The Crown Prince of France - Chapter 65

Chapter 65: The Master of Public Opinion

Dupont nodded forcefully, his eyes brimming with agreement. “Indeed, Your Highness, this is truly a catastrophic treaty. Since the reduction of tariffs, Lyon has seen a massive number of textile workshops shut down, and the steel industry is on the brink of collapse, leaving tens of thousands of workers unemployed.”

He continued for a while longer as an official from the Mathematical Society took the stage to deliver the concluding remarks, announcing the end of the academic conference.

The attendees respectfully parted to create a passage for the most distinguished guest, the Crown Prince, to leave first.

Joseph bid farewell to Lagrange and several other scholars, then turned and walked toward the exit.

Dupont hurried after him, speaking cautiously, “Your Highness, during the negotiations back then, the British had, in principle, agreed to the ‘single tax plan.’ If the negotiations could be resumed, it might be possible to secure more favorable terms for France.”

Dupont, one of the presidents of the French Chamber of Commerce overseeing the northern regions, was also a major industrialist. The reduction of tariffs on industrial goods had significantly impacted him personally. Meeting the Crown Prince, who was well-versed in the industrial and technical affairs of both Britain and France, presented an opportunity he could not let slip. Even the slimmest chance to amend the treaty warranted his utmost effort.

Having participated fully in the Anglo-French trade negotiations, Dupont had just confirmed for Joseph that the primary figures responsible for the talks were the Foreign Minister, the Count of Vergennes, and the Finance Minister, the Viscount of Calonne.

Now, however, one had passed away, and the other had been dismissed over the tax bill, causing the negotiations to stall. This led to the signing of the interim Eden Treaty.

Given the current circumstances, Britain had already reaped enormous benefits and would undoubtedly be unwilling to amend the treaty. For now, the only viable solution was to rapidly enhance France’s industrial strength and boost its competitiveness.

Of course, employing certain tactics to extract minor advantages in trade negotiations was still achievable.

Joseph halted and said to Dupont, “I will bring this matter to the Cabinet meeting and strive to resume trade negotiations as soon as possible.”

Dupont was overjoyed and immediately bowed deeply. “Your Highness, you are the savior of countless French industries! You are truly magnificent!”

After Joseph left Madame Josna’s villa, a young man who had also attended the academic conference, seemingly deep in thought, rushed forward with his head down.

Eymond reacted swiftly, stopping him just in time.

The young man with the horse-like face suddenly realized he had almost bumped into the Crown Prince. Panicked, he clutched his chest and apologized, “Oh, esteemed Your Highness, I did not mean to offend you.”

He spoke in English.

Joseph instinctively responded in English, “It’s nothing. You didn’t bump into me.”

The horse-faced young man smiled apologetically again, continuing in English, “You see, I was born in Birmingham, and in my haste, I defaulted to my hometown tongue.”

Joseph made a polite remark, “Birmingham is a fine place.”

The young man beamed. “Thank you for your praise. Oh, I listened to your speech earlier. You seem to hold Britain in high regard.”

Joseph assumed the man was attempting to ingratiate himself, so he casually praised the man’s homeland. “Yes, Britain’s industrial advancements have been rapid.” (This was true.)

“They are also highly skilled in international politics and diplomacy.” (Natural troublemakers.)

“As for cuisine, they are quite innovative.” (Dreadful dishes.)

“In addition, the British are pragmatic and frugal.” (Rustic and stingy.)

The young man’s eyes sparkled with excitement, and he seemed about to say more when Eymond coughed coldly from the side.

The horse-faced young man awkwardly smiled, bowed again, and said, “I won’t trouble you further, Your Highness. Safe travels.”

Watching Joseph depart, he quickly climbed into his carriage and headed straight for the British Embassy in France.

“You’re saying the French Crown Prince conversed with you entirely in English?” Ambassador Harriet looked at his subordinate in surprise.

“Yes, Mr. Harriet,” the horse-faced young man confirmed. “His English is exceptionally fluent, and he holds Britain in high esteem. During the academic conference earlier, he even publicly refuted criticisms of Britain.”

He then recounted Joseph’s words in detail.

Harriet fell into deep thought. The French were currently quite hostile toward Britain and disdained learning English, especially the royal family, who preferred Latin. A Crown Prince fluent in English was indeed peculiar.

All available intelligence increasingly pointed to one conclusion: the French Crown Prince appeared to be highly pro-British, or at least held Britain in great regard.

If Joseph had known Harriet’s thoughts, he would have laughed aloud—his proficiency in English was simply a necessity for his academic pursuits. As for goodwill toward Britain? Nonsense. In his past life, he had loathed the “troublemaker” of the Blue Planet. Now, he was constantly scheming to counter France’s greatest adversary.

Harriet, stroking the armrest of his chair, became more resolved to establish contact with the French Crown Prince. He immediately penned a letter and dispatched a subordinate to deliver it to a noblewoman at the Palace of Versailles.

After the subordinate left, Harriet recalled London’s instructions to sow discord between Prussia and France. He promptly ordered his carriage to be prepared and headed to the Royal Palace.

…

The Duke of Orléans frowned slightly as he read the newspaper the butler had just handed him.

In The French Messenger, two full pages detailed the tax provisions in the newly rejected tax bill. It explained why the tax was necessary, who would be required to pay it, and its impact on the nation, all in plain and accessible language.

There was also a feature article tracing the origins of the king’s proposed tax reforms. However, it only mentioned that the tax bill had been proposed by the former Finance Minister, Calonne, and had twice been rejected by the High Court, leaving the rest for future reporting.

Picking up another newspaper, the Duke found similar content.

“Archbishop Brienne has finally become clever,” he chuckled.

Since last year, when Calonne proposed the new tax bill, the French government had tried to enforce it through sheer authority. When met with resistance, they resorted to endless compromises, never realizing the necessity of rallying public support through the press.

Now, the Finance Minister had finally begun leveraging newspapers to garner backing for the tax reform.

Truthfully, the new tax bill scarcely affected minor nobles and commoners, especially after its recent revisions, which primarily targeted the great aristocracy. Properly promoted, it could garner widespread support across France.

The Duke of Orléans tossed the newspaper aside with disdain. He and his allies in the banking sector were already plotting to use the bill’s rejection by the courts as grounds to oust Brienne. He would not let the Minister succeed in influencing public opinion.

“Using newspapers to pressure the High Court? Brienne is far too naïve,” he said with a derisive shake of his head.

After years of investment and strategic alliances, the Duke now controlled nearly half of Paris’ newspapers and pamphlet publishers. Along with the presses owned by allied nobles, he effectively dominated the city’s publishing industry.

At present, his words dictated the winds of public opinion.
He was the master of public opinion!

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