The Crown Prince of France - Chapter 42

Chapter 42: The Loan Crisis

“You will not regret your decision today,” said Brent with an exaggerated tip of his hat, his tone rich with persuasion. “Viscount Baudouin, congratulations on becoming a member of Paris Angel Trading Company!”

Count Albrau had not expected such decisiveness from the young viscount, but he reacted swiftly and declared, “I have also decided to invest in one of the franchise stores.”

“Oh, excellent, Count! Your investment sense remains as sharp as ever.”

The others present were momentarily stunned. Just a second ago, they were negotiating terms, and now, the three stores in the Paris region had been fully claimed?

Everyone knew the saying of the time: “France has only two provinces—Paris and everywhere else.” As the political, economic, and cultural center of the nation, Paris boasted a purchasing power far superior to any other region.

The significant investments indicated that this venture was undoubtedly profitable! Those who had hesitated earlier were now kicking themselves for their lack of boldness.

Missing the first chance meant they couldn’t afford to miss the next.

The Duke of Lavallière quickly chimed in, “I’ll open a store in Reims. That’s my hometown.”

“Ahem, I’ll join as well. I have some assets in Marseille; I’ll invest in two stores there.”

“I’ll also invest in one…”

That evening, at Brent’s residence, he kissed the seven signed franchise contracts in his hand passionately, dancing and shouting in a frenzy.

Joining the Paris Angel Trading Company was undoubtedly the best decision of his life. By this afternoon, he had already achieved financial freedom—Joseph had promised him a commission of 3,000 livres per franchise.

This meant Brent was now a wealthy man with over 20,000 livres!

He poured himself a glass of wine, savoring it alongside the contracts as he took a large gulp. Overjoyed, he began planning: first, a mansion in the Louvre District or Saint-Germain District, then a marriage proposal to the son of Viscount Marchey! That old miser would no longer be able to laugh at his family’s poverty. Ha!

...

Joseph signed the contracts delivered by Brent one by one, unsurprised by the developments.

The profitability of Paris Angel Trading Company was obvious to anyone with insight. While the French government might be poor, private citizens were still relatively wealthy. Such a promising project was bound to attract investors.

Seven stores were only the beginning. Joseph estimated that once these franchises opened and demonstrated their success, the ripple effect would likely attract double the number of investors.

After Brent left, Joseph, as the Crown Prince and the second-in-command at the Ministry of Finance, headed for the office of the Minister of Finance.

As soon as he entered, the gathered officials surrounded him enthusiastically, showering him with greetings and congratulations.

“Your Highness, congratulations!”

“It was Your Highness who saved the Dutch!”

“The Prussians retreated in disgrace, ha-ha.”

“The son of divine favor for France!”

The Minister of Finance, Bishop Brienne, stepped forward, his tone sincere. “Your Highness, I’ve heard about what happened in the Netherlands. I must say, your diplomatic skills are extraordinary!”

Joseph smiled and replied, “This is a victory for France. I merely gave it a slight push.”

After another round of praise, the crowd gradually dispersed.

Bishop Brienne’s expression turned serious as he said, “Your Highness, I’ve received news that the High Court’s ruling on the registration of the recent bill should be out in the next few days. It’s likely to be rejected again.”

Joseph was not surprised. The clauses in the proposed bill had been designed to provoke rejection.

Calmly, he replied, “Bishop Brienne, there’s no need to worry. This is only the beginning. I haven’t even played my cards yet.”

Recalling the Crown Prince’s brilliant maneuvering in the Netherlands, Brienne felt reassured. He offered a few words of encouragement and then mentioned casually, “By the way, I noticed in yesterday’s financial report that the loan you requested still hasn’t been finalized?”

“Yes, thank you for the reminder. I’ll address it promptly.”

When Joseph returned to his office, he glanced at his list of urgent tasks and asked his assistant, “Has tomorrow’s negotiation with Ravelle Bank been postponed again?”

The assistant replied helplessly, “Your Highness, they claim they’re auditing their accounts and don’t have the capacity to handle other matters for now.”

Joseph frowned. “And what about Laborde Bank?”

“No reply yet, but I’ve heard they’ve invested heavily in Britain’s automatic loom industry. They might not have a few million livres to spare in the short term…”

“Hm?” Joseph narrowed his eyes.

He knew that for over a decade, the French government had relied on these two banks for short-term loans. In the past, the agreements were finalized months in advance, often without requiring the involvement of the Finance Minister’s assistant.

Now, with only half a month left until the government’s bonds matured, the two banks were still stalling. If there wasn’t a problem here, it would be a miracle.

In this era, the banking system was notoriously inefficient. Processing a large loan of over 6 million livres, from signing the agreement to disbursing the funds, took several days. This meant that if negotiations dragged on for another eight or nine days, France’s finances would face a default crisis!

A new solution was urgently needed.

Joseph immediately instructed Eymond, who was waiting by the door, “Prepare a carriage. I need to visit the Paris Discount Bank.”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

By noon, Joseph arrived at the headquarters of the largest bank in France, the Paris Discount Bank.

The manager of the bank welcomed the Crown Prince with great ceremony, along with the entire management team, even proposing a luncheon in his honor.

However, when Joseph brought up the topic of a loan, the manager politely but firmly declined. “Your Highness, we have existing agreements with Ravelle and Laborde Banks. They handle large short-term government loans, so we are not in a position to engage in such business.”

Joseph negotiated at length, but in the end, the Paris Discount Bank only agreed to provide secured medium- to long-term loans, which would also require considerable time to arrange.

Disheartened, Joseph left and proceeded to Paris Bank, where he received a similar response.

His final stop was the Royal Bank.

However... this institution was genuinely out of money.

Though still considered a major bank, the Royal Bank had been struggling since John Law’s Mississippi Company Ponzi scheme caused catastrophic hyperinflation, tarnishing its reputation. It had become as impoverished as the French government itself.

Ultimately, only two medium-sized banks agreed to loan 600,000 livres to the French government, but at an exorbitant interest rate of 25%. The smaller banks, many of which had capital of only one or two million livres, could not offer significant loans.

Returning to his carriage, Joseph’s face was grim. It was clear that these banks were acting in concert, and not merely to demand higher interest rates.

He turned to his financial assistant and asked, “Can administrative pressure be applied to these banks?”

The assistant immediately looked troubled. “Your Highness, given the current state of government finances, it would be unwise to antagonize the banking sector…”

Joseph took a deep breath and gazed out the window at Carnot Bank, murmuring, “They think they can toy with the nation’s finances just because they control the purse strings?

“Fine. I’ll start my own bank.”

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