I

  Chapter 941 937 [Alliance of China, Britain, France and Portugal]

  Charles was crowned in London immediately, known as Charles II.

  The royalists who followed their mother and son into exile in the early years were conferred two dukes and three marquises in one go.

  George Monk, who was stationed in Scotland, although he had defected to Cromwell and issued a statement, he stayed on the way, but he was once a royalist after all. Moreover, now that he holds a heavy army in his hands, he has also won the position of Marquis.

  As for Thomas and John, these two London country youths, they were made Viscounts directly across classes.

  The title is not high, but it is not low. The main reason is that the class has improved, and it can continue to rise at a young age.

   What's more, they were also appointed to important positions.

  Thomas took five hundred Arakan soldiers to Cromwell's hometown of Huntingdon, with the purpose of sweeping away Cromwell's residual influence. A large piece of land there was allocated to Thomas as a fiefdom, far exceeding the viscount treatment. Moreover, all of the five hundred Arakan soldiers had the title of knight, and each of them was allocated a small piece of land.

  John stayed in London, responsible for guarding the court, and got a fief outside London.

  When Cromwell came to power, he not only killed the king, but also carried out a big purge. A bunch of traditional nobles were killed, some even their descendants were killed, and the land and property were divided up by the revolutionaries. These lands can be taken back and re-given to heroes.

  In history, Charles was invited back to be the king, and he didn't even dare to take back the royal land. Nowadays, much of what the revolutionary party eats has to be spit out.

  Of course, for those places that are too far away from London and there are no sufferers, Charles still chooses to let nature take its course. If all of them are withdrawn, it will force against the gentry class and bring unnecessary trouble to oneself.

  The method is nothing more than a combination of kindness and force, killing those who dance the most fiercely and have a bad reputation, and the rest Xiao Xiao will forgive and appease.

  Everything seems to be settled, but Prince Charles...well, King Charles II, is left speechless with a pile of accounts.

  The old king Charles I was beheaded because of the failure of financial reforms, which led to a major uprising. Cromwell's son, as well as the previous military government, were also unable to establish prestige due to financial problems.

   Even if Cromwell is still alive, his rule may not last long.

  Last year, the UK's annual revenue was 1.9 million pounds, fiscal expenditure was 2.3 million pounds, and the total government debt was 2.6 million pounds. Among them, military expenditure is the bulk, the army spends 1.1 million pounds a year, and the navy spends 900,000 pounds a year.

  Army military expenditures were mainly used to suppress the Irish uprising. After more than ten years of suppression, the population of Ireland was halved.

  Navy military expenditures are mainly for war with the Netherlands and Spain, and the arms race continues.

  Charles II, who successfully recaptured the throne, obtained a large sum of money by ransacking his home, but it was nothing compared to the fiscal deficit. Especially for the 2.6 million pounds of public debt, interest is paid every year!

   After thinking hard for many days, Charles II convened a parliament and directly announced his decision.

  First, set up the Ministry of Administration, the Ministry of Taxation, the Ministry of Military Affairs, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, set up the Bank of England, and restore the Royal Privy Council.

  Second, clearly divide the functions of the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The officials of each ministry are elected by the Parliament and then appointed with the consent of the King. The King can directly appoint officials.

  Third, formalize consumption tax, monthly tax and tariff.

  The consumption tax and monthly tax were created by Cromwell, and they must be collected by the bourgeoisie and the gentry. Now that Charles II has confirmed it, it is equivalent to giving the House of Commons enough power.

  The monthly tax collected from farmers, also known as land tax, accounts for a quarter of farmers' total income. Because the harvest was too heavy, farmers began to rebel, and Cromwell was forced to drop to one eighth.

  As for customs duties, they were previously contracted out by the royal family to merchants. Facts have proved that it is better to raise civil servants to collect the tax. Even if the civil servants are corrupt, the tariffs collected can be doubled.

   After finalizing these, Charles II still sighed.

   "I really envy the Chinese emperor." Charles II said.

  John, who was in charge of the court, knew what the king was thinking, and said: "Education must be established in order to have enough officials."

   Charles II said: "But I have no money to build a school."

   Don't look at Charles II doing well, but Britain does not have a mature civil service system. Tax collection used to rely on the royal family and nobles, but now it can only rely on the squires and the bourgeoisie. In the long run, the power of the House of Commons is enough to overthrow the king.

  Historically, when Charles II wanted to reform in his later years, the convening of parliament could only be held in Oxford, and he sent troops directly to the town of Oxford. Because the MPs in London were too powerful, he was afraid that he would be directly killed by the MPs in the middle of the session.

After thinking about it, Charles II said: "No matter how poor you are, you must build a school. First, build a royal school in England. It does not teach theology, but only Latin, English, reading and writing, and accounting. Recruit students from the common people in London and the suburbs. , exempt their tuition fees, and arrange for them to work as port tax officers after graduation.”

  This king is really pitiful. When he directly dispatches officials, he only dares to start with tariffs and dare not touch other taxes. Otherwise, he is fighting for power with the House of Commons.

   Of course, Charles II also has long-term plans. When those port tax collectors grow up, they can be thrown into several major departments and mixed with sand.

  Having been in China for several years, Charles II did not go on a trip, and he also learned Chinese methods.

   Immediately, Charles II issued public bonds, used tariffs as collateral, and found a Dutch businessman to get 300,000 pounds. As soon as the money was obtained, the army began to be abolished, all the Irish garrisons were disbanded, the military pay was paid back to a severance pay, and tax cuts were given to Irish nobles and civilians.

  After disarmament, hundreds of thousands of pounds of military expenditure can be saved every year, and Ireland, which is riddled with holes, does not want to rebel.

  But the naval military expenditure cannot be reduced, and it has to be increased. The second Anglo-Dutch war may break out at any time.

How to do?

   Looking for a marriage, you can choose from French, Spanish and Portuguese princesses. Because in these three countries, the dowry money for marrying a princess is the most, so you can take the opportunity to make a fortune!

  The only princess of Portugal has married the emperor of China.

  French princesses are not old enough either.

  Charles II was very distressed by this, and the royal marriage is a big event. Britain is competing with Spain for the Mediterranean, and Portugal has a bad relationship with Spain. In this case, it is impossible for him to marry the Spanish princess.

   It's so frightening that I can't even find a marriage partner!

  After much deliberation, Charles II decided to wrong himself and marry Louis XIV's niece to count the ball—the eldest daughter of the Duke of Nemours in France, whose mother was the illegitimate granddaughter of Louis XIV's grandfather.

  When the British envoy came to Paris, Louis XIV was fascinated by Chinese art.

  The French Mission brought back a large number of literary and artistic works from China, which Louis XIV enjoyed for several months.

   "Is the glazed pagoda in China really that tall?" Louis XIV asked repeatedly.

  Colbert said: "It's really that high."

  Louis XIV asked again: "How did Chinese architects build it three hundred years ago?"

  Colbert shook his head: "I don't know, I only know that it took 100,000 craftsmen and 20 years to complete the construction. Your Majesty, we can build a shorter one, and there is no need to build it according to the size of China."

  Louis XIV was silent.

  Although he has not yet been in power, he is already planning to build the Palace of Versailles, and said that there must be Chinese-style buildings.

   It was another palace banquet. Not only knives and forks were placed on the table, but also many chopsticks.

  Louis XIV introduced to the nobles: "This is a chef from China. He used to cook food for the Chinese emperor. I spent a lot of money to invite him to Paris. Let us warmly welcome him!"

   "Papa clap!"

  The nobles applauded collectively.

  Qian Yigui grinned, but he was filled with contempt in his heart.

  He is actually just an apprentice chef in Fan Lou. His father is seriously ill, and he has younger siblings to support. Life is extremely difficult. The French envoys hired chefs everywhere, but no one was willing to go to sea. For the sake of his family, Qian Yigui bit the bullet and agreed, taking a full settling allowance of 80 taels of silver.

  When he came to Paris, he didn’t have enough cooking ingredients, not even a frying pan, so he had to get everything slowly. Moreover, some things were not to Louis XIV's liking, and the taste of the dishes had to be readjusted.

  By the way, Qian Yigui also accepted more than ten French apprentices.

  He is now a French court chef, awarded a baron, and married a musketeer's daughter as his wife (the court musketeer is also a nobleman).

  The traditional French appetizers are served first, and then a Chinese dish is served, all served on blue and white porcelain plates.

  Louis XIV raised his chopsticks: "This dish is called tomato scrambled eggs. It is said that it is the favorite delicacy of the Chinese emperor. Everyone, let's start."

  Louis XIV has practiced chopsticks for a long time. He holds the chopsticks in his right hand and the spoon in his left, and eats scrambled eggs with tomatoes intoxicated.

  The French nobles also picked up spoons one after another, full of praise.

  The maid brought another bowl of rice. This thing is an imported product, the price is extremely expensive and the quantity is scarce.

  Louis XIV proudly said: "Stir tomato scrambled eggs with rice, the juice will be incorporated into the rice, and the deliciousness will be doubled."

  The aristocrats followed suit, and they all praised this stuff as delicious, and some people drank it with wine.

   There is no Chinese chef on Charles II's side, but he can cook by himself. When this guy was in exile in Europe, he even learned carpentry, and he also learned a lot when he went to China.

  The next day, the British envoy arrived.

  Queen Anne refused to marry for a simple reason. She hated Charles II's mother, and she had a very bad relationship with this sister-in-law.

  Prime Minister Mazarin observed the situation and immediately found a legitimate excuse for the queen: "We are allies with the Netherlands, while Britain and the Netherlands are enemies. We cannot marry the enemy of our allies."

Louis XIV didn't think so. He said to his mother: "The younger sister of Charles II married the crown prince of China. If my niece marries Charles II, I will be equal to the emperor of China, and I will be the same as the emperor of China." They are relatives."

  The queen mother and the prime minister were speechless for a moment.

Louis XIV continued: "Britain and Spain are enemies, and France and Spain are also enemies. The marriage of France and Britain can suppress Spain. As for the Netherlands, what is the use of this ally? The Dutch East India Company almost went bankrupt a few years ago. The army is also not a threat. We should form an alliance with Britain and Portugal to deal with Spain. Britain and Portugal have married their princesses to China. They are joining forces to fight against Spain and the Netherlands. France should also actively join this alliance.”

   "No," Queen Anne said, "The French princess can marry anyone, but not Charles II!"

  This queen was angry with her sister-in-law when she was young, and she can remember her grudges for a lifetime.

  Louis XIV said: "Mother, my niece married Charles II, what will he call you in the future?"

  Queen Anne instantly became happy, the marriage was completed, and her sister-in-law (mother of Charles II) would be her junior from now on.

  Although seniority is not talked about in Europe, it still makes her very happy.

  Through the marriage, the alliance of China, Britain, France and Portugal has taken shape. Their current enemies are the Netherlands and Spain.

  Of course, sooner or later there will be a day when they will turn their backs.

  (end of this chapter)