Life of Being a Crown Prince in France-Chapter 977 - 885: Gathering in Paris

The Toscanans have long believed, from hundreds of years ago, that if a country is economically and culturally advanced enough, it doesn’t need a military to earn the respect or even admiration of other countries.

Based on this belief, Tuscany had previously entrusted all its national defense to the Austrian garrison.

However, when Napoleon marched on Mantua, the Austrian troops in Tuscany were all taken away by Genoa.

Now, the entire Tuscan army numbers less than a thousand, and these soldiers usually handle city security, with virtually no field capabilities.

Priest Benner repeated his earlier words several times, then turned and left.

No one dared to stop him the entire time.

Two days later.

Florence, Palazzo Pitti.

Duke Adrian of Florence sat up from the soft velvet bed, looked around in confusion, and then realized this was the Royal Palace.

Yes, after Priest Benner’s speech that day, more than half of Tuscany’s soldiers fled by night.

Not many officers ran away—most directly swore allegiance to the Duke of Florence.

On the other side, the original Grand Duke of Tuscany, the younger brother of the Holy Roman Emperor, Ferdinand III, was controlled by the city officers and handed over to the Medici Family.

However, Priest Benner, following the Crown Prince’s previous instructions, sent Ferdinand III back to Austria.

Joseph knew that holding onto Ferdinand III was of little use; it was better to let him trouble Franz II—Ferdinand, as a Grand Duke and imperial relative, received an annual pension of at least seven or eight hundred thousand florins. In the future, His Majesty the Emperor would have to pay for this money.

The Duke of Florence turned but did not see his wife, more than twenty years his junior, who had been lying next to him last night.

He put on the clothes handed by the maid and walked out of the bedroom, hearing his wife Caterina’s voice from the next room: "Also bring along this dress; it’s very suitable for the audience with Her Majesty the Queen. Oh, be careful with my perfume; it’s worth 300 ducats..."

The Duke of Florence pushed open the door, and before him was the busy scene of maids, with all sorts of luggage placed everywhere.

Caterina turned and saw her husband, immediately coming over to embrace him: "Darling, you’re awake?"

The Duke of Florence gestured towards the room: "What are you preparing for?"

"Of course, preparations to go to Paris," Caterina responded and then waved to the attendant nearby, "Luo Meng, where is that document? Bring it for the Duke to sign."

"Yes, madam." The attendant quickly and respectfully handed a few sheets of paper to the Duke of Florence.

He glanced over the paper and immediately saw top artworks like "The Birth of Venus" by Botticelli, "Medusa" by Caravaggio, and "Holy Family and Saint John" by Michelangelo.

He looked at his wife in surprise: "This is?"

"Gifts for His Majesty the King," Caterina said. "I heard that when the French Army entered Milan, they collected many artworks, so their Majesty the King must like this."

Seeing her husband still in a daze, thinking he was reluctant, she quickly leaned close to his ear and whispered:

"You should know whose power allows us to live in this palace.

"There must still be Habsburg supporters in Tuscany. If you want to secure your position, you must win the favor of the French Royal Family."

The Duke of Florence nodded and signed the document.

Caterina smiled with satisfaction, "After tomorrow’s coronation ceremony, we’ll leave for France overnight.

"By the way, you need to brush up on your French. Although I can speak for you, it might make the nobles of the Palace of Versailles look down on you..."

...

Palace of Versailles.

Joseph flipped through the text of the "Rhine Trade Alliance Agreement" in his hand, nodding with satisfaction.

The tariffs were even lower than those of the previous "Seine-Rhine River Agreement," and admission was virtually unrestricted.

When he saw the member states who signed the agreement, he couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise: "How is Mainz among them?"

Bailly, sitting opposite, quickly explained: "Your Highness, Mainz is worried our army might cross the river and attack them, so they want to join the trade alliance in exchange for our security guarantee.

"Additionally, I heard that their diplomats experienced cold reception in Vienna, probably expressing dissatisfaction with their emperor."

Joseph continued browsing the member states and then saw Baden.

He shook his head and chuckled.

Grand Duke Karl Friedrich is quite politically astute—on one hand, joining the Iberian-Apennine Common Market from a great distance while also joining the Rhine Trade Alliance.

This means Baden can benefit from both markets in the future, undoubtedly making a fortune.

However, as a loyal follower of France, Baden has always performed well, and deserves some rewards.

Looking at the country’s names on the document, Joseph felt a grand sense of pride.

With the signing of the two trade agreements, France now has a vast free market extending north to Central Germany, south to North Africa, and east to Central Italy.

This will provide strong support for France’s industrial revolution.

Although it’s still incomparable to England in terms of market size and raw material sources, it wins in proximity, making management easier.

In the future, as France expands its influence to southern Italy and all of North Africa, it’s uncertain who will be more prosperous between England and France in ten years!

While Joseph and Bailly were talking, a commotion was heard outside the room.

Eman quickly knocked and entered, bowing to Joseph, "Your Highness, the Duke of Florence sent some gifts."

Soon, Joseph saw servants carefully bringing in world-famous paintings, placing them on the velvet carpet.

Joseph’s gaze swept over these artworks, which could only be seen on computers in later generations, and he couldn’t help but sigh softly.

This Duke of Florence is indeed knowledgeable about human relations, but these gifts...

If you sell them, it would surely be inappropriate. Keeping them would only allow them to be displayed in the Louvre.

It would probably be better to convert them into a hundred thousand ducat gold coins for something more practical.

While the Duke of Florence was still on his way, these gifts arrived ahead of him.

The Tuscan official standing nearby felt uneasy and hurried forward to bow, "Your Highness, if you are not satisfied, His Majesty said ’David’ and ’Academy of Athens’ can also be sent. However, transportation might be slower."

"’David’?" Joseph recalled the nearly three-story-high stone statue and shook his head immediately, "No, no, these are quite good."

Countess of Debeninac, Queen Mary’s maid, knocked and entered, her shocked eyes resting briefly on the paintings before kneeling to Joseph, "Your Highness, Her Majesty the Queen asked me to remind you to memorize the etiquette procedures before meeting the Holy Father."

"Holy Father?" Joseph was a bit surprised.

Eman quickly reminded in a low voice, "Your Highness, the Pope will arrive in Paris in four days."