I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 1404 A Breakthrough in Electricity Twenty Years Ahead of Schedule
Joseph explained to his father:
"In fact, even if someone with malicious intent were to infiltrate the House of Representatives and even become the Speaker, the harm would be completely within a controllable range."

Louis XVI, who was not very familiar with the bicameral system, looked at his son with curiosity.

Joseph continued, “On the surface, members of parliament can participate in legislation, set tax rates, and even form special committees to question any matter, but they don’t actually manage any national affairs directly. That’s the job of professional bureaucrats.”

"All civil servants must undergo training at the Royal University of Administration and are accountable only to specific administrative departments. For example, diplomats are always with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the House of Representatives has virtually no influence over them."

Louis XVI nodded thoughtfully.

Joseph walked through the gates of the Petit Trianon among several court guards, turning his head to continue:
"Actually, you don't need to worry at all. The House of Representatives will not only not jeopardize national stability, but will also help the government in its governance—"

"If ministers only stay in Versailles, they will never be able to think about all the problems happening in every corner of the country."

"At this point, provincial legislators will propose various bills, at least bringing the issue to the forefront..."

The maid standing beside the corridor curtsied to the two of them:

"Your Majesty, Your Highness. Her Majesty the Queen is in the tea room."

As soon as she finished speaking, Joseph heard a slight clinking of cutlery coming from upstairs, which seemed to be from the tea room.

He and his father exchanged a glance and quickened their pace.

At the entrance to the tea room, Countess de Berninaque curtsied, her voice a little loud:

"Your Majesty, His Majesty the King and His Highness the Crown Prince have arrived."

When she pushed open the door, Joseph saw his mother holding a teacup, but her face was flushed and her expression was obviously unnatural.

He stepped forward and bowed, then smiled and said, "Mother, I think I can smell it, hmm, the aroma of cream cake."

Queen Mary's eyes widened in surprise: "My dear, your nose is so sensitive?!"

Joseph glanced at the cream crumbs on the coaster, but nodded vigorously in an exaggerated manner.

Queen Mary, like a child who had done something wrong, took out most of a cherry cake from a drawer and whispered:
"Um, I really only ate a little bit."

Countess Debernach quickly added, "Your Highness, this is a healthy cake made under the supervision of Mr. Karem."

So-called healthy cakes are "reduced sugar" cakes made with only fructose and almond flour, without added sucrose.

Queen Mary looked at her husband and son somewhat embarrassed:
“I…I’m just a little hungry…I promise the Virgin Mary this once.”

Joseph had repeatedly warned her that she should never eat too much fructose cake, or it would completely destroy her pancreas.

Joseph, however, turned the spoon next to the cake toward his mother and softly comforted her:

"This cake isn't very big, but please feel free to eat it if you want, it's no problem."

"Really?"

Queen Mary's eyes lit up with joy, and then she heard her son say, "If we increase our exercise time by 40 minutes, we can completely offset its effects."

“Oh, my Holy Mary…”

Queen Mary hesitated for two seconds, then picked up the spoon and instructed Countess de Berninauk, "Armand, please bring some desserts for His Majesty the King and Joseph as well."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Queen Mary took a bite of cake before noticing two strangers standing in the doorway. She quickly looked at Joseph and said:
"Honey, why didn't you tell me you brought guests?"

“Oh, by the way,” Joseph gestured to the two men, “they are Knight Cullen and Mr. Ford. Oh, please come in, gentlemen.” The Cullen family held the hereditary title of “Knight of Saint Louis,” so he was addressed as a knight in formal settings.

The two hurried into the house and bowed respectfully to the Queen:

"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince has commissioned us to prepare a special gift for you."

"Oh? What is that?" Queen Mary smiled and glanced at her son. "I'm really looking forward to it."

"I would like to present you with the invention that the Royal Third Laboratory has just completed."

Joseph was actually worried that his mother would be in a bad mood because of her illness, so he always tried to find her all sorts of interesting little gadgets to distract her.

Just two days ago, Cullen and Volta submitted their latest experimental results, so he had them demonstrate them at the Little Trianon Palace.

Two electrical engineers and their assistants laboriously carried a glass “sink” into the tea room, and then began to connect a large number of copper wires, wrapping the copper wires with sheepskin.

Once everything was ready, Cullen pointed to the button connected by a copper wire on the table and respectfully addressed Queen Mary:

"Your Majesty, please try pressing this."

Seeing his son give him an encouraging look, the latter carefully pressed the wooden button.

Instantly, a loud "ring-a-ling" came from outside the door, startling Queen Mary who immediately raised her hand.

The sound stopped abruptly.

She tried pressing the button again, and the bell rang immediately.

She looked at Cullen in surprise: "This is amazing! What is this?"

“The electric bell, Your Majesty,” Cullen said, bowing slightly. “When you press this button, the current in the battery stack will flow through the copper wire to the coil outside the house.”

"The coil then generates a magnetic force, attracting an iron rod to strike the bell."

"When the iron bar strikes the bell, it pulls the copper wire apart, causing the magnetism on the coil to disappear. The spring pushes the iron bar back to its original position, and the copper wire is reconnected, generating a suction force to strike the bell."

"If this is repeated continuously, the bell will keep ringing."

Queen Mary was so shocked she couldn't close her mouth:

"God, this is simply amazing magic!"

Countess de Berninac then conceived of its purpose:
"Your Majesty, from now on, if you need to give me any instructions, you will only need to press the button."

Previously, the Queen had to ring a bell to summon her maids, and sometimes she might not hear it while she was outside. Now, the bell is installed directly in the hallway, so as long as someone isn't deaf, they certainly won't miss it.

Louis XVI, unable to contain his curiosity, leaned closer and asked Cullen:
"How far can this thing control a bell?"

The latter hurriedly replied, "If you wish, you can certainly place the bell in the Louvre, Your Majesty."

Upon hearing this, Joseph secretly shook his head. With the voltage of a voltaic battery, the resistance of the wire would exhaust all the current at most 200 meters away.

Queen Marie Antoinette excitedly fumbled for the doorbell button and said, "I hope you can install these doorbells in all the halls of Versailles!"
Louis XVI muttered to himself, "I think you should win this year's Louis-Louis Prize in Physics."

Kulen and Volt looked at Joseph at the same time, and said with admiration, "In fact, Your Majesty, all of this comes from the guidance of His Highness the Crown Prince."

(End of this chapter)