Chapter 185: The Dawn of French Finance
The combined fleet wasn't particularly surprised when the pirate ship tried to flee. They maintained their course, steadily narrowing the pirates' escape route.
The dozens of oars on the pirate ship churned almost frantically. Just as it seemed they might escape the pincer movement from the east and west, a tall warship suddenly appeared from the south, its mainmast flying a blue flag emblazoned with a fleur-de-lis.
It was the 42-gun cruiser "Cléda."
Although oar-powered sailing ships had a certain speed advantage in the gentle winds of the Mediterranean Sea, the combined fleet's formation was perfectly executed. The "Cléda" merely had to wait patiently as its sister ships from the other two directions swiftly closed in.
Eventually, the cornered pirate ship engaged the "Cléda" in battle. The outcome was inevitable; the "Cléda's" third broadside shattered the mast of the 12-gun pirate ship, blowing off its entire bow with 28-pound cannonballs.
A slightly larger pirate ship tried to use the chaos to escape, but a cannonball from the "Cléda" swept away seven oars from its port side.
The rowers on the pirate ship couldn't react in time and continued to paddle with all their might. Due to the imbalanced thrust on either side, the entire ship immediately swerved in a wide 60-degree arc to the left.
By the time the pirate ship managed to correct its course, two frigates from the combined fleet were already giving chase from behind.
The Dutch frigate "Walrus" fired first. By the time Charles's "Constellation" caught up and was about to unleash its firepower, they suddenly saw a huge fireball erupt from the pirate ship's stern, clearly indicating its powder magazine had been hit.
Charles came onto the deck, met by a wave of heat infused with the smell of burning. He watched the pirates, screaming as they leaped into the sea, thrashing violently on the surface like fish caught in a net, creating splashes of foam.
He couldn't help but recall the pirates boarding the "Golden Wheat" previously, and a surge of anger swelled in his chest. He snatched a rifle from a nearby sailor, checked that it was loaded, and immediately aimed at a pirate below, firing a shot.
Soon, the triumphant blare of trumpets rang out from several warships.
Charles was still cursing loudly at the burning pirate ship when he heard Captain White's voice from behind him: "Well done, lad, you've earned your stripes this time."
...
Versailles.
One of Queen Mary's least favorite things used to be cabinet meetings, as they often brought bad news, especially concerning the seemingly bottomless pit of the national treasury.
Today, however, ever since breakfast, she had been eagerly anticipating the cabinet meeting.
This was because she had seen Archbishop Brienne's report yesterday: through a series of operations by the Industrial Development Fund, the nation's debt problem had unexpectedly been significantly alleviated.
This was a chronic ailment that had plagued France for over a century, ever since the time of Louis XV. Now, under her dedicated and exhaustive efforts, a solution finally seemed within reach for the first time!
She first visited the Royal Workshop, where she made Louis XVI, who had dark circles under his eyes and was tinkering with a textile machine, change his clothes, then practically dragged him to the conference hall.
The cabinet ministers were already waiting, clearly having heard the good news; each one looked refreshed and invigorated. Only the Duke of Orleans, clad in a black coat, sat slumped in thought.
After everyone had bowed to the King and Queen, and taken their seats at the Queen's gesture, Archbishop Brienne excitedly announced in a loud voice, "Today, I have monumental good news to share with you all."
"By God's grace, and through the meticulous governance of His and Her Majesties, the great King and Queen, France's debt has seen a substantial reduction over the past month!"
As he spoke, he opened a document. "As of three days ago, the national debt has decreased by 130 million livres, leaving only 2.11 billion livres remaining."
He paused, scanning the faces in the room, his voice brimming with excitement. "Specifically, the interest on the debt has fallen from 180 million livres annually to less than 100 million livres."
"Following this trend, French finance will soon achieve a balanced budget!"
France's current annual fiscal revenue stands at 100 million livres, while expenditures, excluding debt interest, are close to 300 million livres. This means that if revenue increases by just over 20 million livres, a balanced budget could be achieved for the first time!
Everyone immediately rose and bowed towards Louis XVI. "Long live His Majesty the King!"
"Long live Her Majesty the Queen!"
Although the Duke of Orleans' lips moved along with the praises, his heart was bleeding.
How could he not know how the national debt had been reduced? It was all the money from those thirteen banks!
After this upheaval, several of his loyal banks suffered heavy losses. Simultaneously, with Marquis de Ludo and others aligning themselves with the Royal Family, his influence within the Banking Guild plummeted.
He suddenly felt a tightness in his chest. Having lost control over the nation's finances, he had completely lost any chance of defeating the Royal Family.
While others continued to shower compliments upon the King and Queen, he sank powerlessly back into his chair.
'It seems the Orléans family's century-old ambition is utterly doomed in my generation,' he lamented inwardly. 'From now on, I can only diligently mentor Philippe and hope he grows into his own...'
The financial matters were "discussed" for nearly an hour before everyone, still somewhat reluctant, moved on to the next topic.
Archbishop Brienne took out a document and indicated to the ministers, "His Majesty has signed an Edict establishing the new position of Minister of Industry within the cabinet, primarily responsible for the supervision, management, and investment aspects of the nation's industrial sector."
He gestured towards the golden double doors of the conference hall. Two guards immediately pulled them open, and Mirabeau, resplendent in a dark blue coat and carefully groomed, strode confidently in.
Archbishop Brienne continued, "At the suggestion of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, Count Mirabeau will assume the role of Minister of Industry."
He had actually been somewhat resistant to this appointment. Mirabeau, a parvenu with no substantial family background, had somehow managed to connect with the Crown Prince and enter the cabinet in a single leap.
However, the Crown Prince had also mentioned that Mirabeau was highly knowledgeable about industrial development and would be instrumental in advancing France's industrial progress.
Currently, the greatest potential for financial growth in France lay in industry. If Mirabeau could elevate France's industry to the level of Britain's—no, even half of Britain's—it could increase annual fiscal revenue by tens of millions of livres, thus truly allowing France to achieve a balanced budget.
And he, as Minister of Finance, would undoubtedly be recorded in history for this, perhaps even surpassing the prestige of Archbishop Richelieu to become France's foremost capable minister.
Thus, Archbishop Brienne accepted Joseph's proposal, allowing a newly emerging noble to become the first Minister of Industry.
After a brief, routine appointment ceremony, Mirabeau took a seat at the far end of the conference table.
At that moment, a court official quietly entered the conference hall and handed a report to Marquis de Castries, the Minister of the Navy.
The latter quickly unfolded the report and read it, then immediately turned to the King with a smile, bowing. "Your Majesty, more good news. Our fleet sank one Barbary pirate ship and captured another a week ago."
Comments