The Fox of France - Chapter 344: The First Persuasion and Refusal

As Ren stepped off the train, his legs were still trembling slightly. Yes, indeed, they were trembling a bit, because the speed of the train was simply too fast.

For someone like Joseph, who had even taken the “Fuxing” high-speed train in his previous life as a time traveler, a speed of sixty kilometers per hour for a passenger train was merely child’s play. But for the people of this era, it was a different story. A speed of sixty kilometers per hour was perhaps the highest speed ever achieved in his lifetime.

The thrill of such speed made Ren’s legs feel weak. Consequently, after getting off the train, he leaned against the platform’s lamppost for a good while before his feet regained their strength.

However, during this time, Ren wasn’t idle; his mind swiftly calculated the impact of railway progress on his business.

“The advancement of railways will undoubtedly lead to a significant decrease in transportation costs. Any region with railways will witness a substantial drop in logistics costs. Logistics costs are crucial operational expenses. As a result, the cost of textile industries on the European continent will decrease. And once their costs drop, it will exert immense pressure on us.”

Ren was always someone deeply aware of potential threats. Almost immediately, he considered how the progress of railways, seemingly unrelated to him, might affect his business in the future.

In recent years, after the complete opening of the European market to the British, the British textile industry had made tremendous strides. For instance, Ren’s textile factory expanded its scale almost every year. But Ren also knew that the textile industry on the European continent had been struggling in these years against the British, with numerous European textile enterprises either going bankrupt or undergoing transformations, all struggling to sustain themselves.

Naturally, these people would be discontented. They would employ various means to attack the British, demanding the European continent reinstate barriers against British goods. Of course, this faced widespread opposition from other industries and was nearly impossible to succeed.

However, these individuals had found some ways, like certain French textile industry figures who successfully lobbied for the State Council to pass two bills. The first bill was named the “Anti-Dumping Act,” prohibiting foreign enterprises from damaging free trade through dumping. In Europe, the interpretation of “free trade” was entirely in the hands of the French.

According to this bill, if the price at which any enterprise sold its products in France was lower than the price of similar products sold in Britain, it would be considered dumping. Consequently, goods would be seized, and hefty fines and other anti-dumping measures would follow.

Since the introduction of this bill and several subsequent anti-dumping investigations, although the French had been fair in upholding “free trade,” the results of these anti-dumping investigations consistently favored the British. Yet, the litigation itself incurred substantial costs, especially in terms of time.

The second bill was the doing of the British themselves: the “Navigation Acts.” This act, passed in October 1651 by the English Parliament during the leadership of Cromwell in the English Republic, aimed to protect the monopoly of English maritime trade.

It stipulated that only ships owned or made by Britain or its colonies could transport goods to British colonies. Certain colonial products were designated to be solely transported to Britain or other British colonies, including items like tobacco, sugar, cotton, indigo, and fur. Products manufactured in other countries had to pass through Britain and couldn’t directly be sold in the colonies.

This decree remained effective until now. This blatantly violated the principle of “free trade” and, naturally, became a target of concentrated attacks from France and other European countries. But due to the steadfastness of the British maritime realm, this act had remained unaltered.

Six months ago, some Dutch textile merchants pushed the Dutch Republic to pass a retaliatory law: restricting the rights of British goods on the European continent. Of course, the law didn’t explicitly target Britain but prioritized facilities like ports and roads for use by “countries supporting free trade.” And in the list of “countries supporting free trade,” Britain wasn’t included.

If only the Dutch had implemented such a rule, it might have been dismissed. However, as soon as the Dutch enacted this law, the French immediately followed suit, and subsequently, the entire European continent followed suit. This significantly increased the logistics costs of British goods on the European continent. Moreover, with the widespread use of railways in the future, this disadvantage in transportation costs might further expand. This would undoubtedly impact the competitiveness of British textiles on the European continent.

Therefore, textile merchants took two measures. On one hand, they demanded the government negotiate with the French to resolve the issue. However, they understood that while the British government might exert pressure on other countries, it would be challenging to pressure the French. The French cared little about British military strength and even relished the chance to flex their muscles before the British. So, the supposed negotiation with the government aimed to, to some extent, modify the Navigation Acts in exchange for concessions from the French.

Of course, such an approach would inevitably harm the interests of another group domestically. Hence, this matter wasn’t as easily resolved. It would likely take several years, with countless discussions in parliament, before any change would occur.

The other approach naturally involved tapping into internal potential and reducing their own production costs.

The textile industry was typically labor-intensive, with wage costs constituting a significant portion of the expenses. Hence, Ren’s first thought was to reduce workers’ wages and increase labor intensity. However, to his surprise, those lowly workers refused to accept their new proposed contracts. They dared to stage strikes, coinciding with the preliminary period of the “Paris International Fair” when British merchants were set to fight for Britain’s interests against Dutch and French textile merchants. This betrayal of the great United Kingdom was indeed an outrageous crime.

Due to various constraints, the United Kingdom currently couldn’t employ the means it should have against them. So, Ren and his team had no choice but to consider these rogues and ingrates, pondering how, if it weren’t for Ren’s textile factory providing them a platform for work, they would have long starved to death on the streets!

However, for the sake of the Paris International Fair, Ren had to reluctantly agree to their coercion and consented to revert to the previous old contracts. This meant that his profits for this year’s fair would significantly decrease. It was akin to cutting into his own flesh.

“After returning, I’ll find a way to sternly teach these ungrateful folks a lesson, so they’ll never dare to do this again!”

As Ren vowed internally, he made his way towards the Elysium Palace.

The second edition of the Paris International Fair, lasting for five days, concluded smoothly. The commercial contracts and memorandum of understanding reached by all parties during this fair had increased significantly compared to the first edition.

Numerous newspapers extensively covered this success, attributing it to the robust growth of the French economy. Some newspapers even credited this favorable situation to Napoleon’s wise leadership. For instance, the Businessman Gazette published an article titled “Cherish this Golden Era,” highlighting these sentiments.

Under the leadership of Napoleon Bonaparte, France was in its most glorious Golden Age since the inception of Francia. The rapidly growing economy brought benefits and hope to everyone. Whether in the streets of Paris or the rural paths, hope gleamed from the faces and eyes of people encountered, be they workers, farmers, French citizens, or foreigners studying and working in France.

Recalling the pre-revolution Bourbon rule, did the French people ever have such vision and smiles? During the inauguration of the War God Plaza train station, the masses hailed the beloved Consul Bonaparte, affectionately referring to him as ‘Imperator,’ and rightfully so. Napoleon had proven himself invincible both on the battlefield and in leading the nation’s development. In the true sense of Latin, Consul Bonaparte truly deserved this title.

Following this report, more newspapers joined in praising Napoleon. Even papers known for gossip and colorful stories joined in extolling Napoleon’s achievements.

Not just French newspapers, even some foreign ones, those with French backgrounds especially, naturally joined in this chorus of praise for Napoleon. However, there were dissenters. For instance, some exiled nobles in Austria and England, still possessing some wealth, ran newspapers attacking Napoleon, targeting everything from his physique to his family.

In London, a particular newspaper even ingeniously spread rumors about Napoleon through a series of comics. First, they spread rumors about Napoleon’s alleged homosexuality, claiming he was “everyone’s man and woman,” just like Caesar.

The French didn’t care about such attacks. Then, they fabricated stories about Pauline, claiming she shared similar traits, being both man and woman, even concocting tales about Pauline and her older brother and sister-in-law.

Due to the small circulation of this newspaper, neither Pauline nor Joseph paid attention to it. However, in England, there existed a “Order of Saint Joan.” Their scandalous portrayal of their “saint” provoked these “knights,” and in a fit of rage, armed with sticks and whips, they stormed the newspaper office, ransacking it. This incident made headlines, catching the attention of the Bonaparte family.

Reportedly, Pauline had Lucien fetch two newspapers related to her and personally inspected them. Furious, she remarked that the newspapers were disgraceful, poorly drawn, and made her look ugly. She felt it was outrageous and justified that it was vandalized!

Napoleon, however, only noted being compared to Caesar, feeling rather pleased, not paying attention to the specifics of the comparison.

Amidst such praise, the Council of State acted. In July 1802, some members proposed giving the title “Imperator” to First Consul Napoleon in recognition of his contributions to Francia.

Once proposed, the entire Council unanimously supported it. They believed Napoleon was deserving of the title “Imperator,” stating he was unmatched in history, a true servant of Francia.

In the blink of an eye, the Council finalized the proposal and sent it for scrutiny by the House of Representatives. How could they oppose such a proposal? Did they wish to defy public sentiment? Therefore, the House swiftly ratified it and passed it on for legislative approval.

Reportedly, it was only at this point that Napoleon became aware of this matter. He rushed to the legislature and delivered a speech, stating that “Imperator” wasn’t fitting for a servant of the people. As the First Consul, he was dedicated to serving the people wholeheartedly; it was his duty, not needing such recognition. He hoped the legislators would respect his personal opinion and reject this departure from democratic principles.

After hearing Napoleon’s speech, the legislature hastily passed the proposal — the first time since Napoleon became First Consul that the legislature opposed his wishes. The President of the legislature, Edwards, reportedly told Napoleon, “Your Excellency, just as you must remain loyal to democratic ideals, we must heed the voice of the people.”

Subsequently, the proposal reached the Senate, which also didn’t wish to defy the will of the people. Hence, despite Napoleon’s pressure, they too approved the proposal.

However, this didn’t mean the proposal would immediately take effect. For it to take effect, it needed the First Consul’s endorsement, and he could execute it in the way he deemed best, including temporarily shelving it. Hence, Napoleon promptly shelved the proposal.

Despite this, people started referring to Napoleon as “Imperator,” claiming it was their right as citizens to address a public servant however they pleased.

Various newspapers gradually began adding “Imperator” to Napoleon’s titles.

Of course, Napoleon vehemently opposed this himself, continuously speaking against it. Nevertheless, the newspapers unanimously claimed, “This showcases the humble virtue of the esteemed ‘Imperator.'”

Following this, the Legion of Honor took action. They stated that although they had awarded numerous French and foreign individuals who contributed to Francia with the Legion of Honor medals, the First Consul humbly accepted only the lowest Cavalry Medal. This didn’t match the immense contributions of the First Consul. Many who didn’t know the full situation criticized them for mistreating the First Consul. Some emotionally charged recipients even returned their medals, citing that if the Legion couldn’t properly award medals deserving of the First Consul’s contributions, they were unworthy to keep their own.

Consequently, the Legion urgently designed and produced a medal called the “Imperator” and presented it to Napoleon.

This “Imperator” medal, made of pure gold with numerous gemstones, bore the inscription: “Serving the People.”

Upon its completion, the head of the Legion, Bernie, personally carried the medal amidst a crowd of French people to the First Consul’s office, urging him to accept it.

Following Bernie were most members of the Legion, displaying their medals proudly on their chests, accompanying Bernie to the government offices, expressing their wishes to the First Consul.

Napoleon hurried to the doorway, explaining to the enthusiastic crowd that he couldn’t accept an honor with a monarchical flavor. However, a citizen representative argued that “Imperator” was a title used in the Roman Republic and not exclusive to emperors. As he spoke, the audience fervently applauded.

Ultimately, persuaded by public sentiment, Napoleon agreed to accept the “Imperator” medal as per the will of the French people.