Life of Being a Crown Prince in France-Chapter 925 - 833: A Peaceful Future

Campelen nervously swallowed his saliva again and tremblingly picked up the document.

As he looked through it line by line, a gleam of surprise flashed in his panicked eyes, but it quickly turned into solemnity.

He handed the few pages in his hand to Speaker Dandels beside him, whose face also showed disbelief.

The ceasefire conditions were summarized into only four points:

First, the Netherlands will try all war criminals involved in the invasion of Valron. The trial process requires full supervision by French judges.

Second, the Netherlands must compensate for the losses caused by the invasion of Valron. The rough estimate is 700,000 Dutch guilders.

Third, the Netherlands will declare permanent neutrality. The High Court will legislate to supervise the country’s neutral status and adjudicate against any politician who undermines neutrality.

Fourth, the Dutch Parliament’s management of the Netherlands was evidently a failure, proving that nobles are indispensable in national governance. The Dutch Parliament will increase their seats by 35%, which can only be acquired by hereditary nobles spanning six generations or more.

Dandels cautiously looked at Joseph and probed, "Your Highness, are these all the terms?"

"That’s right, these are all of them."

Dandels and several Dutch officials exchanged glances, their expressions visibly relaxed.

Honestly speaking, these conditions are so lenient that they don’t resemble a "capitulation agreement"; it’s more like an ordinary diplomatic negotiation.

For example, regarding war reparations.

Before coming here, the Dutch Parliament was prepared to offer 6 million Dutch guilders, which is 75 million francs to appease the French people. In extreme situations, it could even increase to 8 million Dutch guilders, or 100 million francs.

The financial industry in the Netherlands is advanced, they have many colonies in the Far East and North America, and control the mouth of the Rhine River trade, so although the country is small, it is very affluent, and they could potentially raise this 100 million francs with effort.

But the French only wanted 8.7 million francs!

This is likely just the actual military expense of the French Army. How "generous"!

Then looking at the "permanent neutrality" clause.

After this disastrous defeat, the Netherlands is eager to distance itself from war as quickly as possible.

Originally, Campelen and others feared that France might insist that the Netherlands declare war on England, Prussia, and Austria, but surprisingly, they only required neutrality.

Just for this point alone, they wanted to earnestly pray for the Crown Prince of France.

However, concerning the increase of "noble seats" in parliament, both Campelen and Dandels had bitter expressions.

They were both from the Patriot Party, which initially launched the uprising to expel William V and seize power, so naturally they don’t want the nobles to return.

The Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs, Branzen, who was sitting on the left side, saw this and leaned forward to whisper, "Mr. Prime Minister, actually in the current situation, letting nobles participate in politics is not necessarily a bad thing."

"Oh? What are your reasons?"

"Firstly, the nobles have been secretly organizing rebellion in The Hague, and with our defeat, they are likely to take advantage of the public discontent to launch a coup; it might be better to directly invite them to join the parliament. It can prevent the country from falling into turmoil."

Branzen lowered his voice further:

"Secondly, in the coming years or even decades, both the country and the parliament will experience a difficult period..."

Campelen nodded slightly. After this defeat, the Patriot Party will surely bear heavy criticism. At the same time, major countries like England, France, Prussia, and Austria will continue to squeeze a weakened Netherlands.

He thought to himself, "You mean, let the nobles share the pressure on parliament?"

"Yes." Branzen nodded, whispering, "I even think that the French people’s demand benefits us greatly. After all, we control 65% of the seats; the nobles can’t cause much trouble."

If Joseph heard him say this, he would probably laugh out loud.

What makes these Patriot Party lawyers and journalists turned legislators think they can suppress the wealthy noble families, who have been operating in the Netherlands for hundreds of years? freewёbnoνel.com

Joseph’s inclusion of this clause was precisely to put the Dutch Parliament into a state of internal conflict.

The hereditary nobles, expelled from the core of the country’s power by the Patriot Party, are deeply resentful of these Liberals; once they regain contact with power, they will certainly exhaust every effort to oppose them.

The Patriot Party has the advantage of public support, while the nobles have advantages in wealth and influence. As they tear at each other, the Netherlands will struggle to accomplish anything in the future.

Campelen and others quietly discussed it again, all feeling that allowing nobles into parliament was not unacceptable.

After opinions were unified, Campelen cautiously looked at Joseph and said:

"Respected Crown Prince, if our country accepts these conditions, will your country immediately withdraw troops?"

Joseph nodded calmly: "All troops will withdraw from the Netherlands within a month."

"Oh, by the way, the ceasefire agreement needs to be publicly signed in Amsterdam, anyone can go to watch."

Campelen didn’t hesitate to say, "Of course, that is certainly acceptable."

Merely half an hour later, this conference that decided the future destiny of the Netherlands came to an end.

Campelen came with a stomach full of negotiation terms, virtually none of which were used; the entire process followed the pace set by the Crown Prince of France.

Joseph watched the backs of several departing Dutch officials, a cold smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

He has not forgotten how he helped the Dutch Patriot Party overthrow William V, only to be betrayed by the Dutch.

He’s not one to repay grievances with kindness like a saint.

Instead, his principle is to repay every grudge, with interest!

The concessions he offered to Campelen were merely for appearances since the post-war integration of regions like Rhineland and Northern Italy is about to begin, necessitating establishing a favorable international image for France.

In the past, Napoleon disregarded this aspect, resulting in the entrenched perception of France as a menacing force. Small nations submitted helplessly when faced with France’s strong military, but as soon as France’s power waned, they promptly emerged to oppose France.

In international politics, one must not only wield military intimidation but also construct a sphere of interest for other nations and convey a sense of political and economic security, ensuring their commitment to align with France.

As for the cost to be paid by the Dutch, naturally, it will be handled by the Flemish Republic.

France will promptly demarcate from the Flemish Republic, as the enmity between Flanders and Valron is widely known, and now Valron has been incorporated into France.

If the Flemish want to obtain the capital to establish a nation, they need to emerge as the ’villain.’

The Dutch Parliament seemed apprehensive that France might backtrack, hurriedly passing Joseph’s ceasefire terms with extremely high efficiency, even preparing the 8.7 million francs in reparations directly.

A week later, the Franco-Dutch ceasefire agreement was formally signed in the Dam Square in front of Amsterdam City Hall.

Joseph did not attend this ceremony intended for the public to witness, delegating it instead to Saigul and Lefevre.

In the center of Dam Square, Saigul initially delivered a passionate "peace speech" before three to four thousand Dutch citizens.

He accused certain Dutch conspirators of attempting to undermine Franco-Dutch friendship, but the merciful King of France decided to let bygones be bygones and lead both nations toward a peaceful future.