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Chapter 140: Opportunities Are Everywhere
🕑 Added 2024-12-16 21:21:22 +0000 UTCChapter 140: Opportunities Are Everywhere
Father and son exchanged a knowing smile and immediately decided to leave. As Joseph was about to head towards the Marble Courtyard, he noticed Louis XVI turning towards the tea room.
Surprised, he followed and asked, "Father, aren't we going to the shooting range?"
"Yes," Louis XVI nodded, "But while they prepare the carriage, we might as well have some tea, snacks, and change clothes."
Joseph suddenly remembered his father's 1.5-ton ultra-luxurious carriage. With all the equipment needed for his outings, it would take at least 40 minutes to get everything ready.
He quickly stopped Louis XVI, saying, "Dear father, this time you're going as a gun master to test your masterpiece, so there's no need to worry about formalities. Why not just ride in my carriage?"
Louis XVI blinked. Hmm, a gun master? That sounded interesting, quite stylish even. He agreed and, after quickly changing his clothes, left Versailles and climbed into his son's gray and black carriage.
The royal guards, seeing the king's carriage start moving, exchanged puzzled glances and hurried to mount their horses and follow.
Not long into the journey, Louis XVI started to complain, "Joseph, your carriage is so bumpy... I should have waited for my own carriage."
Joseph asked, "Isn't your carriage bumpy too?"
"No, my carriage has over ten sets of springs installed on the chassis." The ever-technical Louis XVI briefly explained the construction of his carriage.
"Spring suspension?!" Joseph was shocked. He'd been planning to invent something like that but hadn't realized it already existed. "Who made your carriage?"
"The same workshop that makes carriages for the palace."
Joseph asked for more details and learned that carriages with spring suspension had been around for decades. However, these springs were hand-made one by one, making them expensive and hard to produce in large quantities. A single spring for a carriage could cost 30 livres and would often break, needing replacement every two to three months.
As a result, a carriage equipped with spring suspension could easily cost over a thousand livres. The king's custom version was even more expensive.
Of course, people weren't eager to use these carriages due to their high cost, frequent maintenance, and the hassle of repairs.
Joseph smiled at the price. Opportunities are everywhere if you pay attention. Why use delicate springs when a simple leaf spring system could solve the problem? Looks like he could start a new business with carriages.
If he had known how valuable this idea was, he would have implemented it sooner and spared himself months of discomfort!
In the southern suburbs of Paris, at the police academy's training grounds, instructors and cadets were filled with excitement and anticipation. The king had made a surprise visit.
Accompanied by senior police officials, Louis XVI greeted the cadets with a friendly smile and nod. Then, he turned to Joseph and whispered, "I can't believe you built such a large military academy!"
Joseph laughed and corrected him, "Ah, it's a police academy, for training police officers."
Louis XVI pointed to a distant group of soldiers in neat formation. "Aren't those all soldiers?"
Joseph didn't hide the truth from his father. "Well, I did train an army to test some ideas about military reform. They sometimes come here to train."
"Military reform?" Louis XVI chuckled. "You mean like what Marquis de Louvois did?"
Marquis de Louvois had been the War Minister for Louis XIV, spearheading military reforms that significantly boosted the French army's combat effectiveness. In fact, the Sun King's reputation had largely been built by Louvois' army.
However, Louis XVI didn't really believe that his fourteen-year-old son could pull off a serious military reform.
Joseph could only give a vague response, "Ah, something like that."
"I'm so proud of you, my son!"
As Louis XVI spoke, his eyes lit up when he saw the shooting range in the distance, and he quickened his pace.
When they reached a hundred-meter-wide dirt wall, the instructors had already placed several wooden target dummies 40 paces away. One and a half paces were about one meter, so 40 paces was roughly 26 meters.
Since the king himself was going to be shooting, they placed the targets close to avoid the embarrassment of him missing too many times.
Under the gaze of the crowd, Louis XVI eagerly took the percussion cap rifle and ammunition bag handed to him by an attendant. He swiftly loaded the powder, packed it down, inserted the lead ball, and cocked the hammer. Then, he pulled out a percussion cap and placed it on the gun's nipple.
His movements were smooth and practiced, showing that he had done this routine many times while working on the rifle.
With a loud "bang," the gun fired, and the bullet grazed the shoulder of one of the wooden targets.
The surrounding instructors and attendants immediately praised his shot, while the officers, like Friant and Dubois, focused on the strange rifle.
Noticing their curious expressions, Joseph smiled at Dubois and asked, "Major Dubois, would you like to have a speed shooting contest with His Majesty?"
Dubois had been in the army for over ten years and was one of the fastest shooters in the academy.
Seeing that Louis XVI was also eager to compete, Dubois bowed and said, "As you wish, Your Highness."
He picked up a standard Charleville Model 1776 flintlock rifle and hung his ammunition pouch at his waist.
Joseph then loudly called out, "Start!"
The two contestants immediately got to work. Dubois was faster, quickly pouring the powder, pulling out the ramrod, and packing it down, while Louis XVI was still loading his powder.
Dubois maintained his lead, but as he poured the priming powder into the flash pan, Louis XVI had just finished packing his lead ball.
However, as Dubois cocked the hammer and raised his rifle to aim, he suddenly heard the "click" of the king's rifle.
His heart skipped a beat. That meant the king had only been two seconds slower than him!
Dubois had been practicing loading and shooting for over ten years, with countless hours spent perfecting the routine. The fact that the king, who mainly used his guns for hunting, could nearly match him was shocking.
The two rifles fired almost simultaneously, and everyone watching, except for the king and his son, was wide-eyed in amazement.
Dubois bowed to Louis XVI and said, "Your Majesty, if I may be so bold, could I have the honor of examining your rifle?"
"Of course," Louis XVI said, handing over the gun and thoughtfully giving Dubois a percussion cap as well. "You'll need this to fire it."
Joseph picked up the other percussion cap rifle and began explaining how it worked to Dubois.
When Dubois learned that the new rifle eliminated the step of pouring priming powder, saving three actions compared to the flintlock, he was so excited that his breathing quickened. "Your Majesty, may I fire a shot to try it out?"
rward, it was time for the police academy instructors to collectively test the new percussion gun.
After trying out the new gun, everyone was thrilled. They clearly understood what improving shooting speed by three or four seconds would mean.
Joseph tried firing a few shots himself, but the recoil was huge, and the gun's stock hit his shoulder painfully. Even Louis XVI could load the gun faster than him.
"Hmm, I'm the Prince, I should rely on my brain. Firing guns should be left to someone like Kesod."
Soon, Frient, the head of instruction, discovered another advantage of the percussion gun.
"I feel this gun is more powerful than the 1776 model," he said.
Joseph silently agreed. With no leaking from the priming chamber, the gunpowder's explosion power was focused more on the bullet, increasing the power.
Another instructor nodded. "I felt that too. And when firing, there's no smoke blowing in your face, so it doesn't sting your eyes."
This, of course, was another advantage of removing the priming chamber. The priming chamber was near the shooter's face, and the leaking gas would disrupt vision, something the percussion gun didn't have to worry about.
The group was excited, firing and discussing until they had used up all 70 or 80 percussion caps they had brought. Only then did they reluctantly stop.
As it turned out, Louis XVI's craftsmanship was excellent—each gun had fired nearly 40 shots without any issues.
Only King Louis XVI stood there looking somewhat dejected. He had come to test the gun, but ended up only firing two shots. His social anxiety prevented him from asking for the gun back from these strangers...
The empty guns were gathered by the king's attendants. Frient then looked at Joseph and asked, "Your Highness, are these new guns made by the Charleville factory? What's the name?"
Charleville was France's largest firearms production center, and previous new models were often developed there.
But Joseph bowed slightly to his father, Louis XVI, and said, "No, these guns were made by His Majesty himself."
Louis XVI smiled shyly but proudly. He wanted to add that the design was the Prince's idea, but his social anxiety made him stumble over his words.
"As for the name," Joseph thought for a moment, "I suggest we call it the August 1788 Percussion Rifle."
The crowd cheered loudly at the new name, shouting in unison, "The August 1788! The best gun in all of Europe!"
"This is a new era for firearms—the August 1788!"
"Long live His Majesty the King!"
Louis XVI's full name was Louis-Auguste, and Joseph knew well that his father's name held significant prestige. By increasing his father's renown, it raised the status of the entire royal family. Joseph, still working behind the scenes, thought it best to let his father take the credit for now.
Louis XVI was taken aback for a moment, but upon hearing the crowd's cheers and praises, he was filled with joy. He began imagining guns bearing his name sweeping across Europe and defeating enemies. Any regret over not firing more shots vanished.
Though he felt he was taking credit for something the Prince had done, his son's enthusiasm in giving him the naming rights made it impossible to refuse.
Later, with the crowd still cheering, Louis XVI toured the police academy's training grounds. He watched the cadets practice their drills and left feeling content.
On the carriage ride back, Louis XVI reflected on the trip. Unlike his usual grand processions, this time there were only sincere compliments and cheers, filling him with joy.
Joseph, sitting opposite him, smiled and said, "Father, I plan to build a firearms factory near Paris to produce the new percussion guns. When the time comes, we'll need your help to guide the craftsmen in the manufacturing process."
"A new firearms factory?" Louis XVI was a little surprised. "Why not produce them in Charleville?"
Joseph replied without thinking, "This gun is a key tool for controlling the military, so of course..."
Louis XVI's eyes gleamed with innocence, "Controlling the military? But the military is very loyal to me."
Joseph sighed inwardly, unsure how to explain things to his father. "Father, if you had real control over the military, you wouldn't have had so much trouble during the Revolution." But out loud, he said, "Of course, loyal to you, yes, exactly.
"The thing is, the process of making percussion guns is complicated. Right now, only you fully understand the entire process. We can't have you going to Charleville to teach the craftsmen, so it's better to produce them near Paris.
"Also, in the future, there will be other new weapons for you to design. Having the factory next to Versailles would make things more convenient."
Louis XVI was immediately convinced and nodded. "Building a new factory will cost quite a bit. Hmm, I can offer 500,000 livres. I wonder if that will be enough?"
Joseph was touched. "A father willing to invest in research and development... where else could I find such a good dad?" He quickly said, "That should be enough. If not, I can add a bit more myself. Oh, and you'll need to send people to recruit skilled craftsmen from the factories in Charleville and Saint-Étienne, so we can start producing the new guns quickly."
Joseph was sure that the king's personal request, along with the appeal of living in Paris, would attract the best craftsmen, enabling his factory to begin operations in no time.
Once the percussion guns were in production, Joseph's elite guard would have the best military power in Europe!
But then he realized that a truly strong army couldn't just stay on the training ground forever. Only the smoke of the battlefield could make them grow.
North Africa came to mind as an ideal training ground—not as strong as European armies, but not as weak as the natives in America.
The question was how to get involved in North Africa without provoking the British...
A few hours later, the carriage pulled into the Versailles Palace courtyard. The carriage belonged to Joseph, and he needed to drop off Louis XVI first. He also wanted to talk with Brienne about grain and North Africa.
As the father and son stepped off the carriage, Joseph noticed a figure in clerical robes waiting respectfully at the palace gates. Louis XVI frowned slightly, lowered his head, and walked quickly past, pretending not to see him.
Joseph caught a glimpse of the dejected expression on the cleric's face and quietly asked his father, "Father, does Dean Talleyrand want something?"
Louis XVI sighed, "It's about him becoming an archbishop."
"And?"
"He's qualified, and the Church agrees. But your mother is unhappy because he once spoke about her behind her back, so she's blocked his appointment. Now he keeps coming to me for help."
Joseph nodded inwardly. Talleyrand was certainly a talent, and this might be the perfect opportunity to recruit him.
(End of Chapter)
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