I Became A Genius Of The French Royal Family [EN]: Chapter 121

< Rising Again with Young Blood >

The first general election after a crushing defeat in the war.

The atmosphere in England was extremely unsettling.

“The Tory Party should step down!”

“The traitors who ruined England shouldn’t even run for election if they have any conscience!”

As the election season approached, the streets of London were, quite literally, a living hell every day.

William Pitt was leisurely lounging on the sofa, enjoying the sounds of protest coming from the street.

“Aren’t you going to join them?” William Wilberforce, the owner of the house and Pitt’s friend of the same age, asked, looking out the window.

Pitt shook his head with a subtle smile.

“Why would I? Even if I don’t, people are already diligently denouncing them out there.”

“Still, shouldn’t we go out there and establish our presence to be more advantageous in the next election?”

“No. Aren’t we advocating for new politics that are distinct from the existing negative attacks? I don’t think we need to meddle in places where things are already working well enough without our involvement.”

This British general election is seen as a great opportunity for many politicians.

That’s because it was an election where the ruling party was completely doomed to fail.

It was even expected that a significant number of vacancies would occur not only in the House of Commons [the lower house of the UK parliament] but also in the House of Lords [the upper house], so many politicians are judging this to be the right time.

“…If you win this time, it will be a tremendous achievement that will be remembered in British history. What do you think the chances are?”

“About fifty-fifty? Actually, I thought it would take a little longer, but the possibility has increased quite a bit since the defeat in this war. I don’t know whether to resent Prince Christian for this or thank him.”

“Well, if it weren’t for that prince, we would have had to wait until the next election at the earliest, so in that respect, things have worked out well.”

“As you may have felt, the opposition party is just as hopeless as the ruling party, isn’t it? They’re just focusing on tearing down the other party by picking on their faults. Citizens aren’t stupid, and they’re all aware of that.”

In the past, if a young rookie like William Pitt had run for election, he would have been met with ridicule and mockery and ended up there.

But now, political apathy towards their own politicians in England is soaring.

In that respect, a young politician with no political experience had the advantage of being seen as fresh.

Wilberforce unfolded a newspaper that came out this week and grinned.

“By the way, did you see this article? They gave a very favorable review of the speech you gave last time. They wrote that if such young energy enters the National Assembly, it could bring about a good change of atmosphere.”

“Ah, of course, I saw it. It was a speech I put my heart and soul into, and it worked very well as expected.”

Pitt looked at the front page of the newspaper with his article on it with pleasure.

Thanks to his father’s influence, this newspaper published almost the entire speech he had given.

Wilberforce read a few paragraphs aloud.

Pitt naturally recalled the memory of that day as if it were vividly in front of his eyes.

“Our Great Britain achieved a great victory against France seven years ago. When I was young, I looked at those records and felt endless pride in the fact that our Great Britain stood tall as the strongest power in Europe! But what is the situation now? We were thoroughly defeated in the last war, and we lost all the glory achieved by the sacrifices of our older generations! Why is that?”

“It’s because of the Tory Party!”

“The Prime Minister should step down!”

“You pro-French spy bastards!”

Pitt’s main focus in this election was to maximize the political apathy of existing voters.

In particular, he put a lot of effort into creating a kind of frame [a way of presenting an issue].

It was a task of completely separating himself from the old-fashioned politicians.

“It’s heartbreaking and tearful, but we must acknowledge the facts as they are. We lost. Moreover, we were isolated and suffered a crushing defeat against an opponent we had already defeated once. The reason is simple. France learned something from the last defeat, and we were complacent with our victory. It is often said that one of the best ways to ruin a person is to keep praising their success. We fell into that trap!”

Pitt cried out almost as if he were vomiting blood.

He put so much passion and effort into it that he couldn’t speak properly the next day.

“What did we gain from the victory in the last war? The politicians above only whispered sweet words, but they monopolized all the fruits themselves. As a result, the United States, angered by excessive taxes, demanded independence, and we didn’t even know how the situation was unfolding. The current members of parliament are blinding His Majesty the King, deceiving the citizens, and ultimately bringing the situation to this point. If they have any conscience, shouldn’t they take at least some responsibility?”

“That’s right!”

“Disband the Tory Party!”

“On the other hand, what about the opposition party? They are not much different. They just parrot the ruling party’s faults and do not offer alternatives.”

A citizen raised his hand and shouted.

“Then what alternatives do you have, Pitt?”

“I have!”

Pitt shouted in the direction of the reporters so that they could hear him well on purpose.

“Look at France. They, who had been defeated by us, were united under the command of Duke Louis Christian of Orléans. The French nobles laughed at the young Prince Christian, but Prince Christian proved it with results. We can learn a significant lesson from the French example. That is, if the existing method has reached its limit, it must be boldly replaced! Dear citizens, we are now at a crossroads!”

William Pitt’s speech certainly succeeded in attracting the attention of the citizens.

That’s because he was not just a young man with a glib tongue, but the son of the elder Pitt, who graduated from Cambridge University with excellent grades and argued that excessive taxes should not be imposed on the United States.

“I had a feeling after seeing your last speech. If things go well, it won’t be a dream for you to become Prime Minister. You’ll be a good contrast to Prince Louis Christian.”

If that happens, England will be welcoming the youngest Prime Minister in history.

Pitt pretended not to be affected, but he couldn’t help but smile at Wilberforce’s words.

“If that happens, I will support your long-cherished wish. But you must be prepared. It will never be easy, and you must know that your life could be threatened in the worst case.”

“I was prepared for that.”

Wilberforce nodded and straightened his posture.

The only reason he is running in this election following his friend Pitt is one.

It was a mission that had to be accomplished over a lifetime.

Pitt respected his friend’s wishes, but he constantly reminded him that it was not an easy path.

“Even if we win the election, it’s not something that can be achieved in the short term. And there’s another problem… To truly achieve your goals, it’s not enough for just our England to speak out.”

“I’m also thinking about that point now. In fact, this would be solved if England were the undisputed strongest country in the world, but…”

The problem is that England’s voice in the international community has plummeted since losing the war.

Pitt hesitated for a moment and let out a small sigh.

“If you really want it, you’ll have to establish a cooperative system with the country that has the most say in Europe right now regarding this issue.”

“If that’s the case… there’s no other country but France, is there?”

“Yes. Fortunately, when I talked to Prince Christian last time, I got the impression that he was quite rational and not a ruthless person.”

“I should contact him as soon as the election is over.”

Wilberforce’s eyes flashed with a firm sense of mission.

Pitt could see how much his friend would suffer in the future, but he decided to help him anyway.

And, exactly one month later, the new party led by William Pitt wins an overwhelming victory in the election.

William Pitt was brilliantly crowned as the youngest Prime Minister in British history and declared that he would regain the glory days of the British Empire once again.

The citizens of England raised his hand as the rival of the rising France and Louis Christian.

※※※

In the garden of the Palace of Versailles, at a banquet open to the public, I was having dinner with Louis XV.

A place to show everyone that the king is healthy.

The citizens are watching this space full of perfect etiquette and dignity from afar with envious eyes.

“…Today’s meat is particularly good.”

Louis XV wiped his mouth and smiled gracefully.

I also finished my meal in the prescribed order so as not to violate etiquette and nodded.

“The chef was particularly confident that the quality was good. I thought it was a dish that suited the meaning of celebrating His Majesty’s recovery.”

“That’s right. After all, this France can only stand upright when His Majesty is here.”

“That’s right. We all prayed to God day and night for His Majesty’s recovery. His Majesty must be here in this France.”

As soon as I finished speaking, flattery from the nobles poured out.

In particular, Marquis de Bellile and Marquis de Launay played their tongues very softly as if they had oiled them [flattered excessively].

Louis XV ignored their flattery and asked me.

“By the way, when did you say the Austrian envoy would arrive?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Hmm… then it will overlap with England, who will arrive in two days.”

“I don’t think it matters since both sides are not visiting for unpleasant reasons.”

Thanks to me building a bridge, Austria successfully carried out the War of the Bavarian Succession by joining forces with Russia.

The entire area of Bavaria, which boasts enormous productivity, was smoothly incorporated into Austria’s territory, and Prussia had no choice but to endure resentment.

That’s because they were burdened by Russia, who openly took sides, and France, who could join the war at any time even if they remained silent.

Thanks to this, Joseph II’s status, who led this work, soared to the sky.

Maybe Theresa won’t be able to easily ignore her son’s words now.

“Speaking of which, Joseph II said he had prepared a gift for you, so I’m curious to see what will come.”

“I have to accept any gift with gratitude. After all, the Holy Roman Emperor is personally expressing his sincerity.”

Joseph II saw that I was responsible for the successful completion of this succession war and promised to give me sufficient compensation.

The reason why the Austrian delegation is visiting this time is to thank me.

And of course, I used this to show off my status.

Even if I don’t know, the insides of Marquis de Launay and Marquis de Bellile must be burning to the point of being completely reduced to ashes.

“Anyway, I don’t know what England’s intentions are, even if Austria is like that. First of all, the regime has changed, so it seems like they are coming to say hello out of courtesy… Are they expressing their intention to reconcile and not be too sharp in the future?”

“I have a rough idea of one issue. But I don’t think they will make this an official agenda for both countries. Perhaps, on the surface, they will just say hello as Your Majesty said and say only clichéd words like, ‘Let’s get along well in the future,’ and leave?”

“If that’s the case, it seems like they have a separate purpose… Tell me what you think you know.”

“There was a fairly young freshman lawmaker among the people visiting this time. His name was William Wilberforce. Do you happen to know him?”

Louis XV immediately shook his head.

Logically, there is no way that the King of France would know the name of a young man from a neighboring country who has just become a member of the House of Commons, not even the House of Lords.

“He is a close friend of William Pitt, who became the youngest Prime Minister this time.”

“Oh… is that so? So, why is he? Is he perhaps hiding extraordinary abilities that we should be aware of?”

“No. That’s not it.”

It is true that Wilberforce will achieve achievements that will be remembered in world history, but it was not an achievement in fields such as economics, war, or science.

I slightly rose from my seat and whispered in a low voice that only the king could hear.

“He is a person who devoted his life to abolishing slavery. There must be a reason why such a person would bother to come all the way here to find out something.”

“…What?”

Louis XV’s eyes widened at the sensitive topic he had never imagined.

The faces of the nobles who did not hear my story naturally turned to bewilderment.

The king, with a hardened face, stared at the wine glass in front of him and then quietly declared.

“If it’s as you think… I’ll leave it up to you to decide how to respond.”

< Rising Again with Young Blood > End