I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 389 Queen Mary's Peace of Mind and Comfort
Joseph looked around at the nobles who still had dissatisfaction on their faces, and continued loudly: "But their descendants only know how to rest on their laurels, indulge in pleasure, do nothing, and even go against the wishes of His Majesty the King and affect the future of France in order to get a little rent from poor farmers!"

In this era, enlightened despotism was already a consensus among European nobles. At the same time, the Enlightenment had a far-reaching influence. So when he said "it would affect the future of France", even if the nobles were dissatisfied, they subconsciously knew that this was right.

"If your ancestors knew what you said and did here today, they would definitely be ashamed of you!"

Joseph did not give the nobles any chance to retort, and immediately continued: "If I were you, I would follow in the footsteps of my ancestors, go to the battlefield like a warrior, fight for His Majesty the King and France, and achieve greater achievements than our ancestors and obtain remarkable glory!

"Your eyes will be fixed on the vast European continent, your hearts will be concerned about the rise and fall of the empire, and you will fulfill the obligations entrusted to you by France to defeat powerful enemies one after another, thereby winning endless wealth and glory! Instead of secretly rejoicing over the few silver coins paid by the peasants, or feeling wronged like a little girl for losing that little money!

"You should let your ancestors be proud of your courage and cheer for your victory! Instead of using the names of your ancestors to maintain your empty and insignificant lives!"

Joseph finished speaking in one breath, and the nobles present were stunned. The education they received since childhood about the glory of the nobility made them excited, but at the same time they were ashamed.

This was Joseph's strategy.

In fact, the Prussians had already given a solution to these idle nobles who had no income and were prone to making trouble - all the descendants of the nobles who did not inherit the territory were required to join the army and become professional soldiers, and they were rewarded according to their military merits. These small nobles were extremely poor, and in order to fight for a family business, they fought hard on the battlefield and supported the backbone of the Prussian army. This is the origin of the Junker nobility.

Joseph certainly did not want to create a French version of the Junkers. With a large number of civilian soldiers in the Guards to dilute the nobles, these nobles could not form a group of interests.

Although these nobles were idle on weekdays, they all had a good educational foundation, especially in riding, swordsmanship, shooting and the like, which were all compulsory courses.

As long as they are rigorously trained and disciplined, their individual combat capabilities will be stronger than those of civilian soldiers.

Another point is that the French royal family is the largest aristocracy, so these old aristocrats cannot be abandoned casually. At least they are more loyal to the king, and are most closely tied to the interests of the royal family, and will never seek to overthrow the royal family. If they can be integrated into France in the industrial age, it will actually be very beneficial to the royal family.

Joseph also knew that it was not enough to just give speeches to motivate people. In order to make a class work for him, he had to give them corresponding benefits.

He looked at the reaction below the steps and immediately struck while the iron was hot, saying, "You want to obtain the fiefdom according to tradition? That's totally possible!

"As long as you use blood and sword to establish merit like our ancestors did, you will receive glory and rewards.

"France does not have much land, but it has almost endless land overseas. In the colonies that you have won for France through your heroic battles, you will definitely have your own fiefdom! Whether in terms of area or tax revenue, it will be a hundred or a thousand times greater than the little territory you inherited before!

"Come, join the Royal Legion and win your brilliant and glorious future!"

On the balcony, Queen Mary listened to her son's passionate speech and watched the eyes of the nobles who were making trouble gradually fill with fanaticism. She was shocked but also extremely relieved.

It turned out that his son didn't need him to cover for him. He stood there like an unshakable tower, and all the challenges and difficulties became insignificant in front of him.

She smiled happily, no longer paying attention to the thousands of nobles below, turned back to the house, and comfortably picked up a piece of cheesecake and put it into her mouth. With Joseph here, perhaps she can rest more in the future and enjoy the delicious dessert with peace of mind.

...Southwest corner of the Palace of Versailles.

Flanked by four guards, the British Foreign Secretary, the Marquis of Wellesley, glanced gloomily at the door of the Peace Hall in front of him.

He knew that an extremely difficult negotiation would be waiting for him.

He originally planned to start a riot in France to threaten the French, but he heard the news that the riot had subsided before his ship arrived at the port of Le Havre.

But God closed his door and opened a window for him.

He learned that the riots were quelled because the French government enacted a land redemption policy that was very favorable to farmers.

So he confidently asked the French diplomatic department to postpone the meeting, hoping to wait for the situation to escalate and the angry French nobles to attack the king. France, in the midst of internal chaos, would inevitably make concessions to Britain.

However, the development of the matter shocked him greatly.

The nobles in the Palace of Versailles suddenly stopped their activities, and it was even said that a wave of nobles here joined the army.

These useless French nobles! He cursed in his heart. If they were the British, they would definitely start a Glorious Revolution and make the king beg for mercy...

The door of the Salle de la Paix opened, and Talleyrand appeared, limping.

Wellesley quickly stopped thinking about it and saluted the cripple hypocritically: "It's a pleasure to meet you, Archbishop Talleyrand."

The latter smiled and returned the greeting: "I am also very happy to meet you, Marquis Wellesley. I hope we can have a pleasant conversation today."

"Oh, it will be as you wish."

Wellesley gritted his teeth secretly and followed the cripple into the spacious hall. His eyes swept across the huge oil painting of "Louis XV Creates Peace" on the fireplace and he couldn't help but mutter in his heart: Hypocritical French!

The British and French foreign ministers exchanged formal greetings and sat down on both sides of the long table, while the other seven or eight diplomats sat below their respective chiefs.

After a few seconds of silence, Wellesley sighed and spoke first: "It is said that there have been serious riots in France recently. I hope you have not been affected too much."

"Of course, it was just farmers walking into the city, and they were quickly dispersed by the police." Talleyrand looked at him with a relaxed expression, "Oh, by the way, your country seems to have encountered some troubles in India. Oh, you must not have been affected."

(End of this chapter)