I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 1422 Technological Breakthrough

Pete Jr. continued:

"When the Maratha Union disappears, Mysore will border Hyderabad on a large scale, and then we can try to make them fight each other."

"In just a few more years, once we've settled things in Europe, Lord Barlow will be able to get his expeditionary force. Not 9 men, but tens of thousands."

Lord Hawkesburg opened his mouth, but finding that the Prime Minister's method seemed flawless, he bowed and said, "I will coordinate this matter with the East India Company as soon as possible."

Peter sighed. "The East India Company's corruption is getting worse, and its ability to govern India is declining. Perhaps it's time for Parliament to take back control of India."

The Foreign Minister did not dare to address the topic of the East India Company's authority, and instead said, "Your Excellency, there are some other matters."

"Please speak."

"First, the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire hopes to restore a close alliance with our country, of course, in the form of a secret treaty."

Little Peter nodded. After Prussia switched sides to France, Britain's only remaining connection on the European continent was Austria. Strengthening ties between the two countries would naturally be something Britain would welcome.

Lord Hawkesburg continued, "As you know, Vienna has recently undergone very radical reforms, so they want us to provide a loan, as well as technology in textiles and machining."

Pete Jr.'s eyes showed signs of fatigue.

Money, money again! Why is everyone asking for money?

He waved his hand and said, "Tell them that at most, the repayment period for previous loans can be postponed, but no more loans can be issued."

"As for technology, we can provide them with some assistance. I will have the Duke of Portland draft a plan."

He knew very well that Britain had to offer something tangible to secure Austria's loyalty.

Moreover, cultivating a nation in continental Europe capable of challenging France has always been a British national policy.

On the other hand, due to the signing of the Stuttgart Trade Agreement, the sales of British goods in the German region had declined significantly. It would be better to have Austria produce more goods and sell them locally to these areas, thereby squeezing out the market share of French products.

Lord Hawkesburg nodded and noted it down, then brought up another matter that was giving the Prime Minister a headache: "And another thing is that the situation in Russia is not very good lately."

"St. Petersburg has requested that our country provide..."

Pete interrupted him impatiently: "No loan, not a single pound!"

He felt that Britain was surrounded by vampire bats that could pounce on him at any moment and suck his blood.

Lord Hawkesburg said cautiously, "You know that Russia is a country that may one day send troops to France."

Pete Jr. took a deep breath. He knew all this, of course, but he really didn't have much money left to give aid to Russia.

“Send them a few ships of uniforms and ammunition. Also, you should go to Constantinople and try to persuade the Ottomans to withdraw their troops.”

After getting rid of all the "vampire bats," Pete was exhausted and simply went to sleep in his office cubicle.

He has never married, so no woman nags him to come home all the time.

The next day, before dawn, the male servant knocked on the office door.

Little Pete looked sleepily out the dark window, and it took him a while to remember that he was supposed to attend the commissioning ceremony of the new steam engine today.

For ease of management, the Bolton-Watt Steam Engine Company, now known as the London Steam Engine Company, has moved all its workshops to the outskirts of London, a journey of more than three hours by horse-drawn carriage.

After a quick breakfast, Peter Jr., the Duke of Portland, and several other high-ranking cabinet members, escorted by guards, traveled by carriage to the northern suburbs. This groundbreaking steam engine, developed over nearly a decade and costing the British government hundreds of thousands of pounds, finally passed technical testing at the end of last month.

This was undoubtedly a shot in the arm for the British people, so the Prime Minister personally presided over the production launch ceremony. Even the Royal Family sent Prince Adolphus to attend the ceremony.

Inside the carriage, young Pete was discussing plans to increase personal income tax with Earl Temple when they heard shouts coming from the street outside: "Lower the price of tea!"

"Demand that the East India Company sell cheap tea!"

Little Pete turned his head and saw thirty or forty people protesting on a street corner, holding wooden signs. There were also six or seven police officers staring intently at them.

Yes, current UK law prohibits gatherings of more than 50 people.

The Earl of Temple helped the Prime Minister draw the curtains.

These kinds of protests happen frequently, and the police will naturally handle them.

As for the price of tea?

After providing subsidies for sugar and grain, the British government simply didn't have the money to subsidize tea anymore.

London newspapers frequently feature articles recommending tea made with elderberry buds or hawthorn leaves.

Little Pete casually remarked, "The autumn auctions will begin in a few days, and the prices should be lower then."

The "autumn auction" he referred to is the tea auction held annually in September by the East India Company in London, where most of the tea stock is sold.

Count Temple nodded in agreement: "The sugarcane and cotton in India will be harvested soon, and the treasury will finally be a little more prosperous."

Little Pete was already planning to increase the sugarcane planting area on the Marata Union's land next year.

At 9:30 a.m., the Prime Minister's motorcade finally arrived in front of a gray building.

Looking around, chimneys are everywhere, giving it a high-tech feel.

Music played all around, and the company manager, beaming with smiles, led his men to greet them, ushering a group of high-ranking officials and princes into the largest workshop.

The manager pointed to a man with half-white hair and a worried expression next to the steam engine on display and introduced him: "Your Highness, Your Excellency the Prime Minister, Your Excellencies, this is Mr. James Watt, the chief engineer who manufactured the new steam engine."

Watt bowed to the dignitaries, then somewhat reservedly introduced today's main subject: "This is the Engine 70 steam engine. It uses a 0.7MPa high-pressure cylinder and can output up to 70 horsepower. Moreover, it can run stably for a long time."

In reality, this steam engine could only produce 69 horsepower, but at the company manager's request, it was always claimed to be 70 horsepower.

The young Prince Adolphus seemed to know little about steam engines, and asked immediately, "Your machine must have surpassed the French one, right?"

The workshop fell silent instantly.

After a long while, the company manager forced a smile and said, "You're right, it has indeed surpassed the French LJ52 steam engine."

Watt glanced somewhat guiltily at the workshop to the east, where a French LJ98 steam engine sat. In fact, his Engine 70 was a complete copy of the LJ98.

That's a machine that can easily output 98 horsepower.

What he didn't know was that France had already largely completed the basic design of its next-generation 120-horsepower steam engine.

(End of this chapter)