I Am the Crown Prince in France

The papermaker picked up the fixed paper frame, which is the sieve, and placed it on the shelf. Several stoves were placed around it to increase the temperature.

After more than half an hour, a craftsman took off the fixed paper frame, carefully peeled off the paper on it, and respectfully presented it to Joseph: Sir, you see, it is already dry.

In fact, according to the normal drying process, it would take at least half a day. The high temperature drying at this time was purely to show it to Mirabeau.

Joseph rubbed the paper in his hand. It was brittle and very thick, and the internal texture was not uniform. It could be said that the quality was quite poor, but this was definitely a piece of paper - paper made of wood.

He handed the paper to Mirabeau and said with some regret: These craftsmen and I are trying new technologies for the first time, so the quality of the finished product is not very good.

But he is not in a hurry. The papermaking process relies heavily on experience.

The amount of additives to add, the time and temperature for cooking the wood, the use of bleach, drying techniques, etc., must be tried repeatedly to find the best solution to create qualified paper.

However, as long as we have the correct technical theory, it is only a matter of time to find a mature process.

Mirabeau looked at the paper in his hand excitedly, knowing exactly what this meant - the French paper market alone was worth millions of livres.

If exported to the whole of Europe, it would be a market worth at least tens of millions of dollars!

And it is foreseeable that the current papermaking technology in any European country is much higher in cost than wood-based papermaking. In other words, there is absolutely no way to stop the dumping of wood and paper.

Joseph looked at his excited expression and smiled: Using my method to make paper, the price can be reduced to one-seventh of the current price of paper. Of course, we don't have to go that low, just sell it at two-thirds of the market price. Keep more profit for yourself.”

Mirabeau heard the word we keenly and looked at the crown prince expectantly.

Joseph deliberately let him suffer for a few seconds, and then said: As you can see, to roll out this new technology on a large scale requires a considerable amount of money and a lot of energy. I can't do it alone.

So, I would like to invite you, and of course your friends, to invest together and build a large number of papermaking workshops as quickly as possible to occupy the market. This papermaking technology will be regarded as my equity.

This is really great! Mirabeau's eyes were filled with joy, he rubbed the head of his cane and considered, Then, how many shares do you want to hold?

Let's say 20%. Papermaking technology is used to win over and divide the meeting of dignitaries, so Joseph will not ask for too many shares.

How could Mirabeau not understand that this was the Crown Prince giving away profits, and immediately showed a bright smile: You are so generous! I think we can make an appointment, and Viscount Dico, Viscount Pelleier, etc., together Let’s talk about investing in paper. Oh, and the tax bill.”

Joseph smiled and nodded: I very much agree with your proposal.

After finalizing the time and place for the meeting, Mirabeau couldn't wait to return to Paris, preparing to meet several of his political allies.

After getting on the carriage, he couldn't bear his curiosity, so he turned around and asked: Your Highness, can you tell me how those wood were boiled into liquid?

You need to add some medicine. Joseph smiled and helped him close the car door.

Naturally, he wouldn't tell him now that it was actually just adding sulfite. But knowledge is like this. It may be simple to say it, but if no one guides it, it will take half a century before wood-based papermaking technology appears.

The next day.

Mirabeau brought three nobles to Joseph's papermaking workshop - in order to prevent leaks, Joseph had bought this small workshop.

Your Highness, this is Viscount Dicko. This is...

Following Mirabeau's introduction, the three of them saluted Joseph in turn.

Not long after, another carriage arrived. Archbishop Brian got out of the car.

In this way, in a dilapidated and crude workshop, the crown prince sat on the paper drying rack, the chief minister and Count Mirabeau sat on the cart transporting paper, and several others stood with their backs to the work shed, and started A meeting about the future of France.

But the negotiation process went very smoothly.

Brian promised to work with the Crown Prince to promote the implementation of the Company Law, Patent Law and other bills. Then reduce some stamp duty rates.

Joseph reiterated that he would restart trade negotiations between Britain and France within two months and re-sign the Treaty of Eden in accordance with the tariffs previously mentioned.

Mirabeau and others promised that they would persuade their own people in the dignitary meeting to support the tax bill. Since the controlling force behind the High Court is the great nobles of the Council of Lords, this means that their spokespersons in the court will no longer block the tax bill.

But what everyone spent the most time on and was most interested in was discussing the establishment of a paper company.

The final result of the negotiation was that the five people present, except Joseph, invested a total of 3.6 million livres to build a large papermaking workshop in Saint-Antoine, Lyon and Bordeaux, which could meet the paper demand of all France within half a year. output.

Then, depending on the situation, additional investment will be made to expand production capacity and start exporting, until the company can capture the entire European market.

Joseph provides technology and holds 20% of the shares, while others share the remaining 80% according to the amount of investment.

However, in order to take care of the large number of paper mills in France, Joseph specifically requested that the company must provide pulp to other mills for downstream processing in order to maintain their livelihood.

When everything was said and done, everyone was happy.

Brian stood up first to say goodbye. Mirabeau and others also left half an hour later.

…

On the street opposite the Paris High Court, a wooden platform six or seven meters square was erected.

The wooden platform is surrounded by dark gray curtains. There were two to three hundred people crowded under the stage, watching the performance on stage attentively.

When the villain, who played the Ottoman judge, accidentally ate poisoned cakes out of greed and died wailing, the audience burst into thunderous cheers.

Someone turned and pointed to the High Court in the distance and shouted:

Did you see it? This is the end of a shameless corrupt official!

You should do the same!

You rats and maggots, do you dare to come out?

In the conference hall on the third floor of the High Court, several judges heard the music of the drama stop. They all breathed a sigh of relief and turned their attention back to the conference table.

With a disdainful expression, Vezinier threw the pile of documents in front of him forward and snorted: There is nothing to review! No matter how Brian changes it, it is impossible for this thing to be registered!

What he threw out was the new tax bill that Brian had just submitted this morning.

DuBoer looked at the judge next to him who had a sharp chin and a surprised expression at the corner of his eyes. He slowly opened his copy of the bill and said calmly: I think we should discuss it. Maybe there will be something different. What’s the conclusion?”

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