The Crown Prince of France - Chapter 82

Chapter 82: The Freedom Fighter

Denico hurried forward and shouted at the bewildered overseer, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and apologize! This is our newspaper's owner!"

"Y-yes," the overseer nervously took a few steps back and bowed repeatedly, "I-I’m very sorry."

Joseph motioned to the workers around them, "You should be apologizing to them."

"Ah, right," the overseer turned and lowered his head to the poorly dressed people, "Sorry..."

Denico frowned and waved his hand, signaling, "Quick, leave."

The overseer hurriedly backed out of the storage room, tripping over a roll of binding twine and almost falling to the ground.

The workers cast grateful glances at Joseph. Some of the bolder ones even bowed to him, saying, "Thank you, sir, you truly are a kind-hearted man."

Joseph noticed the workers’ cracked skin and instructed Denico, "Mr. Denico, please buy some lanolin for them, so they can use it for free. We must make sure they don’t get frostbite."

"Also, in the coldest month of every year, give them an extra week’s wages as a winter allowance."

Denico quickly nodded, "Yes, I will remember."

The workers could hardly believe their ears. They thought this young noble boss was practically an angel, not only stopping the overseer from mistreating them but also being so generous toward them.

These simple workers weren’t very eloquent. They quietly resumed their work, but their speed had noticeably increased, and they handled the binding and arranging of the books with more care than before.

Joseph continued walking through the gaps between the piles of books, casually picking up a small booklet. He saw that the paper was coarse and yellow, clearly of the lowest quality. The printing was rudimentary, with a simple fiber stitch down the center to keep the pages from falling apart.

However, the booklet had 16 pages, including five illustrations.

He looked toward the mountain of books and turned to Denico, asking, "Mr. Denico, how many copies were printed this time?"

Denico hurried forward two steps. "Your Highness, both booklets were printed in thirty thousand copies each. That should be enough for Paris and the surrounding towns."

Joseph nodded. "What is the cost of this booklet?"

"Because of the number of pages, it costs 1 sou and 5 deniers," Denico added. "Your method of stone slab printing is truly remarkable. Without it, the cost would definitely exceed 3 sous."

In fact, if copperplate printing had been used, no booklet would have dared to include five illustrations—the cost of engraving the copperplates alone would have made the cost several times higher.

It could be said that the booklet launched by Paris News was certainly the most luxurious standard in the world of booklets.

Joseph didn’t hesitate: "Then sell it at cost."

"Yes, Your Highness." Denico had become accustomed to his employer’s extravagance. Last time, the pricing of the newspapers would have been a loss if it weren’t for the shops rushing to advertise.

Joseph opened the booklet in his hands. The first few pages were filled with light novels, followed by an article titled "How Much Money Have the Judges of the High Court Really Embezzled?"

In the gaps between the light novels, there were four more such articles.

Joseph skimmed through them and found that the quality of the articles was quite unsatisfactory. The writing was verbose, failing to provoke much anger in the readers, and it was hard to strike any chord of resonance.

He couldn’t help but frown slightly. "The articles need to be more inflammatory."

Denico awkwardly nodded. "Yes, I will do my best."

Joseph knew this wasn’t entirely Denico’s fault. Paris News had once been a small paper with a circulation of only a few hundred, so the editorial staff’s abilities were limited.

He thought for a moment and pointed to the booklet in his hands. "We can start by improving the titles."

"For example, the article 'How Much Money Have the Judges of the High Court Really Embezzled?' could be changed to 'Outrage! They Say If You Don’t Have Money, You Should Leave, You Don’t Deserve to Win.'"

"The article 'The Truth About Judge Vezinier’s Handling of the Leon Inheritance Case' could become 'Shocking! A Widow, Two Men, and the Untold Story Between Judge Vezinier and Them.'"

"'The Impact of the Unregisterable Tax Bill on the Nation’s Finances' could be changed to 'Terrifying! They Are Stealing France’s Money and We Don’t Even Know About It'..."

Denico’s eyes immediately widened in astonishment.

These titles, if we’re being honest, did have some vague relation to the content of the articles, but they didn’t quite match.

However, the most important thing was that these titles were irresistible. Anyone who saw them would certainly be compelled to read the articles!

He silently marveled: If the Crown Prince became a journalist, just his skill with titles alone would have every major newspaper clamoring for him.

Just as Joseph was speaking, a supervisor from the newspaper company signaled to Denico from a distance. Denico quickly turned to Joseph and said, "Your Highness, your guest has arrived."

Joseph nodded and, together with Denico, walked to the newspaper’s office.

A middle-aged man with disheveled hair and deep wrinkles was already waiting there.

Upon seeing the two enter, he quickly stood up and bowed to Denico, "It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Denico. I appreciate you publishing my article. Is there something you need from me?"

Denico immediately introduced the man to Joseph as per his instructions. "Mr. Xavier, this is Mr. Marat."

He then pointed to Joseph, who was wearing a triangular hat, "Mr. Marat, this is our newspaper’s owner, Mr. Xavier."

"Oh, it was his suggestion that your article was published."

Marat hurriedly bowed to Joseph, "Thank you very much, Mr. Xavier. You truly are a talented young man, managing Paris News so excellently."

Joseph smiled in return and gestured to the nearby chair, "Mr. Marat, please, have a seat."

Indeed, the main reason Joseph had come to the newspaper today was to meet Marat—the infamous Jacobin leader, a man who could order the death of three thousand people with a simple signature.

The article Marat wrote analyzing the tax bill had encountered several roadblocks and had eventually been submitted to Paris News.

Denico, who was in need of such content, had published it directly.

When Joseph saw Marat’s name in his own paper, a sudden idea struck him, and he instructed Denico to arrange a meeting.

Joseph knew very well that although Marat appeared to be a sharp journalist on the surface, in reality, he wielded significant power, with vast connections and a tremendous influence on the lower classes. If handled correctly, Marat might play a pivotal role in Joseph's ongoing struggle with the High Court.

However, given Marat's extreme animosity toward the royal family, Joseph had no choice but to meet him under a different guise.

Once Marat was seated, Denico excused himself, saying there was something to attend to in the storage room.

Joseph turned to Marat with a smile, saying, "I have always greatly admired you, Mr. Marat. You are truly a freedom fighter."

Marat clearly relished the title, immediately bowing and replying, "It is my honor to fight for justice and the rights of the French people."

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