Gradually shifting the political landscape

"Another matter is that not long ago, Lavier Bank and Laborde Bank suddenly wanted to terminate loans they had been working with the government on for a long time, almost causing a default on Government Bonds. 69ƧΉЦX.ᄃӨM"

Joseph looked at Fouche and said, "These two banks would only lose profits if they refused to lend, so there must be other reasons that prompted them to do so. I need to know the inside story."

Fouche immediately bowed and said, "Yes, I will investigate as soon as possible."

"Oh, right," Joseph added, "I have some clues that I think might be useful."

"When I first wanted to work in the Finance system, the Duke of Orléans tried his best to stop me, and in the end Her Majesty the Queen had no choice but to let me go to the City Hall."

"Later, when I took over Assistant Minister of Finance, Archbishop Brienne worried about my lack of experience and asked him to take charge of all Finance affairs, while the Duke of Orléans insisted that I be in charge of government loans."

"Then came the matter of the bank refusing to lend money." Fouche's subordinate, who was taking notes, paused. "It seems we need to investigate the Duke of Orléans in detail."

He paused, glancing at the words "Duke of Orléans" in the notes, and frowned slightly. "Your Highness, the Duke of Orléans possesses many privileges. Currently, the Police Intelligence Division is a sub-department of the Police Department, with only the authority of Police. As you know, Police are not permitted to inquire about matters concerning the Royal Palace."

"Please continue."

"I think that if the Police Intelligence Division could utilize some of the authority of the Royal Police, at least the Postal Service authority, the progress would definitely be much faster."

Joseph gave him an approving look; in fact, he had been considering the same thing himself, and Fouche had the same idea.

"I'll figure something out."

He nodded to Fouche, then emphasized, "However, the Police Intelligence Division cannot rely solely on its authority to obtain intelligence, nor can it become a simple replica of the Royal Police. Relying on intelligence skills and establishing a vast intelligence network is fundamental."

Fouche immediately patted his chest and bowed his head, saying, "Yes, Your Highness!"

As night fell, large curtains were draped over the lawn north of the Versailles Palace. The melodious sounds of Bagpipes and Hand Organ drifted through the air, mingling with bursts of laughter, filling the air with a sense of ease and peace.

This is an open-air cocktail party.

Joseph didn't particularly enjoy these kinds of social events. They were usually just filled with gossip and lewd jokes. He'd make a brief appearance and then quickly leave.

However, since the head of the Secret Police, Robert, happened to be here today, he stayed a little longer.

At a small table in a corner of the reception, Robert, holding his wine glass, said with a troubled expression, "Your Highness, as you know, there's really no precedent for this. This will probably have to be addressed at Cabinet Meeting..."

Joseph interrupted him with a smile, saying, "Please rest assured, I will report to Her King and Her Majesty the Queen. And the Royal Police have nothing to do with those Cabinet Minister."

He was obliged to inform the Queen about such a major event as establishing Intelligence Agency; otherwise, if they ran into the Secret Police during a mission, a fight would break out between the two sides.

"But..."

Seeing Robert's evasive attitude, Joseph sighed inwardly— the Secret Police were Robert's greatest power. Although he had done Robert a favor by giving him some stocks last time, it seemed that it was not enough to get him to grant him any special privileges.

He had no choice but to take out the bait he had prepared beforehand:

"Count Robert, I've always felt that the Royal Police have been treated unfairly."

Robert was taken aback; the topic had jumped a bit too far. He asked in confusion, "Your Highness means...?"

Joseph said righteously:

"The Royal Police are always responsible for the safety of France and have made many great contributions to France, but to this day they are only a small department under the Police Department. This is so unfair!"

"I believe that the Royal Police should have been separated long ago and made into a department on par with the Police Department, and should not even be subject to the Minister of the Interior's control!"

"In fact, the Royal Police are directly commanded by His Majesty the King, and there is absolutely no need for them to be involved with the Interior Administration System."

At this time, the France Policing and intelligence systems were still intertwined, and by convention, both were subordinate to the Interior Administration System. In fact, even during Napoleon's reign, the intelligence system was not completely separated from the Police, and sometimes the head of the intelligence agency would also oversee the Police system.

This severely limited the rank of Secret Police —as a subordinate department of the Police Department, you can't possibly hold a higher position than the Police Commissioner, can you?

Robert's eyes lit up immediately upon hearing this. If the Secret Police could be separated from the Interior Administration System, wouldn't his position jump from the so-called "State Councillor" to "Minister of Intelligence" or "Minister of Security," and he could attend Cabinet Meeting!

He quickly suppressed his excitement and asked:

"Is Your Highness referring to Her Majesty the Queen's intention, or...?"

Joseph smiled and said, "Oh, it's a consensus between me and Count Monod."

Robert was somewhat surprised: the Minister of the Interior was nominally the direct superior of the Secret Police. If he agreed to the Secret Police becoming independent, the obstacles to this matter would be greatly reduced, and with the support of the Crown Prince, the chances would be even greater.

He looked cautiously at Joseph: "Did Count Monod make a promise to His Highness?"

"Not yet." Joseph shook his head, but his tone was firm. "I can assure you, he will agree."

The Secret Police were funded by the King's Private Treasury and were completely outside the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Interior, making them practically useless to Mono.

Joseph's future Finance revenue-generating plans will include many domestic policy-related aspects, such as Real Estate development and public transportation.

These projects are where the Minister of the Interior's real interests lie. Joseph is certain that, faced with these interests, Mono would not hesitate to relinquish a worthless asset.

Joseph, on the other hand, wanted to use these benefits to leverage the political landscape to his advantage.

Robert narrowed his eyes. His intuition, honed over years of intelligence work, told him that the Crown Prince was not just making empty threats.

He hesitated for only a moment before raising his glass and revealing a sincere smile, "Your Highness, the Police Department collects intelligence for the safety of France and to serve His Majesty the King, which is completely consistent with the goals of the Royal Police."

"I believe that in many ways, we can cooperate and support each other."

Joseph smiled as well, "For example, sharing some minor permissions."

That's right.

Joseph lightly clinked his glass against his. "To the future Minister of Intelligence."

British Ambassador to France, Hartley, finally received a reply from London.

He used a letter opener to cut open the envelope, then took out his personal Codebook and carefully deciphered the contents of the letter.

The letter detailed many of his recent tasks, but the last two points were of particular interest to him.

First, we must ascertain the true attitude of the Crown Prince of France towards the United Kingdom as soon as possible, whether he is as pro-British as rumored. If so, we should try our best to win him over and use him to influence France's policy toward Britain.

Secondly, they aimed to increase the Crown Prince of France's dislike of Prussia as much as possible, hoping to persuade him to take a tough stance against Prussia.

It was perfectly clear that the Crown Prince of France was hostile to Prussia; he had even stated in Cabinet Meeting that "World War I between France and Prussia is inevitable." So, how could Great Britain, being the Blue Star's troublemaker, not get involved?

Thank you so much to Old Wang from last night for his generous donation to this book! The author is deeply grateful, muah!

(End of this chapter)