Joseph gestured for the Minister of Transport to get into the carriage and asked in puzzlement, "What sort of people are they, to actually have the ability to affect our nation's revenue?"
The carriage started moving again. Tressaguet glanced toward the north side and said nervously, "Officials from various countries, as well as nobles, Your Highness.
"As you know, almost every country is currently planning to purchase licenses for our railway patents, but they do not want to pay that much money.
"So they intend to collectively appeal to you, asking you to lower the licensing price.
"Among them is also Your Highness Ludovico, your brother-in-law. I fear it will be very difficult for you to refuse them..."
Joseph smiled. "Was it Baron Binder who called them here?"
Binder was Baden's Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Tressaguet shook his head. "He merely leaked the news that you would be passing through Karlsruhe, and then those people gathered together to discuss asking you to grant them a discount."
"Mm, their minds are quite flexible." Joseph waved a hand unconcernedly. "Originally, I wanted Baron Binder to bring them to me."
The Minister of Transport was taken aback. "You mean you intend to take the initiative to lower the price for them? But..."
"It does not matter. Patent licensing is only a small part of future revenue."
Tressaguet immediately said anxiously, "Your Highness, I know your benevolence makes you wish to bestow a good life upon everyone, but this will cost us tens of millions of francs in profit."
Once this topic came up, he remembered many recent matters that had left him "unable to level his heart": "Look, during the World Expo, those high-end devices we sold, such as lathes, Fire Extinguisher Guns, cranes, and the like—even if the price were tripled,