A meeting belonging to the Crown Prince

Sumiyar felt the entire Conference Hall was filled with an atmosphere of humiliation. He was so angry that he trembled all over, but he could only stand up angrily and walk out of the Hall with a dark face. ♙💣 ♦🐟

After the Golden Gate closed again, Queen Mary sighed softly and looked at Brienne, saying, "Archbishop Brienne, who do you think would be most suitable to succeed as Minister of Justice?"

Brienne immediately said, "Your Majesty, the current Court Advisor Baron de Breteuil, is capable and loyal. He studied law at the University of Paris and could be appointed Minister of Justice."

This was the result of repeated deliberations by Joseph and Brienne; Breteuil was a skilled communicator with considerable political acumen.

Most importantly, he was the King's cousin and extremely loyal to the Royal House. Historically, during the most dangerous moment when Louis XVI was preparing to flee Paris, it was he who worked tirelessly on behalf of the King and never betrayed him.

Queen Mary nodded. "Please ask him to come and see me later."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Joseph glanced discreetly at Minister of Foreign Affairs Vergennes. He was next; once Vergennes was gone, it would be like pulling out all the political teeth of the Duke of Orléans, that vicious tiger.

Brienne picked up the document again and read aloud:

"Second item on the agenda."

"Given that the High Court has relinquished its power to News Censorship, His Crown Prince has suggested establishing News and Publication Bureau to manage matters related to News Censorship."

The Duke of Orléans snorted coldly, his face darkening as he lowered his head and remained silent.

He has been utterly defeated in the recent "Pamphlets war," and now that he has lost the power to News Censorship, he can forget about controlling public opinion anymore.

In the past twenty minutes or so, he first lost an important political ally, then his media dominance collapsed, and today's Cabinet Meeting was a nightmare for him.

"Yes, this is very good." Queen Mary nodded happily.

Since she married France, she has been constantly smeared by the media, but today the truth has finally come out.

Brienne gestured towards Mono: "The duties of the News and Publication Bureau are closest to domestic affairs, so I suggest that Count Monod be put in charge of its management."

Mono immediately clutched his chest to the Queen and said, "Your Majesty, I will make sure those vulgar and shameless articles disappear from the world completely!"

Queen Mary smiled with satisfaction, praised Mono a few times, and immediately signed the document.

Brienne continued, "The third item on the agenda."

"His Crown Prince submitted a report arguing that the signing of the Eden Treaty had severely damaged France interests, particularly in industries such as Textile and steel, which were now virtually unable to continue operating."

"Therefore, Your Highness suggests that Anglo-French Trade Negotiations should be restarted as soon as possible, and the treaty should be revised to prevent the situation from deteriorating further."

The Duke of Orléans, feeling he had finally found an opportunity to retaliate, immediately sneered, "Your Highness is probably oversimplifying things. United Kingdom has gained substantial benefits from this treaty; how could they possibly agree to amend it?"

Joseph glanced at him, then bowed to the Queen and said, "Your Her Majesty the Queen, I am absolutely confident that I can persuade the United Kingdom."

Before the Queen could ask a question, he added, "Even if it might not work out, we should still try. After all, we won't lose anything."

All the Cabinet Minister except the Duke of Orléans, including Vergennes, immediately expressed their agreement—they were either Joseph's political allies or stakeholders; how could they possibly disagree?

Queen Mary nodded slightly and asked, "Archbishop Brienne, have you prepared the specific terms of the negotiations?"

Brienne immediately placed a document in front of her. "Yes, Your Majesty, these are our established negotiation objectives."

"The core content consists of two points: first, to persuade the United Kingdom to reduce import Tariff on alcoholic beverages, including Wine, Beer, and Spirits, to below 10%."

The minister, upon learning of the details of the negotiations for the first time, was filled with anticipation.

Alcohol, especially Wine, is a mainstay of France exports, but it currently faces fierce competition from Spain, Tuscany, Venice, and other regions.

If United Kingdom could unilaterally reduce import Tariff on France wines, it would significantly enhance the competitiveness of France wines.

Brienne continued, "Secondly, we will raise our import Tariff on industrial goods to 25%, but then reduce them by 3% annually until they reach 5% after seven years."

The Minister of Foreign Affairs immediately stood up and objected. "5%? Absolutely not! That would leave France industry completely unprotected!"

Joseph smiled and said, "Even with the current 12% Tariff, our industry is no match for the United Kingdom. It would be better to let those Workshop catch their breath and then switch to other industries as soon as possible, which would reduce the losses."

"Moreover, only by significantly reducing Tariff manufactured goods can the United Kingdom be persuaded to lower Tariff on alcohol."

He naturally wouldn't mention anything about rapidly increasing France's industrial capacity, especially with Orleans present.

The Queen looked at Brienne with some hesitation. "Archbishop, do you think so too?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. This is the most advantageous way for us at the moment." Brienne was actually quite confused as well, but based on his absolute trust in the Crown Prince, he still chose to support these terms.

Other points of contention included the joint formation of a British-French Combined Fleet to Anti-Smuggling.

Everyone was stunned upon hearing this, thinking they had misheard.

Could United Kingdom and France form Combined Fleet?

This sounds so surreal!

This was exactly the effect Joseph wanted. The United Kingdom would see it as a symbol of France relinquishing its maritime dominance, and Anti-Smuggling would be more beneficial to France.

United Kingdom industrial goods smuggled into France each year dealt a heavy blow to France industry—because smuggled goods were essentially Tariff -free and much cheaper than France produced goods.

If this agreement were reached, it would be tantamount to using the United Kingdom fleet to protect France industry.

United Kingdom gained face, France gained substance—why not?

Brienne continued, "And there's also the demand that United Kingdom sell one million pounds of cheap Wool to Le Havre Port every year..."

Since its defeat in the Seven Years' War, France has lost a large number of overseas Colony, leading to a shortage of Wool, which is very detrimental to the development of the Textile.

Of course, Joseph wasn't sure if the United Kingdom would be that generous, but since they were now Combined Fleet, the United Kingdom had to show some appreciation. At least £500,000 if not £1 million.

After the trade negotiations were concluded, Brienne continued reading the next item on the agenda, "His Crown Prince suggests the introduction of Patent Law and a Company Law..."

Because both bills were urgently needed by the Capitalist Aristocrat to develop industry, and posed no threat to the Old Nobles or commoners, Queen Mary readily signed the documents and instructed them to be given to His King for his signature.

As for the High Court, even if they had reasons to reject the two bills, under the watchful eye of the Royal Supreme Court, they could only obediently Registration them.

Thanks to: Mr. Gongmen, a small official, for his generous reward of 1,500 starting coins for this book! The young author is extremely grateful! Oh!

(End of this chapter)

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