I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 378: Vandernot's Conspiracy

"You are the true leader of the French Revolution!" the middle-aged man flattered. "When those cowards retreated under the tyranny of the tyrant, only you were still bravely fighting for the French people."

"This is my eternal career!" Saint Just's face showed a proud and arrogant look. He was not very interested in money and beauty, but he liked others' flattery very much.

The middle-aged man calmly took out a stack of French Savings Bank notes from his pocket, handed it to him, and whispered, "This is your activity funds."

The bills were received by the Southern Netherlands Parliament from local farmers, who were not very fond of such light money, but the French seemed happy to accept it.

Saint Just immediately rejected the money: "The activity funds should be managed by the 'club'. I can't collect it privately."

He motioned the middle-aged man to get on the carriage with him, and said seriously: “Compared to the funds, where are the muskets that the committee promised?

"You know, those vultures in the Palace of Versailles who only eat the French people will never surrender. We must have guns, and preferably cannons, to crush them completely, so that the French people can truly gain freedom!"

The "committee" he was talking about was the organization sent by the Southern Netherlands Parliament to incite the French Revolution. The middle-aged man in front of him was one of the seven core members of the committee, named Yescute, who was specifically responsible for connecting with Saint Just, an important figure in the French liberal faction.

The entire committee had more than 210 people in France. In order to reverse the stalemate on the Brussels battlefield, Van der Nott also made a huge investment. In addition to manpower, he also provided more than 80 livres of funds and thousands of flintlock rifles together with the Netherlands.

Yeskut nodded vigorously: "You are right! The tyrant and his minions must be crushed!

"Please rest assured that the first batch of 1 muskets has passed Cambrai and should arrive in Reims the day after tomorrow. The rest will be delivered within this month."

A fiery light flashed in Saint Just's eyes, and then he discussed with Yeskut the specific implementation process of the riot.

As soon as the carriage stopped in the village of Zesfeil, farmers immediately gathered here from the fields.

Other revolutionaries from the "club" had already come here to make arrangements, including secret propaganda and guarding against the rural mounted police, and were just waiting for Saint Just to give a speech.

Saint Just looked at the people around him excitedly, and suddenly thought of something. He turned to Yescute and said in a deep voice: "I have always had a question, Mr. Yescute. How did you know the details of the land redemption plan of the Palace of Versailles?"

The latter paused for a moment, then forced a smile and said, "You know, we have been active in France for many years, so we naturally have our own channels."

"Is the intelligence reliable? I don't want people to think I'm deceiving them."

"We have been revolutionary partners for many years, you can trust me!" Yeskut said with a firm expression. In fact, the harsh redemption plan in Saint Just's speech was only made up by Van der Nott at the behest of the British.

……

Palace of Versailles.

At a salon attended by more than a hundred people, almost all the nobles were indifferent to the topics of the salon, and instead gathered in groups of three or five to discuss in low voices the recent domestic situation.

"Have you heard the news? The peasants of Reims and Lille drove out the village governors and then attacked the town hall!"

"Although there hasn't been much coverage in the newspapers, it has already caused quite a stir. It is said that there have been protest marches in more than a dozen cities."

Several less well-informed nobles immediately asked in shock: "What on earth are those untouchables going to do?"

"It seems that they are dissatisfied with the land redemption plan and want to use this method to put pressure on the government." "These greedy bastards! His Majesty has agreed to let them own the land, which is a gift that has never been seen since God created the world, and they only need to pay a small redemption fee, and they are not satisfied?!"

A bloated noble in his fifties said viciously, "That's right! Our rights have been abolished, and all the benefits have been given to the untouchables. Instead of being grateful, they are making trouble? In my opinion, all the restless guys should be arrested and hanged, and not even an acre of land should be given to them!"

"That's right! Taxes are a reward from His Majesty the King to the nobles, and they should not be abolished!"

Seeing that the situation had almost reached a critical point, a young nobleman who had remained silent immediately interrupted, "I advise you to accept the facts. In order to appease the peasants who have made trouble, His Majesty has instructed the cabinet to issue a new decree to reduce the redemption period to five years."

The nobles around them immediately started shouting, "That's the land that His Majesty the King gave us. Five years later, we won't get a penny of it?"

"How can I do this? My son's tuition and my daughter's dowry all depend on those lands..."

"Don't even mention tuition and dowry. In five years we might even have to beg for food!"

Although most of these old nobles had other industries, feudal rent and taxes were definitely one of their important sources of income.

They originally thought that the government would allow farmers to redeem at least 5 to years of rent and taxes, so that they would have time to plan other sources of income. But if it was only years, their quality of life would inevitably plummet.

Not to mention some people who are rigid-minded and rely entirely on feudal rents and taxes for their livelihood. Once the rents and taxes are gone, they really have to beg for a living.

Someone excitedly waved his fist and shouted, "Let's go and petition Her Majesty the Queen!"

"Right! We must not let the untouchables get the land so easily!"

The young nobleman stopped several people and whispered, "Your Majesty must have made a decision. Have you forgotten? Last time the nobles' rights were terminated, we also petitioned, but it didn't work."

"Then what do you want to do?"

"We have to defend Lille and Reims City Hall on our own and teach those greedy pariahs a lesson with the sword! Are there any brave men willing to go with me?"

……

Second floor of the Tuileries Palace.

In the office of the Industrial Planning Bureau, Fouche bowed his head deeply and said in a low voice: "Your Highness, I failed to handle this incident properly. No matter what kind of punishment you receive, I will not complain."

Joseph sighed and motioned for him to sit down on the chair. "Protests broke out in more than a dozen cities on the same day. Someone must have planned this for a long time. You don't have to blame yourself too much."

As he was speaking, Emmanuel knocked on the door and entered. The court official behind him saluted and said to Joseph, "Your Highness, Her Majesty the Queen asks you to return to the Palace of Versailles immediately to attend the temporary cabinet meeting."

Joseph nodded and stood up: "Is it about the peasants making trouble?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

(End of this chapter)