The Crown Prince of France - Chapter 123

Chapter 123: All the Talents in the World Are Now in My Grasp

Joseph's carriage had just stopped in front of the Royal Industrial Planning Bureau's office building when a disheveled figure suddenly darted out from the street corner, quickly heading towards him.

"Don't come any closer!" Two guards immediately stepped forward to block the man.

As Joseph saw the deep lines of authority on the man's face, a smile spread across his own. Wasn't this "Piranha"—oh no, Mr. Marat, you’ve finally arrived.

He quickly leaned out of the carriage window and signaled to Kessold, "Please invite Mr. Marat over."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Soon, in the guestroom of the Royal Industrial Planning Bureau, Marat sat across from Joseph, his eyes burning with anger. "Crown Prince, you have used such disgraceful methods to manipulate me! I will expose everything!"

After toppling the Chief Justice, Vezinier, Marat had felt a moment of triumph, thinking he had done a great service for the citizens of Paris.

However, when he happened to see the portrait of the Crown Prince half a month ago, he felt that the face looked somewhat familiar. Suddenly, he remembered—wasn’t this the young boss of Le Journal de Paris, Mr. Xavier?

He immediately pieced together the events and realized that the Crown Prince had approached him to eliminate his political enemies.

He had been used!

In his fury, he rushed to Versailles Palace, only to be told that the Crown Prince had been working in Paris. So, he stormed over to the Royal Industrial Planning Bureau, only to find that the Crown Prince had gone to Bordeaux…

He had waited for several days at the Bureau and had finally "caught" Joseph today. Without hesitation, he came to demand an explanation.

Joseph had been expecting him and had been waiting.

With his right hand resting on the arm of the sofa, Joseph gave a relaxed smile. "How can you say that, Mr. Marat? It wasn’t manipulation; it was fulfillment."

"Fulfillment? Hmph, a pale excuse."

Joseph calmly continued, "Tell me, Mr. Marat, haven’t you always wanted social justice? Haven’t you always wanted to help the oppressed?"

"Of course, that’s true."

"Exactly. You and I together brought the most corrupt President of the High Court to justice, giving justice to many who had suffered from wrongful cases, and even managed to significantly reduce the level of corruption in the entire judicial system. Isn’t this what you wanted to see?"

"This…" Marat hesitated, as it indeed seemed true. Without the Crown Prince's guidance, the High Court might still be taking bribes, manipulating the law, and persecuting ordinary citizens.

Not allowing him more time to think, Joseph immediately pressed on, "Mr. Marat, please believe me. In matters like fighting corruption, reducing injustice, and improving the lives of the people of France, our positions are completely aligned."

He silently added to himself: Only by improving the people’s lives can the monarchy remain stable...

Marat stared at Joseph in surprise. These words, which felt like the liberal principles he himself believed in, were now coming from the Crown Prince.

"Is what you say really true?"

"Time will prove everything," Joseph said sincerely as he looked at Marat. "If, in a few years, the lives of the people of France haven’t improved, you can come and condemn me then."

Marat opened his mouth, but suddenly frowned and said, "No matter what, Your Highness, you shouldn’t have deceived me. You didn’t even tell me your real name!"

"You’ve misunderstood me," Joseph said with an innocent look on his face. "Xavier is indeed my middle name—Louis Joseph Xavier François."

"But…"

"I never told you I was the Crown Prince, but you wouldn't introduce yourself to everyone by saying, ‘I’m a reporter,’ would you? This is just a small matter of personal privacy regarding one’s profession."

After this exchange, the fury that Marat had brought with him had unknowingly dissipated. It seemed there was nothing more to say, and he was about to rise to take his leave.

But Joseph naturally wouldn’t let him go so easily.

He had been planning the Anti-Corruption Bureau for a while now. Corruption among the officials was a serious issue that endangered France.

It was difficult for people to resist the temptation of various interests based on their own conscience.

Not only the old officials, but even the newly reformed police system, without oversight, would inevitably return to the ways of the old corrupt police.

Although administrative reforms were necessary to tackle the root causes, establishing a supervisory body was also crucial. At the very least, it would make officials more cautious.

Joseph had delayed pushing forward with the creation of the Anti-Corruption Bureau mainly because he couldn’t find the right people to investigate the corruption.

Using the current officials would just make them oversee themselves, inevitably leading to collusion and cover-ups. Training people from scratch would take too much time.

That’s when he thought of Marat, Demoulin, and others—they were sharp, experienced in investigations, and, most importantly, they were probably the least likely to collude with officials.

Moreover, forming the Anti-Corruption Bureau with these "Jacobins" had two advantages.

First, these people could never sit still. If you didn’t give them something to do, they’d find it themselves. They might even trigger a major shift in certain critical moments. So it was better to incorporate them into the royal system and keep them occupied.

Second, after dealing with Vezinier, Joseph realized that Marat and others, if used properly, could be like "piranhas" that would tear apart political enemies. They could play an important role in reforming the administration and weakening the old nobility.

Joseph gestured for Marat to sit back down and said solemnly, "Mr. Marat, do you want this country to become more just and equal, to help more common people?"

Marat slowly sat back down on the sofa, nodding, "This has been my lifelong ideal, Your Highness."

"Now there is an opportunity for you to better realize your ideal. I plan to establish a..."

Joseph initially wanted to say "Anti-Corruption Bureau," but then thought that terms like "fairness" and "justice" would probably be more to Marat’s liking, so he changed his words: "I will set up a 'Justice Investigation Division' under the police system to investigate corruption, dereliction of duty, and other offenses by officials and police officers, in order to protect the legitimate rights of the people. This department will temporarily fall under the police ministry, but it won’t be governed by the police system—it will report directly to me."

"I look forward to you becoming a member of the Investigation Division."

Marat froze for a moment, then stood up again, coldly saying, "You want me to be the royal family's enforcer?"

Joseph thought to himself, typical of a Jacobin—to have such disdain for the monarchy.

He smiled and shook his head, saying, "You’re misunderstanding me.

"You’re not investigating farmers or craftsmen; you’re investigating high-ranking officials—wealthy and powerful nobles!

"Even if you’re an enforcer, you’ll be an enforcer for the people, not the monarchy."

"An enforcer for the people?" Marat softly repeated these words, his eyes gradually growing hot.

Joseph immediately seized the opportunity: "I can even assign prosecutors to the Justice Investigation Division. Once you find evidence of an official’s wrongdoing, you can directly prosecute them!"

Joseph was not particularly worried that Marat would turn on his political allies. Although it was true that in this era there were almost no officials free from corruption, Marat was merely an investigator at the Office of Public Integrity, at best a captain. Above him were his own superiors, including the department head, who ensured that the direction of the investigations would remain controllable.

Marat clasped his hands together in thought for a long time. Finally, he raised his head and said, "Your Highness, I believe I cannot find a reason to refuse. I agree to join the Office of Public Integrity. However, we must agree on one thing: if I feel that this institution does not align with what you have described to me, I will withdraw at any time."

"That is your right," Joseph nodded. "I am confident that neither of us will be disappointed."

"Oh, by the way, regarding the prosecutor for the Office of Public Integrity, what do you think of that young lawyer who defended the victims in the Vezinier case?"

Marat thought for a moment, then said, "You mean the lawyer named Danton?"

"That's him."

"He is an upright and brave person," Marat nodded. "However, he is not a prosecutor at the High Court, Your Highness."

Joseph smiled. "He will be one soon enough. Also, if your friend, Mr. Demoulin, could join the Office of Public Integrity as well, it would surely make even more corrupt officials tremble."

"Yes, Your Highness, I think so too. I will try to persuade him."

Joseph stood by the window on the second floor of the Royal Industrial Planning Bureau, watching Marat's departing figure. He couldn't help but sigh, "If only we had one more Robespierre, we could form a Jacobin team. Let them fight corruption, at least they’ll be put to good use."

...

England

On the south bank of the River Reek in Birmingham, in a pale grey two-story villa, a man's discontented voice echoed, "Mr. DuPont, I believe I have made myself very clear. I am not interested in your proposal."

"Mr. Watt, perhaps you could make a counteroffer."

The villa's door opened, and DuPont stepped out, turning to face the man. "Any request is something I can consider."

A man in his fifties, with a high nose, broad face, and sharp eyes, followed him out of the door and gestured toward a nearby carriage. "Thank you for the invitation. However, I place more value on my friends, who are all in Birmingham and the Moon Society. France does not have these. I think it’s time you boarded the carriage."

DuPont's expression showed frustration. The Crown Prince had specifically instructed Archbishop Brienne to arrange for the final signing of the Anglo-French trade agreement in Birmingham, so that DuPont could operate more freely. But despite coming to see Watt three times over the past few days, he could not sway the stubborn old man.

Today, the new Eden Treaty between England and France had officially been signed, and DuPont was supposed to return to France by tomorrow. How could he not be anxious?

DuPont nodded and suddenly turned, producing his last resort. "Mr. Watt, actually, I am representing someone else in this invitation to you…"

At that moment, a middle-aged man wearing a black short coat, with slightly drooping eyes and an honest face, walked along the small path on the east side of the villa.

When he overheard DuPont’s next words, he stopped in his tracks and quickly hid behind a column.

"He is a noble member of the royal family. I swear, his status is beyond what you can imagine," DuPont fixed his gaze on Watt. "He truly admires your talents and wants to help you create even more remarkable technological achievements. So…"

Watt shook his head and smiled. "You see, I lack nothing—money, a villa, a company, family. I really have no intention of leaving Birmingham."

DuPont, realizing he had no more ground to stand on, stopped trying to persuade him and returned to the carriage. He still didn’t understand why the Crown Prince valued this English craftsman so much, but the mission to bring him to France had been a complete failure.

The middle-aged man, who had been hiding behind the column, stepped out and, pondering, watched DuPont leave. Then, he knocked on Watt’s door and handed him some company documents.

While Watt was upstairs signing the papers, the middle-aged man stopped Watt's maid and quietly asked, "Mrs. Edwin, do you know what the man who came earlier—the one with the big nose—said to Mr. Watt?"

"I don’t remember," Mrs. Edwin turned, about to leave.

The middle-aged man quickly pulled out his wallet and handed her a shilling. "I’m just curious about that person. Could you recall what he said?"

"Oh, fine," the maid took the money and stopped. "That was a Frenchman, trying to invite Mr. Watt to France to set up a factory. Oh, he also mentioned something about a new industrial zone in France where a lot of money would be invested in steam engine factories, though Mr. Watt didn’t agree."

"Steam engine factories?" The middle-aged man pressed, "Did he mention how much money?"

"Something like 1 million livres."

As the maid departed, the middle-aged man clenched his fists excitedly. A 1 million livre investment, and a project of interest to the French royal family!

This was truly a divine opportunity!

After obtaining the signed documents from Watt, the man didn’t return to the company. Instead, he followed DuPont’s path, asking around, and eventually found the hotel where DuPont was staying.

...

Joseph looked at the "Salicylate Preparation Method Patent Certificate" just delivered to him and nodded with satisfaction.

The French Patent Office had been quickly set up, copying the organizational structure and operational model of the British system. To speed up the recruitment of patent examiners, Joseph had even called upon Mr. Lagrange, who invited a large number of experts.

This led to the first patent certificate in all of France now being in his hands.

Of course, Joseph had made many adjustments to the British model.

In Britain, it would take at least a year to complete the approval process for a patent, and the costs were astronomical, sometimes reaching dozens or even hundreds of pounds!

Joseph, on the other hand, required that approval be completed within three to eight months, with a maximum fee of 10 livres. The government would subsidize the costs for the patent office.

As news spread that the patent office was operational, Paris received a dozen applications daily. People from provinces all over France were making their way to apply for patents—currently, only Paris had a patent office, as it had just been established, and expanding too quickly might cause issues.

Outside, Eymond’s voice was heard. "Your Highness, Mr. DuPont has arrived. It seems he has brought an Englishman with him."

An Englishman? Joseph's heart skipped a beat. Could it be Watt?

He immediately stood up. "Please bring them to the reception room."

Before long, DuPont and a middle-aged man with an honest appearance entered the reception room and bowed. "It’s been a long time, Your Highness. May God bless you."

"It is an honor to meet you, Your Highness," the man said.

DuPont, awkwardly gesturing to the man beside him, introduced him to Joseph. "Your Highness, this is Mr. William Murdoch. He is an outstanding steam engine technician, well, that’s how he puts it…"

Table of content - Next Chapter >>>