Chapter 192: European Shifting Sands
In the center of the arena, Sorel lightly tapped her blade against her opponent's in a salute. Then, she retreated three steps, turned sideways, and, with her left hand behind her back, adopted a standard ready stance.
The spectators below immediately began to whisper:
"Oh! This lady actually seems to know how to fence."
"Don't you know? She's the sister of Vicomte de Freize, and she trained under Marquis de Villafuerte. Her swordsmanship is incredibly strong."
"Marquis de Villafuerte? The famous Spanish fencing master?"
"That's right, the very same."
"Aha, looks like we're in for quite a show today!"
The referee's bell rang. Sorel's gaze sharpened instantly. Her rapier feinted towards her opponent's left chest, her footwork incredibly nimble, almost simultaneously turning to the right, pressing her sword tip down, aiming directly for the young man's abdomen.
The tall young nobleman was no amateur; although Sorel had seized the initiative, his defensive stance remained unshaken. He sharply parried her blade aside with the flat of his sword.
The young man felt he couldn't evade it. He swung his sword horizontally with force, hoping to push Sorel back.
The latter, however, darted back like a butterfly flitting through flowers, gracefully dodging the flashing blade, and then lunged straight for her opponent's thigh again.
Next, the young man's two clumsy blocks and counterattacks were both easily evaded by Sorel, who returned with precisely angled thrusts.
The audience below applauded enthusiastically.
However, after only five or six exchanges, Sorel felt her left heel hit something.
She immediately realized it was the edge of the arena, and her heart clenched. She had grown accustomed to relying on speed to dart and dodge, then seize opportunities to counterattack, but she had overlooked the ring's dimensions.
Her opponent, seizing on her moment of distraction, swung his sword down without hesitation. With hundreds of nobles, and even the Crown Prince, watching the match, he had no intention of deferring to a lady. He was hoping to demonstrate his swordsmanship before His Majesty the King the day after tomorrow, after all.
Blocked by the wooden barrier at the edge of the arena, Sorel couldn't dodge and had no choice but to raise her sword to parry.
She heard a resounding "clang", and her wrist immediately went numb. Strength was certainly not her strong suit.
Her opponent, seizing the opportunity, brought his sword down from another direction, and she reluctantly parried again.
The strength disparity between them was too great; this time, her sword was even knocked aside. The young man opposite immediately flicked his wrist upwards, and the wood-sheathed sword tip pressed against her abdomen.
She lost...
'I came here aiming for the championship, but I lost in the very first match!'
Sorel's mind went blank. It wasn't until the referee came to urge her that she forlornly stepped down from the arena.
She recalled how, full of confidence, she had told the Crown Prince to bet on her to win, even guaranteeing she would secure the prize money. A wave of shame washed over her, making her wish she could dig a hole and bury herself.
The image of the Crown Prince's five outstretched fingers when he placed his bet flashed before her eyes, and her heart trembled involuntarily. Given royal stature, he must have wagered at least 500 Livres!
'Or even 5,000 Livres...'
'Yes! It must have been 5,000 Livres!'
'It's over, everything's over,' Sorel almost burst into tears. 'The Crown Prince helped me get this opportunity to compete, but I've caused him to lose so much money. What am I going to do? Will the Crown Prince hate me? Yes! He'll definitely hate me!'
The sounds of laughter from the audience reached her ears. Indeed, it wasn't mockery; most people simply found the little interlude amusing.
Yet, hearing the laughter, Sorel hunched her shoulders and lowered her head, like a kitten caught pilfering food. 'They can't see me, they can't see me, they can't see me!' she chanted inwardly, before scurrying past the stands and disappearing into the crowd.
'No! This won't do!'
She shook her head repeatedly as she walked. 'That was 5,000 Livres! She couldn't just pretend nothing had happened!'
'Yes!' she resolved inwardly. 'Even if I can't come up with that much money now, I'll pay it all back to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince eventually!'
In the stands, Clémentine, still cheerfully waving her sweets, looked rather disappointed:
"Cousin, I was going to give that lady some sweets after she won, but I didn't expect her to leave so quickly.
"Hmm, but it's alright, you only bet 10 Livres on her."
Joseph chuckled. "This might not be the environment she excels in."
"Then where does she excel at fencing?" Clémentine asked, tilting her head.
Joseph smiled without speaking, thinking, 'The Palais-Royal would be fine; even a hundred soldiers couldn't stop her there.'
When the afternoon fencing tournament concluded, Joseph, Antonio, and the little girl descended from the stands, chatting and laughing. Eman immediately hurried to Joseph's side and whispered:
"Your Highness, Archbishop Talleyrand has returned and is waiting for you in the reception room."
Joseph nodded slightly. He knew that Talleyrand, having returned from his grand tour of the Americas and Europe, likely had many matters to report.
Thus, he bid farewell to Antonio, entrusted Clémentine to her lady-in-waiting, and headed towards his private chambers.
Along the way, he remembered Antonio's rather unfortunate marital predicament. This matter needed to be arranged in advance.
He pondered for a moment, then turned and gave Eman a set of instructions. Eman immediately acknowledged the order and departed.
Joseph returned to his reception room. Talleyrand promptly came forward, bowing respectfully:
"May God bless you, Your Highness. Since leaving Paris, I have constantly thought of you. Why, I have just alighted from my carriage and immediately came here to see you."
His words seemed like a mere courtesy, but they were in fact a declaration of loyalty to Joseph—'Upon returning to Versailles, I neither went to see the Chief Minister nor reported to my direct superior, the Foreign Minister; instead, I came to see Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince first.'
"Oh, I have missed you too, Archbishop Talleyrand. Please, have a seat." Joseph gestured to the sofa with a smile. "Your journey, leaving Paris this time, must have exceeded 7,000 nautical miles, wouldn't you say?"
Talleyrand nodded. "Indeed, over 7,800 nautical miles, Your Highness, traversing the Atlantic Ocean twice."
"You've truly exerted yourself," Joseph said, gesturing for a maid to bring coffee and pastries for Talleyrand. "You could have returned with the Russian Crown Prince's entourage, you know."
Talleyrand nodded his thanks to the maid, then turned to Joseph and smiled faintly:
"Your Highness, I returned by ship, departing several days after the Russian Crown Prince. Yet, you see, I still arrived first. Furthermore, I believe it's best to report certain matters to you in advance."
Joseph leaned forward. "Please, speak your mind."
"Matters in America unfolded exactly as you predicted. Their 'Federalists' are very supportive of purchasing warships and collaborating to combat pirates," Talleyrand reported. "If not for a lack of funds, Mr. Hamilton would even have wanted to buy a small fleet."
"We merely intend to sell some older ships, not to allow the American navy to grow formidable," Joseph stated.
Talleyrand nodded immediately. "Yes, Your Highness, I also sensed their unusually strong interest in the Caribbean Sea."
"Your perceptiveness is truly remarkable," Joseph commented. He knew that after the Americans acquired some funds, they promptly began assembling a substantial fleet, which led to fierce battles with France in the Caribbean Sea.
The eventual outcome was France losing significant interests in the Caribbean Sea. Coupled with the Haitian Revolution, France's revenue from its American colonies was practically wiped out.
"Regarding the Americans, we must both utilize and restrain them as much as possible. Especially, we must guard against their westward expansion. They possess a devilish greed for the lands of North America," Joseph said earnestly.
Talleyrand dismissed it somewhat casually. "Your Highness, Americans are generally stingy and lack mettle. I believe they wouldn't dare challenge Spanish interests."
Currently, Spain controlled the territories west of America.
Joseph didn't bother to explain; historically, America had devoured much of Louisiana within just over a decade.
"As for trade," Talleyrand continued, "Hamilton privately assured me that, at the same price, we would receive their cotton before the British."
"Excellent." Joseph nodded with satisfaction. North America was currently the world's largest cotton exporter, and with the supply of American cotton, France would have a stronger foundation in its textile industry competition with Britain.
American affairs were relatively straightforward, and Talleyrand quickly finished his report. Next came his diplomatic experiences in Russia.
"Your Highness, after arriving in Saint Petersburg, I soon met with Empress Catherine. Over the next ten days or so, she summoned me twice more, demonstrating her emphasis on Russo-French relations."
Joseph was not surprised by this; Russia and France shared many common interests and had broad prospects for cooperation. Catherine II, as one of Russia's foremost monarchs in history, naturally understood this clearly.
"Empress Catherine expressed her gratitude for the guns and uniforms you sent her," Talleyrand said. "Those uniforms, in particular, almost became exclusive to her officers."
Currently, Russia's manufacturing capabilities were on the lower end in Europe; though they could produce flintlock muskets themselves, their quality was considerably inferior to top-tier French goods.
Even the old guns Talleyrand retrieved from America were highly sought after by Russian soldiers. Catherine immediately issued those 15,000 Charleville muskets to the frontline troops in the Russo-Turkish War.
As for the uniforms, Joseph had them specially custom-made in Lyon, a total of 1,800 sets, to better penetrate the Russian clothing market.
In any case, military uniforms of this era had no standardized design, and Russia's were particularly chaotic; as long as the colors were generally consistent, it was fine.
Consequently, the style of these uniforms, designed by French designers, looked far more "fashionable" than the Russian army's existing ones. Upon arrival, they were immediately snatched up by Russian officers.
While these uniforms weren't cheap, each set costing over 60 Livres, Joseph's venture was still highly cost-effective. France only provided some guns and uniforms, yet gained political leverage by supporting the Russo-Turkish War. After all, if Russian soldiers, armed with French guns and clad in French uniforms, won battles, a portion of the credit would inevitably go to France.
Meanwhile, Austria had genuinely dispatched tens of thousands of troops to fight in the Ottoman Empire, yet Russia's gratitude towards them wasn't necessarily much greater than towards France.
Furthermore, as long as these uniforms supplied to Russia remained popular among Russian officers, a large number of nobles would certainly want to purchase them later.
In fact, two subsequent shipments of the same style of uniforms had already been sent to Russia, each selling for over 100 Livres.
Talleyrand smiled as he spoke:
"Empress Catherine expressed her support and gratitude for our actions in North Africa, which tie down the Ottoman navy. She even hoped we could extend our strike range to the Bay of Alexandria."
Joseph narrowed his eyes slightly at this. The Bay of Alexandria was near Egypt, meaning Catherine's implication was that Russia recognized France's sphere of influence stretching across North Africa, from Algiers all the way to Egypt!
This meant that among all the major European powers, only Britain had yet to acknowledge France's claims over North Africa. Prussia, of course, likely didn't acknowledge them either, but given Prussia's pitiful navy, their stance on North Africa was irrelevant.
"At the same time, Empress Catherine also hoped we could support some of their demands regarding Poland," Talleyrand continued.
"Although Russia is currently tied up in the Ottoman theater, she seemed to be hinting that once the southern front concludes, they will expand towards Poland again."
Joseph couldn't help but sigh. No wonder Catherine II was so generous in supporting France's acquisition of North Africa; it turned out there were more conditions attached.
Imperial Russia's covetousness of Poland was almost universally known. Historically, Catherine II had indeed allied with Prussia and Austria three times to completely partition poor Poland.
However, Imperial Russia had also borne the heavy burden of disrupting European order due to the partitions of Poland, and naturally hoped for more great powers to support them.
Especially now, Austria's attitude towards partitioning Poland was still very unenthusiastic, which made France's stance even more crucial.
"Your Highness," Talleyrand said, "perhaps we could leverage Poland to extract more concessions from Russia."
Joseph, however, shook his head. "While Poland doesn't hold many direct interests for us, we should still try our best to ensure it isn't completely devoured by Imperial Russia, or at least not too easily."
Talleyrand paused, then asked, "Why is that?"
"Because Prussia and Austria must absolutely not grow too close."
"This... I still don't quite understand, Your Highness."
Talleyrand was Joseph's chosen grand minister for foreign affairs, so it was perhaps best to explain certain political strategies to him in advance.
Thus, Joseph patiently explained:
"On the European continent, France's most direct adversary is Prussia. This isn't just because Prussia has always coveted the Rhine River region, but also because it serves as Britain's proxy on the continent. Weakening Prussia is tantamount to weakening Britain."
Talleyrand nodded thoughtfully. Britain was France's ancient enemy, and the greatest obstacle to France becoming the hegemon of Europe. The two nations had fought and paused for centuries, and strategically containing Britain was an 'absolute imperative' for France. Naturally, the reverse was also true; Britain was currently trying every means to contain France.
However, he still didn't quite understand what this had to do with Poland.
Joseph continued:
"To counter the Anglo-Prussian alliance, we must try our best to bring Austria along. Fortunately, Prussia and Austria also have many conflicts, such as over Silesia."
Silesia was a rich territory in northwestern Austria. More than 50 years ago, Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI passed away, and his daughter, Maria Theresa—who was Louis XVI's mother-in-law and Joseph's maternal grandmother—inherited the throne. At the time, Prussia used the pretext that women had no right of succession to ignite the Silesian Wars.
Austria, unable to defeat Prussia and pressured by Britain, eventually ceded the Silesian region to Prussia.
Since then, Silesia had been a thorn in Austria's side.
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