Chapter 301: Father is Here, It Must Be Something Important!
The second floor of Versailles.
Sunlight streamed into the spacious corridor from the enormous arched floor-to-ceiling windows, enveloping the Crown Prince and his retinue in a shimmering curtain of pale golden light.
“So, Austria has been defeated?” Joseph frowned slightly, looking at Eman, who held a freshly delivered report.
“Indeed, Your Royal Highness.” Eman glanced at the documents in his hand. “General Wurmser lost over 5,000 soldiers and was even nearly encircled by the Prussian army. He retreated all the way to Luxembourg before barely managing to halt the Prussian pursuit.”
Joseph shook his head inwardly. He recalled that historically, Wurmser wasn't defeated until the end of the year. Yet it was not even June.
He then looked at Eman again. “You just mentioned that the Dutch also provided support to the Southern Netherlands?”
“Yes, Your Royal Highness, the military expenses of the Prussian and Dutch coalition forces, and the rebels' weapons, were essentially all provided by the Dutch Provincial States.”
“That explains it,” Joseph murmured with a sigh. 'So the Dutch involvement is much greater than historically. This might be why the Austrian army retreated so quickly. It seems my butterfly effect has already significantly impacted the course of history—if William V, the laid-back ruler, were still in charge of the Netherlands, they wouldn't have so generously supported the Brabant rebels.'
'Of course, it's also possible that the British orchestrated more behind-the-scenes maneuvers, which led to this series of outcomes.'
Van der Noot was one of the leaders of the Brabant uprising.
Joseph asked again, “What about the conservatives in the Southern Netherlands? What was the name of that fellow, Vonck...?”
“Are you referring to Henri Vonck, Your Royal Highness?”
“Yes, that's him.”
“He doesn't seem to have made any statement regarding this.”
Joseph nodded and instructed, “Please send someone to summon Director Fouché. We need to contact Vonck as soon as possible.”
He rubbed his temples. “In that case, the matter of the Southern Netherlands must be prioritized. Oh, please read out my recent schedule.”
“Certainly, Your Royal Highness. Your current itinerary is: Depart for Saint-Étienne this afternoon to inspect the Royal Armory there.”
“Afterward, travel south to Lyon to promote automatic looms. Before that, Monsieur Bailly will report to you on the newly established insurance company.”
“The next stop is Troyes, where you will personally oversee the army's combat readiness assessment and address the First Imperial Guard Legion...”
“Next is inspecting the logistical preparations in Verdun...”
“If things proceed smoothly in Bavaria, you will travel to Munich to sign trade agreements with Austria and other nations on behalf of His Majesty the King. If negotiations for the trade agreement are delayed, then you will go to Saxony first...”
Joseph waved a weary hand. “Please move forward the army combat readiness assessment and the inspection of the Verdun logistical outpost. The others will have to be postponed for now.”
Joseph knew that after their defeat in the Southern Netherlands, Austria would certainly not let the matter rest.
Historically, Austria had even halted its reforms, mobilizing nearly 200,000 troops with all its national might, preparing for an all-out war with Prussia. It eventually took two and a half years to forcibly suppress the Brabant uprising.
He intended to seize this rare opportunity to expand the war as much as possible, driving a wedge between Prussia and Austria, and eliminating the possibility of them uniting against France.
'If his previous arrangements in Poland also bore some fruit, preventing Russia, Prussia, and Austria from partitioning Poland, or at least delaying it for a few years, then the common interests between Prussia and Austria could be dismantled.'
'This way, the main theme of future wars on the European continent would likely be between Austria and Prussia, contending for supremacy in Germany.'
'France would no longer face troublesome anti-French coalitions and would gain considerable strategic flexibility. As major European powers, Prussia and Austria would certainly vie for France's alliance. The scope for France to profit from this would be immense.'
With Wurmser's swift defeat in the Southern Netherlands now, Joseph had no choice but to put domestic matters aside and prioritize military preparations.
'After all, to extract benefits from a potential Austro-Prussian war, he first needed a powerful army capable of influencing the tide of battle.'
'The stronger your power, the greater your value as an ally. Therefore, every Livre invested in military armaments today could yield tenfold, even a hundredfold, returns in the future!'
“Your Royal Highness, we should pick up the pace a bit; His Majesty is likely growing impatient.” A court official walking ahead saw the Crown Prince stop, conversing with his attendants, and promptly turned back to remind him.
“Oh, right,” Joseph said, hurrying to catch up with the court official. He then casually asked, “By the way, what does Her Majesty the Queen wish to see me about?”
The official skillfully evaded the question. “Your Royal Highness, that I wouldn't know. However, Her Majesty the Queen looked very serious, so it seems to be something important. Oh, His Majesty the King is there too.”
“Ah? Father is here too?” Joseph suddenly realized that something significant must have happened, 'otherwise it was unlikely to disturb Louis XVI, the perpetually disengaged King.'
When he arrived at the Petit Trianon, he indeed saw his mother and father sitting by the window, listening to music, clearly waiting for him.
He quickly stepped forward and bowed.
Queen Marie, seeing her beloved son arrive, her serious expression immediately softened. She gestured to him, “Come, my dear, sit closer!”
Joseph sat down beside his mother and heard her say, “Your uncle just sent a special envoy.”
Joseph blinked. “Uncle? Which uncle?”
“The Grand Duke of Tuscany,” Louis XVI reminded him from the side.
Queen Marie pushed a plate of puddings and macarons towards her son. “The special envoy informed your father and me about His Imperial Majesty's health. Just as you mentioned a few days ago, it is probably not optimistic.”
The Emperor she referred to was, of course, Joseph II.
“The special envoy also specifically mentioned your cousin.” The Queen fixed her gaze on Joseph's eyes. “My dear, you are no longer young. It is time to decide on a marriage partner. When I was your age, I was already married to your father. What do you think of Clémentine? Your father and I are both very fond of her. Perhaps we can propose to your uncle...”
Joseph nearly choked on his own saliva. He shot up to his feet, waving his hands awkwardly. “This... this is probably... actually, regarding the causes of hereditary diseases, this close relation... shouldn't we discuss it further...?”
How could Queen Marie not see her son's meaning? She couldn't help but frown slightly. “Joseph, is there something you dislike about Clémentine? Or do you already have someone else in mind?”
Comments