The War Court and Lap Pillow, Austria's Mandate of Heaven

Chapter 1572 Logging from Peter to Pay Paul (Part 2)

"You mean?"

Louis Napoleon cleared his throat and said.

"Barricades are essentially a tactic of using debris to block streets as cover. As long as we make the roads wide enough, they won't be able to build barricades easily. Even if they manage to build them, they won't be able to block them very effectively."

After speaking, Louis Napoleon took out a design drawing and placed it on the table.

The Paris design in the blueprints reshapes the city's structure with several star-shaped intersections and a large number of wide, straight roads, exuding an air of order and cleanliness.

In fact, it's not just Paris; many old European cities have this problem. If it weren't for the Great Fire of London, London's alleyways would have been the world's largest maze at that time.

Ultimately, the most fundamental reason for narrow roads can be summed up in two words—"good enough." Before the advent of automobiles, horse-drawn carriages were the primary mode of transport, and roads that horse-drawn carriages could pass through were considered passable.

Overly wide roads are often seen as wasteful, or even collusive and encroached upon by various parties.

Vienna's three expansions all encountered this problem to varying degrees, with the public and local officials not understanding the significance of doing so.

However, to Alexander Colonna Walevsky, who was always worried about an uprising in Paris, it was a brilliant design.

"This is a truly brilliant design!"

Alexander Corona Valevski exclaimed in genuine admiration, but his brows quickly furrowed.

"How much will the whole plan cost? Our funds are not very abundant."

Louis Napoleon simply smiled mysteriously.

"There is no need to worry too much; our gains will make up for our losses."

This time, it was Alexander Colonna Walevsky's turn to be confused.

How do municipal engineering projects make money?

Louis Napoleon said smugly.

"Land in the heart of Paris is incredibly valuable, and there will definitely be people willing to pay for it."

"By relocating those who are unsuitable for living in the city center to where they should be, the funds saved from land sales can greatly alleviate the pressure caused by a shortage of funds for urban redevelopment."

Alexander Colonna Valevsky was enlightened upon hearing this, realizing that transforming the city would have a much smaller impact than expanding the army and regrouping.

If the French army were to suddenly expand its cavalry or suddenly increase the production of rockets, it would likely cause panic among the surrounding smaller countries.

In the past, France naturally didn't need to care about those small countries, since they couldn't cause any trouble. However, with the emergence of the German Confederation, small countries could also start wars, and even become the last straw that broke the camel's back.

On the other hand, France was no longer what it used to be, and its alliance with Britain could not guarantee its security. Once the arms race began, it would be an endless battle.

If France makes anti-French countries like Austria feel threatened, they will inevitably upgrade their equipment to seek an advantage. Once Austria and other countries gain an advantage over France, it is difficult to guarantee that those countries will not further dismember France.

Therefore, how to avoid provoking powerful adversaries in the surrounding area has always been a key focus of research for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"This is truly a brilliant idea, as expected of you, Your Majesty."

Alexandre Colonna Walevsky was lavish in his praise, but Louis Napoleon felt somewhat undeserving, as the plan had originally been proposed by a Napoleonic engineer who had merely stolen someone else's idea. "Besides street renovations, I think we should also renovate the gas, sanitation, and drainage systems to make Paris a true world capital once and for all."

Alexander Colonna Warewsky agreed, having previously visited London where the British were struggling with frequent cholera outbreaks and a chaotic, inefficient plumbing and drainage system.

“Your Majesty, you are right. The transformation of Paris will be key to whether we can surpass London. We can also weed out those incompetent businessmen and integrate the gas and water systems.”

Louis Napoleon, however, was somewhat displeased.

“You are undermining the free competition mechanism of the market. Adam Smith said: ‘Monopoly is the cancer of progress.’”

Alexander Corona Warevsky immediately retorted.

"The Austrians, with their state-controlled public works, clearly did a better job than the British. And Adam Smith once said, 'The invisible hand heals all wounds.'"

However, at this time, Louis Napoleon was a staunch supporter of free market theory, and he did not buy into it.

"Corona, excessive intervention will inevitably lead to reduced efficiency, stifle innovation, and in turn harm the entire country."

Alexander Corona Valevsky nodded.

“Your Majesty is quite right. But a monopoly can increase your income. Adam Smith also said that ‘the greatest virtue of mankind is the pursuit of self-interest,’ and the pursuit of self-interest by individuals will naturally promote the public good.”

This time, Louis-Napoleon was finally persuaded.

"Alright, Corona, you're right. I'll leave this to you. I really don't trust that guy Marn."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Pierre Marne was the French Minister of Finance at the time, but in reality, he was more like Napoleon III's private advisor.

However, Pierre Marne lacked genuine economic knowledge; his rise to power was largely due to betraying his previous organization and exchanging favors.

Therefore, Pierre Marne was not very loyal to Napoleon III, and he did indeed have some credit for the fire in Lyon. After all, it was rare for a fire to burn down a warehouse, and he should thank the workers and farmers.

Alexander Colonna Valevski didn't really like dealing with these kinds of things, but he also knew that Louis Napoleon came to power through a coup, which involved too many insider deals and exchanges of interests.

Some people may lack the ability, but they are indeed unable to act, and they even have to take care of the other party's feelings, so they can only play the villain themselves.

Furthermore, given the precedent set by the Austrian Empire, Alexander Colonna Warewski believed that if the Habsburgs could do it, the Napoleonic family could certainly do it even better.

There's nothing wrong with wealth gravitating towards royalty; on the contrary, it allows them to concentrate their resources on accomplishing great things.

News of the swift suppression of the Lyon rebellion quickly spread throughout Europe. This was essentially the French flexing their muscles, as few countries can quell a domestic rebellion so quickly.

However, the Austrian Empire was only concerned with the extent of the French losses. After learning about the French losses and their recent actions, it was easy for them to predict the French's next move.

Franz had always supported raising the prices of luxury goods. With France and Austria working together, the price of silk soared and soon reached Franz's target price.

Historically, after the outbreak of uprisings in the Near East, the price of silk in European and American markets rose by an average of more than 250%. At this time, after the Great Fire of Lyon, Austria and France joined forces to create a spectacle, which the British also welcomed. The price of silk had risen by more than 330%, and in some parts of the Americas it even approached 400%.

Franz agreed with John Sina that commodity prices cannot rise indefinitely, and opportunities to earn a fourfold price difference are rare.

(End of this chapter)