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Chapter 114: Political Faction

The salon's attendees were primarily the emerging Capitalist Nobility, along with a few enlightened Old Nobility members and entrepreneurs.

Madame Hébert enthusiastically instructed her servants to attend to the guests, but her eyes remained fixed on Mirabeau, who was delivering an impassioned speech.

Although it was called a salon, it was practically Mirabeau's personal lecture event. His speech centered on the industrial development concepts Joseph had discussed with him the previous day. He had organized his thoughts all afternoon and memorized them overnight, all for the sake of delivering this address today.

No one vied with him for the right to speak; if he paused even for a moment, someone would immediately urge him to continue.

With his characteristic calm, grand, and infectious oratorical style, Mirabeau painted a vivid picture of the vast future of French industry that Joseph had described, showcasing it to everyone present.

Around him, some listeners felt their blood stir, clenching their fists tightly.

Others appeared thoughtful, nodding occasionally.

Still more gazed intently at him, their eyes gleaming with excitement.

It wasn't until dusk, when Mirabeau's voice grew hoarse, that the crowd finally released him, beginning to discuss among themselves in small groups:

"Do you think the tax reductions mentioned by the Crown Prince will actually be implemented?"

"As long as His Majesty the King signs the bill, we must do our utmost to push the High Court to pass it!"

"If everything His Highness mentioned comes to fruition, France is sure to usher in a new, glorious chapter!"

"I hear the Eden Treaty is also going to be revised. This is truly an excellent opportunity for investment."

Mirabeau drank several glasses of Wine, and his voice finally recovered a little. He then casually brought up the Crown Prince's plan to promote Potato cultivation, mentioning that funds were somewhat insufficient.

Immediately, a middle-aged noble rose and declared, "Count Mirabeau, I can lend His Highness the Crown Prince 100,000 Livre, without Interest. Please convey this to His Highness for me."

With someone taking the lead, others quickly followed suit:

"I'm quite well-off recently; I can also lend out 200,000."

"I'm investing in Nancy, so I can only lend His Highness 100,000 Livre."

"I can also..."

While these individuals were all quite wealthy, sums of one or two hundred thousand Livre were by no means small amounts for them.

However, after hearing Mirabeau's speech, they all saw the Crown Prince as the hope for France's industrial future and even policy reform, naturally offering him strong support. Moreover, Mirabeau had mentioned that the Crown Prince was using the Paris Angel Company as collateral, so there would be no risk in lending the money.

Before long, including Mirabeau, this group of affluent Capitalist Nobility had raised 1.8 million Livre. Several others also stated they had resources they could mobilize to assist with purchasing or transporting Potatoes.

After this brief interlude, the crowd resumed their fervent discussions about industrial development zones and Industrial Chains, dispersing only late into the night, still reluctant to leave.

Joseph had no idea that, marked by this salon, his future political faction was already beginning to take shape.

...

The Paris Police Academy.

On the east side of the dust-shrouded training ground, two men stood on a viewing platform taller than a person. One wore the blue uniform of the Paris Police, while the other was in white military attire. However, judging by their collar insignia, both held the rank of Major.

The man in the white military uniform was around thirty, with a prominent nose and a perpetual hint of melancholy in his light blue eyes.

He watched the squad of police cadets training Shuttle Runs in the dust, and somewhat perplexed, asked the officer beside him, "François, what's the point of them running back and forth like this?"

The latter was Dubois, whom Joseph had directly recruited from the commendation ceremony for the police academy after he distinguished himself in the war in the Netherlands.

Dubois chuckled, "Alexander, this is called Shuttle Runs. It's a standard training exercise in the police academy curriculum, designed to improve the physical stamina and reaction speed of soldiers... er, officers."

Alexander asked skeptically, "Is this really useful? Shouldn't they focus more on Line Formation drills?"

"Line Formation training is just the most basic," Dubois explained. "Shuttle Runs can significantly improve the speed at which officers charge and change direction." Dubois pointed to the other end of the training ground. "Oh, look over there. Those are Pull-ups. Every officer practices them dozens of times a day to improve arm strength. You know, on the battlefield, you often have to hold your rifle for hours, and this exercise helps them maintain steady aim.

"And that..."

As he spoke, a squad of officers ran in from the training ground entrance, chanting slogans loudly and in perfect formation, immediately stirring up even more dust.

Dubois immediately wore a triumphant expression and gestured towards the squad. "Aha, do you know? That group of officers just completed the most 'brutal' training exercise—a four-kilometer armed cross-country run."

Alexander exclaimed, "You mean they just ran four kilometers?!"

Dubois nodded. "Exactly, and they must complete it within 15 minutes."

Alexander's eyes widened in astonishment.

Four kilometers! Not even the most elite soldiers could possibly cover such a distance in 15 minutes!

However, Dubois continued to 'provoke' him: "Each person only carries 18 pounds of weight."

He wore a dissatisfied expression. "His Highness the Crown Prince's requirement is at least 25 pounds, but these fellows, alas, haven't reached that level yet. They still need more intensive training."

Alexander tried to appear composed. "Are you saying these training exercises were mandated by His Highness the Crown Prince?"

"Exactly. I mentioned it to you in my letter. His Highness has invented many novel military theories, and the same applies to training. To be honest, at first, I didn't understand why we had to train this way."

Dubois once again looked triumphant. "But I soon understood that officers trained according to His Highness's requirements show significant improvements in both formation discipline and stability."

Soldiers of this era placed great importance on drill and formation training, but physical conditioning was often treated as an afterthought.

In reality, however, only with excellent physical fitness could soldiers execute various formations and transitions with greater ease. Once military theory evolved into the modern era, no army dared to neglect physical training.

Joseph, naturally, instilled these correct principles directly into his forces.

Alexander watched as the officers in blue uniforms on the training ground picked up wooden rifles again, practicing Line Formation drills, and couldn't help but ask, "François, aren't they police officers? Why are they practicing this? Do you need infantry Line Formations to deal with Parisian gangs?"

A strange smile flickered across Dubois's face. "Ahem, as a matter of fact, only the cadets with the poorest performance here are assigned to be police officers."

"Oh? What about the others?"

Dubois quickly changed the subject, speaking vaguely. The police academy had a rule that the training of elite cadets to officer standards was not to be disclosed to anyone.