I am the Dauphin of France

Chapter 2: The Blessed Son

"No, no need to finish!" Lagrange grabbed Joseph's shoulder excitedly. "This new derivation is enough to prove your capability. I'll head back to the university today to apply for your degree certificate."

"Thank you very much!" Joseph, overjoyed, broke free from the old mathematician's grasp, bowed to him, and dashed out the door.

Lagrange, who had intended to make a speech, found himself talking to empty air.

He stood there stunned for a moment, then quickly chased after Joseph, calling out:

"Your Highness, how did you come up with the idea for the differentiable functions? Tell me about your thought process!"

The boys in the classroom exchanged puzzled glances until one hesitantly asked, "Can someone tell me, did the crown prince just graduate?"

"It seems that way."

"But he only came today..."

The slant-eyed boy stared hatefully at Joseph's retreating back and spat, "No, he must have cheated!"

Andre, without missing a beat, rolled his eyes and placed the problems Lagrange had set in front of the boy: "The questions were given by the professor on the spot, and the prince's proof is a new mathematical discovery. If the Duke of Chartres thinks cheating can achieve this, he might want to try it himself."

The Duke of Chartres stared at the incomprehensible formulas, feeling as if he'd been struck by lightning. 

He had always considered himself the most outstanding among the young royals, yet now he couldn't even understand a proof already written by someone else...

Could it be that Joseph had been pretending to be incompetent just to make him look foolish?

He clenched his fists tightly. 

Joseph, just wait. One day, I'll make you crawl at my feet!

Joseph couldn't hear their conversation, but even if he did, he wouldn't care. The squabbles of children were meaningless to him.

His mind was full of thoughts about finally being able to participate in politics, figuring out how to reform France, and preventing the Revolution from beheading him.

Lagrange, panting, caught up and pestered him with questions for a while, suddenly feeling he had grasped something from the prince's proof. Muttering to himself: "If f(a)≠f(b)f(a) \neq f(b)f(a)=f(b) then..."

He repeated this several times, his expression becoming serious, then hastily bid farewell to Joseph and rushed back to his office at the university.

Joseph watched him go, whispering: "If f(a)≠f(b)f(a) \neq f(b)f(a)=f(b), then that would be your Lagrange Mean Value Theorem. Good luck, and I hope you prove it a few years earlier."

As the old mathematician's figure disappeared, he waved to his attendant who had been following behind: "Aimé, where is Her Majesty the Queen now?"

The tall, blond young man quickly bowed and replied, "Your Highness, Her Majesty is in her tea room."

Joseph nodded to him and turned to run towards the end of the wide corridor. The vigorous movement caused him to cough, reminding him that his pneumonia hadn't healed yet—the original body's constitution was very weak, and this pneumonia had persisted for over a month without signs of recovery.

He waved off Aimé, who approached with concern, indicating he was fine, then wound through another hundred meters or so and finally saw the door to the queen's tea room.

From today on, he could finally put his skills to use and start saving himself! He took a deep breath and strode through the door, pushing past the guards stationed on either side.

In the warmly and elegantly decorated tea room, Queen Marie, with her intricately coiffed hair piled two feet high, fair skin, and beautiful light blue eyes, sat back in an oriental-style armchair, holding a document in one hand and a cup of tea in the other. 

She was listening attentively to a minister beside her, seemingly handling state affairs—King Louis XVI spent all day tinkering in his locksmith workshop, so most governance was left to the queen.

Joseph sighed inwardly. 

Louis XVI was, in fact, one of the rare benevolent rulers in French history, but he inherited a France riddled with problems, and coupled with his lack of governance skills and obsession with locksmithing, he ended up causing widespread misery, leading to the Revolution.

In peaceful times, Louis XVI would likely have been a beloved king. 

Joseph actually had a favorable impression of him and, if possible, would like to save his life.

A voice from the side announced, "The Crown Prince is here—"

Following court etiquette, Joseph took half a step back with his right foot, bowed with his hand on his chest towards Queen Marie, and then greeted each of the ministers in the room before stepping forward excitedly to the queen, saying: "Mother, I passed the university mathematics graduation exam!"

Queen Marie's eyes lit up with surprise. She put down her document and warmly grasped his hands:

"Joseph, you truly are the pride of your father and me!"

She had already sent someone to verify the Crown Prince’s coursework and confirmed that, apart from mathematics, he had passed all his subjects with excellent grades. 

This meant he had completed the curriculum of the University of Paris!

With a complex expression, she looked at her son: "Why did you hide this from your father and me, secretly studying all by yourself? I mean, you could have learned from the best tutors."

Joseph, needing to explain his sudden transformation into a top student, had to make up an excuse about self-studying for many years. "Because…" Joseph stammered, "I wanted to surprise you."

"What a wonderful surprise this is!" The Queen picked up a piece of pudding topped with strawberries and pushed it into his mouth, then affectionately ruffled his slightly curly hair. "How did so much knowledge fit into that little head of yours?"

Nearby, a tall, thin man in a dark blue patterned doublet with a ruffled collar studded with sapphires frowned and quietly asked the minister beside him: "Bishop Brienne, did the Crown Prince just say he finished university-level mathematics?"

The minister nodded. "It seems so."

"How is that possible?"

"I'm just as shocked."

Behind them, the Queen's confidant secretary chimed in quietly: "It's not just mathematics. The Prince has completed over ten courses at the University of Paris, including physics, chemistry, mathematics, geometry, and English."

Several ministers around them widened their eyes in disbelief. "How is that possible?!"

"I thought the Crown Prince was only thirteen?!"

"This is simply incredible!"

"Yes," the secretary sighed, "the teachers who have instructed him all call him the ‘God-blessed Child’."

"The ‘God-blessed Child’? Ha ha, with such a genius as our crown prince, France will surely be even more glorious!"

"Truly, Heaven has blessed France!"

Joseph ignored the ministers’ praises and, breaking free from the Queen's grasp, urgently said to her:

"Your Majesty, according to our agreement, can I participate in politics now?"

Queen Marie nodded indulgently. "Of course, my brilliant son. Oh, by the way, I suggest you start at the Paris City Hall to gain some experience."

Joseph frowned. His goal was to reform France, fundamentally preventing the enraged citizens from slaughtering the entire royal family! What could he achieve at City Hall? Improve urban traffic? Manage sewage systems?

Having watched numerous documentaries about the French Revolution, he knew that France's most pressing issue was its finances—administrative corruption, disaster relief failures, and rebellious nobles were all symptoms of the financial collapse.

Therefore, to reform France, he had to first fix its finances!

Joseph looked at the Queen and tentatively said, "I think perhaps the position of Finance Minister would be more suitable for me."

Queen Marie smiled kindly. France's financial problems were deeply entrenched, and since Louis XVI’s ascension, nearly all efforts had been directed towards solving the fiscal crisis, yet to no avail.

How could a thirteen-year-old boy, even if he were a "God-blessed Child," possibly shoulder such a burden?

She put away her smile, thought for a moment, and said, "Joseph, if you're interested in finances, you could start at the Paris Tax Office."

Joseph knew this was a sign of her disbelief in his capabilities, which was understandable given his thirteen-year-old body. He had no choice but to compromise:

"Then let me be the Assistant Minister of Finance?"

At this time, an assistant was essentially the deputy finance minister, the second in command regarding financial matters.