are now backlogged for five months. Starting next month, we expect monthly profits to reach 100,000 livres!”

“Well done,” Joseph said with a smile. The paper mill had been mostly managed by Mirabeau and his team, so Joseph had paid it little attention. Still, he wasn’t surprised by the strong demand—selling paper of the same quality for two-thirds the price made such success inevitable. As production increased, profits would only grow.

Mirabeau rubbed his hands together.
“I only did my duty. The credit belongs to your new techniques. Oh, and by the way, the paper workshop in Lyon is also under construction. It should be operational in three to four months.”

He continued enthusiastically, detailing factory construction and the recruitment of craftsmen, before sharing another piece of news.

“Your Highness, the core area of the industrial development zone in Nancy is nearly complete. There are now 17 or 18 workshops in operation, attracting a large number of workers. You must visit sometime. And your ‘French United Steam Engine Company’ has the largest facility there.”

Joseph knew the core area was little more than leveled land near water, with widened roads and a perimeter wall. Supporting infrastructure like banks, schools, and hospitals would take time to build, but workshops could operate in the meantime.

“The local council in Nancy has also approved a tax reduction plan for the development zone,” Mirabeau added, his enthusiasm undiminished. “Of course, they were bound to agree. The zone will soon bring prosperity to Nancy.”

Joseph understood that Mirabeau’s mention of the “local council” referred to the regional administrative body, not the famous Estates-General. At this time, regional councils served as advisory groups whose decisions still required royal approval and could be overturned by the government.

However, involving councils in taxation decisions did improve efficiency.

Mirabeau looked at Joseph, cautiously suggesting,
“Your Highness, you know industrial development heavily depends on market integration. Currently, domestic tariffs severely fragment our markets. Perhaps we could push to abolish them and unify the national market?”

Joseph nodded.
“You’re absolutely right. But abolishing local tariffs faces significant obstacles, especially given our strained finances. I’ll see what I can do.”

In France, goods from one province entering another were subject to tariffs. While this posed little problem in an agrarian economy, it became a major barrier in the industrial age, where sales and cash flow were critical.

Britain had already gained a competitive edge by eliminating domestic tariffs, creating a unified market that fueled its industrialization.

However, while removing tariffs was undoubtedly beneficial to the nation, implementation was challenging.

One primary issue was that local governments relied heavily on tariff revenues. Without them, provinces would face budget shortfalls unless the national government provided subsidies—a difficult task given France’s precarious finances.

This was one reason Joseph was eager to expand overseas colonies—to use colonial markets to offset domestic fragmentation and generate funds to gradually address tariff issues.

Mirabeau understood the complexities of the situation and had only intended to remind the Crown Prince.

Afterward, Joseph delivered one last piece of good news—potatoes purchased from Austria and the Southern Netherlands had been shipped in batches to the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine, replenishing the grain supplies previously sent out from these regions.

With this, Joseph's potato promotion initiative was successfully concluded. Although the planting area this year was very limited, it had opened the door for widespread potato cultivation in France. It could be foreseen that in the coming years, after experiencing the high yield of potatoes, more and more people would be willing to grow them.

However, this would soon lead to the issue of soil fertility depletion—potatoes were a crop that consumed a lot of nutrients. Addressing this challenge would become the next step in Joseph's agricultural reform agenda.

After Mirabeau departed, Joseph watched his back and suddenly thought about what he could “extract” from Morneau.

At present, Mirabeau and others were crucial to advancing France's industrialization. If Joseph could secure an appropriate government position for him, it would greatly enhance his efficiency and accelerate the industrialization process.

Additionally, this would also allow him to co-opt the capitalist aristocracy and strengthen his own political influence.

From a historical perspective, the bourgeoisie represented by the capitalist aristocracy was destined to become the political core of the future, while the old nobility would eventually be swept away by the tide of industrialization. It was time for Joseph to begin laying the groundwork.

Thinking of this, Joseph frowned slightly. Sending Mirabeau, a representative of the capitalist aristocracy, into a cabinet controlled by the landed aristocracy would inevitably face significant resistance.

This required careful planning.

That evening, at a gambling party hosted by Queen Marie, Joseph pulled Morneau aside into a corner of the hall. His gaze shifted to Maria Clementine, who was placing bets at the dice table. He whispered, “I agreed to a pile of conditions just to persuade her. Rest assured, she swore she wouldn't mention a word about last night…”

In fact, when Joseph had asked Clementine if she had seen anyone leaving Morneau’s room the previous evening, the little girl replied that she had only been paying attention to a cat and hadn’t noticed anyone. As for her maid, since it was her first visit to Versailles, she didn't recognize Madame de Saint-Priest.

Morneau hastily stopped the Crown Prince from continuing, glanced around to ensure no one was paying attention, and sincerely bowed in thanks. “Your Highness, you have truly saved my life. I don’t even know how to thank you.”

Joseph pretended to sigh deeply. “You see, I’ve been busy researching ways to promote industrial development. Now that I’ve promised to spend half a month accompanying her, I’m afraid I won’t be able to get anything done.”

Morneau chuckled awkwardly. “You’ve been too kind. It’s too much trouble for you.”

“If only the Royal Industrial Planning Bureau could have more staff, I could free up some time to entertain my cousin,” Joseph said with a pained expression. “But you know, the Planning Bureau is just a small department with limited personnel.”

Morneau seemed to catch the hint and asked, “How could more staff be added?”

“Unless the Planning Bureau’s rank is raised, the number of subordinate officials will remain fixed.”

Morneau immediately understood—His Highness was asking for a “reward.”

“What level do you think the Industrial Planning Bureau should be upgraded to?”

Joseph casually remarked, “If it could be transformed into a Ministry of Industry, I could even serve as its Minister.”

Morneau sighed inwardly. With the leverage from last night still in the Crown Prince's hands, he had no choice but to concede. Fortunately, the handicrafts sector didn’t generate much revenue and was labor-intensive. Most of it was already under the Crown Prince’s management, so separating it from the Ministry of the Interior wouldn’t matter much.

After some thought, he added, “Your Highness, I fully support your suggestion. However, creating a new position such as Minister of Industry is not something I can decide.”

Joseph smiled. “You only need to propose the motion at the cabinet meeting. I’ll handle the rest.”

“As you wish, Your Highness.”

With the matter settled, Joseph lightheartedly pulled Morneau toward the card table, but a sudden outburst from the dice table caught his attention. Maria Clementine was yelling angrily, “I’ve lost twelve rounds in a row! Are you cheating?!”

The terrified servant managing the dice quickly bowed and stammered, “No, absolutely no cheating! Please don’t be upset…”

The little girl immediately softened her demeanor, took the servant’s arm with a sweet smile, and handed him a candy. “Don’t mind me. I was just joking. Here, have a candy—it’s very sweet!”

Joseph watched with interest as the croupier, visibly relieved, repeatedly thanked her and resumed the game.

Clementine boldly placed a bet of two livres on “big.”

The dice cup revealed a result of 1, 3, and 1—“small.”

The little girl, undeterred by her loss, bet one livre on “small.”

The dice cup revealed 5, 5, and 6—“big.”

“I can’t believe I can’t win!” Clementine’s face flushed with determination as she continued to place bets.

What terrible luck, Joseph mused with a chuckle, just as he was about to leave. Suddenly, an idea struck him.

If her luck was this bad, perhaps she could be used as a reverse indicator!

Without hesitation, Joseph approached. Seeing Clementine place her bet on “small,” he immediately put five silver livres on “big.”

The dice revealed 4, 6, and 5—“big.”

How accurate! Joseph glanced at the little girl in surprise and collected his ten livres from the table.

When Clementine saw her cousin win as soon as he joined, she became even more indignant, puffing up her cheeks and doubling down with two livres on “small.”

Joseph promptly wagered all ten livres on “big.”

The dice revealed 6, 4, and 3—“big.”

Joseph’s eyes lit up. He hadn’t realized Clementine was such a “treasure!”

After a moment’s thought, he approached the little girl and advised, “You’re still young. It’s fine to have fun, but don’t bet too much.”

“Thanks for your concern, Cousin, but I’m sure I’ll win!” Clementine declared, rolling up her sleeves and heading to another table.

Joseph shook his head with a wry smile and followed her closely. Whenever she bet on “big,” he would bet on “small.” When she bet on the “bank,” he would bet on the “player.” At the roulette table, she chose “odd,” and he picked “even.”

...

By the end of the night, Joseph, relying on the “Reverse Clementine Tactic,” had won more often than he lost. By the time the little girl finally gave up, he had amassed over a hundred gold écus and a pile of silver coins.

At Queen Marie’s card table, Clementine, thoroughly defeated, clung to her aunt’s hand and pouted. “Take me to Paris tomorrow, please! I’ve lost all night—you have to comfort my poor, wounded heart.”

The Queen, unable to resist her niece’s pleading, laughed and summoned her son. “Joseph, you’re free tomorrow. Take Clementine to Paris for a good time.”

“Yes, Mother,” Joseph replied, nodding reluctantly. He thought to himself, “I’ll consider it her ‘payment’ for tonight.”

The little girl beamed with delight, clinging to his arm. She pouted and said, “Cousin, I heard they’ve built an ‘Eden Amusement Park’ in the Tuileries Palace Gardens with all sorts of fun and novel things. Will you take me there?”

Joseph froze momentarily and asked cautiously, “Do you have a fear of heights?”

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