All the Talents Under Heaven Within My Net

Joseph's Carriage had just stopped in front of the Industrial Planning Bureau's office building when a disheveled figure suddenly darted out from the street corner and hurried towards him.

"Don't come any closer!" Two Guard immediately stepped forward and stopped the man.

When Joseph saw the deep nasolabial folds on the newcomer's face, he couldn't help but smile. This wasn't "Piranha," oh, no, it was Mr. Marat! You've finally arrived.

He quickly leaned out of the car window and gestured to Kexer, "Please ask Mr. Marat to come over."

"Yes, Your Highness."

A short while later, in the Reception Room of the Industrial Planning Bureau, Marat sat down opposite Joseph, her eyes filled with anger. "Your Crown Prince, how could you use me in such a dishonorable way! I will definitely expose this!"

After bringing down Grand Justice Weijinie, Marat was genuinely happy for a while, feeling that he had done a great service to the Paris Citizens.

However, he happened to see the Crown Prince's portrait two weeks ago and felt that the face looked familiar. Suddenly, it dawned on him: wasn't that Mr. Xavier, the young owner of the Paris Business Daily?

He immediately pieced together the events leading up to him and realized that the Crown Prince had approached him to eliminate his political enemies.

I was used!

So he stormed off to the Versailles Palace, only to be told that the Crown Prince was currently working in Paris. He then went to the Industrial Planning Bureau, only to learn that the Crown Prince had gone to Bordeaux...

He had been waiting at the Planning Bureau for several days, and today he finally "caught" Joseph and immediately came to confront him.

Joseph knew he would come and had been waiting for him.

Joseph rested his right hand on the sofa armrest, a relaxed smile on his face. "How can you say that, Mr. Marat? It wasn't exploitation, it was helping each other out."

"To grant your wish? Hmph, what a weak excuse."

Joseph calmly asked, "May I ask, have you always wanted social justice and to help the oppressed?"

"Of course."

"That's right. Together, you brought the most corrupt president of the High Court in Paris to justice, brought justice to countless people who suffered because of wrongful convictions, and even greatly curbed corruption throughout the Judiciary system. Isn't that what you wanted to see?"

"This..." Marat was taken aback. It seemed to be true. If it weren't for the Crown Prince's guidance, the High Court might still be accepting bribes, manipulating the law, and persecuting ordinary people.

Before he could think further, Joseph immediately replied, "Mr. Marat, please believe me, our positions are perfectly aligned on punishing corruption, reducing injustice, and improving the lives of the France people."

He thought to himself: Only when the people's lives improve can the Royal Power be secure...

Marat looked at Joseph in surprise. These words sounded like the views of Liberals like herself, yet they were coming from the Crown Prince's mouth.

"Are you telling the truth?"

"Time will tell," Joseph said earnestly to Marat. "If the lives of the France people haven't improved in a few years, then it won't be too late for you to condemn me."

Marat opened his mouth, then suddenly frowned and said, "No matter what, Your Highness, you shouldn't have lied to me. You even gave me a false name!"

"You've misunderstood me," Joseph said innocently. "Xavier is indeed my middle name— Louis Joseph Xavier François."

"But..."

"I certainly didn't tell you I was the Crown Prince, but you wouldn't tell everyone 'I'm a reporter,' would you? It's just a small matter of personal professional privacy."

After this conversation, Marat's initial anger had subsided without him realizing it. Feeling that there was nothing more to say, he prepared to get up and take his leave.

Joseph, of course, wouldn't let him go so easily.

He has been planning Anti-Corruption Bureau for some time now, as official corruption is a serious problem that severely harms France.

It is difficult for people to resist the temptation of various interests based on their own conscience.

Leaving aside the old-style officials, even the Police System, which has only recently undergone reform, will inevitably end up resembling the old Police if no one supervises it.

While reforming the Officialdom is the only way to address the root cause, setting up a regulatory body is also essential, at least to encourage officials to exercise restraint.

Joseph failed to push forward the establishment of the Anti-Corruption Bureau, largely because he couldn't find suitable people to investigate corruption.

Using existing officials would mean letting them regulate themselves, which would inevitably lead to collusion and cover-ups. Training new personnel from scratch would be too time-consuming.

He then thought of Marat, Desmoulins, and others—they had a keen sense of smell and extensive experience in investigation and evidence gathering. Most importantly, they were probably among the least likely people in France to collude with officials.

Moreover, there are two advantages to using these "Jacobin" to form Anti-Corruption Bureau.

Firstly, these people are restless. If you don't give them something to do, they'll find something on their own, and they might trigger the activation key of Great Revolution at some crucial moment. So it's better to include them in the Royal Power system and keep them busy.

Secondly, having learned from his previous experience dealing with Weijinie, Joseph realized that Marat and others, if used properly, could be "Piranha" capable of tearing apart his political enemies. They should be able to contribute to his efforts in reforming the Officialdom and weakening the Old Nobles.

Joseph gestured for Marat not to leave yet, and solemnly asked, "Mr. Marat, do you want this country to be more just and equal, and do you want to help more ordinary people?"

Marat sat back down on the sofa and nodded slowly. "This is my lifelong dream, Your Highness."

"Now there's an opportunity that can help you better realize your dreams. I'm planning to establish a..."

Joseph initially wanted to say "Anti-Corruption Bureau," but suddenly felt that words like "fairness" and "justice" would be more to Marat's liking, so he changed his mind. "Establish a Police Department called the ' Fair Investigation Department,' which will be dedicated to investigating corruption and dereliction of duty by officials and Police in order to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the people. This department will temporarily be under the jurisdiction of the Police Department, but will not be subject to the Police System and will report directly to me."

"I look forward to you becoming a member of the investigation department."

Marat paused for a moment, then suddenly stood up and said coldly, "You want me to be the Royal House's henchman?"

Joseph thought to himself, "You truly are Jacobin; you have such a dislike for the Royal House."

He smiled and shook his head, saying, "Your statement is somewhat biased."

"You're not investigating farmers or Craftsman, but high-ranking officials and wealthy and powerful Nobility!"

"Even if you are a henchman, you are a henchman of the people, not the Royal House family."

"The people's henchmen?" Marat repeated the words softly, his eyes gradually burning with fervor.

Joseph immediately pressed his advantage. "I can even equip the Fair Investigation Department with prosecutors. Once you find officials have committed wrongdoing, you can prosecute them directly!"

Joseph wasn't worried that Marat would target his political allies. Although in this era, almost no official was immune to corruption, Marat was just an investigator in the Fair Investigation Department, at most a team leader. Above him were Joseph and the director and other management, so he could ensure that the direction of the investigation was controlled.

Marat clasped his hands together and pondered for a long time before finally raising his head and saying, "Your Highness, I think I really can't find a reason to refuse. I agree to join the Fair Investigation Department. However, we agreed beforehand that if I find this organization does not conform to what you said, I will withdraw at any time."

"That's your right." Joseph nodded. "I believe we won't let each other down."

"Oh, by the way, as for the prosecutors from the Fair Investigation Department, what do you think of the young Lawyer who defended the victim in the Weijinie case last time?"

Marat thought for a moment and said, "You mean, that Lawyer named Danton?"

"That's him."

"He is an upright and courageous man," Marat nodded. "However, he is not a prosecutor of the High Court, Your Highness."

Joseph smiled and said, "He will be soon. And your friend, Mr. Desmoulins, if he could also join the Fair Investigation Department, it would surely terrify many more corrupt officials."

"Yes, Your Highness, I think so too. I will try to persuade him."

From the window on the second floor of the Industrial Planning Bureau, Joseph watched Marat's departing figure and couldn't help but sigh, "If we just needed one more Robespierre, we could have assembled the Jacobin team. Sending them to fight corruption is putting them to good use."

England.

On the River Rea in Birmingham, from a two-story, light gray Villa, came a somewhat disgruntled man's voice. "Mr. DuPont, I think I've made myself very clear. I have no interest in your offer."

"Mr. Watt, perhaps you could make some terms."

The Villa door opened, DuPont stepped out first, turning slightly to the side, saying, "I can consider any request."

A man in his fifties, with a high nose, broad face, and piercing eyes, followed him out the door and gestured towards the Carriage not far away. "Thank you for the invitation. However, I value my friends more; they are all in Birmingham, and with the Lunar Society —there are no such things in France. I think you should get in the carriage."

DuPont looked anxious and helpless. To facilitate his actions, His Crown Prince had specifically instructed Archbishop Brienne to hold the final signing of the Anglo-French Trade Negotiations in Birmingham. Dupont had already visited Watt three times in the past few days, but he had been unable to persuade the stubborn old man.

Today, Britain and France have formally signed the new Eden Treaty, and he will be returning to France by tomorrow at the latest. How could he not be anxious?

DuPont nodded, then suddenly turned around and pulled out his final trump card. "Mr. Watt, actually, I'm here on behalf of someone to invite you..."

Just then, a middle-aged man wearing a black short jacket, with slightly droopy eyes and a kind-looking face, walked over from the path on the east side of the Villa.

When he heard DuPont's next words, he stopped abruptly and darted behind a pillar.

"He is a distinguished member of Royal House, and I swear, his identity far exceeds your imagination," DuPont said, staring at Watt. "He truly admires your talent and wants to help you achieve even greater technological success, so..."

Watt smiled and shook his head, "You see, I lack nothing—money, Villa, company, family. I really have no intention of leaving Birmingham."

Dejected, DuPont stopped trying to persuade him and returned to his Carriage. Although he didn't know why His Crown Prince valued this United Kingdom Craftsman so much, his mission to bring him back to France had been a complete failure.

The middle-aged man who had been hiding in the corridor came out, looked thoughtfully in the direction DuPont had left, and then knocked on Watt's door, handing him some company documents.

Just as Watt went upstairs to sign the papers, the middle-aged man stopped Watt's maid and asked in a low voice, "Mrs. Edwen, do you know that gentleman who came earlier, you know, the one with the big nose, what did he say to Mr. Watt?"

"I don't remember." Mrs. Edwen turned to leave.

The middle-aged man quickly took out his wallet, pulled out a one- Pound Sterling note, and stuffed it into her hand. "I'm just a little curious about that person; could you please try to recall?"

"Oh, well." The maid stopped, glancing at the Pound Sterling. "He was France, and he wanted to invite Mr. Watt to build a factory in France. Oh, by the way, he said France was going to develop some kind of industrial zone and would invest a lot of money in building Steam Engine plant, but Mr. Watt didn't agree."

"Steam Engine factory?" the middle-aged man pressed, "Did he say how much money he would invest?"

"It seems to be 1 Livre."

The maid left, while the middle-aged man clenched his fists in excitement. A million Livre investment, and a project that even the French Royal Family was interested in!

This is simply an opportunity given to me by God!

After receiving the signed document from Watt, he didn't return to the company at all. Instead, he followed the direction DuPont had gone, asking around until he finally found the hotel where the latter was staying.

Joseph looked at the "Patent Certificate for Preparation Method of Salicin" that had just been delivered to him and nodded in satisfaction.

The France Patent Bureau copied the United Kingdom in everything from its organizational structure to its operating model, which allowed it to be established quickly. In order to quickly assemble a team of Patent examiners, Joseph even brought in Mr. Lagrange to invite a large number of experts.

This led to the creation of the first Patent certificate in all of France in his possession.

Of course, Joseph also made many adjustments to the United Kingdom model.

Keep in mind that applying for a Patent in the United Kingdom at this time would take at least a year to complete the approval process, and the cost would be an astonishing tens or even hundreds of Pound Sterling!

Joseph required that the approval process be completed within three to eight months, and the cost should not exceed 10 Livre, with the Finance providing special subsidies to the Patent Bureau.

As news of the Patent Bureau's commencement of operations spread, the Paris Patent Bureau has been receiving about ten applications a day, and many people from Outer Provinces are on their way to apply for Patent. Currently, only Paris has Patent Bureau, and since it's only just started, expanding too quickly could easily lead to problems.

Eman's voice came from outside. "Your Highness, Mr. DuPont has arrived. He seems to have brought an United Kingdom with him."

United Kingdom? Joseph was overjoyed. Could it be Watt?!

He immediately stood up. "Quickly, please invite them to the Reception Room."

Shortly after, DuPont and a kind-looking middle-aged man entered the Reception Room, bowing respectfully with their hands on their chests. "Long time no see, Your Crown Prince, may God bless you."

"It is an honor to meet you, Your Highness the Crown Prince."

DuPont, looking embarrassed, gestured to the man beside him and introduced him to Joseph, "Your Highness, this is Mr. Murdoch. William Murdoch. He's an excellent Steam Engine technician, well, that's what he said..."

If readers feel this book isn't enough, they can first check out the author's completed older book, "My Lady, Please Stop."

(End of this chapter)