I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 390: The Secret War between Britain and France
The Marquis of Wellesley was choked as if a piece of mud was stuck in his chest. He took a deep breath and nodded, "Yes, although we have encountered some challenges in the Far East, the East India Company has massively increased its troops, and the natives of Mysore will soon be punished."

"So you are here to tell me the good news that the British army is invincible." Talleyrand made an exaggerated expression: "It seems that we have nothing to talk about in the Far East. Oh, congratulations to His Majesty the King of England on his glorious victory in advance!"

Wellesley looked at him and felt like walking away with just a word "just wait and see".

However, he immediately remembered the special bond of 170 million pounds issued by the British East India Company last week. This money was specifically used to solve the Mysore problem - at the current exchange rate, it was a huge sum of more than 4200 million livres.

This is just the first batch of bonds, which have been almost spent after paying for additional soldiers, buying weapons, supplies, and aiding Indian allies. At least another 80 pounds may be issued next month.

You know, at the request of the East India Company, the British Royal Navy sent 25 warships, loaded with more than 5000 marines, to South Asia to help resist the Mysore Army. These warships and soldiers traveled thousands of miles to fight, and they were all gold-eating monsters.

If the East India Company's war with Mysore did not go well, the huge loss would cause the East India Company's stock price to plummet. At the same time, as the British-Indian trade was affected by the war, the East India Company's revenue would also be in trouble.

You know, the East India Company is not just a company, it is also the most important "blood pump" of the British Empire, contributing a huge amount of funds to Britain every year. Its profitability will directly determine the fiscal surplus of the British government.

More importantly, the British, especially the British upper class - including almost all MPs - were basically shareholders of the East India Company.

If the East India Company's stock price collapsed, the British people, whose wallets were hit hard, would immediately drive the Tories out of power. Even King George III, who strongly supported Pitt the Younger, would lose his political prestige.

Wellesley knew that his mission on this trip was to obtain the best war environment for the East India Company in India, and for now he had to tolerate this dead cripple.

He paused for a moment, then smiled. “Your Excellency, Archbishop, you know that defeating Mysore is just a matter of money. Fortunately, Britain can easily come up with this little money.”

He leaned forward slightly, looked at Talleyrand and said, “And the investment in Tunisia is a heavy financial burden for your country.

"Oh, if I made a mistake in my calculations, please point it out directly. Your country's finances should only be enough to support the situation in North Africa until the end of this year. By the way, I heard that you are planning to invest heavily in an iron and steel plant in Luxembourg, which will further squeeze military spending, and perhaps you won't even be able to hold out until the end of the year."

"I'm impressed that you're also good at finance." Talleyrand said nonchalantly, "Fortunately, Tunisia is very close to France, so it won't cost much anyway.

"And how much did you spend on the India project? Two million pounds?"

He smiled and waved his hand: "Of course, this is nothing to the wealthy East India Company. It is just half a year's 'domestic tax' [Note 1]."

The so-called "internal taxes" are the profits paid by the East India Company to the British government. This does not include dividends to shareholders. This shows how amazing the East India Company's ability to make money is.

Talleyrand met the British Foreign Secretary’s gaze as he spoke: “You see, the crux of the matter is that France can afford to lose North Africa. After all, we haven’t invested much money in Tunisia, and not many people even buy land there.

"Can Britain also say goodbye to India in the same carefree way as we did?"

Wellesley paused. The cripple was right. Britain couldn't bear it, so he came to Paris to suffer this humiliation.

He tried to keep smiling, pretending to pick up the teacup to drink water, avoiding Talleyrand's stare: "So, there is no need for both of our countries to continue wasting money on things that have nothing to do with us, right?" He had already pointed out that Britain should stop supporting Algiers and Tripoli, France should stop sponsoring Mysore, and everyone should save money and live their own lives.

Talleyrand nodded. "Your proposal is very useful. Then, should Britain formally recognize our country's interests in the Maghreb countries?"

The Marquis of Wellesley really wanted to hit this cripple with a stick. France only took advantage of the chaos to get Tunisia, but how come you just included all the Maghreb countries? This also includes Morocco, which is the British sphere of influence!
"This is totally irrational," he shook his head. "At most, it recognizes France's influence in Tunisia."

“Perhaps it would be a good idea for our country to establish some diplomatic relations with Mysore.”

"In that case, the Royal Navy will be able to block the Strait of Gibraltar at any time!"

"I doubt that your country has the energy to operate in the Mediterranean while India is in a mess..."

“When challenged, the depth of the British Empire surprises everyone.”

"Well, then Morocco is not included. But our country wants to obtain trading rights in Carnatic India."

"Your appetite is too great, and it is harmful to your health, Archbishop. Listen to me, let Mysore withdraw its troops and France get Tunisia. This will be better for everyone."

Carnatic is a large state in southeastern India, dozens of times larger than Pondicherry, the French foothold in India. This will break Britain's monopoly on Indian trade, which the British will never agree to.

Of course, Talleyrand was just asking for an exorbitant price. The French fleet was not yet sufficient to maintain trade to the Far East.

"Then return Dominica and Antigua to our country..." Talleyrand was referring to two small islands in the Caribbean that produce sugarcane.

"No, you are wrong. Mysore for Tunisia. This is my bottom line..."

After a sincere and in-depth exchange of views, the two old foxes ended the talks in a very harmonious atmosphere without reaching any agreement.

In fact, this is the norm in diplomatic negotiations. Everyone first finds out the other party's bottom line, then goes back to use their own tactics, and then continues to negotiate. Until one party is unwilling to continue to invest...

Wellesley left the Palace of Versailles with a gloomy face, and wrote a letter to Lord Talmos, the British envoy to the Maghreb countries, in the carriage, asking him to urge Algiers and Tripoli to put pressure on Tunisia.

He then wrote to Cornwallis, the Governor-General of India, asking him to concentrate all his forces to achieve a great victory in order to increase his bargaining chips when facing the French.

At the same time, in the Crown Prince's bedroom, Talleyrand reported the content of the conversation to Joseph.

[Note 1] Talleyrand used exaggeration here. In fact, at the end of the 18th century, the domestic taxes paid back to Britain by the East India Company were roughly more than 300 million pounds per year.

(End of this chapter)