Chapter 234: The Prince's First Regency

Chapter 234: The Prince's First Regency

A palace official hurriedly knocked and entered, bowing to Joseph and Mirabeau. "Your Highness, Count, Her Majesty the Queen requests your immediate presence in the East Wing Conference Hall."

"Has something happened?" Mirabeau asked, sensing that something was wrong.

"It seems there have been uprisings in several regions..."

When Joseph and Mirabeau arrived at the conference hall, they found the Queen and several ministers already seated around the table. Even the usually reclusive King Louis XVI was present, and everyone wore grim expressions.

Before the two could greet them, the Queen motioned for them to sit and then turned to Brienne. "Your Grace, please begin."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Brienne turned to the others, his face solemn. "As you all may have heard, the uprisings in the southern provinces due to food shortages have become extremely serious. From Paris to the south of Moulins, uprisings have broken out nearly everywhere. In Montpellier, Foix, and Brittany, the uprisings have even gathered tens of thousands of people."

If it hadn't been for Sorel's "night raid" on the Bastille, which forced the Duke of Orléans to prematurely launch his plans, the northwestern provinces would likely have been affected as well.

Brienne paused before continuing, "Previously, General Nehmue submitted a report on behalf of the military, stating that the uprisings occurred too suddenly and that it would take at least two months to mobilize the troops needed to quell them."

Letting the uprisings continue for two months would leave the regions completely devastated.

"They're deliberately stalling!" Baron Breteuil immediately shouted in anger. "When I served, we could be battle-ready in a week at most!"

"It seems you may be right," Brienne agreed, pulling out a document. "Just now, the Duke of Moussy submitted a proposal to Her Majesty. It includes the following demands:

"Abolish the Royal Supreme Court and restore the tradition of electing the Chief Justice through the Assembly of Notables.

"Repeal the law that requires nobles to pay land taxes.

"Repeal the Millers' Rights Act and dismantle the mills built by the parishes..."

The Queen's clenched hands were so tight that her knuckles turned white, and she couldn't help but angrily exclaim, "This is nothing but extortion, taking advantage of the uprisings to blackmail His Majesty and all of France!"

Joseph took the document from Brienne's hands and read it. The demands included: abolishing the Press and Publications Office, putting the High Court in charge of censoring the press; incorporating the Berthier regiment into General Marat's command and merging the Moulins regiment with the Montcalm regiment; requiring royal orders to use the military to be signed by the Minister of War, or else the military would have the right to refuse.

The list went on with six or seven more demands, each one an overt attempt to strip power from the monarchy. If all were accepted, all the reforms Joseph had worked on over the past year would be wiped out, and the nobles would once again dominate the crown.

After the Queen had vented her anger, Brienne continued, "Over twenty generals have signed in support of the Duke of Moussy's proposal. The Duke claims that meeting these demands will significantly improve the military's efficiency."

It took a while before Queen Marie Antoinette, weary and despondent, finally looked at the group and asked, "Does anyone have any suggestions?"

The Minister of Civil Registration, Nicoué, spoke cautiously, "Your Majesty, the uprisings in many places have already lasted nearly ten days. Even in Lyon and Trévu, there are now uprisings."

These two locations were in central-northern France, dangerously close to key cities like Moulins and Lyon.

Nicoué continued, "This is causing severe damage to the country, and the uprisings could very well escalate into... a rebellion. Many of the Duke of Moussy's proposals merely restore old traditions, so perhaps Your Majesty could agree to some of them. Ending the southern chaos as quickly as possible should be our top priority."

Joseph frowned slightly, not even considering the Duke of Moussy's demands, and silently calculated the forces he could muster.

If he organized all the police academy cadets, there would be about 6,500 of them across two classes. Adding the Berthier regiment and the Moulins regiment would give him 14,000 men. The 3,000 men in the Paris regiment could also be counted on. In the most extreme circumstances, he could even mobilize the Paris police, which would add another 3,000 men—given the police's training and morale, they were at least on par with the average French military unit.

The Swiss Guards could temporarily take over the police duties in Paris. After the police reforms, the city's gangs had nearly been eradicated, so maintaining order wasn't particularly challenging.

In other words, he could field a force of 20,000 men, and they would be well-equipped and highly capable.

The Duke of Orléans had thoroughly investigated the crown's capabilities, concluding that it could only muster 13,000 men at most. But he hadn't accounted for Joseph's strongest force, which was hidden in the police academy.

The Duke's preconceived notion that police were just government thugs led him to underestimate their combat capabilities, even after training. However, from recruitment to training to equipment, the Paris police academy was leagues ahead of most military academies. Joseph had also integrated advanced systems into this force, making the cadets twice as effective in combat as regular French soldiers.

As Joseph tapped his fingers on the armrest, he realized that his force of 20,000 wouldn't be enough to handle the widespread uprisings in the western and southern provinces. Mobilizing the Paris police, which could impact the city's stability, should only be a last resort. Under normal circumstances, he'd have 17,000 men at most.

Moreover, he had to guard against military nobles stabbing him in the back. While they were unlikely to openly rebel, they could easily disguise themselves as rebels and ambush his forces.

This meant he couldn't disperse his troops across the provinces to quell the uprisings—smaller units would be too vulnerable.

In the conference room, the ministers had apparently reached a consensus to give in to the military and the Assembly of Notables' demands—they simply couldn't think of any other solutions.

The Queen and King Louis XVI listened to the ministers' discussions with grim expressions, seemingly resigned to this outcome.

"We absolutely cannot agree to abolish the land tax or the Press and Publications Office!" Mirabeau shouted.

"I believe most of the demands can be negotiated, but the Supreme Court must be preserved," Brienne added, still bitter about the last tax reform and acutely aware of the importance of controlling the High Court.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vilren, who was aligned with the Duke of Orléans, strongly advocated accepting all the demands so that "the military can restore order as soon as possible."

By 3 PM, the group, now ravenous after hours of debate, had yet to reach a consensus and decided to break for lunch.

While waiting for the meal to be served, Brienne approached Joseph and whispered, "Your Highness, I've allocated funds to purchase grain from Spain and Sardinia. If we can hold out for a month, the grain should stabilize the situation in seven or eight provinces..."

But it wouldn't be nearly enough, Joseph thought, shaking his head slightly. Then, suddenly, something clicked.

He had been fixated on the idea of mobilizing troops to quell the uprisings, forgetting that the root cause was the grain shortage!

The provinces experiencing uprisings weren't out of grain—they had simply lost their reserve supplies.

If he could now distribute some grain, not even a large amount, just enough to last each province half a month or even ten days, it would calm the hungry mobs. Once order was restored, the reserve grain could be returned to its original locations, and the chaos would dissolve on its own.

Joseph pondered this. Enough grain to feed the entire western and southern regions of France for half a month, distributed quickly...

There was only one source he could turn to—God.

Joseph froze as the thought hit him. God's help? Of course! How could he have forgotten that he could indeed ask for God's help?

France had a whole group of "representatives of God" who owned land, property, and were particularly fond of hoarding grain.

The Catholic Church!

After the Great Revolution, the National Convention had seized the Church's assets, and the grain stored in their cellars had astonished the deputies, even helping to alleviate the freezing disaster of the spring of 1792.

Given the Church's lofty status in this era, no one ever considered targeting its assets. And besides a few archbishops, few knew just how much grain the Church had stored.

But Joseph, with his knowledge of the future, was fully aware of the Church's vast reserves and had no qualms about tapping into them.

Once this idea took hold, Joseph felt as if a light had dawned.

Church properties were scattered all across France, meaning there were grain cellars everywhere. The hungry wouldn't have to travel far to receive aid.

And the Church's reserves were more than enough to feed the southern provinces for half a month, maybe even a month or two. The so-called shortage was simply a lack of sufficient grain for everyone, which had driven up prices. All he needed was enough grain to plug the gap.

Joseph's thoughts raced. The chaos orchestrated by the Duke of Orléans and the military might actually present an opportunity. If he handled it correctly, he could even resolve the longstanding problem of the military aristocracy!

With a solid plan forming in his mind, Joseph quickly refined his strategy.

After lunch, the cabinet ministers resumed their heated debate on how much to concede.

But this time, Joseph suddenly stood up and motioned for silence. He then bowed to the Queen and King Louis XVI and said, "Your Majesties, I believe we should not make any concessions to those who dare to threaten you and France!"

The Queen, who had been feeling despondent, was suddenly filled with hope. She knew that without enough troops, they couldn't solve the crisis. But seeing her son's determination made her proud.

Joseph continued, "Please grant me full authority to handle this situation. I'm confident I can end the uprisings."

The Queen smiled and shook her head. "Joseph, my dear, I know you want to serve France, but this time…"

But Joseph turned to Brienne.

Catching his look, Brienne immediately stood up. "Your Majesty, I believe the Prince is the only one capable of resolving this crisis. In fact, he possesses abilities far beyond your imagination."

As Joseph's gaze moved to the other ministers, Mirabeau and Baron Breteuil also stood up. "Your Majesty, I also believe you can trust the Prince completely."

"I share that belief."

Seeing the support around the room, even the Navy Minister, who had been silent, stood up to express his agreement.

Aside from the Minister of Foreign Affairs and three absent ministers, everyone had chosen to side with Joseph.

The Queen was stunned by her son's influence. Before she could fully process it, she heard King Louis XVI say, "Perhaps we should let Joseph try. He did, after all, design the percussion cap musket."

Still hesitating, the Queen recalled the incredible feats her son had accomplished in North Africa. Perhaps he really could handle this crisis… She finally nodded slowly and looked at Joseph. "Then the Prince shall be responsible for handling the uprisings in the provinces. During this period, he may issue decrees in my and the King's name. Please assist him to the best of your ability."

"Thank you for your trust."

Joseph bowed to the King and Queen, then, without hesitation, pointed at Vilren. "Effective immediately, you are dismissed."

Vilren nearly fell out of his chair. How had the conversation about uprisings suddenly turned to him?

"Your Highness, you have no authority to do this!"

"Oh, but I do," Joseph replied calmly. "You will seriously hinder the process of quelling the uprisings. Therefore, you must leave the cabinet."

"You're falsely accusing me!"

Joseph turned to the Queen. "Your Majesty, I'm certain this is necessary. I promise I'll give you a satisfactory explanation later."

Given Vilren's deep involvement with the Duke of Orléans, one of the masterminds behind this crisis, he couldn't be allowed to stay.

The Queen hesitated briefly, then seeing that no one objected, looked at Vilren. "Count Vilren, please take a leave of absence. If it's proven later that you're innocent, I'll reinstate you."

Vilren stood frozen for a few seconds, then, giving the Queen a curt nod, stormed out of the room in a fury.

Finally, Joseph thought, a wave of satisfaction washing over him. He had managed to oust the troublemaker who had been making his life difficult!

He then instructed Brienne to continue issuing orders in the King's name, directing the military to disperse the rioters and restore order.

The order clearly stated that small garrisons were authorized to act independently in quelling the uprisings without needing to report to higher authorities. It also included a decree that allowed civilian officers who distinguished themselves in these efforts to be promoted to lieutenant or higher ranks.

Whether anyone would follow the orders was up to the military, but he had to try.

As for other tasks like purchasing grain and conducting public relations to stabilize morale, Joseph gave only brief instructions before declaring the cabinet meeting adjourned.

The real work was just beginning.

Half an hour later, a "Jewel" model carriage made its way toward Paris. Inside, Joseph looked across at Talleyrand and smiled. "Your Grace, the position of Foreign Minister is now vacant. Would you be interested?"

Talleyrand's face lit up with delight, and he quickly placed a hand over his heart. "Thank you for your trust, Your Highness. I will not disappoint you."

Joseph nodded. "But before that, I need you to do me a small favor." (End of Chapter)

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