Poland Has Not Perished

One morning in September, a man arrived at the door of the Bonaparte Institute, showed the gatekeeper a letter signed by Fouché and Carnot, and requested to see Joseph.

The letter was immediately delivered inside, while the person waited outside.

"Wybicki? Sounds like a Slav." Joseph looked at the letter of introduction that had been delivered. Although the letter contained almost nothing except the name of the person who had sent it, Joseph had a rough idea of the person's purpose.

"Alright, take him to the reception room and wait there. I'll be right there," Joseph said.

A little while later, Joseph met this man in the drawing room who also Joseph, but whose last name was Wybicki.

"Hello, General Bonaparte, I am General Kosciuszko's representative. I hope to purchase some weapons from you for the just cause of the Poland people." The man, upon seeing Joseph, stated his purpose directly in broken French.

Joseph recognized the name "Kosciuszko." Koscušić was a Poland officer who, after the Second Partition of Poland by Russia, Prussia, and Austria in 1793, brought Poland to the brink of collapse. In March 1794, General Kosciuszko, taking advantage of the French Army's victory over the Prussian and Austrian forces in Belgium and the Rhine, and the Russia Empress's illness, launched an uprising in Krakow, attempting to reclaim lost territory and establish a new Poland. Interestingly, despite the chaos in France after the Thermidor, the military pressure on the north was relatively limited, and General Kosciuszko deserves much credit for this.

To suppress his uprising, and more importantly, to prevent the Russia from taking advantage of the situation to seize the rest of Poland, Prussia and Austria, disregarding Britain objections, transferred a significant number of troops from Belgium to Poland. In fact, General Kosciuszko chose this time to revolt hoping the France would draw their fire, but instead, he ended up drawing the France fire instead.

"What kind of weapons are you looking to buy?" Since the other party was being so direct, Joseph got straight to the point.

"Bonaparte's Little Melon, the real thing," Wybicki replied.

"Alright, we've just resumed production of this weapon," Joseph said. "So how many do you need? How will you pay? And regarding transportation, will you handle it yourselves, or will we deliver it to you?"

Wybicki quoted a number, then added, "If the price is right, we'll have additional orders."

Joseph shook his head inwardly. "Additional orders" sounded appealing, but considering the circumstances the Poland were in, no one could say how long they could hold out.

Joseph considered it for a moment and then told him a number.

"Isn't this... aren't these prices a bit too high?" Wybicki seemed quite surprised upon hearing Joseph's offer. "Other manufacturers are offering much lower prices."

Joseph was actually prepared for this question. He smiled and replied, "Mr. Wybicki, frankly speaking, our products are indeed more expensive than those of other manufacturers, but that's for a reason. Our production costs are much higher."

At this point, Joseph beckoned to a guard beside him, who then came over.

"Go and get a sample of 'Bonaparte's Little Melon,' and while you're at it, get a few samples of other brands of 'Little Melon' as well."

The guard, upon hearing this, turned and left. Joseph then continued speaking to Wybicki:

"I noticed that when you made your purchase request to us, you specifically emphasized that you needed genuine Bonaparte's Little Melon. The reason you rejected those manufacturers near Paris must be because you knew about the problems with their 'Little Melon.' Hmm... you may also know about our General Joubert's injury. In addition, as far as I know, those cheap ones have also caused quite a few problems in the Prussia army."

Furthermore, as you should know, transporting these items is a major problem for you. The small quantity of your first purchase is probably due to your own distribution channels being unable to transport enough goods at once. Under such circumstances, if you still want to buy low-end, cheap goods, even from an economic point of view, it's actually not cost-effective, is it?"

Just then, the guard returned, carrying a plate with several round Little Melon on it.

"Mr. Wybicki, please look, this is our genuine 'Bonaparte's Little Melon,' and these are just cheaper, off-brand Little Melon. Don't worry, the chemicals in these Little Melon have already been removed. You can take them over and examine the differences closely."

As Joseph spoke, he gestured to the guards to bring over the two "Little Melon" for Wybicki to taste.

Wybicki picked up several "Little Melon" from the tray one by one and examined them closely. However, judging from his expression, he couldn't understand the differences between them at all.

"Mr. Wybicki, you see, genuine Little Melon have deep grooves on the outside. These grooves aren't just for aesthetics; they serve two purposes. First, they make it easier to hold and prevent slipping. Mr. Wybicki, you know that soldiers are especially nervous on the battlefield, particularly new recruits. Therefore, they are prone to making silly mistakes, like dropping the Little Melon on their feet. These grooves prevent such problems."

Joseph first showed Wybicki the authentic "Bonaparte's Little Melon," then picked up another "Little Melon" with a very smooth surface:

"Take a look at this generic Little Melon. There are no scratches on the outside at all, and of course, it's the cheapest. Hmm, and this one too. See, it has a few very shallow marks on it. These were created using an etching process. Although they're very shallow, they still provide a non-slip effect. Of course, with an extra step in the process, the cost of this 'Little Melon' is naturally higher, and the price is also a bit more expensive than the previous one."

After saying that, Joseph continued, "However, Mr. Wybicki, you see, compared to the genuine article, it still lacks one crucial advantage. You see, the genuine 'Bonaparte's Little Melon' has much deeper grooves. This way, when the 'Little Melon' explodes, its outer shell will shatter along these grooves, forming dozens of shrapnel fragments that fly in all directions. Within a dozen meters of the blast center, there is an effective kill radius. Therefore, a genuine 'Bonaparte's Little Melon' that lands in enemy ranks can take down a whole platoon of enemies."

"Take another look at this generic 'Little Melon' in my hand. Its markings are too shallow, so it doesn't achieve the effect mentioned above. When it explodes, it easily just shatters the outer shell into two pieces. It can't produce a large number of lethal shrapnel fragments, so its power is far less than the genuine 'Bonaparte's Little Melon.' The reason its markings are so shallow is because the materials they use are inferior to ours. They use the most ordinary white cast iron, which simply cannot produce such pre-formed fragments. So, you see, on the surface, the genuine 'Bonaparte's Little Melon' is indeed the most expensive among these 'Little Melon' because our workmanship is more refined, our performance is better, and naturally, our cost is higher. In fact, the money we earn from our customers is no more than these cheap generic ones."

However, Wybicki seemed to be hesitating. Joseph then smiled and said, "Mr. Wybicki, actually, if your order quantity were a little larger, we could help you with delivery."

The temptation worked immediately, Wybicki asked right away, "Can you deliver to Poland?"

Joseph shook his head and said, "That won't work, but we can help you get the goods to Denmark first. The land route from France to Poland is heavily monitored. But if we get a ship from Denmark, land at Danzig, and then cross Prussia into Poland, this route is less heavily monitored and should be easier to navigate."

"Sir, there is no Danzig, only Gdansk (the Poland name for Danzig)," Wybicki said. "Also, how much do we need to order to get this service?"

Joseph laughed, "Ah, I misspoke, it should indeed be Gdansk. As for the quantity, if you double the order, we can ship the goods to Denmark for you free of charge. Also, if I may be frank, your enemy is too powerful. I admire your courage, but honestly, your struggle may not end well."

"Mr. Bonaparte, what do you mean?" Wybicki's face changed, his eyes blazing with anger, as if he were ready to challenge Joseph to a duel at any moment.

"Mr. Wybicki, please don't be agitated. I mean no harm," Joseph said. "I simply want to offer some advice as a friend, a friend of the Poland people, in the current situation. You should know that the Poland have no more reliable friend in all of Europe today than France."

These words calmed Wybicki down, and he said, "Mr. Bonaparte, I apologize, I was too emotional. However, I still want to ask, do you really think that the prospects for our current struggle are not good?"

"Yes," Joseph said. "It is shameful to say, but this is mainly the responsibility of France. If it weren't for so many things happening within our own borders, we could have put a lot of pressure on Prussia and Austria. If that were the case, your uprising today would have had a great chance."

"Sigh..." Wybicki sighed.

"However, even if this uprising fails to recover lost territory, it can still boost national morale. With such a spirit, Poland will never truly perish, even if it suffers a temporary defeat," Joseph added.

"Thank you, thank you for your encouragement," Wybicki said.

"But now, we must prepare for the future," Joseph continued. "First, if the enemy is too strong, then we should not engage them in a direct confrontation for the time being. Winter is coming, and we must preserve the flame. As long as the flame of resistance continues to burn, Poland has not perished. I suggest you adopt a guerrilla warfare strategy of breaking up large groups into smaller ones, and drown those invaders in the vast ocean of people's war..."

"What guerrilla warfare? What vast ocean of people's war?" Wybicki simply couldn't comprehend such a wealth of information all at once.

"Ah, well, it's like this..."

According to Joseph's analysis, the Russia and Prussia invaded Poland naturally to plunder the Poland people. Otherwise, would they really have come to establish a paradise? Therefore, the contradiction between them and the Poland people was irreconcilable. Thus, as long as the partisans stood on the side of the people and did their best to protect their interests, they would gain the support of the people, just like Antaeus, who stood firmly on the ground, making him invincible.

Whether it was the Russia or the Prussia, their invasion of Poland was not driven by greed or a desire to exploit Poland. If their attempts to plunder Poland were thwarted, or even if they were bogged down in a protracted guerrilla war, making the costs far exceed what they could gain from Poland, then their aggression would naturally become unsustainable. Coupled with the support and assistance of people throughout Europe who love justice and peace, Poland would inevitably be revived.

Wybicki stood up excitedly; Joseph's words had opened up a whole new world for him.

"Mr. Bonaparte, you are absolutely right! Poland has not perished. As long as the flame of resistance continues to burn, Poland has not perished! Yes, we must mobilize the entire nation and drown those invaders in the vast ocean of people's war..."

Wybicki waved his fist as if Poland had already won and had once again become the dominant Poland.

"Mr. Wybicki, we still need to work together for this sacred goal," Joseph said. "Well, we also have a weapon called 'Bonaparte's Mousetrap,' which is particularly suitable for guerrilla warfare. Would you like to take a look?"

"What is it? I want to see it, of course I want to see it!" Wybicki said quickly.

The so-called "Bonaparte's Mousetrap" was actually just a landmine. To be more precise, Joseph was selling at this point wasn't even the entire landmine, but only the fuse.

"This thing is actually similar to the 'Little Melon,' both using a pull-button to detonate explosives. However, it's not meant to be thrown; it's buried under paths the enemy might take. Once an enemy walks over it and steps on it, it's like a mouse stepping on a mousetrap—boom, they're gone. Of course, it would be great if we had a proper product with a cast iron casing. But considering your financial difficulties, I suggest you only purchase the fuse part. As for the other parts, you can find a stonemason to carve out a casing from stone, fill it with black powder—since it's buried underground, a larger and heavier casing won't matter—and then connect it to our fuse system..."