France's greatest embezzler

Lavoisier became even more excited— the Crown Prince wanted to unite the entire France academic community! 🐚👻 😂👑

No, if this system of standard units is established, it could even integrate the Europe academic community!

Joseph, however, still seemed unsatisfied. "After the standardization of units of measurement, the Standard Committee still has a lot to do."

"For example, we can formulate national-level industrial standards—such as the hardness and strength of steel, the purity of liquids, the interface specifications of bolts, and the wheel gauge of Carriage —so that every aspect of industrial production can be governed by regulations."

"Standards can even be issued for the tools used by Craftsman in various industries. Craftsman can quickly obtain suitable tools from all over the country..."

As he continued speaking, Lavoisier's eyes widened. He could sense that with each word the Crown Prince spoke, the foundations of France scholarship and industry would become increasingly solid!

He suddenly interrupted Joseph: "Your Highness, I think I should call Mr. Lagrange and Mr. Monge and the others over so that everyone can hear about your grand plan."

"Perhaps, right here today, we can officially establish the France Standard Committee!"

As night fell, a group of France's top scientists emerged from Lavoisier's house, yawning.

Upon reaching the door, the group stopped, turned around, and bowed to the Crown Prince in farewell.

Joseph was also quite tired, but he still greeted everyone warmly, "Please come to the Versailles Palace tomorrow so we can continue our discussion on the ' Standard Committee '."

Lagrange, Monge, Condorcet, and the others hurriedly bowed in agreement before departing, each secretly lamenting that while they had always felt the French Academy of Sciences was too slow, the Crown Prince's push for this matter seemed to be moving a bit too fast...

It would be ideal if the two could be balanced.

Joseph, having just bid farewell to Lavoisier and about to board his Carriage, suddenly remembered something and said to the chemist, "Mr. Lavoisier, I have some advice for you."

"While the profit margins for Tax Farmers are relatively high, there are also many trivial matters that will take up a lot of your research time. Moreover, the government may be planning to abolish the Tax Farmer System, so you might consider giving up this business in advance."

He told Lavoisier these things because tax reform could potentially destroy the interests of the Tax Farmers, and Lavoisier would inevitably suffer losses as well.

"Ah? This..." Lavoisier seemed quite troubled. Although the Crown Prince had said so, he was still reluctant to give up the nearly Livre in revenue each year.

Joseph continued, "You don't need to worry about income. After the Fulminate of Mercury production starts, I also plan to invest in some Chemical industries. At that time, you can contribute your technology as equity. I can guarantee that you will get a much higher return than the tax-inclusive plan."

Coal Tar refining, Fertilizer production, and chemical dye synthesis are all Chemical industries that had a significant impact on the Industrial Revolution and could generate huge profits. Now that Joseph had Lavoisier and his wife as leverage, he naturally wouldn't miss out on these industries.

Lavoisier's eyes lit up. To be honest, he preferred to invest in Chemical projects rather than the business of Tax Farmers, which involved dealing with ordinary people all day long.

He immediately bowed deeply in gratitude, saying, "Thank you for your generosity, Your Crown Prince. May God bless you!"

With the conclusion of the Paris Charity Week, the Paris Fashion Week series of events, which lasted for most of the week, has officially come to an end.

The Paris Citizens experienced what felt like a long festival; though busy and stressful, they all reaped tangible benefits from this grand event.

Simply by renting out rooms to tourists, many Paris families have earned more than a month's normal household income.

What many people don't realize is that the praise foreign tourists give to Paris and Fashion Week greatly boosts their confidence and pride.

While Paris Citizens were busy cleaning rooms left by tourists, in the Marseille Port, two ordinary merchant ships and one armed merchant ship, escorted by the Royal Navy frigate "Double Wing", slowly sailed into the Mediterranean Sea.

The merchant ship flew the Russia flag and bore the words "Gemini Trading Company" painted on its hull. However, apart from a few Russia advisors, the captain and Sailor were all France or Italy.

The ship's hold mainly contained Wine and Brandy, as well as some mid-range clothing, Cosmetics, Paper, and other goods.

The fleet's destination was Crimea on the Black Sea. When they arrived there, Count Bobrinsky's men had prepared large quantities of Flax and iron, ready to be loaded onto the ships.

Although the caravan was not large, it was a voyage full of symbolic significance—marking the beginning of a new chapter in Russo-French trade.

Wearing a gray short coat and an old felt hat, Marat glanced at the house number, raised his hand, and knocked on the door.

The door opened a crack, and a pair of brown eyes peered out. Then its owner let out a sneer, "Ha, who do we have here? Aren't you a government lackey? You're not welcome here!"

Marat blocked the door and said in a deep voice, "No matter what you think, I swear, I will always be a friend of the people."

The homeowner's tone was full of sarcasm. "Oh, yes, after all, the Secret Police can barely be considered people. You can use government salaries to demonstrate your noble friendship."

"I've said it many times," Marat said, somewhat angrily, "The place I work is called the Fair Investigation Department, not the Secret Police! I'm doing investigative work, but I'm investigating corrupt officials. I've never done anything harmful to the people!"

The person inside seemed to relax a little. "Alright, just sir, you should leave now."

Marat, without a word, forcefully pulled open the door, stepped inside, and said to the dumbfounded middle-aged man, "Do you know? If you kick me out now, that would truly harm the interests of countless Paris."

"Oh? Don't make false accusations. I've never done anything like that."

Marat slammed the door shut behind him and expertly pulled the man inside. "You think I want to work for the government? Of course not!"

"But if I can use the government's power to help more ordinary people, then I must do it. Besides, that Crown Prince is completely different from those bloodsucking Nobility..."

He waved his hand. "Never mind, let's get down to business. Do you know how much money this guy I'm investigating right now has embezzled?"

The middle-aged man with brown eyes shrugged. "500,000 Livre? Or 800,000?"

Seeing Marat shake his head, he scoffed and said, "Could there possibly be a million?"

"No, you're wrong," Marat slowly uttered, "The amount he embezzled may exceed 10 Livre..."

(End of this chapter)