I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 196

The Eve of Revolution

What kind of country is France?

A blessed nation occupying the most valuable land in Western Europe.

Throughout the long history of Europe, it has mostly maintained national power above average, and at one point, it was on the verge of conquering all of Europe.

A jack-of-all-trades, excelling in everything from art, culture, and cuisine to military power and technology.

Yet, their characteristic is to occasionally show a foolish side, shocking all of Europe.

Clearly, aside from Great Britain or Russia in Europe, there is no comparable country as strong, a nation that is hard to fault, yet this pattern unfolds repeatedly.

It’s as if they need to feel the burn to come to their senses, even though they could handle things perfectly well before getting burned.

Perhaps it’s because they live in such a blessed land that they don’t wake up until the country is truly on the brink of collapse.

In fact, even before Killian’s warning, such signs were gradually appearing in France.

However, the leadership consistently maintained that things were fine, closing their eyes and ears to the truth.

The dissatisfaction of the bourgeois capitalists was already nearing its breaking point, and the public opinion of the workers was naturally not very favorable either.

France, unlike other countries, is a nation that has actually experienced revolutions where nobles and kings were beheaded in droves, and even after that, they underwent another revolution.

In such a place, not paying attention to the grievances of the people can be seen as quite remarkable in a way.

But even that cannot be ignored once all the ominous prophecies come true.

At least Guizot, who is being mentioned as a potential future prime minister, was not such an oblivious and foolish person.

“So, are you saying that the wheat harvest will actually decrease sharply compared to previous years?”

“Yes. It should be seen as virtually certain.”

“This is insane. Why is this happening?”

Is Killian Gore really a reincarnation of Cassandra? [In Greek mythology, Cassandra was cursed to utter true prophecies that no one would believe.]

No. Cassandra received the ability of foresight from a god, but Killian derived his conclusions by analyzing data, so the sources are completely different.

But in a way, that’s why it feels even more chilling.

Seeing the future has been regarded as the realm of the gods, unreachable by human power, since ancient times.

That’s why the ability to foresee or predict has been so revered and sanctified in every culture.

If one can perfectly predict the future, whether through data or anything else, it can be seen as overcoming the limitations of humans through technology.

Of course, it is not impossible to anticipate the future based on reasonable data.

However, this case was far beyond the level of reasonable prediction, no matter how one thought about it.

Just in case he was the only one feeling that way, he asked for opinions, and Louis-Philippe was showing a reaction that was not much different.

“If the wheat harvest is as low as currently expected, how much will grain prices skyrocket? At least the workers need to be able to afford bread to get through this situation.”

“Even if we adjust the rate of increase, there are limits. Perhaps those who eat three meals a day will reduce it to two or less, and those who eat two meals will reduce the amount to about two-thirds. If they spend all their assets on food, they might barely avoid starvation.”

“And in this situation, a bill demanding the revision of the election law has been submitted?”

“Yes. But the consensus is that it should be rejected, of course.”

The election law revision bill will be rejected, and the reformists will fiercely protest and hold nationwide rallies, but the government will have no choice but to ban them.

And to make matters worse, the atmosphere in Paris will become uncontrollably worse due to the chain of bankruptcies of companies due to food shortages and rising prices.

So far, all of this has not deviated even an inch from the flow that Killian told him.

“Still, I told you to prepare on the premise that there would be a famine, but are you saying that there isn’t that much wheat stocked up? Not even enough to get it from overseas?”

“We tried our best, but we didn’t have enough time to prepare, so it wasn’t easy.”

“Was it difficult to get food from the New World too?”

“We could have gotten it normally, but Great Britain had already made advance contracts and swept away all the surplus.”

“What? Those guys… No. If you think about it calmly, if they are sure that there will be a famine, they would naturally try to have as much reserves as possible.”

Logically, if Great Britain doesn’t monopolize food, that would only be evidence that they leaked false information.

Knowing that food will be scarce, what idiot wouldn’t sweep it all up?

“If I had known this would happen, we should have imported food more actively…”

“We missed the timing because the period of half-doubt was too long.”

“It can’t be helped. It was a story that was hard to believe logically.”

The problem is that in order to overcome this crisis, it is necessary to either listen to the demands of the capitalists through a comprehensive revision of the election law or appease the grievances of the workers.

Both are absolutely impossible for the current government, but at least one of the two must be chosen.

Otherwise, as Killian said, a revolution might really break out and the French royal family might be ruined again.

After much deliberation, there is a limit to what France can do alone.

In the end, Louis-Philippe scratched his head annoyedly and let out a deep sigh.

“Minister, I’m really sorry, but I need you to go to London once again.”

“…I understand. But Your Majesty, Great Britain will ask us to faithfully fulfill the previous contract if we want to receive aid.”

“What can we do? As they requested, we will proceed with the establishment of the Rothschild Bank [a global financial institution controlled by the Rothschild family] and the canal company in our country right this month, so ask them to consider providing support.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

If they had started preparing immediately after hearing Killian’s warning, there would have been a way, but France once again came to its senses only after being hit hard.

How could the spirit that has been passed down for hundreds of years change all at once now?

This is just how France is.

Guizot turned around to prepare to cross the English Channel again, soothing his bitter heart.

He wondered if he would be recorded as the person who has crossed the Dover Strait the most among all the ministers in history.

No, maybe he has already broken the record.

But what makes him even more uneasy is the premonition that this might not be the end.

It was just sad that this was something that anyone could have predicted, even if they weren’t a reincarnation of Cassandra.

* * *

As soon as 1846 began, everyone around me cheered with joy as if to prove it, due to the drought.

It’s bitter to think that wails will be echoing throughout Europe, but even if I had known, I couldn’t have prevented the famine from happening at all, so it can’t be helped.

Since I made my own preparations, each region of Europe will be able to face a much better environment than in the original history, so isn’t it all good in the end?

Ireland is also smoothly overcoming the damage caused by the potato blight, so Great Britain is virtually unaffected by this famine.

In addition, thanks to appeasing the Chartists [a working-class movement for political reform in Britain] in advance and revising the labor laws, the grievances of the workers are noticeably less compared to other places.

Not just because it is an island nation, Great Britain is currently watching the turmoil unfolding in Europe with a detached attitude.

“Your Highness. Surprisingly, all the warnings that Your Highness gave us have come true.”

“Shouldn’t you say that they have come true, not are coming true?”

“Ah, yes. I’m sorry. Now that this has happened, the conclusion we have reached is that the information Your Highness gave us was definitely valid.”

Minister Guizot, whom I have been seeing quite frequently recently, did not erase the smile from his face, displaying a humble attitude that was incomparable to when he came before.

As expected, people automatically develop manners when they have something to lose.

As a native of a country once called the Land of Eastern Courtesy, I really like people with such good manners.

So, I must do my best to help France become a polite country that I like in the future.

“Then can I assume that the contract I made with you earlier is virtually established?”

“Of course. His Majesty has already instructed the Rothschild Bank to establish a canal company in consultation. The news has already been delivered to the Egyptian Embassy, so we will be able to deliver good news within the next month.”

“I understand. Then we should set the stock trading time around next year. After all, if we sell it right after the company is established, Egypt might think it’s strange.”

“Yes, yes. We will actively accept Your Highness’s request. But Your Highness. As you know, the subject of this contract is Your Highness and the French royal family, isn’t it? So Your Highness also said that it would be good if the royal family of our country could stand firm without being shaken.”

Seeing the tone full of embarrassment, I know what he’s trying to say without even listening.

And since these expectations never go wrong, Guizot rattled off the exact same words as expected.

“However, even if we try to secure food to stabilize the domestic situation, we only hear that most of the surplus has flowed into Great Britain, so we are having difficulty securing food. If it’s okay with you, could you sell us some food…”

“That is the responsibility of the government, so there is nothing I can do about it.”

“As far as I know, a considerable amount of food is stockpiled in Canada. Exporting food from Canada does not require Your Highness to obtain approval from the parliament or the government, does it?”

“That’s true, as you say. But importing food is interpreted as a willingness not to revise the election law after all, am I understanding correctly?”

No matter how much the farmers complain, if the election law is revised to give the bourgeoisie [the middle class] the right to vote, the rallying point for the revolution will disappear.

Capitalists who have no reason to go hungry, no matter how much grain prices rise, will value their voting rights much more than bread prices, so there will be no reason to rise up.

So, importing food means appeasing the workers, not the bourgeoisie, and this is synonymous with having no intention of expanding voting rights at all.

I really hate to see capitalists participate in politics so much.

“As Your Highness said, the direction of the current cabinet is to reject the election law revision bill. But in this case, as Your Highness also predicted, there will be fierce opposition. At that time, we will spread the news that we bought a large amount of food from Great Britain and will release food to the workers at a low price.”

“The strategy itself is not bad. Certainly, if you separate the capitalists and workers as Minister’s thinking, the country will not be overturned by a revolution.”

Of course, even if that happens, it is questionable how long they can ignore the capitalists in a rapidly progressing industrialized society.

If it were me, I would have gone in the direction of accepting some of the capitalists’ claims while pretending to be generous, but why are they so obsessed with privileges that they cannot protect?

Well, it is precisely because they show such irrationality even in crisis situations that I can say that it is the France I know.

“Your Highness. If we can overcome this, France will never forget the grace bestowed by the royal family of Great Britain. So please…”

“Of course. There is also a saying that the one who helps in difficult times is a true friend. Our Great Britain will continue to be a true friend of France in the future. We will sell as much of Canada’s surplus food as possible, as well as the grain stockpiled in Great Britain. Instead, there is one condition, would you like to hear it?”

“Of course. Please tell me anything.”

Even if we are friends, there must be something to receive if there is something to give.

Isn’t that how the world works?

However, I had no intention of making such unreasonable demands.

Rather, it wouldn’t be a bad offer for France either.

It is necessary to raise France’s standing for the sake of the upcoming war of nerves with Russia.

“Not only France, but Germany will also be greatly affected. Among them, Austria’s side is analyzed to be unusual, so please help Austria if France is stabilized. If possible, faster than Russia intervenes.”

It’s a waste of money to send the British army to intervene, and it’s better to refrain from suppressing the liberal demonstrations because I don’t know what kind of evaluation it will receive in the future.

Still, how pleased I am that France is taking the lead in doing the dirty work instead.

Thank you, France.

You are indeed the hero of Europe.