Joseph emerged from the "White Maple Forest" estate with ample confidence.
In the Île-de-France, including Valois and three other districts, the Archbishops had reached an agreement with him on "shares for grain" dealings. Coupled with Talleyrand of the Autun district and Brian of the Toulouse district, nearly half of the most influential high-level clergy of the French Church would be involved in this affair.
The rest was up to them to negotiate the benefits with the Archbishops of the southern dioceses.
From the information Archbishop Beaumont had just imparted, the Church's "private grain" stockpile was quite substantial, enough to fill in the gaps in France's grain shortage to a certain extent.
However, this meant that during the historic freeze disaster of 1792, one couldn't count on the Church's cellars. But Joseph believed that with the continuous development of Tunisia, the increased grain production in two years should be sufficient to cope with the brief spring famine.
After all, Tunisia alone has a third of the current arable land area of France but only needs to support a population of 1.8 million.
Moreover, to ensure Beaumont and the others would deliver their highest efficiency, Joseph dangled before them the "Papal Throne" carrot.
Although the Papacy was currently dominated by Italians, in the 14th century, the Papal See was located in Avignon, France!
It wasn't until nearly a century later that Pope Gregory XI relocated it back to Rome.
In southeastern France, Avignon, a territory belonging to the Papal States, is still preserved to this day.
Although the French Catholic Church is currently independent, it's impossible that the high-ranking clergy have no aspirations for the Papacy. Explore more adventures at empire
Thus, at the "White Maple Forest," Joseph hinted to several Archbishops his "grandiose blueprint" for relocating the Holy See back to Avignon.
If the Papacy were to return to France, the Pope would undoubtedly emerge from among these Archbishops and Brian.
Beaumont and the others were thrilled. This was coming directly from the Crown Prince's mouth, which could very possibly represent the will of the Royal Family—The French Royal Family had harbored ambitions to command Catholicism.
Of course, Joseph didn't have this strategic plan for the time being; it was purely a pie in the sky.
However, should the day come when the troops approached Rome, he wouldn't mind using the political resources of the Holy See—holding the Pope to influence the faithful. If France were to fight anyone, it would be as if a Crusade, which would be thrilling beyond measure.
He would never operate like Napoleon historically did, turning against the entire Holy See over a small sum from the Papal States, thus losing tremendous political benefits.
The several Archbishops privately resolved that they must perform well in the matter of grain release to gain favor in the future race for the Papacy.
Before Joseph left for Montmartre Town, he had already made a rough plan for what would follow, and upon returning to Paris, he immediately headed to the headquarters of the Police Affairs Department.
After hearing Joseph's schemes, Fouché's face lit up with a crazy and excited expression:
"Your Highness, I simply cannot express how much I admire you, finding opportunities even in situations like these!"
The mere thought of the grand scenes planned by the Crown Prince made his blood surge.
Joseph interrupted his sycophancy and also painted him a picture:
"The Police Affairs Department did very well in North Africa last time. If you can successfully complete this mission as well, I think it might be time to upgrade to a Department of Police Affairs. Oh, 'National Intelligence Department' seems to be an even more appropriate name."
Well, dangling a carrot in front, the subordinates will work with even more zeal.
Fouché and the others, hearing this, shone bright with eagerness—direct promotion to the Intelligence Department meant that the head of the department might enter the Cabinet as the Minister of Intelligence, with all levels of management rising with the tide.
The Police Affairs Department personnel were all eager to get started, wishing they could immediately fly to the southern provinces.
Having dealt with all these matters, Joseph hurriedly headed straight for the Paris Police Academy.
All other schemes relied on the army as the foundation for success.
Bertier's Corps and Murat's Corps had already received orders and were assembling at the new academy grounds of the Police Academy.
The new grounds were the estate that Louis XVI and the Queen had gifted to Joseph, spanning over ten hectares. Without agriculture, it could easily accommodate thirty to fifty thousand soldiers.
The pre-war mobilization wasn't novel, merely Joseph making a speech, telling the soldiers they would be taking on a historic turning point for France and would achieve supreme glory, followed by the routine parade of formations and squares.
The more practical actions involved equipping Murat's Corps with Auguste-style Caplock Guns. Murat's Corps' performance in Tunisia was deemed satisfactory, but most importantly, they demonstrated their absolute loyalty to the Crown Prince, earning them the latest weaponry and equipment.
Joseph extravagantly ordered Andre to have every soldier practice shooting 20 rounds each day until the troops were dispatched.
In reality, the Caplock Gun wasn't much different from the Flintlock Gun, just eliminating a few steps in loading and firing, easy to master with a bit of practice. Not to mention the proficiency fed by hundreds of bullets.
You see, many of the old soldiers in France's traditional army didn't even have the experience of firing 100 shots.
Moreover, the Guard Corps were now equipped with 12-pounder cannons. After the Tunisian campaign, Joseph realized that the previously heaviest 8-pounder guns lacked oppressive power, so he decided to upgrade the entire army to 12-pounders and 6-pounders according to Napoleon's later arrangements—the former for fire suppression, the latter for mobility in the battlefield.
Anyway, the mounted artillery hasn't been established yet, so the bulkiness of the 12-pound cannon isn't really a big problem, just add a few more horses to pull it.
After arranging the hardware side of things, Joseph gathered officers like Bertier, Frient, and others, and issued a series of commands regarding improving the soldiers' morale.
When Joseph finished speaking, Bertier said with a pained expression,
"Your Highness, this 'Military Affairs Department' you mentioned is involved in a lot of matters. It probably won't be able to start operating in a short time."
Andre also nodded in agreement,
"Your Highness, just in terms of manpower, we're fundamentally unable to solve it at the moment. According to your requirements, we need at least more than 200 people to barely complete the work within Paris. As for the soldiers' families in the provinces, that would require even more manpower..."
Joseph smiled and nodded, "Don't worry about this. The manpower needed can be directly transferred from the French Hôtel des Invalides. We only need to send some civil officials to give orders. Oh, and try to let the French Hôtel des Invalides bear the cost as well."𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦
Today's French Hôtel des Invalides is no longer the department that took care of wounded soldiers during the Sun King's era but has become a pure retirement home for retired officers; ordinary soldiers can't benefit from it at all.
Keeping such a department, aside from providing weapons to the rioting citizens during insurrections, really isn't much use. It's better to just hollow it out while the military high command is away from Paris.
Upon hearing this, Bertier and others exchanged glances and all revealed knowing smiles. Enjoy new tales from empire
Then, Joseph went among the soldiers of the Guard Corps, making a point to encourage each one of them face to face, until he returned to the Palace of Versailles the next day at noon, dragging his tired body.
All the preparations had been made. It was time to begin the harvest!
...
In the Saint-Antoine District of Paris, Oray Street.
A melodious call of the bugle accompanied by the brisk beat of drumming came from the south side of the street, making residents on both sides look curiously in that direction.
Soon, they saw a procession of about 20 people, dressed in imposing ceremonial military uniforms, marching in two neat columns, heading their way with synchronized steps.
An old fishmonger frowned and said in a low voice to the middle-aged man beside him,
"What's happened? Sending so many soldiers to make an arrest!"
The middle-aged man shook his head,
"Why make such a big fuss to arrest someone? Are they afraid the person they want to catch will escape?"
A young journalist behind them craned his neck to look and explained to the two men, "That's the newly established Military Affairs Department. I heard it serves Bertier's Corps and the 'Combat Police' troops."
The fishmonger said with confusion,
"There don't seem to be any high-ranking officers around here."
Based on his habitual thinking, a department that was "serving the troops" was basically the same as serving the officers.
The procession of the Military Affairs Department stopped in front of an unremarkable civilian house, turned their formation to face sideways, and stood on both sides of the entrance.
A few soldiers stepped out from the ranks, double-checked the address, then began to hang red and blue ribbons on the door and placed baskets of flowers in front of the ribboned doorway.
As the leading officer gave the order, two soldiers unfurled a banner about half a meter wide that read: The Glory of France! Congratulations to Corporal Adrian on receiving the Medal of Courage!
Below it was a row of smaller letters: The honor of bravery shall be known. One person's deed brings glory to the whole family.
According to the Guard Corps' award rankings, the Medal of Courage is a "fourth-class merit" below the Medal for Bravery. A total of 23 people received the Medal of Courage in the battle of Tunisia.
The citizens immediately surrounded the Adrian family's home, tightly packed, while staring at the banner and starting to discuss,
"Didn't Adrian go to the police academy? How did he receive a medal?"
"I heard he went to North Africa, seems like he earned his honors there."
"Such a grand spectacle, Adrian has really made a name for himself!"
"He's just a corporal. Why is the military making such a ceremonious visit to his home to offer congratulations?"
The officer from the Military Affairs Department was about to knock on the door when Adrian's parents and sister came out, looking surprised.
Mr. Adrian, the elder, anxiously looked around and approached the officer to bow and whisper,
"Sir, what's happening...?"
The officer hastily propped him up, saluted him with his hat, and spoke aloud:
"Good morning! You must be Mr. Adrian, right? Your son displayed bravery in the fight to stop the People of Algiers from invading Tunisia, earning him the Medal of Courage. I am here on behalf of the Paris Police Academy to deliver the good news."
The Adrian family was stunned, unable to react for quite some time.
The officer stepped forward, handing Mr. Adrian a "Medal Award Certificate" and 200 livres in silver coins, enthusiastically saying:
"This is the certificate and monetary award for Sergeant Adrian. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has asked me to thank your family for your support, as you have also contributed to France's great victory. Oh, please sign here so that I can report back."
The Adrians felt as if they were dreaming, as if their son had done something remarkable.
Not only had an officer come to congratulate them, but there was also a bonus of 200 livres!
Old man Adrian finally snapped out of it and called for his wife to quickly prepare some food and water to entertain the soldiers who had come to celebrate, and then turned to invite the Military Affairs Department representative into the house.
However, the latter first stood at the doorway, announcing to the onlookers the story of Adrian's valorous deeds. The manuscript was clearly well-prepared, making the audience incredibly tense, as if they had witnessed the harrowing moment when Adrian desperately blocked the breach breached by the Algiers Cavalry, maintaining the integrity of the French Army's formation.
Then, the officer listed the various privileges enjoyed by the families of the decorated soldiers, including priority treatment by the police in case of accidents; family members obtaining employment related to the military; and the ability to seek direct assistance from the Military Affairs Department with any issues.
In short, the Adrian household would now enjoy considerable prestige on this street.
The onlookers were all envious, loudly discussing:
"Who would've thought that attending the Police Academy could lead to success!"
"My God! That's a bonus of 200 livres!"
"Did you hear that? His family can go directly to this officer to resolve any troubles."
"Sigh, my own youngest wanted to attend the Police Academy; I didn't let him, and now I regret it deeply!"
Even the young man who had previously rejected the love declaration from Adrian's sister shamelessly edged closer to the girl...
For a time, the entire city of Paris was bustling with the busy figures from the Military Affairs Department. The soldiers of the Guard Corps who had shown valor quickly became the focus of public attention—with the Paris Commercial News leading the way, newspapers spent a lot of space to feature their heroic deeds.
Even the news of uprisings in the southern provinces was overshadowed by their stories.
The families and friends of the valorous soldiers soon wrote to inform them of the honors, encouraging them to fight bravely and seek to earn medals again.
Raising the prestige of the Guard Corps and strengthening their sense of honor and belonging had been on Joseph's mind for some time.
Previously, to avoid overly provoking the Military Nobility, such maneuvers could only be conducted within the military.
Now that the Military Nobility had made it clear they would oppose the Royal Family, there was no need for subtlety.
The soldiers from the old-fashioned armies were merely menial servants, lowly peons, whereas those in the Guard Corps were esteemed military personnel, the glory of France.
If it came to a clash between the two sides, the Guard Corps would crush the opposition in terms of morale alone, without even considering the difference in combat effectiveness!
However, Joseph's move had made for a tough time for the Paris Police Academy and Bertier's Corps, as they had to deal with citizens coming in droves to enlist or apply for the Police Academy throughout the day...
Joseph arrived at the Palace of Versailles and within five minutes, Brian appeared, looking worried.
The Archbishop hurriedly made a bow, waving the document in his hand:
"Your Highness, you have returned at last! The riots are spreading further and further, the Queen has already inquired several times about your countermeasures..."
Joseph smiled, inviting him to sit down, speaking calmly:
"I was just about to look for you. Archbishop, could you trouble yourself to issue a royal decree in the name of the King, directing all military officers of the southern provinces to present themselves at the Palace of Versailles immediately. Those who fail to arrive within a week will be punished for treason!"
Brian stood up in shock:
"Your Highness, how can we do this? If all the officers are summoned to Paris, who will command the army to suppress the riots?"
Joseph smiled:
"Rest assured, the Church will help me deal with the riots."