The Han culture is spreading strongly in Southeast Asia

Chapter 587 His Majesty's Mind

Just when Mo Zibu had completely conquered Japan and his magical powers were gradually becoming more and more powerful, the North American Armistice Conference, which was postponed for about half a year compared to history, was finally held.

All these changes occurred because of the variable of the Dayu Dynasty.

England's disastrous defeat in India caused them to have great doubts about their future, so they became more resilient than in history.

George III and his team of government officials did not decide to swallow the bitter fruit of independence for the thirteen North American states until the very last moment, when the British army in North America could no longer fight.

1784 October.

After nearly a year of repeated tug-of-war, representatives from Britain and the United States finally signed a peace treaty at the Hotel de York in Paris.

England recognized the independence of New England, the thirteen colonies of North America, gave up the east coast of North America, but guaranteed the security of other North American colonies.

And through clever diplomatic means, the North American royalists and British who lost their property in the war regained a considerable portion of their property.

But this treaty was not very good for the French and the Spanish, especially the Spanish.

If there is any country in the world that does not want this war to end, besides the Chinese Empire, it must be the Kingdom of Spain.

Because the war lasted for more than five years, Spain paid a huge price, but still failed to resolve the core issue, which was Gibraltar, which was taken away by Britain in the War of the Spanish Succession.

This key town, which controls the strait where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean, is the only guarantee for the Kingdom of Spain to gain a voice in Europe after it had long lost its prestige as a world empire.

After all, they control Gibraltar. At present, when there is no Suez Canal, anyone who wants to go from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic must be kind to the country that controls Gibraltar.

It’s a pity that Spain’s national strength cannot support their dream. The initiative of whether to fight or not is in the hands of France.

The fighting could only continue if France agreed to continue, even if it was just the siege of Gibraltar as part of this campaign to thwart Britain.

If France did not agree to fight, the Spanish Kingdom, which fought with blood and gold, would not be able to continue even a small battle like Gibraltar.

France, on the other hand, could no longer fight. Its national finances were already bankrupt. Every day of fighting would increase the risk of explosion. This was the understanding of everyone from Louis XVI to the ministers.

Fortunately for France at this time, Spain had to consider the interests of Spain when making any decision because the royal families were close relatives and their interests were the same.

So, the French Foreign Minister, Charles Gravier, Count of Vergennes, proposed an alternative.

That is to limit the territory of the United States to the southeast of the Appalachians, that is, the thirteen states of North America, and not allow them to move westward even an acre of land.

Then, in order to avoid further friction and war between Britain and the United States, a large area of land south of the Ohio River was handed over to Spanish control, establishing a barrier state separating Britain and the United States.

Where does it roughly correspond to? It is roughly between the Great Lakes and Washington in the United States in later generations.

That is to say, the entire territory of Kentucky, Tennessee, southern Ohio, and western West Virginia were all ceded to Spain.

At this time, there were already a considerable number of immigrants in this area, and the Indians on the land had been basically conquered. It was a very prosperous area in North America except for the thirteen states on the east coast.

Faced with such benefits, the Spaniards were overjoyed and of course they would agree.

It’s a pity that the French underestimated the shamelessness of England and America.

They really didn't expect that the English master, who had just been betrayed by his own colony and knocked to the ground by the New England peasants, could hold back his disgust and bypass the French to negotiate with the Americans.

However, faced with France, the big brother who funded its independence and even personally took action to destroy the country, America did not hesitate at all. It almost immediately put aside all its favors and made direct contact with England.

They are indeed a juxtaposed father and son. From the very beginning, this shameless spirit has been passed down from generation to generation.

After a brief negotiation, the British gave up most of the barrier state, which was originally supposed to be given to Spain as compensation, to the United States on the condition of preserving the Newfoundland fishing grounds and returning British assets confiscated during the war.

The representatives of America were Benjamin Franklin and John Adams, both of whom were old foxes with a history of thousands of years. They only cared about interests and had no sense of morality at all. They immediately agreed.

The French, still immersed in the fantasy that they were the savior and benefactor of America, did not notice that the British and American representatives had secretly reached a final agreement in a tavern.

So, when France welcomed Britain and the United States to sign the treaty in Paris, they felt that they had finally gotten a good deal. However, it was only five days later that they learned the true situation after forcing England to sign this treaty that was heartbreaking and even humiliating.

"Immediately intercept the American delegation and make them explain themselves. This is an unforgivable betrayal!"

For the first time, Louis XVI experienced being fooled. This was far from a simple betrayal, but a complete joke.

The American peasants treated the French king like a clown. After paying a huge price, France was cuckolded by England at lightning speed before it even had the chance to sleep with America.

Foreign Minister Charles Gravier, who was primarily responsible for the peace talks and had actually messed things up, was completely paralyzed. Then, out of great fear and shame, he collapsed in anger.

"Your Majesty, I will immediately order the navy to pursue them. Once we catch up with them, if these messengers don't return, we will sink them!"

The Chief Cardinal, Count Maurepa, also felt a numbness on his face, and his anger almost made him lose his mind, but fortunately he was not the first person responsible and still had some rationality.

"No, we cannot kill these deputies." Count Maurepas waved his hand, but immediately added:
"These disgusting country bumpkins, low-class people, dared to do this, so they must have been prepared in advance. I don't think the navy can catch up with them."

"Yes, disgusting inferior people!" Louis XVI blushed and started cursing in a somewhat broken-down state.

“Vile blood runs in their veins. Indeed, whether a person is noble or not is determined from the moment he is born.

These shameless people only care about profit. I will punish them severely!" At this time in Europe, the theory of bloodline was still very popular. It was basic 'common sense' that nobles and kings were born noble and polite.

Therefore, Americans, who were composed of colonial landowners in the thirteen North American states, actually had very little status in Europe. In the eyes of Europeans, they were almost equivalent to bandits, pirates, and country bumpkins.

This is also the reason why Americans were extremely obsessed with European aristocracy in later history. The more they lacked something, the more they desired it.

However, what Louis XVI said actually had a deeper meaning. He seemed to be scolding Franklin and other immoral guys, but in fact he was scolding the French bourgeoisie of today, and even the middle and lower class clergy.

It turns out that when Mount Asama in Japan erupted, the Laki volcano in Iceland, Europe, was also erupting, which caused large-scale cold damage in Europe as well.

Especially in Western Europe, which is located at a very high latitude and relies entirely on the warm Atlantic current to avoid being covered in ice and snow like Northeast China, its resistance to cold damage is even weaker.

Under the invasion of this cold weather, France's grain production this year has dropped significantly, and in some northern regions, the production has even dropped by 30%.

If someone familiar with Chinese history looks at the current situation in France, he or she will understand that the Bourbon dynasty of France is indeed on the verge of collapse.

The country's senior clergy and nobles monopolized most of the wealth and basically paid no taxes. They were warlike against foreign countries. From the Seven Years' War to the American War of Independence, France had almost no peace in the past thirty years.

Moreover, these two wars were not ordinary wars, but wars of annihilation at a level that cost countless billions of dollars.

Now, there are natural disasters comparable to the Little Ice Age, as well as epidemic diseases that can be called plagues, such as syphilis, cholera, and plague, which are spreading rapidly in France and throughout Western Europe.

This is simply unbelievable. War, famine, and plague, all three elements are present.

However, compared with previous feudal dynasties, France has one advantage, that is, in this era of great navigation, it has a group of bourgeoisie and urban workers who can produce considerable wealth.

And they have little ability to resist, making them perfect blood-sucking targets. All they need to do is make some superficial concessions and move a little softer to complete the blood-sucking process and give the country a break.

So, when they heard the king start to make indirect accusations, the nobles, ministers, and cardinals around him all echoed him and soon became angry.

In fact, to solve France’s current problems, the people who should be given the most help by the country are the aristocratic senior clergy and some of the nobles who control a large amount of production resources.

But look at the people surrounding the king. They are high-ranking clergy and nobles. Will they betray their class and let the country take a sip?

Don't even think about it. Such a person is not allowed to live in France, where there is no culture of serving the country and the people.

Even in China, which has such a cultural heritage, there are only a handful of people who are willing to be ruthless to their own class in order to save the country and the people, and who can accomplish this.

Louis XVI was not a fool. After cursing and venting his worries and even fears about the future, he couldn't help but think of someone he used to trust very much.

Former Financial Director, Anne-Robert-Jacques Ducourt.

This man can be called a low-profile version of Shang Yang. The French financial reform he presided over eight years ago directly addressed senior clergy and nobles, and was able to truly solve the problem.

But at the most intense moment of the confrontation, King Louis XVI could not bear the pressure and could not stand the slander from the nobles around him, so he voluntarily gave up the reform, causing a funny tragedy of "Your Majesty surrendered when we were about to fight to the death."

Now, when Louis XVI was increasingly aware that the only way to save the crisis was to take action against the senior clergy and nobles, there was no such person to serve him.

Anne-Robert-Jacques Ducourt passed away two years ago.

"Never mind, never mind. It doesn't matter where the money comes from, as long as it can keep the country going and get through this difficult financial period, it's fine."

Louis XVI, who had been waiting for a long time, even since Ducourt's death, had been waiting for someone to come forward to promote reforms, but no one had come to take responsibility, thought somewhat discouraged.

"If we can't touch the great nobles, then we'll build warships and supplement them with wealth from overseas colonies. As long as the army is large enough, those merchants and relatively wealthy urban workers won't cause any trouble."

This was not only the idea of Louis XVI, but also the idea of all the top French nobles.

They were completely unaware of the energy that would be unleashed when the emerging bourgeoisie, middle and lower-level military officers, and urban workers combined forces.

"By the way, we still have an ally in the East, we can't expect them to betray us too.

Minister of State, tell the Chinese ambassador in Paris to come to Ganquan Palace. I have something to inform him of."

After hearing the king's words, the Chief Minister of State, Count Maurepas, whispered, "Your Majesty, may I know what you wish to discuss with the envoys from the Chinese Empire?"

"Of course it's the spice trade route. Your Majesty Guangzhong obtained the entire Batavia, but the price was borne by France. We may not want the territory, but we must be given appropriate compensation in terms of money.

Alternatively, we can borrow some gold and silver from the Chinese Empire to tide us over the current crisis."

"This is one way, but to completely ease the financial pressure, we still have to increase taxes," Finance Minister Earl Hannonville reminded. He said this with no psychological burden at all.

If the country can no longer survive, it will naturally have to collect taxes from the people below.

Let the farmers, factory owners, and Parisians suffer more, and let the king bear the blame.

Louis XVI was not a fool. When he heard what Count Hannonville said, he knew that these guys had no solution. The only thing they could propose was to convene a three-level parliament to pretend to delegate power in exchange for heavy taxation from the people below.

However, this method is a helpless choice when there is no other choice, and the side effects are not small.

"The time is not yet ripe. Perhaps there are other ways." Louis XVI immediately refused.

(End of this chapter)